Right into chapter 25. Oh, Alek is going to be so pissed.

Also, to everyone who has been asking regarding the ending: Calm your horses. You just have to wait like everyone else.

Aleksander stepped up in the control room to where everyone could see him, with Asseylum, Slaine, Count Mazuurek, and Klancain standing to his sides. A gesture of power, if anything else, showing that he had the backing of those most loyal and those desiring change.

"Orbital Knights, hear me and listen. This conflict, which started from a single spark, has taken the lives of millions already. Where peace might have once resided, chaos reigned. All of this from the abuse of a power that was not even ours to begin with. When we first discovered the power of Aldnoah, we were enamored by it, believing in its potential to help create an empire outside of Earth. Years later, drunk off that power, we would attack our home planet, seeking to absorb it into our empire, though we were stopped by Heaven's Fall. Another many years later, when I was on Earth, I saw the direct effects of the reignited war. Hundreds of millions dead, all because we sought to take advantage of something that was not even ours. Let me ask, was it worth it? Was all the pain and suffering caused worth the conquest? It wasn't. The fires of war were staked by my father, who sought to direct the discontent of the people to something just so our empire wouldn't fall apart. That is why I can stand by no longer as people die for no reason. Not just on Earth, but on Vers as well. We have lost good men and women in this war, none of which we can replace, yet despite that it feels as though we have made little to no progress in the raging conflict. This war started because we desired the planet. Yet we have failed to realize that the true treasures of this planet are more than just the resources that it holds. If we were to take it, we would throw away hundreds of years of progress, of innovation, we would be throwing away everything that had been built up over millennia, including our own past. That is why effective immediately, I am ordering all Orbital Knights to stop their advances and withdraw from the Earth. Failure to do so will result in dismissal from the Orbital Knights."

That last bit was the most terrifying part for every count listening. Aleksander could do it with little to no opposition as well, with the people representing most of the power spectrum of Vers backing him, as well as approval from the previous Emperor.

"In light of my new position, I also believe it is time to change the way Vers is run. I will begin by appointing Count Mazuurek as the primary ambassador to Earth, while Count Cruhteo will be in charge of managing affairs among the 37 Clans."

Those first two appointments were little to no surprise to everyone listening, as Count Mazuurek, with his family's reputation for pacifism, would represent peaceful relations with Earth, while Count Cruhteo, as the most loyal clan of all the Orbital Knights, represented someone who would see the new Emperor's changes through. The next appointment though, surprised everyone, including the person that was appointed.

"Finally, I appoint Sir Harklight of Count Troyard's clan as the first Chairman of a council that I am establishing in order to manage domestic policies on Vers. As someone who rose up from the lower class to his current status, he understands the people better than anyone else. That is how I will base my appointments in the coming days. Those who prove their merit in the coming days will also find themselves positions in this council. With your support, I hope to create a bright future for Vers and Earth. Together, we can make strides that would have been unthinkable if we were alone."

Now that was an appointment no one expected. The Emperor had chosen someone of little status to be part of a council that would effectively decide the future of the people. This would undoubtedly create some tensions, though very few would argue against the fact that Emperor Aleksander had quite possibly just commanded the respect of practically every single man and woman not of the upper class.

Aleksander closed off the broadcast before turning around to face his sister. "Asseylum, I understand that you wish to do something, but at this time, your reputation and effectiveness in any position is rather weak. We'll do some things to fix that in the future, but for now I want you to keep a low profile. Listen in on meetings, but do not actively participate in the discussion. It's best that we listen to the people before we take action in regards to policy. When Lemrina announced the establishment of the new kingdom, she set you up."

Asseylum nodded somberly. While she didn't like her brother's instructions, he only had the best in mind for what she could do in the future. "I understand."

"Your Majesty… are you certain someone like me should be the head of such an important group?" Harklight asked. "Not Count Troyard?"

"You're actually from the lower class of Vers. You have the personal experience of living among them, of knowing their struggles. None of us in the upper class have that same luxury. If anyone is in a position to help them, it would be you. Right, Slaine?"

Slaine nodded, smiling while he did so. "I can't imagine anyone else would be as qualified. I only know what Count Saazbaum told me about it. And I trust Harklight to have the skills to do this."

"In the future, the position will be decided by popular vote. To start things out though, someone needed to be appointed to the position. You were best qualified, Harklight. Admittedly, you were also the most conveniently located person as well, but that's beside the point. If you want to change Vers, you need to be in the right position to do so."

Harklight was at a loss of words. "Thank you, your Majesty. I won't let you down!"

Asseylum brought up another question. "What are you going to do regarding Slaine?"

"That's a difficult problem that I still have no answer to." Aleksander admitted. "Through my ascension to Emperor and order to stop the war, Slaine's plan for a kingdom on Earth are gone. There are few among the Orbital Knights who would trust him at this point in time. We need to find a way to restore that trust."

"I see…" Asseylum nodded sadly.

Slaine started. "Your Majesty… why would you endure so much? Why would you go out of your way to help me? I've hurt you, your family, as well as your friends. So why?"

"Because a lot of that was my fault, Slaine." Aleksander said. "I've made many terrible choices that let the war go on, I haven't been the greatest of friends to you either. When you first came to Vers, I was just happy to have someone else my age to interact with. You always went along with what I suggested, even if it was a terrible idea. I have done wrong by you, and I wish to apologize for it. You may have made your own choices, but I pushed you towards those choices."

Before Slaine could give a response though, one of the operators called out. "Milord, there is a transmission coming from an unknown source."

Aleksander frowned. He wasn't expecting anyone. "Put it through."

The face of one Kaoru Mizusaki appeared on the screen. "Emperor Aleksander Vers Allusia, we have a problem."

Suffice to say, Aleksander was surprised. "XO Mizusaki? What's the problem?"

"The Deucalion was attacked by UFE forces. They were supposed to send us to the frontlines during the next battle we had, but your warning put them off, so they accused us of treason and designated the crew of the Deucalion as apprehend on sight."

"Is everyone alright?" Aleksander's brain was working overtime.

Mizusaki shook her head. "We managed to get away from the forces attacking us, but what we didn't know was that they had snuck on board beforehand. No one died, but Amifumi and Kaizuka were arrested on charges of treason before we could react."

Aleksander's response was frighteningly calm. "I'll call you back in a bit. I need to have a talk with a certain chairman."

After the communication channel closed, Aleksander turned to the operator. "Get in touch with the UFE. I need to have a talk with them. Record the conversation too, just in case."

When the video channel opened up to the council, the chairman was first to respond. "Ah, Aleksander Vers Allusia. How kind of you to call us. What is it you want?"

While behind Aleksander, Count Mazuurek and Klancain looked ready to explode at the disrespect, Aleksander put up his arm to stop them. "What is the meaning of this? Why would you arrest two important crewmembers of your most valuable asset?"

"Valuable? I would hardly call it that, seeing as the members of the Deucalion are guilty of treason. We just happened to arrest the two people directly involved in the act of treason."

Aleksander raised an eyebrow. "And that act of treason would be?"

"I'm afraid that the activities of Earth are not privy to your ears. I'm sure everyone understands that."

There was a snort of derision. "You would arrest them simply because they rescued my sister as well as myself from your assassination team? Release them. They have done a service for the Vers Empire and I will not see them imprisoned for an act that would help bring peace between us."

The chairman was not so easily swayed. "Unfortunately, your Highness, we have laws in place regarding these things. What they have done is still treason, as they betrayed their own military authority to do what they did. However, we are willing to strike a deal with you. If you are willing to supply us with the technology to fight the Orbital Knights that refuse to leave this planet, we will release these two prisoners to you. Do try and think about it, our dear Emperor."

When the communication closed off, Asseylum was the first to speak. "We can't just leave them!"

"I agree." Aleksander nodded. "But we can't just give the UFE the weapons either. That was exactly the problem Count Valerus was talking about. And if there is one organization I don't trust, it's the UFE."

"Would Kaizuka be the same Inaho Kaizuka that you recruited to get me out of the Terran base?" Count Mazuurek asked.

"The same one." Aleksander nodded. "He also rescued me as well as Asseylum from the Moon Base when the UFE sent a strike team to kill Asseylum. Inko Amifumi was the one who assisted him in the task."

Count Mazuurek was direct. "Then by all means, we should rescue them. How would it look if the Emperor didn't repay his debt to someone who saved his life?"

"But what do you plan to do?" Klancain asked.

Aleksander turned to his newly appointed Head of the Orbital Knights. "Klancain, tell the Orbital Knights to prep for a concentrated assault on my command."

"Aleksander… you don't mean to go to war again, do you?" Asseylum asked, horrified.

The Emperor turned to his sister. "Not if I can help it. If they force my hand though, I won't have a choice."

"Bloodshed will result!" Asseylum was on the verge of crying.

Aleksander's voice was quietly firm. "Asseylum. I love you dearly as my sister, but it is time for you to grow up. If there is something that will threaten peace in the future, we must eliminate it. Your supposed death may have started the war, but it was my actions that made it continue these past two years. I will not stand by while another potential war brews on the horizon."

Asseylum's eyes watered before she ran out of the room.

"Permission to speak, your Majesty?" Count Mazuurek asked.

"You don't need my permission if it's something of importance. What is it?"

The count looked uneasy. "Should we go so far as to attack the UFE?"

Aleksander shook his head slightly. "If we're lucky, we won't have to use the Orbital Knights. I plan to send in a rescue team first before anything else happens. By that time, the UFE will probably surrender, seeing as they've lost their bargaining chips. The Orbital Knights are mainly there as an intimidation factor."

Count Mazuurek looked a bit more relieved. "I see." He headed out.

"Slaine, I want you to form a team to rescue the two prisoners. We'll be taking custody of them for the foreseeable future."

Slaine looked like he wanted to puke. "Me? Rescue Inaho Kaizuka?"

"And Inko Amifumi. Yes, I know you've tried to kill Inaho a couple times already. But that's beside the point. Inaho is also my friend."

"But where are they even being held?" At the very least, he looked willing to do it.

Aleksander looked surprisingly composed for someone whose friends had been captured. "I think I have a way to find out. In the meantime, find people for the strike team."

Slaine bowed before heading out. "Yes… Aleksander."

Klancain turned to his Emperor, who had the slightest hint of a smile on his face. "You're not bothered at all by his lack of title usage, your Majesty?"

"I think I told you to drop the formalities, Klancain. I told the same thing to Slaine years ago when he first found out I was a prince. The way I see it, friends should not have to address each other formally. Even if the respective positions of said friends are as different as a beggar and a god. I didn't want Slaine to associate me with someone unapproachable, so I asked him to drop the formalities."

"I see. I assume you did the same with your friends on Earth?" Klancain was intrigued.

Aleksander smiled lightly. "It would be hard to make friends otherwise. But I digress. Call the Deucalion."

When the transmission patched through, Darzana Magbaredge stood on the other side. "It's good to see you again."

Aleksander recognized her hesitation in calling him by his old name. "Go ahead and use my last name, Captain. I don't mind. But that aside, do you know where Inko and Inaho were taken to?"

The captain shook her head. "We've narrowed it down to somewhere in Siberia. Where exactly, we're not sure."

Before Aleksander could reply, he heard a rolling sound as a familiar face appeared on the screen. "Aleksander!"

Aleksander was surprised. "Lemrina, what is it?"

"Inko has your laser transmitter. You should be able to use it to find her. They confiscated it as evidence that she was conspiring with Vers."

Now that was something Aleksander could take advantage of. He turned to an operator. "I need you to track the laser transmitter that Count Mazuurek always contacted me at. Just ping a signal."

"Yes, your Majesty!"

When the trace came back, Aleksander almost wondered why he didn't think of that location first. "Novosibirsk. They took them to Novosibirsk of all places. They could have chosen any ambiguous place and we would have had a more difficult chance of finding them, but Novosibirsk? Seriously?"

"It's their most heavily defended base still, even after Count Saazbaum attacked it. The civilians evacuated with the supplies a while back. All that's left are the soldiers and the weapons."

"They have no Aldnoah, though. The only drives that were active are on the Deucalion, and I deactivated all of them before I left."

"What do you plan to do, Audet?" The captain asked.

Aleksander already had a response, a dangerous glint in his eye. "How do you feel about defecting from the UFE?"

Inko yelped as she was roughly pushed into a holding cell before the door was slammed behind her. This was not what she had expected to happen.

She glared at the door before hearing a voice in the room next to hers. "Inko? Is that you?"

"Inaho! Are you alright?" They couldn't actually see each other, so all Inko could do was ask.

"I'm alright. I could do with a couple more blankets though. It's rather cold in here. And school uniforms aren't that good for retaining heat. How about you?" Inaho said.

Had it been any other situation, Inko would have smiled a bit at Inaho's comments. They'd fought for almost two years now, and Inaho still worried about people getting sick from the cold. It was an endearing trait of his. Nevertheless, that wasn't Inko's biggest concern. "You're not worried about being stuck here?"

"I'm worried. I just don't think that we can do anything about it."

"Oh… Where are we?" Inko had to wonder.

Inaho answered right away. "I believe we're in Novosibirsk, assuming the inner structure hasn't changed. At least, that's what my analytical engine suggests."

"Novosibirsk… you mean we're back where we were when Count Saazbaum attacked?" Inko asked.

"I believe so, yes. What is it?"

"No, it's just that I expected them to take us to some more obscure place if we were supposed to be arrested for treason." Inko said.

"I'm just glad that we're somewhere that's easy to locate." Inaho said.

Inko was a slight bit confused. "You're not worried about the fact that we're stuck here as prisoners?"

Inaho shook his head, even though Inko couldn't see the motion. "I am, but I'm not that worried. Alek will come for us."

Inko couldn't help but smile. "You're right. Alek will come. We just need to wait."

"There is something that has been bothering me, though."

"Huh?"

"Alek keeps on having these weird reactions every time I'm around Seylum. I still don't know why."

Now that was a topic of interest to kill the time. "In what sense of the word 'weird'?" Inko just had to ask.

"Every time we talk, Alek seems to start fidgeting and show signs of nervousness. It doesn't make sense to me."

If there was one thing that Inko Amifumi had been able to pride herself on recently, it was her willpower. Mainly, her will to seek out solutions for Vers despite it not being her homeland, her will to stay with Alek even if it would be difficult for them, and her will to listen to put aside all the pain that had been caused to both Earth and Vers during the war in lieu of peaceful solutions. Yet for all that willpower, she simply did not have the strength to avoid laughing at what she recognized as Alek's overprotective older brother symptoms.

"Inko?" Inaho was showing slight signs of irritation.

Catching her breath, Inko explained. "Alek freaks out easily where family and romantic interactions are involved. He's just being an overprotective older brother to Asseylum."

"That still doesn't… Oh." Inaho paused as everything finally clicked together for him. "So that's what he meant when he asked Seylum not to give him a heart attack through telling him that he should be expecting a happy announcement."

Alek was a paranoid older brother. A funny but paranoid older brother.

Slaine was exhausted. While he managed to put together a team for the rescue operation, he was starting to wonder whether or not all the effort was worth it. No matter what happened, his credibility had been shattered the moment he stood behind Aleksander. Now, he was just plain old Count Troyard who had nothing to his power. Could he do anything for the Vers Empire? He wasn't sure. Nor was he sure that he wanted to, now. After Princess Asseylum and Princess Lemrina had left the Moon Base, he lost essentially every advantage he had.

Lemrina. That was a person he hadn't thought about in a while. He still remembered when he first met her, surprised that there was another member of the royal family. Lemrina had impressed upon Slaine differently than either Aleksander or Princess Asseylum had. For one thing, she had actually tried to understand him as a person. Though she held the same interest in Earth that the rest of her family did, she also had interest in Slaine Troyard. Not as Sir Slaine Troyard, the vassal of Count Saazbaum or Count Troyard, the most powerful of the Orbital Knights for a time. She was the first person to truly acknowledge Slaine for the person he was. To try and actually learn more about him.

Slaine didn't know what it was, but he felt something for her. After everything she had done for him, pretending to be someone she was not, she deserved something. In a way, Slaine was glad that she wasn't here.

—Flashback—

"Your Highness, where is Princess Lemrina?" Slaine had to ask.

"On the way to Earth on the Deucalion." Aleksander replied.

Slaine looked at him, bewildered. "Why?"

Aleksander turned to him, a serious look on his face. "Because she deserves at least one thing in her life to go the way she wants. I wanted to give her a fresh start at life. With the war ending, Earth provides her with exactly the opportunity that she's looking for."

Slaine frowned. "She doesn't have any money. It'll be difficult for her."

"International bank account. Used to be mine, but I've decided to give it all to her. She could probably make better use of it than I might in the future."

That… was actually really thoughtful of Aleksander. Then again, Slaine should have expected him to act the way he did, seeing as Aleksander looked out for family for the most part.

"Why did you let her go to Earth instead of coming to the Landing Castle?" Slaine asked.

Aleksander looked critically at Slaine. "You should know, Slaine. You're a terran. You know the kind of prejudice you faced. How do you think the Orbital Knights would receive a bastard child of the Emperor who had intentionally impersonated a legitimate heir to the throne in order to throw a wrench in the Empire?"

"She never desired such a thing though."

"It's not about what her intentions were. It's how they came across. And I refuse to let her take consequences for something just because it was the only thing she knew."

—Flashback End—

Aleksander had a point, of course. Lemrina being welcome on Vers was highly unlikely, and chances were that any mistake she made would be considered the failings of a bastard child. Still though, Slaine couldn't help but miss her somewhat. At the very least, they were acquaintances of some level, though Slaine found it hard to believe that they were only acquaintances. After everything they went through, it would be unfair to not call them at least partners of some sort.

He was brought out of his thoughts when the door opened. "Count Troyard, the Emperor would like to talk to you. It's about the mission plan."

Slaine stood up. "I'll be there in a couple minutes."

"The mission plan will commence as a hit-and-run operation: We'll begin by sending in the rescue team on the Deucalion a small distance away from Novosibirsk. We'll store the Tharsis on the Deucalion as well, so that once Inko Amifumi and Inaho Kaizuka are located, we can use it to quickly extract them. Using the optical disguises, the rescue team will infiltrate the base as UFE soldiers and locate the prisoners. While that's going on, we'll drop Castle Mazuurek a short distance away to draw the attention of the UFE while the Deucalion moves in to extract everyone else. In the meantime, Castle Mazuurek will prioritize taking out their main defenses. I'll come out in the Hengroen if we need more firepower. We want to avoid casualties, so focus on disabling rather than killing if possible. Remember though, you should prioritize your lives over theirs. I care more about you living than them dying. Pull off this mission, and we can have negotiations on our terms, which should maximize the benefit for Vers. Without said prisoners, they will have lost their bargaining chip. Any questions?" Aleksander asked.

"What exactly is the value of the priority extraction targets?" One of the men on Slaine's rescue team asked. "Why are they so important that you would refuse to continue negotiations without them?"

Aleksander answered promptly. "Those of us from the royal family owe a debt to them for keeping us out of harm's way during the attack on the Moon Base. They risked going against their allies in order to keep us safe. We owe them our lives and nothing less. The other prisoners there are most likely either prisoners of war or people who have opposed the UFE's method of doing things. Remember, we are not going to war with all of Earth. Our quarry is the United Forces of Earth, an organization that aims to compromise the Vers Empire and by extension, Earth."

The group understood. A couple of terrans rescuing the royal family was a big deal, especially if they were opposing their authorities in doing so. Not rescuing them would have sent the message that the Emperor was an ungrateful bastard, which could hurt relations with not just Earth, but the Orbital Knights as well if their Emperor seemed weak.

"If that is all, you're dismissed. The mission will commence in an hour." Aleksander said.

Lemrina didn't expect to find herself in a Landing Castle once again. Then again, she also never expected her future sister-in-law to get kidnapped either, along with her (maybe?) future brother-in-law. Or to go back into space because it was safer than on Earth.

Either way, when the Deucalion's captain asked her to stay on Castle Mazuurek because it would be safer, she complied. To her surprise, the first person she ran into was the person she wanted to talk to.

"Slaine." Lemrina looked at him in interest.

Seeing as no one was around, Slaine did a small bow. "Princess Lemrina. How can I help you?"

Lemrina decided not to correct Slaine on his addressing her. There were different questions that she wanted to ask. "Have you been well?"

Slaine smiled. A genuine one, she noticed. "Surprisingly well. Though I wish I could do more, Aleksander has been rather concerned for me and how the Orbital Knights would react to my breaking the promise of a kingdom on Earth."

"And my sister?" Lemrina had to ask.

"He's been showing the same concern for her. He said she should probably stay out of politics for a while, after all that's happened."

Lemrina couldn't help but feel somewhat guilty at that piece of information. "All because I decided to impersonate her. How is she, by the way?"

Slaine replied. "We're assuming that she's returned to her room. She was rather upset when Aleksander mentioned that they might have to prepare for battle again. And you shouldn't blame yourself, Princess Lemrina. I'm as much to blame as you are for the situation."

It seemed unfair to Lemrina, that she was the one who got away with any repercussions while her sister had to pay for her actions. After all, she was the one who got the Orbital Knights riled up, even if it was Slaine that was technically the mastermind behind the plan.

There was something else that Lemrina was wondering. "Do you still love her?"

Slaine shook his head. "I don't think I ever actually did. I think it's more likely that I was obsessed with her. With what she embodied. And even if I did love her, I don't deserve her. What I've done is completely opposite to what she desired."

Before they could continue their discussion, a familiar voice came from down the hall. "Slaine, are you busy— oh, Lemrina."

Lemrina and Slaine turned to see Aleksander coming down the hall wearing a casual jacket. Which once again made it difficult to associate him with the position of Emperor. They both stared at him in confusion for a second. Said Emperor was confused.

"Why are you looking at me like that?"

"That jacket makes it hard to think of you as an Emperor."

Aleksander shrugged. "It's warm enough, and I like practicality over fanciness when it comes to my clothes."

"Right. Did you need something, Aleksander?" Slaine asked.

"Not really. I just came to inform you that we just finished loading the Tharsis onto the Deucalion."

"Aleksander, can I talk to you in private?" Lemrina asked.

Slaine excused himself while the siblings went into a room to talk.

"What did Dr. Yagarai say regarding your legs?" Aleksander asked.

"He said that I would be able to walk. It's just that the treatment takes a couple years to finish."

Aleksander sighed in relief. "That's good news."

"Aleksander, why am I the only person who gets out of this without any repercussions?"

"What do you mean?" Aleksander asked.

"I'm the one who impersonated Asseylum and incited the Orbital Knights to continue fighting. Why am I not being punished for it? Why is she the one who has to suffer?"

Aleksander was silent for a while as he pondered his answer. "Because the other option would be to reveal you to the Orbital Knights, and I have no reason to believe that they would show you any mercy at all. I told you before that because you that I was helping you because you are part of the family. I still stand by that statement even now. Even if you were purposefully helping Slaine, you were still being used. You didn't know any better, because Slaine was the first person you could ever relate with. Am I wrong?"

"You're not… but what exactly do you want for me?" Lemrina asked.

"Go out and explore Earth. Take in the sights. I want you to form your own opinions. I can't promise that you'll always be happy, but I can promise you this: For the first time in your life, you'll be free. It's not that I don't want your help in restoring the trust of the Orbital Knights in Asseylum, but this is something she has to do herself. In fact, all the consequences that occurred are things that we need to fix ourselves."

Lemrina looked down at Earth as she processed her brother's words. "Free… Do you truly think I can ever be free? The royal blood that I've hated all my life still runs through me. The power to activate Aldnoah still runs in that blood. What's to say that I won't be dragged back in the future?"

"We won't know unless we try. And really, that's all that life is about. For all the planning that we can do, for all the scheming and preparations we make for the future, we will never be able to expect everything." Aleksander knelt down to talk face-to-face with Lemrina. "If you really think you need to do something, tell me. I'll be here to listen. You don't have to face any of this alone."

"And what about Slaine? What will happen to him?"

Aleksander almost seemed hesitant to say what was next on his mind. "When Slaine came here, he offered his life to me. He was willing to accept any punishment that I delivered. So I told him that he would fight for the world that I seek to create until the day he died."

Lemrina looked horrified. "How could you?"

Her brother frowned. "Because people need to understand that I am not someone who is willing to let others push me around. I didn't do it because I wanted to. I did it to send a message to the Orbital Knights. To tell them that I would not tolerate independent actions that would compromise the future of either Vers or Earth."

"Aleksander… what you're doing is almost as bad as sentencing him to death."

"I realize. But I can't just retract that sentence." Aleksander pointed out sadly. "Slaine was responsible for deceiving the Orbital Knights. But he was my first friend. I may have been a terrible friend to him, but it was through him that I learned how to connect with other people. This was the least severe punishment I could give that would get the Orbital Knights off him. A good number of them still want his blood to spill, but they won't dare to challenge me like this."

"I see…" Lemrina looked sad.

Aleksander looked at her. "Do you still care for him that much?"

Lemrina nodded. "He was the first person that I could ever relate with. I still haven't found someone else that could relate in the same way."

Aleksander closed his eyes in thought. "I'll see what I can do."

"Thank you, Aleksander."

"I need to go now. I'm expected back in the briefing room in a couple minutes. I'll come to check up on you every once in a while once this is all over."

Inko had almost nodded off when an alarm suddenly sounded throughout the base. "Warning: Landing Castle arrival is imminent. Repeat: Landing Castle arrival is imminent. Prepare for incoming attack."

It made Inko wonder, was this Alek's doing? She had seen the announcement when it was made, which made her wonder. It seemed unlikely that Alek would be the one attacking. After all, he had made it clear that his preference was to a lasting peace. About five minutes later, she had a different tune in mind.

"Can you hear me? Get away from the door!" A female voice from right outside the door called.

Inko jumped and complied as the handle of the door suddenly exploded. A distinctly Versian uniform could be seen through the smoke. "Are you Inko Amifumi? We have orders to bring you and Inaho Kaizuka to the Landing Castle. Please hurry."

That left little room for discussion, so Inko and Inaho followed the group. "Wait, is this a rescue operation?"

"That's right. We're trying to avoid casualties, so please hurry." The woman- no, girl who had busted open their doors said.

"Signal confirmed, the prisoners have been located." One of the operators reported.

Aleksander breathed a sigh of relief from where he was sitting in the Hengroen's cockpit. "Have the Deucalion move in and launch the Tharsis. I'll head out in the Hengroen."

"Your Majesty, that might be inadvisable. We've detected movement coming from the lower parts of the UFE base."

Aleksander frowned. "How long until the Tharsis reaches the meeting point?"

"It should be there any moment."

When Slaine landed, it was not without a sense of apprehension. It almost seemed too easy to get in. He met up with the rescue team quickly enough, though. So that was one thing that went well.

When he opened up his cockpit to bring in the two prisoners, the girl had to ask. "You're Slaine Troyard, right? Did Alek order this?"

Slaine nodded. "This is a hit-and-run mission. Once we retrieve all the prisoners here, we're evacuating everyone. The Deucalion is coming in a couple minutes to rescue the other prisoners. You and Kaizuka are the primary objectives."

The girl, who Slaine had decided to assume was Inko based on how she addressed Aleksander, seemed to decide on something. "I'm staying here."

"That would be inadvisable. You know how much Alek cares for you, Inko. It would eat at him if you were hurt in any way." A familiar voice said from behind her.

Slaine's eyes narrowed his eyes. "Kaizuka."

"Slaine Troyard. You're here to retrieve us, right?"

"By order of the Emperor, yes."

"Then let's go. The sooner we get out, the sooner we can stop this fighting."

Now Slaine remembered why he disliked Inaho so much. He was callous, with little mind for respect. Despite that, orders were orders. "Come on, hurry up. You too, Amifumi."

Inko relented and got into the surprisingly roomy cockpit, followed by Inaho. Slaine hesitated for a moment, wondering if he should wait for the Deucalion to arrive.

"You should go ahead, Count Troyard. We can hold out until the Deucalion arrives."

Slaine was about to launch when the Tharsis picked up on an incoming shot. "Look out!"

He barely reached out his arm in time to protect the rescue team from being blown to pieces. As it was, the Tharsis's left arm was blown off.

"Get to cover! I'll hold them off!" Slaine roared at the team.

He turned the Tharsis to face his greatest challenge yet.

"That's—" Inko's eyes widened as she beheld the familiar kataphrakts.

No one could mistake the glowing energy wings. Inko and Inaho recognized them from multiple missions fought together with the original pilot. Slaine recognized it as the most dangerous kataphrakt developed by the UFE.

And to top it off, there were five of them.

Inaho's eyes took in the sight before finishing everyone's thoughts.

"KG-9 Pegasus."

Don't you just love it when you think you're in the clear and then suddenly everything goes wrong?

If there is one thing I wish I could do better, it would be doing more character insight/development on other characters in the story. From a logical standpoint, Harklight is by far the ideal choice for his position, but I really wish he had more of a buildup before he got to that point.

I'd say you could probably imagine how things are going to go, but that might just be me projecting my thoughts on you guys.

So how was this chapter? Good? Too cliché? Bad?

Anyways, constructive criticism is always appreciated. Longer parts of stories focusing on a single aspect tend to accumulate more errors and I'm always worried that I might have missed something, whether it be an incomplete part, a technical error, or just some conflicting bits within the story.

Until next time,

WX