Ryder looked out into the horizon as he exhaled. The view here wasn't all that bad. The Pole was just beautiful in a way. It had a stunning view that just pulled him in.

He took in a deep breath. The air here wasn't polluted, and the night sky wasn't blurry like back at home. He was free here.... He is no longer tied down by their toxic words.

But what about Steven? A part of him asked him. Are you going to leave him and the other pups to face the problems?

It's okay, another part hissed. You've done so much, you deserve a break. To the h*ll with everyone.

He WAS tired...

Is this the right thing to do?

He closed his eyes.

He... He didn't know...

He was so lost...

Steven...

He was thinking of his crush. Dang it. He didn't want to. Not when he was doing this.

Was killing his dad and mom really going to solve it? Octonaus had promised to keep his friends safe...

If he did this, his friends would be safe from their toxic breath. And so would the rest of the world.

Was it worth all the pain he would be forcing them through, though?

Ryder didn't know, and it scared him.

*******

"Alright, so what's the plan?" Rosie asked Steven as the group sat in the PAW Patroller, with him standing near the front with the screen behind him.

"It's simple really," he said, gesturing to the screen which had a map of the area surrounding the villains' hideout. "A team distracts, a team sneaks in and takes out the villains. The distracting team will have to be slightly smaller, and once you're done you should head in to help us out. Our main forces will be focused on attacking."

"They're really strong, so we have to pull out all the stops," Pilseung said. "Taeyang and I fought their leader, Octonaus, and he seemed to be holding back at the time."

"Gotta agree there," Taeyang nodded. "It was not easy."

"So how do we arrange the fights?" Wild Cat asked.

"Pilseung can take Bubble Cat, Taeyang can take Robotstein, and Rosie can take Utsukeratops. Tuck and Ella will work with Tracker and Everest to fight Octonaus and the other humans will provide assistance. Leave Ryder to me. Remember, the fight isn't meant to take them head-on. Our main goal is to save Ryder and keep the Galaxy Weapons back."

"Alright then," the others nodded.

"No holding back then," Rosie held Galaxy Weapon 3 tightly. "We're going all out."

"It's a statement," Steven agreed. "We're not letting them keep Ryder. We will fight them if we must, but we can't fight them head-on for now. I've already asked Homeworld for help, but we need to keep them at bay until reinforcements arrive."

"How long will that take?"

"At exactly noon, they should arrive," he said. "But we can't wait any longer, right Rosie?"

"Right," she agreed. "The darkness could consume Ryder any moment now, and if he loses the fight... he'll never return."

Everyone paled.

"Then we have no choice; we have to fight," Taeyang said.

"So true," Steven nodded. "Well then, if everything's clear, let's go save our friend."

"YEAH!" They all chorused.

It was time to save Ryder!

*****

"Everything is in its rightful position now. We're good to go," Utsukeratops announced to his boss.

Steven could hear them loud and clear now since they had switched to English AND he had positioned himself close enough to hear their words without being caught.

"Good.... Good..." One could hear the pure smugness in his tone, and it ticked Steven off. He genuinely wanted to punch that dude on the head for what he did to Ryder. Who the heck did that?! And for a guy who sounded like all he cared for was himself and power! Steven could bet from his own experience that this guy was going to kill everyone once he rose up, and he was not about to let that stand. This Demonseu could cry in the corner, but Steven was done being nice to people who wouldn't change, like Ryder's parents. He was going to do his best to take Demonseu down, no matter what! Saving Ryder mattered a lot to him.

Why?

Because he had been in such a place once, and Ryder deserved better than neglectful, abusive parents who didn't care for their own son. Once they rescued Ryder, the Humdingers were in for a very harsh trial. He wasn't about to let them off the hook for this. He hated people like them.

Ryder wait for us! He thought. We will definitely save you!

"Are you in position yet?" He asked the others.

"Yep, we're in place," Taeyang said.

"Yeah!" Everest cheered.

"We're all ready," Tuck agreed.

"Give us the signal when we should go," Ella said.

"All the Tobots are ready to assist," Pilseung added.

"Alright, on my signal, we go in," Steven decided.

He could sense the determination coming from the others as they answered, "Yeah!"

He then spotted his target, and Steven felt his heart break a bit. Ryder... Why did Ryder look so lost? Why did his eyes convey the hurt he, a few months ago, had crystallized within his heart?

I'm going to save you, he thought to himself. So don't worry Ryder, stay put, and we'll stop them. So... wait for me, okay? I'm going to go in there and remind you of the loving family you have, even if it's not by blood. Because we all care for you, and there's no way we're letting a selfish jerk like Demonseu use you this way.

"Now, what do we do?" Bubble Cat asked.

"We simply wait," he answered. "They will come."

Steven felt his blood boil at the sheer audacity he had, and it wasn't just him.

"Should we strike now?" Rosie asked the implicit agitation in her tone not lost to Steven.

"Not yet," he said. "We can't rush into this blindly."

"Tch..." Pilseung growled. He was not happy with this situation. Neither was Steven, to be frank, but trying to force things to work his way was bad. No matter how much he hated it, he had to stay calm. He couldn't afford to jeopardize this mission with his feelings! The world, Ryder, everything depended on this battle!

"We're sitting ducks here," Everest scowled. "When can we attack?"

Steven didn't know what to do now either. Should they attack? Being sitting ducks was a bad thing, but at the same time, they had to do something.

"Maybe we should distract first?" Rosie asked. "Taeyang, Pilseung, and I will keep their focus away while you guys go in."

"If that's okay, please do," Steven said. "We'll need to get them away long enough to get in."

"Alright, Tobot, GO!" The sounds of multiple people being summoned soon echoed in his headset, and everyone's attention was on the sound.

"What was that?!" Bubble Cat gasped.

"Tobots," Octonaus' eyes narrowed.

"Now's your chance, Steven, guys! Go after them! We'll catch up!" Taeyang yelled into the earpiece before the sounds of battle echoed in the air.

Steven didn't waste time as he jumped down. He didn't have the liberty to do that, after all.

He wasn't about to let Ryder go! Not this time! Not like with Connie! He was going to fight to save Ryder, no matter what!