The corridors of the frigate were just as he remembered them, if not a little worse for wear. He couldn't imagine that upkeep was high on the priority list of whatever resistance group this was.

"I gave them the package," Gates told him as they walked. He assumed she was talking about the cylinder, what Kay had claimed they'd stolen from Spyglass. "With any luck, they'll have analyzed it by now and will be able to shed some light to both of us on what it is exactly."

Wherever he treaded, people became silent when he passed them. He wasn't going to get used to that, not soon anyway. Before accepting his almost self-imposed exile, he thought he'd finally found a family to be a part of, to be one component of something bigger. The Militia had been that, a cause that he could finally believe in. And Gates had gone one step further, inviting him into the close and loyal fold of the 6-4.

Now others stared at him just as they would an outsider, like they had when he was still nothing more than an IMC defector picked up from some operation gone wrong. The way one would stare at something untrustworthy.

The same way Kay had looked at him.

The two of them finally ambled onto the bridge, him barely registering their progress. It wasn't until he noticed Gates waving at him that he finally snapped his attention back to reality. Once she was sure that he was focused on her, she gestured towards the command deck of the frigate, and two individuals who stepped forward to greet them.

"Welcome to the Embers."

One man he was able to recognize from memory, though the fact that his face had been plastered over wanted posters on every IMC controlled planet on the frontier didn't hurt. The last time he'd seen him had been in a bar, so it was a nice change of scenery for the circumstances of their current meeting. He gave a respectful nod, and held his attentive stance. "Sir."

"Nice to see you, Four." He gave a mock salute to him, much like one would to a drinking buddy. The man was more casual than he'd thought. "In case you don't remember, I'm Barker. You've probably heard of me, hopefully good things, though I doubt it. In any matter, I'm one of the people running this whole thing."

"Never would have thought he had it in him," said the other commander, a woman whose outfit definitely spoke volumes of authority and commanded respect. "Would've thought he'd drink himself to death before getting his act together … but fortunately, I was wrong." She extended a hand to him, gripping it tightly in what he assumed was a subtle show of dominance. "I'm Fenrir, chief tactical specialist and second-in-command of this ship. Nothing happens here without my say-so."

"Relax," Barker urged her, "you're gonna scare the kid into exile again. We only just got him back, no need to be so aggressive."

She pursed her lips, but obeyed what he said and fell silent. It didn't seem like she was a big fan of his.

Barker looked apologetically at Tobias. "Sorry about that. It's just- well, obviously the circumstances of your sudden reappearance were not only surprising, but a bit suspicious. She's not onboard with the idea yet."

"Smart," he replied, "I wouldn't trust something so out-of-the-blue either."

The man shrugged. "Way I see it, you gotta count every blessing you get these days."

He nodded. "So, this resistance group … the 'Embers'?"

"We needed something to rally behind," explained Gates from his side, "a name that would remind people of what they were fighting for. What we're fighting for is hope, Tobias. And, well … that's what you are, what you've been for years. An idea that even in our darkest hour, someone will always be there to protect us. I think it's fair to say that if you're the Inferno, we see ourselves as the embers you leave in your wake."

He knew it was meant to give him a sense of importance, of gratitude to their devotion; but he just felt empty inside. He wasn't a hero, not anymore.

They thought he was some kind of ace up their sleeve, like his presence alone would turn the tide of what would be a very short war, one way or another.

"I'm grateful you think so highly of me," he muttered, "but I'm not this person you guys have made me out to be. I'm not this divine force, I'm just the guy it lives in. I never did those things because I was destined to or anything; it was always just about me being in the right place at the right time. The Inferno is what made me unique, nothing else-"

"Stop that now."

He was taken aback by Gates sharply cutting across his words, effectively silencing him. Barker and Fenrir looked at her as well, wondering what this was about.

"The Inferno was not what made you special," Gates said with a ferocity in her tone, "it could have chosen anyone. But I remember what you told me years ago, even if you don't; it chose you. And I don't think it was because you were in the right or wrong place, that's neither here nor there. You did those things because you're good. Because you have a heart, and you knew it was the right thing to do. Being special had nothing to do with it; being you did."

She waved an arm around their surroundings, indicating the four of them as well as the various crew members all paying attention to various tasks at hand. "None of these people would be around if it wasn't for you; time and time again, you've saved us from disaster. We didn't need you leading us to make this resistance, and I don't want you to feel guilty about that for a second. We took the hope you gave us and channeled it into ourselves."

Placing a hand on his shoulder, she gave a small smile. "And that makes you extraordinary … to me."

He lifted his own hand to hold hers where it resided and held it tightly, taking in this moment of comfort she'd given him. His eyes met hers, each of theirs shining with the fondness that only years of true friendship can bring. He did not voice his thanks, but the look on his face was enough.

Barker gave a small cough. "So, uh, not sure how long it's been since you were last in civilization … care to let us explain how bad things have gotten?"

Tobias faced him, waiting for the man to elaborate. Taking the hint, Barker began his tale.

"When our leaders were wiped out a few years ago, Spyglass thought he'd cut off the head of the snake, so to speak. Unfortunately for him, we humans are a bit more resilient than he anticipated. Rare miscalculation on his part. Many actually sided with him, and still do to this day. A great deal of humans, and most Titans, make up his forces."

He shook his head in frustration. "Any lack of strength on their part is immediately filled in by Stalkers and Spectres. Long story short, we're hopelessly outnumbered and outgunned … at least, by conventional standards."

He retrieved the black cylinder from within the pouches on his waist, the item which Gates had been so carefully guarding for the last several days; what was apparently the key to humanity's salvation. Looking at Tobias, he waved it for him to see properly.

"This is what's going to win this last fight for us, if all goes well. It has to, or else we're all dead in the water. I mean literally dead as well, but you- you know what I mean."

Tobias analyzed it once more, just as he'd done when Gates had allowed him to do so back on Ceto. Except now, he was about to find out what it actually did. "What is it?"

"This," spoke Barker softly, "is Cinder."

…

She looked around the room, careful to avoid actively moving her head in an effort to not arouse suspicion. Instead, she analyzed individual pieces of the larger image her optics allowed her to see, breaking them down piece by piece as she tried to spot anything that could aid her. Escaping wouldn't be too large of an issue, it was simply a matter of how to proceed from that point.

[Artemis, status report.]

The voice commanded her attention, a mental presence in her mind. Hesitantly, she rotated her head to make sure that none of the researchers who had stayed behind were watching her too carefully. Upon finding their inattention satisfactory, she rested her head on the table again.

Working on escaping.

[Are you compromised?]

She admired her captors' confidence, but it was unfounded. They think I am.

[What do you require?]

She pondered on that for a moment; what she really needed was chaos, a distraction for them to focus on while she made her way to wherever they were keeping that cylinder so she could destroy it. Neither she nor Spyglass knew exactly what it was; only that it likely had sensitive information to their cause.

They couldn't find out about Coalescence. Not yet. And if that cylinder had anything about it, then it needed to be retrieved at any cost. They wouldn't understand it, wouldn't be willing to see that it would-

KILL-

-save them. Humans were afraid of what they didn't understand … just as Tobias was afraid of her now. Of what she'd become. They needed to have patience, to see this through to the end! If they didn't, then any hope for a life without war on the frontier would be obliterated. For humanity to survive, they needed to evolve. Like Tobias had done. Like she had done. Like Spyglass had done. Everyone needed to-

FIGHT BACK-

[You're distracted. Another manifestation of your inferiorities?]

She mentally slapped herself, pulling herself back together one thread at a time. Sometimes the episodes threatened to overwhelm her; it could not be allowed to persist.

They will pass-

[Are you capable of completing the objective, or have you found yourself to be inadequate for the task?]

The thinly veiled cynicism behind Spyglass's cold tone was all the motivation she needed to succeed. I am perfectly capable of handling it.

[Then what do you require?]

Something to take their mind off me, she finally decided. I can proceed faster and further if I'm not having to eliminate those in my way.

[Understood. Your location has been targeted for warp; once your reinforcements arrive, it is up to you.]

She did not bother to reply, all too aware of the stakes at play here. For now, all she could do was wait. When the time was right, she'd put her plan into action. Maybe even show off a little.

After all, they had no idea of what she was capable of.

…

"Cinder?" he repeated, testing out the word in his mouth.

"Yeah," Barker replied, "that's what this is."

Tobias shrugged, somewhat put off by the man's bluntness. "I mean … what does it do?"

The commander nodded understandingly, finally getting what Tobias was looking for. "Right. Well, we looked over this thing's contents, and- er, it might be easier to just show you."

Grabbing the top half of the cylinder above its single seam, he pulled it away to reveal a thin blade of metal, symmetrically shaped and smooth to the naked eye. He recognized it for what it was; an infiltrative port, the same kind that data-knives used.

Walking over to a waiting monitor and its data receptacle, Barker plugged the cylinder in. Within seconds, its contents appeared on the screen. Tobias couldn't help but be reminded of when he'd discovered what the Inferno was in Kay's carcass of a chassis-

He stopped letting himself think about that, and focused on the task at hand. Now was not the time for unpleasant memories.

It seemed that the majority of what was on the blade was composed of video and data entries, all labeled accordingly with order and classification. Selecting the first log, Barker stepped back and allowed them all a view of the screen.

A crackling video came to life, low quality and poorly lit. He could make out the face of a man sitting at a table, presumably recording himself to a recorder of some kind.

"That was my contact on Thone," Gates muttered, "the one who gave it to me."

After a moment, he began to speak.

"Hello. I am Remis Carson, head of Spyglass's personal research division here on Thone. If you are watching this, then I trust that the data has made its way into the right hands. I may be dead, I may not be; the fact is that it doesn't matter. So much more is at stake here than you realize."

He sighed, evidently tired from various stress he must have endured leading up to this log. "This isn't a simple war between countrymen and corporations, and this isn't some common foe that all of humanity can rally against. Spyglass has divided humanity so cleverly that nobody even realizes it's happened. Not only do we humans stand against each other in whether we consider this idea of peace to be right, but our companions the Titans have been similarly placed in their own predicament. Most have joined his cause, trusting their synthetic leader to speak for them and protect not just their Pilots, but all of humanity."

"It could not be further from the truth."

He felt a heavy feeling in his chest as the recording of Carson continued on.

"Though the defecting Titans' intentions were good, they were naive. Spyglass does not wish to preserve humanity, but to fix it. To correct it into his own image of what he perceives perfection to be. He needed part of humanity to be willing to accept that change, gambled on a large part of it even agreeing with what he offered; and it paid off. We humans are incredibly fallible creatures, latching ourselves onto any sense of security that we can. His move couldn't have been planned more perfectly if he'd tried; the Amalgamation event had just concluded, and people were scared. The war had finally been called off, and he promised to keep it from ever reigniting again."

Carson pinched the bridge of his nose in frustration. "God, what fools they were. Not only do we no longer have the resources to openly rise against him, but we've lost unity amongst ourselves. And that's what he needs, to keep us apart until his plan can be put into action … the Coalescence."

The scientist messed with something in the recording, and another one of the cylinder's files opened up on the monitor. Apparently the man had scripted this thing to work exactly as he needed it to.

It seemed to be a diagram of some device, robotic in nature. Protruding from its center was a needle-like object, and at its sides were unusual looking legs. They were hooked on the ends, but it almost seemed as though they were to supposed to retract into ball-shaped joints at their mid-point.

"Spyglass is the most efficient artificial mind ever created. He was built for the sole purpose of helping the IMC win the war against the Militia, all to fulfill his singular function; to protect humanity. And it's because of this that he is also very ignorant. He does not understand the meaning behind that order, 'to 'protect humanity'. If there is a threat to it, then he feels it is his obligation to remove that threat … and right now, he thinks our biggest threat is us."

"So long as we still exist in some state, he believes he will have succeeded. It's because he cannot feel that he cannot possibly understand what it means to be human. He has no soul; he's nothing but a mesh of metal and the most brilliant algorithms to ever be written. To him, existence is physical; and as long as our bodies remain undamaged, then we are alive … even if we aren't us."

"What you see is a blueprint of what we've been designing here, what we've been forced to create; Spyglass's promise of peace. It's a nanite, a microscopic robot at the molecular level. And its purpose is to carry out this vision of Spyglass's; his Coalescence."

Tobias didn't like the sound of that.

"This little bastard can enter you any number of different ways; inhalation, digestion, through wounds on your body … it doesn't matter. Once it's in, it and all the other hundred thousand or so of its brethren are programmed to find their way into your bloodstream and eventually reach your cerebral cortex. When they get there, they'll latch onto your nervous system and terminate any signals your brain is sending to the rest of your body. Then, they'll start sending some of their own."

The diagram went away to be replaced with a video of what appeared to be an experimentation record. A woman lay strapped to a table, guarded closely by Spectres who ensured that the scientists did as they were ordered. He could make out the looks of disgust and regret on their faces as they carried out their commands to the sound of her quiet, terrified cries for help.

With shaking hands, one of them presented a bi-chambered container of what appeared to be a cloud of dust to a Spectre. The synthetic soldier calmly moved over to the woman despite her pathetic pleas, and shoved one end of it firmly into her mouth. As she gagged on the foreign object being forced into her throat, the barricade in the jar slid aside to remove the bi-chambered aspect of it. The cloud quickly disappeared into her maw, and once they were sure its contents had been emptied, the Spectre replaced the block and removed the container from her lips.

As they watched, the video fast forwarded itself several minutes. Tobias could see the woman's sped-up ordeal, her body jerking and reacting to the new entities within it. Finally, her movement ceased and the video resumed as normal.

Within seconds, she began to move again but slowly, carefully. The restraints were released, and she sat up in way that made his skin crawl. It was so stiff, so … artificial. It was unnatural.

Steadily, she faced the camera. It automatically zoomed in, enhancing the quality as best it could upon her features. What he saw surprised him; in her eyes were glowing irises of blue, rings around her pupils that humans most certainly did not have.

The video ended.

"Coalescence isn't about saving humanity, it's about changing them. It's about converting them into the perfect organism, and I'm sure you've grasped Spyglass's mentality by now."

"Christ," he whispered, realization dawning on him as Carson confirmed his fears.

"In his eyes, he is the perfect template for life. He's turning them into him."