Orion wheezed, gasping for air as he reached the elevator, sprinting as fast as he could while leaving a frightened Ekko behind.

  'Which timeline is this? Does this match the show, or does Vi die- Or the one where they all die because of me!' Orion's thoughts spiraled wildly in panic as he jumped into the elevator with a few strangers.

  The other passengers stared at him like he was crazy, leaning away from his stend panting. Orion barely noticed, too preoccupied with the storm in his mind.

  By the time he reached the bridge, Orion had slowed himself to a steadier pace, desperate tain trol of his breathing so that he could fun upon arrival.

  'With how much they have to so reach the workshop ued, I should be able to make it' he thought, trying to reassure himself.

  Despite all of this, his heartbeat and breathing remaiic.

  Orion shook his head, gritting his teeth. 'I 't make that assumption, I o speed up!'

  eling the offensive magic, Orion focused it into his legs and accelerated. People shouted as he darted past with dangerous speed, some hurling insults or objects in his dire.

  Orion cut the travel time in half at least using his magic. He rounded a er into an alley, earning disgusted gnces from passersby just before he disappeared inside. Orion's eyes sed the lining of pipes and ridges along the wall, quickly spotting a suitable pce to climb.

  Ag would have found it terrifying as Orion unched himself multiple feet to various ledges, powered by his magic. The climb was reckless, to say the least.

  By the time he reached the top, he was gasping for air and had to stop eling. His body felt like it was on fire, the magic tearing through his muscles, amplifying the pain of every movement.

  For a fleeting moment, Orion gnced up. The se was majestic, airships flying above, but the awe was only temporary as he resumed running. His pace slowed siderably on the roof to avoid falling, but it was still frantic.

  Mier, he reached the spot where the gang had jumped in the opening se of Are.

  Orion grunted, sliding down the side of the roof onto a baly and ung himself across to the . Scrambling up, his eyes locked onto the workshop in the distance- and the gang!

  Vi had just kicked open the door, with the gang following close behind her. Orion's heart skipped a beat. Knowing he didn't have much time, he resumed eling his magic, speeding up.

  Multiple times he slipped during this panic. At one point, a sharp edge tore through his shirt, making him win pain, but he gritted his teeth a moving. There was no time to recover.

  Breathing out, he cut the el after reag the workshop's roof, a dull pain throbbing through his legs as they started to shake.

  Dropping down and gripping the ledge, he unched himself onto the baly.------------------//Vi PoV//Vi's hand shot up, causing Mylo and Cggor to freeze as they heard rattling from the rooftop above.

  "Someone followed us?" Mylo asked, bewildered, raising a brow in disbelief.

  Cggor stepped closer to Vi, g his fists in anticipation of a fight. "Did little man tell other people, Vi?"

  Vi shook her head. "Not that I know of," she replied cautiously. Before she could say more, they heard a faint sliding sound followed by a figure ung itself onto the baly.

  "Orion?" Vi said, startled, her eyes sing his disheveled and exhausted appearance. Her gaze nded on his wound, flickering in her mind. 'How did he get hurt?' The thought was fleeting though as Orion's voiapped her back to the moment.

  "Get out. Get out all of you." Orion said harshly, his voice strained as he stormed in and gred at them.

  Vi flinched, a painful tickle burning at her heart before irritation repced it.

  "No," she replied ftly, crossing her arms aing his gre with a defiant one of her own.

  Vi heard the other two shuffling up behind her, believing they were ready to back her up. She straightened up her posture, unwilling to let Orion ruin this. "Everything's fine. You're the oing in our way!" she whispered furiously.

  g-g

  Loud, sharp metalliging cut through their argument from the hallway, sileng everyone. All of their gazes shifted toward the door as a shadowy figure started to block the light shining through its stained windows.

  "Mylo!" Vi hissed.

  Mylo was already moving, grabbing the chair o him and darting over, jamming it uhe door handle. Powder sprinted past, giggliedly as Mylo secured the door.

  "Hello? Is someone in there?" A calm voice rang out from outside with an edge of suspi.

  "Orion, you're here!" Powder's delighted whisper rang out as she dashed out onto the baly.

  "Hey, open up!" The voice carried urgency, followed by sms as the person attempted to break down the door.

  Within a few seds of her initial and, Mylo, Cggor, and Powder were already on the baly.

  Vi reached for her satchel but before she could grab it, she felt Orion his arms around her. Orion twisted around and crouched to the floor with her tight in his grip.

  Frantid furious, thrashing wildly, she whispered harshly, "Hey, what are you-"

  Her words were cut off by a deafening explosion. The shockwave rippled through, throwing light, heat, and debris across the room, apanied by a series of sharp cries or panicked shouts from everyone.

  At first it was just one, but within a split-sed two more explosioonated, almost simultaneously.

  Vi shrieked, her ears ringing as a bright fsh stole her vision. The bright light and cussive impacts around her instinctively forced her eyes shut. She curled her body without thinking, clutg onto Orion for safety as she held her breath in fear.

  Her breaths came ba ragged gasps, ears ringing painfully. The first thing she noticed through the haze was the strange warmth- something dripping onto her.

  Slowly, she forced her eyes open, white specks dotting her blurred vision that slowly began to clear. She saw was red- dripping down onto her arm.

  "Orion," Vi croaked, tilting her head slightly off the ground. "What hap-"

  She gasped, eyes going wide as realization hit. Her head whipped down to see pools of blood on her clothes and sprayed out across the ground around her. It wasn't hers; she felt no sharp pain after quick pats to check herself. Vi's gaze shot upward, log onto Orion's face with growing horror.

  "Orion?" she whispered, her voice trembling.

  Surrounding them was a semi-circle of twisting colors, moving outward like a tide before curving and crashing bato itself. It formed a shimmering, deep blue translut shield with veins of bd red pulsing and twisting through it like living threads.

  Orion was at the ter of it. Some of the energy spiked out like jagged lightning or crystalline shards, pierg his body- his side, his shoulder, and leg anch him above her like a grotesque puppet.

  "What...what is this?" Vi whispered, fear mingling with fusion and shock as her eyes darted from the corrupted glowing shield to the injuries and back to Orion's pale, bloody face.

  His bloodshot eyes rolled upward in a daze, breaths shallow and weak.

  "You're alive… Vi..."