A little while later, all the other pairs of soulmates were gathered together in their special meeting room in the treehouse. Each of them sat side by side with their soulmate, the two seats closest to the door remaining empty. Anticipation held in the air, as well as worry.

"Do you think he's going to be alright?" Jimmy asked nervously. He glanced between Tango and the other person he was sitting next to: Grian. Tango, because he was his soulmate, trusted him the most. Grian, because aside from Cleo, Martyn seemed to be closest to him – or at least, feel most indebted to. Jimmy didn't really like to think of it as the latter.

"He's tough." Ren replied, even though he wasn't the one being asked. He frowned as he thought of that. "Probably too much for his own good. Cleo is with him, though; also Zed. He'll be in good hands." A few of the others nodded in response to this.

"I don't think Martyn's the type to want a full room of people sitting around worrying about him." Scott spoke up. He was worried too, don't get him wrong. Still, it did them no good to; not when they had a group of people doing everything that they could. "We should try to celebrate. We're all here to be free of our bonds, yeah?" It had been a very long time coming. At first, they all had their issues, strained relationships that were tethered together. As time passed, each one of them had learned to heal old wounds, speak truths that they had hidden, repented and forgave one another. Their connections became less bothersome. At the same time, they still presented challenges. They still weren't sure what would happen if they lost three lives, and they sure did not want to find out. That had led to restrictions and stalled projects. Things could have turned out much worse, but that didn't mean it couldn't have.

Even before anyone else could respond to Scott's positive speech, the door to the meeting room burst open. Literally, the hinges were blown out and the door went flying somewhere. In the doorway, stood DocM77, a full animalistic grin as in his metal arm a blown up tnt.

"Good. You're all here. Ready to get your bonds broken, kiddos?" To his side, Cub couldn't help the laugh, his own fangs on full display as his body glowed a slight blue.

"You're going to scare them, Doc. Afterall, it's not as if we're going to kill them."

"That won't happen, I can assure you." Xisuma stood on the other side, the admin looking very menacingly as Doc's shadow only framed his glowing eyes and armour.

"Atttacccckkkk!!" Screamed the therapist as he ran in, fully heatbutting Xisuma so hard the void fell right over. And then, behind him, Joe walked in, holding up one hand.

"Hi." He said, a rather underwhelming introduction compared to all the others.

"Whoa, whoa, whoa!" BigB screamed, instinctively moving out of the way of Zed's trajectory. Grian, who was too late to move, got a full face of Zed, the parrot-hybrid gawking as the wind was knocked right out of him.

"Zed!" The brit cried out, coughing and throwing up feathers he had inhaled.

"The point was to scare them, Zed, not actually kill them." Cub shook his head, helping their admin up. Xisuma could only shake his head, before turning to the others.

"Yes, well, now that we're here, gentlemen, and lady," Xisuma addressed Pearl with a smile showing past his visor. "We're finally splitting you all up. Doc and I will be doing it, while Cub, and Zed will be on standby, in case anything starts altering your codes or something else. Joe will be looking through your code files, so if you feel a chilling presence, it's just him."

"Which one of you wants to go first, hm?" Doc only grinned, his presence sending a scary and untrustworthy aura.

Scar leaned over to Grian. "Dude, I think they're gonna kill us!" He whisper yelled. And in typical Scar fashion, he left before the meeting had hardly begun. He headed for the second exit wordlessly, and as fast as he possibly could.

"Oh, do we have a volunteer?" Zed asked, tilting his head with a smirk. He lowered his head again and began charging right at Scar. The elf screamed as he tried to push himself faster, but Zed was very quickly making up the gap. The sound of metal clashing with bone was audible, the group watching how the sheep-hybrid successfully clashed with the elf.

"Scar!" It was Grian who in a mess of fluttering feathered wings ran to them, checking on his lover. It only appeared to have knocked the wind out of Scar, which Grian of sighed in relief.

"Relax G," Cub placed a hand on the avian's shoulder to calm the parrot man down. "Scar's strong. This won't hurt him. But since you're both up, let's begin with you two." He smiled at them, fangs flashing menacingly.

"We're ready on our side, Cub." Xisuma called out, pointing to the set up they had brought in with them. On the ground were two teleport-like platforms, the bottom of them glowing bright blue. Metal arms jagged themselves from the sides, creating a type of open cage. Cub wheeled Scar over to one of the platform plates, hooking the belts onto his chair to prevent the man from running away. They thought of everything when it had come to designing these contraptions. Zed pulled Grian onto the other with a little resistance from the avian.

"Now, I'm not going to lie boys," Xisuma continued from his spot on the console, a large extended one which portrayed led green screens of the hermits inside the platforms. "This is going to hurt. Code splitting is dangerous, even on a regular day. But, we've found a way thanks to your journals, to notice a split entry way in when you're damaged, to rip the codes apart. You'll be left drained and in need of immediate care, hence Cub and Zed. Once deemed good, we will test and see if we succeeded. Are there any questions?"

"Yes, one?" Joel glanced at the scary machines, before turning to the Admin. "What happens if it doesn't truly work and it just kills us?"

"Then we'll think of something else, but don't worry about that now. We have an out, and we'll use it to the best of our ability."

"Now, enough chit chat. Pesky bird, fairy, ready?" Doc chuckled, excited to start the machine.

"Uhhh—" Scar began, his eyes going wide. "Did— did you test this?!" He asked. His hands gripped his wheels, his knuckles turning white. He did not attempt to leave though, knowing that he was strapped in. "We-we're yellow, you know!! And if we turn red—!!" He swallowed. They had lost a life at some point, after so many months, it was hard to remember when exactly. A few couples had, but thankfully no one had gotten to red. He'd like to think that it wouldn't change things, but the rules of the game which may or may not be in play were always the same: bloodlust and murder.

"Well no," Zed hummed, rolling his eyes with a chuckle. "But that's just a technicality. It's fine, me and Doc played with cats in a similar fashion." He explained, or rather didn't, because he didn't explain what all they tested on said cats.

"Scar, mate." Xisuma looked over to the elf. "I give you my word that I will not let the two of you die. We've made sure the amount of hearts needed to make this happen. If something does go awry, I will reset," This statement having received shocked gasps from his Hermits present.

"I believe you." Grian nodded, his black eyes boring into the admin, the at Doc. "If you say it's good, then I have no reason to doubt." The avian turned to Scar, giving his lover a small smile. "We'll be okay, Scar." Scar bit his lip and gave a tentative nod. For better or worse, he would always listen to Grian (unless, of course, it involved wearing a shirt).

"Good, now close your eyes." Doc chuckled, pushing a button and pulling down the lever. The machine roared to life and blue mist particles began to dance around them.

"Whoa!" Grian cried out, eyes wide upon him floating slightly and watching as his body began to shimmer, as if going in and out with an invisibility potion. Its particles swirled between his form and just like being pierced with an arrow of harming, the avian winced, feeling how his hearts went lower and there was a sharp pain on the side of his skull. His eyes began to try and open, to quelch whatever wanted to pull out from his own code. Grian forced them closed though, trusting Doc and Xisuma. He wasn't going to lie though, it hurt and he was trying not to yell as he felt the way they were pulling at his code and through his files.

"That's it boys! You're doing a good job! A little more." Xisuma shouted through the noisy machine, glancing down to his screens, to the two DNA particle codes that had been intertwined within each other. One a normal blue, the other, coated in purple.

"Bingo!" Doc was grinning madly, laughing hysterically as he executed the command to the player at zero and ignore, before pushing out the parasitic purple one with a split import of the data gathered throughout the months here. If anyone where to see Doc, they would label him as insane, crazy. Needed to be taken in. But for him, Doc was simply enjoying this challenge of a case. As soon as it began though, there was an audible sound of a string snapping and the machine turned off. Grian fell to his knees, panting horribly, with sweat and blood pouring down his face. The avian was trembling, even having a hard time to even begin moving his wings. The appendages pulled him down by force. Everything around him was disorienting and it felt as if he was seeing multiple of things. The brit tried to speak, but collapsed forwards, trembling in pain.

Scar was in no better shape. He had screamed and cried through it all, and though he hadn't floated because he had been tethered and strapped in, his chair had certainly shaken as though it was. He slumped down, only the straps on his chair keeping himself upright. He let out one blood curdling shriek as it was finished, and that was all that he had left in him. Try as he might, he had no energy to cry out anymore. Tears wordlessly rolled down his cheeks as he tried and failed to catch his breath. In the end, it was too much for him. His head rolled to the side, he closed his eyes and he was out.

"Um— are they okay?" Scott asked. Pearl was quick to grab his hand on instinct, which immediately caused the man's shoulders to ease.

"They will be." Zed said, already breaking through Grian's chamber with everything that they required. Cub, naturally, had gone to Scar's instead.

"I gotchu baby, don't worry." Cub had run in with his own equipment, pulling another oxygen tank onto the passed out male. He made quick work to unscrew a bottle and pour it into a syringe before injecting it into Scar's arm. He saw Scar's hearts begin to slowly fill up and his breathing not as erratic. "Once they come back to their senses, we'll check how they are, but it seems to have worked."

"D-did...did...i-i-it..it" Grian tried his best to speak, but the pain had been too much and he was on the verge of passing out. With one last look at Scar, blurry though it was, Grian succumbed to his pains, slouching on Zed heavily.

"Which is wonderful news, because that means we can do the others no problem." Doc was concerned, but he needed to focus on the others. As he watched Zed and Cub pull them out, most likely to their room, the mad creeper hybrid only grinned.

"Now then, who's next?"

🙜💞🙞

When Scar came to, everything in sight was blurry. He winced, keeping his eyes closed for a few moments before trying to open them again. This time, he had much more success. The lower part of his vision was obscured by the oxygen mask that he was still wearing.

"Oh good, you're awake!" Zed exclaimed, spinning around in his chair before walking over, clipboard in hand. "Good news, the procedure was a success!" He clapped his hands together before going to read the chart. "Though, I'm afraid to say it wasn't easy on your system. We've decided to play it on the more cautious side and keep you on oxygen for the next day or two. That comes with complete bed rest for you, sir. Of course, that's just an estimate. Play it by ear; you know how it goes." He hummed. If anyone knew how recovery worked, it was Scar, after all. The man had this same talk every few months. And it was for that reason that Scar replied with a nod and a hum.

"How's... Grian?" he asked, wincing again. His question must have been funny, because Zed only laughed to himself.

"See for yourself." Zed replied, gesturing to the other side of the bed. And as Scar looked over, with the best he could move about, the sight was funny as it was heartwarming. Grian had corralled a worried Mumbo, fully sitting on the man's lap with the vampire's coat on him. His cheeks were stuffed full and he was chatting a mile a minute to his best friend. Upon noticing Scar, the avian seemed to radiate a bigger smile, his cheeks making him look like a chipmunk on Christmas Day.

"Scar! You're awake! Look, mate! We're no longer connected! I can eat and only my hearts go up! We're finally free from those agonies!" In response to that, Scar let out a laugh. It was a weak one, but it was one that had lit up his eyes regardless. He wanted to say that he was glad for that, but he didn't have the energy to exactly.

"Grian..." He said, slowly reaching out to grab ahold of the man's sleeve. He hummed as he slowly pulled it back. His grip was so weak that Grian had to help move his own arm over to where Scar wanted it: right beside him. The elf gently nuzzled it against his cheek. "Is–" He closed his eyes as he coughed into the machine. He gave himself a few moments to recover before he opened his eyes again and tried to speak again. "Is it time for that..." His eyes grazed Mumbo's form. "Threesome... you promised?" he asked, smirking with a devilish sparkle in his eye.

"What?!" Mumbo screamed.

"Woah, woah!" Zed cut in. "Look – I don't know – or really care– what you three do in your free time. I really don't. But Scar, you are not ready for that! It may take place in a bed, but that is not considered a bed rest-friendly activity! And if I find out that you two are going to support this... endeavor, there will be consequences!" The warning only made Scar snicker, never breaking eye contact with Grian through it all. The avian in question became incredibly red, his cheeks making him look more like a tomato. Giving a squawk of indignance, Grian clambered down a flustered Mumbo, but not before pulling him forwards along with him. He smacked the elf on his side, with the arm Scar had grabbed, before he laid comfortably down, adjusting his wings.

"Zed, could you?" Grian asked, his wing wanting to go under his lover. Watching as Zed lifted the man just high enough, Grian maneuvered his wing through, said appendage wrapping over the man to cocoon him. Scar curled up ever so slightly, trying and failing to get that much closer to Grian. His heavy eyes closed, but he wasn't out.

"Don't worry Zed, I'll make sure to be gentle with him." Was Grian's cheeky reply, making Mumbo lay down on his other side with his other wing covering the vampire too. Zed only sighed, shaking his head.

"You better." He warned, pointing a finger at them in warning. With that done, he moved onto the next matter. He walked over to his makeshift workstation, where the new bag of intravenous fluid he had been just about to grab had been laying. He picked it up and walked it over to the stand beside Scar. He changed it out for the new one, humming a tune as he worked.

"That should last you a while." Zed spoke out loud. He looked over at Grian and Mumbo. "We have a lot of patients to check up on, and I'm sure he could use more rest. If it's not too much trouble, would you mind keeping an eye on him while I'm gone?" Scar let out a little whimper, trying to get that much closer to Grian, but he couldn't move his body. The three looked like a squashed, weird looking sandwich.

"Aye-aye sir! I mean, y-yes we will..right, G?" Mumbo tried to speak in between the amount of feathers and how Grian had him lay down. He was trying to maneuver himself for a better position, while said avian moved to get closer and hold Scar closer to him.

"We will, no worries Zed. Scar will be okay and ready to go once he takes it easy. I won't leave him alone, no matter what." Grian ended, nuzzling into the elf who hummed as a result. The brit knew he was feeling better, but knew that if he felt fine, he still needed to take it easy. His body was beginning to protest for all the movement he had done.

"Thank you." Zed replied. He turned from them, grabbing a few of his things and stuffing them into his pockets. "Us doctors are all doing rounds. If anything happens or you need something, anything at all, please be sure to send us a message. And please let us know if you both are planning on leaving or sleeping; we'll give Scar double duty if that is the case." He finished, turning back around so they could see that he really meant what he had said.

"Thanks Zed..." Scar muttered. He said it so softly that only Grian probably had heard him. Mumbo also said a quick thank you, this one much louder. Zed nodded with a smile.

"Of course." With that, the doctor walked out the door, closing it behind him with a soft click and leaving the three alone.

"Gri..." Scar hummed in the same whispery tone. His eyes were closed; they had been for a while now, but he managed to open them ever so slightly. "How are you... feeling?" He asked. His eyes closed as soon as he finished asking since they were so hard to keep open.

"I'm alright, the pain medication finally wore off, and so..." A yawn, the avian pushing himself closer onto Scar. Grian could hear his heartbeat from where he rested his head. He also could feel how Mumbo shuffled over, not letting himself be separated from his best friend and partner.

"I'm quite glad you both are fine. I was coming over when I heard you both yell. Gosh, that was scary. B-but I am so happy you two are good, okay, and that it's finally over." The mustache man rambled, making Grian giggle.

"Yep, me too," Grian's eyes bore to a close, the warmth, the beeping of the medical machine, the lighting casting a faint glow. Yeah, this was home. "I'm so happy to be over." He slurred as he fell into a heavy sleep, surrounded by his two most favorite people in the world.