Ribbon barked happily as she nudged her boy down the street. She liked having jobs that she could do, and she liked doing them perfectly. She could perfectly get Jake home. Jake depended on her to be able to. Barely aware of the passing street and the chaos that surrounded him. As much as the common person might like to keep their head down and go about their business, it was near impossible not to notice the devastation coming from the giant tree that featured so prominently in their city. Nor could the stern faced guards marching towards the source of the explosions with their hands on their weapons be ignored. 

~~~~

Darmae hissed in pain as her wrist snapped up. Caleb cried out in pain as well, though he kept his wits about him enough to jerk his hand free and to bolt. The young teen scrambled to hide behind Byurn's supine body. He dropped to the floor and curled his knees to his chest. He clutched at himself tightly, his body wracked with sobs. Roger positioned himself carefully to defend both the hunter and the prey that sheltered behind his thin legs.

"Guard the entrance, Junior." Though he did not trust the man fully, Roger was not above giving him orders. It had not taken him more than a glance on the way in to tell that John was in above his head. More magic than man at the moment, John was barely recognizable. Grotesque green veins pulsed with a sickly yellow glow. Streaks of purple laced through the whites of his eyes and infecting his pupils. The air around him practically shimmered with the intensity of his various enhancements. Even his very form seemed warped into an exaggerated caricature of who he had been mere hours ago.

John's voice was thick with pain and excitement. "None shall get past me. The chamber is secure." No longer concerned with the need for his disintegrated shield, John instead filled his hand with a second sword, his stride never breaking as he snatched the weapon from the hands of a corpse. Back up troops would arrive soon, and they were sorely mistaken if they thought to reach these chambers alive.

Rainbow drew a deep breath, his body trembling as he tightened his hold on Darmae's arm again. This was his chance. [i]"ይህ ማለት እርሱን ይመስላል እንጂ ቀዝቃዛ . ያደርጉ ነበር ፣ በክልሉ የተነሳው አንድ ዓይነት ቃል ወደ እኔ . እንደ እኔ ደብዳቤ."[/i]

As Ribbon's words echoed through the very soul of the chamber, Caleb picked himself up from the ground. "I'll go with John," he told no one in particular. John had saved his life, and more importantly, he had saved Jake's. Caleb could not forgive him for the betrayal, but he also could not let the deed go unrepaid. He could not possibly bare to tell Jake that the uncle that had demanded his life be spared had not made it out alive. It was the noble, knightly thing to stand by his friend's uncle and to fight with him. And to arrest him for his crimes after everything was all said and done.