Where Darkness and Light Collide

[General Beatrix]

"Wh--Agrias!" called the now-cofused General Beatrix, who stumbled slightly when her boot was removed and tossed aside; she collected and re-equipped it a moment later once the Novice had retrieved what was needed.

Alexander's Summon Gem.

"Agrias, please! Come back!" she cried, and began to follow, until she was stopped by Ellis. "Unhand me, for I mus--"

She was interrupted and reminded of her duties as Commander of the fleet. She backed away, shaking her head and agreeing sadly.

"Yes, very well...Agrias, I hope she knows what she is doing with our Hope..."

A moment later she was informed through intercom by Cloud he would be heading for the Carriers, and lightning fast she reached the microphone to respond.

"Ser Cloud!" she roared. "You must be careful when dealing with those! I fear their sentries are Monoliths that circle the perimeter of each Carrier! Caution will keep you breathing! Captain Leon!" she called, but was only met by the nonchalant response from Zolapaz, who sounded as if he was tired.

"Er--Ser Zolapaz! I need you to take the ship down to where Ser Cloud is, and keep an eye on him; make sure that he stays safe, as you will be his backup! Take down those monoliths!"

"Like I told you before, Curls, my golems and moogles are doing a rather nice job where the Monoliths and Stingers are concerned."

The Brass Duke took his place at the rail overlooking the battlepoint from his galleon, standing side-by-side with Cobalt. His grin was still beaming, but there was a hint of fear so vague it would mean disaster for the ship should anyone else see it. Brass shook off his fear quickly.

"Hmmm...Nobody, you might tell your green friend in there that his little robot is having some trouble out there..." he said offhandedly to Sai through the intercom. "My work will not be bested by these Dark morons, so you'd better do something!"

[glow=gray,2,300]"It appears that Leon has been incapacitated due to unforeseen anomalies here in Hyperspace. Due to the explosion of the world below, turbulence was high. I have taken control of the ship until further notice. I will follow Cloud until you've told me to do otherwise."

Zolapaz directed Leon's ship down into the fray once more, close to where Fenrir was diving into battle.[/glow]

"Did he just say Wall-E was in trouble?!" cried the Prince of Oz, leaning over his control terminal to gaze outside. His eyes were wide with horror as what he saw in Hyperspace was destruction...hell.

"We must retrieve him and keep him safe!" he demanded.

[Sai]

"Hmmm...Nobody, you might tell your green friend in there that his little robot is having some trouble out there... My work will not be bested by these Dark morons, so you'd better do something!"

Brass Duke. Information regarding the box robot on his own in hyperspace. The man had no tact, and his rather direct way of informing them a colleague was having difficulty was bound to-

"Did he just say Wall-E was in trouble?! We must retrieve him and keep him safe!" from Oeilvert. Exactly what was to be expected, the closest to the construct naturally would become antsy regarding the matter.

"Focus," Sai called, maneuvering the ship in the direction of the Harbinger. "We have our orders, and your friend knew the risk when he entered the battlefield. Best we can do is trust him to do his job and get on with ours."

No sympathy. No remoarse or concern. He was a Nobody. He couldn't sense the urgency of the situation, and thus it didn't phase him even in the slightest. They were in the middle of a warzone. To diverge from their intended path was to invite a higher risk factor for themselves and anyone they intend to aid. Simple calculation. Nothing more.

"Oeilvert, you are in command of the weaponry. We cannot afford to have you distracted," Sai added, reminding the green mage what was going on around them just before a rouge squadron of Stingers would come swooping in and pellet their shields. "I can only do so much on navigation."

"Duke," Sai called to the Galleon, "We have orders to fulfill here. If you are concerned about your work, I suggest you send one of the golem fleet to assist. Over." Hopefully, that'd set Oeilvert's mind at ease...

[Acteur de la Noir]

There was a pitched increase in the tempo of battle, as desperation on the part of the forces of Light drove them to reckless and insane manuvers in a bid to turn the tide. There were turbulent emotions amongst them; the rigors of intense warcraft lent extra force to their words and sawed dangerously at the threads of their tempers. There were brilliant flares of colorful energy that slashed through Hyperspace, creating a web of destruction that separated both sides. There was a particularly intense strobe of such firepower from the Light's flagship--a symbol of the valiant bravado of its champions int he face of death--that smashed into the Harbinger itself, making the deck tremble and rock violently beneath those on the bridge and sending Heartless pilots tumbling from chairs. And there was even the death of a World, as the Harbinger responded by blasting Sherwood Forest with its most powerful weapon. This last sent reverberations of dark joy through the Heartless, as they reveled in such mass extinguishing of Light.

And none of it mattered to Acteur de la Noir. The whole of his world narrowed down to a single prospect: subject Sarah Appleton to Darkness. Nothing else mattered but that single command from the Fallen One, that edict that would sever the ties to his past once and for all. Once she was gone, or consumed, he would be wed to the Darkness, now and forever.

And so it was, slouched on his command chair like a fallen king upon his throne, that the Heartless Puppetmaster directed his forces to attack. From the shadows they came, Heartless of various classes and abilities--mages from the Colorful Music family, warriors such as Lance Soldiers and Neo-Shadows. As they emerged from the void and advanced on Sarah, threads of Darkness leaped from Acteur's hands to latch into their backs, amplifying their powers by feeding them the penumbral energies that had suffused his being.

What chance did one maiden, armed with a KeyBlade though she may be, have against such a legion of dark puppets?

Perhaps the old Acteur would have known better. He would have given one with the strength of Heart to produce a Keyblade full consideration, perhaps risen from his chair to get personally involved. He might have directed the various forms of his Heartless to attack strategically, wearing her down bit by bit. He could have employed a wounded gazelle gambit, feigning weakness and a mercy plea to deceive his foes into lowering their guard.

But this was not Acteur as he once was. He had been engulfed in his master's primordial darkness, and split his focus amongst the Heartless manning the ships of the armada. As a result, what sat before Sarah Appleton was, ultimately, a puppet of shadows--acting instinctively, pulled by the threads of misconception and afflicted judgement. Thus did his forces react--instinctively, thinking to overwhelm their prey by numbers and force.

Neither they nor Acture himself were prepared for what he, in his free will and open mind, had helped create. For the graceful, elegant beauty who darted and wove amidst the "puppets," like a ballet dancer, her musical-themed Keyblade wheeling and slashing through Darkness made solid with preternatural effect. Nor for the way her motions, whether by luck or skill, caused so many of their attacks to miss--often by scant inches, but rendered ineffective all the same. And certainly not for the fact that the piccolo that had been used in the forging of Sarah's Keyblade had been a creation of Acteur himself--and thus, as an object now tied to him and the Light alike, could strike far closer to home than any other weapon could...

Yeeeeaaaarrrrgghh!!

Agony! As the surrounding Heartless around Sarah fell one by one, the threads of Darkness that had bolstered them burst into vibrant flame--flaring sparks of iridescent light that quickly ate through the shadow-strings, coursing back towards Acteur de la Noir to send shocks of pain shooting through his gloved hands. With a shriek of pain, the Heartless puppeteer recoiled in his seat, those keen yellow eyes dancing wildly with primordial shock and anger. As his remaining forces started to backpedal, instinctively wary of the blade that was claiming so many of them, the possessed puppetmaster's temper kilted dangerously.

Pushing himself upright in his chair, Acteur gestured wildly at Sarah, whose valiant efforts were bringing her closer and closer as each of her obstacles fell. "What are you lot doing?!" he raged. "She is but one maiden! A dancer! A musician! Get in there! Smite her! Consume her!!"

The old Acteur would have known better. Moreover, he would have thought to send replacement Heartless to the control consoles that now sat vacant after he had called their owners away to attack. And he definitely would have considered what his pain and panic were having on the rest of the Heartless armada, who had been so closely tied to him up till now--how their tactics would suffer, and their concentration shatter.

Thus, though no one realized it yet, a window had opened ever so slightly. Just enough to allow the Light to shine through, if it pressed its efforts...

[Twilight Path]

Sarah's body moved as if it were in a deadly dance. It was Swan Lake with Odette reclaiming the Prince from Odile. The dark Odile being the one who attempted to corrupt something that was so fragile and could break just as easily. It was the forest she fought through, the one where the Prince had been lured away in a gentle embrace of temptation.

Pirouettes and jumps seemed to flow around her as she let her long Key blade cut into the heartless. Spells hit her body at times, but her mind was set. No matter how much damage she sustained it would not be enough to keep her away from her goal. Another cut and another in her dance to save her beloved Acteur from the clutches of Atticus.

She moved her body into the air in one last jump, landing in front of Acteur. Yet, instead of cutting into him, her body moved forward, one foot in front of the other. She kissed his cracked mask, tears falling down her face. Odette crying for the task she must do to save her prince.

[Acteur de la Noir]

Disbelief, fury, dread, irony, desperation....all these and more whirled in the dark maelstrom that had become the mind of Acteur de la Noir. In unbelieving silence, he stared at the elegant beauty who fought her way through the Heartless, dodging monstrous claws and bearing the mystic assault of attack spells as she danced and wove like quicksilver. How? How was it possible?! In all the time he had seen her, there had been no evidence of such skill and talent! She had been a shrinking maiden, reliant on the enchanted instrument that he had given her to cast spells of influence and aid! Without it, she ought to have been nothing...

...Wait. That was it! Yes! The piccolo! Perhaps she was drawing on its power, somehow! If he could assert his influence over it, surely that would be the end of the battle! Leaning forward in his command chair, Acteur stretched out his senses, his eyes glowing feverishly behind the cracked porcelain facade as he sought out the astral presence of his instrument, ready to seize its power and turn it back upon his rebellious apprentice...

Where? Where is it?! Why can't I sense...?!

And then, as Sarah left the ground in an astounding leap, Acteur was struck by realization. With blank disbelief, the puppet of darkness stared up at the vision of beauty (why are you still thinking that?!) who was descending upon him, Keyblade upraised. That glittering weapon of Light, touched by traces of nocturnal hue. In that moment, understanding dawned with the sort of brutal impact that only the realization of one's own impending doom could bring.

...No...!

...Yes...!

Then, the unexpected. That fleeting touch of the maiden's lips upon the cracked countenance of his mask. That pulse of emotion. It should have been nothing...and yet, it was everything. A single spark lit deep in the chaotic well of Darkness--a pulse of Light that rapidly grew in intensity, pushing back the influence of Atticus the Fallen from a mind that had long been buried. As the kiss longered, Acteur stiffened reflexively, an unearthly shriek seeming to echo from the palpable aura of Darkness as it writhed and flickered around him like a struggling snake. Unwillingly, it was forced back, shrinking to the floor and taking its leeching pallor with it. How long it would remain suppressed was anyone's guess...but inevitably, it would surely return.

But in this few moments, that didn't matter. For the lanky, theatrical figure that sat before Sarah was once more clad in rich, nocturnal hues of violet and indigo, his posture once again carrying the vigor of life. And beyond the cracked mask, those eyes...orbs of ghostly yellow, inhuman yet so very alive, dancing with a mixture of shock and relief, as though waking from a bad dream. And then, with both delight and melancholy, as though its owner knew what was to come, yet welcomed it...

"...Mi amor... Acteur whispered, his voice one of wistful joy. "At last, you've come...so much I would say, and yet there is so very little time..." His arms slid aside, shadow-threads trailing haphazardly as he exposed his chest. "...Please...while I can still hold back the tide..."

[Twilight Path]

How cruel fate can be. To unite someone willing to accept the middle path and yet to force them to part from their beloved. Still, Sarah was no longer the weak girl that sought to destroy things in anger. She was twilight, the hardest path one can choose in the struggle between light and darkness. "I love you, Acteur." She spoke, her Key Blade swinging down as the serpent cut into the wooden puppet that was more human to her than anything in the world.

It was a cruel fate. It was a fate that was destined in war. Either way, this was the end of the road for her innocent self. To save him meant hoping that Kingdom Hearts would allow him to live to see her again. There are some things that only faith can answer. She put her trust in her beloved's heart.

[Acteur de la Noir]

The Keyblade flashed through Acteur's chest in one clean stroke, cleaving through elegant cloth, wood, and Darkness with a resounding clash of enchanted blade striking home. Those keen yellow eyes went wide with agony; his hands grasping spasmodically at empty air as he writhed in his chair. The Darkness around him twisted and uncoiled as its anchor was destroyed, and an unearthly howl seemed to echo from the far corners of the room as it rippled and faded into oblivion. And then there was only Acteur, slumped in the commanding chair that had been both throne and prison, finally released from his hellish bondage.

But such a sore price to be paid for his freedom--shadow essence spilled from his wound like thick smoke, flowing into the air with the consistency of blood. His lankly limbs, once so animated and lively, hung limply at his sides. And behind that familiar mask, those vibrant yellow orbs were beginning to flicker and dim, like a candle on the verge of being snuffed. Whatever bonds keep a Heartless secured to existence, Sarah's Keyblade has severed. This, with no doubt, was the fall of his curtain.

And yet, somehow, the puppeteer found the strength to lift his hand. Trembling with effort, that gloved palm found its way to Sarah's cheek, stroking it with undeniable tenderness as its owner gazed up at her with those familiar yellow eyes. And, for the first time since he had been engulfed in the Darkness, the features of his mask changed--though the bone-white porcelain remained cracked, there was the crescent of a content, peaceful smile.

"A masterful stroke, cherie...at last, you have the will...to walk that most difficult road." He took a breath, his eyes dimming further. "Would that I could walk it with you...to see what future...a Heartless and a human might find. Alas, it is not to be." He paused, a sudden, weak laugh emerging from his mask. "Heh...Heartless...am I, really? And yet, your kindness touched me, cherie. I felt bravery, nobility, and joy at your acceptance of me. I..." He paused again, his voice soft with wonder. "...I felt love, cherie. Can any Heartless truly say the same? Oh, if Atticus were here, how I would laugh...even his absolute darkness could not extinguish my true self. Here, at the end of all things, I am myself once more."

Then Acteur's hand slowly fell, tracing its way to the Keyblade that remained in Sarah's hand. "I wonder...what will become...of me?" he whispered softly, the light in his eyes dimming rapidly. "Will I...simply cease to be? As though...I never were? Or...do we Heartless...have a place to go...when we die?" He shivered. "...But perhaps...though this curtain falls...as long as you...keep me in your heart...it may...rise again, someday." A final pause, and those ghostly yellow eyes found hers, no more than a dim ember. "...Go, my love. To those who need you most. To preserve the future."

And then the final ember faded. The gloved hand slid down along the hilt of Sarah's Keyblade and swung absently into the empty air, carried by momentum. The figure before her, slumped in the command chair, was nothing more than a crumbling, life-size doll whose strings had finally been cut. Acteur de La Noir was no more.

But what was that flickering, astral light tracing its way up the length of Sarah's Keyblade? Ghostly purple and traced with motes of silver, the essence swirled along the blade, coiled around the hilt, gently danced along Sarah's fingers, and traveled the length of the hilt. There was a flash of light as a new keychain appeared dangling from the hilt. One whose distinguishing presence included a rather familiar mask, held in miniature. And, as if reacting to its presence, the whole Keyblade shifted and melded, taking on a form both eccentric and elegant all at once. The hilt was a set of curving crescents akin to a moon, rich violet and encircled with coiling threads of onyx and pearl. The blade was forged from some unusual metal that reflected the light in odd ways--when the light touched it at this angle, it was a deep midnight black; when tilted, the blade shifted to a rich silvery-white the color of the moon.

And then, as if willed into being by Acteur's last words, a familiar vortex of swirling violet and black appeared. A Corridor of Darkness. And, perhaps instinctively, Sarah would know that it was meant to send her to where she needed to be.

The Battle's Turning Tide:

All the while, the Heartless who had been bound to that vast wellspring of nocturnal power that had been Acteur's reborn body--both on the Harbinger, and in the numerous craft beyond--suddenly arched and writhed in shock as the psychic backlash flashed through their minds like a knife through cellophane. The power and its commanding presence was gone, leaving a great deal of the Heartless Armada sorely disoriented. As a whole, they were wide open to attack.

[Twilight Path]

Sarah knew she was still crying as his familiar hand gently touched her cheek. It was a comforting gesture that was so tender that it made all those tender moments come to her mind. It felt like so little time had passed, yet so much had happened during that time. A lot of pain, happiness, sadness... So many emotions filled those memories that filled her mind.

"We walked it together. We proved it by walking it together." Sarah spoke, knowing he couldn't hear her anymore. Yet the power that slowly transformed her key blade drew her attention. Her tears slowly stopped, looking at the key chain with a smile. "And we still are."

The corridor that appeared was something she knew all too well. She let her key blade leave her hands, picking up what was left of the puppet she loved the most. She gently held the remains and walked through it, knowing it would spread in the corridor before she arrived at the Rose. It was enough to know she could take his body with her, away from the battle.

RED ROSE:

Sarah found herself standing near the bridge, Acteur's mask all that remained in her hands. She wiped the last of her tears and placed the mask gently in her hands. "We are still walking that path together." She walked into the bridge, keeping away from any operations currently going on.

[nexus]

(sorry for my lateness..... series of unfortunate events....)

Nexus was in flight making his way through the debris of the Rose in the aftermath of the blast that devastated a part of it, trying to get as close as he could to one of the holes now in the Rose's side. "Closer Airinose" he yelled out as his nervousness began to show. Nexus leaped as soon as he was close enough to land safely, with a roll and a hard "thud" he caught himself against a door knocked off it's hinges. "Go Airinose, you can help them more then me" he said as he point out into open space. He watched as the dragon huffed at him with a puff of smoke as she left, he saw her let out a burst of flame burning a ship up as he turned himself and headed down the nearest corridor.

Nexus had no easy task traversing the burn part of the ship, the heartless that were forming came almost in wavelike attacks. He slashed away with his keyblade making short work of the smaller ones, but losing some of his endurance when the more powerful ones appeared. All the while he kept going down one hallway to the next, checking rooms, looking about the injured, each door opened, each body passed by made him even more anxious.

He slashed one heartless in half as another lept on his back, getting a good claw slash down the middle of his back. With a growl he grabbed to one on his back and threw it into another as he skewered both of them as once. he came about in his travels and found himself at the scarred side off the ship again and found that there were solders all lined up, putting out the flames the best they could. he ran up and looked around between them and growled once again as he lept down another hallway, she wasn't there, he couldn't find her, he came to a four way of corridors and yelled out "RIAAAA!!!!!!"

On the Bow of the ship

Luna was knocked off her feet when the blast had hit, she caught herself on the guardrail and stared in almost disbelieve as she watched helplessly as her home was ripped to shreds by the blast that had almost done the same to her and the ship. Minutes went by and Luna didn't move. she just stared at the empty space the was once were Sherwood once stood. finally she stood, no tears fell from her face, no wet fur to dry, just shear disbelieve lingered on her face. She turned and stared out into the space in front of the rose, at the battle still taking place and far a crossed the ship that had fired the death shot.Slowly she started to pull her dark power into herself, it crept in and started to surround her, making her tails and fur blow at the wind that wasn't there.

After a a few moments when the power being drawn in was condensed enough that it could even be seen be the naked eye., she lifted her hands and arrows started to appear, two at first, but these arrows weren't the normal ones shot from bows, they were huge about fifty times normal size, six foot in length and about six inches wide, glowing purple with dark energy. The Two large arrows hung in mid air till she clenched her fists causing them to shake slightly, when she unclenched one hand, one off the arrows launched out tearing through some of the smaller ships till it hit a larger ones and explode with a dark force. She did the same with the other before she started to repeat the process, each time taking at least a minute or so before the arrows formed.

[Agrias Oaks]

The warrior of Light sped forth making her barrel rolls, jumps, and dodges as she strove through the stairways and hallways of the limited Red Rose. Previous conversations stretching ideas into her mind about how to turn the tide, and how it could be possible by this: Alexander. Quickly, she ran into a doorway that would lead to the lower decks, but the further she went, the more the danger seemed to progress. Within that narrow stairway, from the very shadow it casted, the creatures of darkness appeared in numbers. Glowing yellow orbs would face the simple novice, and in desperate attempt to achieve success in this mission, made a class change of "knight," held her sword of dim light, and charged through the masses.

Her attempt would of been to no avail, if it was not for the sudden assistance of a familiar Alexandrian soldier who had passed said doorway, and had heard the struggling war cry of the once-legendary knight. As Agrias grew pinned, and thought a failure of this idea, a sudden cut of bright light penetrated that dark hallway, and the Heartless were subdued by a small, dagger key-blade.

"Ria!" cried the Knight in relief when the girl offered her hand to stand. Agrias looked down upon the summon stone, thinking quickly of her next move before looking to the girl once more, "Naught be time to explain, I need ye to come with me!"

How could the girl refuse at a time like this? The woman agreed and followed close behind Agrias, fighting their way down to the Power Chamber of the Red Rose... It's Heart composed of a core held within a room of sealed glass.

"What on earth are we doing here, Miss Agrias??" Ria would look about, keeping her buckler up to defend against the heat that irradiated from the core itself, "Ah! Heartless!" she, the Alexandrian, would look over to a few that were trying to cut away at the cables, and went to battle with them with the assist of the Knight.

"The Cannon is at 98% efficiency! It will be ready in about 1 minute, General!"

In less than fifteen seconds, Ria and Agrias were able to take care of the three troublesome heartless. Perhaps they were the reason that the charging of the powerful beam cannon was taking so long? The Relic instructed the Soldier to make her way to the computers to prepare for her foolish plan.

"Wait, you are going to WHAT!?" argued the girl, but she had no say through his hectic times. The woman was superior, after all, "P-...please... we can wait for-- "

"She is at the Bridge, and there is no time to waste. Open the doors and close them immediately after my passing of them. That is my order." the woman commanded as she stepped closer to the glass walls, tightening the hold upon the summon stone, she began to pray to do good here.

"99% General!"

"Now!" Agrias shouted, held her breath, and rushed into the steaming, poison-infested grounds around the Core, once Ria opened the doors. She coughed a little, feeling that thin, sickly air pour into her lungs once she could not hold no more, and began to fiddle with the power source. Her eyes squinted, as the smog and heat began to irritate them, trying to find what she needed, some sort of power insertion chamber, before her eyes gave out... and she did.

Ria stood helplessly at the controls, gripping tightly at the glass door lever, before letting go, and pressing the communications network next to the console, "RIA TO THE BRIDGE, WAIT ON MY MARK, PLEASE!!" she seemed to hold her cry, not wanting to say what was wrong just yet, or no one would fire the cannon, and perhaps Agrias would have not wanted the outcome she wanted... if this was to be the final one, "I-I REPEAT, DO NOT FIRE THE SISTER RAY JUST YET!!"

Wheezing and stumbling within the hot fog, she placed the Summon Stone within the power portal, and coughed out the following, "Alexander... if ever should you... stand for your people... now... is the time... rise...!" the orb began to glow that familiar blood-red color, "RISE!"

"100% GENERAL! SHE'S READY TO GO!"

Agrias backed away from the power core which FLOWED with new found energy, and slumped down with her back against the glass. She would raise her hand, and give Ria the thumbs up, before her hand fell numbly at her side.

The Red Rose would shine a lovely shade of red-- the power of Alexander coursing through its Veins... ready to be released upon the enemy!

"NOW, GENERAL!" cried the soldier, unknowing of what else to do.

[Gabranth]

A while after Gabranth made his decision and agree to Hercules' plea to help the fleet, a small light on the panels began to blink signaling a call was incoming. Hercules answered the call, it was from the commander Beatrix.

After answering the call, Gabranth began the Bin ships run into battle. However the ship may have its massive defensive prowess, but its speed is something under par. "We'll be within range shortly. Considering our ships capabilities, we're most likely able to take out any radio command ships. Direct contact with any of their fighters would be inadvisable."

Within a short time, they were within a firing range behind the enemy. Gabranth began a broad search scanning ships for radio frequency's. "Scans are showing at least three ships sending and receiving massive radio commands on multiple frequency's. Those would be your target." He said to Hercules as he started prepping for the first run.

[General Beatrix]

"Noted," said Brass, signaling to where his commander Plutonium stood barking orders to the golems that poured from the bay of torpedoes, and gestured him over.

"Plutonium, I need you to send a team of reinforcements to fly alongside the box-shaped automaton, as it seems to be faring rather nicely out on the battlefield; when close enough I want soldiers to begin landing on and tearing apart the shields of that blasted eye-sore!"

"It's time," said Beatrix to no one in particular, and turned to face where Sylvia was.

"Begin countdown!"

Soldiers placed in a meticulous line behind their superior began taking down numbers and readings once more while the artillery squad prepped the Sister Ray beam.

"Ten! Nine! Eight!--"

Beatrix could only wonder what the holdup was from before, why they were halted to fire...what was going on down there, anyway?

Never mind! Stay on topic!

"Five! Foure! ...three!--"

This may in fact drain the entire ship's reserves and exhaust us...we'll be out of battle if we launch with full power...but we must. "FIRE!"

As the general's second cry was relayed down to the launch center, soldiers braced themselves as they'd done the first time, and sent warning alerts to the more riskier sections.

"FIRE ALL!"

When he heard the conversation nearby, his heartbeat slowed down some, and he could finally relax somewhat. If the Brass Duke had his watchful eye on Wall-E, there was nothing to worry about. "Forgive me, Captain! I am thinking more clearly, and understand your words! Weaponmaster, at your command--"

{Will get to blast; had to post hastily}

[Hercules]

Grabbing hold of the controls for the weapons, Hercules took aim at the approaching Tactics Stations. They were the target, due mostly to the fact that if they could shatter the Heartless fleet's communications, they'd be able to gain the upper hand.

"Got 'em..." Hercules muttered, preparing to press the button. It was strange to him, how he'd gotten so used to so much new technology in such a short amount of time. Guess it was just his childlike nature, but then again being Wonderboy did sometimes have its perks. He was waiting for an opening now...

And it came! Something must have happened because all the ships on the field suddenly seemed disoriented, as though they had just come out of some sort of delirium. Whatever the case, the demigod knew an opportunity to attack when he saw one!

Once in range, Herc slammed down the buttons and unleashed gummi laser fury all over the stations, the other ships suddenly becoming doubly confused, unable to contact one another and suddenly losing their senses of strategy and teamwork.

"I got it! I got it!!" Hercules cheered, looking to Gabranth with a wide smile. Perfect hit, mission accomplished! He was eager to know what they'd do next!

[Sai]

As mayhem continued outside, Sai focused on his flying. Hearing Oeilvert come out of it was a relief, as that was one less distraction to worry about. That meant this crew could focus on their objective: shut down any lingering defenses the Harbinger might have.

Sai's eyes narrowed slightly as he honed in on the prize. The Heartless ships were bombarding them with attacks, which Miss Possible was doing a decent job of handling. Oeilvert on the guns was finally able and willing to do his part, so they could now give as good as they could receive. However, this did not make up for the inconsistency of numbers. At this rate, the StandardGummi was going to crash and burn before it even made it to the Harbinger!

That's when the unexpected happened. Suddenly, one of the stronger presences on the field was gone, and the individual ships grew dazed. Sai hardly had time to consider even this as the next stroke came. The boxlike ship piloted by Gabranth and Hercules came in from above and wrecked the control ships beyond the Harbinger, causing the annoyance of the Stingers to slightly subside.

"They're confused. Now is our opportunity," Sai muttered absently to Oeilvert at the weapons console. "Take down what ships you can, but focus fire on the shield generators and forward weaponry of the enemy vessel in that order. Let's make the Rose's next attack more effective."

His flying was fast. He knew he only had seconds to get in and get out. If everyone did their part, they'd have the shields down and leave the Harbinger unable to fire off a second volley all at once. Sai could see the building of the second attack from the Rose even from where they were. Less than 5 seconds remain.

Elsewhere, on the Rose, the countdown had begun and Beatrix was about to give the order for the fire. Sai had the comm open so he could monitor the exact time he'd have. Once the blast was initiated, he'd have .75 seconds to get the ship and his crew out of the way.

"FIRE ALL!" came the call over the radios and Sai yanked back hard on the controls, turning the ship in a perfect 90 degree angle to his original flight plan.

"I suggest you both hold on to something..." Sai informed the other two, knowing full well that this was going to be a VERY close call...

[General Beatrix]

The Red Rose began to buzz and hum even louder than before, and some bits and pieces of the outer shell would start cracking, the Brass Duke's paint job cracking apart while the Sister Ray collected energy from Agrias' gift.

The loud "vrrrrrrrr--uuurrrp" of the cannon's signal thundered throughout the ship interior, breaking out into Hyperspace to deafen all those within range as the slide jetted forward.

A massive white light, imbued with what looked like green-blue life energy, would zoom forth from deep inside the barrel and charge down to where the outrageously massive Harbinger awaited; as it coasted, a roar of thunder and the flashes of lightning would seem to emanate from within, until a white-hot mist took up most of the space between Flagships. Those aboard the Red Rose would see a familiar trinity pairing of leviathan angelic wings sprout from this fog and, soon, so would the crown of a majestic castle.

As it seemed to be made of both solid matter and that of the Sister Ray's crystalline beam, when it threw up its column-esque tower arms a prismatic ray of colors could be seen disintegrating lesser black ships as they passed through.

In one massive stroke the full Fury of Alexander's holy power was punching deep into the Harbinger before him, alongside the ingenuity of the people of Midgar and Brass.

The battle would be won, the general assured herself with wide eyes, alarmed at this new revelation.

"By Alexander! It's--ALEXANDER!!!"