Darkness surrounded Zero, the air thick with an unfamiliar silence. He stood on what felt like water, with no other soul in sight. As he glanced around, he noticed something unsettling in the water and saw it was his reflection.
But it didn't look like his own. The face staring back at him was shrouded in shadow, except for the devilish smile that stretched across it, sending a cold shiver down Zero's spine.
Suddenly, Zero jolted awake, gasping for breath. The remnants of the nightmare lingered, but he quickly shook them off.
Zero: (to himself) It was a dream huh? Guess I shouldn't think too much of it. But… What was that?
Rising from his bed, Zero moved towards the family altar in his room. The pictures of his deceased family and a separate picture of another person stared back at him as he silently prayed for two minutes.
Zero: I'm heading out now, you guys.
With a final glance at the altar, he exited his room. The Kaimi Daja were still recovering from their battle with Joshua Egoshin. Though they had succeeded in defeating him, Joshua's final moments had left an indelible mark on them, and healing would take time.
When Zero entered the living room, he saw everyone gathered, casually chatting. He was relieved to see Gaki awake and seemingly recovering well.
Korra: (noticed Zero first) Zero.
Zero: (grinning) Looking lovely as ever Lorra. (to the others) Seems you guys are looking fine.(smiles at Gaki) I'm glad you're okay Gaki.
Gaki: What part of this is okay? I lost my hand dude. Kinda lucky he didn't just kill me there.
Zero: Well he slashed me too. (points at the slash on his left cheek) See? See?
Gaki: At least you have harmonic restoration to heal yourself and regrow your limbs back if he decided to cut your arm off. I don't have that luxury.
Zero: I'm sorry Gaki. It was my idea for all of us to attack Joshua Egoshin and so I'm equally guilty.
Gaki: Nah, don't sweat it. I wasn't expecting to make it out alive. But since I did, things are looking up. Don't apologize.
Korra: What about your technique? Joshua cut off your left hand, the one you use to activate it. Does that mean it's gone?
Gaki: It's not like that. The technique's engraved in the body. I can still use it; I just need to use a different part of my body to activate it next time.
Zero: That's good to hear man.
Jokita: Guess you won't become completely useless then.
Gaki: Uh…..I guess??
Zero then addressed everyone.
Zero: I know it's sudden, but we need to move on to the next phase of the plan.
Desmond: Already?
Zero: Yeah. It's time to recapture Kato Hamura. Since most of us are still recovering, Giles will carry out this mission.
Giles: Huh? Just me?
Zero: Yes. Your technique will play a crucial role in what I'm about to explain. Listen carefully…
******
Kato had decided to visit his mother, still in a coma at the hospital. Since Ervin was occupied with something else, Arou offered to accompany Kato.
Kato and Arou had already gotten to the hospital because of Kinara's (Kayomi's wife) teleportation technique which creates a temporary route between places by condensing the space that exists in between those places.
But Ervin decided to head to the hospital himself after he went to handle his own personal issues. Since Ervin was already in Benville city, he decided to take the underground train as it was the fastest way to get to the hospital which was on the other side of the city.
After Ervin bought his ticket, he sat on the bench as he waited for the train to come, he began to ponder on everything that had happened in the last few days.
Ervin: (to himself) Everything's getting really dangerous now and there's so much I have to do... I have to handle this quickly.
As he sat there, his mind drifted to his older brother and wondered how he would've handled things if he was still alive.
Ervin: Big brother, what would you have done if you were still here?
The speaker buzzed and announced that the train was going to be delayed for a while and everyone began to grumble about how they had places to be. But that didn't bother Ervin as he was now more concerned with the person who sat on the bench at the other side of the train station.
Ervin: What the...? They're leaking out their Shadow energy on purpose?
The person looked at Ervin's direction and grinned menacely, stood up and once he brought out the book from his jacket, Ervin knew he was bad news.
Giles: [BLACK: ARTISTIC ANIMATION]
His Shadow energy surged and suddenly, Shadow monsters began to emerge from inside black paints all over the station. Soon, the entire place was filled with Shadow monsters and the calm atmosphere turned into an uproar of fear as the people around them screamed in fear.
Ervin: (to himself) Now this is a spectacle. I didn't think they'd make a move this soon. And how did they know I was going to take the train today?
Ervin turned and looked around him and saw everyone scrambling in fear, but the Shadow monsters hadn't attacked anyone. They remained incredibly still and then Ervin turned his eyes back to Giles who still stood across the train tracks.
Ervin: So… you plan to ambush me here?
Giles snapped his fingers.
Giles: No, the plan is to keep you here.