Captain Iga of Sub Number Six stared down at the picture. "This isn't a composite?" He asked Yuri. Yuri shook his head. "How, it's in the middle of the hybrid's territory!" Yuri shook his head again. "The photo was taken from a recon drone a week ago. This base is operated by some of ours, though what nation remains unclear." Cpt. Iga examined the picture again. "It looks like a huge iron tower in the middle of the sea." He exclaimed with a wry grin. "How could they survive out their?"
Yuri shrugged. "I can't give you a straight and completely correct answer but from what it looks like those walls could be anywhere from thirteen to twenty feet thick. It's hundreds of feet around in a complete circle by estimation. Most likely they farm their own food." Yuri said. "My best guess." Cpt. Iga shook his head. "This must have taken years to construct. And if your right, they could simply let anything hit that monstrosity and it wouldn't so much as phase it!" He said and shook his head once more in disbelief.
Hwang walked into the bridge. "I've herd about that place from Kino once. She called telling me all about it. Her son built most of it." She said as she walked over to the captain. "May I?" She held her hand out to it and Iga reluctantly gave it to her. "She said the walls were about that thick. They do grow their own food, but they also are well armed. I think Their leader or one of their leaders is named Kiitou." Iga was not surprised she herd all they had said. Iga sighed. "I haven't herd from Kino Mayumi sense after she resigned a few days after the war ended. She has a son?" Iga said surprised by the revelation that Kino had children. Hwang smiled and nodded. "And four daughters." She added. Cpt. Iga raised a brow and whistled, the old man slightly befuddled.
Yuri laughed. "So she finally settled down with huh?" He asked though rhetorically. "I didn't expect her to have been one of those family types after what happened." Hwang smiled. "You didn't expect Hyami to settle down either. And look who he married!" She said with a smile as she watched Yuri's face. He cringed at the thought.
Cpt. Iga looked at the photo once more. "We have the coordination?" The captain asked already knowing the answer. Yuri confirmed. "Then this iron tower is our next destination." He exclaimed.
Kito watched the progresses as the construction on the tower's new cannons were being installed along with the new ordinance system being installed. There were two cannons now, one over the other. They had also begun construction on the housing and sound reduction of the cannons. They had salvaged as much as they could from the destroyer and what surface damage was discover was repaired. The paint job done, surprisingly the job was finished within the weak and construction on lesser cannons on the west, east, north and southern most parts of the walls were underway. The rig was being refitted once again.
It took two weeks for the major tasks to be completed. The construction on the prisoner's cells was completed and the separate institutions were made. Research was being done to make their charge's lives more comfortable. They had captured eighteen mutio, six being male, and fifteen more, the rest were an assortment of beast like creatures canine or feline and some crosses. None of which had wanted to co-operate with their capturers more than they had to. The mutio child Kito had recovered still lived within his quarters and slept in his bathtub, which was probably best sense he had a bubbler system and other modifications that aloud the child to live there comfortably.
Kito sighed. "So many dead sister; none of them were ours, none of them our comrades but, so many we killed." He said setting his head to rest on his forearms which rested on his knees. "Did you have your fill of blood?" The white vixen stood a few feet from her brother, at first stunned that her brother was aware of her presence, and then his question, which struck deep into her heart. "Brother, why did you ask such a thing? I'm not a monster." She answered fearing her brother may turn angry. Snow was different, she had killed, but this time, this time she killed because she had panicked, and in result she had slain a child, or at least she had shot one.
"I was afraid for you; you were heading so close to that path. I was afraid I may have had to….." He trailed of and shook his head; a sad look played his face. He paused for a long moment then added, "We will have company from the human world soon." Snow sat down next to her brother and searched his face. Unable to find anything she enquired about his recent statement. "I spotted a recon droid; it must have taken photos of our home. I can feel the electricity from their propulsion system, they are coming from the north east and they are five days out. It's a large submersible." He answered.
Snow cocked her head. "How can you sense these things brother?" She asked with a little disbelief. "I trust you when you say this now; you were right about the pirates; how brother?" Kito closed his eyes and smiled. "It all has to do with the whiskers, the metal wall I meditate on, and the ocean; things that have large amounts of energy emit a field. Even if it is a large school of fish, I can sense it. The fleet that attacked us I heard coming as well but I felt their faint electrical field. It makes my whiskers tingle." Snow seemed disappointed with the logical answer Kito had. What no psychic powers or anything? Why couldn't I feel this? She though. "Because you never pay attention." He answered guessing her questioning look.
She paused. Are you still angry with me?"
She asked becoming tense. "For killing that kid?" Kito glared at
her angrily but, unable to hold the face for long he cracked a grin.
"No." He said with a chuckle. "You didn't kill that child."
Snow's brow furled. "Why are you laughing?" she demanded. "I
shot that kid dead in the chest, he should have died."
Kito
shook his head. "I slipped rubber headed bullets into your gun
before you ever got onto the boat. I didn't trust you with a gun."
He replied.
Snow stared at him. "Why was I locked away? Why did you treat me like a prisoner? Why didn't you tell me?" she asked. "Why did you attack me?" Kito stood up and turned his face to her, his eyes a few inches from her's, his anger genuine, played across his face. "It was either I broke you that way or for me to destroy you sister." He replied with a snarl. "Do you ever even think about your actions? Let your anger go before you do become a monster!"
