The Royal Deck, along with everyone on it had been on the move for about two hours before it stopped. Turns out that bringing an entire ship on an elevator was much more work than just an average sized platform. It was very obvious, as the people who were actually pulling the ship up had a lot to pull. With the way that they were doing it, I was surprised that it even worked in the first place.

Some really long ropes, some wheels at the top, and a two massive cranks to rotate, which was why the people were so tired near the end.

Tormented by my own personal stupidity saying stupid words, I calmed myself just enough to use Observation and watch as everyone, especially the hurt Senco, dismount the ship, leaving me and the Royal Deck suspended in the air right next to the cliff edge.

I took a short amount of time to fix everything inside back to how I remembered it as, but I didn't exactly have a perfect memory to put everything exactly where they were. So, most of the things inside were back where I thought they went, and I left the ship, having one thought as I barely saw the fog below as the ship swung away from where the cliff met the ground. That one thought: "I... Can just step over this."

•

Having left the Royal Deck in it's very broken form hanging in the sky, I decided to head back to Xetalona's workshop, and as soon as I got to the door, I just stood there.

'How do I get back in? I mean, I can technically fly back in, but that feels... odd, especially if I look down. Should I knock? I mean, the door doesn't need to be broken down, or the lock destroyed..'

And so, after some deliberation, I just awkwardly knocked on the door, feeling absolutely stupid, and stood with the same awkward feeling in front of the locked door.

And that awkward feeling was immediately washed away by the door being unlocked by someone in a hurry, followed by the door itself being thrown out of the way with urgency.

Rem was the one to do such a thing, and as soon as the door was thrown like a ragdoll out of the way, somehow still on the hinges, I noticed the very panicked looking Rem.

"..... Uh...."

"Ohh! Bugs! You're back! Please help!"

"Wa-what?"

Before anything else could be said, she grabbed my arm and dragged me into Xetalona's workshop, and I found a scene I wasn't expecting.

One of the several things that happened while I was gone, Xetalona was in the air. Another thing that was obvious: there were two moons holding Xetalona up, one at the front, and one at the back. The third thing: there was furniture flipped over and papers everywhere. And the final, most important thing: Taki was standing there, watching Xetalona like she was prey, no hood or cloak on.

As non-chalantly as I could with a bit of shock, I turned to Rem, who had stood beside me, and I asked "Can you.. explain?"

Before the shook Rem could say anything, someone else who was shook spoke out.

"Ah.. AH! BUGGY! Can you help me out of this... Please?"

Yes, Xetalona, stuck between two moons, asked this, and she was posing... somehow... while asking. Like a JoJo character. Still.

I took one look at her, and then looked at Taki, did a double take, and sighed.

"Taki?"

She  barely turned and looked at me, not even so much as a single word from her.

"Can you... I don't know... not do anything to her?"

Turning back the inch her head turned, she didn't speak for a few seconds.

"... She's seen me without any disguise."

"What?"

Rem entered the conversation, responding to my confused question.

"Uhm... Well.... Um.. Xetalona woke up earlier than the both of us, and she looked under Taki's cloak and blanket to see what she looks like, and This was her response.. I haven't been able to do anything except stop her from doing anything rash!"

"Well thank you Rem for doing that.. I'll take care of.. this."

I walked up next to Taki, warranting a second head turn from her.

"Taki? Can you put her down?"

"Why?"

"What do you mean.. why?"

'Now that.. was unexpected..'

"... You are asking me why I am doing this?"

"Yes."

"... That is an obvious answer. I am doing this because of how people would react. I have been doing this for years. Why are you questioning it now?"

"Because it looks like you're about to squish Lona."

I took a short look at Xetalona, who was sweating and trying to stay as calm as she could, having a slightly different pose than before.

"Bu-Buggy, I wouldn't want to bother you... but could you.. uhm... Please, get me out!"

"Okay then, I can do that. Taki. Let her go."

"No."

"Let her go."

"No."

"Why ca-"

"Bugs, please stop antagonizing her!"

Rem had gotten in between me and an angered Taki, who was staring at me with the same ferocity as she had done with Xetalona.

"I was just barely able to get her to stop before! I told you this! She was seriously going to squish Xetalona here before, but I got her to stop!"

I looked at Rem, and then to Taki, and got a really good look at her.

Not only were her eyes those of a predatory animal, I could tell that there was some other entity within Taki, as her the iris of her eyes were almost completely white, with very little left still black. Accompanying the gaze like she was ready to kill, her posture looked like she was also ready to pounce too, as if leaving no room for argument about her decision to attack. Not only that, but I felt some bitterness, that she was tired, and some anger from Taki herself.

"What's gotten into you?"

"Nothing has gotten into me, Bugs."

"You want to attack Lona simply for seeing your appearance.. it's a major overreaction if you ask me."

I hesitantly put my hand up to Surya, both as a threat to stand down, and as a way to block Taki no matter who she would potentially attack. I also sent a glare at her, the one I have known for the longest, trying to figure out what was happening.

"There is no reason for you to kill her. Is this the same thing you had done to anyone else who's seen your actual form? Actually, no. That wouldn't explain why you didn't attack me and instead tried to hide from me when we first met."

We had a short stare down before I noticed what was happening and asked Rem to move to the side, out of the way of anything that was going to potentially happen. She did hesitate to do so, but my glare fixated on my friend made her decision happen much quicker.

"You are right about something, Bugs. I did indeed not attack you. What you're wrong about is that there have been other people who have seen me without a hood."

"So this is what you do to people who aren't your friends? Attack, and potentially kill them?"

"Wait... kill me? No, nononononoNoNoNONONO! I don't wanna die! I still haven't finished building the Ark Valus!"

I took my glare off of Taki for a second and let my face rest slightly. "Lona, calm down, you're not going to!"

Sweating a lot, Xetalona tried to keep a smile up but failed somewhat at it. With a shaky voice, she responded "Y-y-ya know, it's kinda.. h-hard to do that.. when I Will PROBABLY DIE!"

With a sigh to try and stop myself from freaking out in this out of proportion scenario, and turned to Taki and asked something: "Are you really Taki?"

With malice in her tone, she answered. "Of course I am. Who else would I be?"

When she was saying those words, I had a short glimpse of sadness come through, like she had been betrayed, and she continued to have that same feeling.

"Well, seeing as your own eyes are now almost white, you may have some other... entity.. living within you."

'Damn you deities. If you did something to Taki...'

"That.. is not the case, Bugs. You may think so, but I am still myself. There have been no changes to myself."

"Uh.. change doesn't have to be big. I mean, didn't you want to grow stronger? To not need to rely on me in a fight against someone out of your current league? Is that not change?"

She growled at that statement. Taken aback by her growl, I asked once more: "Have you not decided to make any change since that conversation? I mean, not even the slightest bit?"

That somehow made something click for her, and she jumped towards me, claws out, as if ready to kill me. My hand was still floating above Surya, but I couldn't bring myself to draw it.

'No, I can't just cut Taki, let alone draw a blade towards her.. that feels sooo wrong! And to whoever did this, I know one of you deities did this, you will pay!'

And without any malice eminating off of me, and a gaze that softened, I detracted my hand from Surya, and stood straight before a short burst of Conquerers came from my own soul, directly knocking Taki out cold, as she then dropped to the floor.

The two moons holding Xetalona in place also fell before disappearing from existence in a sort of weird blue flame, one that only lasted for a short amount of time.

Looking at Taki out cold in front of me, I looked at Rem.

"Rem, I know you don't exactly want to do this, but I need you to kinda hurry up on that soul thing, Taki may need it more than me."