Entering Dresden's dry dock facility after what seemed like an eternity, Tome couldn't help but smile, her face bright with excitement in seeing the large lineup of mobile suits being constructed and repaired; both Zeon and Federation, now all painted the same matching grey color with the flag of the Republic and NRZ identifiers. "Wow." She said to herself before returning a friendly wave to a group of workers who identified her immediately as one of their pilots. Over the past few days since they returned to work she had seen little of her best friend, who she much desired to see.

With as much work needed to be done as there was around the colonies, the Bureau of Logistics had assigned rather strict work schedules to those laboring to prepare the colonies for Hagen and Federal retaliation, and it had taken her three days and much whining to finally land herself a spot working under Carina in the hangar. Making her way first to check on her Zakum, she was surprised to find the machine legless; it's torso secured and hanging inside of it's bay as workers swarmed around it.

"Hey! What are you doing to my machine?" She called out, pretending to be upset as one of the welders working on the internal mechanisms inside of the leg joints stopped welding and lifted his visor as he turned to her. "Sorry ma'am, we didn't think you would be back so soon. This is the upgrade package Major Hughes ordered for your suit, we are about sixty percent done." He replied as the girl stared up at the machine for a moment or two before nodding. "Alright, keep up the good work you guys." The girl replied before moving on towards where she knew the Jaeger was docked and where she was most likely to find Carina. Floating towards the machine's cockpit, she slowly began to hear singing and quickly determined that it was coming from inside.

About to call out the girl's name before she emerged from the cockpit in mid verse, Tome smiled and gasped as the two floated towards one another and into a tight hug. "Tome!" Carina exclaimed with a laugh, spinning her around before pressing their feet to the catwalk. "Well, someone's in a good mood. I wonder why that might be?" She asked out loud in a sly voice as Carina blushed and shrugged, turning to the box of tools behind her as she did so. "I don't know, just happy I guess." The girl replied as she stepped back into the Jaeger's cockpit and began to unscrew a series of large bolts holding the machine's ordinance keyboard in place.

"Just happy?" Tome questioned as she followed Carina, standing in the hatch frame as she watched her friend working. It had been a long time since she had seen her like this and never before had it been with such a permanent smile and enough joy to sing in public. "Mhmm." Carina replied, looking over to her with a large grin as she used her fingers to pull the bolts from their threaded holes, though Tome was skeptical.

"I don't think this is the work of just being 'happy', Carina." Her friend once more stated before her face lit up and her eyes grew wide, believing she knew the answer. "Wait, did… did you guys sleep together?!" Tome questioned loudly as Carina turned an even darker shade of red before looking towards her friend and slowly nodding. "No way!" The curly haired girl replied, moving in closer on her knees next to Carina with a wide grin.

"Well? How was it? Were you nervous? Was he nervous?" She questioned over and over as Carina could only smile and look down to her hands, trying to think of the right way to describe what had happened between them. "It was… perfect." Carina replied, believing this to be the best way to explain it as Tome's smile remained wide, preparing another suitably embarrassing question. "Just once?" She asked as Carina blinked and shook her head, unable to even attempt to lie about just how they had spent the past few nights.

"Carina, you animal!" Tome laughed, forcing Carina to continue looking down in a silent happiness. "Well, I want the details later. I want to know everything, down to the last bit." The girl added, understanding that even though it was only the two of them some things were better left spoken behind closed doors. With a sheepish nod, Carina looked back to her work, peering at her from the corner of her eye once in a while as they spoke. "So how have you been? Getting used to being a leader?" Carina questioned as Tome laughed, looking out of the hatch at the workers below. "Not much has changed really. Maybe it's because we haven't had anyone to fight, since a promotion at our level is mostly field-related, but I still feel the same." She replied moments before placing a hand on her stomach and exhaling in a calming fashion.

"I've been feeling sick the last few days though, like I caught the flu or something but with more stomach issues and sore muscles than anything else." Tome stated, bringing Carina to stop her work and turn her attention fully to her ailing best friend. "Maybe you should go get checked out. I can write you a sick pass for the day if you'd like." Carina questioned though Tome shook her head immediately. "No, no. Are you kidding? I've waited too long to get placed here, I'm not going home now. Plus, I'm pretty sure its just because of how tired I am. Elise had been training me on how to use my abilities after work, so for the past three days I've done nothing but work, train and sleep." Tome added, bringing Carina to tilt her head a bit in confusion.

"Train you? If you don't mind me asking, how?" Carina questioned as Tome sighed and nodded her head with grin. "They've set up an area on Stanton for us to train new pilots and such, out in the agricultural sections away from the city. She says the best way to develop my Newtype abilities is to use them. So we've been using two training GM's and… well… beating each other with blunt training weapons." Tome explained with a laugh as Carina's eyes widened a bit. They were actually hitting one another? Blunt weapons or not, that was likely still painful and it seemed like a risky situation.

"You haven't been hurt, have you?" She asked with concern in her voice as Tome shrugged, rolling up her sleeves to show a few bruises but nothing more. "They don't really hurt, and it actually is helping me. If this is what Amaury feels like in combat, I understand why he is able to do the things he does." Tome replied, reaching up to tie her curly hair into a bun so that it would remain out of the way when she actually did get to doing some work.

"Speaking of your lover boy, where is he?" She jokingly hummed as Carina remained locked to hers, still concerned with the marks across Tome's body. "He is still not cleared to return, though I think today he was with Emerson for a checkup. As much as I wish he was here I think he still needs the rest, and seeing the Jaeger torn apart hurts him. He blames himself for me having to keep fixing it." Carina replied as Tome looked to her, a smirk displayed across her lips. "Well, I mean... you know." She replied playfully as Carina jokingly scowled and pressed her thumb to one of Tome's bruises.

"That's not nice!" Tome laughed as she rubbed the bruise gently, stepping back out onto the Jaeger's new hatch door, looking up at its head above. "So what exactly are we doing to it?" She questioned, assuming that she would be assisting with both this and the Scarlet Glint, which sat legless next to them in dry-dock. Hearing her question, Carina stood from the cockpit seat and came to the hatch alongside her friend before floating up to the head with her friend in tow.

"Well," She began as they placed their feet onto the machine's torso. "From top to bottom, we are changing out the somewhat outdated 60mm Vulcan guns with slightly larger 80mm units, increasing their armor penetration at the risk of slightly reduced rate of fire. It's also receiving an additional sensor system in the forehead where the old antenna was that we never had in the first place, an actual antenna and now a new mono-eye system. This one is green; I hope he is okay with that." Carina continued as Tome nodded, understanding what she was saying as they both made their way to the edge and looked down at the machines body.

"As far as the rest of the machine goes I'm increasing the armor on the legs, the arms and the torso. From what I've found out about the original mobile suit, its armor was purposely lightened so that it could operate a great speed under the strain of gravity. Since that requirement is somewhat void for us now, I feel it will better suit his mission if we can reinforce some of these key components; especially since we are running low on replacement parts." The girl stated as Tome crossed her arms and laughed.

"You can just say that you are worried about him, Carina." She replied, knowing that the girl was purposely avoiding her true concerns to seem less worried about his return to combat. Hearing her words, Carina looked into her eyes and then down at their feet momentarily. "I'm scared, especially with that thing in his head. I… I am allowing Emerson to install the adapter for the SICOS in the Jaeger. It's against my better judgment… but he swears that it is what is best for Amaury. I don't think he would lie to us…" Carina admitted as Tome looked out to the headless Scarlet Glint beside them, thinking about what she was saying.

To be honest, she was surprised that Carina would even consider Amaury using the SICOS to fly, let alone allow him to do so. The device being used to save his life was one thing, but to risk using it was another. "I don't think he would either, but that decision is yours to make. And I say yours because you know that if that machine is going to help Amaury keep you safe, he's going to do it, and no matter what you choose he can't get mad at you. It's literally impossible." Tome replied as she placed a hand on Carina's shoulder, seeing her somber thoughts through her uneasy facial expression. "Whatever you choose, Amaury is one of the strongest people I have ever met, and I'm sure he will be just fine." She added as Carina smiled and quickly hugged onto her friend, sending them both adrift towards the Glint.

"Hey, bruises! Bruises!" Tome cried out as they both laughed and came to a stop on top of Elise's pride and joy, looking down into the top of the opened Torso. "What about this one? What's the plan here?" She questioned as Carina reached down and picked up the blueprints she had designed, left there and weighed down by a magnet by the crewmen she had assigned to prepare the mount for its new head.

"Well this is mostly a simple repair, but because the machine's head was completely destroyed, I had to build a new one. Well, not entirely new. When I plugged into the suit's data systems, I was able to pull up the schematics from the original design; the Gerbera Tetra. Only a few pieces of the suit still reflect the base model, mainly the back and shoulder thrusters as well as the torso, but I was able to find this." Carina said as she held out the blueprints for the new head, bringing Tome's eyes to widen.

"I'm not entirely sure why they opted to use the old head; this model seems more high performance. The only thing I can think of was because the old one allowed the mono-eye to 'track' almost anywhere at a moment's notice, regardless of the head's actual orientation. Most of the parts need to assemble the new head were sent with the machine, save for a few avionics pieces and the central mono-eye. But I did the math and the measurements, and we have one that will fit as well as the correct electronics, and I was able to add the long range antenna, a single 80mm Vulcan gun as well as a secondary mono-eye on the back of the head in this odd void space that served no real purpose. This will help offset the loss of the previous heads' advantages. I just hope she find these upgrades acceptable." She finished as Tome remained focused on the drawing before her; the large antenna of the machine's head making the machine resemble to her what they had always seen Gundams look like growing up until they disappeared from public light.

"She's going to love this." Tome replied with a smile as Carina turned back to her a blinked, her cheeks slightly flushed. "Do you really think so?" She asked as Tome nodded. "Absolutely." If that were true, she would be delighted; not because she sought Elise's approval but because for the whole time they had known the strange woman she refused to trust or befriend anyone and now that she was beginning to do so it would hurt deeply to know she was the one who broke that change.

"Thank you Tome." Carina replied after a moment with a smile, looking back to the Glint below and then to the Jaeger. "You better start working though; I don't want them to pull you off of my shift because all we did was talk!" She joked, making Tome throw her head back and her arms to the side as she unleashed an annoyed groan. "Ugh, I know!"

"Why… are you making me… do this?!" Amaury groaned, pulling his chin over a pull-up bar as Dr. Emerson and one of his assistants watched, the latter of which wrote down her own observation as well as whatever the doctor ordered. "Because kid, I'm trying to see if your heart is going to make your head explode. There was a lot of pressure on that head of yours and before you can fly I need to make sure you don't drop dead. Now keep going." Emerson ordered as Amaury lowered himself for another lift, panting heavily as he did so.

It was nearly ninety degrees in the examination room and he was drenched in sweat which dripped from his arms as he used all of what average muscle strength he had to pull himself up once more; the two twenty pound weights tied to his ankles surely not helping in the least. "B-But why... the weights?!" The wide eyed boy gasped as he lifted an arm above the bar and grabbed on for dear life, trying his best not to fall or lose his leg.

"Would you rather do twenty pull ups with weights or thirty five without? That is your decision. Eight more." The doctor replied as the boy took a deep breath and attempted to readjust his grip, slipping on sweat and falling the eight feet onto his rear. "OW!" He growled while rolling onto his side and staring up at the two before him as Emerson laughed and his assistant held her hand over her mouth in shock.

"Come on, you only had eight to go. Why fall now? Are you going to cry if I make you do all twenty over again?" The short man's voice boomed as Amaury sat back up, readjusted his leg and sighed. "You told me this was about the SICOS, not this. You need to teach me how to use it before we get attacked again." Amaury responded in a stern voice as he panted, wiping the sweat from his face with the military-issue training tank top he had on.

"Teach you how to use it?" Emerson asked as he finished laughing and wiped an imaginary tear from his face. "You do understand the whole point of the SICOS is to aid in piloting a mobile suit or another similar machine with the help of your mind right? I didn't spend hours upon hours with my hands in your head installing a satellite radio; there isn't really any directions." He replied as Amaury lowered his head, unsure what to say next that would not be repetitive to what he had just asked.

"So you're saying I just need to… plug it in and it works?" Amaury asked and was responded to swiftly by a towel lash to the face. "Hey!" Amaury yelled back as Emerson wrapped the towel backup to prepare to strike again. "Did I say that? Again, it's not a fuckin' radio!" Emerson spoke in a loud tone once more, striking Amaury again and attempting for a third though the boy's Newtype power caught on, allowing him to grab the towel and hold it still in a tug of war with the doctor; his eyes staring him down with enough tension to start a fire between them.

"The only way you are going to get my permission to return is if you do what I say. Now, again!" Emerson commanded as Amaury remained silent for a moment longer before standing to his feet and doing exactly what was asked of him; no matter how tedious and stupid it seemed. He needed to be ready when the Federation came back. He needed to fight them.

For two more hours Amaury fought against the gauntlet of demanding exercises Emerson had set up for him, varying from running for what felt like a million miles on a treadmill to attempting to lift weighted objects that even in his uninjured form he would have trouble doing. Regardless of what he was asked to do he continued on, pushing himself until the point where he could push no more, resting himself on his hands and knees as he panted heavily, fighting the urge to vomit what little food was in his stomach.

Watching the boy struggle to move any further, Emerson ran his hand through his beard in thought. He had completed almost every single task he had lined up for him despite becoming completely exhausted by the time he reached the end, a good sign that his body was recovering and adapting to the presence of the SICOS, though it also indicated that he needed more time to heal. The question now was whether or not he was suitable for combat at the moment. If the Earth truly desired their colonies back they would send quite the armada after them, requiring every able-bodied pilot to stave off the invasion, but on the other hand was this boy's body ready to undergo the stress of combat so soon after almost falling victim to it?

"Well?" Emerson asked out loud in a sort of open-ended question to the boy who remained staring at the ground as he answered. "I can keep going." He replied, causing the doctor to chuckle once under his breath. "Can you now? From where I stand it looks like I've broken you for the day." The old man stated in return as Amaury turned his head to the side to look to the two. "I said I can keep going." The boy once more replied as the door behind the doctor and his assistant opened, revealing the dread-locked mercenary leader and his devilish grin. "You wanted to see me, Emerson?" He questioned as he turned his eyes to the boy on the floor; his SICOS port visible beneath his sweat-drenched hair.

"Well if it isn't the Green Demon." Aye stated as he stepped further into the room, catching the doctor's attention. "Ah, there you are. I sent for you over an hour ago, what the hell took you so long?" He questioned in his thick accent as Aye laughed briefly. "Relax old-timer, I had some business to attend to on the Haakon. I keep forgetting your height is not the only thing 'short' about you." Aye joked, winking to the doctor's aid that covered her face to hide her laugh, though Harolld found no enjoyment in it.

"And I keep forgetting how funny you are." The doctor replied as he walked over next to Amaury and looked at the port on the back of his neck, noticing that the redness around the base of the metal ring had reduced severely and that there was barely any swelling. "I brought you here for two reasons. One, because this is the upgraded model of the SICOS I had planned to install in place of your current system two weeks ago before the battle took place. You'll have to wait until I can get back to my office at Heaven's End and get another; I only brought one. And two, because the boy is asking how the device works, and though I designed it, I've never used it and can't answer his questions." He added as Amaury looked back up to the both of them with wide eyes at the prospect of finally getting some insight in to how to use his curse.

"Use it?" Aye questioned as he too walked over to the boy and crouched down to look at the port and small 'spine' that ran below to help stabilize it in the boy's neck. "You just plug it in, it just kind of works." Hearing Aye's reply Emerson grunted in annoyance. "I just told him that wasn't how it works, what is wrong with you?" The doctor scolded, forcing Aye once again to grin in successfully annoying the man who had ironically kept him alive several times.

"Well I mean, it may be different for him being a Newtype and all, but that is how it works for me." Aye replied, standing back up as Amaury did the same though the boy leaned onto a wall to support himself on his exhausted feet. "Plug it in, turn it on and if I think hard enough about something it just… happens." He added with a shrug, though Amaury didn't find enough an answer in his words.

"Do you think being a Newtype and having the SICOS will make it work different?" The boy asked the doctor, who looked at him with a blank expression and then shook his head. "I don't know, it's never been tested on a Newtype. I assume it should function as intended, but it is possible that it could react differently. So, it is important that we activate it in a calm and controlled environment; just in case. But, you've done enough for today." Emerson added as Amaury shook his head in protest, desperate to find out more; even if he was basically an experiment.

"I can keep going, we can try it now." He tried to convince the doctor who stared him down. "No. You haven't had any issues yet, and if you want to keep it that way you will take it easy, one day at a time." The doctor huffed as Amaury silently groaned in displeasure. "I am releasing you to light duty for the time being. That means no heavy lifting and certainly no flying. Now I'll be back on Dresden in three days and we will begin to test the SICOS on you then. You are free to go." Reluctantly Amaury nodded and slowly made his way from the examination room, nodding to Emerson's assistant to thank her for helping out as he did so. As the boy disappeared from their sight, Emerson turned towards Aye with a displeased scowl. "Just plug it in? Fuckin' really?" He questioned as the mercenary shrugged and held his hands out to his sides in an innocent ploy. "What?"

Watching out from the center of Side 3 as several boarding parties swept through the inside of one of the three abandoned colonies in search of any traps or sleeper agents, Margaret continued to formulate their plan. It was a rather large surprise to everyone in the 2nd Fleet to arrive at their destination and discover that not only had this enemy force gone missing, but so had the six of the twelve colonies, with the only hint of their final destination a general direction pointed out into space by those remaining at Side 3.

Given their significant head start and the uncertainty of their destination there was little hope that their capital ships could ever catch up to them, leaving them with few options to combat this invisible enemy force. "So you guess their mobile suit forces to be around thirty or so, give or take?" The captain asked as she looked back over towards Tegan as he stood silently in the corner of the bridge, unwilling to have any unnecessary conversations with the woman who had relieved him of his command.

"Based on what they initiated the fight with, the traitor forces that sided with them and what was destroyed during the battle, factoring in repairs conducted with merged and scavenged parts, then yes; about thirty." The man replied, recalling the battle that had yet to leave his mind and his personal victory over that green ace, which continued to fortify the notion that he had avenged both his brother and Cousland, bringing honor to his family in their place.

"Well, we've got about sixty five suits in reserve. Even with leaving ten to defend the fleet, that means we will still catch them at an almost two-to-one advantage and with our Base Jabbers and swift shuttles, we can get fifty five mobile suits out there and into the fight before they could even retaliate." Captain Pierce stated as she walked around the bridge of the Horizon, following the windows as she looked out at what was a battlefield not long ago. Had it not been for the wreckage scattered all around Side 3 she would have been more skeptical of Tegan's claims, though she still doubted that these foes were as deadly as originally reported. And on top of it, Cousland's flagship the Due Diligence was reportedly destroyed and the admiral killed, yet no wreckage of that specific vessel could be found; a fact that Tegan had noticed as well.

"Did your forces scuttle the Due Diligence after Admiral Cousland's death?" She asked as Tegan turned his attention back to her, unhappy to hear Cousland's voice once again come from her mouth. "No. We evacuated all survivors and let it burn, there was no time to destroy it." He replied, immediately catching a less-than-pleased glare from the captain. "So what you are saying now is that you allowed a Ra Calium battleship, a sign of the Federation's strength, into the hands of insurrectionists? Oh Tegan, that is not going to help your report to the Counselor." She scolded with a laugh as Tegan growled under his breath in annoyance. This woman enjoyed toying with him too much for his comfort. Was this some kind of trick? A way of forcing him to reveal a truth that didn't exist?

"We were a bit tied up fighting off their forces. Several of them were aces; truly skilled fighters that required our full attention." Tegan replied in an attempt to explain why they did not destroy the crippled battleship, though the woman found no surprise in this. "Oh I've heard about them already form your crew, many of which speak of them like they are ghost stories or old legends. Which one do you fear the most, Tegan? The blood red and strange looking mobile suit that destroyed the satellite relays? The mercenary with the big axe? How about their strange looking Zaku team, supposedly led by a little girl? Or, wait I know… it was the Demon. The Green Demon who your men claim single handedly destroyed the Ra Calium battleship, killed Cousland and nearly you as well. Was it him?" Captain Margaret questioned fiercely, over dramatizing her question on purpose to further annoy the obviously irritated young man.

Groaning once more Tegan looked away to avoid the woman seeing his scowl, tightening his fists in the process. "He did kill Cousland, as well as my brother and countless others. He was a monster… a monster I slayed." He replied through his teeth as he recalled each and every battle with the boy he had experienced prior to his death, including the brutal ways he would finish of his enemies. Remembering her mention of the red suit brought his thoughts back to the woman who had spent her entire time in the air chasing after him, fighting him tooth and nail for the slightest bit of ground.

From the way she spoke and what he had witnessed her do to their forces at Fort Page and the following battle, killing without reason or remorse, he knew she too was a subhuman parasite like the boy that she would be the next one he killed. His words peaked Captain Pierce's interest, bringing her to watch as he angrily formulated his reply. He sure did hold a lot of anger in reserve; a trait that was quite dangerous, especially in a leadership role.

"One less for us to deal with then." The woman responded as she looked back out to the debris field taking notice that only the most heavily damaged of the destroyed mobile suits remain floating, leading her to believe that the enemy did in fact scavenge for parts to repair the forces. "We will prepare immediately for launch then, we don't want them to continue to gain the upper hand. I will alert the crews. I assume you will be joining us?" Pierced asked as she looked over her shoulder to the headstrong pilot who without hesitation turned towards her and tightened his fist.

"Absolutely. This is my fight and I will see it through to the end." He answered as she smirked, unsure if it was pride or sense of duty that was driving him to return to the fray. "Excellent. Go prepare your suit, we leave in two hours." Pierce added before departing the Horizon's bridge to prepare her own mobile suit for departure, feeling it necessary to supervise her troops in a battle that was of such high importance, especially knowing that the reports from Tegan and his survivors might have been somewhat accurate. Watching as Pierce left the bridge Tegan immediately followed behind away from any listening ears as she did so.

"Margaret." He called as she turned her nose up and looked back at him, continuing to make her way along the corridor of her ship. "That is Captain Pierce to you, Captain Trevelyn." She corrected, forcing the man to huff in frustration. "Okay, Captain Pierce, I am formally requesting that you allow me to lead the strike force against these rebels." Tegan correctly asked as Margaret stopped in her tracks and spun around to face him with one hand on her hip.

"A bold request from someone in your position." She replied as Tegan stopped as well though only a few inches from her since she so abruptly turned around, leading to the realization that she was shorter than him, though her attitude made up for her small stature. "I know these enemies better than anyone else in the Federation right now, and with that knowledge I know I can bring a swift end to their reign. With bolstered forces such as yours, they won't stand a chance." Tegan attempted again to convince her, bringing a silence between them as she remained staring into his eyes with a face devoid of any emotion. It took courage to stand up to the person persecuting you and ask a favor, though once more she could not determine if what was at play here was honor or a personal vendetta.

"Every fiber of my being wants to say no to your request without question, especially knowing that any action you take will forever be under the flag of the Cerberus Division in the eyes of the Federation's command." She stated as Tegan ground his teeth and looked away, immediately discouraged by her words. She didn't understand what this was; what any of this was! "But-" Tegan opened his mouth to speak but found himself unable to as Margaret placed her gloved finger against his mouth, forcibly pushing his lips shut.

"Let me speak." She commanded impatiently as they both continued their cold stare. "By all accounts that is what I should do. But, I cannot deny that this situation is delicate to say the least, and any form of an advantage would be greatly appreciated. Counselor Wright has instructed me specifically to make sure this task is handled swiftly and efficiently as possible. The Federal Council is already fragmented over the success of the initial rebellion and any further fuel to the fire caused by the destruction of colonies and the loss of innocent life will only serve to further that divide. As such, we will not engage any non-combatants. Do you understand? No colonies, no civilian ships. Military targets only." She replied, removing her finger from Tegan's mouth as the man nodded and waited no longer than a second or two to speak.

"Does this mean you will allow me to lead?" He questioned, bringing Pierce to smile. "The first wave only. With the way you talk such a big game and put so much faith in your command, that should be all you need, right? And minimal civilian casualties?" She replied as Tegan's confident stare remained. Despite her speech she was still untrusting of him, but command of any force in this endeavor was more than what he had now, and he would not throw away the opportunity that had presented itself. "Yes ma'am."

"Come on Tome, get her! You can do it!" Marcus yelled out, standing from the bench they were sitting on as they watched the girl spar against Elise; their two training GMs clashing in the distance over and over with large, solid steel bat-like objects. "Don't let her get you like that!" Someone else yelled out from the small crowd as Elise's red-torsoed 'Instructor' suit smashed into the side of Tome's sending the girl stumbling backwards in the mud before catching her footing, forcing Carina's hands to her chest as she watched her two friends beat each other. Being thrashed around inside of the cockpit was likely what was causing her bruises as none of them were truly use to fighting under gravity, and the thought of her being hurt made her wonder why she agreed to come watch after work.

"Fucking hell!" Tome growled in frustration through her microphone as Elise audibly smirked. "You heard them, come on Tome. Show me what all of this training was for." The blonde woman taunted, forcing Tome to block a follow-up strike with her weapon. "I hope she's okay." Carina whispered as she listened in to their conversation with her headset as the rest of the crowd did, though she had opted to keep her microphone muted as opposed to some of the others. "She will be, don't worry." Amaury replied as he offered Carina his hand which she took with a smile, glad she had asked him to come watch with her; especially since he grabbed the jacket he had given her on his way so that she wouldn't be cold.

"Thank you." She whispered, turning her attention back to the fight just as Tome dodged another blow and struck with her own, she winced as Elise's suit now was knocked down into the mud, much to the pilot's dismay. With a huff to blow the loose hair from her face, the Elise stood her machine back up and stared Tome down. She had become much more in tune with her abilities these last few days and was now blocking effectively on a rather routine basis, only failing to do so when she became too focused on her own attacks. Excellent progress but a fatal mistake nonetheless.

"Alright, again. This time I won't relent when you are knocked down. Your enemy will show no mercy, and neither will you. Remember what I told you; let your mind take control and react with instinct and without hesitation. Ready?" The Martian questioned as Tome grinned, wiping sweat from under the brim of her helmet. "Yeah, but I have to warn you; you'll be the one in the mud!" Tome taunted back with reinforced confidence as the crowd once more cheered, watching the opening strike and blocks from both contenders. She had lost to Elise every time so far, but this time felt different, though despite her improvements her trainer suit had taken quite a beating and she was unsure how much longer it would hold up. If she was going to score her first victory against her teacher she would have to do it now.

Turning to Amaury, Caring gently squeezed his hand to capture his attention as she smiled. "How was your day, love? What did Dr. Emerson have to say?" She asked as Amaury grinned a bit, feeling the pain across his whole body from the excessively extreme trial segment he had gone through. "He had me exercise until I almost threw up, trying to push me as far as I could go." The boy replied, sliding himself closer to her on the bench. "That seems like fun." Carina responded with a small giggle, pressing their foreheads together momentarily before shifting their eyes back to the fight in the distance.

"Not at all. But, he did tell me I can come back to work, just on light duty." Amaury added, focusing on Tome as she used the GM's boosters to accelerate her strike against Elise, forcing the woman to swing her own bat to parry the attack; the sound of the metal objects striking filling the air throughout the whole area. At her love's words Carina looked to him with a smile, happy to hear he was able to return. "Really? That's great!" She replied as Amaury did the same, nodding his head to agree with her excitement. "I promised you that if I wrecked the Jaeger I would help you repair it. Remember?" He asked with a grin as her cheeks darkened slightly, bringing her to rest her head on his shoulder as she looked back out to the brawl. "I remember everything you tell me." She hummed in reply with a squeeze of his hand, cringing as Tome's metal bat smashed into the Instructor GM's head, cracking the visor screen.

"Good. Hit me again." Elise commanded as Tome swung for a follow up strike that failed; her opponent dodging and ramming the tip of her bat into the cockpit door, slamming Tome into her seat with great force as her GM stepped back. "I said again!" She yelled, moving in to strike again and close the small distance in an attempt to finish Tome off, though the girl quickly retaliated; growling out in anger as she swung her bat down to strike the Instructor's left leg twice and on then the already damaged head, causing a visual disturbance long enough to allow Tome to create a distance between them.

"That's our girl, get her ass!" Marcus yelled, jumping in excitement off of the bleachers and running forward a bit to get even closer while the others cheered as well, including the previously reserved Carina. "Yeah Tome, come on! You can do it!" She yelled out, standing to her feet as her free hand returned to her heart in line with the escalation of the fight. Looking up to his Carina and seeing just how excited she had become as Tome began to win brought a smile to Amaury's face, catching her attention as she became embarrassed. "I'm sorry, I just got caught up in the moment." She explained as the boy tilted his head to the side with a small shake.

"Don't apologize. I just hope you cheer for me like that when I am fighting." He joked as she pretended to frown. "No, I'm too busy hoping you are going to come back in one piece." She replied in a serious tone despite her facial expression, bringing Amaury squeeze her hand, about to reply before being brought back to the fight by another cheer from the crowd and the loud crack of metal on metal.

"Stop holding back!" Elise yelled, smashing her weapon into the side of Tome's suit once more as the girl screamed out in anger, blocking and striking at the Instructor GM with furious intent while Amaury's and Elise's senses caught wind of the girl's increased drive to succeed. He had been able to sense her for quite some time starting around Sam's death, which according to Elise was his awakening as well, but now after a few days of training with the woman he could feel her loud and clear, making her presence as a Newtype undisputed. "I'm fucking not!" Tome snarled, the taunts from her friend starting to get to her as she once more was knocked violently back into her seat and instantly sought revenge by slamming the bat into Elise's leg, breaking it this time as hydraulic fluid sprayed across the field around her. This was her chance.

Seizing her opportunity and knowing that her ability to evade with a busted leg was severely reduced, Tome swung to strike again, expecting Elise to block. Doing as she predicted, her trainer lifted the metal bat up and stopped the blow as she sensed it coming, but thinking on her feet Tome slid her weapon violently along the metal shaft, smashing the finger's on the GM's hand clear off in the process.

Grunting in irritation, Elise blocked another one of Tome's blows, doing her best to maneuver without giving Tome and unnecessary advantage. "Thinking outside of the box like that will get you far Tome, but it won't be enough to defeat me." The woman warned in a strict tone as she used her crippled left hand to brace her bat for another parry before kneeing Tome's suit and swinging the bat at her head, bringing Tome to evade by ducking her suit down below the projected blow. "Whoa!" Marcus gasped along with the crowd, shocked by Tome's quick reflexes as even Elise's eyes widened before scowling as Tome rammed her suit's shoulder into the woman's mobile suit, knocking it back and causing it to falter and collapse to a single knee. "No mercy!" Elise demanded, lifting her bat to swing into her opponent's cockpit while Tome lifted her own bat high in the air to strike.

Screaming, Tome brought the bat down onto Elise's suit, smashing the head into pieces in the process while simultaneously using her left arm in a sacrificial maneuver to stop Elise's weapon from striking her own cockpit as the crowd fell silent; Tome's victory evident moments later as the dust cleared and the two suits remained still in their resting place following the attack.

"She did it!" Carina cried out into the dead silence in pure joy a second later as the others cheered loudly, including Marcus who with several others took off running towards the two machines; their hatches opening to reveal the two pilots inside, both of which seemed exhausted.

Stepping out onto the lowered hatch of her suit, Tome panted heavily and pulled the ground-use helmet from her head, letting her sweat-drenched curly hair hand onto her shoulders as she watched Elise step out as well; their suits so close together that she could see the blue circles in her eyes, though she did not wear a helmet much to Tome's surprise, allowing her long blonde locks to blow freely in the colony breeze. She had even refrained from wearing her full jumpsuit, seeing now that at some point after her entry into the cockpit before their skirmish she unzipped her suit half way and tied it around her waist, leaving her with just the tank top she wore inside of it.

"You okay?" Tome called out as Elise stared at her, her face devoid of any emotion, causing the girl to become nervous that she may have been upset; a notion that faded a minute later as she smiled. "Very good, Tome." She replied, bringing a grin to the girls face. "I told you that you would be the one in the mud." Tome replied with a laugh as Elise shook her head and focused on the crowd of people rushing over to see the two of them, screaming and carrying on the whole way across the field. "Well, here comes the horde. Go enjoy your victory, and remember that you need to fight like that against every opponent. That will be your key, tapping into that instinct inside of you." Elise added as Tome nodded and upon hearing a sort of 'cat call' whistle, which likely came from Marcus, she turned to the crowd and held out her arms to the side, enjoying the praise.

"Bow before your queen!" She joked as she pulled the descent line from the side of the cockpit and began to lower herself to the ground where she was quickly picked up by Marcus and placed on his shoulders, his burly figure having no issue lifting the young woman. "Woah!" She laughed as the others gathered around her, looking out with a wave to Carina and Amaury who followed behind the group as she held Amaury's hand and helped him maintain his balance on the uneven terrain. Seeing that she was excited to see their friend however, Amaury smiled and motioned for her to go ahead of him. "Are you sure?" She asked as the boy nodded. "Of course, go ahead." He replied as her smile widened, wasting no hurrying to her side but not before kissing his cheek.

Making his way eventually to the crowd, Amaury stood a short distance back from the group with a smile and his hands in his pockets as they bombarded their hero of the day with questions and praise. It was an amazing fight between the two of them but with so many people telling her so she likely understood that already and didn't need him to say so as well. Scanning through the crowd he watched as Elise descended from her suit unnoticed and started to walk away from the group, bringing him to pursue her.

"That was an impressive fight." He called as he approached her, trying not to trip on an uneven tuft of grass as she stopped and turned around. "She's gotten better. Much better." Elise replied as her eyes shifted down to his leg for a split second, then back to his face. "How is your recovery?" She asked, surprising the boy a bit with her curiosity but even more so by her skin.

He had never seen her outside of her red flight suit and now seeing her exposed arms, chest and back he wouldn't have guessed she would have such a collection of scars that varied in shape and size as well as age. Were these battle wounds? Who could have been fighting a faction nobody knew existed?

"I'm getting there. Emerson says I will be back in the fight soon." He replied, doing his best not to stare as his eyes shift down to her boots, muddied by the earth beneath them. Seeing that he had taken notice to her body she narrowed her eyes on the boy. Knowing he was not one to gawk at a woman in lust she quickly determined it was her scars, and she could not blame him; few who had seen them could resist staring.

"So you've decided to use the SICOS?" She questioned, unsure if he was seeing the crackpot exclusively for follow-up or if it was the intention to use the device, though knowing how he was she already knew the answer, so it came as no surprise to her when the boy slowly nodded. "It will give me an advantage, which is something we desperately need. Especially since you are leaving." Amaury replied, looking out to the crowd of people as they continued to celebrate, focusing his eyes on Carina as she spotted the two and smiled towards them.

Turning to see the girl looking towards them she understood what exactly he was so desperate to protect by placing his own life in even more danger than it already was fighting on the frontline. "I know you probably think that using this is stupid, that I am stupid and that it… tarnishes my existence as a Newtype, but I will do whatever is necessary to keep my home safe." He stated, interrupting her thoughts with exactly what she was thinking which caused her to smirk. "Don't you mean to keep Carina safe?" She questioned sarcastically, drawing the boy's eyes from their corners as his cheeks darkened a bit, originally annoyed but upon seeing her small grin he understood it was a joke. "She is my home."

Watching the group of friends moving towards them Elise turned back to the boy with a sort of new understanding about what exactly was going on in his head, causing her to take a deep breath. "I don't think you are stupid. Foolish, but not stupid. The device itself is stupid. As far as being a 'tarnished' Newtype, I wouldn't say that. And, before you ask, no, that is not why I am training Tome." Elise replied as Amaury's eyes shifted back to her in surprise, unsure why she assumed he was going to ask though he was a bit curious.

"I'm not training her because I think she is better than you. I'm training her because I want her to become like you. You two are some of the most promising Newtypes I've come across, and I felt that leaving without helping Tome realize her potential would be a great disservice to our people. There isn't much more I can teach you because for the most part you've already figured it out on your own. You just needed someone to explain it a little better." The woman continued as Amaury listened carefully with a nod.

He didn't necessarily believe that there wasn't anything she could teach him, but he understood what she meant. Newtypes did not have schools or teachers about how to use their powers, at least in the Earth Sphere, so having her around to even explain these things was more than he could have asked for. "What about Carina? She can sense feelings… that must mean something right?" Amaury asked having been curious about what exactly her Newtype powers entailed, leading Elise to smirk once more and shake her head, watching her come within earshot, leaving her with little time to explain just exactly what the realization of the girl's powers meant. Sensing emotions was a rare feat, even for Newtypes, and if she was being honest even she didn't understand it.

"She's special." She simply replied as the group of three came up to them, leading Carina to tilt her head in curiosity of what she was talking about, to which Amaury simply smiled and shook her head. "What about you Elise, are you alright?" The ever caring Carina asked as the woman looked to her, ignoring the few sore spots on her body from the impact with the seat of her trainer suit. "I'm fine. I've been through worse." She admitted with a stern face as Marcus looked to her scars. "I would say so." He replied, bringing Elise to stare at him to ensure he was not doing the same as she crossed her arms.

Unlike Amaury she didn't trust Marcus not to focus on her breasts instead her scars, no matter how kind hearted he seemed on the inside. "Just be glad you learned to pilot the way you have." Elise stated as she turned to Tome and held out her hand for her to shake, unwilling to express the same soft sentiment she had earlier with the girl in front of a group.

"As I said earlier, good job Miss Himare." She said as Tome blinked and grinned, pushing her hand away to the side before locking the blonde woman into a hug; freezing her in place as she looked down at the curly haired girl in shock. Seeing the hug Carina too lunged in and joined, realizing now that she had never truly thanked her for everything she had done; further confusing Elise who was unsure if this was something she could deem acceptable or not. It had been a long time she had been hugged, and as much as she had reprimanded herself over becoming soft in the presence of these people she couldn't help but smile the smallest of grins and turn just the slightest tinge of pink.

"What?" Elise questioned softly as both girls laughed. "It's a hug, meaning thank you!" Tome replied, confusing the wide-eyed woman. "You two don't need to thank me." She softly replied after a few awkward moments in silence as the two girls slowly backed away with smiles on their faces. "But we do!" Carina replied as Tome nodded, rubbing her sore shoulder. "Yeah, you may not think so but you have helped all of us more than you probably intended. I mean, who else would have taught me how to fight like a real Newtype?" The girl asked as Elise shook her head.

"You would have learned eventually. If you survived." She joked as Tome huffed playfully while Carina smiled. She wouldn't publicly announce how Elise had helped her, but as the two connected eyes she knew that the woman understood her gratitude for that. "Thank you, again." Carina replied as Elise's microscopic smile returned for a moment before returning to a neutral place.

"If you will excuse me I have some things I need to do. Goodnight, everyone." Elise stated, untying her jumpsuit and pulling the top half back on as she began to walk away, making her point clear that she had enough conversing for one day to Tome's dismay as she intended to ask her to join them for dinner. "Well, who is hungry?" Tome asked as Marcus grinned and pointed to himself. "This guy for sure. I've done nothing but load ammunition into magazines for the last three days, and not in zero gravity! Do you know how heavy that shit is?!" He questioned as Tome snapped her fingers and pointed to the man with an evil grin.

"Good, Marcus is buying!" She exclaimed as she turned and began to run back to the hillside where their vehicles had been parked, leaving their mobile suits for the team in charge of the training grounds to reclaim and repair. Despite having not felt well it had seemed to subside with the joy her victory had brought her, leaving her starving and in need of a good dinner with her friends. "Shit." Marcus sighed walking up the hill after her as the others in the crowd dispersed, leaving both Amaury and Carina standing in the field as they both looked up at the trainer GM's.

"So, what were you two talking about?" Carina asked as Amaury turned back to her. "You." He replied as the girl blinked and turned red. "Me? What about me?" She asked as he smiled and reached out for her hand, which she took with little delay. "Just about how truly special you are." The boy admitted, further confusing his lover. "Wait, what?" She asked as his smiled widened. Pulling her in he pressed his lips to hers passionately before breaking off and taking her by the hand back towards their own car to follow Marcus and Tome, unsure where they planned to have dinner. "I'll tell you later."