The Wielders of Chaos part 31

A Creature of Chaos is an amalgamation of both original music and several OST tracks. Here Alucard confronts Richter in the castle keep and frees him from the Dark Priest Shaft's control. It is at this time that the Reverse Castle descends. The castle defenders were exhausted, only a handful remaining and many of them suffering debilitating wounds. Tragically Lady Kriegfeld who had battled at the fore of the castles defence, was ripped from the battlements by a leathery winged creature as the Chaos forces fled, a last spiteful act of destruction that eventually tore the family apart.

'Whatever It Takes,'

Miles is not feeling too confident. It's actually an old habit of his. It is like this continuous flutter of butterflies in his stomach that never goes away until he sees the result of his efforts. In school it was usually before a test that he feels it the worst. That no matter how much he'd study, no matter how much effort he'd put in, it can all be rendered moot when he sees the result of his efforts. At times it feels like the end results don't reflect his efforts, and that it ends up not meaning anything in the end, and it's a habit that has stuck with him for as long as he can remember. He doesn't like failure despite that being a natural part of life. Its like failure is a blow to himself as a person. Every failure he has internalized in one way or another. He always feels that failure will be the end all be all. It was a tick that always made him second guess his actions. His parents were always so good at calming him down when he got like that though. They were always able to assure him that failure isn't the lack of knowing something, it's the opportunity to know more. Its when you know for sure that what you believe is true, until it isn't. It can be depressing, but also uplifting to know you can never stop learning, that you are human, and that nothing can ever truly be perfect. That's why it's important to try over and over again by learning from mistakes and becoming better for them. That was how they saw failure. Its important to fail before you can succeed.

He just hopes that this is the moment where failures can come to fruition to become a success.

He was with his team, no not just his team, his friends, as they figure out exactly where Mephiles' castle is. They had all felt they were on the same page of things, especially since they had a game plan now. Mephiles needs energy to stay in a state of existence. Without that energy he disappears possibly everything he has done will begin to revert. While everything can't be undone, things can at least get better. Tower had returned to the meeting room to give the Chaos Wilders a general location of where Mephiles is located. It's very important to triangulate the location of the castle to prepare an attack. They all knew it moved, the reasoning behind it was an unknown factor that Miles hopes doesn't end up biting them in the butt. Sol remained at his side, staying close, which somehow was able to keep Miles from totally losing his mind. The castle had been located in Wild Canyon. Based on prior locations before then it was clear that it was on a path moving eastward. The reason was difficult to understand. Miles stares at the map with his eyes tracing the previous locations. Then his eyes move to the places in the direction of the castle's trajectory. It was known to veer away from populated areas for the most part. But something did strike Miles as he sees something.

'Soleana…' Miles mutters.

'Something wrong?' Sol asks.

'I don't know…I was just thinking…Soleana is in the general direction that the castle is going.'

'Well that is a possible destination considering the connection we discovered he has with that place. He had first raised his castle on the far end of the continent and seems to reside there 24/7. It is curious as to why he never leaves that place,' Tower explains.

'He never leaves?' Rob questioned.

Tower nods, 'As far as our intelligence is aware, he's never left the castle. We've had no confrontation of any kind with Mephiles only his agents or proxies.'

'That's kinda strange…' Ed remarks. 'If I were king of the world, I'd at least let my subjects know what I look like.'

'Well he doesn't have showmanship I suppose,' Mikaela said. 'Still is that something we should really be focusing on?'

'Sonic says that Mephiles was able to manipulate the castle walls and structures at his will. It's a little strange all the same. But Mikaela does have a point,' Miles explained.

'Well with Enerjak, he stayed on Angel Island to have access to the Master Emerald which was his source of power. When I got there I was able to gain access to its power too,' Tony pointed out. 'It might be something like that right?'

'So, it probably wouldn't hurt to cause a little mayhem,' Frost spoke with a slight smirk on his face. 'I am totally for that by the way!'

'It is a theory, but how much force are we willing to put behind such a venture?' Tower questioned the group of teens. The man was used to leading soldiers, he doesn't usually rely on the judgment of his subordinates, let alone teenagers, but he has seen them prove themselves. Especially since this wasn't a normal situation.

'Ed, Victor, what do our resident Chaos experts say?' Sol asked.

'Tikal?' Ed questions his emerald placed on the table in front of him. All the wielders have their emeralds on the table so they can be a point of reference.

'It is a strategy that has merit. If the castle does have a destination it would be imperative to prevent it from reaching it. I feel a powerful energy emitting from that place.'

'Chaos agrees. Destroying it wouldn't hurt. He feels this malicious energy from it, so he's all about it going away,' Victor adds in place of Chaos' unspoken words.

'Well I suppose we can provide a few charges for you. But having you all fighting on the clock seems to be an added stressor that is uneeded…' Tower mutters.

'This whole situation is stressful, we either win or we lose. Its basically that simple isn't it?' Will said in simple terms.

'We either beat the bad guy or we lose and the bad guy destroys the world,' Kitt added.

'Okay then, I will prepare to have charges issued to each team. Is there anything else you need from GUN?'

'Yeah, stay back when the battle starts. We don't need any extra casualties,' Miles said.

'I will pass the message along, but the many men and women in this army may not listen. As you know, they believe in fighting for what they believe in. If you lot lose, then we all lose,' Tower said as he moves to the leave the room. With his exit this leaves only the wielders. They all share a moment of silence at his exit. It was actually the first time they all shared a bit of an uncomfortable silence with each other.

'We can do this you guys,' Andy states with a resolute tone in her voice. Attention shifts to her. 'We have been through one crazy situation after another. We've done really good in fighting off some of the worst this world has to offer. We can do this!'

'We can at least try,' DJ says with a sullen tone.

'No, Andy is right,' Miles says sternly. He grabs Sol's hand again and she squeezes it in response. 'You guys are the best of the best. We may not have enough training, we may have lucked into these powers, we may have doubts, and we may feel overwhelmed. Despite all that, we're doing this, so let's go be goddamn superheroes!'

-000-

The teams were divided in their usual squads. Since Team Dark was down a member, they joined Team Chaotix. Team Sonic is to go for a frontal assault. Miles was sure that as the carrier of Sonic he would warrant a lot of attention from Mephiles. He suggested going in alone and having Rob and Tony back up Team Dark. However, the two of them wouldn't have it. So, the team go in together as usual. Team Chaotix plus Dark would move covertly setting their charges within the palace. Team Rose would do the same, moving to meet up with Team Sonic. Those from the other world would divide into teams. Frost, George, and Lauren would be a team designated Team Might, their job was to cause as much mayhem as they could. With Ed and Victor serving as Team Chaos. The two of them could provide a large destructive force, so they were to cause as much destruction as they could. Cinos asked if he could be a supplemental member of this team should he feel that his presence with Team Chaotix was lacking. He had a lot of aggression to work out, plus he could teleport so that would be helpful.

Some of the late arrivals were a bit miffed at being shoehorned into teams. But seeing as they came in late after the teams had been formed it just couldn't be helped. Everyone was already pretty comfortable with their teams and it wouldn't be changed. After all it is the last briefing before they were released out into the field to begin the fight. The teams would be escorted by GUN escorts into the hot zone. Once in the hot zone the teams would moveout in increments. Team Sonic all geared up, travel within a GUN helicopter toward the drop off zone. Tony seeming rather casual as he seats in his seat rather calmly, Rob couldn't help but fidget with his gear adjusting and readjusting them most likely to give him something to do, and Miles simple sits with a nervous energy coursing through his body.

'You know guys…' Miles began gaining both boys' attention. 'This has been fun.'

'Seriously?' Rob questioned incredulously.

'Yeah it totally has!' Tony agrees.

'Ya know we are heading off to our potential deaths here!' Roby informs the two of them.

'Well obviously, but you don't have to be a debbie downer,' Tony says with a shrug.

'Yeah, I'm with Tony on this one, Debbie,' Miles adds.

'You two are going to be insufferable till the end huh…' Rob sighed before pausing in his fiddling with his devices. 'But I do admit, it hasn't been all doom and gloom. Despite all this, I'm glad I got to know everyone.'

'That fun party we had, fighting off that giant monster, facing off against Enerjak, becoming a superhero, and pretty much everything that's happened has been incredible! It feels a bit unfair I didn't get a chance to hang out with everyone…'

'They were fighting to protect the people on their home world, it couldn't be helped, besides did you guys see how DJ and Lauren were hitting it off?'

'Oh my god right! Seriously talk about working fast, they've only known each other a few days!' Tony exclaims.

'We all had a chance to really open up with each other at the party. I'm really glad we did that…' Miles admits.

'Me too,' Tony admits.

'I've never had friends over at my house, let alone host a party with friends, so it was a new experience. I enjoyed it too…' Rob admits in his own shy way.

'So…be honest with me guys…are some of us going to die?' Tony asks. At his question Miles and Rob grow tense. Unable to give a firm answer to his question. It was a possibility that could very well happen, there was no guarantees that anyone would make it out of this. The possibility that none of the wielders would survive was a chance as well.

'Do you think any of us are going to die?' Miles asked in response.

'I…I don't know…I hope not. I don't want that to happen.'

'Then you have your answer. We're not just kids, we have powers that can create change. Protect each other, as best you can, and I know everyone else will do the same. We haven't known each other all that long to be honest. But there isn't a group of people I trust more than the Chaos Wielders.'

'Wow, you've gotten really good at these inspirational speeches,' Tony says with a smile seeming to perk up at Mile's words.

'It certainly feels like you're a different person after you left the conference room the first time. What changed?' Rob asked.

'I…I got a little pep talk from my mom and dad…' Miles says with a sad smile. 'They always knew what to say to calm me down…'

Rob and Tony seem to share a look with each other. The two share a silent conversation before moving from their seats on the cargo helicopter sit on either side of Miles which surprised the boy as he glances at his two friends. The both of them were rather stand-offish in nature, choosing to get people at a distance, hell the same could be said about Miles. But sometimes a negative and negative can create a positive.

'Ya know, you can stay at my place for as long as you want. You can even move in if you want to,' Rob says nervously rubbing his own arm. 'I know you lived with your parents in Central City, but if returning home to that place is too painful I can understand that…'

'You knew?' Miles asked surprised.

'Your parents were GUN agents, the centralized base is in Central City, and you knew the city layout pretty well. Obviously I put it together.'

'Huh, then why didn't you kick me out and make me go to my place?' Miles asked.

'Well, I assumed you may have had some sort of reason, also it was kind of…nice having you guys around. I didn't realize how empty my home was till you guys showed up. So, in a way it felt hypocritical and cruel to subject you to that.'

'Wow…thanks man…' Miles said touched by Rob's compassion.

'Of course, what are friends for…' Rob mutters clearly a bit embarrassed at admitting these things about himself.

'Oh, does that mean I can live with ya too?!' Tony exclaims.

'You're from another dimension, you have a home. Go there when this is done,' Rob said.

'Geez so cold…' Tony remarked with a mock shiver.

'But obviously you will always have a place with me when or if you visit…' Rob adds almost as if it was an afterthought.

'Well that's all I wanted to know!' Tony exclaims folding his arms behind his head as he leans back. 'I wanna see what this world is like when it's not on the brink of disaster. I've seen glimpses but I want to see it at its best. So, I'll help you guys fix it up now, but you'd better straighten things up for my next visit!'

'We'll see to that,' Miles remarks with smirk.

'I will preface that by saying to give us some time. It may take a bit of work to finally get everything squared away and all built up for this big pay off you have in mind,' Rob stated.

'Yeah, speaking of payoffs, did you see Miles holding Sol's hand!?' Tony adds excitedly.

'Glad to see that came full circle,' Knuckles added.

'Seriously guys, is that the one thing you want to bring attention to throughout that whole meeting!' Miles can't help but blush a bit.

'You were holding hands the entire time. Surprised your hands didn't get sweaty…' Rob said.

'Especially since Sol can set herself on fire on command!' Tony adds.

'Love kept them cool,' Sonic said.

'Shut up, we haven't even kissed yet-'

'OOOOOHH!' everyone in the helicopter woots.

'Oh, grow up!' Miles retorts as his chocolate colored skin wasn't quite able to hide his blush. 'So, if we beat Mephiles-,'

'When,' Sonic corrects.

'Right, when we beat Mephiles, what should we call ourselves. We may be charging in as Team Sonic, but what we will call ourselves later on?'

'Team Tony?'

'Denied,' Miles and Rob retort almost immediately.

'So harsh…' Tony responded.

A flashing red light begins to flicker on Rob's gloves, 'Well we can figure that out later. We're approaching our LZ.'

'Alright then,' Miles says standing to his feet alongside his teammates as they move to approach the back of the plane. The pilot informs them that they are approaching the hotzone and that they should prepare to jump. The three of them were already in position as the waited for the ramp to open up. It took a few moments as the door opens as the wind comes blowing into the three boys faces. The darkened sky lay before them as the ground is below with their target in sight. 'Let's do it to it!' Miles exclaims. He leaps out first with Rob and Tony coming out right behind him as the fall from the sky. As they approach the ground Tony catches the wind to begin gliding toward Miles. From the air the three could see a horde of monsters crawling along the ground.

When all the emeralds were gathered up together, the monsters began migrating toward Mephiles' palace. Most likely to serve as a roadblock for the coming assault that was sure to come. A smart move on Mephiles' part. The cawing of the giant vulture like creatures catch their ears on the incoming air enemies. Rob charges up his gloves which he rigged to connect with the emerald on his hip. Shining yellow beams of light shoot out from his palms searing through the enemies easily as they descend.

'Alright here I go,' Tony says as he turns in the air to grab Miles' wrist then throws him higher into the air. He about faces charging his fist with Chaos energy, wearing versions of Knuckles' spiked knuckled gloves. 'Thunder Arrow!' he exclaims smashing into the ground. Electric sparks flying through the air, like a rippling affect when a rock hits the surface of a body of water. The impact scatters the four legged beast all in one shot. After the small explosion, like a river that had stone dropped in it the beasts scatter around the impact though they quickly move to overtake Tony. Rob fires down twin beams for the sky circling around Tony to give him cover. Then Rob flies toward Miles to reel his leg back as Miles curls up.

'Sonic Wind!' Miles exclaims as wind energy surrounds him as he is launched toward the ground after Rob punts him. Upon Miles landing a powerful tornado kicks up in an instant blowing away their enemies creating a safe place to land, the fast winds tearing about their foes. Before the winds could calm Miles lunges out covered in a boost with a thin Mach cone in front of him smashing through everything in his way. Tony and Rob try to stay on his heels as he moves. At seeming them, Miles slowed down to allow his teammates to keep pace with him as his feet slap across the ground in rapid succession. The three of them moves through the horde tearing through everything in their path.

Every action they made, they moved as one. One monster grabbed Rob's leg, Tony shatters the creature's face with a single punch. Miles vaulted over another for Rob to hit it in the face with a laser. Miles kicks upward into the jaw of a gaia monster, then Tony follows up with hammer punch. Miles slides across the ground, tripping a two legged monster for Tony to grab it's face in mid fall then throw it hard into a thick crowd. Tony dodges the mallet of a gaia monster brute, then it is suddenly sawed in half with a buzz saw spin attack. Rob fires a twin laser beam throwing it to the ground. Miles moves forward with a diving kick into another. Tony lays down three more with a thunder arrow. Rob switches his gloves to rapid fire peppering the ground with constant laser blast. Many of the tougher enemies resisted the attack. Miles hits multiple beasts with a homing attack. Tony follows up with his own high-speed move, the red-hot knuckle rush.

They were destroying so many monsters, they couldn't even keep count with how many they defeated. Their main goal was the floating palace only half a mile away. Suddenly a giant golem moves to intercept them. Miles rushes forward, curling up as he began traveling up the creature in at mach speeds with his buzzsaw maneuver carving up the creature like an onion. Rob followed his trail with a concentrated laser that followed his path as he moves around the creature slicing and dismantling the structure of the creature. Rob dives back down toward Tony, grabbing his arm and flying toward the golem. He stops midair transferring his momentum to Tony as he pulls back his fist for a megaton punch that hit like a TNT. The power of the explosion scattered the remains. Miles leaps across each piece of rubble like stepping stones then snatches Tony from the air. He extends a hand up for Rob to fly by grabbing with all three of them heading toward the palace.

'Now Miles!' Rob exclaimed.

'Chaos Control!' the three disappear in a bright flash.

They reappear on the palace. The creatures unable to track them through the distortion of space time.

'Nice work Sonic Heroes Jr.' Sonic applauds.

'That wasn't even the hard part. You guys need a sec to catch your breath?' Miles sighs.

'A little,' Rob says.

'Nope!' Tony exclaims a beat later.

Miles smirks, 'Well we at least have a second before things get crazy, well crazier. Team Rose and Team Choatix should signal when we should move. No harm in taking a second to catch our breath,' Miles says. At this piece of news, his two teammates sigh in relief as they fall on their butts to catch their breaths. Miles was a bit winded himself since he's never pulled off so many high-speed maneuvers before all at once. He admits that the three of them haven't been as synchronized as they had at this moment, but it was something that he felt shouldn't be brought up now, it might psyche his team out a bit. Now they wait for the signal of the other teams before they move forward.

Team Rose enters the battlefield in an explosion of flames. Mikaela and Andrea rush forward with Sol at their back covered in flames dispersing it all around them. Andrea increases the size of her hammer three times to use the power piko piko hammer then swings into the first creature, swinging in a circle as she builds more momentum catching more and more creatures in the swing. She proceeds to swing them into the air for Sol to launch a fireball that fries them all in an instant. Mikaela unleashes a succession of psychic knives slashing through their enemies in quick succession.

'Don't be afraid to turn the heat up Sol!' Andrea announces.

'You got it!' She exclaims as fire lunges forward, bounding as she moves with her body surrounded with flames creating a sort of ring of fire around them. Sol controls the flames requiring her concentration, but she was free to do so with Mikaela covering her from the air and Andrea covering her on the ground.

'You doing alright Andrea?' Mikaela asks.

'Yep, I hardly notice the difference,' She remarks before her hammer suddenly catches fire as she swings it. 'Well lots of stuff catching fire for no reason, but that's fucking metal!'

Shifting focus to the two man team, Team Chaos, Ed looks at Victor. 'You ready for this?'

'I can do this,' He says holding a Chaos Emerald between his palms. It was formerly the Chaos Emerald in Andrea's possession. In order to use Chaos' greater powers he needed a connection to chaos energy. The spirits of Amy and Chaos switched emeralds through a ritual he didn't fully understand. The details didn't matter he just needed to focus on the powers of Chaos and the trust he has in him. Chaos believed in him and he didn't want to betray that trust. Despite him being the only one who could understand Chaos for the most part, it was always a supportive relationship. Chaos always encouraged him to be better, knowing that he could be better.

'Alright, say the prayer like Tikal taught us,' Ed says.

Victor nods, 'Chaos is power, power enriched by the heart. The controller is the one who unifies the chaos,' The emerald begins shining brighter. 'Chaos is power, power enriched by the heart. The controller is the one who unifies the chaos.' It glows even brighter. 'Let my thoughts become power, let my heart enrich it. Let the power be pure. Let Chaos flow through me.' The emerald blinks a few times. 'Let the purity of my heart guide me, I'm ready Chaos, lets do it!' The emerald explodes and Victor finds himself incased in a liquid version of chaos energy. He takes the form of a mock Chaos 6. A multi limb creature, a scorpion like tail, with Victor in the place where the brain would be, and random discharges of energy. 'By the power of the Chaos Force!'

'That's what I'm talking about!' Ed exclaims leaping on the back of the creature. 'Charge!'

'Yeah!' Victor exclaims as he controls his beast form to move forward. His liquid like limbs lashing about to any it deems an enemy. The spider like limps stomping across the ground as it moves. It was like bulldozer pushing against a mound of dirt as everything that was in the way was torn apart. Ed adds his own carnage calling out Chaos Strikes for powerful lightning blast to strike the ground and scattering their foes. He even creates a green chaos whip that he uses to lash out at the enemies below him like he was some type of beast tamer.

'Seems like they're having fun,' Kaila says from his position of hovering in the air. She was overlooking the Chaos duo as they move forward creating absolute carnage for Mephiles' monsters.

'Seems, that way, lets rejoin the Chaotix,' Rouge advises. She nods as she flies back down to her designated team.

'We good to move?' DJ asks.

'Yep,' She responds.

'Great, alright Chaotix, plus guest, lets move out!' DJ exclaims.

With the team Universe, Frost, Lauren, and her little brother George drop in on their designated LZ. After falling from the sky, Sam cracks hi knuckles and heaves his two-handed sword over his shoulder. George and Lauren floating behind him. Sam glances back at them before rushing forward. Their goal was to cleave a path to meet up with Team Chaos. Sam takes a step forward before heaving the heavy metal blade easily cleaving through four monsters in one single stroke. Sam was gonna go wild and he was gonna enjoy every single second of it. It was like watching like watching an axe cleave through a tree in a single stroke. It looked effortless in monsters being torn apart with one swish of his sword. The weapon was properly maintained and extremely sharp. George tried lifting it once and struggled just to hold the weapon in his arms. It spoke volumes of the strength Mighty has and the skill that Sam boast. He was a drifter back on their home world, so he wasn't used to staying in one place. He craved adventure with every bone of his body. With the Chaos Wielders, he got his wish in tenfold. He mows down monsters as Lauren and George follow after him. Lauren offering rejuvenating healing and George joining in the fight throwing a few punches of his own. It was best to keep your distance from Frost while he is in combat.

'Let's move out,' Miles says to his team of two after observing the battlefield. They approach the castle like it was a staged designed just for them. They fly through the air after a great midair jump. Tendrils from the walls leap out at them to block their path.

'I'll take it from here!' Tony exclaims taking the lead. Miles and Tony adjust their speed to Tony's as he leads the charge, lining up alongside him. Tony begins demolishing everything in his path, punching through each pillar that leaps up to stop them and reducing them to rubble. It was astounding seeing Rob move in combat. His fist flying at the same speed that Miles is able to move. His arms became a blur as he destroys each and every deterrent in front of them. 'Need some assistance!' Tony calls.

Miles curls up in a ball spinning rapidly and places himself on Tony's fist. With the added torque Tony rushes forward with high speed crashing through every spike that protrudes in front of them. Tony runs along a wall before throwing Miles forward with the force of a cannon ball. Miles explodes through a wall of spikes. He checks behind him to see his friends are keeping pace with him before rushing forward with the two of them on his heels. Tony's actions had fallen a portion of the castle which forced them to leap through the air. Miles grabs both of his friends.

'Chaos Control!' He exclaims as they suddenly feel like their flying through air. After the warp they appear in front of a stone door. Miles gestures to Tony who smirks.

'Knock knock!' he exclaims punching the door open. To reveal a large ballroom of sorts, it has columns aligning the wall to hold up what appeared to be stands. It was like a conference hall of some sort where a play would be performed. At the far back is a throne of sorts, made of some type of grotesque type of material that seemed to pulsate. On it sate the true form of Mephiles. He shared the same form as Shadow, but it was some type of crystallized form. His greens eyes tilts up to observe them.

'It's over Mephiles!' Miles exclaims. However, Mephiles does not respond to him. His eyes only moved toward them.

'Ah, I see you've brought the Chaos Emeralds to me, how troublesome I've needed to wait this long…' He says. His voice a deep and tired tone. 'I've needed to sustain myself on what energy I could find, when all I needed to do was wait.'

'Do you not hear him? It's over, with a capital O!' Tony adds.

Creature Chaos Batman

'Ah, voices, are they from this time period or are they from another?' Mephiles questions. 'Whatever the case, I need them to release myself from this hell…'

'Like the hell you put the world in?!' Rob asks.

'We're not here to talk!' Miles exclaims rushing forward in a sonic spin attack. He moves toward Mephiles who only sits erect on his throne. Suddenly a barrier springs into existence. It deflects Miles' attack sending him to the ground.

'Thunder Arrow!' Tony exclaims launching an arrow made of Chaos Energy. The attack does nothing against the shield though.

'Ah, so it is here,' Mephiles says as if realizing where he is. 'Children, mere children have come to fight against what nature has preordained?' he questions.

'What's up with him.?' Tony questions.

'His mind is probably so scattered he doesn't even know where he is. Let's press our attack!' Miles exclaims. The three of them hammer away at the shield protecting Mephiles.

'Ah, I see, I can see what it is you desire…' Mephiles raises his crystalized hand for a purple flash of light to suddenly pour out.

'Stay on guard!' Miles exclaims. Even while blinded Miles had a hard time telling what was happening. He leaps forward for a spin attack, but only hits a random monster,

'What the heck!' Sonic exclaims.

Dc Creature Chaos

'What, what happened?' Miles asks.

'Miles?' a new voice questions.

Castles

Miles is astounded. He'd recognize the voice from anywhere. He knew them like his own heartbeat. He turns behind him to see his parents. Trying to take shelter behind a boulder. He stares at them astounded. 'Mom. Dad…'