"Please, tell us. Is there any weakness we can exploit, given that our enemy is Human like you?" The Original thought long and hard, his mind racing with the information given to him by the Ethisian Commander. At this time of night, he did not expect to hear such details about the Ethisians, the Granians, the War, and most especially, the involvement of other Humans in it. The Original, having hoped that he and his companion would be the first and only Humans involved in intergalactic matters, groaned when he heard that more Humans like himself had been abducted, experimented on, trained, and brainwashed to fight in a War they had no part in. Now that he knew other Humans were involved, his anger was kindled against the Granians, who had violated Intergalactic War laws by returning to the Milky Way Galaxy and doing whatever they did to capture not just one but three Humans... according to what he was told. "The Granians disobeyed the Intergalactic Council’s laws and went back to my planet?" the Original questioned, his face showing no emotion, though anger was evident in his voice. "Enor, didn’t you promise to keep my planet and my people safe from the Granians? To keep my home planet safe from your matters? To not involve any other race?" In an instant, the Original transformed into his Mutant form, his strength mimicking that of the Granians’ Human. The two High Grades stood before Enor, their weapons gripped tightly in their hands, their bodies ready to lash out at the Mutant—forgetting completely about the multi-headed beast behind them. The Mutant, completely unbothered by the High Grades, pushed past them quickly and wrapped a tendril around Enor’s neck. He glared into the Ethisian’s eyes, a red glow emitting from his furious stare. "I apologize, Human," Enor gasped, struggling for air. He made sure not to appear hostile to the Human, fearing for his life. "But there’s only so much we can do and only so many we can keep track of. The Granians... they held a covert mission and did so without... our knowledge." "What about the Council?" the Original demanded, furiously shaking the High Ruler. The High Grades rushed in, ready to aid their leader, only for the beast to step between them and the two powerhouses. "I thought they were all-powerful beings that governed this damned Galaxy? Why didn’t they uphold the very laws they set?" "I don’t know..." Enor stammered, the two of them going back and forth, both arguing and complaining while the High Grades faced the multi-headed beast, keeping them from their High Ruler. "I don’t know. We’ve asked and hoped, but they don’t do anything to uphold their laws. That’s why the Granians did what they did. They didn’t expect anyone to stop them, and no one has. Only we can prove to be a challenge to them, but our hands are already full." Enor gasped for air, his windpipe slowly collapsing as the Blood Mutant’s tendrils tightened around his neck. After a while, the Mutant released Enor, placing him back on the ground and disbanding his beast, allowing the High Grades to return to their leader’s side. ɪꜰ ʏᴏᴜ ᴡᴀɴᴛ ᴛᴏ ʀᴇᴀᴅ ᴍᴏʀᴇ ᴄʜᴀᴘᴛᴇʀs, ᴘʟᴇᴀsᴇ ᴠɪsɪᴛ 𝔫𝔬𝔳𝔢𝔩·𝔣𝔦𝔯𝔢·𝔫𝔢𝔱 Disgusted, angered, and infuriated with the Granians, the Intergalactic Council, and the Ethisians, the Blood Mutant remained in thought for a moment while reverting to his Human form. The Ethisians, having faced what they had, were reminded of how ridiculously strong the Humans were; the High Grades now understood why they as a race no longer had any control over them. This realization hit them hard, especially Commander, who had thought that their Mutants were not as strong as the ones the Granians possessed. "Please," Enor asked again, rubbing his neck as he spoke with a bit of pain in his throat. "I’m not asking for you to involve yourself in this War. You and your companion have already suffered enough and shed enough blood. All we need is a way to beat these Humans. You’ve already heard of the one that can bring the dead back to life, but I believe the other three have special abil—" "Other three?" the Original interrupted, feeling as though he hadn’t been told the full story. "Your High Grade told me he saw only three Humans." "Only three Humans attacked us," Commander answered quickly, fearing that the Original would attack again. "There are two other Mutants. In total, the Granians use five Humans: two males, two females, and one female who isn’t a Blood Mutant..." "We just need to know how we can beat them, or at least convince them to step down," Enor interrupted quickly, not wanting the conversation to escalate further. "For your sake, I don’t wish to kill them. I just need them out of the way so that we can deal with the Granians once and for all. Please, help us. It’s not just my people at stake but also yours." Again, the Original remained deep in thought, contemplating what he could do in the War. On one hand, he could remain completely uninvolved and continue living peacefully. On the other hand, he could get involved and end up dying in the War, or worse, lose and watch the Granians torment everyone on Earth. The first option, though easy, was no longer on the table. After thinking long and hard, the Original realized that his existence was still a threat to the Granians, and knowing them, they would find a way of dealing with him and his companion. The second option was the only reasonable and logical one, though it too had risks that he wasn’t willing to dwell on at the moment. "The Granians have made sure not to repeat the mistake they made with us," the Original concluded, his words indicating that he might get involved once again. "If I’m correct, their Humans are already far beyond saving, with the effects of brainwashing too great for you or your kind to reverse in a short space of time. The only other option you have is convincing them..." "Convincing them of what?" Elenor interjected, feeling the conversation was going nowhere. "Convince them of what? That we’re the good guys and the Granians aren’t?" "Precisely," the Original replied, glaring at the Ethisian and then at Enor again. "Every species in Akrina knows who the Granians are and what they’re capable of. We just haven’t seen them unleash their full potential, but that doesn’t mean it doesn’t exist. Do whatever you can to convince the Humans to join your cause. One thing about my kind is that we have a sense of morality and empathy. Use that to your advantage. These Humans were abducted and forced to fight against their will—be sure to remind them of that and convince them to join your side before my companion and I join the battle." "You’re joining us again?" Enor gasped, a bit of excitement in his voice. "With your—" "We’ll only join if you fail," the Ethisian’s joy vanished as soon as he heard those words. Nonetheless, he remained hopeful and expectant that he and his people would accomplish the task. "Once we both join, we will do things our way. You’ll deal with the Granians, and we’ll try our best to hold the Humans back." "Thank you, Human," Enor and the High Grades bowed in thanks to the Human who, even though it didn’t look like it, accepted their ’kind gesture’. Though they didn’t get exactly what they came for, they managed to convince the Human to get involved in the War only if they failed to do the same with the Granians’ Humans. "We’ll do our best." "You say that, but I already sense that you’ll fail. Prove us wrong."