A glass conduit was the only remnant of the machine described to Rojjel in infuriatingly confusing detail, but it was enough to confirm to him that this was the correct location. The suspicious level of blockading to what otherwise appeared to be a rudimentary rundown house, as well as the obvious removal of technology that had previously been housed here, assisted in the confirmation as well, and was fortuitously bypassed with ease by Anise's remarkable abilities.

He hadn't known what to think of the alien once he'd met her. Sophie's rambling praise was unfortunately not enough to convince him to trust her, and Alexa and Abigail's more trustworthy wariness had informed his own more reserved approach to the woman, but he had to admit he had grown impressed with her; her formidable powers, naturally, but more the way she held herself, a respectable solemnity, a humble stature that nonetheless betrayed an intimidating aura, a staunch sense of justice. He found himself moved by her record of her arrival to this system and the various skirmishes she'd inserted herself into, gathering information as she protected people, and eventually encountering the equally remarkable Terra, rescuing her from Staarus forces, then the two teaming up and eventually becoming a powerful couple.

He glanced discretely at Terra now, still fascinated by her existence, the unique blend of Paladanian and Weraynian genetics that had been forced upon her. She was currently focussed on surveying the site, assessing the existing barriers. He didn't think they were likely to be attacked, given how smoothly their first trial of the prototype device had gone. He had to give Sophie credit where credit was due; her concept had been ingenius, and as familiar as he was with the gel matrix system it had been trivial to strip parts from the ship Anise had brought him and create a portable version of the more complicated matrix their team had helped install on Werayne. He had confidence in his role in this attempt - though the weight of the Weraynian plight pressed on his skull, he'd always been skilled at compartmentalisation, of focussing fixatedly on his own task, his own area of expertise, no matter how it impacted the wider project. He could ensure his own work was impeccable, and lock any worries about the bigger picture away until the appropriate time.

Nonetheless, he was grateful for Anise and Terra's presence and assistance. Their accompaniment would be a reassurance in the case of any issues. It was decidedly unnerving how helpless he became whilst channeling his powers through the gel matrix - of course it was essential and designed that way, necessary for combatting the signals they were aiming for, but regardless it left him quite vulnerable, no matter how small the likelihood of interference was.

As if in answer to his thoughts, Anise manifested in the room once more, the shadows momentarily banished by her ethereal form before she once more resembled an ordinary nonmiraculous being. "The perimeter is secure. The streets are quiet." She lay her gaze on him, and once again he caught a glimpse of the power held within, and held back a shudder. "You do think we're expecting backlash from Staarus forces?"

"Not directly, or at least not at this site." He replied, adjusting his goggles. "But we are expecting Headquarters, or wherever their ploy is directed from, to attempt to combat our interference."

Anise and Terra exchanged a contemplative glance, and it seemd to Rojjel as if they were telepathically drawing up battle plans. "So we'll need to be ready for attacks on any front." Terra said, eyes flashing ominously.

Rojjel grunted in agreeance.

"Do you need help setting up the device?" Anise asked.

"That would be very helpful, thank you."

She came and crouched next to where the device was currently situated in the centre of the room. "Is it the same setup as last time?"

"Essentially." He replied, and together they started to uncoil the spools of wire from the prototype. Once that was done, he let the two unfold all the different panels while he booted up the central matrix. The gel they'd extracted meshed indelicately with the screen he'd refitted for the occasion. "I just need to slightly adjust the calibrations from what we had previously."

They worked methodically in silence, exactly the way Rojjel liked it. They made a good team; Terra and Anise were very pleasant company. He wondered how much chaos the team Sophie was heralding over on Werayne was experiencing. He smiled fondly despite himself. The compartmentalisation of his brain came under threat as he found himself thinking wistfully of the rest of team Sindro.

He had had zero expectation to become attached to any of them, especially given his deep distrust of the Staarus leadership who had assembled the team. He'd often cursed the foolish hackjob on a server that had put him on the government radar, and subsequently led to him being handpicked for their draconic technological project. It had been both insulting and terrifying, to have an anarchist of his caliber on a top-secret government team. Had they not expected him to be able to subvert their systems somehow? But of course he hadn't been able to, but it had given him information to use against them. But what if it wasn't enough? He tried to dislodge the thought, the fear. Jayken's face swam in his vision and he cursed himself. He'd never been on a particular side of the Weraynian debate until he'd met that stupidly sweet and sincere man, who was far too open about the things that had been done to him. It was bad enough to think that he had been used to build this Weraynian torture machine, but to have it be tested on Jayken in that prison was too much to bear.

He stepped out of his thoughts and checked his timepiece - they still had plenty of time to go before the agreed upon launch hour, though still a few settings to fiddle with. He was glad he was able to piggyback on the Halapatovian central nodes to amplify the prototype's range, making up for the device's limitations compared to the elaborate apparatus on Werayne. He aligned the transmitters to the right frequency and got back to work on the gel matrix.

Before too long they were celebrating a well earned break, sipping on fortifying drinks Terra had brought with her and simply waiting down the time until launch.

"Strange to think the war might be over soon." Anise said wistfully.

Rojjel was not one for this kind of talk, but he made an effort, giving an agreeable hum.

"Let's hope so." Terra said gruffly, wiping her hands on her clothes. "I'm sure whatever comes next will be equally gruelling though."

"Perhaps." Anise said thoughtfully. "I might need to take a rare vacation once everything's settled."

"You could come to my planet." Terra said slyly, and Rojjel found himself intensely curious as to what she meant by that. The way she said it made him think she meant some place other than Werayne or Flauraan. But where then? He wasn't one to pry directly however, he'd have to see what gossip he could get through the grapevine.

"That's a perfect idea." Anise said with a smile, and the two shared a moment before Anise unexpectedly pulled Rojjel into it. "What about you Rojjel? Anything you're looking forward to?"

This hopeful talk was starting to make him sweat. He resisted the urge to finger his betrothal necklace, and think of Jamie, and a wedding that he'd almost accepted they'd never be able to arrange. He'd done a very good job not thinking of him, and he wasn't going to break that streak now. He shrugged, lifting his flask to his lips, allowing him some extra time to think of an answer. "Hard to know what the world's going to look like after this."

"That's true." Said the dimension traversing being who was choosing to throw her lot in with the Staarus System, but who would be perfectly capable of disappearing safely forever if the world fell apart after today. He told himself not to grudge her that; she was here, and if they won it would only be because of her assistance. And even if they lost, he still owed her everything for saving Jayken, even if the remainder of his life was shortlived.

He checked his timepiece again. "It's almost time."

They picked themselves up and readied themself around the device, making the necessary final adjustments. He reached out to the Weraynian setup through the encryption he and Sophie had agreed upon, and received an affirming ping in response. Their machine, and all the prototypes, were ready for the assault. He gave his goggles a final, unnecessary, clean and gritted his teeth, mentally preparing himself for the sting of the gel matrix, the pulsing in his skull that could so easily overwhelm him. He clenched his fists and refused to hesitate before plunging his hands into the device. He nodded and Anise dutifully started flicking switches. It wasn't long before he would be too far gone, mind fully occupied by the extension of his abilities. His whole life it had been a normal sense, to move things telekinetically, but everything was exacerbated by the gel matrix, and especially in this application. Staar matter was not meant to be manipulated in this way, and his whole body would fight against the strain of it, but it was necessary, and he was ready.

Just before he slipped away, he realised that Anise was distracted and on the edges of his senses he picked up the sounds that she was reacting to. There was equipment being used to break into the site, by the sound, and orders being barked. He couldn't believe it, he'd been so sure they weren't in any danger here. There was nothing to be done though, the mission was too important. He needed to trust his companions to protect him, to protect the device. The last thing he saw consciously was Anise disappear in a flash of light to confront the attackers while Terra began arming herself, and then Rojjel gave himself over to the change.

The world was noise and light and endless, endless pulsing. His muscles ached - he was suspended in space; he was within the wiring; he was staar matter itself. There was a part of him that could see the action around him, not completely disconnected from his body, but mostly he was honing in on the transmission, on the flow of staar matter, on pressing against the resistance on the path he'd set. There was a whirl of motion and he wasn't sure if Terra was fighting someone or the barriers had burst open or Anise had simply reappeared. For all he knew it was all of the above. There had to be someone beside him because the signals grew clearer, which could only be the work of someone adjusting the scanner according to the output. Time was a fluid he surged through, energy rippling around him. He saw visions of silver figures, as if they were here, in the room with him, as if he could reach out and touch. He felt as if he was strengthened by their presence somehow, and with a push he broke through the first barrier. At the corner of his senses he heard a cry of joy, and wondered if it was for him, or an echo from the past. He watched as a burst of light appeared in the distance, and a figure fell through it, and disappeared. He wished he could make sense of anything, he felt sure that he used to be someone who was good at interpreting data. Now all he was good for was the bombardment. He felt the power waver suddenly, in the distance, a phantom limb, and the universe trembled. He redoubled his efforts, and then recoiled as something ripped through him. Ultimately the balance was kept, but something had changed. The noise in his head started to sound like screaming. There was pressure from all angles, and then it eased, bit by bit. Information streamed before his eyes, signals collapsing. And then, and then, and then, and then-

The floor was cold, someone was holding up his head, there was pressure on his leg, but the world was still blurry. He could hear Anise and Terra talking but couldn't make out what they were saying.

His eyes started to focus; Terra was holding a cloth to his leg, which seemed to be bleeding. She seemed amused by the confusion on his face. "You got shot." she said, and he blinked. "But they only nicked you. No harm done."

Slowly he was able to take in more of his surroundings - the room filled with debris, the wall having been blasted in, the remnants of a skirmish, Terra and Anise battered but uninjured, and then the device, somehow good as new. Everything flooded back to him.

"Did we succeed?" he asked, dazed.

"I think so." said Anise. "Only time will tell."