Chapter Thirty Four: The Night Before The Astral Fortress Raid.

"each and every one of us builds mental walls to protect our true self from those around us as an instinct to personal safety, but sometimes it is better to break down these walls and let people in than to continue shying away from the world. it can be beneficial to show our friends our true nature, instead of a falsity we put up in desperation."

-emperorwolf.

Benson woke early in the morning, while it was still dark.
he was nestled upon Lily's chest, beneath her paw. and while this was usually the position he had her sleep in, not himself, he guiltily had to admit to a juvinile pleasure for sleeping and waking where he had.
but hey, she was his girlfriend.

he begrudgingly wrest himself from her wonderful embrace and snuck out of the room, rolling when he jumped from the matress to the ground, and while this was an action that would injure most at his current size, he was using his 'dark augment'; the power he'd gained from his shadow, which allowed him to be far more durable.

clad in his PJ's consisting of a white singlet and loose black track-pants, and still using augment, he padded out into the hallway and kept alert just in case anybody was for some reason up this early and wouldn't think to look down in the dark for a homunculised fox such as imself.
he made his way down the stairs with some difficulty, the short drop from stair to stair reminding him of the time he'd lived with Kevin before becoming a Giki, although the german shepherd had actually cut in a little staircase on the larger one for him and any Buki or human guests he had.
he realised that the home he shared with Lily had virtually nothing to ease she and Virlan's movement, and made a mental note to do something about that.
(I know she mostly sticks with me, and Virlan usually gets Ciril to help him around, but they shouldn't have to rely on us... it's their home, too.) he thought sadly, his ears folding as he continued his descent.

eventually he reached the bottom step, now on the second floor, and he headed in the direction he remembered Lily telling him the livingroom lay in.

it took some time at his diminutive size for him to reach it.
again he smiled at the irony that he took so much for granted at the Giant's size he usually had, it also made him a bit nostalgic, further reminding him of the period of time he'd lived as a Buki in Kevin's home.

suddenly there was a creak of a floorboard and he tensed, his sharp vulpine eyes darting around to find the source and his acute ears scanning for any further sound.
he sniffed at the air, and found a particularly strong scent coming from the living room that had a trail only minutes old.
he knew that scent. he'd only smelled it a few times, but, because of the identity of it's owner, it was unmistakable.

he padded into the living room to find Lily's father Reece on one of the couches watching a projector television on the opposite wall.
he hadn't noticed him.
Benson dug deep into his mind for the relatively small amount of Gentikan he knew, succeeding in finding 'casual greeting'.
"Zigra limet." (Author note: he basically said 'hey there') he said slowly at a volume audiable to the Gentikan feline.
Reece's eyes fluttered and his ears turned toward Benson shortly before his head did.
"oh, Koban tokech... I mean, uh... koban, fox-- agh, dopox... I mean..."
Benson put his paws up defensively "n-no, it's okay, I know enough Gentikan to know what you meant, sir."
he sighed "Tirala; thankyou. my Viradan... it is very bad."
Benson shrugged as he walked over "hm... yeah, you do speak kinda slowly, but believe me when I say it's better than my Gentikan is, I only know a pawful of words."
that won a small grin "I have noticed that... you pronounce well... this is something... yes?"
the fox chuckled a bit "suppose it is. hey, how come Lily and Amelia know Viradan and Gentikan, but you...?"
"is simple... only mother tongue... taught when I... in school, but... once living on... Virada became popular... schools decide to... teach both."
Benson nodded "so you've got the same problem I do; too old to retain enough of it like they can, right?"
the yellow feline scoffed, but nodded "this seems right... as I can... only remember three... words at a time... sometimes four if... words are simple."
Benson walked forward until he found himself at Reece's footpaws "no offense Sir, but for the most advanced country in the world... I'm surprised nobody's thought of making some kinda translator or something."
Reece made the 'yeah, I can see that' face "you make point..." he leaned forward to get closer to the shrunken fox "we make things... that ease civility... issues with giants... but we are... too stupid to think... of good translator..." he grinned broadly "phone app is... not good enough... you agree?"
"yeah," Benson nodded "definitely, and I know from Lil's translations that it's a bit buggy, too."
Reece frowned "excuse me... what are insects... in phone for?"
"no, 'buggy' as in it... uh, how do I-- oh! I meant there are problems with it, Sir."
Reece rolled his eyes "oh, bug as in... technical problem... I understand now... and fox,"
"yeah?"
Reece offered a paw "you may call... me by name... agh, what I mean is..." he said with a shake of his head at his choice of words "call me Reece."
Benson climbed aboard "then call me Benson, or Ben."
Reece raised him to the seat cushion "is it bad... if I use easier... one?"
the fox shook his head "no, my full first name is 'Benson', but 'Ben' is more casual, less formal."
"ah," Reece chuckled "so it is same... as is here... I was not sure."

the two continued their awkward conversation for some time, mostly discussing the funny differences and ironic similarities between their two cultures, and at one point, Reece wanted to change to Gentikan because Viradan was getting difficult.
"so, you were born as a Buki, right? I know I've been told before but... could you please explain it once more?"
Reece waited for Benson to process his words before getting a response from the struggling fox.
"uhmmm... you asked about how I became a Giki, right?" he said slowly, not accustomed to speaking the language, but was better at it than he'd claimed to be earlier.
Reece nodded.
Benson shook his head "argh, I can't explain it, sorry, it's really complicated."
Reece sighed "jobao."
"what?"
"apologies... I think I said... 'fair enough'"
Benson lay back "again, a translator would make this easier."
"I do not... argue this point... you are correct."

they spent some time watching Tv, a translated closed captions bar on the bottom of the screen so Benson could follow along.
"Sir-- I mean, Reece?"
he looked at him "yes fo-- argh, dopox... Ben... you have question?"
"two now... first, what's 'dopox' mean? second, I just wanted to say this has been nice, talking with you... however hard that's been."
"dopox is curse word... like 'shit'." he chuckled "and thank you... I feel same."

"irimi tokech." came a hushed voice

they both looked to the doorway to find the teenage Ciril standing there, smirking with his arms crossed, wearing a black and blue plaid dressing gown.

Benson cocked his head "future Ciril? wait, what'd you say?"
"I called you a silly fox." he replied with a smartass smile.
Benson jumped up onto the armrest and stood with his paws on his hips "hey, you might be from another time, but I'm still your father! give me some respect!"
Ciril bent over to equal his father's level "sorry dad, it's just... it's been a while... I've missed you."
Benson cringed slightly "so... there'll be a reason for that, won't there?"
Ciril's paws clamped to his muzzle "oops."

Ciril ended up outside with his father, sitting on the front steps and talking to the fox on his shoulder.
the foxcat was toying with two pebbles, making them orbit each other.
"hm. so you improved that power to being able to make things float?"
"yep, I just make 'em weightless, then the cool stuff happens."
"cool stuff?"
"y'see how I'm making 'em float, right? I can make other stuff float, even fly!"
Benson flashed his son a knowing smile "stuff like what?"
the pebbles dropped into Ciril's paw, and Benson felt his own footpaws contacting nothing.
"anything I want to, dad."

-meanwhile: in Zenebata, Gentiki's capital state-

Jeremy sat in his wheelchair, as he always did, in the large livingroom where three four-seater leather couches sat in a 'U' shape around a glass table, and opposite them was a large monitor that took up the whole wall.

the friendly face of Xavier was on it, the two of them chatting over a video link.

"so, Xave, how're things with the litter?"

the rabbit cringed ""they could be better, honestly. by the way, do you think my Gentikan has improved?"

"well, it's definitely better than it was when we met in the flesh."

Xavier fidgeted onscreen ""thanks...""

Jeremy noted his friend's unease "are you okay? something on your mind you want to talk about?" he asked with genuine concern.

the rabbit nodded ""you're right... actually, thing is... Shaz's taking the litter to her parents' for a week, so that just leaves me home alone.""

"yes?" the squirrell shrugged "you'll have to be more specific, I still don't understand."

""well... I'd... I'd like to come visit you...""

Jeremy eyed him curiously "you'd be able to leave that piece of crap shrinker collar at home, Gridnet will take care of your size."

""that's.... that's why I'm nervous, Jeremy... everyone'll be ten times my size... it's terrifying.""

"I didn't have that problem when I visited Virada 5 years ago."

""you only had to deal with half of everyone here being bigger than you. everything and everyone-- including you, I might add, would be huge compared to me there...""

"you'd like seeing things from a new perspective, plus, Homunculisation is pretty cool!"

""Jeremy, you're not exactly helping."" the rabbit groaned.

the squirrel sighed "okay then... how about this; you'll be able to ride with me in my wheelchair. does that help your nerves at all, Xave?"

the large white ears on screen perked ""wait, wouldn't I be able to do that anyway?""

Jeremy grinned "I have been working on a small aerial transport device..."

Jeremy saw Xavier's eyes widen and his jaw dropped ""what?! you mean like a sky car or something?!""

"or something." the squirrel replied "it's more like a little floating 'taxi' that stays close to whoever has its command device..." he grumbled the last part "but, I'm still working on a way to make sure it can't just be stolen by others with a command device..."

Xavier thumped his head on his desk ""gee, that's reassuring."" he said with sarcasm.

"sorry... but seriously, you'll be fine, Xave... I won't let anything happen to you."

""why doesn't that fill me with confidence?"" Xavier mumbled without raising his head from the desktop.

"Xavier," Jeremy smiled slyly "you can find just about every means of self defence there is right here in my chair."

the rabbit looked up with a bemused expression ""you serious?""

"I am the head of the most successful tech company after Ixcorp, you know." he returned with a smile "I do have access to the means of aquiring such hardware."

Xavier suddenly straightened up, his expression unreadable ""not that I like you belaboring me with all your self-praise, but if you're that good... could you...""

he reisted retorting that he wasn't hitting him hard and repeatedly with self praise, and simply replied with "could I what, Xave?"

""could you improve my... shrinker collar?""

Jeremy cringed "that's Ixcorp tech, I'd need Albert Dyson's permission before I even tried that."
this fact made Xavier visibly sad.
Jeremy tried to correct that.
"hey, don't get too upset. I'm actually meeting the guy later today, we're collaborating for a..." he grinned and whispered into the microphone "top-secret new machine he thought up, I can ask him about it then... plus," he returned to regular volume now "I definitely could improve that hunk of junk for you... with permission, of course."

Xavier smiled sadly ""well... thanks a heap, Jeremy... although, 'cause I'm a Giki, before I'm able to visit you I'll need a Buki-verified travel pass from you on your end, and once I do, I'll arrange a flight there as soon as I can.""

Jeremy grinned broadly "perfect! I'll get right on that for you! I can't wait to see you in the flesh again, it's been five years, and it's not like I was there for that long!"

the rabit shifted around ""I gotta go, s'almost time for my shift at work.""

"okay... Ilbaq fej, Xave."

""yes,"" the white rabbit returned with laughter ""I hope you have a good day, too.""

Jeremy turned the computer off and groaned loudly "way to go, Jeremy, you've got his hopes up about the collar, but when has Dyson ever let anyone mod his tech?"

a blue equine trotted in, shaking his head dissapointedly.
"aren't you 'sposed to be some kinda genius?"

the squirrel sighed, grabbing his big bushy tail and proceeding to wrap it around himself "Lightningblazer, please... not now, I'm depressed."

this made the equine raise an eyebrow "you're depressed? my best friend's stuck in some kinda brain-dimension, how d'you think I feel?"

"yeah, but you've got crazy powers and so does he... meanwhile I'm just a squirrel with legs that don't work."
the equine sighed and came closer, his bright yellow eyes almost shining in the dark.

"crazy powers or not, we're all weak when you think about it. just 'cause somebody can do something others can't, that doesn't make them any better or worse than they really are."

Jeremy couldn't help but smile "'ats not something you'd normally say, who came up with that?"

"Beta." he admitted.

Jeremy rubbed his eyes and sighed "well, he's right..."

---

Dyson paced around the cramped space of the transport plane's infirmary, Beta's pod was hooked up and keeping his body alive as they travelled across the sea to Gentiki so Dyson could collaborate with Jeremiah, a well-known digital consiousness expert, and the last person to have seen the wolf outside of the Astral Plane.
Gar and Lothis were by the pod, peering inside intently to look at the wolf Bioweapon lying comatose within.
"I heard he can make things explode with his mind!" Gar whispered to the ghostly husky, the two of them gossiping.
"I heard he can fly!" Lothis whispered back.

Albert Dyson spun to face them and scowled "enough!" making them jump in surprise "Beta is not number nine-ninety-nine, do NOT suggest that he is!"
in the corner of the cabin, Zenef sat beside the pod, on the other side of Gar and Lothis.
Alpha floated beside him, his emerald green eyes filled with sadness.
'Zenef...?'
"hm?" he looked up to the ghostly wolf "what is it?"
'do you think.... they'll help? we weren't exactly always the best person before, they might take their anger out by refusing--'
"Alpha." he cut in "shush, you're just panicking."
'the only reason Dyson is helping is because of you. you just heard him; neither I or Beta are the same as the wolf he knew, he hates us for how we saved him five years ago.'
"why would he hate you for that?!"
the others turned toward the duo.
Alpha glared at Dyson maliciously 'Dyson hates me and Beta because we stopped his father from killing him. if Dyson had died that day, every DSBIWO would immediately have shared his fate because they all shared his blood, leaving his father without an army.'
Gar stared in surprise at the white haired man "i-is that true?!"
Lothis looked ready to faint... if he actually could. "but... the books say 'The Harbinger' had mutated into a Pirapactum... that doesn't sound like he'd have been--"
'that's why,' Alpha cut in 'when he tried to kill Dyson... it became nessisary to intercept the attack. that sacrifice damaged Harbinger's form, which he drew from our own gliloutation, causing it to malfunction... making him weak enough to kill.'
Dyson's eyes narrowed "because then you came out of your pod, used that power on yourself, and murdered him."

Alpha stood in the air, looking to be snarling 'so, THAT'S what you've got against me?! he tried to kill you, why the hell do you care what I did?!'

"he was still my father," Dyson said with a growl "I can't forgive you for what you did, no matter the reason, Alpha." he said the ghost-wolf's name as if it were an insult.

at that moment, Alpha shot across the gap between Zenef and Dyson, getting 'up in his face'.
'listen, you albino prick... I'm getting REAL tired of hearing you badmouth me, so if you don't shut your mouth by yourself, i'm going to do it for you.'

Dyson glared back "try me, mutt."

after he'd said it, Dyson immediately regretted it.
Alpha's golden vapourous paw plunged into Dyson's chest, he started choking, the wolf was keeping him from breathing.
Alpha brought his face closer, looking directly into Dyson's frightened eyes.
Zenef quickly stood "Alpha!!"
the ghost wolf ignored him, continuing to glare as if intending to burn a hole through Dyson's skull.

'I warned you.'

Zenef rushed over, and reached for Alpha's arm.

"i wouldn't advise that." came a young sounding voice.

Zenef froze.
there was a tiny dark-brown wolf on Alpha's left shoulder, it appeared to resemble a flickering image on a damaged screen. there were two small black horns on his forehead.

on the other shoulder was an older looking wolf whoose fur was a brighter shade of brown. there was a white ring above his head. he too, flickered as the first one did.

the horned wolf snickered "go on Alpha, do it... freeze his heart solid, make him pay for insulting you"
the other wolf spoke with a deepish, adult-like voice "no Alpha, this isn't right! yes, he went over the line, yes, he probably deserves it, but you can't go through with this! you don't do this, you're forgiving!"
"you hold grudges, you don't let go easily" the horned one said slyly.
"you can forgive people for these little stupidities!" the other stressed.

Gar was open-mouthed.
"what the.... what are those things?!"
Lothis recoiled "I... I don't know!"

Zenef could hear a storm of argument coming from within his mind, from the three odd wolves before him.
he looked at the horned one, then the other.
"i'll go in, i'll find out at the source."
Zenef grabbed at Alpha's arm and instead of the wonderful warmth the ghostly wolf usually exuded, he was hit with a deathly coldness coursing through him.
he bit back a scream and was pulled into Alpha's subconsious.

-Lupinheim initium: the first world of the wolf-

Zenef crashed into a cold stony surface.
all around him was a fearsome storm; lightning and wind spinning around the surface he stood upon, as if it were a floating island in the eye of a cyclone.

in the centre of the 'island' stood Alpha, in full colour, arguing very loudly with the other two wolves, but now they looked different.

the horned one was now taller, his horns were longer, and he wore a very tattered black cape over a black body-suit.
the other one was now in a heavy-looking white coat with a light blue cross on it, and he now had a pair of large white wings.

Zenef knew he was in Alpha's mind, his current surroundings likely were an expression of how the wolf felt; an out of control, chaotic storm.

"I don't see why I shouldn't! all he ever did was use me, he let harbinger make me kill all those people before I got gliloutation!!"
"exactly"
"no, you're overlooking that he didn't have a choice!"

Zenef staggered to his feet and made his way over "ALPHA!"
the wolf stopped and stared at him.

the winged one sighed "oh, it's you. please convince him this is wrong!"
the horned one growled "no, tell him it's right, he has to do this!"

Zenef shook his head "it's wrong... Alpha, we're the same person.... I'd never willingly hurt anybody... that means you wouldn't do that, either."
the wolf's ears drooped. "no... Zenef... that's not completely true..."
Zenef's ears twitched "what?"

Alpha gestured to the other wolves "meet Aster and Rilda... my consience."
"but, if you've got a consience..."
"I'm seperating from you, Zenef. ever since we touched with Beta..." he took a deep breath "we're broken."

Zenef kept walking toward him "Alpha... I know you. you wouldn't do this."
the wolf gave a wry smile "you've known me for less than a month."
Aster smiled "Alpha, this is one argument you can't win."
Rilda sighed, and turned away "hate to admit it, wing-boy, but you're right."

the consiences vanished, leaving Zenef alone in the chaotic place with Alpha.
he held his handpaw out for the wolf "c'mon, let's go back."
smiling, Alpha took Zenef's paw in his own and pulled him into a hug "thankyou..."

and then the world fashed out.

---

Alpha pulled his paw out of Dyson's chest, allowing him to draw in a lungfull of air and cough.
Alpha's ears looked to be flat back on his scalp, and he hung his head.
the two wolves on his shoulders were still there, flickering.
Aster smiled at Zenef "thankyou, I was losing that one."
Zenef smiled back as Alpha's warmth slowly returned "who are you?"
"my name's Aster, back before all the project legion shit happened, Rilda and I were employed as living consiences for your friend here."
"living?" Gar asked
"yes, living. we're regular people, we're just astral-projecting right now."
Dyson caught his breath "regular as in regular or...?"
the halo-baring wolf laughed "yes, I'm really this small!"
"me too!" Rilda exclaimed gleefully

Lothis chuckled "where are you now?"
Aster vanished.

"over here!"

they turned to find a solid version of him sitting on the glass tube Beta was in.
"hello!"

Zenef waved "I'm Zenef."
"we know. by the way, it might be a good idea to call your friends, I'm sure they'd be able to help."

Zenef nodded and Dyson started up the communication system.

---

Sillias woke to find himself in an unusual, foggy place.
he gasped, the sound echoed.
"Jeraqui? are you doing this?" he called out, but no response came.

he looked down at his handpaws and noticed that the pendant he wore was lit up and glowing dimly.
"the hell?"

no... not hell...

he quickly looked up, perking his ears for any sound.
"who's there?"

Darling... I'm hurt...

he gasped again "darling? the only... no..."

he spun around a few times, searching for whoever was talking to him.
and also to try and determine his location.

Darling... you've truly forgotten me?

he growled "how should I know? can't see you at all!"
the voice seemed to be coming from everywhere at once, no matter which way he turned, it felt like it was behind him!
"show yourself!"

very well, Darling...

the mist in front of him swirled and condensed, in fact, a whole radius of it was pulled in, giving him a five-metre range of vision.
the mist was forming a shape.
"Jeraqui?"

no, Darling...

and then the vapour burst, shooting a young lioness at him, who hugged him tightly and caught him off-guard.
"wh--?!" he gasped, trying to see the lioness' face.

"Darling...." came a sobbing voice from the lioness "do you really not remember me?"

tears built up in his eyes and he hugged her with a vice grip "Evarau!" he cried "I'm sorry!!"
the lioness in the grey lace dress lay her head on his chest and sighed "I knew you hadn't forgotten me, Naggie, you just needed a little help."

tears flowed freely from Sillias's eyes "am... am I...?"
"no... but I'm not sure how you're here..."
he sniffled "aren't you...?"
"I am. I can't go back with you, Naggie."
he hugged her tighter "no...." he sobbed, his voice trembling "this isn't fair..."
she pressed closer to him, putting her head over his heart and listening to it beat.
"Naggie... I'll always be with you. in here. in your heart."
he lessened his grip "Eva..."
she kissed his muzzle "I mean it, I'll always be right there with you."
he trembled all over "Eva... don't go, not again!"
she started to evaporate into mist again "remember... I'll never really be gone...."
and then he was alone in the dense fog once more.
"Eva..." he choked "I still... I still..."

he was cut short as Uron appeared beside him.
"finally. syncher was getting interference."
he turned to the mongoose and cleared his throat "(ahem) so now you'll be able to go to the astral plane?"
"if all goes to plan... yes."

later, in reality, Sillias groaned. he sat on the bed while the fennec slept, but he did not find rest himself. seeing Evarau, his lover, after so long... it made him question whether his vendetta against the world was just or unjust. he had always loved her from first sight, and she in turn loved him after a while... initially her relationship with him had just been to stop his rampages, but as time went on he could tell she came to admire him. he smiled a little at that, he was quite the heart-throb when he wanted to be; he'd even learned to cultivate massive fields of flowers just for her, he adored her and she'd felt the same...
and then she'd been murdered in a pointless conflict between two warring villages... that was when his heart had broken. replaced by a genocidal fury. but now he remembered just how much she loved the world and its beauty... was destroying it really the best course of action?

"Mr Kobaquloth?" he asked the fennec, shaking him in an attempt to wake him.
the fennec stirred, and opened his eyes slightly, a bit grumpy for being woken.
"grrgh... d'hell you want?" he glared at the clock behind Sillias and the '2:16 am' it displayed "d'ya know how fuckin' early it is?!" he snarled viciously.
"I do know... but I need your advice."
Kori grumbled "you're older than me, surely I can't be able to tell you that much?"
"technically, I'm only really 15..."
Sillias fidgeted as the fennec sat up and sighed "okay red, what's buggin' ya?"
"I had a dream..."
"and?"
"in the dream, I saw my long-lost-lover."
Kori smiled mischievously and bumped him on the shoulder "you had a lover at your age? you lucky dog!"
Sillias blushed, the redness in his face lost in the crimson of his fur. "y-yeah... but see, I love destroying stuff... but she loved this stuff."
Kori raised an eyebrow "loved... what, exactly?"
"well... all the stuff I like destroying..."
Kori nodded "ah... so you're feelin' bad 'cause the stuff you destroy, she liked... is that it?"
Sillias nodded "I dunno if I'm doing the right thing..."
Kori yawned and tapped at his chin thoughtfully "well, I might not be the best person to ask when you consider that I am an anarchist... but, to be honest, you should probably go with your heart on this one."
Sillias looked at him oddly "for an anarchist, that's a confusing answer."
Kori chuckled "maybe it's my guests up here," he tapped at his head "but I think that's the right answer."

Sillias let Kori return to sleep, remaining seated beside him in the bed.
a pain stirred in his heart; should he destroy or should he prtotect?
he rubbed his eyes and whispered to himself "I'll find out tomorrow... when I either destroy or save the target..."

(Next Chapter: into the astral plane!)