The front entrance of the detention center, which was recently repaired from Jang's attack, now shatters again from the prisoner's forceful exit. Stag screams as he rushes onward, effortlessly knocking officers and vehicles into the snow banks. Kurt and Komo run after and hop in his beat up, blue Reign. The straining engine fails to start. "Come on! You stupid hunk of-" VROOM! With squealing tires, Kurt races down the narrow street. Their prisoner holds the lead, preventing them from passing with his massive body.

In the backseat, Komo taps her watch and says to her driver, "Gren and Ellia are on their way!" "We won't need 'em," Kurt replies, "Granknight's waiting just up ahead!" A few blocks forward, the mighty hammer is planted on the pavement, and Granknight braces his armored legs for impact. With one hand outstretched, he declares, "Halt! For breaking out of confinement, property damage, and assaulting multiple state Symbiolics, the mighty hammer of Granknight places you under-" Stag interrupts the declaration by pushing him along the road. Metal boots spark and slide across the slippery pavement. "Halt I say!"

Still driving behind, Kurt's bottom jaw hangs wide open. After popping it back in place, he says, "Ok...plan B." Leaning out his window, the mentor swings his spiked ball towards Stag. Chains wrap around his right arm, and spikes pierce through the holes to latch on. Kurt locks the steering wheel into place, then shifts the old car into reverse and death grips his weapon. Even still, Stag continues to move forward, just at a slower pace. Above the chaos, Ellia flies into action, dropping off Gren. The ninja flings his scarf around Stag's left arm, and Komo runs out of Kurt's car to join his tugging.

Granknight, Komo, Gren, and Kurt's car strain with all their might. Tires squeal and smoke. The smell of burnt rubber permeates the surrounding air. Refusing to give in, Stag pushes hard against Granknight, who once more declares, "I. Said. HALT!!" With a mighty punch, the guardian sends Stag falling backwards, causing a chain reaction of events. Komo and Gren lose their balance and slip on the pavement. Kurt's full throttled vehicle speeds in reverse, crashing into a nearby semi-truck. Glass shatters at the rear, and the mentor looks back at the tremendous damage. "SON OF A-"

Quickly Stag rises back on his feet, and Granknight welcomes the challenge with a gleam in his blue eyes. Both armored giants trade powerful punches. One to the stomach, another to the head, repeatedly taking place over and over. Out of breath, Granknight unleashes a hearty laugh. "AHAHA!! You don't...go down so easily...I like that!" Stag on the other hand is not so talkative and throws another right hook. CLANG! The old knight blocks it with left arm. "Now stay..." The sound of a steam train blowing its whistle accompanies his counter attack. "...DOWN!!"

The final blow strikes Stag directly in the faceplate, knocking the helmet cleanly off. With a heavy thud, Xavier collapses on his rear. Kurt and the apprentices all feel the rumble of his landing, then slowly approach the fallen warrior. "Don't fret," says Granknight, "He's down." Kurt tosses away a pair of stuncuffs and replies, "These won't do any good. Not until we take off that armor." Ellia gently floats down beside Gren and Komo who all receive a vibration from their watches. Granknight checks his as well, "Wildfire! Spreading quickly t'wards our location!" The pixie looks up in dread. "That's no wildfire..."

The Symbiolics turn their gazes down the road, where a purple blaze draws closer. Constant blasts from the witch's hands propel her through the air until she touches down in front of her friends. Dark eyes with bright pupils stare at the fallen Stag, with sharp teeth grinning from ear to ear. "He escaped because you didn't allow me to burn him to ash." Flames spread down her pointed fingers as she points them forward. "Now where was I?" Komo leaps in front, bearing her shield to stop her. "I won't let you do that, Delle! You're sick!" "And you're gonna die if you don't step out of my way!"

Neither budge. Komo stances for the impact, with Granknight joining her side with his own shield. The witch's fiery hair begins to lift, as if a precursor to her wrath. "Get behind us!" the shield maiden declares to the others. However, the attack comes not from in front, but below. A stone pillar erects from the road, launching the witch into the air. Everyone turns to the right to find Kronia, pulling her mountain axe out from the pavement. "Xavier!" As if on cue, the lying beetle swings his arms out, tripping the Symbiolics around him. Intense gravity then forces everyone to stay down, except for Stag. The exhausted giant puts back on his helmet and staggers over to his allies. "So...what's the plan now?" "We're getting out of here!"

The dancer releases her enemies, then turns her magic on her team. Jang's Hand takes flight, but not without notice. The furious witch propels her body into the sky with fire. "You're not getting away!" Suddenly, Gren's scarf wraps around her leg, slamming her back down to the road. Heat from her body catches the fabric on fire and Gren quickly lets go. "Why!?" she screams, "You're letting them escape!" "We're more worried about you, Delle!" the ninja boy shouts back, "We don't want you getting sicker!" The witch hesitates for a moment, as if to argue with herself, then raises her hands. "DIE!!"

An explosion of flame races at the defenseless Gren. His wide eyes reflect the purple glow, until Komo and Granknight move in front. "SHIELDS UP!!" The guardian declares. A transparent replica of his shield expands and covers the length of the entire two-lane street, and Komo tosses her spinning barrier. "Dragon Scale!" The summoned dragon roars through the fire and hooks its spinning wings against the witch. Her vein riddled body slams into a nearby wall, but this only angers her more.

The witch prepares to strike again, but a sudden downpour of water extinguishes her flaming hands and hair. Steam rises from every part of her body, and Gren lands just behind her with his torrential shuriken. Using the tip of the water, the ninja swipes at the witch, over and over. Every small burst of fire she musters is immediately stilled. "Kurt! The hydrant!" The mentor nods and swings his spiked ball into the nearby fire hydrant. A geyser erupts from the sidewalk, and Gren uses his Symbol to draw it all through the central hole of his shuriken, tripling its size. "Shuriken Wave!"

Rushing waters relentlessly pound the witch until she's carried away towards Granknight. With her body cooled down, the armored giant grabs hold and squeezes her against his chestplate. "Cease your resistance, young lady!" Like a rabid animal, the girl formerly known as Delle kicks and screams, almost unrecognizable. Ruby hair no longer covers her steaming, bald head, and her growling voice sounds more like a vicious canine than a human. Ellia carefully approaches with an outstretched arm. "Delle, it's me, Ellia. Please listen to me!" Despite her desperate plea, the witch bites in her direction and continues to scream.

The teens all shared a sad expression. Their friend was nowhere to be found in her twisted mind and body. The witch had taken it for her own. In this darkest hour, Gren thought of another thing Percy wouldn't do, and stepped closer. Inches from his childhood friend's face, he held her head still. Purple dots amidst two black holes stared directly into Gren's eyes. "I'm sorry," he said, "You're not useless. You never were and never will be." Through her constant growling, the witch's face relaxed just a bit, and for the first time in months, Gren started to cry. "You mean more to me than anything else. You've always been my best friend, and I can't lose you! I won't!"

Hearing the boy's emotional words, Ellia and Komo too began to cry. Kurt turned away, choosing to look at his wrecked car to avoid joining his apprentices' tears. Gren couldn't hold himself back, and wrapped his arms around the sick girl's neck. "I NEED YOU DELLE!! WE ALL NEED YOU!!" Dark eyes gazed off in the distance. Her body had ceased its spastic kicking, and the constant growling began to slow and sound more human. As Gren held her in his arms, the immense warmth from her body started to cool. Black veins retreated from her face, like roots of trees reversing their growth. Darkness faded from her saturated eyes, and Delle spoke in a soft voice. "...G...Gren...I'm so...c-cold..."

In complete shock, Gren took a step back and smiled at his long lost friend. "DELLE!!" The mighty Granknight released her, allowing Ellia and Komo to join the group hug. "We'll warm you up!" said Ellia with tears of joy. Kurt smiled and relaxed his shoulders. His apprentice has returned. "You scared me, kid. Don't ever do that again." Delle simply replied with a smile, and laid her head against Ellia's. Even Granknight wasn't immune to the emotion. "Ghh...it's so touching...my iron heart...COME HERE!!" The gentle giant grabbed all four of the teens and their mentor, squeezing them in his large arms.