The Reality Vortex: Red Reputations

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May says "so far no on the foe front but on what happened side it seems to be internal strife." Pointing at a group Xy'phers that look like they were trying to kill each other. 

May says "I have to agree with bara and do keep a strong hold on your emotions. It seems that we in a place that fucks with those actively." May thinks "Is it passive or active." May starts to look around for a foe or what having this effect on them.
 
Bernkastel floated about the room to see what this new room had in it, squinting her eyes upon seeing her breath fog up. Nosy, she'd occasionally pick up an emerald or Dragon Ball to eye it curiously before placing it back. One item perplexed her since it looked like an ordinary thermos with an odd decoration. Was it to store soup for the cold room?

The Witch pursed her lips with a hum, looking disappointed that it all seemed to be broken... until her gaze fell upon a basket holding a bunch of Dark Energy orbs. Bern's eyes flinched wide and she then cautiously inched closer to them. She gingerly poked one with a finger expecting something to happen but like everything else... nothing. They were Dark Orbs just like the one Doom had used to erase people; but she was sure they had only ever seen one Dark orb and one White orb that made up the Tools.

"There were more this whole time? Why are they broken?" Bernkastel whispered aloud, only half-expecting for Guardian to answer before feeling a bit silly about doing so. She searched for any white orbs while Bage took the strange bottle. 

Berserk's eyes lightened up seeing the object in Bage's hands. "Would ya look at that?" At the sudden noise of Spina smashing the old record player however, both young ladies flinched with a startle. Bern spun around with a clear look of scolding displeasure.

"What a mess you've made!" Bern hissed. "You could've just moved the needle off to stop it... philistine."

"I hope that doesn't rattle off any sign we're here... Quick, open it!" Berserk urged the Detective, keeping an eye on the hole beneath them for any odd movements that may follow.
 
The temperature of the room caught Zenta's attention at first. The sudden cold was both new and nostalgic to him, feeling his breath condensate before him as he breathed. In the rush to the room, he barely noticed the ancient vase break. When the others arrived shortly after him, his nerves eased up, and when Spina destroyed the record player, his ears lowered at the noise. Worried that the Xy'phers might hear the commotion from Spina's actions, he prepared for the worst.

"Mr. Spina, we should stick to the plan and keep quiet until we find the hive's entrance," Zenta whispered as he picked up a piece of shattered record player that landed by his foot. "Last thing we want is a premature surprise..."

The beast sighed before turning his head towards the others until he felt something brush up against his snout. A soft fabric of some sort with a gentle smell. Suddenly, he turned around to follow the dress, only to see a woman standing before him with the same dress. He gasped, being able to actually see the woman despite not having eyes. For a moment, he thought he was hallucinating, but the more he tried to shake his head out of the illusion, he realized that this was no trick, and it was very real. He could actually see someone. To the Breakers, he appeared frozen as the broken piece of the record player fell from his hands and onto the floor with a thud. The beast's expression was unmistakable: it was shock. Zenta tried to speak, but all that came out of him was gibberish, the sheer thought of being able to see someone literally made him speechless.

"I-- Did you-- I just saw someone--"

Zenta cut himself off as he saw the woman vanish from his sight. He immediately looked around the room to find her but did not. In the eyes of the Breakers, Zenta was mindlessly wondering around the room with a face full of surprise. He could not find the words to speak, let alone describe what he saw. All Zenta could do was follow the scent of the woman's dress, as faint as it was. He brushed past the Breakers, but as he got close to them, it was obvious that he was not himself. He pushed and shoved the Breakers out of his way as he desperately tried to track down the scent of the giant woman. It wasn't long until Zenta finally noticed that he could not see the Breakers any more despite being right next to them. He was stuck in the environment that the giant lady placed him in.

"Mr. Spina? Bage? Berserk? Lady Bernkastel?" Zenta said while looking directly at them, unable to make them out. He took a few steps forward and ended up walking directly towards Berserk and Bage, shoving them to the floor. He tripped as well, but held his hands out, trying to feel what he tripped over like a blind person would. Whatever happened to Zenta, he was truly unable to see or sense the Breakers in any way.

"I saw her..." Zenta whispered loudly. "A lady with a dress..." He continued to walk around and trip over things, occasionally bumping the other Breakers. "I saw her... Lady Bernkastel... where are you?" Zenta said a little louder as he held his hands out, trying to feel his way around before tripping over another object in the room.


"Maybe we should head back... I got a bad feelin' about this." Avalon said with a quiver. "If Bara says this place's got killin' intent, then we should head back, y'know. Maybe we should regroup with the others and let them know what we feel over here..."

As the group continued to move up, the darkness began to get thicker and thicker the higher they went into the room. More and more Xy'pher bodies were seen petrified from an unknown source, but this time, they were broken into pieces, almost as if they were attacked. Avalon looked back towards the group and wondered if this was such a good idea but did not say anything to them. Once the darkness was too much for them, Avalon followed May's lead and turned on the night vision goggles. For a moment, there was nothing to see but once the group turned around to see what was behind them, it was the source of all horror.

Behind them were hundreds of monsters, each one deformed and nightmare fueled. Some monsters looked like humanoids, beasts, and other creatures, just more vicious. They all had saliva dripping from their mouths, eyes narrowed, and mouths snarling towards the Breakers. The more the Breakers looked around, they saw that they were almost entirely surrounded by the monsters, each one preparing to pounce and attack the Breakers. Hundreds of eyes glared at each Breaker like prey and by how they growled, it was no doubt that they were going to rip them to shreds.

From the looks of it, whatever killed the Xy'phers were these monsters. Some of them were seen chewing on Xy'pher bits within their teeth infested mouths. The crunching noise that came from it was incredibly unsettling and sent a shiver up even the most harden veteran fighter. Nothing about these monsters showed mercy. The instinct they held was that to kill.

"W-What the hell are those things?!" Avalon gasped. "What the hell are those?!"
 
The Mysterious Manor – Team Distraction

Upon Bernkastel examining the basket of dark orbs, clearly inactive for quite some time, Guardian simply stared with curiosity, watching her search for its counterparts. The deeper Bernkastel looked around, the more artifacts she found from various worlds—including her own and even things that took place in the place. While they were in a deteriorating state, they were carefully preserved to prevent further damage.

Strangely, there exist no white orbs at all. A peculiar situation, since the tools was thought to required both dark and white orbs to activate it. Yet, no matter where Bernkastel searched, she would only find dark orbs.

Guardian’s eyes softened when Bernkastel briefly mentioned the existence of white orbs. “Someone managed to absorb Jinaira’s power from the dark orb, resulting the first ever white variation.” It was indirect, but it somewhat answers Bernkastel’s question. “I have yet to see any attempts from others doing the same.” It was an indication that white orbs are not only uncommon, but a near improbable event unless done in extreme circumstances. Guardian ended her statement and turned her eyes towards the direction of stunned Zenta, but she was looking what lies before him.

Spina eyed the record player briefly, the music fizzled out instantly. The classical melody was more than just an annoyance, it infuriated him, causing an upset his focus and psyche. The bulging veins that became apparent on his forehead ceased and receded, and he became calm afterwards. He couldn’t explain why he did it. Neither could he explain why it bothered him so much that destroying it completely was the first choice he picked. He just reacted on a “instinctively” level.

The old Saiyan’s head cleared from any “infuriating music”, he returned his usual demeanor. “Tch. It was easier that way.” He justified. Ultimately, the matter was dropped when Detective Bage revealed the bottle to the team. No doubt it will contain another round of critical information; perhaps a deeper inspection of this grand hive that Nia claimed. “Alright,” Spina crossed his arms. “Hurrying it up and tell us what it says—”

Spina felt a thud due to Zenta’s careless movements. “What the hell are you doing?!” He snapped. Seeing Zenta acting all distraught over something, pushing everyone towards the ground, nearly tripping himself and claiming that he saw something. “What lady in a dress?” The old Saiyan grabbed onto Zenta’s fur on his chest, trying to make him stay still so he won’t be bumping into more things. “There’s no one here except us?!”

After Spina attempted to make Zenta stay still, his voice feeble out and instead replaced by a feminine tone. Once again, Zenta witnessed a womanly figure in a dress. This time, she was observing the record player that was smashed by the old Saiyan. “So many visitors as of late—the House of Jinaira will be in a disarray if this continues.”

She turned her head slightly towards Zenta, eyeing the beast with combination of curiosity and genuinely anger. “The record players are one of millions I’ve gathered for preservation, but that vase is one of its kind.” She turned around, revealing herself to him. As previously stated, she towers over Zenta. Holding a churchwarden pipe and wearing an impeccable dress, she walked as she sway her hips back and forth, indicating a kind of oozing confidence around her. One particular thing to note that her eyes, like Zenta, was also covered, but with a blindfold rather than a visor. “Noisy visitors aside, you wronged me by destroying that precious vase. I’ll shall take something from you, Baliko.”

============

The Mysterious Manor – Team Stealth

“Killing intent?” Spawn turned to Bara. Due to the influence of this room in particular, his thoughts immediately rush to the thought that Bara herself was emitting killing intent. “So, it came to this…” Spawn clenched his fists as his thoughts run wild.

However, when May agreed with Bara’s institution that there was killing intent in this room, Spawn relaxed slightly. He had no reason to doubt her, even if his mind was filled with paranoia and assumptions based on nothing. Furthermore, when Avalon expressed the horrors, he saw with the night vision google that aligned with Bara’s warning, the Detective turned on the night vision goggles to see it for himself.

His eyes widened upon the absolute horrors that these creature’s appearances. While their silhouette can assist anyone of what they are, upon closer inspection, their entire bodies were blackened. Only their eyes, bursting with red, and their teeth, as white it can be, are explicitly seen. But their appearance isn’t what shook the Detective.

The souls stashed away under his cloak rattled dramatically—each of them signals warnings to the Detective of what to come next. Killing Intent, as Bara described, was a mere understatement of what everyone was feeling at that moment. “Run.” They warned with fear in their voices. “Get out of there, now.”

A single creature emerges from the darkness. With his eyes and bear teeth present, the Detective had a choice as an influx of paranoia filled his head: leave or fight. Regardless of his choice, it did not matter. The mere thought causes the creature to react and he was battered with multiple blows. From their perspective, the creature never moved from his spot, but it was clear that he unleashed deadly blows against Spawn. The wind knocked out of him; Detective Spawn tumbled back a few times before stopping.

“Ultra-Instinct, more or less, bypass the uses of sending commands to the brain to allow a movement. No longer bound to it, your body moves freely without restrictions or delays…” A memory appeared in Spawn’s mind: a brief moment with Detective Goku.

“There are different variations of Ultra Instinct from other worlds from what I’ve seen. But all of them along with Ultra Instinct has a drawback: no matter how we tried to suppress it, our personalities will always be a factor.” Detective Goku’s tone sharpened. “I won’t get into the details, but I’ve learned one of two states where even personalities will no longer be a factor.” He turns to Spawn. His lips parted slowly as he tells him a name of a “state”, he warned, that symbolized the concept of “pure instinct: “Empty Mind”

It was an odd memory that appeared after being attacked, but it was enough to realized that they needed to escape this room. Seeing that the fate of these dead Xy’phers were clearly done by these creatures, oozing with pure instincts, the Detective turned to the direction of the door as he tried to recover from his sudden injuries. His eyes narrowed seeing Lucifer already halfway through.

“Come, friends.” Lucifer said in a deep, monotone voice. “Death is all but certain here. Do not engage or perished by the hands of these foul beasts.”

There wasn’t much to considered. Spawn was clearly in no position of fighting something that he’s not aware of and did not want to find out what result the Xy’phers to end up in the state like that. He forced himself up to his feet and ran towards the door on the other side. A signal that drove all the creatures that eyed them into a frenzy as they rushed towards Team Stealth.
 
May says as she starts to back up Spawn "I know we all a bit paranoid of each other but if we don't all work together, we fucked 6 was to Sunday. I hope the idea of being that will help keep those fears in check and shows that we need to keep moving." May starts to back up Spawn and thinks "I feel like this was a proving ground for something and things are only is going to get worst. not only in this tower but the rest of the Xy'phers."
 
Team Distraction

Turning her attention back to the orbs, Bernkastel's expression softened a bit from Guardian's words as she kept looking through items on the tables and shelves; just more broken obsidian orbs laying about. Her eyes fell on a shelf full of items that brewed familiarity... a billhook machete and a dented-up baseball bat that were tarnished in a red coating, some ancient-looking heirlooms of an old family, and a set of binders that ranged from urban legend occultism to research and procedures with distinct numbers.

Our worlds were definitely erased, but somehow it looks like all this junk was recovered from the destruction. That's what those were now; just junk. But she didn't want to look at them for very long lest she remember the stories tied to those items. Prying her eyes off them, she refocused her train of thought. Bern didn't know what to make of it since any hope of recreating a white orb wasn't going to happen if all of these dark orbs were inactive... and there was the unsettling likelihood that absorbing it could cause the same effect of touching a Black Energy Crystal from the Valley.

"...oh." came a quiet, dejected response. The name Jinaira made her brows furrow-- but before Bern could consider who it could be any further, she heard thuds and clattering of things behind her.

"Oof! Hey, watch where you're goin!" Berserk said, having fallen on her bottom suddenly.

Seeing Spina close the distance to Zenta and start trying to shake him to his sense, Bern turned around in time to just stumble from him wandering blindly. "What are you doing? Did I miss something while my back was turned?" she whispered back loudly. 

"I-I dunno, Zenta just started talking crazy and knocking us over!" Berserk said, shrugging with genuine confusion on her face. "Something about a lady? But there's nobody here but us. I don't get it."

Bernkastel glanced briefly up at Guardian upon the mention of a woman in a dress, briefly considering if he saw her-- but he failed to see Guardian when she first appeared, so she quickly answered, "Of course not. Something's wrong." The witch observed Zenta's lack of nimble grace, puzzled he couldn't find his way to anybody like usual. "Maybe this room has an effect like the one with the stuck door," she said before approaching Spina and Zenta with her arms out. "I-It's okay, Zenta, there's nobody else here. We haven't gone anywhere, see? It's me, I'm right by your side so there's no need to worry." Bern placed one hand on Zenta's forearm and another half-hugging his tail in hope he would calm down.

"Do you think this place might be psyching him out?" Berserk asked, anxiously peeking around the room. "If he doesn't chill out quick are we gonna have to knock his lights out?" She genuinely was unsure what to do under such urgency to keep quiet.

"He'll be fine, we just have to-- make him stand still!" Bern strained, trying not to get thrashed about from Zenta's fidgeting. "We can't make all this ruckus, remember?"
 
As Zenta continued to fumble around the room, he felt Spina's grip on his chest. He did not see Spina grab him but knew that someone had stopped him from moving. Next he felt the grip of Bernkastel, but like Spina, he could not see or sense her. With the beast restrained by Spina and Bernkastel, Zenta stopped moving and making a ruckus. His body was not tense as he was taking deep breaths to try to calm himself down. As Bernkastel grabbed his tail, his body immediately twitched, not liking when his tail gets touched. Yet, for a brief second, he looked to where his tails would be and stared diligently. Although he could not see Bernkastel, in a way, he almost knew it was the Witch who touched his tails. While he stared at Bernkastel, his face is riddled with confusion.

"Lady Bernkastel..?" He said faintly, carefully placing a hand over the one she placed on his forearm. He slowly inched closer to the Witch to sniff her face.

As he tried to compose himself, the woman with the dress spoke to him, causing his body to instantly tense up. He saw her before him and lifted his head up, perking his ears. When the Lady spoke to him, something caught his attention; a name he never heard of.

"House of Jinaira? Who is... Jinaira, ma'am?" As the woman spoke about the vase, he turned his head in a futile attempt to seek the broken vase. "I apologize for breaking your vase, Ma'am, it was an accident---"

He paused briefly, hearing the last word to come out of the woman's mouth. He did not mishear her, he did not misunderstand her; Zenta knew exactly what she said. To the Breakers, he appeared to have suddenly stopped talking while facing the wall. His confused expression was quickly replaced with sheer terror. He took a step back, his posture instantly crumbling while he began to breathe rapidly. One word caused this beast to lose his entire composition.

"Wha-- H-How... How do you know that name? Who told you that name?!" Zenta stuttered before his body tensed up. "Never call me that! Never! Never!"

The beast took a step forward to the mysterious woman, dragging both Bernkastel and Spina with him like feathers. Although he was getting tensed and upset, to the Breakers touching him, his body was cold, colder than ice. The name he heard froze his blood in literal fear, yet, he bared his teeth to the Lady in defiance. In a way, the beast seemed desperate to keep whatever the Woman said a secret.

"Speak no more of that name!"


After seeing Spawn get pushed back, Avalon's heart began to race. That alone was enough for the monsters to set their eyes on him and rush at him. The ninja was nimble enough to move out of the way from the first monster, but was quickly tackled to a wall by another one. The force was so strong that he felt the wind rush out of him. He kicked the monster off of him and immediately noticed Lucifer by the door. For some reason, when Lucifer spoke, Avalon just knew he was not lying. If the group stayed in this room, they would certainly die.

"Quickly! Get behind me!" Nia shouted as she focused her mind, creating a barrier to block off the monsters, giving the Breakers a chance to escape.

Or so she thought.

The monsters all bone rushed the psychic barrier and shattered it like glass. This was the same barrier that was strong enough to withstand Superman's punches, yet shattered instantly against these beasts. She was nearly overwhelmed by the monsters until Avalon fired some water shuriken towards one to give her an opening.

"My barrier had no effect?!" Nia was dumbfounded. "But why?!"

"Less talkin' and more runnin'!" Avalon said. "Everyone, let's go!"
 
"Alright, here we g- Whoa!" Bage moved his hand toward the top of the bottle, but his balance was thrown off as he was shoved to the floor by Zenta's panicking. the Detective barely caught himself and the bottle as he looked up and confused at the beast. "Zenta? What woman...?" Bage turned toward the rest of the room, and as he expected, no one was there. and on top of that, Zenta was blind. How could he see a woman in a dress so clearly? What presence was here other than them? It could only be a Xypher's doing! The elite!! 

"Hey! Something's wrong, try not to be so rough with him!" He warned Spina as he yanked Zenta by the fur to keep him still. "Keep your guard up everyone!" 

After tucking the bottle safely away in his coat, Bage came forward, only a few feet in front of Zenta and turning to where he was seemingly looking. Still nothing... but in the Vortex, nothing was also bad when in the enemy's territory. At least he was calming down with Spina and Bernkastel's touch. He gave a small sigh in relief. He turned back to him and tried to speak to him to get a better understanding of the situation Zenta was in, "Zenta, What do you see? Is it the Elite Xypher of this hive-!!" 

Without hesitation and before the detective could finish speaking, Bage backed away quickly as Zenta lashed out, baring his teeth toward him. All he did was call him by his name! "Hey! Calm down, it's just me!"
 
Majin Bara on her turn didn't hesitate and followed the others as they fled, not wanting to become a coin or something worse as these beasts suddenly attacked. If push came to shove, she could always liquefy herself and split herself up if only to confuse the opponents, but for now she held off on that, not interested to expose her abilities to the enemy yet.
 
The Mysterious Manor – Team Distraction

In a dramatic fashion, after initial composure, Zenta erupted in a frenzy that made it quite difficult for the others to hold him down. Spina dug his heels in the floorboard and extended his arms around Zenta’s torso as an attempt to secured him. From his perspective, it seems that Zenta outright lashed out towards Bage and posed a danger. “I’m dragging him out of here!” Spina heed to Bage’s warning. If this was some kind of trick that the Xy’phers have done, then clearly the best solution was to simply leave the room.

---

“Revealing your teeth against a servant of Jinaira, after breaking her most precious vase?” Her tone was sharp, and echoes with every word she spoke. “I, History, shall not take your unpleasant attitude with mercy.” Revealing her name towards the beast, History raised her left and gripped Zenta’s snout to force it shut. Despite having a slimmer appearance, History’s strength was unnaturally strong.

“I do not know how so many of you managed to bypass the barrier—” History eyed on two individuals holding onto Zenta: Bernkastel, the Witch of Miracles and Spina, the lonely Saiyan. Without hesitation, History turned her head slightly and witnessed Guardian stood idly by. Whatever assertion she was going to make, History already has her answer. “Another round of this game.” She frowned.

Exhaling a ring of smoke from the churchwarden pipe with her right hand, History turned to Zenta once again. “I did my best to stir these pitiful creatures away from this room, then you came along and destroy the only gift that Jinaira had graciously gifted to me.” The churchwarden pipe vanished into thin air, using her right hand to raise a portion of her blindfold and reveal her right eye.

To say History’s eyes was strange would be a mere understatement. Her eye was completely black, but there were hints of white particles twirling around her pipul. These particles, if one were exposed to her eyesight, would reveal their entire histories to them: from the very beginning to their present. Memories of his past would flood his brain all at once. “I’ve seen that you were placed with constraints; mere child’s play to me.” Her right hand slowly reached passed Zenta’s visor and pulled out 4 eyes from him. “I’m taking these as payments, Baliko.” History stared him down as the eyes were merely absorbed in her body.

The Mysterious Manor – Team Stealth

“I can only tap into this when I used this breathing technique.” Detective Goku turned to Detective Spawn; the latter completely battered with blows. “It’s extremely difficult. And I have to make a lot of sacrifices to even access this.”

Detective Spawn wiped the dirt off his face. “Hmph. You didn’t even hesitate once—its like you were like a machine. I’ve felt no meaning behind those punches.” He struggled to stand. “And this other state is just as dangerous?”

“I was told… they played this for a while, so I’m sure there are others out there.” Detective Goku said. “If you ran into even just one of them that have “Empty Mind”. Don’t fight. Run.”

As the series of monsters leaped towards the psychic barrier and shredding it with their monstrous strength, Detective Spawn, running at full speed, turned his head in reaction to the pieces of psychic energy smashing against the ground. His eyes narrowed when a series of rapid blows hurl against him—despite making no intentions of defending himself or attacking. He was simply seeing of the situation unfolding behind him.

Spawn’s head whipped back and forth by the series of monsters; saliva and blood spilling out of his mouth. He tried to defend himself, only to be engulfed a barrage of rapid blows. “Fuck… even just thinking, they’re already attacking….” Detective Spawn thought, crossing his arms to defend himself from the attacks. He had no option but to simply keep running despite the monsters’ continuous attacks.

This was the same for the others; Avalon, Nia, May, and Bara were riddled with rapid blows for every action they take—although they were not enough to completely incapacitated them: just results in heavy injuries if they don’t actively defend themselves. The monsters on the walls weren’t particularly strong. Except for the humanoid one that appeared before them initially. “May! You got any gadgets that can speed us up towards the door!? None of us can handle this amount of punishment for too long!!” Detective Spawn felt a gust of freezing winds swept over him.

In the room filled with endless black, what Spawn saw with his own eyes was clear: Lucifer was flung in the air, being knocked around senselessly as pieces of his fabric and flesh were tore from his body. The angel crashed against the ground near Spawn and the others.

“Hey! You’re alright—” Spawn’s eyes narrowed upon seeing Lucifer’s face.

Half of Lucifer’s face held a demonic appearance. A long horn, red eyes, and a grayish skin tone, accompanied with an eternal frown. “Yes.” The angel said in a monotone with firm commanding sentiments as blood spilled out. “This one is different from the rest. A particularly dangerous one, and if we don’t escape, this shall be our graves.”

The single, humanoid creature stood in between them and the door. Clenching its fist, a sudden burst of energy balls made of dark energy appeared behind it, hurling towards the group indiscriminately, with little regard to the other monsters in the chase—some of them completely disappeared when hit by one.
 
May says taking out a scroll in-between shot "It's more arcane than your use to coming from me, Spawn." May aviates the scroll of haste which helps the brakers speed up. May thinks "It may be a scroll but it's simple and effective. Right now, that all we need to speed up." The group notice that after she aviates the scroll, they in fact do move faster. May says "it has the side effect of helping our reflexes as well speed. It shood ware off once were out of danger or something dispels it."
 
As Zenta listened to the woman, his maw continue to bare its teeth. While Spina and Bernkastel held on to him, he began to struggle, as if to try to lunge to the woman known as History. Even then, he still held back, fearing he might accidentally hurt the others despite not being able to see or sense them. His entire body shook with panic, even though he was getting agitated and enraged. Something was off about his behavior. His actions screamed that he wanted to keep something hidden, but his words were vicious.

"Don't call me that, wench! I did not know I broke your vase--"

Zenta was suddenly silenced in the eyes of the Breakers, obviously from History grabbing his snout shut. To the others, it simply looked as if he was muffling to himself without reason. He tried to grab on to History's hand to pry it off, but Spina and Bernkastel made sure to keep him at bay. While he muffled, he watched History's eye and he instantly froze in his spot. As her hand got closer and closer to his face, he tried to back away, but felt his body nearly froze in shock from how History is handling him.

P-Please... no...

And as History slipped her hand past Zenta's visor to pull out his eyes. His actual eyes. All four of them. Ones that were supposed to be taken long ago. His eyes.

Zenta stared at History remove his eyes and remained motionless for a few moments, trying to comprehend what he saw.

"Those are... my... eyes..." Zenta said under his breath before his body started to shake. "Give me back... my eyes! Give them back!!!"

As Zenta launched a hand to grab his eyes, memories of his past began to flood his mind. Everything he did stormed him, hitting him in the stomach. He despised his past, harboring horrible memories and awful, often painful experiences. Considering that he told the Breakers what happened to his wife and pup, he would be reliving that... right? Zenta was a mystery to the Breakers as is, so who knows what he was witnessing. Zenta yanked his arms to grip his head and wildly shake his head, trying to push the memories out.

"No! Stop it! Stop it! STOP IT! ARRRRRRGGGGHHH!!!"

Zenta finally snapped, releasing a deep yell that came from his core. The beast clawed his face and yanked at his hair to do anything to stop his memories from flooding him. Nothing he did worked. While Spina held on to him, Zenta's strength instantly changed. The beast was no longer holding himself back anymore, and he backhanded Spina right onto Bage, sending both straight through a few walls. His tails whipped around wildly, flinging Bernkastel effortlessly towards the ceiling, leaving her body's shape implanted on it. He dropped to his knees, screaming in agony while he struggled to rid the images from his head. His hand slammed against the floor, shaking the entire room with each hit. His screams of torment sounded like cries for mercy as he rolled onto his side gripping his head and kicking his feet violently, as if fighting off whatever he was seeing. His graceful and elegant persona was ripped away and true fear finally settled in the beast, and for once, the Breakers saw him as if he was fighting for his life.

Like with any animal, when cornered, he began to attack anything in sight. Whatever Zenta was witnessing caused the Beast to go into a frenzy, mindlessly attacking with his devastating Energy attacks. His hands were glowing white, no doubt if he were to touch the Breakers, it would mean that their energy would be blocked.

"Get out of my head!!!"
 
Team Distraction 

Bernkastel's expression softened upon Zenta placing his hand over hers. "Yes, I'm here. You're alright, see? There's nothing to..." she trailed off when his ramblings started back up, stsring puzzled at the mention of the very name she'd just learnt of.

"Jinaira? I don't remember running into anything about who owns this place..." Berserk took a few moments to register that Zenta was blind anyhow. Even if there was some old faded plaque he had no way of reading it. Her eyes widened with alarm at the sudden flip to hostility in Zenta's nornally placid attitude, holding her hands out in front of her defensively.

"Zenta, get ahold of yourself! Bage isn't an enemy--!" Bernkastel flailed her legs with a yelp of surprise, switching to hugging his tail entirely. Despite her best effort to keep quiet, the beast's unpredictable behavior was slowly eradicating that pretense. "Could it really be the Elite that Nia warned us about?" She didn't say anything about it being literally invisible!

"But how come it's only targeting him?!" Berserk asked. "Calm down a sec, big guy! Nobody's doing anything to your eyes, so why don't we just-"
 
"Forget it, this room's a trap and we're getting out of it no--" Bern gasped again, feeling herself be thrashed about at the mercy of Zenta's erratic movements. Her and Berserk shouted simultaneously in shock of watching both Spina and Bage being launched through the wall, multiple crashes echoing while growing distant.

 "Zenta, stop! You have no eyes, I saw them myself! Listen to me and calm dow-- eek!" Bern cried out from being catapulted into the ceiling by his tails, the wind knocked out of her upon impact. 

Berserk crouched down onto the floor with her hands over her head praying for dear life Zenta wouldn't come after her next. "Th-this is bad, real bad!" She watched Zenta's volatile reaction out of seemingly thin air and thought about when he disappeared into the shadows earlier. "Did... did he get snatched by the doppelganger while wandering off? Is this Zenta a fake?" She knew how dangerous he was since his ability was what disabled Carnage's power to nothing.

Bernkastel peeled off the ceiling and fell atop the table of items she was observing earlier, hacking to get air back into her lungs. "And put on this sort of charade instead of killing us all at once with our backs turned? Real or fake," she grabbed the rusty billhook off the shelf and unsteadily held it before her as an improvised defense. "I didn't think it would have to come to this... but our cover's blown and whatever spell he's under from this room might kill us before the Xy'phers get here."

"Listen I hate to be a pessimist, but he just folded two beefcakes like chairs in one hit--" Berserk started floating to weave and bob out of Zenta's reach-- "and it's like we're not even here, so we're toast if we try to get close. You guys wanna pull straws to see who goes first?!"

"... shit." Bern sidestepped in circles around the beast where she could afford to, calling out to the men. "You two aren't dead are you?"
 
The Snowy Mountains of Rogue City

Vegetto's silver eyes darted from side to side as he swung at the Air Dancer, widening a bit at the sight of the creature perfectly parrying each of not only his blows, but the independent dragons as well. In his heightened state of Ultra Instinct, he felt the impact of Clark's words firsthand: the energy and magnitude of power that the Air Dancer used against Vegetto was perfectly in check against the force that came. No more, no less: only perfect reaction to the incoming strikes that eventually led to Vegetto crashing down into the ground with the Xy'phers soon swarming him.

A small roar erupted from the center of the creatures punching and beating into Vegetto, followed shortly by a bright beam of silver energy shaped like a sword tore through the Xy'phers seconds later, and Vegetto emerged in view once again after slicing through the creatures. He panted heavily; the narrowed silver eyes turning up to Air Dancer once again while the rock chunks of the Xy'phers cascaded down into the snow all around him. The silver fire of his aura swirled around his body; small scratches and his labored breathing indicating his state of effort against the enemy.

"That thing countered me completely...I could feel it sensing my power. I can't fight it head on...I have to trick it somehow..."

Vegetto reached up with his right gloved hand, the brief reprieve in combat giving him time to look down and rub his chin in thought.

"But how..."

His silver eyebrows suddenly perked up, a flash of brief memories flooding his brain. Already having utilized a major technique of Kassava, Vegetto briefly felt the memories of her trick that led to her first victory against the Potara fusion, and the instance where he even used the move against Beerus of his own universe.

"That double Dragon Fist move! One blast to juke it out...and the other to keep it from defending on both fronts..."

Vegetto frowned, dropping his arms to his sides.

"But how did it go? I can't even remember the name..."

The Potara fusion tightly shut his eyes, attempting to recall on his memories to guide the technique. His mind wandered down the rabbit hole towards the fight; the scenery of his training world filling his mind. His perspective was the first thing he could recall; a warrior attempting to push Kassava beyond her comfort zone and realize her potential. Yet at each conscious push from Vegetto to relive the memory, the silver fire of his aura retreated inward. His thoughts moved past the initial stand off with Kassava; his own memories beginning to taint on the emotions he felt at the time. Frustration at her inability to stand against him, frustration at her lack of power, and frustration at his mentors telling him his way of training her was failing.

Vegetto snapped his eyes open with a gasp, gripping his head a bit. In the downwards spiral of the memory, he had reverted back to his normal state while he clutched the side of his head; a strong frown forming as Whis' voice naturally pushed its way into his thoughts.

Ultra Instinct is more than just your input, Vegetto. Feel the energy around you; reach out. Look past what you can control, and adapt to the world in motion around you...

Vegetto clenched his fists once again, closing his eyes tightly as he forced himself back into the deep thought from before. His forehead visibly untensed as he exhaled deeply; letting go of the attempt he made earlier to recall the memory. Instead of reaching in and attempting to pull it out by force in the back of his mind, Vegetto pushed forward; extending his own subconscious reach. His sense within his mind touched beyond the viewpoint he remembered from his fight with Kassava, and in a strange whirl of emotion, he found himself staring up from a new perspective.

He gasped as he felt the swarm of emotion wash over him in the memory: fear, desperation, and the will to realize an inner potential. Vegetto looked from side to side within the memory; the scene of the training world similar, only he now stood on the ground. He stared up to see an exact duplicate of him looming overhead in flight, and the surge of desire to live up to expectations prompted the realization.

This is her side of it...her memory. This isn't possible; I shouldn't be able to feel her energy like this...

Vegetto opened his eyes slowly, glancing down. His body had moved on its own in the recollection of the memory; his stance now mirroring the one Kassava had in the memory. He blinked at the sight of his own muscles trembling; mimicking the fatigue she felt at the moment while he slowly came back to his senses. Yet strangely, the world around him had shifted entirely, and Vegetto's eyes widened at the sight.

The very area around them had shifted; Vegetto's energy signature polluting the entire vicinity in a strange formation of the training world from his universe. As if two worlds were colliding into each other harmlessly, the exact grass and serene pinkish sky covered the snowy mountains alike. Like a holoprojection, Vegetto's energy had physically created the memory in perfect sync with the display in his mind; the energy beginning to fade away slowly now that the Potara fusion was out of the strange state of mind he was in earlier.

"What...is this?"

Vegetto glanced around slowly and within moments, the world returned to normal before the group fighting against the Air Dancer and the Xy'phers it led. Vegetto narrowed his eyes immediately, however, clenching his fists once more.

"Focus...bring the memory back out!"

He tightly shut his eyes once more, but unlike the strange sensation from before, the memory stalled in his mind. A vague loss of the image was all he could muster; a recollection of the Super Saiyan glow filling his mind as the only image he could see, but bearing no other guidance as Vegetto slowly opened his eyes.

"Damnit...hmm...if I can't bring it out...then maybe...it'll come if I relive it. Starting with the form she used."

Vegetto clenched his fists together once more, lightning crackling around his body. He visibly strained and the veins along his forehead throbbed as he began to shout. Unlike the fluidity of Ultra Instinct or even the transformation of Super Saiyan Blue, Vegetto's labored and visible struggle in shaking showed his extreme effort to power up. The jagged and unrefined energy exploded outwards from underneath Vegetto's boots like a flame; the familiar glow of a Super Saiyan radiating outwards. His hair extended out in spiky bundles behind his waist; the eyebrows vanishing entirely from his face. Now transformed as a Super Saiyan 3, Vegetto panted with long heavy breaths as he dropped down onto his left knee; lightning crackling and tearing into the snow next to him.

"Fuck...this form...it's even worse without godly ki. How did we ever fight with this form tearing apart our bodies like this..."

Yet as Vegetto slowly rose to his feet, a surge of the emotions Kassava felt in the memory began to wash over him again. His eyes widened a bit, glancing around at the sight of the scene beginning to reform; a transparent ghostly hue of the training world harmlessly crashing into the snowy landscape once more.

"But it's working...I don't need the extra power. If I can land one...perfect strike...then we have a chance."

Yet the reprieve was short lived. Vegetto's turquoise eyes lifted up, and the Potara fusion nearly gasped at the sight of the Xy'phers beginning to recover and regroup all around him. His eyes lifted over to Clark as he saw the Kryptonian finally begin to rise to his feet, his dual voice booming out in his speech.

"Clark!! I got an idea on how to beat this thing....but I need you to cover for me! Can you keep this things off me for a few minutes?!"


Team Distraction

Cayde yelped as Beserk tossed him through the little opening to join the rest of the team. He landed gently on his feet, the boots creasing as he bent his knees in the impact while the android brushed his pants, turning towards the Powerpunk once she arrived with the team.

"Thanks! One of these days, I'll figure out how to fly but until then...complimentary tosses are always appreciated."

The android took to glancing around the room as well; most of the relics and strange artifacts doing little to arouse a reaction out of him. His eyes wandered onto the inert Dragon Balls for longer than most, however, but he soon whirled around as Zenta broke into a frenzied state. He joined Bage and Spina in attempting to tackle the beast to the ground, but even a small fidget flung Cayde back as he yelped, slamming into the wall. The android shook his head as he steadily got up to his feet, blinking with wide eyes at the sight of Bage and Spina flying through the nearby walls a few moments later in Zenta's more aggressive fidgetting.

Cayde slowly reached towards his holster as he watched Zenta move around like an animal backed into a corner, eyeing the white energy swirling around the beast's palms while he spoke with an uneasy.

"Hey...Zenta...buddy ole pal. It's just us...just...talk to us. The evil mind guys aren't real...maybe..."
 
The Mysterious Manor – Team Distraction

History, unfazed by Zenta’s violet outburst of anger and thrashing, responded in kind with a cunning snicker. “O, Baliko. Curse with the burden of constraints latched upon you. But as all things from infinite worlds, these are nothing but trivial to the subjects of Jinaira. From any point of history, I can bypass them and pulled them out if I do wish.”

In the wake of Zenta billowing his hands with energy with clear intention of attacking anyone in his direction, History approached in front, exhaling a ring of smoke from her churchwarden pipe as means of demeaning the man. Her face distorted into a twisted, rage-filled expression. “That vase encompasses all things of all worlds, preparing for the most delicious and thrilling motion picture. I’ll take more,” History turns to Guardian, scoffing at her for stepping foot in her precious room. “Your eyes will suffice, for now.”

“It’ll take more than that to take me out,” Spina responded as wall fragments clearly embedded onto his back. Helping Detective Bage up to his feet, the sensation of battle was clear in his tone. Regardless on whether or not this Zenta was an imposter had no bearing on the current situation: he was clearly attacking them with malicious intent and any hesitation will result disastrous result.

Spina recalled what Lucifer did earlier and wonders if pushing Zenta into the front was a warning. Zenta went off on his own accord, emphasized on going to a particular door, even if it also enticed Spina the same way, and now violently attacking anyone in sight without noticeable reason. It dawned on him further when Zenta took a battle stance: there was no legitimate reason why he would remain with the Breakers after Cuki left. Even if she had told him, that was still a shaky agreement at best.

Furrowing his eyes while maintaining a smirk, Spina speculate that this was all but a ploy to get revenge on the Breakers. Especially since Cuki was fighting with Bernkastel the most, perhaps, is his chance to get back at her.

Regardless of what Spina thought, Zenta had presented himself as a threat and the possibility of Xy’phers barging in, now that the entry towards this room is now opened, is even more apparent. Positioning himself, Spina’s left arm once again came alive in anticipation of a battle.

A sudden burst of violent energy erupted above them; a similar mechanism they saw on the exterior of manor from earlier, rushed towards the frenzied beast quickly. Spina noticed such and looked around quickly. If that were to hit Zenta, it would also quickly spread to the others since they were close proximity. Deeper in his feelings, if Zenta were to be knocked out, it would mean that the potential battle would’ve been squandered. The old Saiyan looked around and grabbed the firs thing he saw. A strange, rusty gun that seemingly lost its color, and its name embedded on the side was no longer there. In quick thinking, Spina tossed the gun in the nick of time, colliding it against the attack which resulted in an explosion. As the smoke billowed across the room, Spina shouted at the others. “We’ll just have to find a way out this room. Find a way, I’ll handle him.” His eyes narrowed, locking onto Zenta. “Come on, bastard…!! I’ll take you on.”

“Tsk…” History became dejected after Spina tossed an artifact she collected and used it as a means to prevent Zenta being struck. It seems to be a single use, since it did not fire again, leading to History’s disappointment. “How unfortunate… that I cannot…” She stopped herself from finishing the sentence. “I’m exhausted by this already.” She turns towards Zenta, as her body started to phase out. “Run amuck, o vile creature.” Her voice seemingly dejected after Spina tossed an object from the room as a means to deflect the defense attack. “For your monotonous road clouds your wisdom in a feeble attempt to run from history.” Just as she disappeared, History left with parting words. “Death follows, Baliko.”

As Spina dashed forward, the fleeting words from History rung his ears. The same happened with the others. “Huh? Baliko?” He said in a confusing manner, snapping out of his battle psyche. “What the hell is a Baliko?”


The Snowy Mountains of Rogue City

Helping Clark up to his feet, Wordplay continued to plead with him. “No one is going to judge your actions if you leave. Whatever happens here,” Wordplay emphasized. “Is the culmination of failure on Vegetto. This is the testament of his character, and if his growth fails... so be it.”

Clark shook his head. “True, but I won’t leave. Not like this.” Shrugging his shoulders and doing light stretches. “Besides, there’s a bunch of Xy’phers here. They will just keep growing and growing until they eventually reach us—and anyone in their path will get added to their armies. Sorry, I won’t do that. Whether Vegetto deserved it or not doesn’t matter now—we need to stop these rock heads. Besides, looks like he’s making thrives right now. The most I’ve seen yet since I met him.”

“… Well, that happens when you go against the will of Jinaira.”

Clark perked a brow, quickly turned his head. “Huh? What did you say—” Before he could go further, the shouting from Vegetto caught his attention. He stood silently, but he obliged with a simple nod. Turning to Wordplay. “Stay here and make sure you don’t get hurt.”

Clark crossed his arms together until the muscles mass increased slightly in size. He leaped forward from his spot, causing Wordplay to tumbled backwards. With an incredible landing, the earth beneath the Kryptonian shattered, causing the reform Xy’phers that surrounded Vegetto to collapsed within the rocks.

Any remaining Xy’phers not caught in the rock formations, rushed in to attack the Kryptonation with fury of blows. Still recovering from his earlier blows, Clark’s precision and timing was off, and his speed had considerably slowed. His head whipped back and forth, but he countered by firing heat vision to push them away from both Vegetto and Clark.

Air Dancer, remaining stationary after unleashing its attack against Vegetto, turned to the sight of Clark rejoining the battle. Just a glimpse of the Kryptonian’s face was enough: the man turned to the air dancer with fury in his eyes. Changing into its green state, the Air Dancer rushed in, Clark did the same.

“Atomic Beam!” Clark shouted, firing powerful eye vision towards the Air Dancer. Of course, the Xy’pher Dancer effortlessly dodges it and returned an attack of his own.

HIGH STREAM AEROJET

Another round of highly concentrated jets of air fired and erupted on Clark. “Arghh!!!” He grunted, coughing off blood as a result. As his strength was fleeing by the minute, Clark mustered enough strength into his hands and clapped as hard as he could. “Lightning Clap!!!” He shouted in agony, as storm of powerful winds, with sparks of lightning surging around, erupted from his hands.

The Air Dancer reacted by spinning its body around so fast that the Lightning Clap simply twirl—not damaged—with its momentum instead. As a result, the Air Dancer turned into fiery, lightning tornado with rapid speeds.

“Oops…” Clark raised his hands and caught it his hands. Feeling the brute of electricity surging through his body, the Kryptonian shouted. “What’s the plan?!”
 
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The Snowy Mountains of Rogue City

The pain of the Super Saiyan 3 form still tore through Vegetto's body, and in a desperate cry, the Potara fusion dropped to one knee. He clutched his chest, breathing heavily while his hair receded back to its normal length and his eyebrows returned. Despite the damage, he still remained in the basic Super Saiyan form, glancing around with a panicked stare.

Vegetto tensed, his eyes turning immediately onto the rushing Xy'phers. If they reached him, his weakened state and distracted focus would make him fully vulnerable to their rush. Yet the defeat did not come; the earth shattering force tore through the ground itself and destroyed the creatures with ease.

The Potara fusion panted lightly as the rocks began to crumble and cascade down from the sky around him, a small nod given towards the Kryptonian. His eyes darted down, his mind racing once more but the transparent vision remained unchanged before him no matter his efforts.

Relive the memory...how she must've felt. She knew I had the power of a god...she knew about Blue. She must've been scared...

Vegetto's breath hitched, forcing himself to think on the perspective. The wave of fear and desperation washed over him despite it not being his true emotions, immersing himself in what he believed the state of his lost wife's mind to be. The glowing apparition of the world before him began to shift ever so slowly; the warmer breeze washing over all the occupants in the area first. Small changes like an extra ray of sunshine warming the gathered fighters, to the new grass being tangible enough to collapse and be crushed in the falling rocks.

The Potara fusion gasped at the sight, glancing around.

There...that's it...but it's still not enough. She wasn't just afraid...she...had to have wanted the fight. She always wanted to help me, and she believed she could. She knew I wanted a fight...she had a plan to win...

The ground directly in front of Vegetto suddenly imprinted; two footprints pressed into the grass before him. The prints were significantly smaller than his own, but Vegetto kept his eyes closed as he continued his thought.

She wanted to prove she could beat me.

Thunderous electricity crackled in the open air, snapping Vegetto from his trance. His eyes widened at the first sign of a golden aura nearly identical to his own forming; swirling around an invisible source. The bright energy continued to mount and grow, however, as the crackling lightning swirled outward in every direction. He blinked, his eyes widening at the familiar voice roaring at the top of her lungs and soon, spoke for the first time from beyond the grave.

"KAIOKEN!!"

The redish aura swirled outward in a devastating expulsion of power, and for the first time, the woman appeared inside with her fists clenched together. Vegetto walked outwards, his stunned stare unchanged at the sight of the realistic memory now come to live before him. Standing transformed as a Super Saiyan, a younger Kassava glared across the way and panted heavily in attempting to control the transformation.

The memory of the fight continued to materialize before Clark, Wordplay and Air Dancer during their battle; the shout from Clark about the plan finally being answered in the form of a new figure appearing directly into the tornado. Vegetto's own voice rung out in an annoyed, cocky grunt as an identical version of him appeared out of no where within the devastating tornado. The flash and flare of his Super Saiyan aura dispersed the wind and flames in an instant; the tangible memory itself having power of its own just like the duplication of Kassava. Yet the Vegetto that stood before Clark and Air Dancer paid them no attention; the memory playing out before them without pause as the Vegetto variant turned to the side and seemed to speak into his ear piece even as debris and rocks tore through his afterimage.

"The Kaioken? That's what you were teaching her? You promised me a challenge, Whis...she can't hope to beat me with just that."


The real Vegetto standing next to the ghostly image of Kassava let out a chuckle in disbelief, staring on with a content smile.

"Kass..."

The strange shift in reality seemed to suddenly pause, however, despite the energy signatures and pressure of the memory Kassava and Vegetto remaining. The real Vegetto raised his dual voice, his confident tone returning as he called out to Clark.

"This is it Clark! It can adapt and respond to any attack...but it can't change history! If I can power this memory...if I can distract it with a battle it can't change...we can get our hits in! Get ready!"

Vegetto broke out into his cocky smirk once more, spacing his legs. His eyes turned onto Kassava, the thoughts of forcing himself to see the fight from her eyes once again powering the now tangible memory of their world to continue. The ghostly afterimage radiated a growing power, her eyes still locked onto the other Vegetto.

"I'll show you!"

The real Vegetto broke out into another small chuckle, his eyes shut as he followed the flow of the memory with his own energy rising.

You sure did, Kass. And I can't wait...to see it again. Show them all what you can do...

Lightning crackled once more around the fusion's body, the surge of the red Kaioken energy engulfing his golden aura. Vegetto slowly opened his eyes and stared down the apparition of himself across the way, his stance mirroring Kassava's while he stood next to her with a long sigh of air.

"And this time, we'll do it together."

The memory Vegetto that stood before Clark and Air Dancer on the ground began to roll his eyes, the muffled sound of Whis' voice in his ear before the Potara fusion promptly cut off the angel and spoke again in annoyance.

"What do you mean, 'there's more'? What is this; what is she planning?"

The mechanical voice that followed rung out louder this time, and Whis' confident and warm tone could be heard by Clark and Wordplay as the angel spoke for the final time.

"To go even further beyond."

The line cut out in the memory Vegetto's ear, and suddenly, a torrent of storm force winds blasted the entire area. The memory Vegetto's eyes narrowed, his gi and golden hair whipping around in every direction.

The deafening scream rung out seconds later. Kassava's roar mixed with Vegetto's in a tumultuous shaking of the entire mountainside. Both Saiyans stood as their energy exponentially rose; the Kaioken multiplier surging beyond 20 times in strength. Yet the energy did not stop there; the immense flair of the golden aura soon followed as both of their energy signatures multiplied even further as their golden spiky air extended out over their backs. Strangely, however, the memory Vegetto was moved; like someone moving a projector and the image simply shifting into a different position. The real Vegetto's eyes turned onto Air Dancer; an indication that the real Vegetto could control the direction and position of the realistic memory playing out wherever he wanted.

With the memory Vegetto now standing directly behind Air Dancer, the creature could feel a sudden surge come from the real Potara Fusion's counterpart. In response to Kassava's growing power, the memory of Vegetto had thrown his right arm forward and shot a medium sized energy sphere. The energy was real in either tearing through Air Dancer, or the creature being able to avoid it; unchanged in its flight towards Kassava as she and the real Vegetto let out a thunderous, final roar in their power up. The energy blast struck Kassava as it did in the original memory; both Saiyans disappearing inside the smoke cloud that rose.

Only seconds passed however in the calm that followed the explosion, and soon, the smoke dissipated away entirely. Now fully transformed into a Super Saiyan 3 with the multiplier of Kaioken on top of her transformation, Kassava suddenly shot forward across the ground with her fists reeled back. The real Vegetto mimicked her exact movements as he dashed forward; a few feet to her left as the pair approached the Air Dancer.

Kassava snarled as she swung a devastating right fist forward in an uppercut; the memory having been shifted to position Air Dancer in between her original target and her punch. Regardless if the creature would defend or counter the strike, her fist would sail through and the energy itself would power through whatever defense provided to hit the original target: the memory of Vegetto. The memory of Vegetto hacked out in pain with wide eyes as her fist slammed into his stomach; having been originally caught off guard by the sheer speed and power of Super Saiyan 3 with the Kaioken. Vegetto landed and mimicked Kassava's strike and pose a few feet away from Air Dancer, his eyes never once leaving the creature. A silver gleam mixed with the turquoise blue of his eyes while his power surged, the strange display before Clark.

Shortly after landing the first blow, the memory of Kassava suddenly vanished into thin air. Whipping around in and out of sight, Kassava flew around Vegetto and struck with a flurry of punches and kicks; overwhelming the memory of the Potara fusion in a blitz from all angles. Once again, the real Vegetto moved the memory to position his own apparition as close to Air Dancer as possible to not only confused the creature on which Vegetto to strike, but to place it in the trajectory of the memory Kassava's attacks. The memory of Vegetto whipped around from her strikes, and whether or not the Air Dancer got caught in the strikes too did not change the outcome of the memory playing out. The real Vegetto continued to mimic Kassava's exact strikes and motions, controlling his fists and legs to strike even without a target to hit. His eyes remained tightly shut as he did, focused completely on reliving her side of the battle while moving the memory to keep Air Dancer caught in the middle of their fight while he moved around in the motions a few feet away from the creature.

The memory of Vegetto soon recovered from the initial bursts, his smirk widening fiercely as his gloved hands shot forward. With Air Dancer caught in the middle of their hand lock, the memory Vegetto chuckled in amusement as he pulled Kassava in closer.

"Ha! You didn't think it'd be that easy, did you?!"

The monstrous flair of Super Saiyan Blue erupted forth from the memory of Vegetto, his energy surging as his arms and legs flew up to defend the onslaught of the aggressive, offensive strikes from Kassava. The defensive strikes and counters from Vegetto shooting forward, while Kassava lashed out aggressively in offense; both sides of the two's historical fight lashed out at Air Dancer caught in the middle while the real Vegetto continued to mimic and copy Kassava's every movement, guiding the fight to lock Air Dancer within.
 
Team Distraction

"Yeah, we're good..." Bage replied in discomfort, before being helped up by Spina. "But jeez, he sure does packs a punch."

The detective could only watch as Zenta continued to wreck the once quiet room in his panic. At this rate the Xy'phers would be on their way with all the noise being made. Looks like the plan had begun before any of them could prepare themselves. What could they do? There was no means of escape other than the hole they came from that could soon become the entrance for the Xy'phers.

Immediately the detective tried to formulate a solution. But unfortunately, the attack from above took Bage by surprise as it came raining down toward them, where the hell did that come from?! But just as quickly as the attack appeared it was soon gone thanks to Spina's quick wit. A bit of relief washed over him before he was commanded to find a way of escape from the room.

Bage nodded, now with a determined look on his face, "Right! You heard him, spread out and look for a way out! The Xy'phers could get here in any moment! And we don't wanna stick around for whatever has Zenta to get us too!"

While looking for a new exit, he hesitated a moment at hearing a strange voice call out to someone. Death follows Baliko.

Bage's head swiveled almost immediately. Baliko...? What was that?
 
Team Distraction

As Zenta continued to witness his memories flash before his mind, he turned to History with nothing but a vile snarl across his maw. To the Breakers, he looked incredibly out of his usual element: a face of a true beast, his teeth bared and ears flat on his head, as his fur bristled. All he could think right now is silencing History.

"Stop calling me Baliko!" Zenta hissed before launching himself towards History. As History vanished from his view, his memories still overflowing his mind, he instead struck Berserk. Without hesitation, the frenzy beast chomped down her hail, pulling her against the floor like a doll. Within seconds, Zenta bites through her wild hair before settling on her back, violently shaking around before tossing her towards Cayde.

Another surges of his memories filled his mind once again; enticing him to mindlessly attack anything in sight. He smashed against the floorboard, random objects that scattered about in the room. He would occasionally roar in pain before gripping his chest and looking down at it, then at his hands, implying he was bleeding in his vision. He then fell to the floor, gripping what appeared to be invisible hands that wrapped around his throat. Furthermore, he kicked and it genuinely looked as if he struggled to breathe. Then it was back to his violent outbursts, defending himself from every direction, every motion, every drop of a pin. He was incredibly hypersensitive to whatever his memories were showing him.

Upon Spina calling out that particular word as Zenta's memories flooded him at its worst, the beast turned towards the old Saiyan with his ears completely erected. Killing intent was apparent. His hair was messed up, his ponytail was loose, sweaty, and he looked both defeated and murderous, as if he's been through billions--trillions, of years of suffering in the span of a few seconds. His muscles were tense, even through his fur as he focused his attention entirely on Spina and the word he said. He did still did not 'see' Spina, but was instead talking to a memory he was having.

"You still call me Baliko..?" Zenta growled before taking a step forward. The surrounding air started to thicken as his body literally began to ooze his energy. It coated his entire body in a beautiful, yet dangerous, shimmering aura. It was not the usual tranquil white aura he is known to have, but a wild and with a mind of its own, nearly identical to the fox-like aura that attacked Vegetto. It burned anything it touched. This one was much more malicious and full of rage and terror. A pure and pristine murderous intent. "You still call me BALIKO?!"

Zenta crossed his arms over his chest and quickly flung them out; the sheer force behind him opening his arms out created a powerful shockwave that sent anyone nearby flying. At any rate, it travels across the manor, smashing through any windows within. His visor flew off entirely, landing by Bernkastel's side, slightly cracked. He zero'ed in on Spina on all fours and bit down hard on Spina's right arm before pinning him to the floor, similar to how he held Berserk. Saliva came from Zenta's mouth as he spoke and a deep and venomous voice.

"I will not be called that anymore..!"

As Zenta bit down harder on Spina's arm, he rose to his feet in an attempt to actually rip Spina's arm completely off. Blood started to pool under Spina as Zenta's incredible strength overwhelmed the Saiyan. Luckily (or unluckily) for Spina, whatever memory Zenta was witnessing took a turn of events. He gripped his chest and let out a howl of pain before nearly crumpling over Spina, motioning a sign that the beast was being stabbed from behind. There was nothing there from the perspective of the Breakers. Finally, the beast ran out of the room, destroying whatever was left of it, as he dragged Spina through several walls, leaving holes of his path.

However, the second that Zenta left the room and enter another, strange room that contains a single portrait and a bed fitted for a giant; whatever he was going through, ceased. As if a switch clicked on and Zenta seemingly returned his usual demeanor he does towards the Breakers. The terror left by History vanished. "W-Wha..?" Zenta was finally able to 'see' how he normally could, realizing he had Spina's arm locked into his jaw. He noticed his fatigue and unpolished aura. Everything was stirring in his head but there was no doubt he had returned to normal, no longer tormented by whatever History did to him. His expression quickly turned to shock as he instantly spat Spina away from him. His mouth was entirely covered in Spina's blood and once Zenta tasted it, he quickly turned away and vomited on the ground next to him.

"I-I do not understand..! W-What happened..?" He covered his blood soaked jaw and turned to the hole he made from History's room. "W-What... did I.. do?" The gaping holes where Zenta's eyes should be were filled with nothing but dread and horror as he slowly tried to piece together what happened.

=========================

Team Stealth

While the monsters continued to attack them, Avalon overheard Lucifer's little remark about this room being their grave. He didn't want to die here, not like this!

"No way! We ain't dyin' here, Lucifer!"

However, as Avalon tried to make the best of a dire situation, he noticed the beast shooting multiple energy blasts in every direction. There was no control, just pure instinct. To him, he felt like he was fighting robots programmed to attack anything that moved, but this went above and beyond that. There was no intention, if at all. There was no desire, if any. There was none of that. It was instinct in its purest form, and because of such, they were able to attack with such cruelty at any given notice without any hint of mercy.

Thanks to May's speed boost, he narrowly avoided being hit. Another testament of the dangerous speeds of these creatures. Even with the speed boost in play, this vile creature was still dangerously close to hitting them. With everyone struggling to escape, Avalon needed to think of something quickly, but there was no time to think. All he could do was dodge. That's all he can do.

In the barrage of blows unleashed by this humanoid creature, Avalon yanked out his scroll out from his scarf and immediately summoned a large paper tiger underneath them, big enough to have all of Team Stealth ride on its back. He grabbed Nia by her arm and yelled at her.

"Make a barrier around us while I grab the others!"

Not knowing if his plan would even work, he simply began to move at boosted speeds on top of his tiger towards the other Breakers. First he helped Bara, grabbing her by her shirt and up on to the tiger. More blasts started to pour down on him, but Nia was quick to defect them. Slowly but surely, her barrier was forming cracks. Whenever he could, Avalon would fire giant shuriken towards the energy blasts to prevent Nia's barrier from damaging further, but they were simply superficial. The overwhelming presence was growing, and if they don't leave in time, then Lucifer's testament that this place will be their graves will come true. Sweating like bullets, Avalon led the tiger to Detective Spawn and May by their arms and, at best, attempt to avoid the blunt forces of the creature's attacks. Lastly, the Tiger lunged towards Lucifer and grabbed him by the back of his suit, running with him as fast as it possibly could.

"We gotta jump over that dude!" Avalon shouted; the panic in his voice loud and clear.

"Are you insane?!" Nia shouted. "You'll get us killed!"

"You suggest we stay here?!" Avalon kicked his feet on the Tiger's hips. "Let's go! It's now or never, guys! Hang on!"

"But my barrier--!"

Nia did not have a chance to speak out thanks to Avalon rushing towards the only exit in the entire room. He bit his lip, having a death grip on both Spawn and May while he used May's speed boost at maximum to boost the paper Tiger's jump. It jumped right above the raging humanoid's blasts, taking the full brunt and causing an explosion. Nia's shield broke instantly and all of Team Stealth were flung out of the room due to the massive explosion that occurred. Their powers returning once they're out of the room, Avalon turned towards the door where the humanoid resided in. "Get ready..." He warned, thinking that it'll come after them still.
 
Team Distraction

Cayde kept his serious stare, carefully watching Zenta for his next move. As Zenta lashed out at Berserk, Cayde immediately reached to his waist line and yanked his hand cannon from his holster. A sudden surge of silver fire ignited in ragged flames along the android's body, patches of fire covering his body rather than an aura like a Saiyan. His eyes narrowed fiercely into a similar glare of Ultra Instinct, his arm swinging deftly in preparing to fire.

Yet before he could even raise his gun fully, the Powerpunk was being tossed in his direction. Cayde's eyes immediately widened, the silver fire and gleam in his mechanical eyes vanishing in the blink of an eye as he threw his arms up to catch Berserk. The impact slammed the two into the nearby wall, wooden planks. He groaned a bit, soon turning his attention down to Berserk and helping her up to her feet while he straightened himself out.

"You good?"

The android didn't wait for a reply, his eyes lifting at Bage's new orders. He frowned as he glanced around, the strange name spoken being pushed to the back of his mind while he searched for a way out with the others. Yet he watched on in silence as Zenta collided with Spina; the two barreling through the wall and disappearing. The intense crashing sounds of the two's battle prompted Cayde to jog over to the nearby hole, scooping up his dropped hand cannon on the way over and nodding to the others.

"Well, unless anyone's got a better idea...here's our way out fellas! C'mon!"

Breaking out into a run, Cayde lifted up his gun in one hand as he cautiously tailed after Spina and Zenta through the trail of destruction left in their wake. He arrived in the room with the single portrait in the bed, barely taking note of the two pieces of furniture as he approached the pair, cautiously eyeing them with his hand cannon drawn.

"Zentaaaaaaaa? You ok now buddy?"
 
Team Distraction

“Typical of History,” Guardian was indifferent to History’s anger. “Throwing a tantrum over junk is unfitting to a role as an Overseer.” Her tone was dry and lack any sense of emotion: she was merely stating a fact. Nonetheless, such tantrum was beneficial to Guardian. The violent outburst from Zenta was a defining moment because it presented a perfect opportunity to test the Witch of Miracles.

Delaying Bernkastel’s reaction to the events that transpired in front of her, Guardian cradled her head in her arms. “Watch closely, little one.” Guardian, though affectionate, was cold and apathetic. Her words prior laced with vaguely meanings became more apparent here. “This is where the game begins.”

An arm extended outward and grabbed a hand full of fur on Zenta’s chest. As bewildered as Zenta was, Spina used the fur as means to stand up on his feet. Still arched over, the wound on Spina’s right arm was gushing out blood. After a couple of seconds for a breather, Spina lifted his head with two expressions: from the Breakers’ perspective, it was race that dominated his face. For Bernkastel, although his withered appearance returned, it was far more fearsome.

In reaction to the gash on Spina’s right arm, his body clearly mutated. He grew several times his time to the point that he towered over Zenta, still in a confused state. His eyes became pitch black and small white pipuls, and his left arm was completely covered with black spots. “Another one”, a strange voice echoed in Spina’s head. “How many times does it take?” The darkness slowly spread across to cover his left shoulder, forming spikes in their wake. “Allow your instinct to flourish and erase everything!! Go! Lose control!!” A burst of not power, but an unfathomable level of killing intent swept around Spina.

As much as the scene was unfolding in a fast pace, it was incredibly slow to Bernkastel, a deliberate, intentional action by Guardian. “Nearly every scenario since being outwitted by Doctor Doom, you’ve subconsciously sabotaged your logical thinking with emotional ones. Degrading yourself to point of being seduced by feeble toxic energy and tossing out all rationale to make proper decisions.”

Pinching Bernkastel’s cheeks gently, Guardian simply said: “No matter where you go, any efforts of connections on emotional level are futile. You experienced lifetimes failing; what makes it so different now? You already know the outcome where these bonds lie.” Whether Bernkastel could answer this question does not matter. “Zenta, again, demonstrated his ability to sprung out of control at a moment’s notice. And now someone is critically injured. In consequence, this accelerated Spina’s progression towards becoming a Behemoth, a destructive being that operates only on instinct. If nothing is done, Spina will transform right then and now, and a wave of carnage will come.”

Tightening her grip around Bernkastel, Guardian posed a question. “Disregards your feelings. Clear your mind. What would be the logical course of action to remedy this problem? You have several seconds to decide.”

===

Team Stealth

Detective Spawn crashed against the floor, tumbling a few times before coming to a complete stop. His powers returning to his body and operating normally without delays, he stood up and brush off the damages he suffered from the chaos. Clenching his fists, he was prepared to fight the humanoid creature now that he was at full power. “Alright skull-fucker, get ready for a world of pain—”

The Detective’s eyes narrowed when the humanoid creature did not follow Team Stealth out of the room. Instead, it simply stood there by the doorway. As if there was a barrier that prevented them from leaving that strange room. “Huh…?” Spawn raised a brow, as paranoia and aggression suddenly left his body.

“It seems that they are bound in that room. So, we’re safe as long we don’t go in there.” Lucifer observed. “You have my thanks, my dear. Accelerating our speed was a logical choice; otherwise, we would’ve perished.” Lucifer’s demeanor returned quickly. “Though, that would be delightful if one of us become petrified like those Xy’phers. Would they return to normal if taken out of the room?”

“Is that a joke?” Detective Spawn said.

“Come, Spawn. Where’s your sense of curiosity?” Lucifer responded. “Besides, its healthy to make light of what transpired. Good for the soul.”

Detective Spawn narrowed his eyes. “Hmm.”

“It seems that this place is more than just a simple headquarters for the Xy’phers. This is a whole new level of something we’ve stumbled upon.” Lucifer thought about the letter the Xy’pher gave him back in Reflection City. Perhaps this place is something that the Red King found? Perhaps so, but it was still too early to tell.

“You did good, kid.” Detective Spawn said to Avalon. “I thought you were just a bumbling buffoon, talking about justice or whatever. But when you put your mind into it, you can get something done.”

“Indeed. If only he can be consistent about it.” Lucifer joked. “But Nia, do you sense any presence of a hive nearby? I’m sure the Xy’phers in there must’ve screwed with your senses. Now that we’re out of there, it should be more consistent, yes?”


The Snowy Mountains of Rogue City

Clark’s eyes widened upon seeing the memory manifest itself in reality. It was one thing that it changed the environment they were into that of a memory. But it was quite another that not only they can interact with the things in the memory, but any events that occurred in the memory, and any of them happens to be caught in it can be affected by it. It both confused and astounded the Kryptonian.

At any rate, the Air Dancer was stuck in an awkward position. As it responds to hostility, or bursts of emotions, it would naturally respond to all attacks that ever occurred in that memory. Pushing Clark back with its fiery tornado, the Air Dancer swiftly dodges the first energy blast from memory Vegetto and unleashed another round of highly concentrated jets of air in response. It did nothing. Because it was a memory, his attacks bounced off him to no avail. Memory cannot be changed; at least, it does not have the skill set to do so. As such, the Air Dancer, while dodging was more manageable, offensively, was an impossible matter.

Clark managed to stay afloat in the air and studied this strange phenomenon. “That’s one way to bypass its defenses.” He quickly deduced Vegetto’s plan. “Had it held any sense of personality, it could’ve avoided that, but it lacks a will to do anything on its own. Simply just a respond to pure emotions and hostility.” He turned his sight towards the ground, seeing a growing number of Xy’phers regenerating themselves. “Firstly, need to get rid of them. If they get the jump on Vegetto… it’ll release the Air Dancer from this impossible task.” He tensed his muscles and rush to completely get rid of the Xy’phers until they’re coined to shave down problems.

As hostility and emotions is rampant everywhere, the Air Dancer is unable to maintain focus and forced to be on the defensive. But it cannot override its own nature: counterattack. It dodges one of Kassava’s blows and attempted to use air bullets, to no surprise, it failed and got bombardment with the barrage of blows between the memory fight. It managed to sense Clark rushing towards the other Xy’phers—and attempt to use that as a means to escape this trap. Without hesitation, it forced its away out of the fight between the two, hurling itself towards Clark from behind.
 
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