"You ever infiltrated something before?" Enidri said to Donva, poking her head just over the top of the hill. Donva remained low, resting against the lush green grass as he took a moment to regain his breath. 

"Of my own volition? Can't say that I have."

"There's a first time for everything."

"Wait, what?" Donva clamored up the hill to the swordswoman's side and stared at the front door to the Grani estate. A pair of robotic guards stood in front holding long rifles. "Are you really thinking about breaking and entering?"

"Yeah."

"But what about all the talk from earlier about trespassing?"

"It's only trespassing if we get caught."

"You're telling me you want us to break into a trillionaire's home? Do you even know if the others are in there?"

"I've got a feeling in my gut that says they are."

"And we're going risk everything based… our freedom. Possibly even our lives… on a mere feeling?"

"Hey, this feeling of mine has saved my life more times than I can count. I've learned to trust it!"

Donva groaned before lowering his body beneath the hill. "Fine. But I want to at least discuss a plan first. How we'll enter. Where we'll search. How to get out. Alibis and excuses we'll stick to and be consistent with when we inevitably get caught..."

Enidri kept her head up, continuing to scour the immediate area. "I'm more of a 'work as I go' kind of person."

"Fantastic."

"If you stay close to me and listen to what I say, we'll be just fine. I haven't led you astray before, have I?"

"As an adult, no. But that's because we’ve lived in different cities and never talked to each other. Now when we were kids? That's a completely different story."

Enidri rolled her eye. She turned around and slid down the hill and parked herself next to Donva. "Tell you what. If you're so worried about going in, feel free to stay out here. You can even wait at the edge of the property if you want. That way if anyone from the Justice Department comes by and asks questions, you can say that you technically weren't on their property."

Donva tilted his head up, blocking out the sun with both of his hands. "You mean... out in the desert? That long, sandy expanse without any shade?"

"Exactly."

"H-How long do you think you'll be in there?"

Enidri shrugged her shoulders. "Don't know."

With one arm, Donva wiped away his sticky forehead. "Fine Eni. You got me. At least there's shade inside the building."

"And air conditioning. Maybe we could even stop by their kitchen and get some water."

Donva laughed as much as his dry throat would allow. "Still can’t believe that you convinced me to join one of your convoluted schemes. Getting us in trouble again, huh Eni? Just like the old days."

"Yep. Not a bad choice for a bonding experience when you frame it like that." Enidri turned around and pulled herself up to peek over the hill once more. The BRUTEs remained still, almost like they were statues. "Now, I'm going to need your help getting in."

"What do you need from me?"

"You saw those two BRUTEs, right?"

"The robots? Of course. They had those enormous guns. How could I not see them?"

"I'll need you to use your shadow powers to deal with them."

Donva looked down at his hands. They grew darker in color as he turned his limbs to look at them from every possible angle. "But you know I don't have full control of them!"

"Remember when you sucked me through a portal?" Enidri snapped back, looking down at a resting Donva. "Or how about when you kept me and Itzel glued to the ground? Knocked out Ringa with a tendril? Oh... or when you summoned an entire Ogre to break through a floor? You're telling me you can't even do a fraction of that?"

"You know I was under the influence of an Essencima. I had no control over what I was doing!"

"But your arms are still the same! And I've seen the shadowy parts of your flesh move!" Enidri pointed towards the middle of Donva's left forearm. The dark upper section began to travel further down his pale skin, engulfing it in pulsating purple veins. "I'm telling you, there's still a bit of that power left in you!"

There was a short silence where both half-siblings stared at the swirling of Donva's Essencima-like flesh. With his open palm, Donva pointed his hand towards an empty spot on the hill. He grunted as his trembled.

"What are you doing?" Enidri said, watching her brother with awe. 

Donva grunted again, this time placing one hand over the extended arm to control its shaking. He gritted his teeth, making Enidri raise her head to scout the area to see if any of the BRUTEs had heard the noise.

"Quiet, Don! You trying to give up our location?"

Donva held his breath, lowering the volume of his pained grunts. With his still shaky handed extended, he channeled out a small black puddle in the middle of the ground where he pointed. The substance rippled and bubbled as it slowly expanded to be close to the size of tree trunk. 

"What did I say?" Enidri patted Donva on the shoulder. He lunged forward, losing his balance as well as his concentration. As he stumbled forward, the puddled he summoned dissipated. "I knew you had it in you!"

"That... took... a lot out of me..." Donva stammered. 

"It's just because you're dehydrated. Once we're inside and we've gotten a bit to drink, I'm sure you'll have enough strength to do something worthwhile."

"You really know how to instill confidence."

"Thanks. It's a trait you get when you're a loner." Enidri wagged her finger towards herself, indicating that she wanted Donva to be next to her. Both peered over towards the front entrance, staring at the two robotic guards still stationed in front of the doors. "If we're going to get inside, we'll have to get past those two bots."

"Makes sense."

"You know anything about BRUTEs?"

Donva shook his hand. "A bit. They're tough, right?'

"More than tough. They're designed to adapt to Rumble Circuit strategies. They rarely lose to humans. They've got impeccable speed, strength and reflexes."

"And you want us to stop them?"

Enidri continued to stare straight ahead. "We've got no other option. But the good news is that they're designed to deal with Rumble Circuit fighters. Ranked Challenges operate a bit differently from real world fights."

"How so?" Donva whispered. 

"For one, there's no rules. We get to use whatever we can to our advantage."

"Like what?"

Enidri took the Ion Blade off her belt and held it in one hand. The metal of the blade glistened against the sun. "This right here. Like I said, it's been tuned to actually slice through solid materials. If you can manage to keep them distracted long enough, I could land a solid slash or two and permanently put them out of commission."

"All right. I think I get your plan."

"Are you confident enough in your abilities to stop them long enough for me to get close?"

Donva looked down at his arms. Both began to swell with larger purple veins that continued bulge and pulsate. "I think so. After I summoned that puddle... some of what I did back when that parasite latched on to me... came back. Like I could remember how to do it."

"Perfect!” Enidri made a wide grin. “That's what I wanted to hear. Now, skip the part where you kidnap people and get straight to the shadow portals. If you can teleport to the wall behind them, you might be able to get a surprise attack in."

Donva nodded his head. "Understood."

"If things go wrong, I'll come rushing in from over the hill. That way they'll focus on me."

"Got it." Donva clapped his hands and rubbed them together. "Just teleport behind them. Find a way to restrain them. And that's when you come in to deal the finishing blow."

"See?" Enidri said as she forced a smile. "Here we are, bonding already!"