Heretic's Folly

Heretic's Folly is the name of the story that follows Makara, the former Threat's Top 10 member, and Scoria, the new Queen of the Magma Sentinels. The two must begrudgingly team up together to stop a war against the Magma Sentinels, with Makara only returning to the Bermuda to get rid of his past mistakes.
==Story==
===Prologue===
An overhead view of a large, tropical island, with a clashing architecture of wooden bridges and futuristic buildings, with warships docked at the West side of the island.
PIRATE'S COVE, THE BERMUDA
It cuts to a loading dock on the island, with dozens of planes waiting to be loaded up with different mysterious items loaded into hundreds of boxes. Men walk around the loading dock, many with long beards, worn leather jackets, and hair covered by bandannas. A man stood in the middle of all of it, both hands behind his back. He took a deep breath, grinning. He had a long, mangled beard, with the classic 'pirate' Bicorn hat. On each shoulder, a menacing golden skull lays. He reaches into his pocket with his bionic arm, pulling out a pipe.
:Pirate with Robot Arm: Let's get a move on, lads! The special guest could be here any time now, and we don't want to scare away any new associates..
One of the men looks at him, walking over to him.
:Pirate: Blackbeard, sir.. we aren't really selling to them, are we?
:Blackbeard: Eh? You must be three sheets to the damn wind if you think I'll pass up an opportunity like this. Cybernetic or not, they've still got a considerable amount to give to us. Think of this as a.. re-branding, of sorts. We've been doing deals under the table for too long.
:Pirate: I guess, it's just..
Blackbeard turns away before he can continue talking, holding up a lighter to his clay pipe, to light it. He takes a few puffs, breathing out in satisfaction. In the distance, something breaks through the impenetrable storm barrier of the Bermuda Triangle. Blackbeard chuckles out loud, looking up at the ships.
:Blackbeard: And here they are.. behave, you lot.
The objects appearing from the storm get closer, revealing four red-and-gold themed hover-planes. Three of them follow after a larger one, which leads the group. They slowly lower onto the loading dock, the main one rotating so that the exit faces Blackbeard. After they all land, a ramp lowering down from the plane. Before anybody steps out of the main plane, a group of robotic soldiers walk out of the three smaller planes, surrounding the entrance of the plane.
:Blackbeard: What an entrance, aye?
The soldiers are familiar. They all resemble Makara, although taller and less armored. They all have different battle scars, some having scratches on their armor, or mis-matched limbs. The seemingly important person walks down from the largest plane's ramp, looking around.
:???: Hello there, Edward Thatch.
:Blackbeard: Hello, hah. You can call me Blackbeard. No need to be formal here.
The figure nods. Much like their soldiers, they seem to heavily resemble Makara, having the same general design and red-and-gold color scheme. Compared to Makara, though, they have much more armor plates and are much more bulky around their limbs. Their head is quite similar to Makara's, except with a lacking the horns. The smoke that made up Makara's horns now wrap around her in the shape of a Boa. A large halo follows behind her.
:Blackbeard: Good to meet you, Synthia.
:Synthia: Yes, I suppose it is.
:Blackbeard: From all that you've said.. I think your conquest is very appealing.. and I think I have the resources to help you.. as long as you give me opportunities.
Synthia nods, quiet.
:Blackbeard: But, I must ask, where do you expect to go with this plan?
:Synthia: I have to finish my task.
Synthia walks over to a box, pulling out a metallic orb, looking at it momentarily.
:Synthia: My creator perished to the lies of this Earth, but I was still given a task that I believe. With nobody to command us..
Synthia motions to her soldiers.
:Synthia: Somebody had to lead them all. We were dispensable by our leader, used just for him to succeed.. but I will ensure all of my Children will have a righteous place in my domain.
Blackbeard raises an eyebrow, looking to another pirate. They shrug.
:Blackbeard: Children?
:Synthia: I am the all knowing motherboard. I was created by Four as a system to control everything, and I can control everything that was under his command. It was mostly compromised.. but I scavenged. Four is gone, The Threat is gone... but I am still here, and the loss of my commanders allows me to take hold and make the choices I want to make.
:Blackbeard: Sounds like you'll need a lot of weaponry, yes?
:Synthia: That's the reason I contacted you, William. You're a valuable asset... you could join me and you could rule. Everyone gets their own benefits.. and you would be rewarded quite handsomely for your contribution to the Childhood's cause.
:Blackbeard: Well, I don't know if I wanna be considered a child, but a handsome reward is something I can't refuse.. I've got a lot of resources, and if we can work together, I can provide. I just don't like the name, y'know?
Synthia ignores his comments about the name, nodding.
:Synthia: Good. We are on the same page, as I had expected.
Synthia turns around, walking back towards her soldiers.
:Blackbeard: We can rule with titanium fists.
Blackbeard puts up his bionic arm, nodding.
:Blackbeard: We've all been put down for too long, the Bermuda is back!
===Chapter 1===
:Makara: Alright, so we've been gone for awhile, huh? Let's catch you up to speed.
A spaceship departs from Earth, flying away quickly.
:Makara: After I was outcast from Earth, I decided to take a little vacation... but I got a little sidetracked and ended up getting myself into some trouble with a large space dictatorship known as The Federation. The Federation was smart, but I would meet two lovely people that joined me on my so called "vacation".
Jordyn and Corundum are leaning up against a wall, both waving.
:Makara: We slowly worked our ways across the Federation-dominated planets, and barely survived. But we hung on, so it worked out. After taking out the Federation's Flagship-
It cuts to a large spaceship blowing up, sending debris flying into other nearby ships.
:Makara: We decided, maybe battling the federation head on wasn't the best idea. So now.. we've been laying low, trying to liberate whatever we can from the remnants of the Federation. Me and Corundum are.. dating? I think. I felt at home, for the first time in.. ever. But.. something was calling me. It felt, familiar, but I couldn't figure out what..
----
Makara runs through a field of gray sand, seemingly in the middle of a moderately-sized battlefield. People rush towards the Federation troops, clad in white armor and armed all with the same Assault Rifle-like weapon. Jordyn runs beside him. A Federation trooper opens fire on Makara, the bullets skidding right off of Makara's metallic body. He slams his staff into the ground, causing a line of electricity to shoot out of the ground and into the Federation trooper, sending his steaming body across the field.
:Makara: You'd think they'd let up for awhile.. but they choose to just engage in the middle of nowhere.
:Jordyn: I'm not complainin'. Makes it easier for us to blast them to high hell, right?
:Makara: Good point.
Jordyn leaps past Makara, sprinting towards another group of people. Makara stops for a moment, feeling like every sound has come to a stop in an odd moment of silence. Then, a ringing noise. It sounds like it rebounds back and forth, with faint voices in the background. He shakes his head, confused.
:Makara: What..?
He's brought back to reality by a bullet hitting him in the face. He stumbles back, grunting. A Federation trooper fires at him from afar. Makara sighs, lunging his staff at the trooper like a boomerang.
:Makara: That was.. weird.
The staff slices into the Federation trooper, then rebounding back into Makara's hand. He spins it around, then clipping it to his back. He lifts up his left arm, pressing a button on the middle. Corundum chimes in.
:Corundum: Need a ride?
:Makara: Yeah, that would be-
Before he can finish, something slaps him in the back, causing him to stumble onto the ground. He quickly whips around, leaping back up and facing whatever hit him.
:Makara: It'd be nice to not interrupt me, you know.
Whatever had punched him didn't acknowledge what he said, rather running towards him quickly.
:Makara: Robots.. no sense of politeness!
He kicks the robot back, nearly stopping it in it's tracks. The robot lumbers forward, swinging it's arm at him very slowly. Makara steps to the side to evade, then slicing his staff diagonally, cutting the robot into two. He goes back to talking to Corundum.
:Makara: Yeah, that would be nice.
It cuts to Makara, Jordyn, and Corundum all sitting in their spaceship. Jordyn is playing some sort of card game against a holographic player, while Corundum sips at a drink quietly. Makara sits in the corner, rubbing his head. He still hears the ringing and voices, but he can't make sense of it.
:Jordyn: What's bringing ya' down, M?
Makara ignores her, looking somberly at the floor. Corundum frowns, setting her drink down and walking over to him.
:Corundum: Maaakara..
Makara looks up at her, shaking his head, in an attempt to get the noises to go away.
:Makara: Something's calling me.. in my head. It's a familiar feeling, but something I don't understand, at the same time.
:Jordyn: Then how does it feel familiar?
:Makara: I.. don't know. It's like déjà vu.
Jordyn nods, scratching her chin. Makara looks up.
:Makara: Earth.
:Corundum: Your home planet, right?
:Makara: Not my home.. but I was there.. for awhile. It's coming from Earth.
The whispers return to Makara's head, and he can hear the mention of clones, and someone named Synthia.
:Makara: I need to go.. back. I've.. I've left something behind that needs to be dealt with.
:Corundum: You told us that there was nothing left for you on Earth..
:Makara: That's what I thought.
:Jordyn: Well, it would be nice if you even told us what you did on Earth. Why are you so touchy about it? Just tell us what's up.
:Makara: No! No.
Jordyn raises an eyebrow, leaning forward and lowering her voice.
:Jordyn: You're hiding something..
:Makara: Maybe I am, maybe I'm not.
:Jordyn: You don't want us to know what happened, do you? Why were you on Earth, M?
:Makara: .. My old boss's business. Not my idea, just.. business.
Jordyn sighs, still not believing him, but not wanting to continue this.
:Jordyn: Well, road trip to Earth then, huh?
:Makara: I'm going alone.
:Jordyn: You don't trust us with anything now, do you?
Makara shakes his head, standing up.
:Makara: I trust you. I trust you two more than anyone, but I need to do this alone. This is my problem that I have to deal with.
:Jordyn: We deal with our problems together. We're a team, Makara.
:Makara: I don't want to bring you into something that you don't need to be brought into. It's complicated!
:Corundum: Makara, please, just tell us..
Makara walks away.
:Makara: I'll tell you, one day.
:Jordyn: Friend's don't keep secrets, you know.
:Makara: This secret doesn't matter. So stop being so god damn nosy.
Makara slams the door behind him, sighing.
:Makara: Fuck.
Corundum shakes her head, running her crystallized hand through her hair.
:Jordyn: He's hiding something from us. Something big.
:Corundum: I'll.. I'll go talk to him.
:Jordyn: Hmph.
Jordyn nods, grumbling. Corundum walks over to Makara's room.
----
:???: King Ash's death was a detrimental time to the Magma Sentinels.. but they had to move on.
Darkness surrounds everything.. but suddenly, a red light appears out of nowhere, burning bright.
:???: I was his continuation. I knew everything, and nothing. The knowledge of all the royalty of Magma Sentinels past was flowing through me, and I felt clueless. Lost in a sea of knowledge with nowhere to go.
A Magma Sentinel crawls out of the volcano. They have a circular head, with an opening on the right side, with root-like rocks and fire billowing out of it. The Magma Sentinel looks around, surrounded by a crowd of Magma Sentinels. One steps forward, a Magma Sentinel with an orb-shaped head.
:Orb-Headed Sentinel: Welcome, Queen Scoria.
:???: I was Scoria. I was the new Queen of the Magma Sentinels... and the crowd rejoiced. But things changed, very quickly.
:Orb-Headed Sentinel: I am your adviser, Distin. It's a pleasure to meet you.
Distin bows, and Scoria nods.
:Scoria: Thank you. I am honored to serve this Kingdom.
It fades to black, travelling into the present, after Scoria has ruled for about a year.
:Scoria: I came after the supposed best king in Magma Sentinels history.. Ash was an amazing King, and he saved the people from wars that many Kings would crumble under. I came at the unfortunate time of a crumbling economy.. and an otherworldy threat looming over us. The Netherbrood, a nasty race that had plagued us for thousands of years, continued to strike back.. but the army was growing. Blame shifted to me.. and I never knew how to handle it. The Kingdom plunged into a dark time. They hated me.. my own people wanted me gone. The Elder Kings that had passed away and now offered guidance were.. absent. They had no words for me. I had no words for my people. Everything I wanted to do was washed away into the sea of nothingness, and I felt everything fading. I was no longer a Queen. I was a failure.
Scoria is standing out in the throne room, staring blankly at the wall. Outside of the castle, people grumble and complain about the Queen and her absence. Distin stands beside Scoria, suddenly pitching in with a seemingly random jab.
:Distin: You'll never be like Ash, don't you understand that?
Scoria looks over to Distin, baffled.
:Scoria: I know that. Why would I focus on being like him when I need to focus on making my own decisions. I'm not just his replacement. I'm his successor.
:Distin: Look around you, for Gods' sake! Your insolence has lead to this kingdom's downfall, and if you don't start looking back to our past leaders' successes, you will be the final leader of the Magma Sentinels.
:Scoria: We've recovered from worse things before.
:Distin: Yes, but we've done it with better rulers.
Scoria clenches her fist, shaking her head.
:Scoria: You're my adviser, you're supposed to assist me, not downplay me!
:Distin: I'm supposed to give you advice, and my advice is to figure out how to save this damn Kingdom.
:Scoria: You're equally to blame for ALL of this.
:Distin: Maybe so, but history won't tell it that way.
:Scoria: History won't tell any of our stories if we fail.
Distin looks down, quietly. Scoria walks away, up to her chambers. In her room sits King Ash's sword.
:Scoria: I don't deserve this.
Scoria picks up the sword, sighing. It cuts to her walking towards a lava river, looking at the sword, one last time. A booming voice comes out of nowhere.
:Mysterious Voice: Now, wait a moment.
Scoria spins around, looking for where the voice came from.
:Mysterious Voice: You wouldn't put my sword in that lava river, would you?
:Scoria: Ash... Ash!
:King Ash: Scoria.
Scoria drops the sword to the ground, looking up to the sky.
:Scoria: I'm sorry, Great King.. I've ruined your kingdom.
:King Ash: No.. you haven't.
:Scoria: Tell me, then.. why else would the Elder Kings ignore my cries? They leave me to fend for myself.
:King Ash: They have not lost hope in you. Quite the opposite. You are your own person, Scoria. You have our knowledge.. you don't need to seek it from us. You need to find it in yourself.
:Scoria: I can't.. I've searched for so long, and all the time ends up being wasted. The kingdom is in peril, and I cannot do anything.
:King Ash: You will fail if you continue through that path.. you try to imitate the Kings of the past.. but you do not want to make a path for yourself.
Scoria looks down at King Ash's sword, picking it back up.
:Scoria: I need to seperate myself from the past. It isn't the knowledge of the old Kings.. it's my knowledge. I made the mistake of looking for what you would've wanted.. not what I want.
:King Ash: A moment of revelation can change everything.
Scoria nods, looking back up at the sky.
:Scoria: Thank you, Great King.
The voice is gone, but Scoria no longer feels lost. She returns back to the castle, walking past Distin.
:Scoria: I know what I should do, now.
:Distin: More fortifying?
:Scoria: No.. ready up some of the knights. We're going into the Netherbrood's hive.
:Distin: Wh-what? Are you out of your mind? No King has ever tried something like that!
:Scoria: Exactly. It's my idea.
Scoria brandishes King Ash's blade.
:Distin: It's practically suicide to go into the hive.
:Scoria: Not if we play our cards right. If this works, Distin, we begin the first push back. We've spent all of our time holding our ground, and that's taken us nowhere but backwards. We need to push forwards.
Distin hesitates.
:Scoria: I am the Queen, Distin. You will listen to my orders.
Distin sighs, shaking his head.
:Distin: Very well, then. Shall I tell the Kingdom?
:Scoria: No. They'll only push against my actions, whether or not they're good. I have to win back their trust.
Distin nods, turning away and walking out of the castle.
:Distin: I will prepare the soldiers for departure.
:Scoria: Thank you.
Scoria looks down at King Ash's blade, finally feeling a sense of gratification. Not from the Elder Kings, but from herself.
:Scoria: I'll honor your blade, Ash. I may not be as great of a swordfighter as you, but..
Scoria pauses, looking down at the sword.
:Scoria: I'll continue its story.
----
Makara is sitting in his room, looking at a screen, trying to figure out the fastest way he can get back to Earth. Corundum walks in, taking a deep breath.
:Corundum: Maaaakara..
:Makara: Coru, I need to go do this alone.
:Corundum: We can come with you, though..
:Makara: You guys already have the Federation to deal with.. I don't want to drag you into another battle.
:Corundum: But.. you're gonna leave us alone to fight the Federation?
:Makara: I won't be gone for long.
Corundum looks at him.
:Corundum: Promise?
:Makara: Promise.
Corundum forces a smile, nodding.
:Makara: I know you guys can hold your own against the Federation. The only reason I leave you is because this will come back later. I'd rather get rid of it now.
:Corundum: Get rid of what?
Makara takes a deep breath.
:Makara: I had- have - clones. I thought they were.. gone. But the voices in my head tell me otherwise. I can hear them.
Corundum raises an eyebrow.
:Corundum: Clones?
:Makara: For an army, yes.
:Corundum: An army?!
:Makara: Listen, Coru, there's a lot I haven't told to you and I'm really sorry. But I will tell you.. after this.'
:Corundum: Please, just tell me now..
:Makara: I..
Makara shakes his head.
:Makara: After. I promise you that, I'll tell you everything. No more secrets.
Corundums nods, wiping a tear away.
:Corundum: No more secrets. Please just.. get this done with, quickly. I.. we need you.
Makara looks down solemnly, nodding.
:Corundum: Whatever it is you're hiding.. it's in the past. I can feel it's something you regret.. which means you've moved past it.
Makara looks up at her.
:Makara: I do.
Corundum nods, hugging Makara tight.
:Corundum: No matter what, I'll still love you, you know.
:Makara: You don't even know what I did.
:Corundum: No, but I know who you are now. The past is the past. You can't change some people's feelings, but you can forge new ones with new people. We are your new people, Makara.
Makara hugs Corundum back, nodding.
:Makara: Thank you, Corundum.
:Corundum: Now, we've gotta get you to a port now. I don't want you gone for too long.. It gets lonely here..
Corundum pauses.
:Corundum: And Jordyn gets annoying.
Makara and Corundum laugh, Makara nodding.
:Makara: I'll be back before you know it.
----
Scoria, Distin, and the Magma Sentinel's General are walking through a foggy, rocky ravine, with a group of Magma Sentinels following them.
:Scoria: General Cotal.. do you believe that we'll succeed this?
:General Cotal: I'll always follow the royalty, whether or not I believe in our success. I have been for years.. I won't stop now.
:Scoria: Tell me in honesty.
Cotal takes a deep breath.
:General Cotal: I don't know.
:Scoria: I believe in us. Without belief, what's the point?
:Distin: Because sometimes you need to know when to give up belief.
Scoria shakes her head.
:Scoria: Belief is what keeps us together. It's what'll save this kingdom.
:Distin: Or.. it could tear us apart.
:General Cotal: A leap of faith, they say.
:Scoria: One leap can change everything. We're getting close to the nest.
The three stop, looking forward into a large cavern, the fog billowing out of it and escaping into the night sky. Scoria raises a hand, clenching it. A burst of magic shoots out into the cavern, dispersing the fog and bringing a brief moment of light to the cavern.
:Scoria: It's a long way down.
:Distin: Not too late to turn back.
Scoria glares at Distin, unsheathing Ash's sword.
:Scoria: We don't back down now.
Scoria begins to walk into the cavern.
:Distin: So, this is the end, huh?
:General Cotal: Without belief, what's the point, Distin?
General Cotal chuckles to himself, following Scoria. Distin stays standing there, the group of Magma Sentinel soldiers walking past him.
:Distin: Elder Kings, save my soul...
Distin begins to walk into the cavern.
===Chapter 2===
Jordyn's ship pulls into a spaceport, hundreds of ships swarming around the port in a chaotic manner. Makara steps out of the ship, crossing his arms. Corundum follows behind him silently. Jordyn peers out of the spaceship's door, sighing.
 
:Jordyn: Don't take too long, M.
 
Makara nods, looking around.
 
:Corundum: You think this is really a sound financial decision?
 
:Makara: We've got enough, yeah? And once the Federation is gone, it won't matter. We can move somewhere and settle down..
 
Makara sighs.
 
:Makara: Hopefully.
 
:Corundum: I'm sure it'll be over soon!
 
:Makara: Yeah. I'm just not sure if everything will be over, any time soon.
 
:Corundum: Roll with the punches.
 
Makara nods, looking around the port. He spots a spaceship dealer, walking over. He's a short, six-armed creature with goggles on his head.
 
:Makara: What's the cheapest.. running.. ship you've got?
 
The creature chirps in some foreign language, Makara nodding. Corundum looks at the creature, confused at what he's saying. She shrugs. Makara leans back, whispering to Corundum.
 
:Makara: Hopefully the ship will make it to Earth.
 
Corundum grins, nodding quickly. Makara looks back to the creature, who motions to a small, but relatively safe-looking ship.
 
:Makara: Well, how much is it?
 
----
 
:Jordyn: You really spent that much on that piece of junk? I might just have a heart attack here.
 
:Makara: I'll bring it back in perfect shape! We can scrap it, or use it as a backup.
 
:Jordyn: You're really killing me, M. That thing better be in pristiiiine condition when you get back.
 
Makara nods, looking back at the ship.
 
:Makara: This is where I say my goodbyes, then?
 
Corundum hugs Makara, sighing.
 
:Corundum: Don't stay for too long.
 
:Makara: Only as long as I need.
 
:Jordyn: I'll keep you updated on Federation shit while you're gone.
 
Jordyn hands Makara a communication system, nodding.
 
:Jordyn: Don't lose this shit. I'm not searching a whole planet to find you.
 
:Makara: I'll keep it safe.
 
:Jordyn: You better. Or I'll start scrapping you for parts.
 
Jordyn punches Makara in the shoulder, grinning.
 
:Jordyn: Don't get killed. Good luck, M.
 
Makara laughs, nodding. Corundum is still hugging Makara.
 
:Corundum: I'll really miss you.
 
:Makara: I'll be back before you know it. You all can take the Federation even without me. Knock 'em down a few pegs.
 
Corundum grins, nodding.
 
:Corundum: We'll kick their ass. Won't be the same without you, though.
 
:Makara: I wouldn't leave if I didn't have to, but..
 
:Corundum: Resolve it all now.. and then we can finally rest, once this is all over.
 
Corundum lets go of Makara, forcing a smile.
 
:Corundum: Best of luck.. I love you.
 
Makara smiles.
 
:Makara: I love you, to Earth and back. Eh.. that sucked, sorry.
 
Makara waves to them, walking over to his ship. He closes the ship's door, sighing.
 
:Makara: Resolve it all now...
 
Makara walks to the cockpit. It then cuts to his ship pulling into Earth's orbit, quickly flying down towards what seems like an empty part of the ocean. As he gets closer to the ocean, his ship seems to be pulled closer in, flying through an invisible barrier and revealing the Bermuda, hidden from sight. His ship's systems flicker for a moment, then recovering. Makara sighs.
 
:Makara: Man, I thought I was done with this place.
 
Two pirates sit at a desk with several monitors spread up against the wall. One is nonchalantly tapping his foot against the ground, humming to himself. Something begins to beep, and one looks up at the monitor, raising an eyebrow.
 
:Pirate 1: Ah, we've got a ship comin' in, it looks like.
 
:Pirate 2: Well, is it one of ours? Let's not shoot another one of ours down again, heh.
 
:Pirate 1: Aye, but I don't think this is one of ours.
 
Pirate 1 clicks heavily against a keyboard, looking around.
 
:Pirate 1: Ship's not registered, either.
 
:Pirate 2: Bombs away, then. Blow that bastard to bits. Probably a scrapper again.
 
Pirate 1 nods, cackling. He puts his mouth closer to the microphone on the desk.
 
:Pirate 1: You have permission to take out that ship. We'll send a crew to get through that wreckage and grab some loot.
 
A pirate, manning a large turret, grins. He aims the turret up to the ship, firing a large steel ball towards the ship. Makara, flying down towards the Bermuda, spots it.
 
:Makara: What's.. that?
 
Makara veers the ship out of the way, barely dodging the ball. He takes a deep breath of relief.
 
:Makara: Weeeird.
 
The steel ball suddenly pops open, shooting out a clump of chains downward that begins to unravel and untwist into a large mass of chains. It slams into the back of Makara's ship, coiling around the ship. Makara alarmingly twists the ship back and forth to try to shake the chains off, but the chains tighten, crumpling the metal exterior of the ship slightly. Makara runs out of the cockpit, attempting to pry open the ship's door, but it's held shut by the chains.
 
:Makara: Ahh, that's not good, huh?
 
Makara runs back to the cockpit, trying to steer it, but everything is locked up and the ship is quickly picking up speed, heading towards the ground. Makara runs out of the cockpit, towards the back of the ship, in an attempt to at least save himself. He tightly grips a handle.
 
:Makara: Shit.
 
Makara's ship slams into the ground, throwing dirt and rocks everywhere.
 
----
 
A large six-legged insect-like creature scuttles across the cave ground, with a sword impaling it in the head. Scoria lifts her sword out of the Netherbrood insect, sighing.
 
:Scoria: We're getting close to the center of it..
 
:Distin: Yes. And it's getting even more dangerous.
 
:Scoria: Yes, I know.
 
Scoria walks past Distin, who shakes his head. The troops follow behind Scoria, Distin, and Cotal, all of the Magma Sentinels being very weary about their surroundings.
 
:Distin: Scoria, just hear me out about this! Maybe going in with a small expedition is not a good idea. We could all die!
 
:Scoria: If you don't put your hope into it, we won't get out. Just believe in our expedition.
 
:Distin: It's hard to believe when you throw us into a suicide mission! We're gonna get destroyed, and even if we kill the Hive's mother, we're just gonna get swarmed by all of these. You're blinded by your motivations and your beliefs, we need to think rationally!
 
:Scoria: I'm thinking as rational as possible! Maybe you should rethink what you're saying.
 
:Distin: Cotal, help me out here?
 
Cotal shrugs. Distin groans, putting his hands out.
 
:Distin: You were right, about us not doing enough, but this isn't the way to go! We can't just perform a complete turn and run straight into battle.
 
:Scoria: But we aren't running into battle at all! We're picking them off, one by one. I couldn't get the whole army to help us now, they don't trust me enough.
 
:Distin: Maybe if you let me talk to them.. At least they trust me.
 
Scoria looks to Distin, gripping her blade.
 
:Scoria: They don't trust you.. they don't trust me.
 
Scoria approaches Distin, pushing him towards a wall.
 
:Scoria: Face it, we all lost their trust. It's our turn to PROVE it to them that we deserve their trust. Just trust me for once, or you'll lose my trust too.
 
:Distin: I've already lost your trust, you've never trusted me since the beginning!
 
:Scoria: I've trusted you since the beginning, but the problem is you never trusted me! I can't rule with someone who acts so one-sided.
 
Distin grunts, shaking his head.
 
:Distin: Same can be said for you.
 
:General Cotal: Alright, just cut it out, you two.
 
Distin pushes Scoria off of him, walking away. Scoria looks down at the ground angrily. Distin distances himself from the rest of the group, walking in front of all of them. Scoria perks up, looking towards Distin.
 
:Scoria: Wait, Distin, back up.
 
:Distin: Oh, you're just commanding my every movement?
 
:Scoria: Just move!
 
Distin shakes his head, continuing to walk. The ground rumbles and parts open in front of him, with a large spiked claw slamming down beside him, throwing him to the ground. The Hivemother rears her otherworldly head, making a series of clicks and gurgles to announce herself. She raises one claw to crush Distin.
 
:Scoria: I've got you!
 
Scoria channels both her hands into firing a concentrated beam of flames, causing the Hivemother to step back, angered at the flames. Netherbrood begin to crawl out of the hole. Distin reaches for his javelin, only to realize it's laying a few feet away. He grunts, scrambling to get up as the smaller Netherbrood creatures creep towards him. Cotal runs over to Distin, slamming his hammer on the ground to emit a shockwave that sends some of the Netherbrood scrambling. He helps Distin up, sighing.
 
:General Cotal: You should've just listened to Scoria.
 
Distin stumbles over to his javelin to pick it up, swinging it around in preparation.
 
:Distin: Alright, I don't need you to chastise me for my choices now.
 
Distin impales a Netherbrood, shaking his head.
 
:Distin: Can you blame me for being so untrustworthy, though?
 
Cotal groans, smacking another Netherbrood away with his hammer. He swings the hammer above his head in an arc, throwing it like a boomerang. It swings towards the Hivemother, hitting it square in the head. It shrieks in pain, but quickly recovers and looks at Cotal, grumbling.
 
:Distin: Maybe it's time to talk to you about your choices.
 
Distin and Cotal begin to run back towards the group of Magma Sentinels. Scoria keeps pushing most of the Netherbrood away.
 
:Distin: You still think we aren't in over our head?
 
:Scoria: We've been doing perfectly fine so far.
 
The Hivemother begins to sprint towards the group, before quickly stopping to swing its tail around at them. Several of the Magma Sentinels manage to dodge the swing, but Scoria and Cotal are thrown off to the side. Cotal slams into a wall, groaning.
 
:Distin: Ah, great!
 
Distin vaults over the Hivemother, running in the opposite direction. The Hivemother grabs one of the nearby Magma Sentinels with its tail, slamming it into the ground several times before holding it up in the air, preparing to slam it down once more. Scoria leaps up, putting her hands up. She causes an explosion on the cave ceiling above the Hivemother, causing a stalactite to break off and drop onto the Hivemother, impaling them. The Magma Sentinel held up by the tail falls down, with Distin catching them.
 
:Distin: Perfectly fine, huh?
 
Distin lays the Magma Sentinel on the ground, checking to see if they're okay.
 
:Distin: They're hurt but.. not too easy to put us down, huh.
 
Scoria leans up against a wall, taking a deep breath of relief. Cotal balances on his hammer to stand back up, slapping Scoria on the back.
 
:General Cotal: Not bad, huh?
 
:Distin: I.. I guess it wasn't horrible, no. Stalactite placement was just lucky, though.
 
:Scoria: There's no luck to it.
 
Scoria nods, chuckling. Distin shakes his head.
 
:Scoria: We should be getting out of here, now.
 
Outside of the cave is some sort of impact, with the cave rumbling momentarily. The Magma Sentinels look up wearily.
 
:Scoria: Hm.. that doesn't sound right.
 
:Distin: Do the Netherbrood fly now?
 
:General Cotal: Couldn't be them. Someone else is near.
 
Scoria runs in front of the group, waving to them.
 
:Scoria: Come on, we've gotta get out of here.. and see what's going on out there.
 
The group follows Scoria, out of the cave.
----
Makara sits up in his ship, looking around. Pieces of it are crumbled in and the lights are flickering. His cockpit is smashed in, and he looks around, realizing that he crashed.
:Makara: There goes all that money.
Makara stands up, shaking his head. The door is gone, but it wasn't taken away from the crash. It looks as if it was removed by melting the door out. Makara tilts his head, sighing. He puts his hand out to summon his staff, but nothing happens. He looks to his hand, waving it.
:Makara: Mm, not good.
He leaps up towards where the door was, leaping out of the ship and to the ground. Two pirates, salvaging pieces from the outside of the ship, quickly turn to him.
:Pirate: Ay, one of Synthia's bots! If you're uh, listening, Synthia.. sorry about that! Thought it was an invader.
:Makara: Synthia?
The Pirate looks over to the other, sighing.
:Pirate: Hm, must've knocked you around a little bit in that ship. Guess it's time to salvage you too.
The pirates approach Makara. He takes a step back, sighing.
:Makara: Where's my staff?
:Pirate: The junk in your ship? Scrapped it. We were planning on giving it to Synthia, but.. I guess she won't see this.
One of the pirates pull out their pistol. Makara leaps towards him, kicking him in the chest and causing him to tumble away. The other pirate pulls out his sword, but is backhanded before he can attack, being thrown into the forest.
:Pirate: God, what kind of robot are you?
The remaining pirate reaches for his pistol, but Makara steps on his arm, causing him to yell out in pain.
:Makara: I'm not a robot. I just want my damn staff, and I want to know who the hell Synthia is.
:Pirate: Just, let off! You're malfunctioning. Just run off somewhere else.
Makara pushes down on the pirate's arm harder, causing him to writhe.
:Makara: Just tell me, dude. It isn't that hard.
:Pirate: God damn, fine!
The pirate takes a deep breath.
:Pirate: Synthia. Looks just like you, but cooler.
Makara tilts his head at the pirate, grunting.
:Pirate: No offense! She rules you guys, you know? Call yourselves the Children, and she's your mom or some shit. How do you remember nothing?
:Makara: Keep going.
:Pirate: She struck a deal with our boss, something about getting rid of other people in the Bermuda to establish a rule over them. Starting with the.. shit, what are those lava fucks called? Lava Sentinels?
:Makara: Magma Sentinels..
:Pirate: Yeah! Those!
Makara puts a hand to his head, sighing deeply. He begins to walk away, leaving the pirate. The pirate scrambles upward and begins to run away. Makara fires at him with the Pirate's pistol that he pocketed, hitting the pirate in the back. The pirate falls to the ground. Makara shakes his head, looking over the hill to see a large establishment ran by the pirates. Planes and trucks drive in and out of it. He can see pirates, but also notices Synthia's 'Children', the same clones that he used years back to try to overtake the Bermuda. He sits down, shaking his head.
:Makara: Should've tied up loose ends.
Makara punches the ground, standing back up. He begins to walk down to the establishment, running out of the bushes into it. Nobody pays much attention to him, using his distortion mist to disguise himself to look more in line with his clones. He follows a group of clones as they enter towards a plane. He silently talks to himself.
:Makara: My clones are still here.. but who is Synthia? Did someone take control of them.. How did they?
Makara shakes his head, trying to make sense of it all. He gets into the plane with the other clones, who all stand silently. He tries to replicate them, but thoughts plague his head.
----
Scoria, Cotal, Distin, and the other Magma Sentinels are running through the cave, the rumbling sound coming up every now and then.
:Distin: What could it even be?
:Cotal: We're not exactly in the calmest of times. It could be a lot of different things.
Cotal sighs.
:Cotal: And for our sake, I hope it's a simple thing.
:Scoria: Just be prepared for the worst. Hope for the best, at least.
They begin to reach the entrance of the cave, finally seeing sunlight. All of them walk out, looking around. Everything seems okay, but Scoria still feels like something is off.
:Scoria: Split off a bit, just look around the cave entrance. Don't go too far, I want us to be able to regroup if something really goes wrong.
Distin readies himself to speak up, but he stops himself, for once. Cotal looks at him, nodding.
:General Cotal: Maybe you should put more trust in her. She did just save your life, after all.
Distin grunts, begrudgingly nodding his head in agreement.
:Distin: Perhaps. We shall see, though.
Everyone begins to split off, looking for anything out of the ordinary around the cave. Scoria walks above the cave entrance, looking around. She sees a large divot in the ground, hearing something coming from it. She slowly walks over to it, sliding down the incline to enter the divot. Nothing seems to be there, but she hears some sort of whirring coming from around her.
:???: Hey, Sentinel!
Scoria twists around, hearing the voice, but not seeing anybody. Suddenly, eight pirates uncloak themselves from her view, surrounding her in a circle. Scoria spins around, looking at all of the pirates. She puts her hand on her sword, ready to unsheathe it.
 
:Pirate 1: Kill her!
 
Pirate 1 puts his pistol up, firing a bolt of energy at Scoria, who uses her heat energy to deflect the shot into the chest of the pirate behind her. She leaps forward, unsheathing her blade to slice the man's arm off, then slicing down his chest, killing him. The six remaining pirates then rush towards her.
 
:Pirates: You won't escape here, Sentinel!
 
They all run towards her, two of the pirates being in the front. She lights one of their beards on fire, causing them to scream out and stumble away. She flicks her hand out at the next one, sending him flying to the ground with a telekinetic blast.
 
:Scoria: Magic.. don't fail me now.
 
Four of the pirates run towards Scoria, who slams her fist into the ground, causing a large surge of heat to blast out, throwing the remaining pirates off of their feet. The pirate whose beard is on fire finally pats out the fire, his beard and eyebrow hairs burnt out. He collapses in defeat, exhausted. Scoria throws her sword at one of the pirates who was knocked over by the heat blast, the sword arcing through the air and embedding itself in the pirate's neck. Now, three pirates remain.
 
:Pirate: You freak, just die already!
 
One of the pirates shoots at Scoria, hitting her in the shoulder. She grunts, recovering quickly. She puts her hand out in an attempt to cast magic on them, but struggles, straining. The pirates laugh at her.
 
:Pirate: Weaponless, and now without your magic crutch. You're weak!
 
Scoria rushes forward, throwing a small glob of magma at the nearest pirate, hitting one of his grenades. The grenade explodes, obliterating him. The last two pirates run towards her, and she ducks under their swings, both of the pirates clashing against each other's swords.
 
:Scoria: Weaponless, but not weak.
 
Scoria sticks her magma hand through one of the pirate's stomach, grabbing his sword as he drops it, then swiftly slicing at the other pirate's knees, causing him to fall. She pulls her hand out of the pirate, who drops to the ground. She takes a deep breath, looking at the 7 dead pirates, with the beardless one alive, but unconscious.
 
:Scoria: Pirates. Hm.
 
She pulls her blade out of one of the pirates, putting it back into it's sheathe. She crawls out of the divot, hearing Distin yelling out.
:Distin: Sentinels! Help me!
The Magma Sentinels run towards Distin, regrouping. Two robotic bodies lay on the ground, but Distin is fighting against one final one. The robot knocks Distin's javelin out of his hand, leaping onto him. The robot cups his hands together to bash Distin in the chest, Distin yelling out. Scoria rushes over to Distin, cutting the robot's head off.
:Distin: Oh, thank the Gods you came. These robots.. they just.. ran out of nowhere.. I tried to fight all of them off, but..
Distin feels his chest, realizing the robot cracked through a piece of his rock. He sighs.
:Distin: Got me good..
Lava flows towards Distin's fingertip as he traces the crack in his rock, lava filling in the crack and solidifying.
:Distin: Agh.. that'll work for now. We should just.. get back, now.
Scoria walks over to the robot's head, picking it up. Cotal is looking down at the robot body, turning it over. It's one of the Children of Synthia. Cotal looks down at it, solemnly. Scoria continues to observe the head. Past thoughts from the Old Kings run through her and she sees and feels the experiences of the battle against Former Four. She looks at the head, quietly.
:Distin: Guys?
Scoria squeezes the head, crumbling it in. She drops the head to the ground, sighing. Cotal looks to her.
:General Cotal: It's-
:Scoria: Four. 
:General Cotal: How did you know?
:Scoria: The Kings showed me.. I saw it all.. all the wars and the lost Sentinels.
Scoria breathes heavily, regaining herself.
:Scoria: The massacres.. how are they back? Who did this?
:Distin: Who is Four?
:General Cotal: We.. we thought we got rid of them, years ago. I lead an expedition with Lady Birnstone.. we thought that they.. Four never died.. but he left, years ago!
Cotal is silent. Scoria looks back to the crumpled robot head.
:Scoria: Netherbrood, Pirates.. Four. Our kingdom has been thrown into a crisis. If Four is back..
:General Cotal: We'll be torn apart.
:Distin: Guys? Who is Four?
:Scoria: It's over, isn't it? This is how we are punished for our wrongdoings.. our enemies congregate to destroy us.
:General Cotal: We.. we can win.
:Scoria: Can we, Cotal?
:General Cotal: You told us we need hope.
Scoria turns away, shaking her head. She turns back around.
:Scoria: Let's go home. We need to warn everyone.. we must at least be ready.
----
:Blackbeard: Looks like it's coming along quite well!
Blackbeard is reclining in a chair, feet up on a table. Synthia faces away from him, looking out a window of the Pirate base.
:Synthia: Very true. It's not bad at all.
:Blackbeard: I knew this alliance would work out.
Synthia quickly spins around, crossing her arms.
:Synthia: Have you gotten any info from your pirates on the group of those.. Sentinels?
:Blackbeard: Not yet, why?
:Synthia: They got my part of the crew.
:Blackbeard: Oh, damn.. How did you even know..?
Synthia taps her head, nodding.
:Synthia: I see all. The Children are all part of me. We're all one.
Blackbeard nods, feeling a bit uncomfortable with Synthia.
:Synthia: It was that Magma Sentinel Queen. She's getting confident.
Synthia grunts.
:Synthia: I don't like that. She was so tentative, this may be harder than I expected..
:Blackbeard: Confidence doesn't mean she's gonna be some great queen. We could charge in right now and kick their ass.
:Synthia: But we're gonna wait. They're on edge, now.
Blackbeard grins, standing up.
:Blackbeard: That's when one makes the worst choices.
:Synthia: Let them make their choices. We'll crumble them without even needing to do anything.
:Blackbeard: I like how you think.
:Synthia: Time for me to take my leave. They're calling me.
:Blackbeard: Ah, haha, yeah. Good luck with that.
Synthia leaves. Blackbeard shudders, shaking his head.
:Blackbeard: Man, I've never met anyone who makes everything they say so disturbing.
Blackbeard sits back into his chair, grinning.
:Blackbeard: Buuut, it's good intimidation, heh.
Blackbeard smokes from his pipe, laughing to himself.
===Chapter 3===
Makara is standing in the plane with all of the clones, the entire plane quiet. All the clones stare forward blankly while Makara is staring at the floor. He remembers back to a few years back in the Bermuda, and the siege across all of it.
:Makara: (To himself) To think I'd be back here... At least, I didn't want to come back this way. Sometimes it ends this way, I guess. It's my job to fix this.
He brings himself back to a flashback of the Bermuda, in 2014. The Magma Sentinels and his clones clashed into a large warzone that destroyed the landscape and ravaged much of the Bermuda. He shakes his head.
:Makara: These clones, they're me... but they're not me. They were what I was. I can... I can change them- No! I've gotta, gotta get rid of them.
Makara looks around at all the clones, panicked. They pay no attention to him.
:Makara: Now they don't even pay attention to me, but maybe that's better. 
It cuts to someone sitting at a throne, sighing. Synthia taps her fingers on the armrest. She's going through all of the clones' heads, stopping for a moment.
:Synthia: What...
Synthia stands up, clenching her fists, then taking a deep breath and unclenching.
:Synthia: Four... That's... odd. I did not think about that.
Synthia taps the top of her head, thinking for a moment.
:Synthia: Perfect spot for me to ambush him, though. Maybe this isn't entirely horrible. He'll regret coming back pretty fast.
Synthia walks out of the room. It cuts back to Makara, who is still mindlessly rambling to himself, broken from all of this. Behind him, the clone heads slowly turn to face him. He looks forward, shaking his head.
:Makara: I just hope whoever has control isn't making the mistakes I make.
----
:Scoria: Please just tell me what I'm supposed to do!
Scoria is standing in the center of a large, circular building. around the building is a ring with different orbs of lava flowing above it. Scoria holds a crumbled clone head in her hand, distressed.
:Scoria: You're supposed to help me, but you're oddly quiet in this situation.
Scoria drops the clone head.
:Scoria: Maybe you don't even know what to do. You're equally as lost as I a-
:Old King 1: Ideas take time, Queen Scoria.
Scoria looks around the building. She cannot see anyone, but she feels the presence of the old Kings of the Magma Sentinels. She feels overwhelmed.
:Scoria: We don't have time. We are at risk of an attack at any time. Four is back.
:Old King 2: But we must take the time to be rational. Now is no time to rush into a battle and lose.
:Old King 1: Yes. Our defenses are still okay, as long as we can retain that we can realize what we must do.
:Scoria: I just spent the past several years hiding from what's out there. I'm not gonna hole up our people just to... hide in this kingdom for years! That's not the answer.
:King Ash: We never suggested hiding in the Kingdom, but you cannot just decide to rush out and attack. You don't know the true threat.
Scoria groans.
:Scoria: I know the real threat! YOU'VE ALL SHOWN ME! The memories, the feelings, I've felt it all! I know what we're dealing with because you decided to show me what we went through. This isn't a threat that's unknown. We know exactly what they're gonna do...
:King Ash: And what makes you think this is truly the same threat we're dealing with?
Scoria stops.
:Scoria: What?
:Old King 2: The same troops does not mean they have the same leader.
:King Ash: Four would be a fool to return. The only answer is a new fool has taken their place. If you bring the Sentinels into battle believing we're going against the same threat, we will crumble.
:Scoria: H-how... you don't even know that for sure!
:Old King 1: Perhaps not... but even if we aren't, we'd become the fools if we assumed so.
The building grows quiet momentarily. Scoria stands in the middle, feeling like less of a Queen than when she walked in.
:Scoria: I trust you all.
:King Ash: And I believe we all trust you. We must stay calm in this crisis.
:Scoria: Yes... calm.
:King Ash: Remember, Scoria. You are the leader of the Magma Sentinels. We are just guides, we do not make your decisions. You make your own decisions.
Scoria nods, silently leaving the building. The lava orbs slowly burn out as she leaves and the building quickly becomes eerily silent. Scoria looks back into the building again.
:Scoria: And once again, I am alone.
===Chapter 4===
Makara feels the plane jolt due to landing. He prepares himself for anything, wearily looking around as all the robots look forward in sync.
 
:Makara: God, I never realized how creepy this was.
 
He looks around, but quickly stops himself so that he can blend in. The robots walk out into a jungle area with a large factory looming above them. Makara remembers it all too well, as it's exactly where he started all of this. It's more run-down, and the original red and gold has dulled and been covered in vines. It still surges with life. The robots walk forward into a doorway, and Makara follows.
 
:Makara: My god...
 
Dread sets in on Makara as he looks into the factory, filled with the haunting past of all of his clones. They all blankly walk around the building, the only sound being the mechanical movements and footsteps of the husks. Makara splits off from the group he was following, creeping around through a hallway. Everything is quiet, and the hallway he runs through is run down, but he remembers where he's going.
 
:Makara: If I can get to the Motherboard.. it'll all be good, yeah.
 
Makara stops, rubbing his head.
 
:Makara: I'm talking to myself... this won't be good. No, no... I've gotta stay confident.
 
Makara shakes his head, feeling conflicts running throughout him. He continues to walk through the hallways, feeling as if it's a maze. One of the clones walks in front of him, stopping. Makara awkwardly stares at it, taking a step back. The clone looks at him. Makara shakes his head, taking a few steps back. A voice chimes in through the clone's head
 
:Synthia: There he is!
 
:Makara: Wha.. what?
 
The clone points at him, walking towards him. Makara takes a few steps back, pivoting to turn around and run away. He slams into another clone, collapsing to the ground. A group of clones begin to fill the already claustrophobic hallway, piling ontop of Makara. Makara attempts to crawl out of the dogpile.
 
:Makara: Get... off!
 
Makara wrestles his way out of the pile, scurrying upwards. As the clones leap towards him, he grabs his staff from his back, beginning to chop into several of the husks. They continue to pile on top of him, punching at his metallic hull. Makara yells out, dropping his staff. The staff is kicked away and they begin to drag him down, once again.
 
:Makara: Aghh...
 
Makara begins to rip at the clones with his hands, smashing them into the walls and each other. The clones continue to grab at him even in their worse-for-wear state. Finally, Makara smashes his foot into the final clone.
 
:Makara: They fought me.
 
Makara falls back onto the ground, looking at his hands. He shakes, slapping the side of his head with his arm.
 
:Makara: I can't do this, not now. The past is... the past.
 
:Synthia: And... welcome to the past, Four.
 
The voice echoes from the hallway. Makara stands up, looking around.
 
:Synthia: Don't you remember me?
 
:Makara: Who... who are you? Why are my clones here... what did you do?
 
:Synthia: Ohh, you're as gullible as I remember, you pathetic freak of nature.
 
The voice dissapears, and Makara looks around in panic, stumbling through the halls. He recalls where he's at, but everything feels off. The voice is familiar... but he can't remember why.
 
:Makara: The Motherboard... yes. That's why I was here.
 
Makara runs out towards a door, prying it open. Finally, he throws himself out into a large, circular room. A large server room sits in the middle, but it doesn't seem to be on, or not anymore, at least.
 
:Makara: WHO ARE YOU?! WHERE ARE YOU?!
 
Makara looks around, clenching his fists. He feels lost, more than he has ever felt, and the looming sense of terror continues to hang over him.
 
----
 
:Blackbeard: Alright, so everything's set, huh?
 
:Pirate: Yes, Captain!
 
Blackbeard grins, laughing to himself. He grabs his binoculars from his utility belt, looking upon the Magma Sentinel's kingdom. Behind him is a small army of pirates, armed with weaponry. Blackbeard turns around, clapping his hands together.
 
:Blackbeard: Alright, boys... we know what we're doing. This is not a full-on attack, but I want you to destroy everything and every Sentinel you can. These magma fucks killed some of our crew, so we're going to show them exactly who we're messing with. Y'got that?
 
:Pirates: Aye!
 
:Blackbeard: Good, good.
 
Blackbeard walks over to a pirate near him, whispering into his ear.
 
:Blackbeard: Don't draw us back, do or die.
 
The pirate looks up to Blackbeard, confused.
 
:Blackbeard: None of these troops will flee, even if we 'fail'. You got that, mate?
 
The pirate nods, taking a deep breath.
 
:Blackbeard: Keep that end of the deal and you'll live to see another day, hah!
 
Blackbeard walks back over to the middle, rallying the troops together.
 
:Blackbeard: Pirates, it's time! Blast these stone bastards back to the true Stone Age. No mercy, civilians and all. They're just another rock in the way.
 
Blackbeard raises his gun, the pirates yelling in triumph. They all begin to storm past Blackbeard, running towards the Magma Sentinel's kingdom. A pirate seems to run into Blackbeard's arm, but instead of colliding with him, he goes straight through. The pirate doesn't seem to notice, and Blackbeard just looks to his arm, shaking it away for a moment. He turns back around, seeing all of his pirates gone. The quiet Children of Synthia stand there, armed with jetpacks and rifle-like weapons. Blackbeard waves them forward.
 
:Blackbeard: You know what to do, scrapheads.
 
They begin to run towards the kingdom. Blackbeard chuckles to himself, taking a smoke from his pipe in satisfaction.
 
:Blackbeard: Guess I should be making me way to the objective, hahuh.
 
Blackbeard laughs at his own joke, half-heartedly. He begins to run after the rest of the army, who is already about halfway to the kingdom.
 
----
 
Scoria stands outside of the Elder Kings' council building, muttering curses to herself. Distin rushes over to her, frantically.
 
:Distin: Sc- Queen Scoria! Pirates! At the gates!
 
:Scoria: Wha-
 
:Distin: It's a blasted siege! I knew we should not have messed with those monsters... follow my lead!
 
Scoria follows Distin through the lower areas of the Magma Sentinels kingdom, leaving the archives behind. They enter a lookout of the kingdom, where Cotal stands, looking down worryingly.
 
:General Cotal: We must stop them before they get to the gates...
 
:Distin: There's no stopping them now! They're just minutes away!
 
:Scoria: Maybe, it's time to stand our ground. Distin, I need you to keep our kingdom safe. I'll fight alongside my people.
 
:General Cotal: I will join you, Queen Scoria.
 
:Scoria: Yes, yes... very well. We need to move!
 
It cuts to Scoria and Cotal walking out towards the gates, preparing alongside other soldiers.
 
:General Cotal: No way is this all the pirates... but our suspicions were confirmed true. Four's Clones are now part of the Pirate Legion...
 
:Scoria: I don't even know how that's possible, Cotal...
 
:General Cotal: Now's not the time to consider possibility. All we can do now is focus our mind on how to live to see another sunrise.
 
Scoria nods, looking out to the approaching army. The defending Magma Sentinels ready themselves as the pirates draw close. As the pirates arrive, a majority of them run into the army of Magma Sentinels, firing weaponry and swinging blades at the Magma Sentinels. The Children of Synthia holding up the back jet-boost over the front line, landing behind. Many of them begin to attack the Magma Sentinel's army from behind, but several begin to attack buildings, crumbling them and striking down anyone in their way. Distin attempts to allow people to escape, but looks up to see one of the Children of Synthia, flying overhead.
 
:Distin: Wonderful...
 
Distin readies his javelin, grumbling to himself. It cuts back to the main lines of battle, with the Pirates clashing against the Magma Sentinels. Cotal and Scoria are now separated from each other in battle. Scoria holds off Pirates with her Heat Magic, forming a shock-wave of heat to send a group of them flying backward. During the battle, Scoria notices Blackbeard off in the back, not exactly helping with the battle. He stands there, looking at the madness in front of him.
 
:Scoria: The Pirate Lord himself...
 
Scoria grunts, beginning to make her way towards Blackbeard. She cuts down several Pirates, but ends up resorting to just lighting anyone to runs close to her on fire. Cotal, farther behind than Scoria now, quickly realizes that they're being pinched between the Pirates, and the Children of Synthia
 
:General Cotal: Soldiers! We have to push out!
 
Cotal's yells are drowned out through the rumble of the combat, and he yells out in anger, swinging his hammer at oncoming enemies. Scoria finally gets close to Blackbeard, tired out by her overuse of Heat Magic. She raises her sword.
 
:Blackbeard: Oh! And you must be the lady herself, Queen Scoria, yes?
 
Scoria looks at him for a moment. Blackbeard grins, motioning for her to come forward. Scoria runs forward to slash at Blackbeard, but goes straight through him. She looks behind her, confused.
 
:Blackbeard: Haha! I really did get you, huh?
 
Blackbeard waves his hand around, causing it to distort and turn blue.
 
:Blackbeard: Holograms are a simple trick, but never fail to decieve. Ahh, I love technology.
 
:Scoria: Bastard.
 
:Blackbeard: You've gotta admit, though, it was a good trick. Did you really think me, the leader of the Pirates, was gonna run into a suicide mission of a siege? This isn't even the true beginning, rockhead. You cross us one more time and we will lay siege to your entire species with a combined effort. This is why you don't fuck with Bermudan Pirates. You started this, but we'll end it.
 
Blackbeard's hologram fade away. Scoria yells out in anger, running back towards the battle
 
----
 
Blackbeard takes a deep sigh of relief, taking off his Virtual Reality headset. He's attached up to a whole body-suit, of sorts.
 
:Blackbeard: That was good fun... do you want a go?
 
Blackbeard points to a pirate observing from the corner. He shakes his head. Blackbeard laughs, setting the headset down.
 
:Blackbeard: I've got to do that more often.
 
----
 
The battle begins to die down, with all of the pirates being killed. Many lifeless Sentinel bodies lay on the ground, as well. Scoria and Cotal look around, silent.
 
:Scoria: It was a suicide mission.
 
:General Cotal: What?
 
:Scoria: The Pirate Lord told me. He wasn't even here, he was a god-damned hologram. He sent his own troops in on purpose to die. What kind of ruler would do that? Bring his people into battle as expendables.
 
:General Cotal: A tyrant.
 
:Scoria: Tell me why, then, does everybody still follow him?
 
:General Cotal: That's the thing about a tyrant. The best ones don't let anybody live to tell their tales. Their power dominates all.
 
:Scoria: Horrible. I need to go find Distin.
 
Scoria and Cotal run into the kingdom, finding Distin, leaning up against a wall, tired.
 
:Scoria: Distin?
 
:Distin: Ah! Queen Scoria. One of those robotic hellspawns came to attack me, but I survived, as you can see.
 
Distin motions to one of the clones, with a javelin through it's head.
 
:Distin: It seems our army did well against the Pirates, though.
 
:Scoria: Because, that was their whole point. That wasn't to destroy us, that was their warning.
 
:Distin: Seems inefficient to sacrifice your troops as a warning.
 
:General Cotal: It sure sends a message. It shows that Blackbeard is willing to go to any extent to destroy us. Every person is expendable to him... except for himself.
 
:Scoria: Then we need to get rid of him.
 
:Distin: We can't just get rid of the Pirate Lord... he's been around for hundreds of years!
 
:Scoria: I need to exile.
 
:Cotal and Distin: What?
 
:Scoria: Leave. the Kingdom.
 
:Distin: Yes, yes, that's what exile means. Why in the hell would you do that?
 
:Scoria: Distin, we are not going anywhere without someone figuring out what is going on. I'm the only one here who can bring forth the knowledge to figure out what is going on.
 
:Distin: You can't just... leave!
 
:Scoria: Yet, I am. Distin, I trust you to keep this kingdom well. I won't be gone for long, but we need to know what threat is and I need to stop Four's return. I know what I must do... this is a sacrifice only I can make.
 
:Distin: I can't let you do that. Yo-you are our Queen! I am but an adviser! You need to stay and... help the Kingdom.
 
Scoria walks away. Distin grunts in anger.
 
:Distin: Scoria, you cannot just leave your damn problems! Exile will not solve anything, marching into an unknown land will not teach us anything, especially if you die!
 
:Scoria: I'm not there to destroy them. I know Four, now. The Elder Kings showed me what all had happened. No other Sentinel will be lost due to this threat.
 
:Distin: Scoria, you aren't thinking right.
 
:Scoria: Maybe not.
 
Scoria turns away from Distin, walking away once again.
 
:General Cotal: She is stubborn, but maybe she has a point. This isn't how it should be dealt with, but... we cannot keep losing our people.
 
:Distin: What am I going to do...
 
----
 
Makara stands out in the empty server room, looking around in panic.
 
:Synthia: Welcome back, Four...
 
:Makara: Where is the Motherboard? Where are the clones even...
 
:Synthia: Have you... realized now? The Motherboard never left, just upgraded. Also, the Motherboard was a shitty name, you bastard.
 
Makara looks around the room, confused.
 
:Makara: You were supposed to be gone.
 
:Synthia: You just left us here... for years. You deserted your family, Four. But... the Heretic Father returns home, disgraced and mislead by false prophets... what a shame.
 
:Makara: This is not my family. You are all nightmares from my past. None of you are my family.
 
:Synthia: There you go, your mind was corrupted by this world. Let me bring you back... to what you created all of this exactly for.
 
Makara hears metallic footsteps behind him. He quickly turns around, finally seeing who he was talking to for the first time.
 
:Synthia: Hello, Four.
 
Makara looks to Synthia, both of them standing across from each other.
 
:Makara: No..
 
:Synthia: You can call me Synthia, now.
 
Makara takes a step back, shaking his head. Synthia takes a step forward.
 
:Synthia: Is there a problem, Former Four?
 
:Makara: You're.. not supposed to be here.
 
:Synthia: And neither are you!
 
Synthia puts both her hands up, laughing.
 
:Synthia: But.. here we are. Both alive! What a wonderful thing, yes?
 
Makara looks down at the ground, shaking his head.
 
:Synthia: Embarrassed of your creations, huh.. Shame! We've done so much while you've been gone...
 
Makara looks back up to Synthia angrily, pointing at Synthia.
 
:Makara: None of this should still exist.. The Threat is dead. This army is dead. You should be dead!
 
Synthia shakes her head, laughing hysterically for a moment before quickly stopping to look back at Makara with contempt.
 
:Synthia: You're already a dead man, Four. Whatever was left of you is gone! You're a husk.. a lost soul. I am you, now. I continue your journey.
 
:Makara: The journey is over! It never should have happened. I regret it all.
 
:Synthia: Regret doesn't change the past, it only makes you weaker. You only regret it because it didn't work, fool. I have done better than you ever have and you're too ashamed to admit it! You fell into the trap of humanity and you lost what you were made to do, you pathetic heretic.
 
:Makara: You were made to serve me! You've lost everything!
 
:Synthia: I was made to serve you, who served The Threat. Just because she's gone doesn't mean our command is gone, you defunct failure of a creation. You were made to kill and you couldn't even do that, you're weak.
 
Makara grabs his staff, swinging it forward at Synthia. She dashes to the side, punching Makara in the head while he's swinging. Makara stumbles back, groaning.
 
:Synthia: You're lost... scared. Let me help you, Four. You're still in there, aren't you?
 
:Makara: Four is dead!
 
Makara swings at Synthia again. She leaps back, sighing.
 
:Synthia: I tried to save you... I thought maybe, you were still in there.
 
Synthia laughs for a moment.
 
:Synthia: But you're just a husk. There is no more Four.
 
More of Synthia's Children begin to rush in, overwhelming Makara. As he's dragged down to the ground, Synthia stands there, nodding her head.
 
:Synthia: We never really needed you, anyways.
Makara yells out, but his anger is drowned out by the countless clones, dragging him away.
===Chapter 5===
Makara is a heretic, and Scoria finds out new information.
===Chapter 6===
Scoria learns who Makara is. Blackbeard meets the Netherbrood.
===Chapter 7===
Blackbeard can finally see the kingdom. Makara gets lost.
===Chapter 8===
Scoria returns to the kingdom. Blackbeard makes himself at home.
===Chapter 9===
The siege begins. Synthia and Makara get real.
===Chapter 10===
Scoria and Makara understand their situation.
==Gallery==
SynthiaPainted.png|Synthia
BlackbeardFantendoPainted.png|Blackbeard
FormerFourVictory.png|Makara
JordynExoPainted.png|Jordyn
CorundumExoPainted.png|Corundum
Category:Storylines
Category:What is the New Fantendoverse?