Things had gotten interesting. Ashes was now a feline attacking Sai while keeping Discord distracted with a ball of yarn. The silver haired woman was slightly tempted to move to help her new senior agent, but she also wanted to see what he had to offer. From the looks of things Loli was edger as well to help out. She had rushed in instead of waiting to be called. Oh yes, things were getting interesting indeed. It seemed that Shadow and her were going to get a chance to go at it as they were called the field to face each other. She returned her friend’s grin with one of her own.

Hearing the order to take the field Vex held her hands out to her sides. The pocket watch hanging from her skirt glowing slightly as she seemed to pull twin dirks out of thin air. With blades in hand she rushed into battle. Her target was clear, as were her orders. Following Volkov’s command she targeted Shadow’s shoulder and knee. Using her speed she managed to dodge the bolt of electricity that Shadow sent her way. Unfortunately it gave her opponent she needed to go after Loli again. The silver hair woman pursued Shadow, “Oh no you don’t,” she called out to the woman. She threw one of her blades at the ice on Loli’s feet and the other at Shadow herself.

Vex let herself slid on the ice, coming to a stop beside Loli. She wore a grin and her eyes glowed lightly. With knives in had she was prepared to go at Shadow again before things got changed up. Sai was the one to give the order this time. She gave Shadow a slight nod of respect before moving to aid Mozilla. It seemed that Hime seen her as a threat that needed to be taken care of quickly. The thought of facing off against Ashes had excited her. She aimed one set of her knives at Shadow while keeping an eye on Ashes. This was a mistake on her part because she didn’t notice Vlad rushing towards her.

A loud gasp came from her as Vlad crashed into her, knocking the air out her and sending her flying a few feet. The man barely gave her time to land before pinning her to the ground. Her body shivered from the loss of energy. Her pale lavender eyes glared right back into Vlad’s teal ones. “You should have made sure I died that day six years ago because you’re going to have to do better if you want me dead now.” Her words dripped with venom. As he lashed at her with his metallic claws she coughed up some blood. The silver haired woman’s eyes glowed brightly as she activated her Purium. First she froze Vlad in place which seemed to be perfect timing as Scar pounced on the criminal, rolling him off of her. “Thanks Scar.”

There was a pain in the woman’s side as she moved to stand up. It seemed that Vlad had succeeded in cracking a few of her ribs, possibly breaking one. Vex ignored the sharp pain as she stood, moving to get back into the battle. Vlad was no longer frozen, so she kept an eye on him while watching the others. Her anger and instincts told her to go after Vlad. Really next to Ashes he was the biggest threat to her and her teammates. Her orders had been to protect Mozilla before the rude interruption as it were. Summoning a few knives she moved closer to Mozilla.

Grinning wickedly Shadow shot another large stream of ice at Loli's feet and flipped in the air to dodge Vex's knife. She was about to attack when Hime called out her directions. Glancing over at Mozilla and his wires, Shadow erupted in a burst of speed. Swords pointed to the ground and back she ran in a zig zag pattern, almost a blur to the eye. She was fast, faster than most Breakers.

She moved her right arm, making a swinging motion above her head with her sword before slashing it down diagonally to the side. A large, the largest yet, stream of ice shot towards the wires. Directing her next attack at Mozilla she shot a few blasts of electricity at him. While she was doing so her right sword was at work. She was moving her wrist in a circle over and over again, the tip of the sword was conjuring up some type of an ice tornado. Once it was big enough to engulf Mozilla's body she stopped the electricity attacks and sent it straight at him.

With almost a sixth sense she felt the knife coming at her and spun to the side. It nicked the top of her bicep, creating a small cut. Vexes aim was superb but her reflexes were just as good. Rolling her shoulder she kept sending blast after blast of ice at the wires. She was also keeping one eye on Loli after hearing Volkov's command for her to keep her away from anything she attacked.

She briefly glanced at the agent and frowned. What was wrong with her? Did she miss one of her teammates attacking her? Shadow quickly returned her attention back to the wires and Loli. It wouldn't do to be caught unawares. She glanced at Vex as she moved closer to Mozilla. Great now she was going to have to watch out for her friend also.

All was going seamlessly well. Mozilla was getting knocked up (not in the sexual way) and Ashes had successfully wore Sai down to his last leg. If anyone ever had a chance, they could easily take Sai out of play. The agent was probably drenched in sweat and panting at the intense workout Ashes just gave him. However, cat-man was too busy with Mozilla to really do anything about Sai. Then, Discord happened.

Pulling away from Mozilla, Ashes felt the sting and deafening shock of the aerial-like strike. Thankfully, his inferno breath seemed to be all he needed to keep shrapnel from doing any real damage. Although his body wore no visible flames, a light, hazy mist poured off his aura. With his blood boiling and body finally hot enough to produce more flames, Hime jumped in right on cue. He was to give up his assault on Mozilla, forget Discord, and head straight to Vex.

Rolling away from the mess, Ashes' cat form ran past the clashing bodies and soon found itself crushed under a heavy weight. Within seconds, though, he was taking on his full panther form. Had Scar not left to attack someone else, Ashes might have unleashed hell on the metal cat. Thankfully, Scar sought another opponent, leaving Ashes to take out Vex.

Already injured due to Vlad's prejudice, Ashes' large, black beastly form snaked up behind Vex. The woman was busy shooting a knife at Shadow. A terrible mistake on her part. Forming back into a man, Ashes' lean arms coiled around Vex's body. Those arms of his, although weak in appearance, were laced with muscle and strength. With each twitch and struggle to break free, Vex's body would create friction. That friction would soon burn and come a full-on flame. With the moment ready, Ashes flung himself back and a sea of vomit-like fire erupted from his mouth. Opting for a spray pattern, Ashes shot those burning flames from Vex to Lolipop to Sai. It was a long sweep, but it did one hell of a job charring anything in its path. Sure, it melted Shadow's ice, but it was to the point where the ice boiled and caused burning scars on Lolipop's unprotected legs. Her scream was a surefire thing to Ashes' keen ears.

Rebounding backwards, he growled at the man who dared attack his commanding officer. He would deal with Sai later. For now, it was time to finish up Lolipop. Seeing her body rolling along the ground, the cat man could only smirk. There was no need to finish her off. She was already useless and would be pulled from play to be treated for second degree burns (she was lucky not to receive third degree but the woman cast a protection spell on herself the moment she entered the battle).

With the flames dying down, Ashes' glowing orbs locked with Vex's enraged pair. "Didn't anyone teach you not to play with fire?" A ring of smoke was blown from his mouth before those dangerous feline eyes fell back on the silver-haired woman. "What? Cat got your tongue, pretty?" His plan was to coax Vex into attacking him and, while doing so, that would leave an opening for with Vlad or Shadow to finish Vex off. He prayed they would be fast, too, for Ashes was well aware of Vex's time control powers. He knew that in a matter of minutes, she could rewind time, substitute Lolipop for Vlad, and have Ashes unleash his hellish wrath on his teammate. Granted, Ashes wasn't sure of how easy it would be to turn back time and do all that. But he did realize the risk she brought to the table.

Meanwhile, Mozilla was finding himself rather sore from the brutal beating he took from Ashes. To say he was used to it was an understatement, but in reality it had been a long time since he felt that defeated -- and by a man. Mozilla was hellbent on pursuing Ashes at this point, but couldn't go after the cat-man with his new commands and opponents. Unable to aid Vex due to the shock received from Shadow's lightning attack, the criminal decided he might as well lace up the stadium to prevent Hime from fleeing. Of course, he wasn't expending it to be easy. With Lolipop injured and unable to cast speed, the blond knew it was a race against time. Dipping low to avoid more attacks, he crawled toward a post on the wall he could use as an initial hook-up spot. Tying his wire onto a knife, he let it fly across the dome and sink into the opposite wall. At least he had the main wire down. Now it was time to create a spiderweb-like mess to ensnare the enemy. From the looks of it, no one seemed to pay him much attention so he spent those raw moments weaving away.

Everything happened too fast to Lolipop. The excitement overwhelmed her and the frozen feet hindered her ability to really move. She was able to cast speed on Scar, but blocking Shadow's lightning attack proved harder to do. What people tended to forget was that casting spells was all about timing and precision. If one thing moved, the percent of landing a spell dropped by 50. Enhancing a battle was no easy role, in fact it was probably the hardest. Feeling disappointed in herself, Loli moved onto the next best option. It was time to aid the leader. Giving Sai the gift of protection, the ginger tried to smile. Things were looking bleak. The ice wasn't breaking and now-

Eyes wide, fire engulfed her. Screaming at the intense heat, the woman crippled. No amount of rolling would save her now. Agonized with immense pain, tears shed from her eyes. This heat was more than she had even felt before. It was pretty clear to her that Ashes was not one to go toe-to-toe with. Even though this was just a training mission, his flames weren't weak. Body stinging, she rolled close to entrance. There was little she could do now but rest. Perhaps, she could recover? Oh she sure hoped so!

Cias was doing his best at aiding his teammates. As soon as one of them stepped onto the field, he granted them extra strength. He figured speed didn't matter in this battle; it was all about having the upper hand of strength. Granted, when Hime commanded him to speed up his teammates, he gave Shadow a huge boost. Ashes, from the looks of things, didn't need more speed. He was already bloody fast and far too hard to make contact with. When this was all said and done, he would tell Hime about this. Why? Well, it meant that if Ashes were put into battle, enhancements would need to be made prior to fighting, or else he would go without spell enhancements.

Then something funny happened. Cias was caught by Scar. It was so odd to him because Cias hadn't thought about enhancing himself. It was just one of those things you tended to forget. Dragged down and now injured, Cias rolled his eyes at his luck. Oh well, at least he was still capable of fighting. Turning to Hime, the cutie waited for her neck command.

Artemis was grinning from ear to ear. Things were looking up. Granted, Shadow and Cias were injured, but at least they were holding their own. "Vlad, way to think with your head! Do you think you can do the same with Discord. He's probably the strongest one on the field. If you want to prove to Reino that you're tougher than him, take out the two-faced killer!" Scoffing at her own comment, Artemis watched as a knife moved toward Hime's form. Hand sliding up, she stopped the blade in her padded gauntlet. "Talk about a close one. Ajax, I think it's time you go onto the field. Cias is injured. Let him ride you and... well, do your stuff."

With the stag on the field now, he scooped up Cias. Still waiting for direction, he looked directly at Hime. Artemis seemed busy with commanding Vlad and working on a solution with Shadow. "Shadow, are you going to let Vex do that to you? Come up from behind and aid Ashes in taking her out." However, the look and cues on her face didn't align with her comments. From the look on Artemis' face, it was saying, "Go after Sai. He's wide open."

---

For the most part, Reino was enjoying the battle. It was nice to see his teammates kick ass. He also found himself applauding Vlad when he rammed into the unsuspecting Vex. To say he booed at Scar's attacking of Ashes wouldn't be far from the truth either. Sure, he loved Scar but he loved cat-man even more. After all, Ashes could actually turn into a cute, little kitten. Who wouldn't root for that?

Eyes bouncing around the field, the raven was beginning to really respect his leader and her co-pilot. The two were doing a bang-up job. Sure, the criminals on the field were a tad reckless, but they were really handling things well. If only all fights were like this. Perhaps the audience aided in this better battle mentality?

As he leaned forward, Reino caught something out of the corner of his eyes. Volkov! Without any thought, his foot was up on the railing and sliding over the edge. During his free-fall, Reino regretted his choice of rescue but decided to commit to it. Upon colliding with the ground, a small fracture-like ripple tore up the ground around his landing space. He might have forgotten that he weighed more now due to his metal guts. Still, it wouldn't slow him down.

Yanking his right fist from the ground (note that it's gold in appearance right now), he dashed across the backside of the sidelines. Within seconds, he was kneeling beside Volkov. Uncertain just what to do, he placed a gentle hand on her back before looping one arm over the nap of his neck. He was going to try to stand her up and escort her to an infirmery. Granted, it might be easier said than done. Giving her hand a good squeeze, a panicked look was sent her way. "Volkov..." he couldn't say anymore for her could feel something forming in his throat. He was scared. And he had no idea why.

Everyone was moving to plan and these pleased Hime. If they had listened this well, the woman would like to think that the outcome of that day would have been different. There was one little tid bit that she hadn't been anticipating, mostly due to the fact that she had never worked with Agent Sai before; the moment that he was freed from Ashes torrent of attacks, she became his target. She saw him move abruptly but couldn't make out what he had done at first, until she was nearly too late to react. Luckily, Artemis really had the sharp eye she was told she had and had blocked the blades that had been thrown at her.

Even with all her years of experience in combat, the projectiles still caused her to flinch, just ever so slightly. It was also something that made her glad that Agents were not allowed to fight alone; had it just been her on the field, she would not have gotten away from the situation unscathed and she gave her partner an appreciative nod.

With everyone seeming to work in sync, it appeared to make things difficult for Team A and trying to get a good working order down to subdue one of their members. Hime was getting ready to bark out her next set of commands, her hand pointing outwards towards Sai at this point when another unexpected movement caught her eye: Volkov was leaving the battle field. The look on her opponent's face had gone from ready for battle to bright red as she tried to quickly, but clumsily make her way off the field. Even with victory at hand, this was not a fight that the outcome truly mattered.

The look on the blonde's face instantly lost its look of aggression as she noticed the increasingly difficult time that the woman was having in trying to go, well, where ever she was trying to go. She quickly sucked in a breath of air and in what felt like long moments since she had raised her hand was but only a matter of seconds before she extended both arm to the side, very similar to how an umpire would call someone safe. "Cease combat immediately," she called out to her team, as well as expecting Sai's team to listen.

From behind her, a low rumble could be heard before Volf started glowing slightly, a series of what looked like bright blue roots shooting from his feet and into the ground, the outward. The rush of electricity wouldn't harm anyone, it was just enough to cause whatever limbs that were touching the ground to tingle some. The action was also meant to serve as a warning to the criminals that should they not listen, she would seek further action against them.

After the surge went out, Hime spun around to catch just a glimpse of dark hair which caused her eyes to jump to where Reino and Remy were sitting; she saw no one in the seating area that resembled those two.

"Vlad, Ashes and Berserker, head back towards the side lines and assist Agent Volkov," she called out, her eyes quickly jumping to the men she just named. If the black haired male was whom was missing from the standing, she had a feeling that more help may be needed, if not, well, at least they had their bases covered. Her eyes then jumped to the remaining people that were left without duties on the battle field. "Cias, Vex, and Mozilla, go search for Remy, check his seating area and if he's not there, spread out and make sure he's ok."

"Shadow and Lolipop, I want you two to tend to wounds before anything else. Treat yourselves or seek treatment, then check in with the others to see if they require assistance. If any of them do, be sure to get them to the infirmary. You all have your orders, now see them through and I expect at least one person from each group to meet with the rest of us back in our mess hall. Division 1, do I make myself clear?"

As the group was probably struggling to figure out what was going on, not to mention calm down from such intense fighting, the blonde quickly weaved about obstacles and dangers to approach the silver haired male that had attempted to attack her earlier. Once she had managed to make her way to him, her small hands began tugging at tattered fabric and feeling through the tears to check for any injuries from Ashes attacks. "Are you injured at all Agent Sai?" She asked, her tone not showing any hint as to the fighting that was just going on, save for her heightened breathing and the sweat that dotted her forehead.

Volkov could barely make out anything, until she heard the loud impact of something hitting the ground. Trying to raise her head, the Russian beauty failed to do so as it then sagged back down again. Breathing heavily she heard Reino's voice, and felt him wrapping his arms around her as Hime ordered to stop everything. Now she had done it. Feeling stupid and useless the purple haired woman stuttered trying to speak but nothing but more blood leaked out of her lips. Scar ran over as fast as he could, his face full of worry as he approached his master. Nudging her and giving a whine, he looked up at Reino. This was something no one knew how to treat, or cure. It was Volkov's curse.

Reaching out a shaking hand, the woman touched the tiger's plates and they opened up to reveal a shot. Scar put it in Reino's hand and nodded. It would help stabilize Volkov, but she would still need to be taken to the infirmary. Her eyes then rolled up into the back of her head, her body having a few spasms before going still. Scar whined again and his ears went flat on his head. It only ever got this bad when she tried suppressing the disease. Had she just let it happen after the fight they had she wouldn't be in such pain. But she hadn't wanted anyone to know. She was now paying the price. Closing up his chest plates he looked up at Reino and gave another whine. There was nothing he could do.

Vlad had been about to strike Vex again when something seemed to glitch. Something flickered, like a drop of water over his vision. Just as he blinked it away, Vlad felt claws sink into him. If he hadn't felt such an odd sensation of resistance, he might have attempted to shrug Scar off. Instead, the criminal felt the world shifting and tumbling about him, and then slammed into something solid. Vlad wasn't phased. He lashed at Scar, but didn't focus on the metallic beast. There was energy within Scar, but not the kind that Vlad sought.

Glowing eyes focused on Vex once again. She'd stopped him. Her little taunt hadn't gone unnoticed. When Ashes turned his attention to the silver-haired girl, Vlad smiled slightly. Team up against one, knock her out of the battle, and then progress. There really was strength in numbers. The energy pulsing from Ashes was pleasant - it was enough to ramp Vlad up to the point where he could have carried on for hours.

As soon as Ashes had Vex caught up in his arms, Vlad stepped in to slash at her. A vicious line of claw marks marked her face, making it difficult for her to see properly. To make matters worse, Vlad must have really disliked her - there was a strange cold sensation in the wounds, and they wouldn't stop bleeding. That was part of Vlad's power, after all. A minor influence over blood flow was easy to sustain.

To rub it all in, as flames burst from Ashes' mouth and toward Vex's teammates, Vlad merely stepped back and licked the crimson from his claws. The energy lingering in the blood was satisfying. Losing interest in Vex momentarily, Vlad's gaze flickered over to how Loli struggled against the flames. She was down. That was two of the other team, leaving only a few others on the battlefield.

Vlad moved toward Vex as soon as Ashes redirected his focus. It was pure coincidence that there was an opening made by Ashes' actions. Vlad would have attacked, proper timing or not. Apparently, hearing Artemis' order to turn his attention to Discord meant nothing to him. The criminal preyed on the weaknesses of others. At that moment, Vex was the one in his sights, and there was no deterring him. Even the jab about Reino didn't reach him.

Vlad grasped the front of Vex's collar, landing a punch that would have knocked a normal person senseless. "I won't kill you while they're watching," he hissed quietly, hand slipping to her throat. In moments Vex would have either been unconscious or dead from her lack of air. At the rate Vlad's grasp was tightening, it was likely death.
-

Sai kept moving, keeping his own team between himself and any opposing agents. His thrown blades were deflected, but he hadn't expected them to hit their mark. The blind male narrowly avoided being mowed over by Scar as he tossed Vlad from Vex, and was unpleasantly surprised when he paused to regain his bearings by a torrent of flames that narrowly missed him.

Loli was a brave one, and she took the worst of the fire. Sai grit his teeth as he heard her screams. He couldn't hear much else now. Ashes' attack was powerful. The agent still felt the burn on his thigh from the close encounter with the cat. It was fading now, especially after that last blast of flame. Now, Sai merely felt a bit scorched. The flames had gotten all too close. He was grateful that most of his skin was covered, as anything exposed would have been painfully burned.

Sai didn't realize Volkov's absence at first. It wasn't until there was a stutter in his team's movements that the agent found his gaze turned toward where he'd last "seen" the woman. Her aura was no longer at the edge of the battlefield.

Hime's order confirmed it: Volkov was missing. "Cease!" he called to his team, reconfirming Hime's order. He could see the intensity of Vlad's aura, and something told him that there was more than just a fight there. The electricity that flowed through the dome was enough to bring everyone to a standstill ... everyone but Vlad. He kept his hold on Vex, holding her gaze with the conviction of a killer.

Sai didn't hesitate in activating his Purium blaster and aiming between the criminal's shoulder blades. It forced Vlad to drop Vex, and just in time for Hime's next order. Everyone was sent out for their tasks, and Vlad seemed to linger longer than necessary. Sai didn't need his eyesight to know that the tall male was sending a glare his way. If he hadn't been so close to the others, Sai would have shot him again.

Sai reached out to help Vex steady herself, nodding at her before allowing her to head out to search for Remy. Once again, he said nothing to his team. It was better to have one person shouting orders than to try and listen to multiple leaders.

He watched the others leave, and was just about to follow when a small tug on his coat caught his attention. Sai forced his reaction to strike into submission, instead allowing Hime to start her inspection. While there were plenty of tears and scorches from Ashes' attacks, Sai was lucky to avoid most of the damage.

"Small burns," he said, noticing that he sounded better than he felt. "Nothing a few minutes in the medical lab won't fix." Of course, just as he'd said as much, Hime's searching hand found a stray claw mark. Sai managed to sit still, but the look that crossed his face betrayed his urge to jerk away. "I must have forgotten that one. It's nothing."

The male pushed Hime's hand away and turned toward the exit. He waited for Hime to walk with him, listening to her footsteps to judge how close she was. He wasn't exactly good at it yet, but Sai knew that judging distance would take time to learn.

"You're good at it," Sai said, sending a slight smile in the blonde's direction. "You know the board well, and you move accordingly." Sai was better off as a lone player, not as a leader. "When you have time, I would like to go through battle simulations."

His gaze flickered to where everyone went to help Volkov. What happened?

Well this was a bit of a bummer, things were being called to a halt, before he had time to even get any fun in. Light eyes turned to the sidelines, scanning over each person one by one. All of them seemed to go right back to acting as if he did not exist, which was fine with him. All of them were trash in his mind, and following orders right now was just not in the cards. He lightly swung his sword in a circle, round and round as he watched things go along around him. God this playing nice was getting on his nerves. He needed a real challenge, someone who was not going to call it quits when things got tough, and someone who was not going to hold pathetic blasters or drugs over his head as the only thing to control him.

His jaw clenched, as he drove the end of his sword into the ground, with a sound that made nails on a chalkboard sound plesent. His eyes went to the agents, the look within them he did not even bother to hide. With a snap, the sword shattered like glass, into tiny red glowing pieces. The pieces then shot back to the stone of his ring, where they were absorbed. So many people in one place, and no blood to be shed. It was driving him crazy! They were like insects he could not squash. He turned away from them, bluntly ignoring orders for the moment. If they were going to kill him for needing his space, they could damn well go right ahead. Kanra inside of him was on edge from sadness and pain, and all of those pathetic fools could not even see it.

Each one of them was so wrapped up in their own bloody lives, that it seemed that no one else around them even existed. Not one of them gave a damn. Not one of them acted as if he was worth the time of day. His jaw clenched, as he stepped closer to the door. The red color of the stone upon his finger intensified, as well as the heat of the air around him. As his anger rose, his body was giving off more and more energy by the second, to the point where the very space around him seemed to shift and wave like an invisible force of water around him. God, they were just like him. Just like that bastard, the one who locked him away. They had tried to do it again, with those drugs, those damn drugs.

His hands clenched, how he would not hesitate to rip out their throats if he could. How he would not hesitate to silence them all, rip out their eyes so they could no longer look at him as a freak. Destroy their tongues, so they could no longer talk to him like he was beneath them, not worth their time or effort. God how much he wanted to make them watch as their lives slipped away before their very eyes. Letting their pathetic existences end, and know it was because of him. He wanted to destroy them....every....last....one...

Sending blast after blast of ice at the wires, Shadow worked her way around to each one. All of them were starting to become brittle. Then she heard her name being called out once more.

What Artemis was saying didn't match her facial expressions. Grinning Shadow winked at her and shot off like a blur. She was head directly at Sai. Raising her right sword up she was just about to in-case his feet in ice when Hime's order called out across the field. Shadow came to a sudden stop and looked around. So Volkov really was hurt. She pressed her two swords together, making them into one. The raven watched with a glare as Vlad didn't let Vex go. She was about to rush him when Sai shot the other breaker.

Hearing her directions and seeing that Vex was somewhat ok, Shadow jogged over to Lolipop's side and crouched down next to her. The girl needed attention and right now. "It's ok Loli. We'll get you fixed up quickly and the pain will go away." Shadow reached out and smoothed the hair out of Loli's face and beckoned the medical team over. "Fix her burns and give her something for the pain."

She gave the breaker a quick squeeze on her shoulder and stood up. She glanced down at the cut on her arm when one of the medical team wanted to look at it. It was really just a scratch and she waved him off. "I'm fine," she said softly. Looking around she glanced over everyone to see who was hurt the most. She was about to walk over to Vex when a horrible noise sounded. Snapping her head around she watched as Discords sword shattered and the red pieces went to his ring.

Watching his with narrowed eyes she could tell that something was wrong. Shadow quickly walked over to her discarded sweater and sheath, pulling them both on before walking over to Discords side. As she walked over she sheathed her sword. Coming up behind him she stepped to the side and studied him. "You did well," it was said softly. "Do you want to talk about it?" It was known by very few that Shadow had a very nurturing soul. When she wasn't making herself numb from everything she connected deeply with people. Something about the boy in front of her called to that part of her. She generally wanted to help him.

The woman had made a miscalculation of the situation. Vlad’s attack had thrown her game off which caused her threat level to rise along with her anger. Ashes had her in his grasp. She struggled against Ashes to break free. It wasn’t until she started to get burned that the woman used her Purium’s power. Just before the man let go of her Vlad slashed her face with his claws, impairing her vision. Good thing the woman didn’t totally need her vision in order to tell where objects and people were around her. She spit blood at the man whom she hated with all of her being. Vex barely managed to slip through space to avoid the fire spray from Ashes. A safe distance away the silver haired woman glared at Ashes. The male’s taunts caused her anger to rise further. She knew what he was attempting to do, but she had other plans.

The pocket watch hanging from her waist glowed as did her eyes. This time they were a bright crimson instead of blue. Just before she was able to totally activate the power to turn back time Vlad was on her again. Right before he punched her she spit blood in his face. A dark grin crossed her lips at his words. “Who said I’d let you kill me?” Vex felt the man’s grip move from her shirt collar to her neck. The woman’s anger rose. While she still has the strength she plunged the knife she still held in her left hand into the man’s ribs aiming for his Purium. Darkness crept up on the woman as the man’s grip on her tightened from his anger and hatred. She wasn’t able to fight any longer as she slipped into the dark abyss.

When Vlad was shot by Sai’s blaster the male finally let go of her. Her mostly limp body hit the ground with a thud because she wasn’t able to support her own weight. Vex coughed, gasping for air as she forced herself to move. Her vision was blurred, but she could make out a hand in front of her. At first she was unsure about taking it. Hesitantly she took Sai’s hand, standing up and getting her balance. She gave him a small nod.

Before heading off to search for Remy she wiped the blood from her face the best she could. Damn Vlad and his claws. Her eyes moved to the man. The coldness and hate within her gaze could be felt by anyone who seen it. Her glare was broken by the sound of Discord smashing his sword. Vex watched the shattered pieced of the sword go into his ring. Really the woman wasn’t sure what to make of the boy. Her eyes moved to Shadow as she went over to him. She smiled slightly. She was sure that her friend would be more help to her teammate than she would be right now.

Vex finally willed her partly broken body to move. The first few steps she took were unsteady, but she pushed forward ignoring the pain from the burns, in her ribs and the cuts on her face. Her movements were slow as she made her way up the balcony to start her search there. “Remy? Are you still here?” Her vision still wasn’t the greatest as she looked around for the young boy. So she used some of her power over space to search for distortions like people and objects to make things clearer.

All seemed to be going well and then, out of nowhere, the command to cease combat came. Ears flicking toward Hime's voice, the cat-man gave her a confused look. Had they disappointed her? Had they won? Eyes glancing around the room, he soon spied that Volkov was on the ground and, from the way his nose took in the scent, he smelled blood. What was up? Thankfully, Hime seemed to have an idea, or at least she appeared to have one. Beckoned to aid, Ashes shot a look over at Vlad and then Discord. Vlad, as per the norm, was disobeying orders and got himself in a load of trouble with Sai. Eyes rolling at this action, Ashes decided to check out Discord. He seemed, different. Was this the "Berserker" he was told to look out for?

"Hey, Berserker." His voice had an unusually happy chirp to it. "Don't worry about not getting to play. I'm sure you'll have ample time to lay waste to things tomorrow, or later today. The alarm will sound at some point and then you can unleash your hellish wrath." Since none of the other agents paid him no attention, Ashes figured he would at least try to humor the guy. If it worked, it worked. If it didn't? Well, he had a secret tucked below the skirt he still wore proudly.

Slipping off the battle dome floor and onto the sidelines, he sauntered up to Volkov. Noticing Reino, he cocked a brow. What was he doing down here? Was he the one to notice the change in the woman?

"What's that in your hands, Reino?" Ashes bent down and seized the needle. Looking before the haunted face of Reino and Volkov's distorted body, he found no answer. It was time to ask the mechanical cat for help. Speaking in snarls, mews, and other cat-noises, he hoped the tiger would understand and aid him in what he needed to do. Was this needle full of insulin, or something similar to insulin? Was it a drug? Was it an aid? He had no idea and he wasn't about to aimlessly stare at the fallen Russian's body, as Reino was doing.

"C'mon, Scar, just tell me what to do. I can speak cat," he said in something that sounded like a bunch of meows and mews to those nearby.

---

Poking his head out from behind a chair, Remy spied Vex. "Vex!" he screamed as tears poured down his face. "Vex, I'm scared. What's wrong with Volkov." He refused to look over the edge and he refused to raise his head high enough to even peer down at the others. Body trembling and tears still rolling down his cheek, he stepped forward to hug the woman.

A few second later, Mozilla and Cias were up in the stands with Remy and Vex. "Papa Zilla!" running past Vex now, he clung to Mozilla's chest. "He seems spooked." Mozilla said nothing more. Cupping Remy's head in his chest, he and the others walked down toward the ground floor. Not stopping or looking at the others, Mozilla just kept walking by the chaos that was ensuing. He knew Remy needed out of this area and, if Vex and Cias wanted, they were welcomed to join him. He knew he wouldn't make it far before being scolded for leaving without permission, but the kid needed help.

"I'm coming with you," came from behind the group. Striding up, Artemis tried to smile. "Let's all head back to our quarters and see if we can keep everyone calm. Shall we put on some tea? Maybe dim the lights? And if Remy wants, he can have a cookie."

Hime was only half listening to Sai as she poked and prodded the male, her eyes serious and locked on to their target. Burns, especially those from open flames, could pose as an issue in their line of work if early treatment wasn't sought. It would be highly unfortunate should they be called to the field, especially in a warm climate or against another creature with similar heat or flame abilities if there would be those that would suffer due to new wounds.

She began to reach through one of the tears, pressing one hand firmly against the male's stomach as the other hand held the fabric away from him. She could feel the smallest reaction from him at this point and her eyes instantly narrowed as she gave the man a slight glare over 'hiding' the wound. The expression she saw on the face of the taller male gave away how serious it could have been, which of course, did not please the woman that he would 'forget' such a thing.

When he pushed her hand away and began moving towards the outer edge of the battle dome, Hime really had no other option than to follow along behind him should she wish to make sure he was treated for his own injuries. She quickly moved to keep up with the longer-stride male, her own foot step speed doubling his, though it was a natural pace for the woman at this point. "Once we get everyone treated for their injuries, I would be more than happy to discuss battle tactics with you." Her speech and pace slowed as she took in the sight of those that were aiding Volkov, as well as the backs of those going about their own tasks. As usual, the rest of the agents that had been watching soon left after the show ended; even with the pain of one of their own they didn't seem the least bit interested, which was something Hime despised about the organization.

Her eyes remained locked on those that were assisting Volkov as she glanced back up at Sai for a moment. "Are you familiar with you team enough to know what may have triggered this?" Hime knew nothing about the woman on the other team, at least not much beyond her role within the group. She was never issued information on the woman, though seeing as how things had played out, she would be pressuring people into knowing just what had happened. With something such as this happening and with the blonde not knowing anything about Team A meant that she would be spending another night reading over the files of her team, as well as putting out an order to receive what information she could on Ashes.

Without waiting for a reply from Agent Sai, Hime took a few steps towards the growing group around Volkov. Even if he wasn't exactly sure what was going on, he had to learn; it was the leader's job to know the strengths and weaknesses of everyone on their team. Even now the woman was still learning about her own team, as well as occasionally pushing the boundaries to see just what they could handle. For now, Agent Volkov's health was top priority and if Agent Sai felt his wounds were not as severe, he would be put second to the woman.

"What is a status update," the woman asked the group as she stood at the backs of those that made up the 'outer wall' around the Russian woman and her mechanical feline.

Scar looked up at Ashes and nodded as he began speaking cat. Looking to Volkov and knowing this was a time when he had to use his talking even though she didn't like it when he did. She liked to keep it a secret that he could speak like everyone else. Switching his voice disks over, he sat and looked to Ashes. "Its a stabalizing serum mistress has created to help her when she goes into deep shock from the disease. You need to inject her swiftly and get her to the healers. Her stomach lining disinigrates with some veins that cause blood to well up within her stomach. Her acid then causes the gag reflex to regeritate the blood, and follows with fever and many times shock." the mechanical tiger explained as he looked at the limp form of Volkov with worry. "This is what the criminal did to her... It happens randomly, or when she is under high stress. Mistress has been suppressing it to keep the team from worrying, and to keep on top of other's injuries. She will also need her back checked. Sometimes the scars reopen and cause more bleeding." he explained and looked at Ashes to Reino to Hime. His tail thrashed a bit in annoyance. "She heals cancer and many other disorders, but she hasn't been able to fix her own disease." the tiger growled in annoyance and stood. "We need to get her medical attention soon. Inject the serum in her upper arm. Its closest to the heart and will get to the blood stream faster." Scar instructed as he looked at Ashes.

Things too an interesting turn, but Ashes wasn't one to really judge. After all, he had cat ears atop his head so anything was possible at this point. Pulling the tip off the needle with his teeth, he ran his rather coarse tongue over the woman's skin. Since dogs had clear slobber, he figured cats did too. Besides, it wasn't like he had an alcohol pad just sitting around that he could sterilize her skin with. Opting for his own tongue and hoping it would do the trick, he plunged the small tool into her upper case. With a quick glance at Reino, who was still glazed over with shock and disbelief, the former military man pushed down on the plunger. In seconds, the liquid inside the needle was in Volkov's veins and going to work.

Needle out and tongue on the small red dot of blood, he kept it there until he assumed the bleeding had stopped. Head turning toward Scar, Ashes purred. "Volkov might have been one of our top medics and researchers, but we do have some more characters like her. I'll place her under Senior Agent Delta. She's a former S.O.T.F. member who served in the field repairs and medic role. She'll look after Volkov with great care. She also has a few drugs up her sleeve that are still... illegal, but might just do the trick." He could sense the blond's presence. "If I was referring to crack or opium, I would have said them. I'm talking about the GP's sister, RR, Rapid Recover."

Hoisting Volkov into his arms, the smaller male glanced over at Hime. "I've got this one, boss." Whirling around, the male moved toward the hallway.

Scar watched as Ashes moved to inject the material into Volkov's pale skin and watched as she was hoisted into the arms of the cat man. Knowing that she was in good hands, the tiger moved to lick Reino's hand encouraginingly while the man was seemingly shocked in place. No one really expected something so horrendous to happen to the Russian woman, who looked seemingly perfectly healthy. But in all actuallity she had been fighting the disease ever since she had been saved from the criminal who had taken everything away from her. No one wanted a scarred model. No one wanted a brainiack. No one wanted an orphan. No one wanted to deal with her problems. This was the reason that she hated criminals, and was forever a loner. She couldn't ever trust people again, not to the extent that she had when she was a child. Sighing heavily, Scar walked next to Ashes and looked up at him. "She wanted to fuse her DNA with an animal so that her body will be stronger and that she maybe can outgrow the disease." Scar said lightly to the other cat, knowing that cats understood feelings of people more then people seemed too.

His eyes had closed, the flow of energy around him was not wanting to quiet down as his mood continued to darken and slip from the control of the situation around him. The sound of the female's voice asking if he was alright, made even more anger swell up within him. His eyes opened for a moment, and he fixed her in a look that made the term 'if looks could kill' seem like childs-play. There was nothing in them for the moment, but pure darkness. It was before he could speak however, that that foolish cat man in the skirt spoke up. He remembered him, a bit of the scene of battle before flared up into his mind. His words were nice, but he knew better than to let the walking fur ball into his head so easily. Words were sweet like honey, but actions were more like a knife. He had no doubt the other would most likely attempt to stop him if he allowed his anger to overtake him.

He said nothing, and it was moments later that the other was off playing hero with the others. He looked back at Shadow, "do not pretend you give a damn about me or Kanra..." he said, his eyes upon her. He turned away from her. He did not care what his words sounded like to her or made her feel. His first priority was one of the major reason for his existence: protect Kanra. It had always been a goal of his, even since back then. He would not allow a pretty face to slip close to him when in the end it would all come crashing down. He could feel it though, the feelings swelling around him, and the energy he was releasing due to it was beginning to weigh upon his part of mind. He stepped out of the room, leaning against the wall for a moment as eyes slipped closed. It was an odd feeling, slipping back into the mind. For a moment it was like floating, becoming detached from body and world around him. He had wondered a few times, if this is what it felt like...to die...

Dying? Kanra opened his eyes, blinking for a moment. Why was he thinking of dying all of a sudden? He reached up, running a hand through his hair, as his eyes shifted around him. What the hell was he doing standing in the hall? He blinks a few times, looking back at the room. He had been in there just a few moments ago...now everything was different. He stepped back inside, glancing around a bit. He tugged the sleeves of his sweater down over his hands again, noting a bit of singing on them. He sighed, what had Berserker gotten him into this time? He felt the other in the back of his mind brooding. He was a lot darker than usual, which made Kanra worry a bit about what had happened. The other was silent for the most part, usually meant he was sleeping or recharging in a matter of speaking, and that was fine. He noticed shadow not to far away, tilting his head a bit wondering if she was ok. He lifted a hand slowly, giving a tiny wave and a tinier smile. It was really his first outward approach of someone, but he was curious and she seemed down.

The look Discord gave her was lethal, but Shadow didn't flinch. She let it roll off her and studied the boy in front of her. He was filled with such anger, and she wanted to take it all away. Then Ashes came over to them. The Asian woman stayed silent and watched the both of them.

"do not pretend you give a damn about me and Kanra.."

Ahh so she was speaking to the other half, that explained all the anger. Shadow bit her lip as Berserker walked out. Her body screamed to follow him but she wasn't sure Berserker would want her to and she really didn't want to fight with him. Thinking for a few seconds she was just about to follow when he came back in.

With extreme interest she watched the boy tilt his head to the side as he looked at her. Then came a small wave and an ever smaller smile. Definitely not Berserker anymore. Smiling softly Shadow walked forward slowly. This kid stirred up something inside of her, though she wasn't sure exactly what it was. Shadow felt this overwhelming need to protect him. Not in battle, she knew he could take care of himself. She kept the soft smile on her face as she stopped beside him. "Hi Discord," it was said just as soft as the smile still gracing her face. "You're exceptionally skilled in battle. I didn't have the chance to thank you the other day after you helped me with that beast. I definitely needed the help, so thank you."

She was hoping he might open up to her. Though she had only known his for what? A few days? The raven could tell he was closed up to others, never really speaking that much. She was going to befriend him if it killed her and that shocked her. For her sanity it was best to keep everyone a mile away and to never be anything but numb. But there was Reino who she had deep feelings for. Then came Vex, she actually had a girlfriend for the first time in her entire life. And now there was this boy who couldn't be any older than 20 in front of her. Life was getting strange.

A look of relief came to the silver haired woman’s face when she heard Remy. “I don’t know, but they are taking care of her now. It’ll be ok,” her voice was gentle and soft. A tone that only a rare few had heard her use before. Vex held her arms out to take the boy and give him a hug. Before she got the chance to comfort the boy Mozilla and Cias had finally came up. She was soon forgotten by the boy. He ran to Mozilla. The woman’s gaze fell and a slightly hurt look crossed her face momentarily. She let Mozilla take over the care of Remy. Hearing Artemis she turned. “I’ll stay behind to check in with Hime and Sai. Plus I need to get some medical treatment.”

She waited for the others to leave the balcony before looking down at the others. It seemed the situation was Volkov was finally getting under control. A soft sigh came from her. A bit of blood trickled down her face from the slash that she received from Vlad. It annoyed her how the battle had gone, but now wasn’t the time to think about it. Feeling lazy she slipped through space to return the side lines near Sai and Hime. “We found Remy. Mozilla, Cias and Artemis took him out so he can calm down. He was really scared. If I’m no longer needed here I will be in the infirmary for medical treatment.” There was no emotion in her voice as she spoke. She wiped the fresh blood from her face using her sleeve. Her vision in her right eye didn’t seem to be improving which bothered her.

Vex glanced over at Shadow and Discord before it finally fell onto Ashes and Volkov. She had yet to thank Volkov for fixing her leg the other day. Her attention turned back to the agents that she stood only a few feet from wondering what was going on. Vex knew she probably wouldn’t receive any answers from these two. If she wanted them she would have to find out a different way. Getting impatient the silver haired woman moved to leave. What she needed was to be healed and to find a way to relax. Maybe painting or some training alone in her room since it seemed all others could do today was either hurt her or just piss her off.

Though she might have wanted to stay for the battle, Artemis had grown tired of watching everyone being each other up. Granted, it was good training, but the viciousness had been too common in the past few day and she was ready to focus on something a little more reserved. Not to mention, Artemis wasn't a fan of scared children, and so getting Remy out of there was a good priority for her. Though the battle arena had been a good distraction from the discoveries she was making about the creatures, she still knew she had to do more research. There were some interesting facts she'd overlooked before and needed to revisit.

Once they were back into the quarters, Artemis immediately went to put on the tea she'd previously mentioned. Rifling through the cabinets, she found the one she wanted- one for calming the nerves. Remy could use it, but in all honesty so could she. Seeing how Vlad fought his own allies was a bit of a discomforting experience. She'd known he was vicious, and that served him well- but he was too vicious in some cases. Artemis had many theories as to why, but honestly after seeing his behavior in the dome, many of them seemed like excuses she'd come up with. But there was still something about him, and she was too curious to back down from trying to get to know him. She'd just have to go about it a more subtle way, and for now talking about books was always a good option.

But Vlad was not the concern of the moment. She needed to help calm Remy down. Once the water was heating up for the tea, Artemis went to another cabinet and found the cookies Remy was so fond of. Feeling generous, she took several out and put them on a plate. Artemis walked back into the main common room and set them on a table for everyone, smiling as she did so. At least she'd come back with some of the calmer criminals so she'd have a reprieve from what often felt like babysitting. A few moments later, she heard the tea kettle informing her that the water was ready. Artemis ran back into the kitchen and finished making the calming drink. She put the kettle, several cups, and sugar and cream on a tray before returning to the common room.

Artemis placed it on the table next to the cookies and smiled once more. "Come now, have a little tea, some cookies, and lets all relax." Artemis offered, looking over specifically to Remy to let him know that he was more than welcome to be first. As she continued helping to serve the tea and calm the room, Artemis heard a very familiar sound of hooves. Ajax entered the room and ran up to his master, nuzzling against her side for a moment. Artemis stroked his fur for a few minutes before sending him to go cuddle up to Remy to further help him feel better.

As Vlad followed the others, he pressed his fingers to where Vex had stabbed him. Though his expression stayed neutral, the criminal's anger flared. The wound was deep, though already healing. It wasn't bleeding - Vlad made sure of that.

He forced his rage down before his threat level got too out of hand. His shoulder blades were still tingling from the Purium blaster. There was no need to bring about another warning shot.

Watching as the others worried about Volkov, Vlad merely kept himself still and silent. With as much energy as was rushing through him, it was increasingly difficult to ignore the fact that Volkov could be easily killed, and Reino wasn't in the best shape, either....

Vlad let his mind dwell on the topic for a moment before he looked back to the battlefield. He could taste Berserker's energy from here. And to think ... he'd been so close to another fight. It would have taken Ashes and a few Purium blasters to stop them. Vlad scented the air briefly, wishing the battle hadn't been stopped. Kanra returned moments later.

If he'd been restless before, now he was ready to start pacing. Clenching a fist, he glared down at Reino and Volkov, the area around him dropping in temperature (as usual). It was likely that everyone surrounding Volkov felt the bite of pre-frost cold.
-

"I'm not the sort to ignore them and hope they'll disappear," Sai said, sounding distracted. His "gaze" was now on Volkov. Her aura was so weak ... and faltering. The male frowned, and quickened his step. He nearly missed Hime's question as his mind tainted with worry. "Yes. Her ailment is listed in her file, along with the potential causes." Stress and strain were definitely causes. After their recent battle with the monsters, Sai hadn't had time to speak to Volkov. He should have checked in with her to see if she was doing alright.

Mentally berating himself, Sai watched as Hime approached and demanded a status update. The silver-haired male took in the sounds of cats talking, and frowned. Was Ashes seriously speaking with Volkov's metallic friend?

When Ashes lifted Volkov, Sai stepped back to give them room. Senior Agent Delta. He knew her. Volkov would be in good hands, indeed. She'd receive only the highest quality of care until she recovered. Still ... Sai would speak to the Senior Agent. He wanted a few blood samples from Volkov for testing when he had free time.

In fact, he followed Ashes and Volkov intending to inform Senior Agent Delta of his request. The more people working on helping Volkov, the better. Her tactical skills were beyond useful to Division 1, and Sai knew that a weakness from one team member was a weakness shared between all. She was the weak link, and if this were to happen during an actual battle....

Keeping the worry from his mind, Sai stepped beside Ashes and walked beside him. "Thank you," he said, unsure how he felt about thanking a criminal for aiding an agent.

Kanra felt himself tense a bit. He had not been expecting her to come over, yet there she was. He took a bit of a breath, telling himself it would be alright. He glanced at her, watching as she said hello. "Hi..." he said slowly. From there, she jumpped straight into something that was...odd. His skills in battle? Helping her out with the beast? He raised an eyebrow for a moment, scanning his own thoughts and memories. He was drawing a blank, what she ment he did not know. "I am sorry...but...I do not know what you are talking about" he admited. Did this have something to do with the battle? The blackout part of his memory, that Berserker was refusing to let him in on? His curiosity was being perked more and more at these thoughts.

"What happened?...On the mission?" he aksed, his eyes moving to hers. Berserker was quiet for now, the other was obviously not going to tell him. This woman was so keen to open up about what had happened, maybe she could give him some answers about what he could not remember. At the same time, he hesitated. If Berserker did not want him to know, there had to be a reason behind it. He did not want to put her in a situation where she went behind Berserker's wishes to tell him. It could be highly dangerous for her, Berserker not taking to kindly to those who betrayed him even without meaning to.

He could handle Berserker, the other would be mad, but he would in the end understand and forgive Kanra, he had to. It was not like he could pop the other out and they could part ways. They were one and the same in a sense, and Berserker would not give him the silent treatment forever. They were really close in all actuality, so he would be able to calm his darker side down.

With eyes scanning over the group, Hime waited until someone got her up to speed with what was going on. When Ashes finally spoke up, she nodded towards the cat-eared male saying, "Very well, report to me when you have further information." She stared at the male's back for a while, her brain fighting to ignore his choice of clothing. She pulled her eyes off of him for a moment before noticing a rather frozen looking Reino. "Ashes, would you be so kind as to take Reino with you?" The male was on his feet, but if he gave the other criminal any fight, she would make another tag along on that trip.

Her eyes once again looked about the remaining group. Discord and Shadow were off to one side while Vlad seemed to be doing all that he could to not get involved with the group. She was going to recommend that Agent Sai tag along with Ashes and Agent Volkov because he was his partner, but clearly he already had figured that much out and quickly took to following them.

"Are there any here that require medical attention?" Hime then asked the remaining criminals, her eyes locking on each one, lingering for a moment as to say 'I won't believe you even if you tell me you're fine'. "I will give you one of two options," she then said, as if to confirm the accusatory look in her eyes. "If you require medical attention or treatment, gather to my right. If you feel you do not require any aid, stand before me, arms out to the sides."

Having worked with criminals for years, Hime knew that they could be like pets and would not tell you when there was something wrong. On top of that, it was usually only the mildly difficult ones that behaved in such a manner. Division 1 had to be made up of the most difficult criminals within the SFA, the most skilled, but also the most difficult.

Vlad waited patiently for the others to do as they were told. As usual, he was one of the last to do what was necessary. He stood silently, watching Hime order everyone around. It would be untruthful to say that he didn't imagine adding her to the killing spree that he'd already started in his mind.

The breaker didn't put much thought toward where or how he was standing. Wherever he ended up was good enough. He was wounded, but that didn't worry him. Vlad would heal. Especially after another draw from the energy that was moving around them. It would have been easy to take from one of the others, but not wise. Not with Hime looking so closely.

He ignored the sting of the wound in his side sealing itself slowly. It wouldn't bleed. He would heal by the end of the hour.

Vlad's teal eyes were still glowing, as his Purium was active. Clasping his hands behind him, the male watched everyone around him with a sort of bored disappointment. The fight had been cut short, and he wasn't pleased with that. He was, however, pleased to see Vex needing medical attention. A slight flicker of amusement filled his gaze as he watched her. Good.

"Tea!" There was a shine in his eyes. Running up to Artemis, he wrapped his arms around her legs before placing his head against her stomach. "You wanna watch a movie with me?" As if his pockets were endless pits, he pulled forth his favorite movie, Rise of the Guardians.

Although Cias and Mozilla weren't overly fond of watching a child's movie, especially after their fighting, they decided to join the kid on the couch and at least pretend to pay attention. Hopefully, whenever the others arrived, Cias and Mozilla would receive the medical attention they needed. Both having their own wounds, they would gladly accept any help later on.

---

Having taken the most damage, some members of the SFA Medical Team (SFAMT) came into the area to aid the burned woman, Lolipop. One of the women escorted the carrot-haired woman out. The other two stood behind Hime and awaited confirmation that they could patch up the other injured members of her team. If allowed, they would spray a cyan liquid on the wounds, scratches, and injuries of those left in the Battle Dome. At first, the spray would sting, but then it would feel cool to the touch. Within seconds, the wounds would start to heal and by the next day any signs of injury would be gone.

"Agent Hime, as a forewarning for future battles, make sure you have 009 drink a gallon of water. It will lessen the impact of his flames." The nurse with cyan hair piped up. "Sorry, I can't help but notice that some of your assistants have burns. Looking over the paperwork, 00 is the only one capable of breathing fire." Her eyes quickly snapped to the male at her side. He had jabbed her in the ribs. "Erm, not trying to tell you what to do. Merely offering advice."

---

Entering the medical research wing of the SFA, Ashes lifted his head to smile at Delta as she approached. "Looking lovely as always, Delta dear."

"Still as short and charming as always, aren't you Kitten?" Ruffling his hair, she sidestepped forward toward a table. "Please place her here. I'm going to use the MRI we use on the monsters so you'll all have to step out, especially metal cat." Doing a quick scan to make sure everything was in place and proper, she made a few adjustments on the machine.

The next ten minutes probably seemed like an hour, but at least the scan was over. Two minutes later, the prints would be ready to read.

"I'm going to have to give her a dose of RR. From there, I guess I'll need to know which route to take. Do we want body augments?" Holding up a picture of the mechanical Reino, she waited to see what Sai thought. "Or shall she get the DNA splicing?" Holding up a picture, this time of Ashes, she gave the cat-man an eyeroll.

"Heh now, you shouldn't roll your eyes at me. I'm per-per-per." He began hacking. Doubling over, he grabbed the table nearest him and heaved and hoed. And then, it appeared. A large lump of grizzled hair. "Bleh!" he said while stepping over his hairball. "Anyway, I think Scar should decide what Volkov should undergo. He's her partner and knows the perks of both."

"Is this really our only option?" A familiar voice called from behind. Redheaded figurehead Sycom stepped into the room. Glancing from Sai to Delta to Ashes to Reino, he sighed. "I'm not sure how I feel about potentially losing one of my best agents." His eyes slid over to Reino. "It's bad enough we almost lost one of our best field assistants." Now looking over at Ashes, he shrugged. "Not sure how I feel about another Luke Skywalker running around either."

"Is there no way to morph the two options to balance out the negatives?"

All eyes drifted toward Reino who finally found the courage to pipe up. "I mean, if you can splice DNA and alter the body with robotic implants, shouldn't you be able to combine the two and have the negatives cancel each other out."

"We've never done something like that." Delta bit her lip. "Truthfully, only you and Ashes are the only ones to survive the process."

"She's more stubborn than me and stronger than Ashes. I think she'll fair well."

Lips curling up, Ashes smirked. "Is this logic speaking? Or are you grasping at straws to subdue your heart." Looking up at the taller male, Ashes shifted his gaze to examine his fingers before talking. "You don't think I couldn't smell your cologne on her?"

"Heh," a blush covered his cheeks. "So what are you going to do?" Regaining his composure, he glanced over at Delta. "Can you do the surgery she did on me?"

"You'd have to give her a new stomach. It seems to be the root of her problems." Trying not to offend anyone, he continued on. "And perhaps the DNA of a mouse or raccoon? They can eat anything without getting super sick, so it might prevent her stomach from getting upset."

"A mouse! Are you crazy!" His hands slammed into the shorter cat-man beside him. "How can you joke about something like that!"

"I'm not! I'm saying she needs the right DNA. She can't have a cat, Reino. I took all that DNA. Not to mention, she would constantly be throwing up, which is bad. She needs an animal that has low stress levels or can eat anything." Pushing the raven off him, Ashes rose and forced the dust from his maid outfit. "We're not he enemy, Reino. We're just trying to help, sheesh."

"What about a lizard or a frog?" Sycom stepped forward and placed a hand on the woman's warm forehead. "Lizards have thick skin and can take a lot of heat. Frogs are quick and adaptable." He stepped away and took a seat on a nearby bench. "There is one thing, though." Looking up at Reino, he prepared to crush the man's heart. "She will be stripped of her title and will immediately become a criminal. To accept these enhancements, you need to undergo Purium Testing. If she's compatible, she will gain a power and a role. But she can never lead again. She can work in a lab again. She will be forced to fight on the field."

Biting his lip, Ashes gave his neck a good rub. "That's why I'm not a agent."

Scar waited, pacing outside of the room as the MRI took place on Volkov. This was the worst she had ever been since she had created him, and things were only getting worse. When they stepped back in, Reino seemed to snap out of his stupor, and offer ideas, as well as Ashes. Pacing once again the mechanical tiger took in all the words, knowing that immediate action was needed for her. Honestly, if it meant a healthier life for her, he would do anything. Hearing options thrown out left and right the metal cat stopped in front of them all and opened his chest plates, putting the medical formula for Volkov's research in the hands of Delta.

"Mistress formulated this plan for three years. Only resently has she perfected it. To treat her, she needs two animals, and a mechanical mid section like Reino." he explained and then pulled out package inside his chest. "This is the cat DNA, she knew that SFA didn't have anymore, and got her own. The bird DNA for wings and light bones is here in the lab too. She asked some scientists...." he said and then trailed off, looking down at the floor. "She hates criminals, with a passion I can't understand, but I believe she knew that this would come. She knew that if the disease hit her again, she would die without inhancements...." he said, and oil tear slipping from his eyes and falling to the floor. "I don't want to loose her, and she's too important to loose. She can help perfect the god pill. And her knowledge of tactics is useful.... I know it is risky, but please. Use her work and help her. She picked out the genes so they would balance each other out. And with the metal stomach, she doesn't have to worry about the puking hair balls or any more internal bleeding. She already has a metal heart... Just save her." he said and looked to Ashes and Reino. Then looking to Sycom he met his eyes and then looked to the motionless Russian on the table again. He couldn't take the sight of her like this, so motionless. "I only ask that you respect her if you do decide to save her, being labeled a criminal will hurt her enough, for all her life she has hated them, and done so much to help and heal others to avoid it, that it will make her angry and torn. But she truly didn't commit any illegal act, she just wanted to live." he said and another few tears fell on the floor. Moving to her bed side, he curled up and laid on the ground. "Whatever you decide to do, I am not leaving her side."

"I'm afraid it's protocol, Scar. If I were to allow Volkov to stay an agent, Ashes would have become an agent. Technically, Reino could even become an agent again. Doing as such would alert our higher ups, yes, even I report to someone. We currently signed a contract that states anyone with Purium Enhancements will be stripped of titles and will no longer receive agent privileges." He paused to catch his breath. "If I don't comply, we will be shut down and we'll all be arrested and anyone with Purium will be killed on the spot. As valuable as she is, her life and job are not worth the risks. I cannot condemn us all to tend to her heart and hatred for criminals."

The hardest part came next. He wasn't sure how to really state it, but it had to be said. It was better to let it be known now rather than wait until it happened.

"Scar. The moment we do this, you will be either decommissioned or reassigned. You will be unable to serve Volkov. I will pull some strings to ensure you stay within Division One, but you will no longer report directly to Volkov. I will try to assign you to Sai or Hime. I cannot guarantee this though for, again, my higher ups will determine your placement."

Ashes, having known all of this already, didn't really seem too concerned with what Sycom said. It was common knowledge for him. It probably shouldn't be, but he did spend a lot of time with these higher ups. Just some of the perks of being a member of S.O.T.F.

Reino, on the other hand, was not taking things so well. He tried to force the tears from falling, but the went over his lids and crashed onto the floor below. Dropping to his knees, he hung his head in defeat. Volkov, his perfect Volkov, was to become a criminal. She would be forced to commit a crime, as it was the only way to get Purium access. She would have to change. She would probably have to kill someone. Or hurt someone. Steal something. It just didn't work for him. Volkov was supposed to be perfect, without sinister flaws.

During his grieving, a hand graced his shoulder. The shoes alone were a dead giveaway. Sycom.

"I'm sorry, Reino. But you know this just as well as Ashes does. And there is nothing you can do." Stepping past the criminal, he stopped before Volkov. "We need to wake her. I need consent to do this. Do 5mm of RR."

Delta obediently complied. Pumping a pill that would supercharge Volkov, she wagered they would have about 5-minutes to ask her the big questions. "She'll be waking up in three... two... one." Stepping away, she left everything to Sycom.

"Miss Volkov, as you know you've become a liability to the SFA. To prevent any harm, we are giving you two options. You can retire now and live the short remainder of your life alone. Or you can live and undergo the enhancements. Granted, if you pick the later route, I will need you to commit a crime. Only criminals can receive Purium Testing. If your body accepts the Purium, you will gain a power and you will gain a role -- Identifier, Enhancer, or Breaker. You will be stripped of your Agent title and will be named a criminal. You will no longer have privileges to labs, centers, or anything of the linking. You will have limited access to knowledge and research. Furthermore, you will no longer have Scar. He will be placed in the custody of another agent." Looking down at the weakened woman, he pulled off his sunglasses to stare into her eyes.

"Volkov. I need to know what you want. Do you want to stay human and innocent. Or do you want to commit a crime, become a criminal, and lose everything you love to live." Two screens behind Sycom lit up. Silhouettes of two people, one would assume they were part of the higher ups, sat with their hands extended before them.

"Whatever choice you pick, you will commit to. There is no going back. Please state your real name and then tell my bosses," he gestured to the screens, "your decision."