"Even with all my enhancements, you both still managed to defeat me," Faust said to Musa and Nadia when she came in with Zinx in tow. "You three have something in you that no machine nor processor can put there."

"Psh, me too?" Zinx snorted from behind the green-haired woman.

"Yes, you too, Zinx, now shut up." Faust then continued, "I'm honored to enhance your LoomiWatch with my signature software, the Geo-Hop."

She upgrades all of their LoomiWatches, even Zinx's, which she explained his watch couldn't hold the app at the time.

"This lets you teleport to previously traveled areas in Roria. It's added into your Navigate app. This feature is truly invaluable to a celebrity such as myself." Faust looks them over, then turns to Nadia, who was looking pensive. "I don't even have to scan you to tell you have something weighing on your mind. What's the matter?"

Nadia explained what's going on, Faust listening on every word.

"A stone with a dark aura, somewhere in POLUT Corp.?" Faust inquired. "That's what you were muttering earlier, right?" A nod. "No, I haven't seen anything that fits the description, unfortunately. It's possible something like that could be held within their main facility, but it would be on a floor I haven't visited. I eavesdropped on Dr. Vanta talking with his colleagues about a secret floor where they work on top-secret projects. I don't think they'd be keeping a simple stone there, though."

"Trust me, the stone is anything but simple," Nadia replied. Faust nodded and kept note of it.

"Well, as much as I owe POLUT Corp. for giving me my life back, I must admit, I have been suspicious of what they do in that place." Faust admitted. "I've always felt like they were covering something up." She looks at the three of them. "Anyway, just be careful with whatever you decide to do. I won't be able to help you if you get into any trouble."

"Alright, will do."

"Well I'm going to take off for now. Take care."

When she left, Nadia beckoned Musa and Zinx to follow her. "We're infiltrating POLUT Corp.," was all the girl said as they rushed out the Battle Theatre.

"Wait, why?" Zinx asked as they ran up the ramp.

"If what Faust said is right, then the stone chunk is being kept locked away in a place where nobody but authorized personnel and Dr. Vanta can enter. Which means, we're going to have to infiltrate the place, robber-style." Nadia explained as they ran through the streets of Sepharite City. But not before they quickly healed their Loomians.

"Please don't call us robbers..."

Meanwhile...

As Nadia was challenging the Battle Theatre, Jake had gone back to POLUT Corp., having snagged Lidia's ID card. Jake entered the last room, one he hasn't checked, the door closing behind him as soon as he stepped through. He spotted something in the distance.

"Crap, gotta hide!" He whispered, and looked around for a hiding place. He found a pile of crates and crouched behind it.

'I can't believe I was able to sneak this far...' Jake thought to himself. 'This room is the farthest I can go...And by the looks of it, it's really important, too.'

He noticed a large case in the far back of the room, next to a garage of some sort. 'Wait, that chunk of stone...that must be the one Nadia mentioned before...what're they doing with it?'

Just then, Vanta entered through the door and walked up to some of his colleagues. "Alright, is everything ready?" He asked.

A man by a computer turned and confirmed that it was. "We were just waiting for you before we began the awakening."

'Wait, what's the owner of POLUT Corp. doing here...?' Jake wondered as he shuffled lower so as to not be seen. 'What kind of "awakening" are they talking about...?'

"Alright, let's begin then." Vanta said. "The first step is to awaken our creation and bring it to life. Begin now."

"Yes, sir." The man by the computer typed away in his keyboard, which sent a signal to a large capsule containing a robot of some sort. Three of the six wires connecting it glowed yellow, and the robot started moving.

"The awakening is a success, sir. Protogon is live. Vitals are stable."

"Excellent. Let's run diagnostics and put it through some tests before we proceed with Phase Two." Vanta ordered.

"Yes, sir." The man then continued typing on his keyboard.

Vanta chuckled. "There is no greater work in this world than what we are doing here at POLUT Corp." He mused. "There is also nothing more expensive than running this company. And regardless of any efforts we could possibly make, the world will always be plagued by war." He shakes his head. "It's a tragedy, really, but the ends certainly justify the means."

He looks at the shuffling Loomian inside the capsule. "If all goes according to plan, we will produce an army of enhanced Loomians that will be unstoppable...we sell to the highest bidder...our profits reach never-before-seen heights...and in turn, we will be able to continue making this world a better place...with my inventions and mine alone."

He closes his eyes and smiles. "Heh. I really owe it to that mysterious dark stone that fell from the sky. Soon we'll know exactly how much more power it possesses than the Soul Crystals alone." He opens his eyes again, revealing a sinister glint in them.

"I'm looking forward to Phase Two!" He exclaimed, watching the trapped Loomian eagerly.

'No way...' Jake thought in horror. 'Dr. Vanta wants to raise an army of dark-energy-enhanced Loomians, and sell them for profit? This sounds bad...I need to get out of here and tell everyone about this.'

Jake looked between Vanta and the elevator.

'Well, I can't get out of here without taking risks...I'm not willingly going to get captured again...here I go!'

Jake then ran out of his hiding place, holding the keycard to the sensor and running through the door as soon as the doors opened.

Vanta turned around just as the doors closed. "Who was that?!" He exclaimed before analyzing the situation. "They must've seen and heard everything if they were in here this whole time..."

He looked at the soldiers guarding the room and glared at them. "Well, don't just stand there, go after them!" He ordered. The soldiers saluted and ran towards the elevator.

Back outside POLUT Corp. HQ, Nadia had just managed to get to the doors when Jake burst out of it, seemingly in a hurry.

"Jake? Did you finish what you were doing?" Musa asked when they saw Jake.

He looks up, slightly panicked before relaxing. "Oh good, it's you!" Jake exclaims. "I don't have time to explain right now. Take this keycard and do whatever you can to stop Dr. Vanta."

"Wait, what's all this about?" Nadia asked just as Jake shoves the silver keycard into her hands.

"Like I said, no time to explain." Jake replied. "POLUT Corp. is not what they seem on the surface. Sneak into their testing lab and you'll see what I mean. You can stop them. I have to go now, but I'll be seeing you guys again."

Jake then rushes off in a different direction.

"What was that about?" Nadia asked Musa and Zinx, who both shrug.

Two guards then run out of the gate soon after. "You there!" One shouts, pointing at Nadia. "Have you seen a young man come running through here?"

"He's stolen private intelligence directly from POLUT Corp. headquarters and must be stopped." The other one adds.

"No, I haven't." Nadia lied, hoping her expression doesn't betray her. Musa and Zinx also shake their heads.

"Well, if you see this individual, or discover any information that will aid in capturing him, please report it at the police station." The guard says.

"Well, let's get back to searching." The other guard says, and they leave.

"Private intel?" Nadia asked Zinx, who shrugs.

"Mom and Dad never say anything about what they do. That's the kind of private intel we're talking about. We'll have to figure it out ourselves."

In POLUT's campus, a guard standing in the way of a stairwell was lamenting about how he hasn't had any lunch since his breaks were taken away when he got demoted.

The three of them had split up to look for ways to get into the secret labs. Nadia overheard this silent conversation while checking over the railing into the sewer system underneath.

Apparently the guard wants sushi. Nadia relayed this information to Zinx and Musa, who go to the sushi stick in the city and apparently got some for free. They met up with Nadia, who was lounging nearby, and they confronted the guard, saying they have sushi.

"You have some on you right now?!" The guard exclaims. "Can I have it please?" He sounded desperate. Nadia gave him the sushi. He thanks her and gobbles it up right in front of them.

"Gee, that hit the spot!" The guard exclaimed, stuffed full of sushi. "I feel so much bet—"

He trails off, and then rushes off to who knows where.

Well then, he just left his post. Don't mind if they do...

They then run into the sewer system as fast as possible.

"This gives back memories I didn't know I had," Nadia muttered as they walked along the murky water.

"Somehow, I feel the same way." Zinx offhandedly replied. Nadia couldn't turn her head to look at Zinx without stopping, but she nonetheless sported a perplexed look on her face.

"I don't know what you two are talking about, but if that's your instinct..." Musa just continues running, keeping the conversation short to conserve stamina.

Someone spots them the moment they enter a broken pipe, shouts something incomprehensible, and locks the door to the sewers. When they casually waltz through the door, however, he gets surprised but regains his composure and says that the guards will definitely stop them.

And then they obliterate them. Nadia was even smug enough to drag the man over to the other two, who reveal that the hallway was completely empty.

"See? Us three will be just fine, so don't worry your pretty little head, alright?" Nadia patted the bewildered man's shoulder, and then ran down the hallway to Room 3. Musa and Zinx follow behind her.

Room 3 was a locker room. There was nobody and nothing inside, save for a lone bag half open. Nadia shuffled through it before producing a golden keycard, which the trio assumed gave access to more rooms.

The rest of the way was a literal maze, having to battle a POLUT Commander in order to unlock the other half of the secret lab system, then going through a series of rooms (with one guard yelling at them to wash their hands before they even dared to battle him. What, was he afraid of a virus going around or something?), before ending up at a Room 5 at the end of the hall.

When they entered it, they saw the same thing Jake did: a room with computers, whiteboards, and paper strewn around, a large open capsule with a shuffling robotic Loomian in it, another capsule containing different colored Soul Crystals on the right, and yet another containing the stone chunk on the left. There was a garage near the left capsule. Vanta stood amidst the chaotic look of the room.

Nadia decided to be a dumbass, cupped her hands around her mouth, and shouted "ALRIGHT, GIVE THE EFF UP!" She lowered her hands, noticing that she felt a little exhilarated at shouting a phrase she was sure she hadn't ever said before.

"Another intruder...? Geez, what am I paying these guards for?!" Vanta turned around, and recognition flashes over his face. "Ah. It's you, from the lobby. Well, if you made it this far into my facility, then you must be quite determined. What is it you want?"

"We need that piece of stone in the capsule over there." Nadia pointed at the tablet piece encased in glass.

"You want to take away my latest, and possibly greatest, discovery?" Vanta scoffed. "Ha! I'm afraid I can't let that happen."

"But it's imperative that we do!" Musa protested, but Vanta ignores her.

"We're about to run a test with it, so that request is unfortunately denied. In fact, you can instead watch the show right in front of your eyes. We're just about to go into Phase Two."

Vanta turns to the man by the computers, and orders him to commence operation. The man does so, and three other wires connecting the Loomian glow dark blue. The Loomian's body turns from a stark white to a dark purple as it starts thrashing around more.

"It is complete, sir. Protogon is showing significant gains in strength."

"Perfect!" Vanta exclaims. "Exactly as I predicted. Now that our creation is at full power, I would like to test it."

"Sir, I suggest we run some diagnostics first." The man said, skeptical. "Its power appears to still be growing. We don't know its limitations yet. I don't know if we can control it either..."

Vanta started to grow annoyed. "Enough!" He yelled. "I'm in charge here." He turns to the man. "For its first test, Protogon will eliminate the intruders. These kids have seen too much, and it would be unfortunate to have another witness get away."

The man reluctantly nodded. "Y-yes, sir..." he stammered. "But...once I press this button, Protogon will have full consciousness and act for itself for the first time. Protocols and directives haven't been properly tested."

"I gave you an order." Vanta's visible eye narrowed. "Do not test me. Do it. Now."

"Sorry, sir." He then pressed the button, releasing the wires from Protogon. The Loomian roared, and attacked them.