PHALANX - The series

Episode Thirty-five: Breakdown

Frederic Fromthefield, Lord-Protector of the Human, Oech-anya and Ketari races known as Phalanx, opened his eyes as his light slumber turned fretful. Silently, he glanced over to his side, gray eyes searching out the familiar warm form of the person next to him. The beautiful brunette that was his wife was sleeping solidly next to him, her body graceful even in deep sleep.

Without disturbing her, Frederic stood up and walked out of the bedroom of their large stateroom on board the battlecarrier Ortega. Even designed as ship of war, Frederic and his extended family’s use of it as a ship of peace had converted the huge hulking mass of advanced bio-metal. The carpet on the floor made him move silently as the door to the bedroom slid close behind the Supreme Jokilar Gerius.

Frederic walked into the bathroom, located on the other side of the large living quarters. Looking at himself in the mirror, he could see the familiar redness in his eyes. Willing reality to bend, Frederic could see his eyes shimmer and warp, before being replaced with perfect versions of themselves. There. Better glamour can’t be found this side of the Gods of the Universe.

Still he lingered, hunched over the sink, face mere centimeters away from the mirror. The Gods screwed me over. I knew I shouldn’t have pissed them off so much, he grunted to himself as he righted himself. He checked the integrity of his shields. Last thing he wanted was for Jennifer to pick up on the turmoil of the last few weeks through the link they shared.

Sighing, Frederic dragged himself to the living room, and started tapping things into the replicator. Five minutes later, the breakfast table had been laid out. Nodding to himself, he made his way once more to the bedroom. Letting the door slip open silently, he watched his wife sleep for a few seconds. Silently, he threw her a kiss, before turning and letting the door slide closed once more. He never noticed her smile that appeared.

Frederic left their quarters, and stepped in the nearest lift. “Bridge, please.”

Sure, Linda replied. Frederic sighed, sliding deep into his own thoughts once again. It seemed like eons ago when his self-adapting operating system had achieved self-awareness, and had chosen the name Linda for herself. Frederic looked up sadly. Things were so much easier, then.

The blast doors that sealed the lift’s access to the bridge slid open and Frederic strode in, planting himself in the center seat. Instantly, he felt it mold to his contours thanks to the heavy dose of nanoprobes. Damn Borg… at least one good thing came out of it. Frederic thought as the probes finished their work. He started tapping into the panels attached in his armrests, calling up information.

“Linda, anything I should be aware of?” Frederic asked.

“Not really,” Linda replied, forming her familiar twenty-year-old blonde hologram right next to Frederic’s chair. “Good morning.”

“Morning,” Frederic replied to the smiling blonde hologram, returning her smile in kind. He turned back to the armrests. “Could you pull me up the new universes the ESMF has found and scanned recently?”

The blonde nodded, and materialized next to the science console, usually Jennifer’s territory. The blonde AI rapidly pulled up the database of new universes the Earth Strategic Mental Forces had detected over the course of the last couple of weeks. “Here you go.”

Frederic nodded. “Thanks.” As his nimble fingers leaped across the small panels, he turned back to Linda. “Where’s Borlan? Usually, he’s the first to come down when I ask if there’s trouble.”

Linda shook her head in tolerance of her brother-AI. “He’s with Rei in the Senshi’s home universe.”

Frederic actually halted his incessant typing. “I am not bailing him out if her grandfather finds the two of them in bed together!” he grunted out as he continued typing, letting his subconscious do the scanning as his mind pondered the possibilities. How is it possible for a war-time AI to fall in love with Sailor Mars? Was it really her attitude that did it? Frederic shook his head silently as he continued his wandering through the database.

The Battle-Oriented Logical Analyzer falling in love with Hino Rei, Sailor Mars. How the universes work in mysterious ways, he finished his thought.

He stopped his typing. “Linda, could you open the viewer for me?” he asked as he walked forward to where the huge viewscreen was located. Linda nodded silently, and a quick command to the now-independent computer system let the screen slide apart in two halves, revealing a transparent window behind, giving a clear view of the stars.

The universe. MY universe. My responsibility now… Frederic sighed. The Wise One screwed me over when he gave me this damn job. I’m a human, dammit. I’m not meant to be second in command behind the Gods of the Universe! How COULD I be meant, when all I do is hurt people? Intentionally or unintentionally, all I end up doing is hurt people.

And I dragged the Master Slayers down to hell with me, he thought as he thought about his prized students, all the people he had tried to help by enhancing their fighting ability, by training them in the use of magics… and finally, after it… he taught them Ki. And that’s when things went wrong… they were humans. And humans weren’t meant to hold that kind of power.

Linda watched, worriedly, as the man she looked at as her father fretted in front of the window. She had watched him do that more often recently… ever since he had been appointed Commander of the Jokilar Gerius. But she also knew she wasn’t going to tell a soul. Her father trusted her to remain here as he went over his thoughts. Revealing what she knew would jeopardize that trust.

He would forgive her… but he’d never forget. Frederic was like that… betray his trust, and he might forgive you. But he will never forget.

“Linda, close the viewer. I’ve got work to do,” he whispered as he fell back in his command chair. Instantly, Linda gave out a couple of commands to the computer system, and the viewer slid closed. The typing on the keypads had resumed, and Linda turned back to the science station. She could do it faster when she was in the ship’s computer, but somehow, she preferred to use the independent holographic body. She found that it gave her a better interface to communicate with.

“Found something,” Frederic said, pulling something up on the large screen. Linda turned.

“Universal coordinates 12-58-94-85-35,” Linda read. They had abolished the old system, of giving a numerical indicator to the universes, incrementing with each they found. With the ESMF full-time active and searching, the number of universes became too big to keep counting and remembering which one was witch. Naming them the coordinates at which they related to Universe 001, the one where it all started, alleviated this problem.

And, of course, those universes of special interest were given either a name, or a number on the old numerical list.

Linda studied the report. “Recent outbreak of evil. Approximately five hundred vampires world-wide, in high concentrations in certain parts. New York. Berlin. Sydney, and Tokyo.”

“As soon as we’ve had breakfast, we’ll go exterminate us some vampires. That world has no means of defending against that kind of threat. We’re going to exterminate it.”

Linda nodded.

Frederic stood up. “I’m going to see what the local deity has to say. I’ll be back shortly.” With those words, he vanished, the universe warping to his will.

He reappeared near the Temple at Stonehenge. As usual, the surroundings faded out and the temple resurrected itself to its former glory at the presence of the divine being.

“I’m here for the local godhood,” Frederic spoke calmly as he reached the center of the structure. He didn’t have to wait long, as suddenly he was no longer the sole occupant of the ancient building.

“Lord Gerius,” the newcomer whispered, bending through one knee. “How can I be of assistance to the Second of the Gods of the Universe?”

“You can stand up, for one,” Frederic replied. “I’m not here for you, specifically. I’m here for those vampires infesting your world.” The Gerius looked on as the god of the earth stood up. Broad and tall he was, a man of at least two meters in size, dressed in regal white robes with a golden belt and a golden clasp over his right shoulder, holding the toga in place.

“The vampires, My Lord?” the god asked. “But they range a mere five hundred in number…”

“Precisely why we’re going to exterminate them now; before they pose a serious risk. Now, I’m here to find out what lockdowns you have in place,” Frederic said. “Last thing I want to do is go over your head, find out for myself, and quite possibly turn a law-abiding deity into an enemy.”

The god nodded in appreciation. “I have decreed that there be no time-travel, temporal anomalies, not being of extraordinary power, My Lord. Nor shall there be unexplained phenomena pertaining to alien technology. I wished to make this planet safe and peaceful.”

Frederic nodded. “Very well. Then we shall abide by those rules. It shall be interesting to go after vampires without temporal incursions to remove them before they spawned… not just beamed them off the surface and destroy them in space.” Frederic looked up from his thoughts, to the god. “We shall have to go after them in person. It might bring urban legends into circulation.”

“My Lord, if you wish it, I can make an exception for you…”

Frederic lifted his hand, making the god trail off. “Without serious cause, I won’t go against the wishes of those in charge. It’s one of my own rules.”

“In that case, My Lord, I thank you for your help. I had been thinking about the vampires, yet hadn’t found a way out yet… asking for a Slayer seemed excessive at this point, yet notifying the human authorities was out of the question as well.”

Frederic nodded, accepting the being’s thanks. “That is what we do. Now, I have a little war to plan.” He turned to walk away, before looking over his shoulder. “How is your stance on weather phenomena? Wind, Earth, Water, and Fire?”

“As long as they do not destroy excess lives, My Lord.”

Frederic dipped his head. “Thank you for your assistance.”

“You are welcome, My Lord.”

Frederic nodded once again, turned, and walked away before vanishing in the dimensional relocation. Th Temple crumbled behind him as the local god left the structure after his lord had left.

An hour later, Frederic's almost-complete extended family had gathered on deck 72 of the humongous warship. At five kilometers in length, two kilometers wide and one kilometer in height, space was more then plentiful. Unless there was war, of course... then the Ortega would be filled to capacity with five thousand fighters, and brimming with support and flight crews.

On Deck 72 was located the heart of the Ortega's battle-systems: the War Room. Where the bridge was the day-to-day command center, and the place to be if you wanted action during a fight, the War Room was where the entire battle was planned out before a single phaser bank was charged and before a single torpedo left the tubes.

Sitting at the circular planning table was practically the entire team: Jennifer, Second in Command, Daphnix, Third in Command and Tactical-Combat Officer, Ami, Sailor Mercury and Field Battle Commander of the Jokilar Gerius, Borlan, the Battle-Oriented Logical Analyzer and his love Rei, Sailor Mars. Also present were David and Jessica, Frederic's children. Even if they weren't allowed to fight, the two couldn't be stopped if they wanted to learn something.

And one thing they'd do was learn, as Daphnix planned out the fight.

“Because of the local god’s rules, we’ll start here,” he said, indicating a city on the three-dimensional holographic see-through map. “New York City. Largest outbreak. By the time we're finished there, the sun is setting... which means it's rising in Europe, so next we'll go to Berlin. We've got the time of the year with us. By the time Berlin is cleared, Sydney is about mid-way through the afternoon.” He looked away from the map. “After all, nobody cares about the date changes, right?” the room chuckled slightly, except for Frederic, who merely cast an amused glance at his tactical officer.

“There are barely 100 vampires in Sydney. If we're lucky, we can still hit Tokyo before the sun sets fully. If not... too bad for the bloodsuckers.”

Frederic nodded in quiet thought. Hitting vampires at night means quick and dirty... let's hope this Tokyo is as sturdy as most others. The combined magic and Ki arts we can bring into play is... considerable, he noted carefully. “D... why not get a couple of extra teams, and have them all clear a city by themselves? We can hit at the same time, or as good as about... and not run the risk of having the vampires run amok for any longer than necessary.”

Daphnix looked at the floating orb. “Sure, we could do that.” He looked at Frederic. “But I believe we can take them all out by ourselves... just look at it this way: it's a race against the clock.”

Frederic lapsed into silence again as Daphnix zoomed in on New York. “Satellite data shows that the vampires are located in these four areas...” he halted, rubbing his chin. “Maybe a second team,” he resumed, looking at Frederic. “The Sunnydale Gerius for one, don't appear to be busy this time of year...”

Frederic smiled softly, and dipped his head. “We'll take New York and Tokyo. Buffy's team can take on Berlin and Sydney,” Daphinix said at his commander’s approval. He looked at Linda. “Linda, can you contact Willow, brief her, and bring her up to speed on the plan?”

Linda nodded, holographic form shimmering as she contacted a team of Jokilar Gerius in a different dimension. “Willow is being briefed,” the AI noted. “They should be here any moment.”

No sooner did Linda stop speaking, or six forms shimmered into existence in the War Room: Elisabeth Anne Summers known as Buffy, Team Leader, Willow Rosenberg, team tactician, Angel, Oz, Xander, and Cordelia, Additional Braun.

“House call from the exterminators,” Xander quipped as they appeared.

“Good,” Frederic said, smirking. “You can take Berlin and Sydney... we'll take on New York and Tokyo.”

“Cool,” Buffy said, nodding. “Wills?”

“Coming up,” the redhead replied, closing her eyes, briefing her friends through a high-intensity burst of Mental Power. In under a tenth of a second, everyone was up to speed.

“Ready,” Buffy told Frederic with a nod.

“So are we,” Frederic noted. “Gerius... let's exterminate us some vampires.”

“Let's,” the other replied calmly, vanishing in the teleportation only the Jokilar Gerius could provide.

Berlin, middle of the day. Thanks to the time of the year, a thick carpet of clouds had been laid out, covering the sunlight. The entire Sunnydale team looked up to the raining clouds.

“Great. No sunlight at High Noon,” Buffy said. “I miss Sunnydale.”

“Don’t we all, Buff,” Xander agreed wholeheartedly with his leader. Glancing at her, he asked, “So, what do we do, O Fearless Leader?”

“Wills?” Buffy asked.

“These vampires are hindered by a lack of challenge,” the redhead noted. “There is no-one to hunt them on this world, so they don’t have the same survival instincts as in 001…” she looked in a certain direction, pointing straight ahead. “All 150 vampires are located that way, in a warehouse.”

Buffy nodded, looking around to see whether anyone had seen them standing on the roof of the Brandenburg Tower. They hadn’t been spotted, so the entire group ported out of there, to the site where the vampires had gathered.

It was a relatively new warehouse, built a little out of the way, an ideal place for vampires to hide out in.

“Not too many humans,” Cordelia said as the entire group glanced around. “Tell them to leave?”

Buffy nodded. “I’m sure they all just remembered they had to go to lunch. Somewhere downtown.”

Cordelia nodded, and focused her mental powers. “Clear,” she stated, about ten seconds later. “Leave and forget.”

Buffy nodded, drawing her sword. “Bane of Darkness,” she whispered, causing the blue-glowing lower-class sword to evolve into its purple-glowing full-power counterpart. Lifting the tip to the skies, she said, “Let’s go, people!”

“Buff… I think I have an idea… something I wanted to try out for a long time, but our vamps aren’t stupid enough to fall for it,” Xander said, stemming their charge. Buffy glanced curiously at her friend.

“Really? What?” she asked, curious. Suddenly growing serious, she turned to him, planting her hands in her sides. “You’re not going to just blow up the building, are you? Fred said to remain inconspicuous!”

“No, no blowing up buildings,” Xander said, shaking his head. “Come on, Buff… please?”

Buffy sighed, rolling her eyes. “Again with the puppy-dog eyes. Oh, alright. But if this goes out of hand…”

“I know, I know,” Xander replied, grinning slightly. “Okay… here I go,” he said, turning to the building. He closed his eyes, and spread out his arms. With a flash of purple light, the roof vanished off the concrete warehouse, causing shrieks and howls to rise form the building as the rain woke the assembled bloodsuckers.

“Wake them up with a shower. Great idea!” Cordelia grunted sarcastically.

Xander grinned wide, and turned to the clouds. “In the name of the Gods of the Universe, I bless thee…” he said, making the sign of the Phalanx with his right hand.

The angry shouts from the building became screams of pain and anguish as smoke started billowing out from cracks under the door.

“You blessed the rain clouds!” Willow shouted. “Great idea! Getting rid of vampires while doing nothing to the humans!”

Xander grinned. “So glad you approve… and the worst that an ordinary human can have from a shower with holy water is getting a better heart.”

The group chuckled, standing by until the screams had died down. Only then did Xander port the roof back, and the group went inside to check up, to see if any of the vampires had survived. Only five had… and they were not much of a match after five minutes in a Holy Water shower.

“On to Sydney,” Buffy whispered, porting her group away.

Aoi ran as fast as she could, arms thrown around a paper bag with groceries. Night had fallen mere minutes before, yet almost immediately somebody had been chasing her. She could feel it…

Running as fast as she could in the traditional kimono she always wore, the blue-haired girl tried to keep in front of the heavy footsteps that were now audibly behind her, running way faster than she could. The footsteps vanished suddenly, and Aoi relaxed as they did, panting as she walked slowly, trying to catch her breath.

Suddenly, a pair of strong arms reached out from the darkness of an alley, pulling her roughly into the shadows. Her throat let out a startled scream before a strong hand the size of a shovel was slapping in front of it, cutting off her startled cry for help.

“Look at what we have here,” the large man holding her grunted, sniffing at her hair. “What a beauty…”

“She’s even wearing a kimono!” the second man said, stepping into her view, leering at her young body. “Not many girls still wear those in public. Too bad… I love a girl who knows how to dress.”

Aoi grunted, trying to squirm free from the grasp of the huge man behind her. To no avail… his arms were like steel wire, and his grip was like the Jaws of Life… only they were the Jaws of Death in this case.

“Come on, let’s get this over with,” the hulking mass of man behind her grunted. “I doubt one of them will serve our appetite well.”

“SO true,” the second man said, nodding. Suddenly, his face shifted. Aoi’s blue eyes went as big as dinner plates at the sight of a real vampire. Of course she had heard the myths. Who hadn’t? But seeing one… fearfully, she tried to lash out, struggle free from the grip of the man holding her.

“Squirm, beauty,” the man behind her whispered. “That makes your blood nice and tingly with adrenaline.”

As the second man leaned over to her neck, he… it?... grasped out in pain as smoke rose from his back. Thrown backward, away from the girl, the vampire landed against a wall. Aoi tried to make sense of it all… but it did register that she was still alive. And those four new people in the alley were probably responsible for it, as they glared angrily at the two vampires.

“Let the girl go,” the leader of the group spoke. “Now.”

The vampire holding Aoi laughed. “Just who do you think you are, trying to give us orders? I’m the one holding the girl. One wrong move, and I’ll snap your neck!”

“I am the Jokilar Gerius Commander,” the leader spoke. Aoi didn’t recognize the words, but somewhere deep inside of her, she felt something stir. Hope. Whatever the man was… she felt that he was here to help, and she just knew that he would be able to get her away safely. From those few words, she had grown limitless confidence in this man and his team, opposing these monsters that tried to take her life.

The laughing vampire stopped. “I don’t know what that is, human… but this has gone on long enough.”

The seconds vampire jumped from the shadows, latching on to Frederic, who didn’t even resist. The moment the beast’s fangs sunk into his neck, and the moment it had drawn its first gulp of blood, it let go, screaming, holding its throat. Smoke rose from its open mouth as it screamed and gurgled.

His very stomach seemed to dissolve, before the creature spat open in dust.

“As Holy Beings, it is inadvisable to try and drink our blood,” Frederic replied calmly, stepping up to the vampire. “Now… let the girl go.”

The vampire tightened his hold, panicking. Suddenly, he felt something behind him… a curious sensation swept over him… before darkness engulfed his vision.

Aoi finished the cream she had started when the assault had begun, falling to her knees before drawing in a deep breath, and looking up and around. Behind her stood the woman of the team… vanished when the first vampire was dying horribly and distracted his partner. She had slipped behind the vampire and killed him when distracted.

“Who…what?” Aoi whispered.

The man helped her to her feet, when a second woman… no, still a girl but with the same cold edge in her eyes… handed her a bag. The groceries, fallen when the vampire grabbed her. “These are yours?” the blue-haired girl asked Aoi, who nodded and took them.

“Thank you…” she looked at the foursome. Two men, one woman, and one girl going into a woman. “But… what…who are you?”

“I am Frederic,” the leader introduced himself. “This is my wife Jennifer, my best friend Daphnix, and his girlfriend, Ami.”

Aoi nodded. “I’m Aoi… Sakuraba Aoi… pleased to meet you,” she finished, smiling as her etiquette cut in once more. “And these… creatures?”

Frederic smiled. She was strong, and her realized it. Where most others would be incapacitated, she seemed to be able to hold a clear head. “Those were vampires.”

“Vampires?” Aoi asked, voice vibrating slightly. “I never knew… they were real…”

“Not they aren’t… those were the last ones,” Daphnix said, not unkindly. “Are you alright?”

Aoi nodded. “I’m fine… but please. You have saved me. Allow me to invite you all for dinner, to repay for your trouble.”

The group connected mentally in an instant. The instant after that, Ami informed them that turning the girl down would be a grave insult. The third instant, they disconnected. “It would be our pleasure,” Frederic said, smiling slightly, as did the rest of the group. Aoi smiled in return as well, noting that something seemed to be off with the leader of this group. Ignoring it, she said, “This way, please… please forgive me that we must take the subway.”

Frederic smiled slightly. “Then allow us to provide transportation,” he said, pushing the button on his communicator without Aoi noticing. Linda got the cue on board the Ortega, and not long after, the All-Purpose Vehicle was making its way through the traffic of Tokyo city, to the suburbs where Aoi’s large mansion waited for them to return.

The car slid to a halt in front of the front door a while later. “Now I know why the cars in Japan are small... this thingfelt like a bulldozer in the traffic jams,” Frederic commented as they got out.

Aoi merely smiled as she opened the front door. “I'm back!”

“Aoi-chan? Did something happen? You weren't supposed to be back for another...” a boy of about 20 said as he came out of what appeared to be the living room, voice trailing off as he saw the others with her.

“I know,” the blue-haired girl replied with that gentle smile of hers. “Something happened... these people helped me out.” She turned to the Phalanx group, and said, “Frederic-sama, Jennifer-sama, Daphnix-sama, Ami-sama, this is Kaoru-sama... Kaoru-sama, these are the people that helped me.”

Jennifer and Daphnix protested silently about the use of the overly respectful titles, and both shot a small glance at Frederic when he didn't join in with them. Once again, they noticed how distracted he seemed.

<<What is WRONG with him? Usually, he's the first to protest!>> Daphnix sent to Jennifer through a telepathic link.

<<I don't know... And he's not letting me in either,>> Jennifer replied, somewhat testily. They let go of their concerned looks as their hostess continued.

“They saved me from two vampires.” The Phalanx group stared in shock at their hostess as she continued to relate everything she had learned to Kaoru.

“Vampires?” the boy choked, actually closing the distance to look at the girl. “Aoi-chan, are you alright?” Understanding Japanese customs perfectly, the others realized right there and then that something more was going on than simple friendship.

“I'm fine,” she replied, smiling. “They saved me.”

The boy looked up from Aoi, to the group of warriors. “Thank you for saving her...”

At that moment, a blonde of about Kaoru's age jumped into the hall. “Hey, what's going on here... oh, we've got company!”

“Tina-san!” Aoi greeted the blonde. “Meet Frederic-sama, Jennifer-sama, Daphnix-sama, and Ami-sama... they saved me from two vampires.”

“Perhaps we can hold further talk in the living room?” Kaoru suggested, before Aoi was forced to explain everything time and time again. It went not past the warriors that Kaoru had distanced himself from Aoi the moment Tina had entered the hall, however. <<They're hiding what they have...>> Jennifer communicated silently.

<<Not our business to meddle in love-affairs,>> Frederic replied calmly as he followed the group into the living room, where they were soon seated around a large dinner table. More and more people gathered... all female.

There was a young 14-year-old girl, well sun-tanned, with an exuberant character. There was the cool Miyabi, who apparently was the manager of Aoi's financial affairs. And then there was Taeko, who helped in the household. Like Tina, Taeko was of Kaoru's age... and it became apparent why Kaoru was hiding what he felt for Aoi. All the girls had a huge crush on him.

And judging from his friendly attitude, Kaoru didn't have the heart to tell them right out.

“Anyway... everybody...” Aoi began. “These are Frederic-sama, Jennifer-sama, Daphnix-sama, and Ami-sama... they are warriors that helped me tonight. Eh... I... was attacked by a group of vampires.”

Kaoru seemed to remain calm. Tina, having had a few minutes to get used to the idea, just paled slightly. Miyabi, the cool manager, just looked in worry at the girl. Taeko and Chika drew pale, then screamed at the same time.

“WHAT?”

“Vampires!?”

“Don't worry,” Frederic said. “Those were the last ones... there won't be any further vampires to bother you.”

“I don't know what you have done, but you'll undo it right now,” Miyabi suddenly growled. “Brainwashing Aoi-sama for whatever reason is NOT something I'll forgive easily.”

“Miyabi-san!” Aoi replied, angrily. “These people are my guests! They saved my life tonight!”

“They led you to believe that they saved your life, Aoi-sama. Be honest... vampires are myths. They do not exist,” the cool manager replied, down-to-earth. The others, having believed at first, started to waver as well with the voice of reason.

<<What do we do? If we just pick up and leave, the girl will be diagnosed as a lunatic!>> Jennifer whispered urgently.

<< I really wish that we'd find a world where we don't have to prove ourselves,>> Frederic whispered sadly. He looked up, lifting one hand to eye-level. The others, having seen him move, yet not speak a word, stared at him in silence.

“This is for the sake of Aoi-san. She is a brave young lady, and does not deserve to be stipulated as ill because of what she saw,” the Jokilar Gerius stated calmly. He felt his magic expand, shaping to his will as he extracted it from his reserves. A ball of fire settled in the open palm.

Even after he removed his hand, the ball remained afloat in mid-air, seemingly waiting for its master to give it an order. “Is there anyone who wants to touch it?”

For a few seconds, it remained silent at the table, with everyone looking at Aoi and Frederic in turn, the blue-haired girl stared in awe at the ball of flame floating in front of Frederic's face, suspended in nothingness.

“Sure,” Aoi then said, smiling slightly, willing to prove that these people in which she held such faith would not harm her.

Frederic dipped his head, and the ball of flame gently floated across the table, settling in front of the mistress of the house. Extending her hand to the flame, hesitating only slightly, she touched it. The flame reacted to her hand as if it were a living creature, pushing itself against her touch.

Laughing, Aoi seemed to guess what the flame wanted, and actually reached out to pet it. The flame buzzed with excitement as Aoi stroked its surface, the little yellow-golden flames dancing around the girl's nimble fingers.

“Oh! Me too! Me too!” Chika shouted, seeing how much Aoi enjoyed playing with the little ball of flame.

The ball seemed to turn to Frederic, as if asking for instructions. The Gerius nodded, and the flame extracted itself from Aoi's grip, floating over to the teenager, who immediately reached out and stroked it, forgetting her fear at the sight of Aoi earlier.

The teenager played with the little ball of flame as if it were a living pet, and Frederic turned to Miyabi. “It is a young fire elemental... it can't sustain itself for long in this world, but it suffices as proof, doesn't it?”

“That... that is not possible,” the composed woman whispered, staring at the tanned teen playing with the small elemental.

“You can touch it, if you want,” Frederic said. “Grnax doesn't mind... it's been helping us out of these kinds of situations ever since I was appointed to my current position. Just don't make it angry... a young fire elemental can STILL be quite potent.”

“Grnax?” Miyabi replied, stunned, the fire elemental under Chika's touches suddenly 'turning' to the manager.

Frederic nodded, and the flame reluctantly floated over to the woman. Miyabi, shaking slightly, reached out to touch it. It was soft, like velvet... not hot, but pleasantly warm to the touch. She stroked the small ball carefully, not really getting much of a response, not like Chika and Aoi had received.

“Why isn't it...” she started.

“Grnax apparently doesn't like you very much,” Frederic replied honestly. He looked at the ball with head cocked, while the flame turned to the Gerius. “Something to do with you not trusting the voice of the gentle girl with the blue hair...” Frederic looked up. “I think it's talking about you, Aoi-san.”

The girl blushed slightly. “Anyway... you didn't trust her... or me,” Frederic finished with a shrug.

Suddenly, the ball wavered. “It's time for Granx to go,” Frederic said, reaching out. The throbbing ball jumped into the palm, and vanished.

“Looks like there's not much else I can do,” Miyabi acknowledged.

“So... Frederic-sama. What is your current position, anyway?” Tina asked, leaning over the table so she could look at the warriors.

Frederic held up his hand. “I'll answer all your questions... on one condition. Stop calling me 'sama'.”

Tina laughed heartily. “Sure... Frederic-san.”

“Excuse me while I start dinner,” Aoi said before Frederic could tell his story, standing up. Frederic, being used to doing all the cooking, actually started to stand up as well. “You are a guest, Frederic-sama,” the girl said as Frederic was about halfway to his feet, ignoring his earlier question to call him with a normal name. Frederic sat back down as the blue-haired girl vanished into the kitchen.

“You're going to love the food, Frederic-san!” Chika crowed. “Aoi-neesan is the best cook!” (a/n: neesan is the Japanese word for 'sister'. Although not blood-relatd, Chika does call Aoi her sister, to indicate just how close they are. But then again... Chika calls everybody in the household brother and sister.)

“Anybody else going to interrupt?” Tina growled, slightly peeved. “I wanna find out what their story is!” the people at the table chuckled, including Jennifer, Daphnix, and Ami. Much to their concern, Frederic merely lifted one corner of his mouth. Usually, he loved laughing... what was wrong here?

Frederic then dipped his head. “About two weeks ago, I was appointed,” he replied to Tina's earlier question. “I was chosen by those who rule the universe to become their second in command... in other words, I am the one who has to make sure everybody is safe, and remains that way.”

Tina whistled. “That sounds like a cool job... you get to boss everybody around!”

Frederic nodded solemnly. “That, too. But above all, it is a lot of responsibility. The weight of the entire human race rests on my shoulders.”

Jennifer frowned as she looked at her husband. Not wanting to contradict him in public, she did it in private: through the link their minds shared.

<<Love?>>

<<It's true, isn't it? I am the one who has to take care of everything,>> Frederic answered her calmly. He looked at Tina. “If you really want to know everything, I can tell you... but perhaps it would be best to wait until Aoi-san returns with dinner? That way, she can listen as well.”

Tina grudgingly acknowledged that.

Not fifteen minutes later, Aoi returned with dinner... and a good dinner it was, too. The Phalanx team enjoyed the food, and meanwhile, Frederic told them about what had transpired in recent years. Or rather, he told the big lines, and let out all the dark bits. There were certain things they didn't need to know... didn't want to know. Most people reacted adversely to being told just how close to destruction reality came on an almost daily basis.

As Frederic told, even Miyabi listened on breathlessly, even she felt that something wasn't right as he told his story. Till longer after dinner, the Gerius Supreme told them about what he did, and answered their questions when something wasn't clear.

But, at all things came an end, and the time finally came for them to leave.

“We really have to go now,” Frederic said as he and his friends stood up, ready to leave.

“Why don't you stay the night?” Aoi offered. “There is plenty of space in the main house for all of you to spend the night... and then you wouldn't have to drive at night.”

Frederic smiled gratefully at her, knowing fully well that it was extremely rare for a Japanese person to invite someone to stay over, but feeling that he had already abused the hospitality of the girl enough. “We can transport directly, Aoi-san... besides, we can take care of ourselves,” he said with a rare smile.

Blushing slightly at the last words of the Gerius, the girl continued, “because you did say our world is peaceful now... you said all the vampires are gone, right? Well... it could be a vacation. Even though this world doesn't know what you did, I do. And I am grateful for it.”

Jennifer winked at the girl, and went on, “that's actually a good idea, Love... you have been pushing yourself hard ever since you became the Supreme Gerius. And way before then as well. You work hard to give us all the rest we need, but don't always think of yourself.”

Frederic looked at his wife, to Aoi, who smiled invitingly, to the other house guests, who all seemed to be in various stages of enthusiasm, back to his wife.

“So... take a vacation. I can take care of the multiverse for you... and I've got D, Ami, and the other Gerius to help out when we need. And Lind and Borlan can help us overview the data. Aoi is right. This world is peaceful now. You deserve a vacation... so enjoy your rest.”

Frederic was still looking around. Finally, he admitted defeat, and looked at Aoi. “If you're sure I won't get in the way.”

The girl smiled. “You saved my life, Frederic-sama,” she simply said. Frederic understood what she meant, though... and nodded gratefully at her.

“In that case, it would be my pleasure to accept your gracious offer,” he replied calmly, bowing to his new house mistress.

“Cool! Frederic-onisan is staying!” Chika crowed. (a/n onisan is 'brother' to the oneechan of earlier. I told you the girl called everybody brother and sister. :) ) Grabbing his hand, she pulled him out of the room. “Come, I'll show you your bedroom!” she enthusiastic girl added right before the door shut behind the duo.

“Looks like he'll be enjoying himself,” Jennifer said, with a worried smile. “Fred always did like kids...” she turned to Aoi. “I'm trusting you with him. Something isn't right, and I'm hoping a vacation is all he needs to get back on his feet.”

Aoi nodded. “I understand, Jennifer-sama. I will do my best to look after him.”

Jennifer bowed. “Thank you. I am in your debt... I never would have gotten him to agree on a vacation by myself.”

Aoi bowed back. “Your debt was repaid the moment you saved me,” she answered honestly.

Death. All around him... death. It surrounded him. The stench of it was in the air, the very essence of it making the air thick as blood, and of the same taste. He looked around.

Under the blood-red moon, bathed in ghostly bloody shadows, were the scenes of hell imprinted upon his retina. Vampires feeding on human beings, their blood staining the coal-black ground. He felt something stir behind him.

Jumping away from what was perceived as a threat, he found out his reaction was more than accurate. A tree... what passed as a tree in this horrible, hellish landscape... black as cool, with bark of the consistency of tar, dripping slowly to the ground, reaching out with dark branches to ensnare him.

The air thickened, as if it now reached the same consistency as the bloody smell indicated. Fear gripped his heart, and he tried to run. Two steps he managed before his foot was caught on a root... or was it a root that caught his foot...

he had no time, rolling up he heard a screech of a bird of some kind. Looking overhead, he was the biggest raven-like bird descend to his location, burning red eyes piercing into his soul. The fear was paralyzing him. He opened his mouth, yet no sound came out, even his vocal cords paralyzed.

Spitting something... something vile... the bird swept over him. The black slime hit him with the speed of a bullet, not penetrating his enhanced skin, but transmitting first the feeling of being hit by a freight train... and then the emotion of his very essence being eaten alive. Hissing and burning, the slime ate its way through his chest, to his heart, feasting on the insides...

His useless vocal cords still unable to produce any consistent sound, he could only watch as the Raven landed, starting to peck at his right arm. Burning eyes locked on his wide-open fearful eyes, the raven continued its meal for mere seconds more, before it looked up and screeched as it flew off.

He remained like that, unable to even look at what had happened... when a creature more horrible than even the raven appeared in his vision. Headed like a lion, it was, yet adorned with nine spiked tails. Growling it jumped him and then the blood-red sky was replaced by the murky darkness of death as it finally claimed him.

Reality slowly returned... yet the sensations were incorrect. Fear and pain shot through his battered mind and body, and Frederic shot right awake, looking around him in fear and panic as he tried to place his unfamiliar surroundings. Finally, his memory started to kick in, retrieved from the nightmare he had just awoken from.

Aoi's house.

Taking deep breaths, the Phalanx finally calmed himself, and stood up from the sleeping mat he had spent the night on. Still breathing heavily, he slid open the covers on the windows, allowing bright mid-morning sunlight to penetrate the darkness of the room he had slept in. Feeling the sun's heat and gentle rays on his face calmed the man considerably, and Frederic closed his eyes as he let the warmth banish the last of his nightmare.

Finally, he realized that the sun was higher than it should be. Reaching for his clothes, he was soon dressed, and hurried out to the living room, where he found Aoi polishing some copper on the huge grandfather clock.

“Aoi-san? Where is everybody? I hope I didn't keep you all waiting with breakfast?” he asked in a single breath, hoping that he hadn't inadvertently put his new friends in a difficult position.

The blue-haired girl smiled gently at him. “Good morning, Frederic-sama. We have already had breakfast... and decided to let you sleep, since you appeared to be really tired yesterday. Chika said you fell right asleep after changing.”

“Oh,” Frederic replied, delving for the memory. He seemed to recall something about snapping his fingers, and winking at the girl as she stared at him changing out of his combat-outfit and into a pair of boxers and a t-shirt. He seemed to recall a smile, but those last moments faded quickly... was his short-term memory shot to hell as well as his emotional equilibrium? Frederic cursed his weaknesses, and hid his confusion quickly.

Yet not quickly enough as Aoi had picked up on the momentary flicker across his face.

“Sorry I wasn't there to help you,” he apologized honestly. “So... how can I make it up to you?”

“Frederic-sama?” the girl asked, not really understanding.

“What do you want me to help you with? Want me to finish up that clock for you? Prepare lunch? Do some gardening work? It's a little early to start dinner already...”

“You're a guest, Frederic-sama. How much of a hostess would I be if I asked you to help me?” she rebutted gently. “Perhaps you would much rather take a nice walk in the estate around the mansion... and Miyabi-san has a nice library, perhaps you would like to read something? You're on vacation, Frederic-sama... relax, and enjoy yourself.”

Frederic nodded a little dejectedly. “Of course...” he said, not wanting to insult his hostess by pressing on. “I'll go do that, then...”

Smiling, Aoi nodded to him in agreement, and the Phalanx walked off, a little stiffly. He hadn't taken two steps, or he turned around. “I hope you slept alright last night. After what happened...”

Aoi nodded to him. “I slept well,” she replied. “Probably because you were here, Frederic-sama.”

His smile never reached his eyes. “Glad I could help,” he said, turning, and walking off. At least something I could help with, he thought as he went to find himself something to do.

Two hours later, he was sitting under a tree in the small park that was Aoi's garden, watching out over a pond. His mind was shut down, not a single thought creeping up, forced underneath a sheet of Quadranium will. He wouldn't... couldn't... allow himself to think. He had tried that too many time recently, and every time the result was harder and harder to suppress.

That's why he escaped in his work. Easy. Work... gave you something to do, something to focus on other than thinking about things.

“Frederic-sama? It's time for lunch,” his gentle blue-haired hostess said as she stopped next to his seated form. Brain on automatic pilot, he just looked up at her, and asked her,

“What would you like me to make you?”

Aoi looked abashed at him. “I meant I made lunch, and came to invite you in. You skipped breakfast, you must be famished.”

Frederic blinked. “Sorry. Force of habit... I'm used to cooking for my extended family,” he apologized as he stood up, and joined the girl in walking to the large mansion.

Five minutes later, he was seated at the table with Miyabi and Aoi. Lunch was a typical Japanese lunch: rice, with various sorts of Japanese items. Frederic's right hand mechanically applied the chop-sticks to the items, lifting them to his mouth.

“Is something wrong, Frederic-sama?” Aoi asked, seeing his vacant look as he ate.

Frederic blinked as he returned to the normal world, gaze focusing on her. “Wrong? No... nothing is wrong,” he replied levelly. “Just thinking... how long it's been since I didn't have to cook. Granted... usually, I just program the replicator, but still...”

Not really understanding what a replicator was, Aoi understood the fact that he was still the one to cook. “Jennifer-sama doesn't cook?”

Frederic shook his head gently. “She does the eating...” he replied hesitantly, not really wishing to attack his wife. “She grew up as a warrior... an Amazon... her cooking skills don't extend much past hunting something and roasting it over an open fire.”

“Oh,” the girl replied. “Then... she does the household?”

Not really understanding where the girl was headed, he shrugged. “No... that's me as well,” he answered, not really liking the fact that he had no idea what Aoi wanted. In itself an indication of just how 'out' he was. As Phalanx, he usually was way ahead of people. Being on the other end was a new and not at all enjoyable experience.

“So,” Miyabi interjected in the conversation. “From what I understood yesterday, you're the one who finds out where the trouble is, you get the necessary clearances, plan the attacks together with Daphnix, and now you also cook, clean, and do the laundry?”

“Laundry not really,” Frederic replied. “We just recycle our clothes... just chucking them in the bin is enough.”

“But still cooking, cleaning, as well as the most important tasks in your jobs?”

Frederic shrugged. “Yes.”

“How about what you want, Frederic-sama? When do you do what you want to do?” Aoi asked, not really trusting Miyabi to be diplomatic enough.

Frederic looked at his bowl of food, chopsticks halting in the middle between his mouth and the bowl. “What I want...” he whispered sadly. “What I want hasn't been in the equation for a long time...” He put down the chopsticks. “What I wanted... nobody ever asked.” Slowly, he buried his face in his hands.

“I never wanted this,” he whispered sadly. “ANY of this. I wanted to be a scientist... use my mind... and then THIS happened!” he growled, lifting his hand away, and summoning the Sword of the Phalanx. “I was appointed Phalanx, and told to fight for my own sanity and for the survival of the human race!”

Letting the green-glowing sword vanish once more, and buried his face in his hands. Shield that has existed for a long time broke down, and all programs he had instilled in his mind to control his emotions broke down. Frederic wept. “From then on... everything went to hell,” he sobbed. “Nothing went as I wanted it...” Deep inside his mind, he could feel his powers locking themselves out, prohibiting a shattered mind from accessing potentially devastating abilities.

Aoi looked helplessly at Miyabi, who looked back in equal confusion. Neither knew what to say or do.

“What happened, Frederic-sama?” Aoi asked, tone gentle, trying to figure out what was wrong with the powerful being weeping at her table.

Composing himself slightly, he whispered. “I was forced to fight for myself... against myself... I had to face my own dark side, my dark impulses... was forced to see and accept things nobody should ever see or ever accept...” he looked up, the glamour over his eyes shot to hell. Finally, the two women at the table could see his eyes... his entire face... for how it really was.

Frederic looked old. Old and sick.

“And when it was over... I thought I could live in peace,” he went on. “But still they came. I was forced to fight an alien invasion. And then the vampires came. And after the vampires, it was the destroyers for the first time. And then it was a simulation of myself. What would happen if Jennifer died? Well... I found out!!!” he screamed. “And after that, it was somebody kidnapping my wife while she was pregnant with my twin children!”

Aoi and Miyabi winced as Frederic went, relaying just what had happened in his life, event after event.

“Then I got killed, and had to fight my way back from the dead! And after that, it was the Destroyers again. And then... as a gift for doing all the good I did, they made me the fucking GERIUS!” Frederic growled at the end of his monologue. “Instead of just having to deal with some vampires, demons, and black mages, I now get to deal with ALL of the crap in the ENTIRE omniverse!”

“I can not say that I know what it is like,” Aoi whispered sadly. “But it sounds to me that you have been pushed too far... too hard...”

Frederic snorted. “You think?” he asked sarcastically.

“But your friends... how come they don't help?” Aoi asked.

Frederic sighed. “I don't want to burden them. They all have problems of themselves. I know... they came to me when they have problems. I'm their rock in the surf, their anchor. I can't be weak, or they lose their footing.”

“But-” Aoi whispered, eyes wide, recognizing what the man was saying. He stood up, interrupting her before she could finish her sentence.

“I'm sorry for interrupting your lunch, Aoi-san,” he whispered sadly. “But I think I'll be outside for a while.”

The two women watched him go, practically the gait of an old man trapped in a young man's body. It was horrible to see.

“What can we do, Miyabi-san?” Aoi whispered sadly.

“Perhaps we can try to contact his friends? They need to know about this,” the manager replied, trying her best to hide the fact that the recent events had shook her up.

Aoi shook her head. “I don't know how... and if we tell his friends, he might shut in, repress everything further. Perhaps we can help him ourselves... help him understand that it's okay to ask for help, to accept help from your friends...”

Miyabi looked at her younger companion. “When did you become so smart, Aoi-chan?” she asked with a smile.

“When I was forced to grow up, Miyabi-san,” Aoi replied with that smile of hers. “I was like Frederic-sama... until I had to accept help.”

Miyabi nodded, understanding. “When you collapsed of overwork...”

Aoi nodded as well. “Yes... but Frederic-sama's body is too strong to collapse... his mind broke before that.”

Miyabi could only nod.

Later that day, before dinner, Aoi gathered all her house guests around the dinner table, Frederic the only one not present. It was a conversation during which she brought everyone up to speed on what had transpired, and one during which they all agreed to try and help him. It was Kaoru who said it best: the man had saved Aoi's life. They owed him.

Later that night, after dinner, Tina and Frederic were alone in the living room, everybody else having excused themselves.

“Here, you should try this,” Tina grunted, holding out a bottle with a rainbow-colored fluid in it. There was nothing that a good bender couldn't solve in Tina's mind, and this particular fluid was capable of knowing the strongest out. Fully expecting the Phalanx not to be any different, she handed him the bottle.

Usually not the kind to go out on a boozer, Frederic took the bottle and stared sadly at it. Feeling the need to get rid of this damn emotional depression, he took the bottle and put it to his lips. The burning alcohol made its way through his esophagus into his stomach, where it settled into a pleasant warmth, which immediately spread through his body.

Tina stared in awe as the man drained the remaining half of the bottle, without passing out. Finally, he released it, and stared at her. The alcohol kicked in good, and she could see him get drunk. More and more drunk.

A little miffed that he didn't leave any for her, and she was now stuck with mere beer, Tina turned to the man. “You know, it must be cool to be able to drink like that. That would've knocked anybody else out cold.”

“Huh,” Frederic breathed. “Part of being Phalanx. Perk of the job.” He looked at the empty bottle, then staggered upright, returning a little later with an small earth jug containing sake. Putting it to his lips, he took two large swallows.

“Your job sounds like it's so cool...” Tina breathed, starting to feel the effects of the alcohol. “All that power... spaceships... must be such a blast!”

Frederic snorted, and looked angrily at the sake. “I wanted to learn,” he grunted. “Explore. Be a scientist.” he looked at her with sad drunken eyes. “When I was fifteen, I was at university. A prodigy. Smart. Brainy. Was going to be the best scientist. Make the world a better place. Instead, I got this damn sword, a new destiny, and bye-bye dreams!”

“That sucks, man,” Tina grunted drunkenly in agreement. “So why'd you do it?”

Frederic downed the remainder of the sake. He was well passed tipsy now. “Because of what it offered. The job would make me even smarter than I already was. And it came with a complete dictionary on what humanity already knew. I knew it all... the combined knowledge of the human race, all the knowledge of every human that had ever lived up until that point. THAT was why I did it! I STILL wanted to learn, to explore... and the knowledge gave me that chance!”

He threw himself forward, arms around her neck, crying and sobbing. “And instead, I had to fight. Had to lead a fucking army.”

“There, there,” Tina grunted, patting drunkenly on his back. “At least you made the world a better place.”

Frederic snorted through his tears as he sat up. “I KILLED people!” he growled in a drunken snarl. “Exterminated the race that tried to invade Earth, and THEN took their powers for my own! I'm a monster, a freak, an abomination. Too much power, too much authority... never should have happened... I was born human. Human aren't meant for this kind of power... too much... too damn much...”

Not really understanding the scope of what he said due to her drunken state, Tina shrugged. “So what? So you made mistakes. Thing is... you saved the landlady-san yesterday,” she slurred. “And that's a very good thing!”

Frederic snorted. “Save one person, let another hundred die... should be at one hundred places at the time time, but can't... why save this planet and not another? They made me God, and now I'm stuck with the harsh decisions.”

“Damn, man,” Tina grunted. “Sounds like a pissy job.”

“It is,” Frederic grunted. “It so is.” he looked up at her. “And all I wanted was the knowledge... not to fight... no fighting. Too much fighting, too much violence...” he started sobbing again.

“Hey, I'm grateful you saved the ladyland... land... Aoi-san,” Tina slurred, unable to get out of her words anymore.

“Glad I did, too,” Frederic said through his tears. “Good person, Aoi-san.”

“That she is!” Tina agreed, hefting her umpteenth beer. “To the ladyland-san!”

Frederic smiled slightly. “To her!” he agreed, clinking his empty sake bottle against Tina's beer. He drew a disgusted face as she drained her drink, and he found his own bottle empty.

Not long after that, the two drinking buddies fell asleep, right where they were, in the living room, passed out from alcohol.

The next morning, contrary to what most of the people had expected, Frederic was actually up in time for breakfast. Of course, nobody had to know it was because of the nightmares that had haunted him full force after the alcohol-induced coma had worn off. He ate mechanically, berating himself in silence for the dishonor he did to Aoi's great cooking skills. But still he was unable to bring even the most meager scrap of taste to his brain.

Since the breakdown yesterday, depression had him in its grips. He felt the urge to just escape into drinking... it would be so easy to just drown out the pain and the misery... like he had done yesterday evening. But still a small part of himself kept telling him that drinking wasn't the answer. It may relieve the symptoms of the problem, but the problem itself would still be there.

Morning conversations, Frederic guessed, went on as usual. He listened, not really participating, although he did answer the sparse questions thrown his way by a couple of the more eager female guests of Aoi's. Especially 14-year-old Chika seemed to dislike his sorrowful depressing mood. If Aoi hadn't gently told the girl to let him be, Frederic was sure that the girl would have continued to ask him questions and her attempts to cheer him up.

Finally, everybody was out of the door, to school, and once again Frederic was left with Miyabi and Aoi alone. He excused himself, and once again returned to what had become his spot under the tree looking over the pond. Closing his eyes, Frederic folded his legs. For the first time since long, he ventured himself to meditate.

They were not pleasant or happy images he saw, and half an hour later, he opened his eyes, breathing deeply, skin sweaty and pale. It was like waking up from a particularly nasty nightmare, and Frederic stood up. Walking to the edge of the water, he gazed out over the surface.

“Everything came out yesterday... but I'm still far from better,” he whispered sadly. “But I'll need to get back... Jennifer... Daphnix... they need my help...”

“But you need their help more,” a voice whispered from behind him, and Frederic turned around hastily. “Sorry for eavesdropping, Frederic-sama,” Aoi said as she saw him turn around.

Frederic shook his head. “No... you're right... I need their help. But I just can't let them down... they rely on me. They always have...”

Aoi looked at him, thinking about something. “Did you say yesterday that you died, and it took six months for you to fight your way back?”

Frederic nodded. “Yes. That's true.” He turned to look back over the water surface. “Six months lost due to this curse placed on me.”

“Yes... but six months your friends survived. They are strong people as well, Frederic-sama. I'm sure that they'd be willing to help you... if you only let them.”

Frederic sighed, and looked at the water surface. “I can't... not anymore... Jennifer...” he whispered sadly. “I don't know. It's my fault, but I just don't know how to change it.”

“What happened, Frederic-sama?” the girl asked, stepping next to him on the slippery shore. Contrary to Frederic, who had perfect balance, the girl was dressed in her usual traditional kimono, which didn't leave much room for maneuvering. She slipped.

She hardly realized she was slipping when Frederic's hand shot out, steadying her. “Careful, it's slippery,” he stated superfluously. “As to what happened... I died. That's what happened. I died. And when I came back, Jennifer no longer wanted me. She couldn't take the pain anymore. She wanted away from me, no longer have anything to do with me.”

Aoi swallowed. “So that's why...”

“That's why I have to be strong. I can't let her sense my weakness, or she'll worry. And if she worries, she'll be fearful. And if she's afraid, she'll leave. So, I can't let her be afraid, ever.”

The monotone on which Frederic stated his sentence cut right through to Aoi's heart. “I saw her, Frederic-sama! Her love and concern for you was clearly there!”

Frederic smiled. “I'm sure she still loves me... but can I rely on it to be enough?”

Aoi nodded. “Of course. True love can always be counted on.”

“Like between you and Kaoru?” Frederic asked. The girl's eyes went wide.

“Yes,” she said after only a moment's hesitation, and looking at the ground. “Like between me and Kaoru. Nothing can stand between our love.”

“We used to be like that as well,” Frederic whispered. “I'd do anything for her... still would... but I don't know about her doing the same for me...”

“I'm sure she would,” Aoi replied. “The day before yesterday, when Chika showed you to your room, she told me in no uncertain terms that she entrusted me with you, and that she hoped this vacation would help you get back on your feet.”

Frederic remained silent.

“I came out here to ask if you wanted lunch, Frederic-sama,” Aoi then said, changing the subject.

Frederic smiled slightly, the first time the girl got a hint of a genuine smile. “Lunch sounds great, Aoi-san,” he replied, following her to the house.

That evening, everyone was sitting outside. Perhaps because it was such a beautiful evening, or perhaps it was the fact that Frederic seemed to improve slightly. But whatever the reason was, the entire group had migrated outside after dinner, enjoying a fun-filled evening under the stars.

Chika had been the one who managed to get Frederic, and Tina looked on with a little chagrin as she had lost her drinking buddy to the fourteen-year-old.

What it was about little girls, Frederic would probably never find out. Like with his own daughter, Chika had him wrapped around her little finger in practically no time.

So here he was, standing behind Chika, guiding her movements as she held on to the too-large green-glowing sword of his. The blade didn't mind... it had been in the hands of a lot of people Frederic had given 'a couple of lessons' to. So, Frederic was behind her, towering above her, his arms around hers, his hands on her wrists as he guided her through the ritualistic kata.

“Don't just copy me, Chika-chan,” Frederic whispered. “Feel the motions.” As he moved her further along, Frederic forgot about his worries, letting the movements of the simple kata drain his depression away.

When Chika excused herself, he sunk down on the ground next to where Kaoru, Tina, and Aoi were sitting.

“Softy,” Tina accused him.

Frederic lifted an eyebrow. “Like you can say no to Chika,” he rebutted calmly.

“No, but I'm not an allmighty second-in-command.” the moment her words left her slightly-drunk mouth, she knew she had said the wrong thing. Frederic's smile froze, and the sadness returned to his face.

“I never could say no to children,” he whispered sadly. “Never could before... and not since.”

“Hey now, no slumping back!” Tina growled, pulling his arm. “Come on. You were doing great!”

“Tina-san is right, Frederic-sama,” Aoi said. “I haven't seen you this relaxed since you got here.”

Frederic sighed. “I know... it's just...”

“Okay, NOBODY move!” a male voice shouted as a darkly clad man jumped from the bushes. “Give me all your money!”

The sudden freeze in everybody's actions triggered a fear-reflex in Frederic's own mind, and he froze along with everybody else. But he still studied the man... a rifle, nervous, sweating... not a career criminal. Perhaps somebody down on his luck who needed money to get out of a sticky situation.

As the group slowly got to their feet, hands held up to shoulder level, trying to figure out what to with the nervous gunman, said gunman continued wavering. “Come on, people... give me your money! I need it! Desperately!”

Frederic wished he could still create money... perhaps he could still summon it using magic. But whatever the case, he had his Phalanx card... he could withdraw as much money as he needed. He was sure that nobody could break the bank of the inter-dimensional F² corporation.

“How much do you need?” he managed to ask on what he hoped was a normal tone.

“Don't fuck with me!” the man screamed, on the verge of a nervous breakdown. “You rich people just think you can buy everything you need! All I want is for you to give me what I ask! Give me your jewels and your money!”

Calmly, Frederic started going over the options. He needed to diffuse the situation without anybody getting hurt. He saw the others looking at each other.

“I'll give you what you want,” Aoi said, voice trembling in fear. “It's... inside...”

The man motioned with the large rifle to the mansion. “All of you, inside. After her.”

For a few moments, the group was frozen, unsure of what to do. At that precise time, Chika ran out the back door. “Hey, what happened? It's so quiet over here!”

The nervous gunman twitched to her, his trigger finger depressing the hair trigger on the large rifle. Before the sound of the shot had reached him, Frederic saw the bullet leave the rifle. He felt it, deep inside his very being.

In the most primitive part of the human mind exists the brain stem, a leftover from the reptilian age. Usually, in these sorts of situations, it decided between Fight or Flight. Yet, the moment the bullet left the barrel, that primitive part of Frederic's mind switched to 'completely and utterly pissed off', the next moment he was standing in front of Chika, right hand extended, the bullet grabbed out of mid-air.

The gunman was shaking now, at the sight of a man crossing half a dozen meters in the blink of an eye and grasping a flying bullet out of mid-air with his bare hands.

Frederic moved calmly, pushing Chika behind him, holding her there with his left hand and arm around her young body. She looked up in awe and worry when she felt his left arm, and his entire body, trembling.

“You worthless piece of human waste,” Frederic growled, letting the bullet drop out of his hand. He walked to the man, continuously staring into his eyes. The skies darkened as a layer of clouds extended over it. In the distance, lightning flashed and thunder rumbled.

Reaching out with his right hand, he folded the barrel up in a perfect ninety degree angle, before ripping the weapon out of the gunman's hands. “I am going to destroy you for what you just did,” the Phalanx growled, eyes glowing a fierce green, throwing the ruined rifle to his side.

The moment it made contact with the ground, the weapon shifted into a rainbow-like energy color, before changing into a beautiful rosebush. The gunman, who was witnessing God's Wrath itself unfold in front of him, pissed his pants as he turned, and ran.

Without effort, Frederic reached out, grabbing the man's jacket at the neck, and hefting him off his feet, turning him around to face him. Still holding the man by the back of his jacket, fifteen centimeters off the ground, the Phalanx's eyes drilled deep into the gunman's soul.

He wasn't a full Dula, Ketari shapeshifter, like his kids were. But small adaptations could still be done... Frederic's eyes grew reptilian in appearance, fierce green-glowing slits superimposed over a fierce yellow eye. Frederic's bared teeth morphed, devolving into something else entirely as the mouth opened inhumanly far back, growing canines pushing the larger teeth into a higher mouth.

Finally, he opened his mouth and growled. Like an angry Tyrannosaurus Rex sounded the howl that came from the Phalanx's throat as he screamed directly in the man's face.

Up came his free left hand, taloned and fingers spread, as if to slice and dice the man’s face into very tiny cubes.

“Frederic-sama!”

The angered Phalanx’s reptilian eyes opened at the cry coming from Aoi’s throat. His swing halted mid-way to the man’s face, who was looking pale as a ghost into the face of Death Itself. Slowly, the green scaly tint of Frederic’s skin died down, and his eyes reverted to human. The talons retracted, and the left hand balled into a fist, which slowly sunk to the Phalanx’ side.

“You are a very lucky man,” Frederic said in a death-whisper. “She saved your life…” he let the man fall in his own unique styled, a gentle flick of the wrist that catapulted the man five meters back, landing, and sliding a little further on his back. The man jumped up and ran for his life. Frederic drew a long, deep breath, during which he looked at the once-rifle-now-rosebush, before turning to Chika. The little fourteen-year-old stared up at him, wonder, awe, and just a tiny amount of fear in her big brown eyes.

“Are you okay?” he asked, finally. His voice was flat, dead, not a hint of emotion present in it.

She nodded affirmatively. “I’m fine…” she said.

Frederic dipped his head once, a hint of a smile flying over his lips. “Good…” he said, eyes closing, and falling straight forward.

Finally, the reality of the situation returned to the others, and they ran to the Phalanx, long-out and face-down on the grass. Crowding around him, trying to revive him, until Kaoru whispered that he was fine, just asleep, or unconscious.

“He overexerted himself,” Miyabi decided, looking up to where the sky was clearing of clouds and thunderstorms rapidly. “That’s what you get with all these fancy fireworks.”

“But it does prove that he is more than normal,” Aoi replied deftly, standing up for the man that had not only saved her, but the life of Chika as well. Looking down at the heavy body, she then said, “We should get him in bed.”

Slowly, Frederic opened his eyes from the blackness of night. “Room…” he whispered, identifying the room and the futon in which he slept. “How did I get here?” he frowned, seeing daylight through the window. “Daytime… last I remember, it was night and we were having a barbeque…” the frown deepened, and the confused Phalanx delved for answers.

The memories returned swiftly, with devastating effects. “I… I lost it,” he whispered. “I could have killed that man if Aoi hadn’t stopped me.” Taking a deep breath, he stood up and walked to the window. “I’m a monster… what kind of an example have I made of myself? Almost killing someone in front of Chika…” he bent his head, letting the top of his head rest against the coldness of the glass window.

“And if I had actually killed him… it wouldn’t have been pretty,” he whispered, remembering the talons shooting out of his left hand. “I guess the Dula genes didn’t deactivate along with the rest of my powers… although that storm still has me confused as well.”

“Frederic-sama? Are you alright?” a small voice asked at his bedroom door. “Can I come in?”

“Sure… come in,” he whispered to the door, which slid open, to reveal Aoi, holding a tray in her hands.

“I thought that maybe you would like some breakfast?” the blue-haired girl asked, holding up the loaded tray.

Frederic sighed, and turned back to the window. “I’m a monster, Aoi.”

That simple statement stopped the girl in her tracks. For a long moment, she stared at him. “Why?” she asked, knowing that this was very likely related to yesterday, but still needing to know his reasoning for the conclusion.

“I almost killed that man.”

“He almost killed Chika-chan,” Aoi rebutted. “You saved her life.”

“By almost ripping his head into tiny strips,” he replied bitterly. “What kind of an example am I? I turn into this savage beast, almost killing that man…”

“But you didn’t,” Aoi stated firmly, putting the tray down next to his futon, and coming over to stand next to him, looking out the window. “You didn’t kill him, and you jumped in to catch his bullet when he would have killed Chika-chan. And you scared him… You’re a good man, Frederic-sama. You stopped yourself.”

“I wouldn’t have… if you hadn’t stopped me,” Frederic answered coldly. “I’ve killed so many. One more or less makes no difference.”

“But you didn’t in this case,” Aoi said. “Your powers saved the life of Chika-chan… and for that, we’re all grateful to you.” She turned and walked to the door. “Enjoy your breakfast, Frederic-sama. And don’t forget… your powers saved yet another life. One of many, I’m sure. Don’t think of the death, but of the life you give.” She opened the door. “I’ll be doing housework. If you need to talk to me… I’m there for you.”

Frederic nodded slowly. “I know… thank you, Aoi-san,” he whispered, looking at her as she closed the door.

“Think of the life, not death,” the miserable Phalanx whispered, sitting down at the tray. “Easier said than done, Aoi-san…”

As he ate, Aoi’s words kept going through his mind, and Frederic couldn’t help but think of the people he had helped. First to mind came, of course, the Master Slayers. But also the people from Starfleet... the first universe he visited that wasn’t his own. The Enterprise crew he had helped defeat the Borg. The Voyager crew he had helped to get home. BorgFred. Even Sorcerer… Frederic shook his head. He had helped a lot of people. So what?

What if the price for the help was death? He had destroyed the Ketari invasion force… and their entire race. Brutally, he had wiped them all out of existence. Anger, resentment for that decision plagued him still. Death. His death. Those six months that had been like 250 years, forsaking everything for the pursuit of power. Power he needed to get back, to defeat the one that had killed him in the first place.

Steve. He had helped Steve and Section Seven to counter the attack from Zells on universe 254.

Ketaria. He had destroyed Ketaria. And the Borg. They were invaders, but he had still killed their cubes. And the attack against Stargate command by those Gua’ould ships… those were actually HUMANS he had destroyed. The Human Phalanx had turned against his own race. Something he never should have done…

Just like those scientists that had kidnapped and raped Michelle. He had vaporized them. That too, was not something he should have done… he had saved Michelle, Sonya, and Michelle, girls that were like his sisters, but he had killed for their safety. And killing he shouldn’t have done.

Then how should he have done it, he wondered. How could he have saved them without killing? He could have knocked them out, rewritten their minds, make them forget and live other lives… but was that better than death? Maybe it was more humane to kill them then to let them live without ever knowing that they had been reprogrammed, that they weren’t who they were supposed to be.

Frederic sighed.

Maybe it was best to have killed those scientists. But he couldn’t justify the destruction of an entire planet. That just couldn’t be done. Or could it? The Ketari were conditioned for over a thousand years. Fighting and conquest was ingrained into their psyche for generations over a millennium. They would never have surrendered… had he spared them, they quite possibly would have returned to fight Earth again.

And the next time it might not have been so easy to destroy them. Frederic remembered the tortured bodies of the humans kidnapped by the Ketari researchers. Those people never hurt anybody, yet they were tortured to death. Frederic balled his fists. He could feel anger and rage pumping through his veins once again. Ketaria he had destroyed, wiping them out, sparing the universe their evil.

And their power he had gained through it. Power that had saved the life of Jennifer, Daphnix, and everyone in universe 254. The power of the Ketari Phalanx had proved decisive. It had enabled him to beat the Destroyer invading that universe. Steve and his people wouldn’t have been here today if it hadn’t been for Frederic destroying Ketaria and claiming the power of its race.

Perhaps everything did have a reason, he decided. Perhaps he was justified in committing genocide… and perhaps it was a combination of justification and the rage of those poor tortured souls being killed. Maybe… perhaps…

He had the power to change it all. Being Jokilar Gerius and all. But, if he did change it all. Would it help? What would the omniverse be like?

Frederic sighed, and stood up. He needed a walk outside. And sit at the pond, contemplating its surface. The calm smoothness of the water surface calmed him. Finally letting his eyes close, Frederic folded his legs, and meditated.

The images he saw were still far from pleasant, but this time, there was also, faintly, very far away, some sense of hope. Somehow, everything just might be right. He had been forced to make really tough decisions, to do the unthinkable again and again, and it had taken its toll. He had done things… terrible things… killed so many, hurt so many…

Frederic’s eyes snapped open, and he unfolded himself into an upright position, and walked to the very edge of the pond. Pain and death I have caused, he thought sadly. But somehow… it was alright.

The Phalanx looked up, seeing Aoi sweep the falling leaves off the grass. This is why I do what I do, he thought, looking, just looking, at the blue-haired girl raking leaves. Just a simple act of normalcy, yet he continued to observe her. To protect life… I bring death.

He turned back to the water finally. I am the Bringer of Death, the Destroyer of Worlds… Frederic shook his head. No. I don’t rain death and destruction. I kill for a reason. To protect the innocent. He sighed deeply.

Whatever way I look at it… I still kill. Me. Me, and me alone. I am responsible. I am the protector of the omniverse, the second in command of the Gods of the Universe. It’s my job… my duty… to protect the innocent. I’m a monster, killing for peace… what a contradiction.

He looked over his shoulder to where Aoi was still raking. Yet… without me… she wouldn’t have been here. Neither would Chika-chan…I intervened. I used powers that have brought so much death to protect life…

Frederic sighed sadly, and stared at the surface of the pond. But I can’t save everyone. I can’t be everywhere at once… A tear fell from his eyes, making the surface of the pond ripple. People die because I’m not strong enough. People die because I can’t protect them. People die because I’m not there. Who am I to decide who lives or dies?

Angry, Frederic looked at the skies. “WHY????” he screamed. “Why did you place this horrible curse on me!? What did I do that was so wrong for me to deserve this!?”

“This was what you wanted,” a voice calmly said from behind him, making Frederic snap up and around.

“Wise One,” Frederic grunted with a nod from his head to the being that was known as God throughout the omniverse. “Why did you place this horrible curse on me?” he demanded once more. “Why did you make me into something I can never fully do?” he grabbed the God by the front of the cloak the being wore, and lifted him off the ground.

“Who am I to decide who lives or dies?” he finally demanded.

“Who says anybody dies because of you?” the Wise One rebutted calmly. Sadly, the being looked at the confliction emotions running across Frederic’s face.

“Because I’m not there to save them!” Frederic growled. “That’s why people die because of me!”

“People have always died, Young Phalanx,” the Wise One said. “And they will continue to die.”

“But I…”

“You are a great being, Young Phalanx. Second under the Gods of the Universe is not a position to be taken lightly. But ask yourself this… the omniverse was created over 19 billion years ago, and it has existed up until now. It existed… survived… because of the early Gerius, and now it is looked after by the New Gerius. But for over 19 billion years, the omniverse has existed without such protection. You are necessary, yes… but even without you, humanity will and can survive, as will the omniverse.” The being put a hand on Frederic’s shoulder. “You are a kind soul, Frederic. But not even the Gerius can save all. Not even We, Gods of the Universe, can save all. Nor should we.”

With those words, the God left, leaving a very confused Divine Being behind. “He just called me by my name…” Frederic whispered.

“Frederic-sama? Who was that man?” A small female voice asked from behind him, just a little fearfully. He turned to Aoi.

“God,” he replied levelly. “That was God…”

“God?” the girl squeaked. “The God?”

“Is there any other?” he asked with a small smile. “Yes… that was the God. My boss. In a matter of speaking.” Frederic shook his head. “We have a difficult relationship,” he added, unable to explain just how they related.

“What… God? What did he… have to say?” the girl asked, intensely curious, and blushing furiously at the presumption of being able to question God’s motives.

“Just passing to give some advice,” Frederic whispered in reply, turning back to the pond. “Just some advice…”

Seeing that he was distracted with his own thoughts, Aoi turned back to her garden work, every now and then casting a glance toward Frederic, to see whether or not any more people would make an appearance. Nobody did, but Frederic did remain staring out over the pond, and Aoi kept shooting him glances.

That evening, Frederic was sitting at dinner, his head swimming high in the clouds again, thinking about what the God said, about what Aoi said, about what everybody said. He had listened to everybody… didn’t it become time he listened to himself? Frederic didn’t know what to say to himself, though. He was still trying to make his mind up.

Deciding that he had been an impolite guest more than enough, Frederic pulled himself down to earth, and told himself to just forget about everything for a while, and focus on dinner. Aoi was a great cook, and she made some delicious meals. Meals he hadn’t exactly done justice to, something he wanted to correct starting this moment.

“This is really good,” he told Aoi, who beamed a grateful smile at his compliment. It drove a hot knife through his heart that he had ignored her hard work for so long. His smile wavered slightly, and he turned back to his food, lapsing into silence once again while the others chattered.

Carefully, he glanced around the table. Miyabi was her quiet majestic self, eating in silence, like a queen; distant and virtually unapproachable. Aoi was quiet, enjoying the sound of the chatter of the others. Tina was boasting, as usual, while Chika kept smiling at him. Frederic smiled back, and the girl looked away, blushing. Well… at least I didn’t scare her, he reprimanded himself as he looked further. Tae was listening to Tina’s explanations, while Kaoru seemed unusually silent.

Or rather, it struck Frederic as unusual. He studied the teenager for a few moments longer. His body pose did indicate that something wasn’t right.

“Is something wrong, Kaoru-san?” Frederic asked, leaning over to the side.

Kaoru startled slightly. “Oh. No, not really. I was just thinking about the report I am due next week.”

Frederic smiled slightly. Schoolwork. How long it had been since he had been the one with the schoolwork. “Need a hand?” he offered. “You never know what two minds might come up with.”

Kaoru smiled at Frederic. “You have your own problems, Frederic-sama…”

“It’ll help me relax,” Frederic rebutted gently. “I love doing research… and I must admit, it’s been quite a while since I did schoolwork. Compared to my usual problems, it’ll be a nice change of scenery.”

Kaoru smiled gratefully. “Thank you, Frederic-sama. In that case, I’ll gladly accept.”

“On one condition,” Frederic grunted. “Drop the –sama. Call me Fred, like all my friends… calling me –sama reminds me too much of people groveling.”

Kaoru laughed slightly. “Of course… Fred.”

About an hour later, they were in the sanctity of Kaoru’s room, alone, and in silence. “So,” Frederic began, breaking the silence. “What is this report about?”

And they started talking. By midnight, Kaoru had fallen in his futon, fast asleep. Frederic grinned slightly at the sleeping teen. “Japanese schools are so tough on their students.” He looked wistfully out the window. “Wish I had been in one hen I was younger. Could’ve put some more challenge into my school life.” He turned back to look at the sleeping boy.

“But don’t you worry… Fred’s here to help,” Frederic smirked to himself as he exited the room quietly, making his way to the library. Or rather, Miyabi’s library. As he entered, still silently, she was there as well, looking up some reference or other.

“May I use your library?” the Phalanx asked as he entered.

“I thought you had all the knowledge?” Miyabi asked with a slight sneer.

“I do,” Frederic replied with a disarming look. “But as with everybody, my memory isn’t perfect. I do not want to run the risk that I give falsehoods to Kaoru. It’s his neck on the line, not mine.”

“Be my guest,” Miyabi said, motioning for the books, convinced that she was now going to see him start reading, trying to catch up to Kaoru or something. Anyway, she was convinced to see Frederic’s lies fall in shambles at his feet.

To her surprise, he walked to the books, and glanced once. “You, you, you, you, and you.” He said, pointing to five books. The books floated over, and Frederic looked at the floating pile, thinking of knowledge buried so deep it had never been accessed even. “And you, too,” he said, motioning off-handedly to one more book, which floated over immediately.

Nodding once, Frederic sat down at the vacant desk, and snapped his fingers, summoning a stack of paper out of thin air. He licked his finger. Once.

The six books opened up, flipping through pages, stopping at certain passages. To Miyabi’s astonishment, the Phalanx nodded to himself, as if his memories were correct, and then he started writing… with the finger he had just licked, on the paper he had just summoned.

Staring, she watched Frederic write whatever it is he was writing. After a couple of hours, he had over two hundred pages, and she was dead tired. Still not believing what her eyes had told her, she crawled into bed.

The next morning, the first thing she did was walk to the library. Everything was back in order… her books were where he had taken them, on their exact spots on the shelves. Miyabi shook her head, and chuckled once. She had to admit, he had won her over.

As she went to breakfast, she frowned when she saw the entire female group staring out a window. Curious, she joined them, and looked out. And stared, along with the rest of the females in the house.

Outside was Frederic, standing at the edge of the pond, naked from the waist up, doing martial arts exercises in the chilly autumn air. Gracefully he moved, titanium muscles rippling beneath his skin. Taking a step to one side, Frederic never noticed the attention of the others as he did his exercises. He had loved that all-nighter… like old times, his brain had done what it did best: study, absorb knowledge, and reproduce it in other, new, better, forms.

He pivoted on his right foot, putting his left foot down and pushed up as his right hand came up as well. Gracefully, he then sunk through his left leg, and reached out with a right kick. On and on he went, until he came to the end of his routine, and opened his eyes.

And found himself in the middle of the pond.

“Oops,” he whispered when he noticed the attention of the females in the house. And of Kaoru, who was looking from his room. Not knowing what else to do, Frederic made a graceful bow, and stepped off the water surface, to the house.

“You walked on water, Frederic-neesan!” little Chika beat everybody to the punch.

The Phalanx chuckled slightly, rubbing her deep-red tresses fondly. “Comes as a perk of the job… I wasn’t paying attention what I was doing, so the water decided to be nice for once.”

“For once?” Miyabi asked.

“Have you ever tried stepping on water?” Frederic asked with a mischievous grin. “Then you’ll find out that water usually isn’t as nice as it was today.”

Miyabi grimaced slightly, and Frederic turned to Kaoru, who had now joined them. Snapping his fingers, the Phalanx withdrew a couple of books from thin air. “I didn’t make your report for you, but these should get you there,” the warrior explained. “Bibliography, references, quotes, and a general overview of the subject, complete with specific points that you should find helpful. As I said, not your report, but a helping hand getting there.”

Kaoru took the books, and opened them. The Japanese writing inside was of the calligraphic type… more beautiful than he had ever seen. “This is… these are… incredible,” the boy whispered, closing the books and looking up at Frederic. “Thank you.”

Frederic smiled. “No… thank you. It was enjoyable for me to do… and it gave me a chance to do something else but sit around and brood. I needed to do something, and this was certainly one of the more enjoyable things.”

Kaoru smiled, and shook his head as he leafed gently through the small works of art that were his new reference materials.

Later that day, Frederic was back at his customary spot, under the tree looking at the pond. Last night had done a lot of good for his state of mind, and he found himself thinking back fondly of the time he spent with the books. Just like old times...

“Maybe they're right,” Frederic whispered to himself. “I can't save everybody... just do my Gods-damned best.” He sighed deeply. “But it's so hard to let go. To know there are people suffering, and not be able to do anything about it...”

He swallowed deeply, and his eyes opened wide. Staring into nothingness, a flash of understanding passed over him, taunting him for not seeing it sooner. Frederic swallowed once more.

Nothing had changed...

Not since he first became Phalanx... nothing had changed. His powers and authority increased... but he was still Frederic Fromthefield, just that and nothing more. He hadn't become two or three... he was but one man. And that was what he had forgotten, ever since that fateful day during the Ketari Wars. Where he had felt every death of every person on board his spaceships as if it were him dying, each and every time.

Back then, he had been younger. Fresher. Less experienced... still the scientist, not the warrior he had grown into... he had been capable of making these kinds of decisions then. And he had forgotten all about it with the increase of power and authority, and now it had come back to haunt him.

Back then, he had put everything off him, decided instinctively that he was incapable of saving everyone, that he could do only his best. And that he had friends and family to depend on... Jennifer, his science officer... Daphnix, his tactical Combat Officer, second in command, taking over when he was out there, fighting in the front lines, while Daphnix decided on what to do and where to go.

Frederic couldn't really say when he had changed... it probably was during the fight for 254, where he got his first taste of what kinds of powers lurked in the darkness of the omniverse. Yes, Frederic thought. That was when things got deadly serious. That was when he assumed full command... full responsibility... they were no longer a band of friends fighting for the survival of humanity in different realities. They had become a military group, bound by blood and honor to exterminate evil.

Instead of defenders, they had become hunters... attackers. And then... after the Gods stabbed him in the back by the creation of BorgFred, after Sorcerer killed him... after he got back from the Realm of the Dead known as the Crossroads... that was when things went out of control. Jennifer had distanced herself from him, and he couldn't find it in his heart to blame her for that. He had changed. He knew that... he had become distant himself, cold, hard, the fighter.

Training everyone, leading them into countless battles, fighting for the survival of millions. He had taken it all upon himself, and he had lost his friends and his family in the process.

He knew what he had to do... but was it too late to change himself? And, more importantly... was it too late to save that which really mattered?

He bent over. For the first time in a long time, Frederic wept not for himself, but for everything he had lost, the friendships he had abandoned, the love of his life he had lost a long time ago.

And for the first time since marrying Jennifer, Frederic truly felt alone. Defenses broke, shield in place ever since he learned how to make them vanishing as he reverted to the frightened little boy that was still inside of him, the boy he always had been, and the side of him that had never healed from the pains inflicted upon it in his youth.

On the Ortega bridge, a small group of people were watching an earth rotate lazily. No matter how long they did this, nobody ever got tired of watching Earth rotate.

“Planet has been cleared, Jenny,” Daphnix said, glancing down at his tactical station.

Jennifer nodded. “Thanks.” Still looking at the plant, she asked, “Linda? Any other planet in need of our help?”

Not right now, Linda's disembodied voice sounded throughout the bridge.

“I guess we'll go back to SpaCECoB then,” Daphnix said, turning to look at her. She was about to answer when he saw her stiffen, and ball her hands.

“Jenny? What's wrong?” Daphnix asked as Ami shot from her support station to the command chair.

“Fred... it's...Fred...” Jennifer whispered, looking up to the planet once again. “I can feel him... something snapped...” her eyes tightened.

In the central core of the Ortega's computer systems, twin clouds shot to different computer systems. “Engines ready,” Linda whispered.

“Shields and weapons checked out,” Borlan returned.

On the bridge, the humans hadn't heard the fraction of a second conversation between the two AIs inhabiting the computer systems. “Linda, set a course,” Daphnix grunted. “Emergency velocity.”

Jennifer looked at him. “We're going to get him,” Daphnix said, standing up and walking to the center of the bridge, directly facing the huge viewer. “And may the Gods have mercy on whoever is responsible.”

“It's himself,” Jennifer said, watching the red-shift of the Quantum Displacement Drives propel them to the coordinates 12-58-94-85-35 in the Universal Grid system. “He snapped... the stress became too much. I can feel it...” the woman whispered miserably. “All his shields collapsed... it's like...like... he's fifteen again.”

Daphnix glanced over his shoulder at her with a worried expression on his features. “You're kidding...”

Jennifer shook her head, and smiled slightly as Ami just put her hands on top of Jennifer's to indicate support. “I've been afraid of this... he's been shielding himself ever since he became Supreme Commander of the Jokilar Gerius. As if he's back to the Ketari Wars, and has to save every single life.”

“That almost killed him last time,” Daphnix grunted as the planet Earth came into view. “What in the ten discontinuities of hell is he thinking?”

“He's Fred,” Jennifer whispered.

Daphnix sighed, and nodded. “And that's why he became who he is...”

“I'm going down there,” Jennifer whispered, standing up. As Ami and Daphnix prepared to follow her, she shook her head. “I need to go alone... find out what happened first, then try to help him.”

Daphnix and Ami remained, watching worriedly as the blast doors on the turbolift flashed shut. Linda materialized her blonde holographic form, and within seconds, Borlan had materialized his own hologram next to his sister's.

“Anybody else want a personal cloak?” the combat-AI asked in his usual cold composure. It was as if he had no emotions... but everybody knew how wrong that was. He was who he was: an AI designed for combat operations. He had emotions... he just chose not to show them most of the time. And having experienced those emotions first-hand, the others knew that Borlan's emotions were not something you'd want to be on the wrong side of.

“No,” Daphnix whispered, shaking his head. “We need to trust her... if Fred truly snapped, she's the only one who can help him. And if she can't... may the Gods have mercy on all of us, because it will not be a pretty picture.”

“BorgFred,” Linda whispered.

“Only worse, thanks to the Gerius abilities,” Daphnix whispered worriedly. “And I don't want to be the one who has to call in the Gods with an extermination order...”

“None of us,” Ami whispered.

Jennifer beamed down near the house, on the other side of where she knew Frederic to be. Looking down to where the old mental amplifier was strapped to her arm, she tapped the device, using the built-in sensors to determine where Aoi was. Rather than risk detection by using her mind, she would trust the old technologies they developed for use in the Ketari War.

How long ago that had been... Jennifer dwelt in the past for a few seconds, before resolutely stepping inside, determined to find out once and for all what happened. And in order to do that, she was going to talk to someone.

“Aoi-san,” the Amazon whispered, approaching the blue-haired mistress of the house.

“Jennifer-sama!” the girl squeaked, surprised at seeing the warrior.

“What happened, Aoi-san?” she asked, deciding on just getting things over with. She wanted to be with Fred, and she was going to be there as soon as she found out what happened. Besides, she was an Amazon. Subtlety wasn't her strongest point.

“Frederic-sama... he... I do'nt know how, but he broke down,” Aoi whispered. “He's been getting better these last few days, though...”

“Yeah, well, he just had a major breakdown,” Jennifer grunted, looking in the direction of where Frederic was. For a few seconds, the normal girl asked herself whether the warrior could look through the walls, then decided that with these people, anything was possible.

“He... did?” Aoi replied, unsure. “How...?”

“We're linked, him and I,” Jennifer replied. “Since being married by the Gods of the Universe, our minds were joined as one... but lately, he's constantly shielding himself. I knew something was wrong, but I didn't know it was this big.” She turned to Aoi. “What happened, Aoi?” she asked again.

“I... he broke down the day after you left...” Aoi whispered, head bent. “I... don't know if I should tell you this... It is private...”

Jennifer reissted the urge to rip the girl into shreds, and took a deep breath. “Aoi-san, we're married. I need to know what's wrong. Now... tell me.”

Aoi swallowed, and nodded. Continuing to look at the ground, the girl listed what Frederic had told her, and what the others told her he had said to them. He wanted to be a scientist. He hated not being able to save everyone. And so forth.

“And... and he said that he was alone,” Aoi whispered. “He said he loved you with all his heart, but he was afraid of showing weakness, of talking to you, Jennifer-sama... he was afraid that, if he showed weakness, you'd be afraid, and leave him again...”

Jennifer's body froze. For a few precious seconds, she just stood there, staring into oblivion. “Oh, Gods...” she finally whispered.

“Jennifer-sama? Are you alright?” the girl asked, worried.

“It's all my fault...” the Amazon whispered, looking back to Frederic. Through the walls. “Aoi-san... it was all my fault.”

“He died... and you couldn't take it,” Aoi whispered. “Frederic-sama told me...”

“I never properly said... said I was sorry... he kept being afraid I'd leave him again...” the woman whispered. She turned. To the wall. “Aoi-san... I'm sorry for all the problems,” she said, before stepping through the wall.

Aoi looked with big eyes to the wall, where Jennifer had stepped through. Unable to stop herself, the blue-haired girl put a hand on the section fo wall, making sure it was undamaged. It was.

“No problem, Jennifer-sama,” the girl whispered, turning, and setting herself on making some more for dinner. Apparently, she'd have one extra guest for the evening.

Jennifer, meanwhile, approached Frederic as he sat under his tree, head resting on his knees, sad eyes looking out over the water surface. Feeling her heart breaking with the sight, Jennifer did the only thing she could do.

She opened her side of the link, and sat down next to him.

He startled, almost shooting through the tree with surprise. “Jenny...”

“I'm sorry, Love. I'm so sorry,” she whispered, staring at the grass beneath her. “About everything... I didn't realize... just how much I took from you, how much we all depended on you... or how much I hurt you.”

“You never-”

She leaned over, put her finger on his lips, silencing him. “Please, Love... I know... now I know... how much I hurt you... and how little I did to make it up. You kept thinking I'd pack up and leave, although I vowed never to leave you again...” She leaned over, burying her face in his chest. “Can you ever forgive me?” she sobbed. “How could you ever forgive me for what I did...”

She felt his chest quiver with emotion as his arms came up around her. “I love you more than life itself,” he whispered. “I can forgive you for everything...”

She shook in his embrace. “No... I mean... can you ever find it in yourself to trust me again?”

Again, she felt his chest heave. But this time there was no answer coming. Then, she felt something... a brush of his mind against her. So long it had been since they... instinctively, her own mind reacted, just like it used to so long ago. Before they knew it, the world had faded from both of them, their mind's energies entangled so deeply only they could tell them apart.

Pleasure became so intense it was almost painful as their two minds became one. Love and pain burned through them in all their intensity, and both wept openly as they rebuilt their relationship at the most basic level possible in the omniverse.

When Jennifer opened her eyes, she stared down upon her own body. She saw her lips curl into a smile. “Hello, Love,” she whispered in Frederic's voice down to her body. “I missed this...” she added.

“As did I,” she heard her own voice reply back at her. “It's been so long...”

Both remained silent, minds in the other's body. “Why?” Frederic whispered up to Jennifer. “Why, Love?”

Jennifer felt Frederic's body sigh in correlation with her emotions. “It was irrational,” she whispered in Frederic's bass. “I was hurting... six months... fighting wars... people dying...” she opened Frederic's eyes, and looked down to her own body, recognizing Frederic's soul occupying it. “I never realized... how painful it was... and when you came back... I just felt so angry... so much pain... I reacted instinctively. I wanted to get away from the pain, and through the daze, I didn't... couldn't... see difference between being with you and the pain...”

Her own eyes closed, and she saw her face lapse into thought. “How do you do it?” Jennifer asked.

“I used... used to rely. On you... and D... and the girls...” she heard her own body reply under influence of Frederic's mind. “But I couldn't... couldn't rely anymore. Too much... I started burying it all instead.”

She tightened Frederic's arms around her body. “But no more. I want things to be like they were, Love... I need things to be like that... and so do you.”

Her body tensed, tightening the hold. “I know... but I trust so difficultly...”

She looked down at herself, doing her best to relay her pain, her anguish, through the link, through the eyes of Frederic she now bore. “I'm totally open, My Love. I am so sorry... but this is all that I can do. I am baring my soul and my heart for you.”

Frederic looked up at her, tears in her body's eyes. “As I am to you, Love...” he whispered, sitting up. “As I am to you.”

“Let me help you, My Love,” Jennifer whispered, taking her own body into Frederic's arms.

“Never leave me,” she heard her own voice whisper.

“Never,” she replied, supporting the word with the ultimate emotion through the link.

“Help me,” her voice whispered, and she felt the last vestiges fall.

The Wise One reached out his hand, and cast a shield over the pair as mental and emotional energy swirled around them.

“I'll never understand your infatuation with the kid,” one of the Gods of the Universe told him.

“That kid saved our omniverse, you ass,” the Wise One grunted to his fellow God. “And it would do you well to speak with more respect of him.” he turned to the scenery beneath him. “And he deserves whatever happiness he gets.”

The other God just glanced down as well. “Whatever. Remember... he's your responsibility. I'll never understand why you took him as your protégé, but good luck with him.” The second God vanished.

The Wise One glanced down. “I know... I know more than you can ever imagine, you ass,” he whispered to the second God, now no longer there. “And I hope that what I know is correct, for that one might save us all one day.”

That evening, after dinner, Frederic was outside, under his tree. But this time, he was looking at the house rather than the pond. He felt, rather than saw, someone appear next to him.

“Hello, Wise One,” the Phalanx said, not even looking to his side. The God stopped right next to Frederic, joining him in watching the house. “Thank you for your words, Wise One,” Frederic then said.

“You're most welcome, young Phalanx,” The Wise One answered. “You are my favorite mortal. I could no longer stand by and watch you destroy yourself over something you have no control over.”

Frederic chuckled. “You're my favorite Divine Being as well, Wise One,” he replied, finally turning to look at the God. “I am most grateful for your words... but I'm afraid I must ask for one more favor.”

The Wise One nodded, comprehending before Frederic ever posed his question. He reached out, and tapped Frederic's forehead. “Your Gerius abilities have been removed, Young Phalanx.”

Frederic felt woozy for a few seconds, before composing himself and looking at the God. “Thank you,” he whispered, turning to look at the house. “As Supreme Gerius, I was unable to bless any house not permanently inhabited by a Gerius. But, as simple Phalanx, I am able to bless any domicile inhabited by either a Human, a Ketari, or and Oech-anya.” He knelt, and placed both his hands down on the ground. Energy swept up.

“In the name of the Gods of the Universe, I bless this land, its buildings and all its people... for now into eternity.” The energy that had swpet up now fell down, spreading like a blanket over the house, the nature surrounding it, and the people inside of the house. Frederic stood, studying the effects of his blessings through his mage sight. He was happy with the results, and turned back to the Wise One.

“In the name of Us, the Gods of the Universe, I hereby bestow upon you, Frederic Fromthefield, the powers of the Supreme Commander of the Jokilar Gerius.”

Frederic felt the power sweep over him, and once more, the dizziness hit him as he staggered back from the power transfer.

“Do not make a habit of this, Young Phalanx. Even we have limits,” the Wise One cautioned. “Creating a Gerius requires a lot of power, and not even we have power to spare for eternity.”

“I understand. Thank you, Wise One,” Frederic said, turning, and bowing to the God.

“Thank you, Young Phalanx,” the Wise One answered, vanishing.

Frederic tuned back to the house. <<Jenny... Love... you can stop distracting them... It has been done.>>

<<Did everything go ok, Love?>> she asked, concerned.

<<Like clockwork,>> Frederic answered with a smile. He looked up at the starts. <<But still... I wish there was something more I could do. They helped me so much, and a simple Phalanx blessing seems so... inadequate.>>

He felt Jennifer's smile through the Link. <<I think I know something...>>

Fifteen minutes later, Frederic was leaning against his tree, staring at the reflection of the moon in the smooth surface of the water. He felt and heard them approach.

“Frederic-sama? Jennifer-sama said you had something to tell us,” Aoi asked, with a small voice. Frederic turned to her and Kaoru, smiling broadly.

“Yes. All of you helped me, but especially you, Aoi-san. You took me into your home, and you have shown incredible patience with me, when I was... less than normal.”

Aoi started to protest, but Frederic stopped her. “I have placed a heavy blessing upon your house, and all of you... you'll feel its effects soon. Fortune will favor you heavily from now on. But that isn't why I asked you two specifically to come out here.”

Both Aoi and Kaoru stared at him. “Come... this is better in private,” Frederic said, motioning for a secluded spot.

“What is this about, Frederic-sama?” Aoi asked, voice tiny. With incredibly powerful beings started evading straight answers, things might not turn out very good.

“This is secluded enough,” Frederic said, looking around. He took a deep breath, and took Kaoru's and Aoi's hands in his own. Bringing them together, linking their hands before encapsulating them with his own, he spoke, “I know that it''s not that time yet... but I know that once, it will come. When the day comes that you are joined in marriage... it would be my greatest honor to perform that ceremony, before the Gods of the Universe. As Jokilar Gerius, I have that authority.”

Aoi and Kaoru looked at each other, blushing at the contact. Frederic looked at them both as they smiled at each other. Like had been the case with him and Jennifer before their marriage, Aoi and Kaoru seemed to be able to communicate silently, with a single glance.

“It would be our honor, Frederic-sama, if you would perform our ceremony,” Aoi whispered, bowing deeply, along with Kaoru.

“The honor would be mine,” Frederic replied, returning their bow. He then extended a little black box. “This is a communicator. I will not forget what you did for me... should you ever need me, for anything at all, use this to contact me, and I will do whatever lies within my power to help you.”

“T-thank you,” Kaoru whispered, taking the device.

Frederic smiled, and shook his head. “No... thank you.”

it was in the early hours that Frederic and Jennifer returned to the Ortega, leaving behind a very confused group of people, but also a group of people that now knew that out there, there were beings like Frederic and Jennifer looking out for their safety. And that knowledge was a great comfort to all of them.