Ash was silent for a moment.

"Ah... okay then..." he mumbled.

"Not... not that it's anything new, but I have NO idea what you're talking about." he admitted with a sigh, before accepting the orb.

As soon as he did, however, he froze.

"Ah!" he exclaimed.

"I died!" he seemed to JUST realise... but there was more to it than just that.

"My brother's going to go insane with the power he's gotten!"

Ash just sighed in relief.

"Ok, cool." he said.

"That's good, that's good." he muttered.

"And... heh... sorry for... doubting you...? I guess...?" he then apologised.

"Ah, one more thing." he continued.

"Where am I going to wake up?" he asked.

"You said it'll take a few minutes, should I prepare to scare anyone when I... er... 'wake up'...?"

Ash just nodded in response.

"All right." he replied.

"Thanks, boss." he told her.

Not even a minute later, he found that his world was darkness, and when his eyes opened, he felt like... himself... again. He also found that he was still in the hallway, and nobody had show up yet, as she had predicted.

He looked around some, wondering what she meant by 'pay attention and remember what you see'... until he looked at his own body, and saw a clear handprint on his chest area.

"....what the...?" he mumbled.

"Is... what is...?" he started to ask, before shaking his head.

"I have less than a minute." he told himself. "I need to get OUT of here, and get to Mom. Maybe she can help when this minute of clarity wears off." he reasoned, before pausing again.

"....wait..." he mumbled.

"Ilias!" he exclaimed, before racing towards the lab, managing to get inside, and racing to the room that Ilias was locked in. Ty stepped aside and allowed Ash to look through the window, where he saw the incapacitated gorgon.

"....damn it..." he muttered, seeing the handprint on his shoulder.

Ash paused and looked to the one that had spoken to him.

"Oh, hey Hazel." he greeted her.

"And... uh, well... something weird's going on with Ilias." he told the woman.

"I can... well... uh... I can kinda tell what it is, but also can't." he sighed.

"It's confusing." he sighed.

"And I'm pretty sure I'm gonna be no better soon."

Ash just sighed.

"Ilias is acting more like a stereotypical gorgon." he told her.

"MY rune is out of control." he continued.

"And the one thing that he and I share in common is this weird handprint on us." he said further.

"But I won't be able to see it in a matter of a few seconds." he lamented.

"Wondering if THAT'S the connection."

Ash just sighed.

"I can't." he replied.

"If I were to wager a guess, it's too subtle or stealthy or whatever." he lamented.

He then looked to Ilias again, and then to himself.

"Aaaaaand it's gone." he said.

"Can't see them anymore."

Ash just shrugged.

"Good question." he said.

"I just know I was warned not to let people touch me." he told her.

"Beyond that, I've had lots of people have their hands on me." he then said further. "Handshakes, pat on the back, accidental pushes, intentional pushes..." he listed off.

"It's hard to say where one comes from in specific." he continued.

"I'll need to think pretty hard, to be honest... see if I remember anyone touching me in this place in specific."

"...." Ash was silent as he looked at the thrashing Ilias.

"Yeah..." he mumbled.

"Whoever did that really knows how to restrain someone..." he went on.

"Indeed." Ty agreed.

"He's not getting free anytime soon." he told them.

"...though it's clear he's trying his damndest." he added, as they hard Ilias' muffled screams and growls through the door... barely.

Ash just sighed.

"Probably." he said.

"But I need to go." he then said further.

"I need to get out of here before I cause another incident." he reasoned.

"Incident?" Ty asked.

"Long story." Ash muttered.

"I just need to scram, talk to my Mom."

"More than likely." Ash responded.

A very short time later, Ash appeared outside the manor that his mother, Vincent, and Aunt Rocky called home. He was in the backyard, and was about to make his way to the door, when he felt the rune try and escape again.

He clutched at his sides and fell to his knees, growling a little.

"Not now..." he muttered.

"MOM!" he called out.

"HELP!"{/b]