Entering the meeting chambers of the Knights Headquarters, Dumont inserted his data chip into the console. He had a meeting to prepare on short notice, with the invitiations only just being sent. Those invited however had already returned to Earth and would not find it hard to arrive on time. Gavin and Diana were both aware of what happened on Oblivion, and had witnessed the strength of this Demonic Crusade. After meeting with UNSC officials and recieving their authorisation, it was time for the first UNSC Knights War Council.

The first to arrive was the Artificer, who as the acting head of the Knights was invited for his input.

The double doors of the  chambers slid open automatically as Gavin approached them from the other side. For once he was not in his usual attire, instead dressed in a black suit with a striped blue and light blue tie. A tired expression on his face.

He approached the Captain and held his hand out to shake, after which he would step away and stand at the side, waiting for the others.

When Diana slipped in there wasn't much of an expression on her face, aside from the anger swirling in her blue eyes. She was dressed more like a rebellious teenager than someone going to a war meeting. She was wearing a white t-shirt with Kitty's old leather jacket and a pair of ripped up jeans with sneakers. 

Diana didn't bother to shake Dumont's hand or really enter the room, just leaning against the doorway watching.

After shaking Gavin's hand, Dumont turned to the arrival of Diana who opted to stand by the door. Silently accepting her decision, he then tapped his finger on the table's screen. Suddenly another figure appeared projected via hologram. The King of Heaven examined them all individually, before relaxing with a neutral gaze between them.

"Thank you all for attending on such short notice," He began with a grim tone. "As you all know we managed to push the demons out of Oblivion and rescue Jaya; albeit at great cost." His voice trailed off slightly as he glanced at Diana for a second. "Jaya is currently recovering and will be fit for duty shortly. Meanwhile, we must decide on our next course of action against the demons."

"As we speak our scouts are traversing the arms of the galaxy, finding the best stars to follow to their territory. Heaven is fighting them on one front; if we can reach them they'll be occupied on another."
"We thank you for your aide on Oblivion, heroes, and are sorry for your loss." The King looked between them all as his hologram spoke, especially Diana.

Gavin looked over at Dumont, his face fixed in an expression of slight contempt.
"Respectfully, Captain" he began. "I don't think this is a fight I should be a part of anymore."
He paused, looking between him, the hologram and Diana. He shifted his gaze back to the hologram.
"I did what was needed of me, and we won. The only reason I even bothered to fight back alongside the UNSC was because of Kitty." He said as he looked at Dumont.

"...but now she is gone." His gaze shifted towards slightly, and his eyes filled with momentary regret before his expression assumed the contempt that it had held before.
"I'm done here." He said, as he turned to leave the room, not addressing Diana at all either through words or eye contact.

Diana sneered at the King, "Save you empty sympathy for someone who cares. All you wanted was your soldier back you mewling quim." Her cold blue eyes turned to Dumont, the sneer still on her face. "You people and O.N.I were the reason I didn't have a sister for centuries. She was too afraid I'd end up with a bullet between my eyes if I got involved." Frost spread across Diana's skin, she wasn't as good at controlling her powers as her sister was. 

"And the only reason I came here? Yeah that reason is about to walk out the door, that and the fact that I personally wanted to tell you pathetic morons to shove a fat prickly one up your ass." Diana spat out these words, her tone as icy as her eyes. She turned, moving to walk out the door as well. "I have a funeral to plan."

Suddenly the door slammed shut before either of them could leave and a certain chill came over the room that not even Diana's ice powers could achieve. 
"So that's it, you're giving up?" Dan spoke from the corner of the room, stepping from a shadow to reveal himself. "After everything Kitty's fought for and done, you're just going to let it all go because she's dead?" His voice brimmed with anger, channeled mainly towards the two who were attempting to leave.

"What was your plan? Hide forever until ONI come knocking on your door?" Dan approached Diana now, staring her down whilst sending a quick glance to Gavin. "Jaya still needs your help. The Knights still need you. Unless you want the demons to sweep across the galaxy and kill everyone here, then be my fucking guest." His hand then waved suddenly, releasing the door and allowing it to open again if they wished to leave.

Gavin paused and looked at Dan. His expression remained the same until Dan had finished, after which his eyes seemed to display a hint of sorrow.

Diana’s entire face changed in the span of a second, anger turning into boiling rage and a deep dark hatred. For just a moment she looked exactly like Kitty, she had the same volcanic rage on her face. The same inferno burning in her blue eyes, for that brief moment she was exactly like her sister. Then it all vanished, a cold empty mask descended over her face as she looked up at Dan with a quiet unfathomable rage. “You. Don’t get to talk about her.” Her voice was like the ice she created, her tone was almost an exact match to Corsetta’s actually. Her fingers flexed, the flesh turning into water before freezing into razor sharp icy fingers.


“You don’t get to accuse me of giving up you pathetic lowlife. How many times did you give up on her? On life? On your daughter? You couldn’t even embrace her until she killed you.” Diana hissed, her fangs were slipping over her lips as her anger festered and froze. There was ice spreading across the floor from where her feet were. “The people my sister fought for stabbed her in the back. They didn’t care what she gave up for them, they didn’t care what happened to her.” Diana wanted to drag her sharp icy fingers across Dan’s throat, she wanted to watch him bleed. She wanted to watch them all bleed.


“She’s dead because of you. She’s dead because you couldn’t clean up your own mess.” Diana poked an icy finger accusingly at Dan’s chest, hatred clear in her voice. “Lana was your ex. Your psychotic ex. Lana may have pulled the trigger but you loaded the bullets.” Diana wanted to scream and destroy the room, hell she wanted to destroy the entire area. “Kitty died violently and alone, the very way she feared. Because of you.”

Then Diana turned, “As for my plan, I don’t intend to share it with you.” She was about to walk out the door when she stopped, looking at Dan once more. “How about this? How about you actually act like a fucking father for a change and help your daughter? Or have you gotten too used to being the deadbeat?” She sneered, she had had enough of his high horse act. “Demons are your territory are they not? You should know how best to deal with them since you had one running amok inside of you for quite some time.”

As Diana raged on Dan just stood there, staring right back at her hateful face. When she had finally finished and begun to leave, he replied by simply drawing one of his pistols out and aiming at her head. "You think I wanted to leave all those times? You think I chose to have that demon inside of me?!" Dan shouted back at her, pressing the barrel of his gun against her chest. "Maybe I should kill you and use that to bring her back. It might not work, but hell I don't mind trying." Pure distain covered his face, as with his thumb he cocked back the hammer on his pistol.

Gavin sighed.
He was conflicted. On one hand, he agreed with a lot of what Diana said. Every supernatural was under risk because of the humans. Because of his own race. Because of ONI. And this was despite everything they had done for them.

But on the other hand, he started to wonder whether Dan was right. Walking out now, was this something Kitty would have wanted? Would she have done the same? Nothing had been the same as it was five years ago, but was that really a reason to leave? With a new threat emerging?

Gavin moved his gaze to the Captain and then back at Dan and Diana.
"Would Kitty have stayed? Knowing we're all targets?" He asked them both.

"Let us not forgot ONI didn't kill Kitty or capture Jaya. If you want to fight the more immediate enemy and get revenge, I suggest starting with Zaron." Dumont spoke up, moving from the table to passively split the fight up.
"Zaron?" Dan asked, turning to Dumont whilst lowering his pistol.
"A winter planet just outside UNSC territory. It used to be used for mining but we had to abandon it after Haven. Now that we have the resources, and the Knights, we could take it back."
"What does your mining planet have to do with the demons?" 
"If we retake Zaron, and the many other stars between here and Hades, we can expand our territories close enough to fight them properly. No more secretive missions, the UNSC declares war on the demons." Dumont paused for a moment to look at everyone around him.

"Anyone who will not be assisting us may leave this room now."

"I'm not a soldier" Gavin said as he looked at Dumont.
"The UNSC has properly trained soldiers and ODSTs and Spartans." He continued.
"I'm just a guy who got pushed into all of this." He sighed again. "The only reason why I worked with the UNSC was because of people like Kitty, people like Aaron. I felt like I had a family with them. But things have changed and are continuing to change. I don't think I can keep up, not anymore." He looked down to the ground and shook his head.

"I won't be able to win us this war, but I can help the innocent supernaturals facing persecution on Earth.. That's where I'm needed." Gavin looked up at Dumont, then the King and then the other two. He then broke eye contact and continued towards the exit. "Not here." He finished before disappearing.

Diana didn't leave after Gavin had left, only staring at the rest of the group with a mixture of disdain and anger. "I made a promise to my sister." She snarled, crossing her as over her chest.

"When do we leave?"

"Under a week until the fleet mobilizes. We're making some calls to get an old contact on the ground with you, and I can only assume Sebastian will be present too." Dumont explained as he watched Gavin leave the room. "Details will come shortly, most of it will be surface operations so I don't have much input. If anything Sebastian will be leading you."

He then gave an odd glance between Dan and Diana. "Dan, you know what to do."
"Yeah..." Dan grunted in reply, before leaving the room himself without a second glance at Diana.
"Artificer, convince Jaya to stay and teach at the Academy for now. I don't want to risk ruining her recovery by sending her to Zaron." To that the Artificer nodded and also left the room.
"Diana, thank you for staying." He turned finally to her, whilst the King of Heaven flickered out of view. "With you helping, we might just win this war. Drinks on me if we live to the end." Dumont smiled, hoping to keep spirits high for what was to come.