"Am I clear?" repeated the Prince when no answer appeared to be forthcoming.

"What?" Thymilph finally spluttered. "What is the Sixth Prince doing here? Someone contact the capital at once!"

"I am here to protect these people!" the boy announced. "Lay down your arms and deactivate the Byakkou at once. They have done nothing wrong!"

"How strange. I can't seem to get a signal," said Tsuuma, lazily poking at her keyboard with one hand while her cheek rested on the other. "Well that's just unfortunate, because that means that our little half-baked knight there is the highest ranking officer around." She cocked her head. "Though he does sparkle rather exceptionally, even without the armor."

"Get us a signal now, Tsuuma," growled Thymilph. "I won't be pushed around by this little nuisance any longer than I have to."

"I'm trying, I'm trying," she said half-heartedly, pulling up a couple of programs. "I keep getting distracted by the amazing piece of technology in front of me. I mean, a land-based submarine? Absolutely genius. How do these humans come up with such ideas?"

There was an awkward silence.

"It was a joke."

"So this is what a prince looks like?" mused Viral. He was on standby in the hangars, but he watched the entire thing through a live feed to the Dai-Ganzan's numerous video streams. Tsuuma hadn't been entirely happy when he'd asked her to install it, but he secretly suspected that she'd enjoyed the little hacking job.

The Princes had always fascinated Viral. He'd grown up on the stories: of how, when things got bad, they would appear from nowhere, wreak havoc on the battlefield, and disappear just as quickly. Little else was known of them, save for their code of honor, which was supposedly stronger than anything other than a direct order from the King himself.

But seeing one on the opposing side…that was a bit of a shock.

"There's no point wondering about it now," he told himself, trying to clear his head. He failed, and ended up thinking about Tsuuma. She seemed to have returned to her old self; hopefully she'd gotten over the little incident with Thymilph. In retrospect, Viral supposed that he could have respectfully questioned his superior's methods. After all, the General of Fire wasn't actually all that bad of a boss – demanding, but not overly cruel.

"Maybe I should talk to her," he thought aloud, deciding that since nothing else appeared to be happening he might as well take the opportunity. But not on the open channel, of course. With a couple flicks of his fingers he skimmed through his ganman's interface and found the option to open a private channel. Browsing through the names available on the network, he selected her from the list.

A shrill, piercing sound greeted his ears as soon as the channel opened. It vibrated up his jaw and stabbed right into his sensitive ears like a thin needle coated in tiny barbs. He grunted and covered his ears with his hands, while his ganman did the same. A jab at the interface and the horrible sound cut off.

His squadmates gave him strange looks, but said nothing. He lowered his hands and grimaced with hot embarrassment.

Yes, she was definitely still angry with him.

Nia climbed up on to the deck. Simon was still standing resolutely, not a single muscle twitching, while in front of him the Byakkou loomed menacingly. Thymilph was apparently busy discussing something with his crew. She sat on the lip of the hatch and decided she might as well watch. She shrunk into the background, the way she had learned to all those years ago.

Why? she thought. The one question nagged at corners of her brain that she had thought dead. Why is he doing this?

Finally, something happened. Byakkou pointed a finger at the prince.

"This is a waste of my time!" growled Thymilph. "I don't care if you're the king's son, I'm going to beat some sense into you!" One giant silver hand reached out and snatched up the slender boy.

Involuntarily, Nia gasped.

"General Thymilph, I order you to let me go!" shouted the boy.

Byakkou's hatch opened, and the great armored gorilla peered out. "These humans have committed a grave offense against the capital!" he roared. "They are rebels against your father's rule! They have killed and destroyed their way across half the wastes! If you ally yourself with them, you will be betraying your father and the entire Kingdom! Do you want them as your enemies?"

"No…" Simon's struggles stopped, and his head fell. "But my honor…"

"So this is a matter of honor, is it?" Thymilph spat. "Don't you realize that your first duty is to protect the honor of the Spiral King? These humans have disgraced him by killing General Adiane and stealing her flagship!"

"What?"

"Your training was almost complete last I heard," continued the General in a wheedling tone. "Obviously this is a test. Do you want your father's approval? Do you want honor? Then punish these humans for their crimes! Start by killing that human with your sword, and prove that you are a true Spiral Knight!"

Byakkou pointed to Nia. She looked up at the giant metal finger aimed straight at her, and knew that she should care. But oddly enough, she couldn't muster the energy. All her attention was focused on the boy, who turned to her.

Those weird red eyes looked into hers, and something shifted. A small gleam moved behind them, and as she tried to understand it, he turned away.

"I'm sorry, General," he said, his face set. Nia blinked in confusion. "I made an oath to protect Nia, and I see no reason to break it. I will not go back on my word."

Nia blinked in confusion. "I made an oath to protect Nia, and I see no reason to break it. I will not go back on my word."

Why?

He sheathed his sword.

Why?

"You fool! Your only oath is to our King!" hollered the scorned General.

"Do not dare to talk to me in this manner!" snapped Simon, his eyes narrowing. "I am a prince, and you shall treat me as such!"

"Then behave yourself as such!" Thymilph slammed a meaty fist into his console. "Can't you see? These inferior scum killed Adiane!"

"Why did they have to fight in the first place?" Simon crossed his arms. "As far as I can see, these people have done nothing wrong! Every fight has been provoked by beastman soldiers, and they were only protecting themselves!"

"Because that is our duty! Did your tutors fail to teach you this?"

"Are you questioning my brother's education?" Suddenly realization hit him like a rock, and he stumbled backwards. "Wait…we kill them?"

"It's not that complicated, so I'll explain it for you." Thymilph ground his teeth. "Humans are a plague that must remain underground. The Army's whole purpose is to eradicate the renegades who come to the surface! That is the King's orders, and thus the mission of his Knights as well! Soldiers and Knights are not meant to ask questions: we are meant to take orders!"

"So…that is how our world works, is it?" Simon's head dropped and his shoulders shook.

"Of course! That is the way it has always worked!"

"Then I cannot accept our world!" He gesticulated wildly. "This is not justice! This is not honor! These people merely want to live in peace! Why should we risk our lives to kill those who mean us no harm?"

"Do I look like having all the answers?"

"Then you will take me to one who does!" Simon pointed authoritatively. "I order you, General, to transport me to the capital! I will discuss these matters with my father; until then, you will do these people no harm!"

"You would defy your father's authority?"

"I would never dream of it!" The young boy's voice rang like a bell. "The holy duty of our King, and thus his Knights, is to keep peace and order on our planet! I am acting fully within my responsibilities as a Knight!"

"Damn you! I've had just about enough of this!" Byakkou flexed its powerful legs and leaped, landing back on the Dai-Gunzan's deck. "I don't care what you say; I'm taking this thing back to the capital! Fire on the legs!"

"I do not understand!" hollered Simon in confusion. "Why is General Thymilph acting so strangely?"

A small, callused hand suddenly grabbed his. "We need to go back inside!" Nia pleaded. The confusion in her own eyes mirrored his.

Why do I care so much?

She tugged the boy along, and he followed hesitantly. They retreated back into the top-deck hatch, closing it behind them.

"This can't be good!" Leeron stabbed at the keys of his computer, trying to aim at the enemy. The torpedo hatches opened and attempted to hurl their payloads at the enemy ganman. Most missed, and some failed to explode entirely, but a select few managed to hit it. One impacted the right knee, blowing off a large chunk of armor.

"That was a pretty good shot!" quipped Tsuuma. "Got to give them credit for managing that with torpedoes, above water." The battleship faltered, and a big red splash appeared on her monitor. "Also, quick heads-up, right leg took some pretty heavy damage, i.e. main servos are down and walking kind of isn't an option anymore."

"That's our chance!" Gabal said, turning the navigation wheel hard to port. "We're getting out of here!"

"Don't push it, Moustache!" growled Leitte from the engine room. "I'm giving 'er all she's got, but if we haven't skedaddled in fifteen then she'll overheat!"

"Give us twenty!"

"Fine!" Leitte turned to her maintenance crew. "You heard the man! Twenty minutes! Get your asses in gear!"

The small force of engineers chorused a quick "Aye-aye!" before returning to their task of keeping the engines from exploding in their faces.

"We won't get anywhere if we're blown to bits!" said Leeron. "Empty the torpedo silos!"

Attenborough complied, mashing buttons like the madman he was. Torpedoes launched from the ship and arced randomly over the battlefield.

"Don't let them escape!" ordered Thymilph. Dai-Ganzan's remaining cannons unleashed a volley in the sub's direction. Some missed, some hit, but none managed to cause crippling damage. One shell swerved erratically and pounded in the ground, opening up a crack in the earth.

"The geo-sensors are picking up an abnormality!" informed Kiyal. "Looks like…an underground river! It's right below us!"

"We might be able to use that…" Leeron tapped his chin. "Can you tell me anything else about it?"

"No, I…" She paused in the middle of the sentence. "Wait, what's that?"

The enemy fire stopped abruptly, surprising everyone on both sides, at the same time that a large red dot appeared on Kinon's radar. It moved swiftly across the screen towards the triangle in the center.

"An unidentified craft!" Kinon adjusted her glasses, unable to believe what she was seeing. "It's approaching at…Mach 6.2!"

"And what the hell does that mean?" yelled Kittan.

"It means that it's travelling faster than should be possible," said Leeron in a hushed voice. "No land-ganman could possibly move that fast, and even a theoretical flying type would be burned up! It's impossible!"

"Well that's what the radar says! It's coming into visual range!"

A window blipped on to the main screen, showcasing a view from one of the external cameras. A dark blur whizzed by, almost too fast to see, and was followed a little bit after by a tremendous booming sound and a cone of rapidly-equalizing air. The camera couldn't keep up with it; they only saw it again because it had started banking back around, gradually slowing down. When it had slowed enough to be effectively tracked, the image zoomed in and revealed its true form.

It was a huge, pale silver airplane, with a single pair of huge white wings attached somewhat to the rear of its fuselage. The cockpit was located towards the front, just behind a pointed nose. It was an odd and unfamiliar shape, but graceful as it flew, like a swan gliding serenely across the sky.

"I am Sir Dmitri!" it announced in a deep, confident voice. "Second Prince of Teppelin and Spiral Knight!"

"Brother?" said Simon, hearing the voice from deep inside Dai-Gurren. He turned to Nia. "Forgive me, Commoner Nia. I must head for the bridge immediately."

Nia barely noticed, absorbed as she was in her thoughts. With a whisk of his cape he was gone.

"A knight? Here?" Thymilph growled.

The aged but still vigorous face of Prince Dmitri appeared on his screen.

"General," he said by way of greeting, his expression serious. "I assume you are aware of the punishment for threatening a Prince of the Kingdom?"

Thymilph flinched, just briefly.

"Brother!" called another voice, interrupting the conversation before Dmitri could press his threat any further. It came from Dai-Gurren's bridge, over the common channel. "It is I, Simon."

Dmitri flicked a finger and opened up the channel on his end. "Yes, I can see that," he replied dully.

"I demand to know what is happening. Why are we at war with the humans? And since when?"

"I am not required to answer your questions," replied Dmitri frostily. "You have been disowned."

"Disowned?" The word came out of his mouth like poison, and his eyes went wide.

"Yes. You are of no concern to me." He flicked off the open channel and switched to his ganman's built-in PA. "I am here only to punish those who defy the Spiral King! Beliebed! Transform!"

The wings on the odd machine climbed up, moving towards the back, while the nose cone split in two. Arms and legs unfolded from the fuselage; twin faces appeared, one in the belly, one on top, and it revealed itself as a great white humanoid ganman. It put its hands to its waist and drew two shining rapiers.

"You may want to cover your eyes, General," said the prince with a smirk.

"Drop the primary and secondary blast shields!" yelled Thymilph, retreating back into the hangar as the heavy metal walls slammed down.

"Amazing," marveled Leeron. "A transforming mecha? Ooh, how I'd love to get my hands on that bad boy's chassis~!"

"Not the time to be fawning over some lump of metal!" growled Gabal crossly. "Something big's coming, and we're gonna need a way out!"

"We could escape into the underground river," noted Kinon. "But…there's a village in there! If we go in, we'll destroy it!"

"Hey hey hey!" protested Kittan. "What are we talking about, running away? Think about what Kamina would've done! We have to stay and fight!"

"Picking up a massive heat signature…" said Tetsukyan worriedly.

"We have to pick our fights!" declared Gabal, swinging the wheel and ending the argument. "And this fight isn't looking like it's going to go our way! Brace for impact!"

Dai-Gurren's head slammed into the ground, opening a rather large crack. It wasn't quite big enough for them to fit through, but it was big enough to see what lay underneath.

It was a village, but it was empty. Nobody came out to see what all the fuss was about, because in fact there was nobody left to see. Hundreds of human skeletons littered the ground, picked clean by scavengers.

"It's a dead village!" gasped Kinon in horror.

"Keep at it!" ordered Leeron. "I don't like it either, but that's our only chance! Our smarmy little friend is going to shoot at us in a second!"

"Hey, bozos! I'm the leader here!" yelled Kittan, jabbing a thumb into his chest. "And I say we stay and fight!"

He was ignored. Leeron was too busy with Tetsukyan, Kinon was engrossed in the radar, and Gabal was preoccupied with aiming the ship for another ramming attempt. Simon did not listen either, but rocked back and forth on his feet, a blank expression on his face. Then, suddenly, his chin snapped up proudly. He flipped his cape and stalked out, an intent look in his eyes.

"Leader! Lea-der!" said Kittan emphatically, trying once again to assert his authority. "Don't you bozos know? That means I give the orders here!"

"Brother, we can't fight that thing!" said Kinon timidly.

"Can't fight it? Can't fight it?" Kittan slammed a fist into a nearby railing. "We're Team Gurren, dammit! Screw logic and do the undoable, or something like that!"

"Kittan! Shut! Up!" Suddenly Yoko stormed into the control room. She tossed a glare Kittan's way. "You! Are not in charge here! Understand?" He cowered and nodded. "Good! Now what's our status?"

"Minimal damage," informed Kinon. "But there's an unknown and powerful enemy readying itself to attack us! We're trying to escape via an underground river."

"Trying? Why haven't we gotten away yet?" Yoko snorted irritably. "Let's go! We don't want to stick around long enough for them to try anything!"

The Beliebed chose that moment to try something.

Something long and silver emerged from its back and shot upwards. It was a missile, but it was clear to everyone that it wasn't an ordinary one. Dai-Gunzan curled its massive arms about the control tower, while thick metal blast shields dropped over the windows. After rising to a certain height, the missile flipped around and boosted back down, straight for Dai-Gurren.

Gabal hit the forwards controls, and Dai-Gurren smacked forwards, blasting through the surface and dropping into the deserted village below.

Eerie barely began to describe it. The familiar caves and tunnels of a village, but they radiated an aura of hollowness. A subterranean wind blew through the ruins, whistling emptily. In the few brief moments that they could see it, several members of the crew reflected on how it could have possibly come to be in such a state. Dwindling resources? Internal conflict? Disease?

Then the submarine dove straight into the underground river, for the first time being used according to its intended purpose.

Then the missile struck.

The explosion was beyond words. It started as a bright blossom of light, right in the centre of the ruined village, and then spread out to engulf the entire cavern. The entire ceiling was ripped right off, and a great pillar of flame erupted upwards.

Even from a distance it was blinding. Thymilph watched the inferno through screens so opaque that they were almost black, and still it hurt his eyes. Then the shockwave hit, like a wall made of compressed air, and even within the Dai-Ganzan it sounded like all the wrathful thunder of the gods. Even at such a distance, the battleship tilted from the force of the blast.

All of this took place in a matter of seconds. When it was over, all that was left was a slowly dissipating cloud of dirty grey smoke. Above it hovered the Beliebed, unscratched by the attack.

A hail of pulverized rock began to rain from the skies.

"I'm not picking up a signal from Dai-Gankai," said Tsuuma once her hearing returned. "Not that that's a guarantee or anything. It's probably blown to hell, but it could be buried under a pile of rocks or just really damn deep underground.

"Somehow I don't think that quite managed to kill them," said the prince. "I have a feeling that Sir Irenai's suspicions should be given more credit. We are no longer dealing with your ordinary roach. General Thymilph?"

Thymilph shifted uncomfortably in his seat. "Yes, sir."

"You should consider yourself very lucky indeed. If not for Simon's disownment, you would be in a very uncomfortable situation right now."

"I did what I had to," grunted Thymilph, his voice low with caution.

"What you had to do?" The prince's eyebrow quirked. "I highly doubt that, seeing as you have still failed to retrieve the Dai-Gankai. Nevertheless, I am not here to discipline you. Lordgenome sends this message: you are to recapture the Dai-Gankai at any cost – capture, not destroy –and take the humans as prisoners. The first is more important than the second, however: do not feel the need to spare any who refuse to surrender."

"I won't fail!" pledged the General. "This is for General Adiane!"

"Very well. I wish you the best of luck. For the Spiral King!"

The Beliebed twisted again and returned to jet form. It blasted off back the way it came, leaving a sonic boom in its wake.

There was a moment of silence. Then:

"We can't afford to waste any time!" barked the General. "I want all maintenance crews on active repair duty, and I want Dai-Ganzan at full capacity before sunset! Prisoners or no, we're going to hunt these humans down and serve them the justice they deserve!"

"Yes, sir!"

Incoming Message

The alert flashed insistently on his ganman's viewscreen. Thymilph grunted irritable, but decided to accept the message.

An unmistakeable metal mask popped into view.

"What the hell do you want?" groaned Thymilph. "And how did you get on this channel?" He mentally made a note to have his technicians check the handshake protocols on the comms system.

"Greetings, Divine General Thymilph," said Cinoshisa impassive. "You're quite the news item here in the capital."

"And?" Thymilph's meaty finger hovered over the Close Channel button.

"And I will be sending a detachment of my best nocturnal troops to help you. I understand your crew is rather lacking in that department? Consider it a peace offering."

Thymilph hesitated before replying. He stroked his massive chaw. "I will accept your 'peace offering'," he conceded finally. "But I will be keeping them under close watch."

"As you wish, General. My troops will be arriving before sunset." A gauntleted fist thumped into an armoured chest. "For the Spiral King!"

The transmission ended. Thymilph rested his chin on one hammy fist thoughtfully.

"Why do I have a feeling that whatever's in that tin can is fishy?" he mused, unaware that Adiane had at one time shared the same sentiment.

Cinoshisa sat still for a moment after the transmission's end. Then he reached up, grabbed his mask, and gently removed it.

"Adiane and Thymilph made such a wonderful couple," she commented sarcastically. "Together, they were easier to manipulate…and now that one is dead, the other is making the same mistakes. This will make our plans much easier to facilitate."

"Excellent!" crowed General Cytomander, his face appearing on the screen to replace Thymilph's. "Soon I will be the undisputed leader of all branches of the military. Then I will be second only to the Spiral King!"

"It will be exactly as you say, General."

"Good girl." One eyebrow quirked curiously. "By the by, have you decided what you're going to do with your share?"

"All I want is a healthy retirement. A humble request."

"Humble indeed." The avian beastman's eyes narrowed suspiciously. "I doubt that's why you're really going along with all this. What's your real motive?"

Cinoshisa's face fell like a rock. "Revenge," she said, and the word snapped like frostbite.

"Really?" Cytomander rubbed his elbows, and made a note to have a word with Engineering about climate control. "Not against the Spiral King, I hope."

"No," she assured him. "Not against him."

"Well, whatever then." The General waved a hand dismissively. Cytomander liked being comfortable, and his subordinate was beginning to make him profoundly uneasy. It was time to end the transmission. "In that case I really don't care, as long as I'm not the target. We'll speak again later."

The screen blipped off.

"Hmph," scoffed Cinoshisa. "They're like little kids, aren't they?" She leaned back and waved a hand in the air emphatically. "They think they're cunning, they think they know how to plot and scheme, they think they know malice, when they might as well be throwing sand at each other."

She stood and donned her mask.

"What can they know about life?" he intoned gravely. "How could they know about the true, ultimate enemy?"

The sun was setting again, and with it leaked away the light of day. On a distant, rocky shore, where sea birds nested among rocks like demons' teeth, something emerged from the water.

Dai-Gurren appeared from beneath the waves like a small purple island drifting up from the ocean's bottom. It was badly beaten, with several holes in the outer armour, saved only by the secondary armour plating underneath. The cannons were completely incapacitated, and the legs were in shambles, many broken and others missing entirely. It was bruised and battered and dented, but by some miracle it had managed to weather the ocean's pressures with only minimal leaking.

"Nightmare's over," sighed Leeron. "We can all open our eyes now."

"I forgot how scary being underground was," said Yoko with a shiver. "Dark and cramped, like having walls pressing down around you…"

"It was scary," agreed Kinon. She checked the instrument panel, watching as the more visually-oriented sensors came back online.

"We're safe now!" announced Dayakka over the PA, his voice echoing throughout the ship. A sensation of relief washed over the vessel. Leitte slumped back in a chair, and her crew carefully began shutting down the engine for repairs.

In the quartes, the reactions were mixed. During all the trip, the amount of talk was kept at minimum. Some like Jorgun and Balinbow remained hid under their bunks in fear, others like Kidd and Iraak decided to stay cool, trying to small-talk or do anything to pass the time. But Nia remained at the launching bay, beside Solvernia, sitting hugging her legs, with a cold expression, as cold as everything surrounding her.

"We can all rest now…" said Leeron with another sigh. The bridge crew slumped back into chairs and against consoles. No one had rested once during the long journey; their speed had been relatively slow, but navigating the tight walls of the underground river had been an exercise in patience and focus.

"Everyone go ahead and take a break," announced Kittan. His jaw set grimly. "But don't get too comfortable. We'll be interrogating the little prince before sunset. He owes us a couple of explanations!"

On one side of the table sat Prince Simon, his chair turned inwards so that his back was to the curved wall of the sub's mess hall. In front of him stood roughly twenty crewmembers, all gathered to assist in the interrogation. Tetsukyan had even set up an old camera to record the interrogation.

"All right, you little punk!" said Kittan, slapping the table with his hand. "You're going to be nice and cooperative and tell us everything you know about the Spiral King."

"I would advise you to watch your tone," said Simon icily, his eyes narrowing. "I am a prince, and I demand to be treated like one."

"Izzat so?" Kittan grimaced. "Last I checked you're in our territory now, you spoiled brat! Spill the beans or take a swim!"

"How dare you, Commoner Kittan!" The prince stood and placed a hand on the hilt of his sword. "I am not required to tolerate this insolence! One more tasteless remark, and I shall be forced to unsheathe my blade!"

"What the hell?" Kittan actually laughed, unaware that the sword wasn't just for show. "You actually threatening me with that toy?"

"Eh, brother," whispered Kiyoh. "I'm not sure taunting him is really a good idea…"

"Why not? He's just a little kid! Shorter than Kiyal, even!" His grin actually grew into a goofy leer, and he leaned forward. "Looks like the widdle boy wants to pway wif Uncle Kittan!"

"Kittan…" said Leeron warningly.

"Yeah, um, I don't think this is a good idea," said Kinon quietly.

Kittan did what he did best and ignored all of the sound advice being thrown at him. "Simon wants to pla-ay! Simon wants to pla-ay!"

"That's it!" cried the prince, whipping out his sword. "I won't stand for this any longer! You have been given fair warning – now be punished!"

"Kittan, bro," said Kidd worriedly, backing away with everyone else. "That sword seems kind of sharp."

"Look, I got nothing to fear!" He cackled again, taking refuge in his blissful ignorance. "A little kid with a plastic sword could never hurt me! Come on, kid! I'll be a good sport and let you take the first shot!"

Yoko leaned against the wall just outside the mess hall. She didn't really expect that the so-called prince would be able to help them, but it really couldn't hurt to take a listen.

On the other hand, she fully expected Kittan to do something stupid, and so she was the least surprised when she heard the vicious thump and felt the reverberations through the wall. She sighed and gave in to her curiosity, pushing her way through the mass of observers.

Kittan was lying against the wall, completely and totally out of it. There was a lump on his head, taller than even his insanely spiky hair.

Simon calmly sheathed his sword. "You would be dead by now, but for my promise to Commoner Nia," he warned. You could practically hear the scratching of everyone's mental notepad as they jotted down the words never mess with Simon. Yoko raised an eyebrow. Maybe he'd be useful after all.

"Cute and dangerous…" whispered Kinon.

"Just like us!" joked Kiyoh in an attempt to lighten the mood. Her sisters snorted and cackled at the mental image. Everyone stared at them, and they grinned sheepishly before making a swift exit.

Others followed, glancing back worriedly at Simon. Once the room had become a little less crowded, Yoko turned to Simon. "You like Nia, don't you?"

"What do you mean, Miss Yoko?" he asked innocently.

Yoko groaned inwardly, irritated by his formality and naïveté. Nevertheless, she pressed on. "You might not be willing to tell us about your father, but would you at least talk to her?"

"Why the sudden interest?"

"Just…follow me, okay?" said Yoko impatiently. She strode away, out of the mess hall. Seeing no other option, and with nothing really better to do, Simon followed her.

"This is the ocean, Nia."

Kiyal had her arms resting over Dai-Gurren's guard rail. Her gaze was fixed on a single point on the horizon, and she made great pains to appear relaxed. The cool night breeze washed over her, and up in the sky little puffs of cloud scudded across the pale half-circle of the moon.

"It's pretty, isn't it? We used to take little vacations on the beach, back when we were just the Black Siblings. 'Course, the beastmen had this annoying habit of crashing the party." She chuckled half-heartedly.

"Yes, it's really nice," said Nia emptily. As usual, her eyes were empty in that way that indicated she was looking at the world without actually seeing it. Kiyal pouted sadly and rested her chin on the rail, saddened by the knowledge that, once again, she was failing.

Time to try a new tactic.

"Nia, Kamina's not coming back," she said bluntly. "But he left us a lot that we should be thankful for. Like this ship! We shouldn't waste her, don't you think?"

"I know…" said Nia morosely.

They were interrupted by the opening of the hatch, from which emerged Yoko and Simon. The redhead approached them, an expression of concentration on her face. Simon tagged along behind her like a confused puppy.

"Yoko," said Kiyal warily. "And Simon."

"Hi, Kiyal. We're just here to talk." Yoko cocked her head in a manner that said get lost, this is none of your business.

"Oh, sorry, I've got to go help Kiyoh with…laundry," she said lamely. It wasn't as if Nia would notice anyway, so she shrugged mentally and continued on. "I guess I'll see you all later."

Nia mumbled something that might have been a goodbye. Kiyal left, but not without one last concerned glance over her shoulder.

"Right. Talking." Yoko cleared her throat. "Specifically, Simon's here to talk to you, Nia. He trusts you, so it's your job to find out what he can tell us about the Spiral King. Er…good luck, I guess."

Nia showed no signs of having even heard the redhead's statement. She continued staring through the waves as they crashed against Dai-Gurren's armor. Clouds drifted across the moon, and for a moment the night was a little bit darker.

"…Well, I tried," said Yoko wearily. She was just about ready to give up, and probably would have dragged Simon back downstairs for a more traditional interrogation…except, at that moment, Simon stepped forwards to stand at Nia's side.

"Nia," he asked softly. "Is something wrong?"

She made a noise halfway between a grunt and a sigh.

"You have this…dark feeling about you," noted Simon gently. "Is it your family?"

"I have no family anymore…" she said morosely. "Without Bro…I don't know why I should keep living."

Yes you do! screeched the Voice in her ear, causing her to wince and flinch. You live now to avenge brother…and you're going to do it MY WAY!

She clenched her fists and tried her best to ignore it. For the moment she succeeded, but every time it got harder.

She turned to Simon, her dull eyes pleading for answers. "Simon, why should I get to live while Kamina is dead?"

"That is…" He thought for a moment. "I cannot answer your question, Commoner Nia." He stepped forward and took Kiyal's former place, his hands resting lightly on the railing. "I have…never experienced the death of someone important to me. In truth, you are the one with all the answers." He paused. "Tell me, Commoner Nia. How does this loss make you feel?"

At this point Yoko decided to leave. This was between Nia and Simon, and she had no right to eavesdrop. The boy had no sense of tact, no idea of how others' emotions worked…but maybe, just maybe, he would achieve something that no one else had.

Her head disappeared down the hatch just as Nia gave her answer.

"Empty," she said quietly. "I loved Bro more than anything in the world. I could never do anything without him; he was a, a part of me that I just couldn't work without."

"I don't understand," admitted Simon. "Can you explain further?"

Nia thought for a moment, feeling somehow compelled to honor the prince's request. She came upon an answer.

"Okay. Once, Kamina had the idea that we could drill our way out of the village, starting in one of the side tunnels. Only, before we actually managed to get anywhere, there was an earthquake. We could've been crushed, but instead we were trapped in this tiny pocket of air, trapped on all sides by rock." She shuddered at the memory. "In some ways it was worse than being crushed."

"I see. I would feel…perturbed, were I trapped like that."

"Yes. I started to cry, thinking I was going to die just like my parents…but then Kamina started yelling at us to keep going. He wasn't scared at all, just laughing. To him it wasn't about if we'd make it through, it was when. I stopped crying, and suddenly I could dig like I'd never dug before. And I dug us out." Her slender frame suddenly sagged. "He told me later that it was my smile lighting our way…"

"I do not understand. How does this prove that you cannot live without him?"

"Don't you see?" she sobbed. "We made it because he was there. He trusted me, I trusted him, and that's why we made it. I can't do anything without him!" Somehow, she managed to crumple in on herself even further. "Without Bro, I'm useless."

There was another pause. Then:

"I do not think I can agree with you, Commoner Nia."

She looked up at him questioningly, cynicism easily evident in her glare.

"Kamina is a true warrior," said Simon. "One of the greatest, from what you have told me. However, he is not great because he fought for others; he is great because he taught others to fight."

Her glare turned to confusion.

"Remember when I met you? You wanted to run away, even though I wished to stay and fight." He sighed. "Sir Irenai would doubtlessly have my hide for such a maneuver. One should never stay to fight a battle that one is sure to lose. You did the right thing by running, and you did it on your own."

"But, that doesn't make sense…Bro wouldn't do that. He would have fought that ganman regardless of the odds. See? I never learned anything from him. I'll never be like him."

"That is the point," said Simon patiently. "You will never be like him. His lessons are only a guide; in the end, who you are up to you alone."

"Be myself? You think I haven't thought about that?" She laughed bitterly. "He told me the same thing, right before he…" She exhaled painfully. "But I'm weak. Nia is weak. Nobody needs Nia; they need Kamina."

"Perhaps I should rephrase a bit. Nia, the important thing is not who you are. It's who you will become."

"I am trained to be a prince," he said. A gust of wind lifted his cape up slightly. "But despite receiving the same training, my brothers and I have very little in common. Each one of us has unique values and a special kind of nobility, and that is what makes us strong on our own. I see no reason why it should not be the same with you. You can be just as strong with or without Kamina!"

Nia clutched at her heart and stumbled away from the shocking words. She came up against the hatch and, seeking to flee the doubt in her heart, she threw it open and dropped inside.

Seconds later, Yoko came storming up the ladder.

"What did you do?" she growled, grabbing the collar of his shirt and yanking it up. "What did you say that somehow, despite all possibility, made things worse?"

"I-I just told her to be herself," he stammered. "That she could move on and be strong on her own without Kamina."

"You idiot!" She drove him up against the railing. "Stupid, arrogant jerk! How dare you?"

"How dare I?" said Simon sharply. "I am a prince and I will not be treated-"

"I don't care who you are!" She pushed him until he was leaning back over the railing. "You never even knew him! You can't just go blabbing on about someone you don't even know!"

Simon's face softened. "You are crying, Miss Yoko."

She blinked and backed off. She wiped at her eyes angrily. "What the hell do you know about it?" she said through grit teeth. "Kamina was…he was a jerk! He was a complete and utter jerk! And he won't be forgotten easily, not by anyone! Not me, not Nia, nobody!"

"You are right. I do not," admitted Simon in honest puzzlement. "You clearly like him very much, and yet you call him a jerk."

Yoko raised her hand instinctively. But there was no malice in Simon's stare, and in the end she just couldn't muster the energy. Her hand dropped and she turned away.

"I guess I can't blame you," she said quietly. "He's gone now. And nothing we do will bring him back."

She jumped back down the hatch, slamming it closed behind her. Simon shook his head.

"These commoners are so confusing," he remarked. "I must learn more about them."

Viral walked through Dai-Ganzan's corridors, deeply shadowed by the noonday sun. He was freshly showered after training and was finally, he estimated, mentally prepared for the challenge that lay ahead. He steeled himself for the ordeal he was about to face, and turned the last corner.

There sat Tsuuma, tapping away at a holographic terminal. Only a couple rooms away, the ship's mighty engine thrummed powerfully; Tsuuma claimed it helped her concentrate (while Viral suspected she just liked the isolation). Suspended in the air above the terminal was a three-dimensional model of what looked like Dai-Gurren's right knee, surrounded by numbers and figures and streams of data that were incomprehensible to the soldier.

Tec-tec-tec went her fingers against the keyboard.

He grunted and massaged his cheek, remembering the smarting feeling of her palm across his cheek. He hadn't been able to talk to her, mostly because she claimed to be busy with repairs. But now the bulk of the damage had been repaired and Dai-Ganzan was rolling as usual across the wastelands, headed for an outpost where they could be air-taxied to another location.

He cleared his throat in preparation for the plunge.

"Tsuuma," he began, and he felt that maybe his voice was just a little too weak but it was too late to go back now. He waited for a response, and none came. He had no doubt that she heard; despite being constantly surrounded by the noise of machinery her hearing was fine enough to determine the size and location of a loose bolt in a machine twice her size just by listening to the thing.

So he gathered his courage and tried again.

"I know that you're still angry with me," he continued. He cleared his throat again, fervently wishing that doing this somehow involved piloting a ganman.

"I've been thinking. Maybe I really did do something stupid back there. But it's just…"

He paused.

"When Kamina and his gang showed up, it made me realize something. I'm not the perfect soldier I thought I was." He chuckled bitterly. "Even dead, that loudmouth still manages to taunt me…"

He went paused again before resuming.

"I just want to talk to you again, Tsuuma. Not being able to talk to you feels…wrong. I don't feel comfortable if I can't talk to you. I know it sounds weird, but..." He considered what he was saying for a moment. "I mean, anyway, the point is I'm sorry and I was wrong. Okay?"

Tec-tec-tec. Tsuuma's typing remained unchanged. The lack of even the slightest sarcastic comment made Viral suspicious. He was actually admitting that he was wrong; on any other day she'd have seized on the opportunity to mock him mercilessly.

He spun the chair around, and the sleeping mechanic snored in his face. He rolled his eyes and looked at her screen; yes, buried in the corner was a tiny program playing a loop of her typing. He rolled his eyes a second time for emphasis; it wasn't the first time she'd pulled something of the sort.

Then he noticed the lumps on her hand. Driven by worried curiosity, he grabbed her purse and searched it. Several syringes gleamed up at him emptily. He dug until he found an unused one and immediately recognized it as a booster for beastman systems comprised of something similar to the solution used in the rejuvenation pods. He shook his head; the stuff was usually only available to soldiers who couldn't make it to the pods before a battle.

"Oh no. Oh, no," he whispered. "Just how long did you work, Tsuuma?"

He dropped the syringe in the purse and slung it over his shoulder before reaching over the mechanic's shoulder and shutting down the terminal. He then reached down and picked her up, noticing for the first time how slender and frail she seemed. It worried him further; had she even eaten in the last few days?

"For that matter, why am I doing this?" he wondered aloud. No answers came.

He headed towards the quarters.

Three days they spent on the ocean. Three days they spent destroying enemy boats and submarines, their torpedoes turning the enemy into so much floating debris. Three days warding off enemy attacks until Leeron finally found the transponder broadcasting their location and destroyed it, giving them some breathing room. For the moment they were hidden, but that would not last – even the ocean is only so large…

Half a day of peaceful sailing. And then the storm hit.

The winds hissed and howled, thunder crackled and roared, rain fell in icy cold sheets. Huge waves curled and crashed, massive undulations big enough to threaten even the largest seafaring vessel.

But all this was on the surface. All this was no concern of Dai-Gurren's, submerged as they were at such a depth that the waves became a gentle rolling. It was cramped, and the entire crew longed for fresh air, but they were safe.

Simon took the opportunity to muse over three and a half days' worth of gathered experience.

He had done his best to learn about Dai-Gurren. He had talked with everyone – every pilot, every engineer, even the strange demi-human who operated the guns – and had not been denied answers. He had absorbed strife, loss, fear, despair, uncertainty…but also courage and faith and, above all, hope.

Hope. The one element that every crewmember had in common. Hope for a victorious end to their fighting. Hope for a better life on the surface. Hope that fueled their will to fight.

"And yet, I still do not understand why Miss Yoko is so volatile," he mused aloud.

He was sitting in a vacant chair on the bridge. The vessel's captain noticed this and decided to involve himself with the strange prince.

"Volatile? What do you mean?" he asked.

"Miss Yoko is…touchy at times," answered Simon, struggling to find the right words in his formal vocabulary to express the feelings he felt from Yoko. "She is strong and seeks to protect others, and yet she is reluctant to allow others to help her in turn. She does not...bond with others well."

"Aha. So that's what you mean." Dayakka thought for a moment, piecing together his own knowledge into a communicable form. "Well, Simon-"

"Please. As a matter of formality, I must request that you address me as 'Your Highness'."

"Yes, Your Highness," Dayakka continued, and to his credit not a single drop of sarcasm leaked into his tone. "You have to understand that Yoko's gone through a lot of loss. She's seen most of her childhood friends either injured or killed. In fact, most of the friends she makes get hurt. It's not easy to get attached to someone and then lose them soon after. That's one of the reasons she pushes herself so hard – she doesn't give herself enough time to get attached, so even if she fails, then it won't be so hard."

"I am…starting to see." Simon cocked his head to one side. "Despite her efforts, she must have been quite attached to this man named Kamina. Judging by her actions, of course."

Dayakka's expression hardened. "Yeah, she tried," he said. "She was always pushing him away, and trying to push herself past…whenever she was around him she got really volatile, and on the surface it looked like she didn't care for him at all, but if you looked past it then it was clear as day." He sighed, and it was a sad, mournful sound. "She was afraid more than anything of losing him, Your Highness. And, in the end…she did."

"I understand more and more," said Simon simply, "and yet, other mysteries become less and less clear. You are honest people, and I cannot see why Father would issue such orders as he has. I wish I could speak with him. I am sure that he would understand."

"Doesn't seem very understanding to me."

"Everything Father does," explained Simon confidently, "he does with a reason. The foremost concern in his mind is the greater good."

"Then why would he go to such lengths to oppress us?" asked Kinon, joining the conversation. "No offense, your highness."

Her radar beeped. She glanced at it. "Great, another cluster of mines. Attenborough!"

The strange demi-man bolted in with a great big grin and mashed the button to launch the anti-mine torpedo. It weaved in to the center of the cluster and emitted an ultrasonic wave that triggered the entire field. The way was once again clear. Attenborough dashed out again upon realizing that there was nothing else for him to blow up.

"It is all right, Commoner Kinon," said Simon, picking up from where they'd left off. "I do not understand myself. Thus, my desire to speak at length with him. I am positive that he will be reasonable."

"Tell me the moon's falling. I'll believe it more." Kittan emerged from just outside, chewing a toothpick. "Didn't you hear, kid? He ditched you. End of story. You're no better than us, now."

"You again." Simon's expression quickly became serious. "I have no intention of conversing with one so uncouth."

"Bells still haven't gone yet? Reality hasn't seeped through to your brain yet?" Kittan sneered. "Let me fill you in, kid. You ain't a prince anymore. You're just some kid with a crazy eyes and a sword too big for a boy your age. You've spent your whole like depending on someone else, and now he doesn't give a damn."

"That is not true!" said Simon hotly. "My father cares deeply about my brothers and me! It is not his fault that he is often very busy!"

"Izzat so?" Kittan raised an eyebrow. "You were a tool, kid! And now he's tossed you aside! Look at what your so-called brother did the other day! He was perfectly fine with blowing you up along with the rest of us."

"You…" A slim hand went to the hilt of the sword.

"Oi, cool it," said Dayakka, placing himself between them. "No fighting on my ship, let alone the bridge."

"Pah." Kittan spat out his toothpick. "Grow up, kid!"

He tucked his hands in his pockets and slunk away.

"What a disrespectful man," said Simon indignantly. "Who does he think that he is?"

"Worry not, Your Highness," said Kinon levelly. "He's like this with everyone." She then smoothly changed the topic: "Your Highness, have you undergone a medical examination yet?"

"No, not yet. I will proceed to the medical ward henceforth."

"I'll just give Leeron a shout to let him know you're coming.

"Thank you." He stood and nodded to both of them. "Commoner Kinon, Captain Dayakka. Thank you. I look forward to talking more with both of you."

He exited.

"Isn't he adorable?" said Kinon, clasping her hands together and smiling.

"Bit arrogant, but he seems to be a good kid." Dayakka frowned. "But why did he call me 'Captain'?"

"Well…you did tell Kittan it was your ship."

"But I-"

"And Dai-Gurren is a ship, so it's logical that she'd have a captain."

"We'll talk about this later," said Dayakka hurriedly.

"Okay then…I wish Rossiu could be more confident like Simon, though."

"Really? He seems pretty confident already."

"That's just it. He seems confident, but when you look at it, he doesn't say much, and he doesn't get involved often." The radar blipped at her. "More mines? I wonder why they're so common around here…Attenborough!"

The gonk rushed in. "Destroy!"

"Healthy across the board," declared Leeron, scanning from a screen. A drop of blood sat on a scanner nearby. "Your vitamin D levels are a little low, though, but that's nothing a few supplements won't solve."

"Leeron! 'Sup?" Leitte waltzed in, oblivious to the fact that Leeron was with a patient. She made a beeline straight for the medicine cabinet.

"What are you looking for there, hon?"

"Those calmin' gums," she said morosely. "They won't let me smoke while this tub's underwater, so I've been forced to improvise."

"Mm, go ahead, dear. Toss me the D-supplements while you're there?"

"Sure thing." She tossed him one of the white screw-top bottles.

"One after lunch every day, 'mmkay?" The boy nodded. "Now, I've got to do some things the old-fashioned way. Strip off that top, please~"

"Hi everyone!" said Kiyal cheerfully, peeking in.

"Oh you naughty girl," chastised Leeron. "You've been waiting outside that door this whole time, weren't you?"

She grinned sheepishly at him.

"Miss Kiyal!" exclaimed Simon. "I must talk with you. How is Nia?"

"Um. She's still kind of upset." Her smile faded. "She…didn't take what you said too well."

"Every time I think I understand, I find that I am wrong," said the prince with frustration. "I told her only the truth as I saw it, and yet I seem to have done something wrong."

"Simon, you see-"

"Your Highness."

She pouted adorably. "Your Highness. Telling the truth can actually be worse than lying, if you're not careful. It's like…eating steak, see? Nobody likes their steak raw."

"I don't understand…"

"What, have you been eating raw food all your life?" Suddenly she grinned mischievously. "Now come on, Leeron said strip. I'll hold your shirt for you."

"Okay." He started unbuttoning his shirt.

Leeron muttered something about silly girls, but he let her go through with it.

Her look was not one of pleasure, but of shock.

"Simon, why do you have so many scars?" she gasped, letting the soft silk garment slip through her fingers.

"Hm?" He looked down at himself, oblivious to their shock. Criss-crossing over the well-toned body was a network of pale white lines, concentrated mainly on his back, chest and gut.

"Oh here they are. Hopefully they'll help with the anxiety…" Leitte emerged from the medicine cabinet holding a smaller screw-cap bottle, but dropped it upon laying eyes on Simon. "-! He's got more scars than Uncle Borkins! And that's sayin' sumthin'!"

"Who did this?" asked Kiyal carefully.

"I do not understand," muttered Simon. "This is not normal?"

"Honey, this is so far from normal that it's disturbing for me," said Leeron quietly. "Please tell us how you got them."

"These are a natural consequence of my training," he said, his voice absolutely, frighteningly normal. "It is the way my brother punishes unsatisfactory grades. The lesson, he says, should be reinforced in the most effective manner possible." He felt his back. "Ah, yes. There are the twelve from Test 23-5. It was a reflexes exercise," he explained, wrongly assuming the reason for the looks on their faces. "Drones shot blanks at me while I stood in the center of the training field. Twelve times I was whipped, before I passed." He shrugged. "But pass I did."

"That's just…freaking evil, Simon…" said Kiyal, covering her eyes.

"He is not evil!" exclaimed Simon, upset. "My brother did this special training because he knows there is nothing I want more than to be a knight like him!" He quickly reined himself in and added, "And please, call me Your Highness."

"…Yes, Your Highness." Kiyal picked his shirt back up and hid behind it. There was something very wrong with his train of thought, but they tacitly agreed not to force the issue."

"…So, weren't you disowned?" noted Leitte. "How're you supposed to become a knight now, if ya don't mind me askin'."

"I will ask my father for his reasons behind my…release. And then I will correct my mistakes."

"And what if he demands that you kill us?" asked Kiyal cautiously.

Simon was silent for a moment. Then: "My father is a fair ruler. I believe in him."

His smile communicated his total belief in this statement. The others, however, were not convinced.

The storm thrashed over the sea like a beast of divine wrath. It sprawled out over the ocean like a shadowy giant, whipping the waves to froth and viciously beating the air with thunder and hurricane gales.

It was so massive, that even from the continent, many kilometers away, it could be seen provided sufficient elevation. From such a place – say, the bottom of a waterfall at the head of a river valley – it would be seen as a grey smudge on the horizon.

Such a waterfall would have a view out across the sea, unobstructed by the green river valley that sprawled beneath it. A beautiful view that crammed kilometers into the eyes of the beholder.

The waterfall itself was a beautiful enough sight in its own right, thundering over the drop and crashing down several meters below; nothing could stop the water's search for the sea. Only the bravest would dare venture into this waterfall, braving the sweeping current and the crushing might of hundreds of gallons of freezing water. In fact, very few of these brave ones returned alive.

But a single woman accepted its invitation, as she did regularly.

She sat calmly beneath the falls, the ice-cold water crashing and coursing over and around her naked body. Her eyes were closed and her legs were crossed in such a way as to indicate that she was meditating, but the slight twitch at the ends of her dark green lips suggested that she was enjoying the feeling. Similarly green hair curled wetly about her, making emerald lines over lightly tanned skin.

Presently her eyes opened, and she peered out at the horizon. Because of the valley's inclination, she just barely high enough to make out the storm's outer edge. Part of it was due to her superb eyesight; the cross-shapes of her pupils evidently did nothing to impair her vision.

"A tempest," she observed in a low monotone. "Never a good sign."

Over the waterfall's roar she heard two approaching, and she glanced to her side. Two women, garbed in white robes with black decorations at the chest and shoulders, stopped at the pool's edge and bowed. Some kind of character in an ancient language was emblazoned on their chests. They were roughly the same height, but one was dark-skinned with a mane of frizzy black hair, and the other was light-skinned with short-cut dark bangs.

"Ojou-sama," intoned the dark-skinned servant. "General Guame wishes to speak to you. We have brought your attire and towels."

"The capital brings with it only trouble," observed the woman with a sigh. "And the higher the rank, the greater the trouble. Let us pray that my father never takes it into his mind to pay a visit."

Moments later, she was fully dressed. She was garbed in a graceful dress of mournful black that covered down to her ankles, and below that she more a pair of heeled black leather boots. On her bare arms she wore bright silver bracelets over elbow-length black silk gloves. Over all this she bore a dark green cloak, clasped at the neck with a delicately crafted silver brooch. The overall effect was one of grim and imposing majesty; even without the heels she was almost two metres or six feet tall.

A small rabbit beastwoman hopped forwards and prostrated herself before the woman. She was entirely pink and wore a green military tunic that was slowly fading to yellow. She also wore a military helmet with an opening for her long ears. It seemed to cover her eyes, but from the way she moved it looked like it wasn't a problem.

She saluted. "The perimeter is safe, Ojou-sama," she reported. "My troops will ensure that your meeting is untroubled."

"Commander Filli, who would bother us?" asked the woman rhetorically.

"We must always be cautious," informed Filli with another almost-professional salute. "The enemy is cunning and treacherous, so we must always stay one step ahead, but not only one, we must stay ahead through steps one, two, and three, but not four, because four is dangerous, so I pass through number four and skip to number five!"

"Okay, Filli. Go do your job."

The bunny bounced off, and the woman shook her head. She could not always comprehend Filli's eccentric mode of speaking, nor could she comprehend why such a person had been chosen to command her guard, but she came in handy when it came to dealing with uninvited guests.

She gathered about herself an imperious air, and strode off to meet her visitor.

Guame waited for her in the cool shade of a glade in the sanctuary. He was lounging in a comfortable white deck chair, next to a white-painted cast iron table. A maid entered and left him a glass of strawberry lemonade before bowing and exiting.

Straea emerged from the trees and greeted him. "General Guame. I am honored to entertain your company. What is the purpose of your visit? Is the King looking for new consorts?"

The armadillo took a drag on his pipe. "Princess Straea, beautiful as ever. Why so businesslike? We have ample time to enjoy each other's company." He motioned to a chair opposite his own.

"I am no Princess, General," she said, but took the proffered seat. Another maid emerged and handed her an ornate pipe. "I'm just a bureaucrat, now."

"Light?" asked Guame, offering his lighter. She accepted.

"Smoking this shit will kill us some day, you know," she said, easing up as she dragged on the pipe.

"Crude words for a princess."

"I'm no princess and I don't intend on going back to being one." She blew smoke defiantly in the general's face; Guame didn't even grunt. "It's your fault, you jerk. You're the one responsible for what I am now."

"Would you rather have gone to the box?"

"Maybe. It was a comfortable-looking box…Anyway, back to the point. What are you up to?"

"Hrm. You have lost all your joy, Straea…If you really must know, we've been having a little trouble with the humans of late."

"Having issues coming up with new ways of slaughtering them?"

"As a matter of fact, we're having problems slaughtering them at all." He regarded her thoughtfully over the bowl of his pipe. "There is a group that resists the rule of the Spiral King."

"Really?" She raised a green eyebrow. "Did they actually figure out how to fight back?"

"They call themselves Team Dai-Gurren," answered Guame, sipping on his lemonade. "Their strategy revolves around stealing our own ganmen and using them against us. We assumed they'd be easy to squash, even so…but then, Adiane fell against them."

"Humans fighting back and actually managing to be a threat. I'm disappointed in you, Guame. I'd have thought you'd have crushed them with sheer numbers already."

"They are special," grunted Guame. "The more of us that fall against them, the stronger they get." He smirked at her. "That is why I intend to fight them indirectly. I propose giving them some toys to play with, and striking while their guard is down."

"And I suppose you need someone to be their 'toys'." Straea's voice turned serious, and all pretense of frivolity dropped from her tone.

"Yes, well, 'toys' is perhaps a poor choice of words. They are not toys, at least not until our King takes a liking to one." Straea almost frowned. "But, I can guarantee that our King won't be looking for a new consort for a while."

"Hm. And if I do this for you, can you keep the Fifth Prince away from here?" Her expression returned to normal. "He's not welcome here, but he doesn't seem to get it."

"I guarantee it," assured Guame. "A few words whispered in the King's ear, and the Fifth will give you no trouble."

"Fine," said Straea with finality. "What's your plan?"

Guame grinned mercilessly. "One of the oldest tricks ever devised."

A.N.: The Beliebed is based in the Tupolev Tu-160. In Russian means "White Swan", while the NATO callsign is "Blackjack", but I prefer the Russian callsign, more fitting for Dmitri (Beliebed roughly means "White Swan", according to web translators). And, if this were live-action, Straea would be played by Kristen Stewart. I hope you have enjoyed the chapter! Beta'ed by 1 over 0.