What's going on? Where am I? Klaus opened his eyes, finding himself trapped in a cramped dark space. He could barely get his limbs to move as they had been sore from all the electric volts that had passed through his body. When a slight bump caused him to shriek, he realized he was once again trapped in the back of a vehicle. As he groaned at the pain, he didn't realize the sounds caught the driver's attention, causing him to lower the radio volume and pulled to the side of the road. Soon, the driver got out and pulled the trunk open, revealing Reginald.

"What the hell, old man? Did you kill me and lock me in the trunk of your car?" Klaus sobbed. "I indeed did. And you remained dead for 22 minutes. Totally vulnerable!" Reginald responded. "I could've taken every one of your organs!" Klaus tried desperately to get out of the crumpled ball he found himself in, but every inch of movement hurt like hell. "The point is, if the world is truly ending, then you're running out of time to master your gifts! We have work to do!" Reginald pulled him out of the trunk, and they both got in the front seats, continuing the road trip.

It was silent for what felt like forever as Klaus stared into the vast green valley and road in front of them. But that silence was soon broken when Reginald started asking questions. "So, tell me. What do we like to do for fun?" he inquired. Klaus squinted, confused at his question. "Did we take any family trips in your timeline?" the old man elaborated. The junkie nearly laughed at the question, claiming there was no way in hell he ever did that.

"That guy put in the 'dick' in dictator. It was all about missions for him," Klaus explained. "Hmm... how is it you don't understand the first things about your powers? Did you learn nothing at the Academy?" Reginald queried. Klaus glanced over at his father. Hearing the things he did to them as children would probably make him change his whole perspective of the other version of himself.

"Well, things went sideways at the old Academy early on. Five got lost in time, Ben died during The Jennifer Incident, you drugged one of your sons for years, you turned Luther into a half-monkey moonboy, you locked me in a box full of ghosts, and then you killed yourself so that none of us would ever get any answers. What I'm trying to say is... you were a terrible father!"

Though Reginald had to keep his eyes on the road, he was surprised that his other self did such things to his children. "High time I made it up to you starting now!" Reginald glanced at him for a second, making Klaus chuckle with happiness and unease. "You just murdered and stuffed me in the trunk of your car. I have notes, Dad," "Let's not quibble over details. How about a new proposal? I help you master your powers, and you stop blaming me for the sins of your other father. Allow us a new start,"

At first, Klaus had mixed feelings about it. Surely it would feel awkward talking to this version of his dad without the usual beratement, but with what little time they had left, he hoped to finally establish a good relationship. "Alright, but I told you I can't control how long I'm dead. It's just one of those mystery-of-life things," Klaus sighed. "Nonsense. Dying well is a skill like any other. You simply need the right coach. Do you trust me?"

"Yeah, I trust you," Klaus nodded his head.

~~~~~~~

You should've died that day. Allison's sentence kept repeating itself inside Dusk's head as she retreated to one of the bedrooms, slamming the door and sliding onto the floor. The air that had been clogging her throat became unstuck, and she let out a combination of a scream and sob. There were many insults the Umbrella siblings said to each other, but wishing death on someone was never one of them. Allison knew that her sister had a weak spot when it came to mentioning that tragic event, and she used it against her anyway.

The raven folded herself into a little ball, and the wave of blame came crashing over her again. Soon, a knock came from the door, and she lifted her head in wonder. "Who's there?" she sniffed. "Dusky, it's Viktor," his voice called from beyond the door. Dusk stood up from the ground and opened it, seeing his look of worry. "Can I please come in?" the raven nodded, and he slipped through the cracks inside.

"Thanks for sticking up for me," Viktor smiled slightly as they both sat on Sloane's bed. "Of course. Lying to us about Harlan may not have been okay, but I'm not gonna let Allison almost kill you over it," Dusk brushed away her tears, though her face was still visibly red. "I have to admit, the way you tackled her was pretty badass!" Number Seven chuckled. Dusk slightly chuckled at the memory, as it had been a long time since she did that to someone.

But that brief moment of laughter was soon interrupted by another flashback from The Jennifer Incident, how Dusk held Ben's dying body in her arms as she screamed for help. As she slowly glanced down at the ground, her face falling, Viktor quickly caught on, knowing exactly what she was thinking about. "Don't listen to Alli, okay? It wasn't your fault," he comforted.

"What if it is? I should've paid better attention, maybe then our Ben would still be here and not that Sparrow bastard downstairs," Dusk trembled. Viktor gently rubbed her back, which only encouraged more tears to slip down the Phoenix's cheeks. "Allison's right, maybe I should've died. You're all better off without me anyway. All I do is start fights and kill people," She stated, making Viktor's eyes widen.

"No, no, that's not true! You matter just as much as the rest of us. And so what if you've burned a few exes and went Phoenix on some people that deserved it? We've all got our skeletons in the closet," Dusk looked back at Viktor with a look that almost said, 'You really think so?' "And come on, if you had died, we never would've gotten closer. You're the only person in this house that's ever been nice to me," Viktor added. "Well, Five's been nice to you a few times before he disappeared," Dusk pointed out.

"The point I'm trying to make here is it wasn't your fault that day, and I'm glad you're still here," Number Seven pulled her into a comforting hug, whispering to her as Dusk let out a few shaking breaths. "Are you... okay? After the whole choking thing?" Number Eight questioned. "I'm okay, just still in shock," Viktor replied, glancing at his lap. Dusk nodded, knowing exactly how it felt to be rumored and abused like that.

They sat in the room for a while longer, the silence growing unsettling. But neither of them could bring themselves to go back down there. Not with Allison around. Suddenly, the turn of the doorknob caught their attention, and the door opened to reveal Ben. "Let me stop you short, we're not going down to help if Allison's still there," the raven claimed. "Have you two been waiting for someone to chase after you this whole time? Maybe that annoying redhead or the jumpy guy?" Ben inquired.

Dusk and Viktor stayed silent as Ben slightly chuckled. "That's so embarrassing," he shook his head. "Well, it's official. Our Ben was better," Viktor spoke up. "So I'm told. You know, people say we have egos, but you're the really messy bitches. Letting the world burn because you're angry with your sister?" Is this dude trying to make me blow my top again? Cause it's working... Viktor gently grabbed her hand, silently telling her to stay calm, before claiming they weren't letting the chaos continue out of anger.

"Don't care. Won't matter much longer anyway. In a few days, we'll all be kugeltoast. So, continue being selfish bastards if you wish," Ben turned to walk away but retreated a few steps, looking back at them. "And stop crying on my sister's bed. It's gross," As the door shut again, the two Umbrellas looked at one another, considering Ben's point. They may have been angry with Allison at the moment, but they couldn't let that stop them from ending the Kugelblitz madness.

"I guess we should head back down there then?" Dusk asked. "I guess so..." Viktor responded, taking her hand as they went back to the others.