<02/12/1972 – 12:51 | Eldora Tower Fl. 950, Eldora City, Junon Region, Sprawn Valley>

  "That ends the match of the championship! The challenger has defeated the current champion of Brash Danton! What a stunning performance to behold! And the crowd downstairs is going wild with the unexpected turnout and excitement! Leray wielder Jane Venn has defeated the last challenge and has advanced in rank to Leray champion status! The victor will also receive nine hundred thousand electronic credits to assist as seed money for the new operations. With a close call between powerful warriors, former champion Brash Danton has declared a withdraw!"

  With disbelief and excitement building inside of them, Danny and Taylor jumped up at the same time, roaring with the sudden wave of the crowd all around them, everyone watching and cheering as the announcement was made final. With a high five to each other, Danny and Taylor let out all of their excitement with everyone else. The fight took so long, but the overall exchange of abilities and evasions looked more amazing than what they could have ever imagined in a scene.

  Through all of the loud screams from the people around him, Danny still tried to keep the large flat panel in his view, waiting for what was to happen next. Jane didn't really explain much of her plan past this point, but since all went well, she should be in full control of the General Army now. "She's so powerful!"

  "I knew Jane could do it!" Taylor was a little more cheerful than Danny, bobbing around with closed fists. She recalled every moment that she and Jane spent training together, amazed at how quickly it took overall to get Jane to such incredible strengths. Even after all that battling, the dress sphere Taylor helped designed looked amazing on her pride.

  Danny stood comfortably beside Taylor, noticing within a few more seconds that a sudden attenuation change had occurred in the people around them. The overall volume was suddenly reduced, when several cheers and joyous yells transformed into mutters of confusion. Not everyone was behaving this way at once, but it allowed him to overhear the still transmitting broadcast on the screen, drawing his and Taylor's immediate attention.

  "You expect me to hand you the keys to the army just like that? I wasn't onboard with that idea before we battled, and I still am not onboard with it right now!"

  Taylor's jaw dropped slightly with her hand just below. Danton was publicly refusing to hand over his powers to Jane, despite the fact that Jane defeated him in battle. From where the camera angles were capturing, the two seemed like they were ready to fight again. "Wha—" Taylor struggled at first to understand what was going on. "What's happening? Why isn't Danton giving Jane her new title?"

  "He can't withhold that from her!" Danny raged. "That's illegal and unfair!"

  "Can they really do that?" "I thought the newcomer won." Danny could hear them all. Soft-spoken mutters of several people nearby in the same area, watching the same thing with total confusion. This wasn't right! No kidding everyone would be confused. All Danny could do is watch the horror of the argument unfold on screen, the cameras still recording while the announcer remained silent, likely in shock himself.

  Taylor inched closer to Danny with her eyes focused to the same panel, wondering what Jane was supposed to do next. "I guess Danton must not have approved of Jane's big plan. Still..."

  "I was supposed to battle Danton today!" One of the younger men wearing a combat dress sphere drew minor attention to himself from the side of the crowd, storming through the people and over to the screen with a security officer in pursuit. "You can't cancel my battle just because some little girl took his place!"

  "Sir!" The female officer alerted. "I'll have to ask you to return to your assigned station. Failure to comply with those actions will result in your removal from this building, and you'll be banned from battling in Eldora Tower!"

  Danny thought a random fight was about to break out, the people already uneasy. But then something Jane did on screen captured much more attention.

  "I'll show everyone my true power. Everyone watching!" With the whole world watching on the television station and from the people in the tower, Jane lifted up the top of her right glove, creating a blinding force of light that covered much of everything any person could have seen. Two of the people in the crowd realized what the light was really for.

  "No! Stop!" With his voice cracking, Danny shouted at the screen, at Jane as if she would be able to hear his plea. Only a few people glanced back at him, though he didn't mind them any returned attention. Danny couldn't do anything while Jane completely exposed herself on a live broadcast, exposing the fact that she has a secret symbol and that she is a marked one. In doing so, they would be able to invalidate all of her battles, and even take legal action against her. Why would she try this?

  The entire room died down to a few seconds of silence. The air was so stiff that the breathing of anyone could be made out from any angle. On the screen still recording, the light on Jane's hand holographically formed an unusual type of symbol, a sphere-shaped light grid with rings connected to that circle. The symbol shinned so brightly, and it had everyone watching in a complete trance. Even Danny and Taylor were unable to look away, too shocked and surprised that Jane would intentionally show that to the entire world knowing what was at stake.

  Jane's symbol became more solidified and somewhat less transparent to prove that its real power was also still mysterious, but it broke everybody watching down into a deep fear, slowly brewing into evident panic from the body language and back step movements involved. Danny could hear everyone asking about it, as if they were sure - deep at core what Jane was wearing on her hand.

  "What is that?" "Is that what I think it is?" "A symbol? Here in Eldora Tower?" "It can't be!" "Does that mean she cheated?" "Is that a real symbol?" "It has to be a prank!" "Is that why she didn't win?"

  Taylor could hear all of the voices around her, asking many expected questions, and then from the transmission, Danton's last remark was followed by a complete disruption of the live feed to a blank screen. "Cut the live feed! Do it right now!" With that, Jane and Danton, the entire field was nowhere to be seen. The screen and audio were completely cut off, which is something that wouldn't have even happened if this were to occur during one of the ten minute delayed feeds. Taylor caught on to what was happening now, even if everyone else didn't. She saw a few armed guards forming behind Danton that the cameras didn't want to angle, and Jane was using her symbol to prepare for battle, not because she wanted to.

  "I need everyone to evacuate the facility right now!" the officer shouted. "It's not safe here! Everyone evacuate through the front entrance in an orderly fashion!"

  Just as murmurs evolved into screams of panic, the crowd of people going everywhere and tripping over themselves, Taylor shot a powerful glance into Danny's eyes, who stared back at her the same way. His expression looked as though he was alarmed and disturbed, and they were reading each other's next thought as though they had formed a telepathic bond for a few seconds. "We have to help her!"

  "Let's go!" Danny grabbed Taylor's hand, preparing himself to pounce forward in a full sprint towards the security elevator system. For one odd reason he didn't understand until now, Danny recalled the physical location and access type of something called the primary turbo lift on the first floor of the tower that was used as a secret emergency access elevator system only to be used by authorized personnel. He knew this because Jane told him about it earlier, without actually explaining why, but it all made more sense now. Jane knew about several security protocols of this tower, and it was for any potential emergency situation like this one. The hidden elevator isn't public knowledge at all, nor is it hard to spot in this chaos, and Jane supposedly got this from the internet, not that such a link would have given her that information. She most likely was told by someone else she didn't want him to know about, but such information couldn't be regarded at the moment.

  Ignoring the detail until later, Danny made his way towards the direction he needed to be with Taylor in tow, who ran as fast and as balanced as he did. Sadly, this brought down immediate attention to them from the officer attempting to escort civilians out of the building.

  "Hey! Stop right there!"

  Without thinking or replying to the officer changing her course, Taylor held out her free hand and concentrated her Leray energy to form a blue glyphring around her wrist, releasing a powerful bolt of ice while aimed at the grid officer.

  Danny noticed the officer to his left being blown back by a bolt of ice, knowing full well from the chilling cold near his neck that Taylor was the one who fired that bolt of energy. The officer was powerless against the force of the energy bolt, covering the female's skin from the bone chilling after-effect ice attacks have on flesh. Just like that, he and Taylor whizzed by the woman without any additional resistance. The elevator was already in view, and left open due to the sudden state of emergency. The building didn't call a lock down yet, since the civilians needed to get out. Still, the way Taylor just blasted that officer with ice out of the blue to keep going without any hint of question... It was kind of hot! "No one gets in our way!" Danny gave the caution to anyone else nearby trying to stop them, but nobody else was around with such qualifications.

  Through the ear piercing sound of high caliber gunfire, Jane held out her left hand, supercharged with Leray energy due to the symbol still flashing on the right while she continued releasing some of her MP capacity effortlessly to create a massive solid wall of energy. A Farshield overpowered by Jane's crest managed to reflect every bullet fired by Danton's soldiers. Since Danton wasn't currently doing anything himself, Jane knew this was just a bluff. Danton wanted her to stop using magic and surrender quietly. By the time the guns needed reloading, Jane dropped her shield for the time being, giving Danton and herself more time to say something.

  "Buying yourself more time won't save you," Danton exclaimed. "Because of the stunt you've just pulled, national agents from all over the country are enroute to this position right now for backup. While you may outlast myself all day long, I doubt you can fight the whole army and more."

  Jane was breathing quickly from before. Despite not feeling too tired or out of breath, her heart rate was still high, the buzzing in her body from the symbol felt like an amazing adrenaline rush. "JDT will never surrender to people like you, to people who would gladly give up to forces that destroyed the Outback."

  "Ah, JDT!" Danton returned to the lost subject, wondering if Jane would end up revealing any tactical information on her hidden gang. "I was wondering what you'd be able to tell me about your support group of criminals. Do they have symbols as well?" Jane didn't answer after several seconds, proving she wanted to protect their identities. "Don't worry. We'll find your friends and arrest them too for helping a dangerous fugitive. Eldora is a big city, but they won't hide from us."

  "Let me save you the trouble! Push Wave!" Danton heard a voice he didn't familiarize with from behind, and took too long in processing what it could have been to defend himself from the sudden force shoving him forward. Danton and all of his soldiers were shoved downward and off their feet, only a few of them managing to keep their balance by a hair. Danton recovered quickly and turned around, noticing two young teenagers, one male and one female. The female swept forward in front of the other and unleashed one of her own Leray attack spells.

  "Rotation!" Launching a refined version of tornado strike towards all targets, Taylor immediately shuffled her feet with Danny by her side. She used the Rotation attack that lifted almost all the targets off the ground as a distraction to make her way towards Jane Venn, who stood proudly with the symbol still pulsing on her hand.

  Danton's face was blasted with wind, though he felt no damage to be taken by such an attack. It was pitiful to see his own elite soldiers taken by surprise by a group of punks, who now reformed with Jane in a teamed effort.

  "Taylor!" Jane called in excitement. "And Danny!" She was so happy to see them arrive to her aid, using the emergency security elevator that Danny knew about in the back of his mind. So he does pay attention after all! Eldora Tower did end up having one weak spot in their security. Normally, security clearance protocols would have blocked their access up here, and in a state of emergency, a lock-down would have made it even more impossible. But in a state of emergency where no lock down yet exists, the rules are bypassed entirely. The only reason such a protocol would engage with such a weakness is for the insignificant attempt to evacuate the civilians from the building, buying her comrades time to get up here using the suddenly open access primary lift. Checkmate Danton! Danny and Taylor seem determined and focused, rushing by Jane's side and facing the crowd of soldiers in front of her as the Rotation attack died down quickly.

  "We got here as quick as we could," Taylor announced. Jane didn't seem fazed from any additional battling that may have gone on after the transmission to the feed ended.

  "You aren't harmed, are you?"

  Answering Danny's concerning question, Jane reached out her hands, grabbing both of her friends in overwhelming solidarity. "I'm so glad you made it! These guys are giving me trouble, as I'm sure you can imagine."

  Danton gathered his strength and balance again, quicker than his assistants were able to. "So this is JDT? I'm disappointed that the gang turned out to be a bunch of stupid kids."

  Jane calmly waited and explained with her chance to speak. "JDT stands for Jane, Danny, and Taylor. Together, we're all a team, friends to each other, and side by side until the end."

  "I'm not sure what to be amazed by anymore. Perhaps I can start with why you two would be so stupid enough to follow Jane's insane idea of rushing the entire army to death, destroying the infrastructure of the nation. Or perhaps I'm taken by how quick you are to rush to the aid of a criminal!"

  "You bastard!" Danny snared. "Jane is no criminal! She's only trying to do the right thing by restoring the Outback and stopping the spread of Alpha Zero!"

  Danton's eyes lit up. "I see now. Taylor and Danny are the two unidentified persons who managed to pull Jane Venn out of the dark zone. Such survivability must mean we have three symbols before us, no?"

  "No," Jane summoned. "They're clean. My friends are really good people. I don't want to fight you Danton."

  "Then surrender peacefully," he requested.

  Danny answered for Jane, knowing exactly what the intension was here. "That isn't going to happen tough guy. If you want a piece of Jane, you'll have to wait until our business with the Outback is done."

  "You won't make it halfway." Danton knew that his threat was pointless to make the three give up their powers.

  "You really just don't get it, do you?" Taylor let her frustration out with all honesty, explaining the full story of her friend, since Danton wasn't trusting Jane with any of it. "Can't you see how broken your order has become? Jane Venn never asked to be marked with that thing on her hand, and all because of some terrible accident, she's been hiding from the law in fear of her own life, from you!"

  "To this day, I still don't want this symbol," Jane included.

  Taylor could tell that Danton's immediate silence and failure to try to say anything again so soon meant that he was at the very least confused, which was better improvement for the situation than before. "When we found out Jane was marked and wanted to be healed, we never stood in her way like you do right now. All we've done is try to help her. But Jane was even more lost than we were. She went into the dark zone all by herself just because she didn't want to be marked anymore."

  Danny took over for Taylor, summarizing the point of the mission altogether. "She just wanted professional help from Brightworth. He is supposed to be the person in charge of removing permanent spells or status effects that are related to Leray magic, including symbols. But since he's gone rouge, and since he can't be reached alone even by the person who beat you in a fair match, she's come here to ask you and your army for help. Two different goals, but they all go together."

  "You seem to think the world works just like that," Danton tormented. "A few happy smiles, and everything turns to sugar and rainbows? How pathetic."

  "You're the one that's pathetic!" Jane projected. "I didn't beat you because of a symbol. I did it because that's how badly I wanted to win. And who cares how the world works? At least I get to say it isn't right! So we're changing the rules, with or without you Danton!"

  "I will not allow you to march my forces to their death!"

  "And what happens when those forces are suddenly willing to fight for a cause worthy?"

  Danton winced at Jane's question. What was she hinting at? What is she talking about anymore?

  "You really think I'd force people to enter that place?" Jane reiterated the plan again in her mind for her own clarity in speech. "I'll talk to everyone; brief all units on the entire situation. All during and before the operation begins, anyone who wants to opt out of that potential danger is free to do so. Even if nobody at all ends up joining to help us, I have no choice but to go back in there, and take out Alpha Zero. Still, I think some of your soldiers will at least listen, because if nothing is done, everyone here will die anyway, else be forced to evacuate the very home they grew up in. And if I'm lucky..." she held up her hand, revealing the symbol closer to Danton in the process. "Maybe I can get that slime bag to remove this thing from my body as well."

  "The war of symbols ended a long time ago Danton!" Danny knew what he was talking about, remembering the reference Jane used before, and furthering his research from there while inside of Eldora City. "People who are marked aren't all criminals, especially not Jane! If you can call people like myself and Taylor dirt bags, then you might as well attach the same moniker to all of your civilians here who just want to make a fair living for themselves."

  Danton lifted his staff higher, causing the material to glow with magical aura. In response, he noticed Danny and Taylor pulling out their weapons and forming a strong formation of protection in front of Jane. Danny was holding a magical hammer, with Taylor holding a short bladed sword. Danton's units all managed to recover by now, aiming the guns at all three targets and asking him for clearance to engage. "Your story lacks a lot of proof and clarity. How can I be so certain that you aren't lying about everything you've been saying?"

  Jane stepped forward in front of her friends, ignoring their newfound layer of protection. While standing there, she intentionally held up her hand, cutting off her concentration aura and fading the symbol away to nothingness. "I know you can't trust us at all. You don't seem like the kind to take extensive risks." Jane looked the man in the eyes, knowing deep down that the real Danton is somewhere inside. "I trust you." Danton tensed slightly, though remained as still as he could. "I trust in the Leray system, the way this country is set up, the way Leray battles are designed..." Jane had to struggle with her words to figure out where she was going with it all. "It's true that I don't want this symbol on me, but you've designed a system in which only one man out of everybody here has the power to remove spells and symbols that are made permanent, and for that reason, he's become a bad liability to the nation itself. I can't get this thing removed, because the only man who can do it is now a wanted criminal."

  "Even if your symbol infusion was just a sad mistake," Danton challenged, "you are still a marked one, and having symbols is one of the most illegal crimes."

  Jane pleaded with the man. "Then arrest me! But not before or during the operation. I need to know that something is being done about the dark zone, something other than pure surveillance. I don't care about this symbol, and I don't care if I'm marked. I've heard about the reports of scouts getting killed in that place, and I don't want any more people to die."

  "Doesn't that counter everything you've just said?"

  Jane denied the thought with her continued plan. "The dark zone is spreading towards Lennith City. Eventually, it will get stronger and consume Sprawn Valley. If this happens, we'll all die. That's why avoiding the conflict isn't going to work. Buying time for us also buys time for the dark zone too." Jane's voice was becoming less enriched. Danton could tell that tears were being fought back. "I just want to save my friends, and their families and homes. Does that really make me such a criminal? I've only been trying to do the right thing from day one. Battling in the championship really was nothing more than an attempt to have an audience with you, but I still need your assistance."

  "That's enough!" Danton shouted. With that, he didn't say much else, nor was he addressing anybody anymore. If anything, Danton seemed to be pondering another decision, while his troops still awaited their orders. Was Jane really telling the truth? And who are these other people accompanying her to such a vivid goal? The mission to arrest Brightworth could become more feasible with that girl's powerful symbol being put to such a use, but only Jane has control of that symbol, which makes her dangerous. For someone marked, Jane sure doesn't seem as dangerous as he once thought. Something wasn't right about her from the start. But now it's as if she has changed all over again... Something is going on here, something I don't understand. This isn't the worst of situations. Those idiots are smarter than this... "Jane," he quoted.

  "Y-yes?!" Danton breaking the silence was the only reason Jane felt initially startled by the break in no transmission.

  While lowering his staff and defusing his magical aura, Danton continued to question Jane's motives through less direct methods. "You are marked, and that means that all of your winnings in the Eldora championship are hereby revoked as illegal wins. This means that should I disagree with your so-called scheme to storm the dark zone using my troops, such ruling is one hundred percent legal, and you would not win such a claim in a court of law. In other words, even for just one single day, you are not the champion of Leray magic, nor has that title ever been bestowed upon you. Politically speaking, you are powerless even now. Do you understand this?"

  With delay in her response, Jane answered, "Yes." It took a moment to try and conjure anymore of what could be said. "I don't have to be the person in charge of the operation. I just want to share what I know about that place, and offer as much advice as I can, but I need to know that at least something direct is being done about the situation."

  "Hm..." Danton took his time thinking about the next question. "And let's say I were to interrogate you regarding the reasoning behind your marking. That is to say, I would be asking you for everything you know about this symbol that has the unusual property to project and hide itself at will. Would you be willing to give me those particular details?"

  Jane drew back to that moment in time, the moment her whole life changed forever. "The details aren't all clear to me. Ever since I was marked by that device, I've been searching for answers. I've been trying to track down the guy that did it to me, as well as any connections to the man or anything else. I can only tell you what I know and what I speculate to be true. But of course, I would give you that information. If it helps me find some way to remove this thing, or even find the guy who did it to me, all I want are answers in the matter."

  Strange... Unusual... What kind of person gets marked and suddenly wants to get unmarked? This woman isn't like anyone he'd ever met before. Jane defiantly doesn't act her own age, rather much older. That much power under her finger, and she's so quick to give it up and find the culprit of the true crime? Such resistance against what could be pure power, this is so much new to everything he's seen before. Wait a second... The man who did it? The device that marked her? How could another person imbue a symbol on someone without using direct magic?

  "I'm willing to work with you," Jane confessed. "The people involved wouldn't be required to go. It's defiantly dangerous - as you've specified. But I know a way through, a method that would reduce casualties to absolute zero."

  For a very long moment, nobody said a word. Danton's troops continued to aim their weapons at the three targets, but Danton seemed like he was in a trance, disturbed by Jane's words. His expression facing the ground between himself and Jane's group indicated long and deep thought, but such silence was broken by his loyal men.

  "Sir Danton!" The soldier's voice was muffled and filtered slightly by the electronic helmet he was wearing. "You can't consider the words of marked people to be true. She could be lying to all of us! Just give us the clearance to engage!"

  Danton lifted his face up towards the soldiers to his right. "That's enough H-1!" Danton's designation was to the classified call sign for the particular soldier being addressed. "All troops stand down to alert status yellow!" None of the troops moved an inch, prompting Danton to turn and face all of them with a step closer. None of them wanted to stand down to Jane. It wasn't that surprising. Danton was beginning to take a marked one's words to truth and consideration. "I said stand down! All of you! I make the call on who the real enemy is, and I still need you as my personal guards. None of you are dismissed!"

  Chapter Theme Shift:

  With that, his troops all lowered their weapons, but they didn't holster any of them. None of them even bothered to turn the safety mechanism on either, distrusting Jane, Danny, or Taylor, but Danton seemed satisfied with the result for the moment. He couldn't fully trust them either, but if Jane really did have tactical data she was willing to share on Alpha Zero and her own symbol, it was worth listening for details. If anyone questions him about it, he could simply call it an interrogation. Jane didn't look like she was going to attack with both her weapons holstered under her dress sphere. Danny and Taylor were holding their weapons up still, but their muscles were more relaxed as Danton provided more focus on the individuals from this distance. After feeling a little safer, Danton made the call.

  "Jane Venn? You will follow us to room 950-F."

  "Nine fifty-F?" Jane repeated the room name with a tone of confusion. She previously studied the schematics of the entire tower, but never heard of that sector before. There were certain sections of Eldora Tower still made in secret, sections that were not in the classified blueprints she scanned earlier. Jane was now realizing how close she came to failing her mission and putting her friends' lives in grave danger.

  "It's a private section connected to this facility on the same floor as this arena," he explained. "And we use it for interrogations. We can talk in there and hope it doesn't have to come to such brutal measures, but I am not giving you much of a choice here. You will be escorted inside where you can disclose certain details to me as you agreed. Your friends will have to wait outside. I'll inform Mainne of the situation and have her personally guard Danny and Taylor. They may be questioned as well."

  "So what does that mean?" Jane questioned.

  Danton knew what she meant by her desire for a more concrete sentence, but refused to give her a direct answer. "You can either cooperate with giving us information, or I can detain you right now. I'm sure that puts a dent in the reason you've come here in the first place."

  "I want to make sure Danny and Taylor are kept safe. I know they are helping me, but they really aren't marked. You can't do anything that brings harm to them—"

  Danton cut Jane off after quickly realizing where she was already going with her sentence. "They'll be kept safe. You and I simply need to discuss some things privately. I'll be splitting my security team into two, so don't even think about trying to overpower anyone here," Danton warned. He stepped to glance at the two newcomers. "That goes for all of you! Even for my own team, everyone outside of 950-F are under the command of Mainne until such power is relinquished back onto myself. Is that clear?"

  "Sir! Yes Sir!"

  After Jane gave a nod of agreement towards her friends, she followed closer towards Danton, agreeing to his terms and conditions. It didn't take long after that for everything in the room to change. Danton led Jane and three out of five units towards a hidden door in the far corner of the arena. Only after Danton proceeded inside with the door automatically closing behind him, Mainne entered from the normal entrance Jane used earlier, speed walking closer to the two unidentified persons. Whatever happened to Jane inside of that room wasn't going to be made clear to Danny or Taylor. Then again, the reverse was also true from Jane's current perspective.

  As Jane walked into the so-called interrogation room, she was surprised by how simple the design was. With only one chair and table at the end, and a cubical design with a small area of the interior lit by magical lighting much less intense than inside of the arena, Jane was taking in a lot just for the first few seconds she stepped inside. Danton brushed past her, taking his position near the table. He remained standing up on the same side, now facing Jane and waiting for her answers with the door shut behind her.

  After reaching the two and realizing that Danton and Jane were already gone, Mainne shouted her voice through the room, directed at the personal security team. "Where is he?!" Without any answer for only one second, Mainne figured things out pretty quickly. "That big moron! What the hell is Danton thinking?! Letting a marked one into the building... I want a full investigation into how the scanners were all bypassed!"

  To that, the soldiers replied, "The investigations are already taking place. Danton is taking more direct measures right now, trying to learn more from the suspect herself."

  Mainne crossed her arms. "It's a shame I don't get to knock that bitch in the face myself. After all the fighting we did, all of that lying that went on. All of Jane's power were fake!"

  "Um, Mainne?"

  With all her muscles tense and her face enraged, Mainne turned around to the soft-spoken girl behind her. "What do you want?!" Taylor didn't seem to enjoy Mainne's response very much, but Mainne didn't care how either one of them were feeling. Still, at the reminder that two others were involved, Mainne took matters back into her own hands. "Both of you are going to tell me everything, about all three of you - starting right now!" Mainne's level of screaming had both Danny and Taylor flinching at every word, as she stood there above them demanding for answers.

  Danton's slow breathing was deep and loud. His troops all remained silent but aware, making sure their leader was safe. Danton seemed much more relaxed than before, but he still gave Jane several looks of distrust. As he barely holstered his Mega-Staff, Danton began his light interrogation. "I would say tell me everything, but I don't even know where to begin. I can only think of one important detail. Who are you?"

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  Jane sighed, realizing that this was about to become a really long conversation. Since she could painfully remember everything that happened to her since her love for Leray magic, Jane was able to begin immediately. She slouched slightly into the only chair, trying to relax, and folded her arms to give them a rest. "My name is Jane Venn. I didn't use an alias for identification, which now that I think about it - surprises me a little."

  "Names are cheap when they aren't attached to any known reputation," Danton added. "Where are you from?"

  "I was born in Sprawn Valley, and raised in the town of Fronas for as long as I could remember." With no further questions, Jane continued with her own personal story. "Since I was little, I've always loved Leray magic and Leray battles. Even now, my deepest dream is to become a Leray master."

  "Hmph! You've got one long road ahead of you if that is the truth, and your symbol won't allow that possibility to exist anymore."

  "Will you shut up?" Jane interrupted. Why rub it in Danton? "I'm not finished!" Jane waited a second to confirm she was allowed to continue. "Eventually I graduated from the Dakota facility and became a basic level Leray wielder just like everyone else. I can say I was a bit more advanced, but that's only because I trained much harder in my spare time. Anyway, this mess all started when I first ventured into Blue Port Town. It wasn't my first time there, but I was kind of escorting some friends who had never been before. The goal was to simply run some errands, and this was all before I graduated."

  "So you're saying this all started in Blue Port Town? Now we're getting somewhere. Do continue."

  Seeing as Danton wasn't being a jerk about his interrogation, Jane took another deep breath, ready to confess her greatest mistake to the person in charge of the law. "When I was alone for a few minutes, I noticed an odd situation. From the forest to my right, as I was standing on the edge of the town, some guy approached me."

  "Some guy?"

  Jane emphasized. "He was wearing a hood, so his face was hard to make out, but he defiantly seemed suspicious. At first - I thought he was just crazy. But after realizing what happened, he was actually scared, and he was running from somebody. I don't understand those details myself, but he ended up giving me a free spell bomb. He gave me the whole 'this thing is dangerous in the wrong hands' story, and I simply thought this guy just wasn't getting enough sleep or something."

  "Did you ever report this?"

  "How could I?" Jane iterated. "After what happened next, I couldn't bring myself to take the risk. He gave me an unknown spell bomb, like I said. He vaguely told me that is was a powerful spell bomb capable of granting the user permanent effects of something. He was kind of cryptic about the whole thing, and defiantly rushing himself to explain it to me, but he didn't want me to use the spell bomb. Instead, he wanted me to keep it safe, keep it hidden from everyone. Everyone in his context included my friends and family."

  "This all sounds very strange," Danton analyzed. "What happened next?"

  "He just took off. After begging me not to hand it over to anyone or show off its existence, he ran back into the woods. When he did, that's when I noticed two other hooded strangers chasing after him. They didn't notice me at all, only focused on the first stranger. I don't know what it was all about. But after they left, I made the stupid mistake of trying out the spell bomb." Jane could see the look on Danton's face. His expression begged her to continue, not that Jane meant to make her story interesting. "After disregarding his warning and trying the spell bomb out on myself, well... It's hard to explain exactly how it happened, but the device enabled some powerful magic that imbued my hand with this symbol."

  "That is most unusual. Spell bombs are not designed for imbuing symbols on other people. Not to mention that it makes the possibility of the spell bomb being of an illegal prototype most probable. And this random dude just handed it over to you?"

  "Now that I think about it," Jane prefaced. "He may have been trying to hide it from the people chasing him in the forest, but the method used to shove a symbol inside of me was more unusual. According to my friends who witnessed the event directly, some beam of light came out of the sky."

  Danton backed up a step, nearly coughing in surprise. "You mean the unexplained incident in Blue Port Town! The skies there changed from day to night and stuck for twelve hours! The beam of light from a full moon shooting down to the ground and striking an unknown female victim! I was even told in the report that the same girl was damaged and rushed to an emergency facility! That was all you?!"

  "Yes." Jane's confession even had the soldiers in the room looking at each other in confusion. "Other witnesses never noticed the spell bomb, but according to what Danny and Taylor saw, the event itself actually created a massive symbol in the sky, which so happens to be the same color and design as the one on my hand now. The blast of light knocked me out and unconscious. Danny and Taylor rushed me back home to the medical facility in Fronas, while investigation teams wanted to interview me for answers."

  "So how did they react when they learned about your symbol?" Danton followed. "And how do these friends of yours fit into all of this?"

  "Danny and Taylor are people I didn't meet until the mid-term section of my classes. And when I did, they seemed to have a strong liking to Leray magic as I did. That's why we got along." Jane paused momentarily. It wouldn't be right to tell Danton that Danny and Taylor are outsiders. That is a more personal detail that should only be disclosed by them alone, and she continued to explain without that extra detail. "We got along just fine, but they were the people seeing Blue Port Town for the first time. They were not there at all during the moment I received the unknown spell bomb, but did assist me in activating the spell bomb's core. They were of course innocent in that, since I didn't tell them how I obtained the device in the first place."

  "You realize how dangerous and stupid that was?"

  "Only after the mistake was made," she agreed. "Anyway, Danny and Taylor were the only two people who knew at the time that the spell bomb was the cause of that blast of lunar light, and they saw that light beam shoot through my entire body. As that happened, according to what I got out of them, I fell unconscious, and afterwards became completely ill. Then I learned several weeks later that my reason for being ill had to do with magical potential overload. My ME levels were off the charts, not to anyone's knowledge until I made it all the way to Lennith City."

  "Don't skip details for now."

  Jane went back to the earlier version of her explanation. "When I woke up in the facility, I noticed after the nurse stepped out of the room that my hand was glowing with a bright design. After just seconds, I knew what it was and what it meant. I remember, I've never been so scared before in my life. I refused to tell anyone about it, even my own friends."

  Jane appeared to expressing her fear right now from her memory. Danton wondered if she was still just acting and lying her way out of something, but she had already been caught with a symbol, thus making her story more likely. The only thing she could do by lying right now is bide her time for something else. "So you played a dangerous game of lies to hide the fact that you were marked." Danton was putting all of this together in his head, believing the story based on the fact that Jane connected herself to the unknown event in Blue Port Town that night.

  "Of course, I had no idea how this happened or why. And for some reason, the symbol went away on its own, completely fading away from view just as the nurse was coming back. I pretended to be asleep, because I knew they would question me about stuff I wasn't ready to answer. But when I got to talk to Danny and Taylor, I was able to put a couple of things together without letting on to what I knew."

  "An unknown spell bomb gives you a symbol you didn't ask for. And at the same time, it nearly kills you in the process... I'm assuming this person is still missing, as is your knowledge to the origin of the symbol itself?"

  "Yes." Jane paced in rotation, stimulating her thought about the mysterious strangers she saw on her way to Eldora Tower. "I've been searching since then, all the way to this tower. But after I supposedly got better from feeling ill, it wasn't long until I was able to graduate and travel outside of the world. As far as everyone knew, the event was in the past. My symbol never bothered me for a long time, and everything seemed like a bad dream. But during my first few battles between other people, I learned of one of the permanent effects of the symbol. Effect one: reduced physical endurance. All damage I took was done so with much more power than what should have been. I lost four battles in a row that should have been won over completely by my average skill level."

  "And that didn't raise a little suspicion for your friends or for yourself?"

  "It defiantly rose suspicion for everyone. My friends knew something was odd about that effect, and I assumed in silence that it was related to the symbol. I noticed it first of course, since it was related to me, and it took time for Danny and Taylor to suspect that something was different. After my first battle in Blue Port Town, my symbol activated itself on its own again when I was alone, and then another time in the personal hotel room in Gross City. Luckily I wasn't around anyone once it happened, and I bought several battle gloves in order to hide it."

  "Symbols don't normally have a way of hiding themselves while remaining fully or partially active."

  Jane elaborated, "Only some effects were active when the symbol wasn't showing. At first I wasn't able to control it either, which was scary as hell." Remembering back to everything that affected her from the symbol, Jane defined every other side effect she was exposed to. "Effect number two: Most magical attacks were about double the normal power level from their original design. Despite this however, I never won any matches that way. Effect number three: My rate and ability to learn new spells was ten times faster and more refined in comparison to ordinary people. It also turns out that some of my Leray energy can be compressed and conserved in the process. All of those effects are passive. If my symbol activates mid-battle, it can grant me a huge boost in my MP and HP energy, stamina, more potential power, and so on. There are active effects to the symbol too it seems."

  "And then, you felt had to do something about it." Danton held his head with two fingers. "I can't believe this is happening right now."

  "I knew I had to remove it, since it would forever ruin my ability to battle effectively and destroy my entire life. So I made it my mission to find professor Brightworth at the Den of Purity. I went on my own without Danny and Taylor to do so. It wasn't until I reached Lennith City when I learned of the horrible experiments Brightworth was doing to the Outback, which he of course turned into a dangerous dark zone, spawning creatures that damage people with dark magic, but it didn't deter me from going on. I wanted to make it to Brightworth to remove this symbol more than anything else. Before going on, I of course learned some new skills that only my symbol was helping me learn."

  "I'm guessing that was the reason you ran into the dark zone by yourself."

  "It was stupid and too dangerous. I failed in the end, but Danny and Taylor didn't ever give up on me. They came into Lennith not that far behind, and they pulled me out of the dark zone before I was to be eaten by a behemoth. It was then where Danny and Taylor, as well as a few other nameless people I met in the city learned that I had a secret symbol on my hand."

  "So your friends became your next enemy, huh?"

  Jane nodded strongly. "No way!" Her words began to amaze Danton quickly. "They were upset alright, but only because I lied to them in the first place. Danny and Taylor never went against me over some stupid symbol. They were immediate to try and help in any way they could, but I had to stop them from going back into Alpha Zero alone. After what I saw in there, I decided to switch priorities. That place is very dangerous, totally evil in ways I couldn't imagine alone. I don't ever want to see it or go back there again. After learning that the zone was slowly spreading in size, my priorities were reset. So my mission now is to destroy Alpha Zero. I thought of several ways of doing it at that time. First of all, I have intel of the place because of my visit there. Secondly, I figured that if I am marked, why not use that kind of power to help you accomplish the same task? But I needed your attention to begin with."

  "You can't be serious. That's why you went through all of the trouble to battle me?"

  "Could you think of any other way? Citizens aren't allowed to directly talk to champions on any matter. We're all required to give a message to one person or another. Given my case, we both know how that would have ended."

  It's as if she's mocking him now. Danton however felt a mild agreement to the flaw. It is true that civilians at random cannot contact him by direct methods, and since he spends all day and night in Eldora Tower all the time, people don't really get to see him in person.

  Chapter Theme Shift:

  "It seems stupid, but I do have your attention now. So I know I've done most of what I can. I of course never intended to permanently take ownership of the championship title. I know just as much as you do how invalidated my victories were. This stupid thing on my hand is really all that allowed me to win the battle. While I think it is cool that I can control my symbol and battle so effectively with it, every win I've ever had was never really my own. That's why I hate this tattoo so much. I know you can't help me with that, but you can help us with the current situation above Lennith City."

  For ten long seconds, Danton was completely silent and frozen. How long did Jane have this symbol? It couldn't be more than a month, yet it's turned her into an unstoppable battling machine. He recalled the skill level of Jane during their match. If Jane graduated with basic a month ago, and with advanced level 3 training days earlier, there would be absolutely no possible way of her winning. But the symbol inside of her does things invisible to the senses of other people. Jane's friends, whoever they are have remained cooperative to her so far just out of loyalty. If everything she has been saying so far is true, then the investigation into the Blue Port incident still warrants for additional details. Who is the man Jane accepted the device from? How was the device made in secret, and with such amazing power? How many more dangerous devices are there out there? Such a threat could bring Sprawn Valley's entire population to their knees. Another war could break out over this! Even to Jane, the properties of her symbol are yet to be known or discovered. All of this really is happening right now...

  "I wish I knew more about the symbol myself. It has some odd properties I don't even understand," Jane detailed. "For instance, you asked me how I managed to get by the symbol scanner on the bottom floor. But the truth is, I really didn't think I would get past it. I didn't know there was a symbol scanner there before arriving, and for a moment I thought I was a goner."

  "That must mean that your symbol is unlike any other symbol that exists in the entire world. It may be clearer now as to why your own investigation to discover the symbol by relations has proven impossible up to this point. Research will never find data on matters that don't yet exist to public knowledge."

  "I know..." Jane looked rather sad right now, tilting her head to the ground in response.

  "But I do have one proposal..." Danton had Jane's attention this time, finally making an educated decision about what to do. "You want to get rid of your symbol, yet your only option is removed, but Brightworth may not be the only person capable of such magic." Seeing Jane gasp in surprise, Danton quickly shut it down. "Don't get your hopes up! We still need to learn everything about that symbol before we can do anything about it. That means running tests and experiments on you. That would of course require your own cooperation and—"

  "Please!" Jane held her hands together similar to a prayer. "I'll do anything to remove this thing from my body. Just tell me you'll cover the dark zone situation."

  Danton's eyes opened wider. Jane really hates that thing on her hand, despite the incredible powers it was constantly feeding her. Such restraint is something he has never witnessed in another human before. If she was acting it out, it was highly convincing. "We'll get to that later. First, we need to address the current situation in Alpha Zero. I will ask once more that you give me as many details as you can about that place so that we may formulate a new strategy to take it on."

  Jane's expression flattened. She had nearly forgotten to give the details about the dark zone to Danton, but his intentions were still in question with the place. Though it wouldn't matter if she revealed some of the weaknesses of the dark zone to anybody. It's not as if Brightworth was here right now watching it all. Jane wondered in the sidelines of her imagination what possessed Brightworth to go rouge while she explained the situation to the champion in excruciating detail. "I won't have to share the physical details already known about that place. For whatever reason there is to it, the Alpha Zero restricts and limits the capacity of normal Leray magic. On top of that, real time damage is allowed to be inflicted with normal damage by the infusion field. And the heat there is unusually higher than it should be."

  "Those are all details we already have, data obtained without having to risk lives in scouting."

  Jane continued, "But the field itself has properties that somehow create random spawns of deadly creatures. Such creatures have no known origin, but are completely bloodthirsty. They want nothing more than human flesh in their stomachs. That's probably what keeps killing most of those who enter the zone. The monsters there are very powerful too, both in offensive and defensive capabilities."

  "Also assumed data," Danton backtracked. "If the dark zone neglects the entire field of Leray veil protection without disabling all forms of magic entirely, then monsters can spawn and of course deal permanent damage to any individual there faced with danger."

  "Needless to say, all battles are unofficial." The memory of that horrible place began to resonate in Jane's mind so that she could reference everything she learned. It brought a horrible sensation of fear back into her heart. "Energy scopes of course don't just show up out of nowhere. You have to force them to appear attached to the creatures. You'd be very lucky to make an action display center work on the creatures as well."

  "And how is there safety in numbers?"

  "Most of the time I was there, I noticed that while spawns were a bit frequent, the density for any localized area was not. As I faced many monsters, most of my battles with them were just one on one. Obviously, this means that teamwork can work for us in that zone. That won't be the case every single time, but..."

  Danton wondered if that was the best trick Jane could come up with. It wasn't a lot to go on, but she battled her way to the top of this tower for this reason, so there has to be more. Danton couldn't believe Jane Venn to be this stupid!

  "Monsters aren't the only thing in there. It seems Brightworth managed to somehow set up some sort of automated defense grid connected to the main road in Alpha Zero. Physical machine gun turrets or rail turrets are buried and hidden in various places, and activate if you walk across a spot on the ground."

  "Magically powered presence sensors," Danton muttered. He realized the design quickly for such things, but the presence of the machine turrets was much more surprising. "Turrets? Live turrets?"

  "Yes," Jane confirmed. "They run on automated programs, and simply defend their perimeter, but they do so by trapping people inside of a simulated arena, and go berserk on the target through combat-based programs. The programs allow for the action display center design to be used with ease, but such machines run powerful ballistic payloads, and they can even create a field of artificial magic. I've seen one turret use magical glyphrings to fire elemental rounds."

  "And there was nobody there to man them? You're sure about this?"

  Jane nodded to Danton's question. "As sure as I managed to destroy them. That took a while, and without the protection from the veil, I suffered my more serious wounds from those machines. They're much more deadly, and can track multiple targets simultaneously. I have little suggestions for overpowering those machines so far."

  "This news is so sudden," he urged. "How the hell did Brightworth build machine turrets running off his own magic in such harsh environments? And how can they trap people in?"

  "The field uses a powerful form of dark magic to generate an artificial dome shield that traps everything inside of the field as the death machines activate. The only way I've been able to override the shield and get through was by destroying all of the turrets in the same field, which seem to control the dome shield itself. The shield runs off of dark magic, so Leray attacks won't bust through them. Not even the most powerful of spells..."

  Danton was silent again, assessing the situation with the new data Jane was able to provide. "How far did you make it, if you could tell?"

  "Maybe forty percent of the way there?" Jane was guessing. She didn't remember her last calculation while in the dark zone, but recalled not making it halfway to the Den of Purity.

  "And that means that all turrets up to about half the way to the Den of Purity have been destroyed, permanently so. Unless he has already rebuilt them."

  Jane interjected, "That won't matter much. The monster spawns don't care about distance or anything like that. As long as you're in the dark zone's limits even in already conquered areas, anything can come out and kill you."

  "Yet you're the only survivor who ventured in as far as you did, and your friends. How did you even provide?"

  Jane denied one particular detail Danton assumed. "Danny and Taylor didn't find me as far as I went, because I ended up turning back towards the city after taking so much damage. I thought I was going to die in there from my wounds alone. Healing orbs naturally had no effect for me. So by the time I collapsed from exhaustion, they must have ventured in about fifteen percent on the road to find my position. I don't know if they faced any monsters at that time, but their health told me they were lucky not to."

  "And you used your symbol for survival?"

  "Not just that," Jane elaborated. "My symbol came in handy for several battles, and I learned to control it better while I was in there, but my power shielding trick did a lot more to save me most of all. I learned that trick in Lennith City just before trying my luck in Alpha Zero. It turns out that due to my passive ability to conserve and compress Leray magic while using a power shield, I can reduce the MP cost of the shield while maximizing its level of protection for myself to block out even dark magical attacks. That's why the power shield I have is so powerful, but it still has its own limits."

  "Well this is unfortunate. None of my men or myself have that particular talent that you have. Running simulated technology is impossible with our research so far behind. If you're powering the shield from your symbol in either state of activity, then you have one particular advantage that none of us have." Danton's concerns were well placed. Jane didn't look as if she had a solution to that problem.

  "But you all have an amazing level of endurance, equal or higher than my own. Even against dark magic, that counts for something. While I can't protect myself and others at the exact same time, having a team really is the only way to make it to the Den of Purity."

  "I'm afraid that is still too big a risk for us to take."

  "Well somebody has to!" Jane tensed up at how much time she was wasting trying to convince someone so stubborn to fight for what is right. "If you don't want to risk your life or your men, I won't force you, but I'm going in to shut that place down. Brightworth is doing something to keep the dark zone active and growing. That means that taking him out of the picture is the only way to stop Alpha Zero's growth. And I guess that means if I die, I die."

  "For someone who dreams of being a Leray master, you're so quick to throw away your life for something another can do."

  "I thought you were turning down such an offer," Jane reminded. "If the dark zone isn't stopped, nobody in the world will ever be capable of practicing Leray magic ever again. That means that everyone's dream, not just my own will be forever destroyed as well. I'm fighting for everyone, even for myself out there - with or without the help I need. It's supposed to be your own duty, since you're our protector of Sprawn Valley as champion of Leray magic. I thought that was the entire reason of your own existence as champion. It turns out I was wrong."

  Jane waited for any verbal response, and was met with nothing once more. She pondered around the room, trying to decide on how to approach the problem next. Since Danton and his entire team are too chicken to help out, that means it really is up to her alone. The troops all lined up behind the champion sure didn't look tough either, not after all Jane had to offer for them. "I'm going in alone, with or without your consent."

  "You will not be raiding the dark zone by yourself," Danton commanded. Surely Jane would protest any second now.

  "You may have people who want to fight me and lock me up for being marked, but I'm not going to let you stop me from restoring the Outback. If you try, I will fight you again without any mercy."

  "You're not going in alone, because I'm going to mobilize a team." From behind his position, Danton noted all of the sudden gasps and replies of denial coming from his soldiers, all filtered due to the helmets they were wearing. The surprise is well founded though. Honestly, Danton knew this wasn't the best of ideas. There is a perfectly rational reason why storming the dark zone has been put off time and time again. Alpha Zero isn't the only danger everyone has to worry about, but Jane and these few soldiers don't actually realize that. Still, taking no action seems to be causing more problems than it prevents. If this is some sort of trap, there is no way to stop it from happening regardless of his next decision. And now here come all of the rebuttals.

  "What?!" "Sir Danton?" "That's crazy!" "You're insane!" "We can't face that!"

  Danton turned around immediately with certainty in his actions, something he didn't have all day until this very moment. "I will be comprised of this team." His words were meant for his own units, and it had all of them standing firm and still, eating every word. "All soldiers and units of all squadrons will be invited to form this combat team, but the mission alone is voluntary. I will not force any units of the General Army to take part in such a dangerous mission that can get us all killed. At the same time, I have no choice but to stand up and fight for all of the people in Sprawn Valley who won't have a place to live should we do nothing."

  "Just send the girl! She survived it once! She can do it again!"

  With the muffled shouting of his soldiers, Danton replied swiftly to error their logic. "That has already been attempted before, and such actions have failed. Jane went in alone already to try the same thing, and was pulled out - damn near dead. Therefore, it is in my interest to offer assistance to this team called JDT." Danton knew this wasn't the best idea, but after failing to learn the motive of Alpha Zero's creation, there is now no other choice. That place has to be destroyed, his own plans out of time.

  Jane's eyes were unable to blink shut, glistening with wonder as to how Danton was now turned around to her way of thinking. At what point did he suddenly have this change of heart? Why now was he willing to help her take on the dark zone? Everything she said so far never worked on him... Unless he really does care about the other people of Sprawn Valley. Though his earlier refusal said otherwise...

  After turning around to face Jane, Danton made his intentions very clear. "We can focus on the details of your illegal symbol later. But for now, we need to do the right thing."

  "Danton..." Jane couldn't say anything else, too surprised by her sudden victory.

  "I don't know how, but you contain within yourself a type of duty and determination I myself have been lacking. It's the citizens of Sprawn Valley that make the nation what it is, the people we fight for. Without such people, there would be no support for a government, and no people to govern." Danton held back a laugh, realizing how cringy those words were. As poetic as it may have sounded, Jane is right. "If lives really are being destroyed over an enemy lair, then it is our duty to take care of it. Not as an army, but as representatives of Sprawn Valley, and representatives of Leray magic."

  Jane couldn't believe it. This time, she was speechless. Danton really was on her side after all. There wasn't much of a hint for what came next though, and her silence rippled in the room long enough to make the moment awkward. The soldiers sure were not saying anything either, taken by such amazing words of truth.

  "I'm sure I can get someone to follow us in, and you said yourself that you have a team," Danton gathered. "With your symbol to offer some strength in this crisis, and a team that can work together to fight off monsters, I'm going to authorize this emergency operation, and involve you in the operation as military support."

  As the electronically sealed door of 950-F slid open, the evanescent hissing sound made Danny and Taylor jump. Mainne focused her eyes to the door, waiting for Danton to walk out expressionless as always when hiding something. As she inhaled and prepared her breath to give him a piece of her mind, Mainne was stuck frozen with the appearance of Danton walking out with his security team with Jane in tow. Jane wasn't wearing any kind of restraints or anti-magical protection on her, just roaming freely. While Danny and Taylor were immediately thrilled to see their partner in crime, Mainne had to reassess the situation.

  "You've got a lot of explaining to do Danton! Why are you letting Jane go?!" Mainne's volume filled the entire room, though Danton didn't even flinch.

  Expecting a reaction like this from his partner in training, Danton nudged his head backwards to signal Mainne to follow him near. Jane was already walking back to her friends, giving him and Mainne a quick moment of privacy.

  As Mainne approached Danton to speak to him more quietly under the sound of whispers, Jane's friends reunited with her again with a warm welcome. Taylor hugged her tightly before Jane was allowed to begin. "Easy Taylor." Jane thought Taylor would squeeze the voice out of her if she had not relaxed shortly after. "I managed to cut us a deal."

  "Is it the one we came for?"

  Jane glared Danny in the eyes, noticing his serious anticipation. She had to take in a deep breath and exhale to ease her own nerves. "It wasn't easy, but Danton said that I can help him in the operation. He'll be in charge of it of course, but he will also devise a team of volunteers of the military to help us fight."

  "That's excellent!" Taylor cheered. Choosing to ignore the obvious transmission behind Jane where Mainne and Danton were arguing in silence, Taylor had to ask Jane about one other thing. "What about your symbol?"

  "I don't know." There wasn't any way of removing the symbol without enlisting Brightworth's help, and he won't help her willingly. Danton said something about tests and experiments, but he could have been talking about anything. "I don't think anyone can help me with that. They may even still prosecute me after this is all over."

  "They can't!" Danny knew there would be no way Jane could let them do that to her. There has to be some other way.

  Jane nodded however, choosing to alter the direction of the subject matter. "Anyway, you've both helped me out as much as you possibly can. I'm always going to be thankful for that."

  "We'd never leave you hanging Jane."

  Taylor was nice to mean that, but Jane knew they both had other plans. "The Junon airport is just southeast of Eldora City by the exit gate, Exit A-E. You two should head over there and meet your party. Go home back to where you belong."

  The words had Taylor and Danny both wincing their entire bodies in amazement, but Danny was quicker to rebel. "What are you talking about Jane? I'm not going back home just yet. We've all got a fight with Alpha Zero, remember?"

  Taylor predictably added, "Yeah! We're not letting you fight alone!"

  "I'll have a new squad, so I won't be alone." Jane knew they weren't as convinced yet, but that wasn't the point. "You all have family waiting for you back home. You aren't from Sprawn Valley, and they are probably worried about you both. I did as I said I was going to do, lead you all the way to Junon's airport so that you can get out of the country."

  "Well, we're not leaving." Danny's tone couldn't be more serious than he was now, and he linked his arm with Taylor to show Jane that she too was on his side of the argument.

  Though Taylor enjoyed the comfort of her boyfriend holding her arm with his, she didn't let it distract her from what Danny was saying to Jane. "We already had this argument before. I know the dark zone is dangerous, but—"

  "It's a death trap!" Jane snapped, her voice spilling so noticeably that Danton, Mainne, and all of the soldiers silenced themselves to glance over to the commotion Jane was causing. The look on their faces were defeating, but Jane wasn't having any part of it. "I'm trying to protect your lives. There is no reason why you should risk them in the same operation. We have enough people now!"

  A type of rejection Taylor had never felt before; the words hurt as much as a Needle Barrage attack in Leray magic. But before she could let herself drown in that pain, Danny took over completely. "How dare you cast us aside like that?! Screw our families! And to hell with leaving! Taylor and I said we were going to help you all the way through, and you can't do a damn thing to stop us!"

  Jane drew both of her daggers, gripping them tightly. "Would you like to see me try?" She prepared herself for battle as usual, but this felt very wrong. Jane had to protect them, but attacking her best friends wasn't something she felt capable of doing in the first place. As long as Danton doesn't intervene right now, this may still work.

  Letting go of Taylor's arm, Danny stepped right in front of her, holding his arms all the way out as if to accept the strike from Jane's daggers. She didn't move yet, but Danny was calling her bluff valiantly. Jane would never attack her friends, not even for an intention to protect them. Come on Jane! Where's your sense of honor you had earlier? That moment we had back in Fronas Town and the forests near them? Surely you couldn't forget about that, about what it all meant. "You can take your best shot."

  Jane twitched her arms and wrists several times, her entire body in debate whether using force to protect her friends was a good idea or a bad idea. Jane wanted to do something, but the way Danny stood there in front of her... She couldn't move! Why can't I move?!

  "You must have already forgotten about the promise we made, even the one from yesterday night." Danny noticed Jane's facial expression change suddenly, but she tried to pretend not to notice. "JDT," he announced. "I thought the name was cheesy, but I didn't complain. I didn't argue with the truth to a simple pair of letters. We're a team to the end no matter what."

  Jane saw her arms shaking, though she didn't think Danny could notice from this nonexistent distance. After having confess everything about the Alpha Zero to Danton, all of Jane's full memories of the horrors there had resurfaced. She could automatically imagine one of her friends getting impaled by a demonic claw from a monster, causing instantaneous death for them in a single notice. They can't be a part of that. I won't let them! "If something happens, I can't protect you!" Jane's voice was beginning to shake as well, her face about to break down in tears. The thought of losing them...

  "We all protect each other where others can't. If something happens, I'll have to look after myself. The same can be said for Taylor, and for you. Have you forgotten how much better we've both come in a battling format?"

  Jane didn't say anything back. She didn't want to start crying now, but she knew Danny's logic wasn't all that perfect. I have a symbol and the power to shield myself from damage at any time. Danton's team will all be elite warriors used to such harsh conditions. Danny and Taylor may barely have what it takes to graduate with a level three status, and that's it.

  "I don't care if you have some magic symbol that makes you strong, because it doesn't mean everything." How could Jane not notice this now, after realizing it before less than 24 hours ago? "We fight for what we want to, and for who we want to protect. That makes us strong."

  "None of you are listening to me!" Jane shattered. Her argument however was immediately shutdown by Danton's next interruption.

  "I think you have that backwards Jane Venn." Jane and her friends turned around to pay Danton more attention, who was now approaching Jane to speak to her directly. "If you were the one listening to Danny and Taylor, you would have realized by now what really makes a Leray wielder strong."

  "But—"

  Danton cut Jane off again before she could try and get anything else wrong. "You may have defeated me with your symbol, yes, but you were also motivated to win because you have something to fight for. You're desire to beat me was better placed than my desire to beat you, which was simply to learn the truth about your hidden talents, along with protecting my status here. I promise you Jane; if your desire to win the championship had been less complex than the baggage you have today, Mainne or myself would have flattened you in mere seconds, symbol or no symbol. Or did you forget how close our match was?" Danton certainly didn't need the reminder. If only he had taken this advice long ago, that having a team working together was the core of true strength, things would have been different back then.

  Jane refused to take such stupid words from Danton, but the thought immediately reminded Jane of what happened to her in the dark zone. She was only fighting in the end to survive, trying to make it to the Den of Purity over some stupid symbol. Her mind was mired in haze at that time, and she lost, lucky it didn't cost her own life. But fighting for the citizens of Sprawn Valley... The weight of that against removing her own symbol was much different. Is that what Danny meant just now?

  Danny implied the rest on top of Danton's words. "If you thought the symbol in your hand is where your real strength lies, then you should be the one avoiding Alpha Zero." He didn't want to Jane to have no part of the operation either, but Danny knew he needed Jane to understand that. "So just trust us. We both know what we are doing. We're not helping you just to stick around in magic land."

  "I must say," Danton interjected. "For two teenagers younger than yourself, you've made an interesting choice of friends." Danton was addressing Jane, who now seemed more confused than ever. "But I happen to agree with the young lad." His logic is sound, and he seems to have a good understanding of the cursed situation on Jane's part. Danton couldn't shake a sudden feeling, a sense that Danny's current personality reminds him of himself when Danton was still in his twenties.

  After finally biding in her silence, and remembering what Jane was so upset about last night as well, Taylor let out her own purpose to join. "Jane..." Her name call gave her the attention of everyone including Jane Venn. "If you really want us to go home, then we'll look into it, but only after we've done our part to help stop Brightworth. Please let me be your ally."

  Jane couldn't handle any of this. Her arms began to sink and relax, though Jane never felt so disgusted in herself for what she tried to do just now. Taylor thinks Jane wants them to go back home. That couldn't be farther from the truth! The thought of never seeing them again... Even if they are alive and well but so far away, it was almost as bad as having them killed, almost! After losing the strength in her arms, Jane nearly let go of the grip to her small blades. "I never said I didn't want your help. I just..." She couldn't make any point to this. Having Taylor and Danny risk their live wasn't even her choice to make anymore, but shooing them away, Jane couldn't muster the courage to her mind anymore.

  Taylor's eyes watered, following Jane sinking down to her knees in tears. Jane didn't have to finish what she wanted to say. Taylor could feel it, a warming sense of love and protection that hit her like radiation. Jane couldn't bear the thought of losing either one of them. Even with her mind made up, Jane was still suffering from the fear of it.

  "Not again," Danny whispered to himself. Taylor's forceful brush against his side nearly made him trip.

  Taylor sprinted to Jane who wasn't but a few meters away, and charged her into an embrace. With both of them now sobbing loudly, she wasn't about to let go.

  Danton felt the situation become much more awkward. Even Mainne seemed a little uneasy about it as well. They obviously were missing something to this, but one thing sure was evident. Jane and Taylor really cared that much about each other. If the other two teens aren't marked, that makes them more vulnerable to damage. Yet they refuse to step away from fighting in the dark zone. "Heh." With a slight smirk, Danton came up with a quick solution to an easy equation. "If you felt that Danny and Taylor were unprotected, you should have just said so." Only Danny was able to pay closer attention to Danton right now, since Jane and Taylor were not done having their moment. "I'll provide some of the best of our teams to protect Danny and Taylor, and I'll even make sure they both stay together to ensure their safety. Jane? My personal team will be protecting you. Though we will have to split up into separate units, we won't fan out too far."

  Mainne stepped to Danton's side, noticing how attached the kids were to each other. It sure wasn't something she was used to seeing, and even Danton's reassurance wasn't breaking up that awkward hug. "Seeing people care for each other that much, and only having the relationship as friends... I'd say these pair of your so called soldiers seems a little too protective."

  Danton softly spoke to Mainne under a voice Jane nor Taylor could hear. "I trust you didn't interrogate them too harshly. I only wanted information after all. You didn't have to get so upset about it... Yes, I know I was risking my life in the process, but I had to do something for them." While Danton was making his amends, Mainne was zoning out, staring into the embrace Taylor and Jane were engaged in.

  "Makes me jealous!"

  That makes Mainne jealous? Danton didn't understand why Mainne was so caught up in Jane's little reunion, but she seemed too focused on it. With her quietly yet aggressively executed reply to what she couldn't look away from, Danton was just now learning for the first time that Mainne's personal life of the past must run deeper than she let on earlier. To think they had been training with each other for over nine years now? Mainne didn't look angry though. It's a different kind of jealousy, the kind that makes one more comfortable with the situation. That kind of reminder is right here in front of Mainne. Were it not so different back then...

  Mainne shut her eyes to have her flash back privately, and in the middle of it all, she thought back to her heavy questioning for Danny and Taylor about themselves and Jane. They obviously didn't explain everything she asked for. If they did, she wouldn't have underestimated the current situation as it is now. But seeing all of this could only mean that a lot happened to all of them in just a month of time. How unlucky can one get in a crisis?

  As Taylor and Jane finally calmed down, they continued speaking to each other in broken whispers that Danton couldn't make out from his distance. He didn't care what they were saying now though, too focused on a new possible mystery. Jane never once explained in detail about the origin of Danny or Taylor, likely to protect their identity, but she said something about having them go back home, from the airport no less. Danny and Taylor are not from Sprawn Valley; they're outsiders. After realizing that, several things didn't make very much sense. Like for instance, why did they come to Sprawn Valley? How they came here was an even bigger question. If Jane trained with them in Fronas Town, that means they would have had to cross the docks in Gulop in the first place, which means they would have had to bypass Blue Port Town to get to Fronas. But Jane said something about showing her friends to Blue Port Town for the very first time, which doesn't add up. Danton supposed they could have cut through the forest if they were that new to the area, though still, why come all this way just to learn Leray magic? Danny and Taylor didn't seem as in tune with magic in the first place... Then again, there must be a lot more missing information.

  "I know that look," Mainne summoned. Getting Danton out of his trance wasn't hard to do, but Mainne clearly understood why he was in such a trance. Deep at the core, Danton was quite an excellent detective, though he never majored in the study before. There was a lot to be concerned about though. Jane was cursed with a symbol in a method never used before in all of Leray history, a prototype device with such power from unknown origins. That was more than troubling. "Makes sense that we would need to look into whoever gave Jane that device."

  "One thing at a time Mainne," Danton replied. "First we have more pressing matters to attend to. First, we have to take care of business in Alpha Zero. We have to assemble all willing teams to the edge at Lennith City. I also want to ask about the involvement with our other elites too. Cleo, Krysta, Brock, and the others."

  "I'm sure they'll agree."

  Danton just barely turned his eyes to Mainne without turning his head, aware of where the next conflict will likely occur. "Mainne? I know you won't like the idea, but I need you to speak to your mother on behalf of our second situation."

  "You can't possibly mean that."

  "Suck it up and just do it." Understanding that Mainne's mom is a total hassle, it would do them good to use her position on the council to control the word of the media. "The entire world now suspects that we just crowned a marked one as the new champion of Sprawn Valley. Hunters will be coming for Jane in less than a day, which means we have to plan our preparations carefully. Somebody has to control the situation here while we are all gone in the dark zone."

  Mainne let out a heavy sigh, proving how much distress her mom could cause in a single conversation. "Fine. I'll do it. But I hope you know that the whole Jane is marked situation won't go over well with the people - no matter what you tell them."

  "We'll let the fates decide that. As for now, we have to prepare for battle. After Brightworth is brought in, we can continue the investigation into the illegal prototypes. I had no idea they would come this far out of hand."

  "Whatever you say."

  Danton turned to his soldiers and addressed the messenger. "Team? We're about to conduct an emergency meeting for the council in this very room. Get everyone ready, and I mean everyone."

  "Yes sir!"

  Danny could tell that Danton was about to start the operation somehow. It was time for those two to make up. "Jane? Taylor? You both good now?"

  With her face red and much of her makeup ruined, Jane at least had her mind made up after Taylor let her feel what she had. "Yes," she sniffled. "I won't lose you. I'll shoot down and destroy any monster that dares threaten any of our lives."

  "Good," Danton announced. "I trust you can freshen up for our briefing soon? It will be quite a tense meeting for everyone else, but you three only need to relax and attend the show. I will speak on our behalves."

  Jane nodded, agreeing to Danton's terms. Finally, coming all this way wasn't for nothing after all. Danton stood there in wait while Taylor helped Jane up. Taylor pulled out her supply sphere, containing somewhere inside dry towels and plenty of cosmetic products. Jane didn't need to look so drained for any meeting with anybody.

  Danny knew he couldn't help his friends with makeup. Standing here to wait for a briefing wasn't going to be hard either, but he wondered what exactly would happen in the briefing. At what point in time does everyone actually storm the dark zone? Danny realized one more thing. If they have to start from the northern section of Lennith City, well that means they are going to revisit Lennith City! Jane has a couple of new friends there, though it may seem awkward from Danton's perspective. Danny knew already that Jane had a lot more memories there than he did, but it still held one of the best moments he ever felt before. Reuniting with Jane after so long, after getting swept up in a conflict. Another thought occurred to him. Danton may have asked Jane a lot of personal questions. Mainne asked him and Taylor similar questions, but they never got around to talking about the Scarlet Cult running crime everywhere... Nah! That shouldn't matter. Leray gradyent Rontellov should have already reported that by now.