"I am about to slap you. I kid you not."

"Awww, did I actually make you angry?"

"Angry? Do you not even comprehend the severity of this? She can't fight anymore!"

"But we're alive! I got us out of there!"

"Just wait until Ahri gets here, she'll-!"

"Hah! Running to Ahri again Seungah?"

"Kim Eunyoung, older than me or not, you have exactly five seconds to get out of my arm's reach..."

Guiling really was trying to ignore the pair arguing outside the infirmary door. Without her headphones or even a radio to drown out their voices, studying her statistics text was near impossible. Refocusing on her textbook, Guiling tried again, quietly reading aloud to herself.

"-is a very fundamental subject that we apply in everyday living, while statistics is more concerned with how we-"

"You were out of control. Your second time out with us and you get Ling nearly killed!"

"How was I supposed to know it'd pull us into that pocket dimension!"

"You pay attention when I say 'Watch out! It's going to pull us into a pocket dimension!'"

And that was enough. There was absolutely no way she would ever be able to study with those two still going at it. Thankfully this class was just something she wanted to do for fun and as a throw away credit. Guiling just wanted those two to go away. Truly, she appreciated Seungah being angry at the outcome of their last mission: but when Seungah lost her temper, there was nothing stopping her in her fury. And Eunyung...well, Guiling understood that the older girl was new and had passion so...well, her broken ribs, shattered arm, and now stopped internal bleeding may be protesting that train of thought but Eunyoung meant well.

"Enough! Both of you!" The famliar voice of Ahri boomed, "Come with me right now."

The squabble continued even as their voices faded, Ahri again silencing both of them before they became distant echoes. With some peace at last, Guiling resumed reading her textbook. But the moment was gone. No matter how many times she tried to reread the text, it just wasn't being retained in her brain. Toding the book aside, Guiling instead brought her phone out.

No missed calls, no SMS, nothing new. It'd been three days since the incident that put her here. The more she thought about it, Guiling also hadn't actually seen any of the others in her room. Sure, she'd just now listened to the other two argue, but now tht she thought about it, no one had actually been in to visit her. Hmm...the doctors probably kept them out. Glancing around the empty room, sans even a television or computer, Guiling sank back into her bed carefully. The only reason she even had her phone and textbooks was because she'd been on her way to class when the call came...

The monster that looked like an amalgem of a clay and human was cackling at Sapphire by the time Guiling made it to the location her operator had called in to her. Sapphire, Eunyoung, was already in her dress, swords drawn, but was on the ground groaning in frustration. Peridot, Seungah, seemed to be keeping her distance from the monster, and Guiling recognized her friend doing what she did best: sizing up the opponent.

Shrugging off her backpack, Guiling placed a hand on the silver and amethyst ring on her opppsing right hand. "Crystalline Amethyst – awake!" With one swift swipe across the ring, a wave of shadows followed the movement of her left hand, her world going dark for a moment. The shadows followed her movements, flowing over her anf phasing her clothing out in favor of her dress: a deep violet with silver accents, cut very short in the front to reveal black shorts. Her silver plate and simple silver circelet came next, followed by armored nearly thigh high boots, and her matching filver gauntlets. The shadows moved up to her already short hair, dying them violent, and her final movement was on her left wrist that suddenly sparked, dark vortexes of lightless energy forming her signature solid amethyst shield on her forearm.

The world came back into view in time for Amethyst to rush forward to Sapphire, blocking the blow the clay monster had intended to land on her comrade. The sparks of dark energy exploded from the impact, blowing the monster back several feet.

"You sonofa-!" Sapphire didn't spare a moment before pushing past Amethyst to rush the clay monster, heedless of Peridot shouting at her to be careful of the pocket dimension-!

Some monsters from the Alterverse, they discovered generations before, could pull others into a pocket of space between the Earth world and the Alterverse. It was an intriguing thing really. Guiling had once read some research on the topic, and it was also quite terrifying to someone who didn't understand what that so called "pocket dimension" actually meant. A world that could be shaped by the subconcious, where you desires could be made real. Sadly, humans had not yet been able to harness that potential. But Alterverse creatures, on the other hand...well, Guiling was feeling the aftereffects of that.

"Don't be stupid! Sapphire!" Peridot shouted at their newest member, who was just laughing mockingly at the claymonster as she seemingly danced around his attacks, fending him off with ease. Amethyst had to admit she was a fearsome fighter, almost as impressive as Citrine and Peridot. But while she almost playfully taunted the monster, Amethyst noticed something odd. They were in a pocket dimension. This was far too easy. The monster moved far too slowly. It moved much faster in the real world compared to this, so why-oh no. She saw it first. The tendrils of clay slowly emerging from the walls and ground around them, aiming towards Sapphire...

"Amethyst," she breathed out, before stomping on the ground, her own shadowing splitering out off the ground into spikes, "Shadow Snap!" The spikes flew forward and impaled into the shadows of the tendrils, freezing the clay appendages in place. The clay monster was clearly not happy about this, howling and rushing towards Sapphire. With a laugh, Sapphire sidestepped and with a flurry of her swords shredded the monster into lumps of clay.

"Ha! Eat it you scum!" Sapphire cheered.

"Stop cheering like an idiot." Peridot chided.

"Why not? It's dead! See!" Sapphire kicked one of the lumps.

And the lump suddenly surged up, and flew onto her face. She screamed, the sound muffled as the clay spread over her eyes, mouth, and nose. Peridot was with her, trying to calm the other girl and get the attacking mass off her. Sapphire wasn't having it: she frantically clawed at her face, trying to tear the clay off. The other pieces were shuddering now around Sapphire and Peridot. The green haired warrior noticed as well, and proceeded to smack the pices away with her glaive. Without Peridot keepin her under control, Sapphire had no way of seeing the newly formed, bigger, clay monster appearing behind her.

Amethyst had exactly two seconds to act. She was there in time for the monster to strike her shield again instead of Sapphire, forcing the girl to her knee. This strike, unlike in the real world, made her arm shudder and shake. Another slam by the monster's fists, and Amethyst had to refocus her stance to just withstand the blow. Peridot let out a shout, the clay things swarming around her like rats. And Sapphire was wobbling, muffled gasps instead of shouts emanating from her. Seeing the blue haired warrior finally begin to fall, Amethyst shouted for Peridot-

And lost her concentration for just a moment.

A moment that was enough for the monster to slam both fist against her shield, and she swore she heard her forearm snap, the shield able to block the direct attack but not the force behind the blow.

Guiling honestly didn't recall too much of what happened after that. She did remember being grabbed by her shield arm, being thrown around like a rag doll, and it hurt.

It hurt a lot.

All because someone didn't think to do their research. Guiling sighed. She knew she was lucky, they all were. Had Eunyoung been caught out there alone, she was pretty certain the other girl would be at least in a hospital bed. Funny how instead it was Guiling in the bed. Who knew how long her injuries would keep her out. Well they'd have to figure out something she supposed...without her.

"That looks like it hurts!"

"WAAAH!" Guling couldn't stop the shriek she let out. Next to her bed was Dr. Kan (or rather, Shingyu as she was told to call him). He laughed loudly at her scare, but apologized regardless.

"The nurses wouldn't let me in, so I just came in myself!" Guiling hadn't even asked why or how, but Shingyu was already motioning to the now open window, "I crawled right in like a spider!" Guiling only smiled and laughed a little, "anyhow! Heard yo uwere hurt. So sorry I couldn't come sooner. Didn't bring flowers. Aren't you allergic anyhow? Should I have brought you food? No, you get plenty of food here. But I did bring this!" With a flourish, he placed what looked like a ray gun you'd find in one of those old fashioned sci fi comics on her lap.

"Do I even want to know?"

"I call it the Healer X Ray! I made it when I heard your bones were broken."

"Oh..."

"This should accelerate the healing factor on your bones. It's perfect. I've been trying to make this work for a while. Can't let my favorite person suffer for too long! Where does it hurt? I'll fix you up! I mean, unless you want me to just take your whole arm with me and return it when I'm done. I'll bring it back in one piece I swear!" He leered at her, wiggling his eyebrows at her in mock suggestiveness.

Guiling laughed hard at that, and could barely offer her arm to him.