(Imperial Capital)

"I have a bad feeling about this." Lubbock said after a moment's contemplation of the path ahead. Usually in situations like this, whoever would be paired with him would simply shake their head and let him know that everything was going to be just fine and that all their years of training has prepared them for moments exactly like the one he's worrying about.

However, with the way these events were progressing, signaled by faint inhuman screeches and vague shapes hovering high in the sky. Keeping composure became a challenge far beyond facing even an army of Danger Beasts. With that said? His partner, Mine knew deep down she had to try.

"Don't center on your anxiety." Mine began, wiping sweat from her brow. "After all, if the boss knew we would be in grave danger doing this? She would've kept us back at the base." Lubbock simply scoffed.

"If we were back in simpler times where all we had to worry about was the Empire, Danger Beasts and whore peddlers? The idea of a mission like this wouldn't have even come to mind." Unusually for the often sharp-witted warrior, Mine hesitated for deep down, she knew he was right for while there were infiltrations of the Capital conducted in the past? Not only was there not an extreme degree due to the knowledge that the grand majority of them possessed thanks to their upbringings but they usually had to do a good week or so of planning before the mission could be conducted due to the multiple ways in which everything could go south. With this however, the "discussions" were barely even a footnote and could be basically summed up as just a few minutes of rest followed by Najenda shoving into their hands used cloaks from previous bouts of infiltration and telling them quickly what to do before hurrying them out. It was so uncharacteristic of the usually levelheaded and iron-willed leader and also very demoralizing considering they did rely on her as a symbol of hope and motivation even in the darkest of times.

And after thinking about all that had happened recently, Mine couldn't help but feel that they needed that guidance now more than ever. When the First Order first touched down on this world and decimated Tatsumi's village, had she known about what was coming next? She would've been wishing that Najenda would've kept everyone back just to let them know they'd be fine, that she would be working far more on battle strategies and ways to minimize the severity of any future casualties. Hell, even though it was impossible and so far-fetched it sounds like something that would come from the mind of a child, she wished there was some way for her to have contact with armies from high above the stars, a way to control Danger Beasts, that she knew of some overpowered and ridiculous Imperial Arms or of a warrior like Kylo Ren and Esdeath who were strong in this so-called Force to help bring them down. She desired for something, ANYTHING that would help them in these dire times.

Unfortunately, it was whenever she went over these thoughts that she found herself grimacing and briefly clasping her chest as events were flying through her head, letting her know that the truth was unfortunately far darker than what she wanted and one that especially brought this about was the confrontation and subsequent breakdown of the former Jaeger Wave. In all fairness, she wasn't exactly the most innocent for throughout the majority of that discussion she kept Pumpkin completely centered on him. But even so, nothing could compare to what was going on with the other members for in spite of the heartfelt apology and the emotion that hung over that whole discussion, she couldn't help but think about just how accusatory and rash they were being to a man who clearly had no intention of starting anything and it was those thoughts that would then bring her back to a moment that caused her to not just clasp her chest but nearly let out a low growl of fury due to just how poorly the now unfortunately missing Tatsumi was being treated and what Lubbock told her in regards to what he had witnessed.

However, those thoughts had to be put on hold after they took a few more steps and a pair of familiar buildings came into view.

Like most cities that were clearly built off the backs of the frail and weak, the Imperial Capital was hardly what you'd call a barren wasteland. In fact, if one were to somehow separate the structure from the unsavory, cruel and ruthless empire that inhabited it, one could've actually taken a few moments to admire the simple but elegant architecture (some of which seeming to have lasted for years or even centuries), the pleasant amount of plants standing tall and proud in a healthy shade of green and a palace hanging overhead with colors that made it look so rich and inviting which could almost convince you it was ran by kindhearted nobility.

Of course, that was only if you could get past the sight of corpses strung up for all to see, the occasional horrific display of an innocent being mercilessly beaten by an armored soldier and finally, as Lubbock could gather from the moment he ended up just a few miles away, the screeches of ships flying overhead, the faint triangular shapes that were hovering in the sky and the red banners which were being dropped down on the main walls by a pair of what he assumed were the First Order's Stormtroopers though he freely admitted it was possible he could've been wrong for not only was his mission to examine all parts of the Capital, thus making the idea of staring at some random people in creepy white armor sound worthless. With Esdeath now being a part of the First Order and the tech being far greater than what they had seen before? He easily started theorizing about how quickly they had come to know their faces and was sure as hell not going to take any chances to see if these fears were ultimately unfounded which considering their pathetic disguises thanks to Najenda's oddly rushed command, was proving to be quite the difficult task.

A task that became damn near impossible once the two set foot in the area. If the image of the already corrupted, wretched hive of scum and villainy with an unrecognizable type of aircraft screeching overhead was already a very unnerving sight, the fact the very first step inside the area resulted in their nostrils being filled with the nauseating stench of burning corpses and caused them to shudder the moment their toes seemed to kick away what appeared to be bone. The streets were awash with the sounds of daily life in the Capital though both Lubbock and Mine with their faces twisting with a mixture of shock and disgust, would liken this more to the daily hell the Capital now lived in. The shuffle of foot traffic was now peppered with the shouts and clatter of frightened civilians rushing to hide, there was a monotone chant and prayer that was quickly silenced by both the hum of machinery and most disturbingly, the distorted voices of Stormtroopers which would be followed up by the echo of distant, sporadic blaster volleys. It was almost as if the two had stepped into a nightmare, one that with each step was becoming increasingly more difficult to ignore and if he had gone on for much longer just taking in this depraved and awful environment, he probably would've broken down.

But he quickly remembered, he was on a mission. That mission being given by Najenda and rushed order or not? He wasn't going to let a few disturbing sights get him down so he quickly pulled the hood over his head and started acting as casually as he could with Mine doing the same though there were a few times where this was tested.

"Requesting back-up immediately!" Mine's ears immediately perked up and in spite of every synapse of her brain screaming she shouldn't give into her curiosity? She looked over and in a moment where she guessed the universe decided it needed to hammer in the desperation. It just so happened that she turned to face the same alleyway that she went down with Tatsumi while they were out shopping but whereas that scene was filled with laughs over how Tatsumi saved a girl through the humiliation of her attackers and happiness over being able to save someone from the same pain she endured in her younger years? This scene was far, FAR more grim for those same men they humiliated were now attack another one of those Stormtroopers with the brown-haired one just going to town on him with his metal bat while his dark-haired companion decided to grab at his pistol and oddly enough, they were doing rather well or at least they were doing well for simple street rats. However, things quickly went to hell once she heard the firing of a weapon and she watched as the two men fell to the ground and once they fell, while it was a little hard to see? Mine could swear she saw two dark armored figures with green lenses lowering their now smoking weapons but before she could pay much more attention, Lubbock quickly grabbed her arm and pulled her along, almost as if he could sense her growing distress.

"As if the Capital couldn't become anymore of a hellhole." Lubbock whispered. "And to think this all happened in such a short span of time. Mine? What do you make of this?" No answer came which left him taken aback but then again, with all the commotion that has been going on and how he simply spoke in a whisper? Maybe she just didn't hear him. So he decided to turn towards her and speak up.

"Mine?" Nothing came but Lubbock dared to not press on once he saw her face twisted into a look of both surprise and anguish which was something he couldn't help but mentally admit was settling in too though he didn't do that with words, instead he simply let out a sigh and looked forward, his only other movement being to use his free hand to pull the cloak further over his head. In spite of all that had happened at this location, there was still a degree of nostalgia for it due to it being his home for the longest time and he still had the pleasure of knowing a good deal of decent human beings, most of whom were customers at his little bookstore and speaking of which. Things didn't exactly go too well once he merely glanced over that area and saw much to his horror a pair of Stormtroopers tearing through the location by chucking books out of windows, pushing giant shelves around and much to his horror and anger, his desk was completely overturned. Immediately his heart started racing, sweat started pouring down his face and his grip on Mine tightened. That location was not just the home of a hobby he greatly enjoyed but after seeing the huge mess? He knew it wouldn't be long before they ended up stumbling across the secret entrance they used for some of their most important meetings.

"T-Those bastards!" Lubbock mentally said as his free hand balled up into a fist. "What?! How?! Since when did they think they can just barge onto my property?! What purpose would it serve them?!" The green-haired warrior suddenly stopped in place which finally shook Mine back to the world of the living just long enough to see her partner unconsciously moving in a completely different direction. In the midst of the confusion, she quickly glanced at the location he was heading to and immediately started trying to shake him from this.

"Lubbock?" No answer came, the only action Lubbock performed was that his grip on her tightened and he continued forth. Not willing to give up so easily, Mine tried again, her voice now showing a bit more force.

"Wait." Along with that change in tone also came a small change in action for as soon as the word left her lips, the warrior had a two second pause which gave her just enough time to pull her hand away and immediately proceed to tightly wrap both sets of digits around his wrist and plant her feet into the ground or at least, she attempted that last part only to have it quickly fail as she instead found herself being dragged along.

"Lubbock, stick to the mission." She said through grit teeth, trying her best to retain some sense of composure. Thinking fast for her partner was still taking what appeared to be the walk to his death, the sniper started digging her nails into his flesh both in an effort to keep a tight grip and to illicit some kind of reaction. Unfortunately, even with the small red marks she could see forming, there was not a single hint of a change in reaction nor was there one for his course. Time seemed to slow as he continued his pursuit and in spite of Mine's continuous pleas and deliberate acts of minor physical harm to get him to turn his attention elsewhere, they were proving to be fruitless. At a certain point, she was even considering the possibility of just going on without him when suddenly, a firm static-riddled "Halt!" sounded off towards their right which shook him from his anger-fueled haze and it was then his eyes blinked to life once more and much to his surprise, he found himself far closer to the bookstore than he expected to be.

And he watched as a pair of Stormtroopers, one of which possessed a deep red shoulder pauldron, walked up towards him and showed in their body language a combination of confusion as well as unflinching fury. Realizing real quickly what the situation was, he... froze. There were no quips, not a single hint of wit, nothing was coming out and upon noticing that, Mine couldn't help but feel both more concerned and instead of the expected confusion? She understood why this was the case. After all, back then in spite of all the trouble that reconnaissance missions like this could've brought, it was fairly easy to make your way through a crowd unnoticed and if you were? A lot of the times they got lucky for the guards weren't exactly what you'd call strong in the mind. It was the very reason for why people like her, Leone and Lubbock were often given these tasks. Their wit, ability to think up sentences on the fly and in Leone's case, her looks made outsmarting the weak-minded guards a cakewalk. With this however, it was a completely different story. Compared to the Empire, the First Order had eyes in just about every area it could possibly put them in and unlike the guards? The troopers were very, VERY quick to respond for a few seconds after the pair came up to where they were inches away from their faces. She felt a small chill run down her back and when by instinct she turned to look, she saw three more troopers right behind her with blasters firmly nestled in their grasp.

Speaking of those few seconds, following those moments, the assassin opened his mouth but no words came. No matter how hard he tried, the sudden horror that piled up inside his throat like a clogged siphon quickly proved to be far too much. The troopers he faced cocked their heads and glanced at each other, their experience of dealing with young and painfully stupid citizens like this one making smart-ass remarks quickly proved to be worthless for this moment but just before Lubbock could think about taking advantage of the confusion and make a run for it? He heard the cocking of blasters and the approaching patter of footsteps.

"Are you the owner of this establishment?" The red pauldron wearing trooper questioned, their static radio chatter quickly unnerving the warrior to the point where all he could do was meekly nod.

"Come back tomorrow when our investigation is done. Sorry for the inconvenience." While he would've celebrated the fact that the soldiers thankfully didn't recognize him, the mention of one word caused his eyes to flash open.

"What?" His emotion unchanging, the trooper simply continued.

"We received word by the inhabitants that suggest this area is carrying information pertaining to a band of criminals known as the Revolutionary Army." In spite of the uncomfortable feeling he had at the pit of his stomach, Lubbock pushed on.

"S-Surely this is just some rumor started by someone who wants to get in the good graces of the Order."

"Maybe so." The other trooper called out, the voice being distinctly female. "But as we've found, there is still some truth hidden in rumors and it's a policy that we treat every report about potentially vital information as seriously as we can."

"B-B-But this is my property." The assassin began, his voice getting a little louder. "This is my job and I don't see any warra-"

"In situations like this we don't need a warrant." The male trooper said sternly. Right afterwards, the female trooper piped up again. "I'm sorry, sir. Entry is forbidden."

"Lubbock please." Mine whispered, her tone full of concern. "It's not worth i-" In a moment that was being driven more by emotion, the man quickly interjected.

"Unless I see some official documents, I'd hardly say that it's forbidden." He nearly barked. With their combat instincts now at the ready, the male trooper stepped a bit closer, his voice sounding disturbingly calm and serious.

"Leave here and just pray we don't find anything. What's the matter boy, are you afraid we'll find something you don't want us to see?" Both assassins and a trooper froze, each for different reasons of course but still, they did just that. "Because if that's the case? Let me break it down to you. You can either be smart about it, admit your guilt and hand yourself over." Right before he went to the next sentence, he took a quick glance at one of the troopers standing behind the pink-haired girl rummaging through one of their storage compartments and at each of his sides to see two others walking up to see what's going on. Smirking behind his mask at the possibility of this, the officer immediately gave hand gestures which the approaching soldiers followed without question and before Lubbock knew it, they were already inches away from him, thus causing the feeling of claustrophobia to strike.

"Or you can continue this little stunt and risk the possibility of you ending up as nothing more than charred remains in these streets, do I make myself clear?" As soon as that last word entered his ears, the assassin finally came back to reality and decided to take a deep breath and glance at the environment around him. He took in the blurred shapes of capital ships hovering overhead, the clattering of armor as troopers marched down the streets, the faint crunching of rock and the whirs of gears from the small machinery that stepped over it and most importantly. He took in all the despair, anguish and sadness that this city oozed with.

And it was right then and there that the reality of the situation, of everything had set itself in place. He may have already known about the First Order and with each meeting he had gained an understanding of what their presence meant for their lives and maybe even civilization itself but as the old piece of advice went.

There was a major difference between simply hearing of something and actually witnessing it and it was only through this experience that he had found himself finally understanding the true danger that this organization presented. It wasn't just a case of a third and/or fourth party coming in and providing a small hindrance for both armies that could easily be dealt with and it wasn't even a case of a slightly more supercharged Empire which just needed slightly more planning and careful executions to take down. This was the equivalent of a boot versus a small hapless snail with the figuring out of which one was which being very easy to conduct.

This was the first time that he felt utterly hopeless which the officer saw in the form of him shamefully looking down at his feet. Taking advantage of this, the man looked up to see what the fellow soldier had found. Upon realizing that the trooper was looking a little to his left, Mine immediately did the same and as soon as she did? Her eyes widened with shock as soon as she saw what it was.

It was a wanted poster which very distinctly had the exact likeness and name of the man she knew as Lubbock.


(Night Raid HQ)

Even though he had officially poured his heart out to Night Raid, apologized for the unbelievable amount of agony the Empire caused them and shared a small personal moment with Najenda, Wave still felt incredibly uneasy and if one were to know what was going on and see his position? It wasn't hard to see why. Currently he was pacing back and forth right outside one of the bedrooms of the headquarters, his brow being firmly pinched by his right hand and his head was filled with nothing but what could be described as madness which of course was to be expected. After all, just a few moments before this, there was a MASSIVE battle that took place between Night Raid and key members of the First Order and the casualties suffered or at least, the casualties he saw were few but hardly what he'd call minor. The leader of Night Raid lost her Imperial Arms to Vitani Ren, two of his comrades from the Jaegers are either missing or they've possibly been killed, Tatsumi was now completely missing and due to the actions of Kylo Ren. Two people wound up seriously injured with one being simply a member of Night Raid who was thankfully reported to be stable and fine by Leone earlier and the other was someone far closer to his heart.

"Kurome, why? Why did you have to face him?" Wave mentally sounded off, that question having been present the moment he grabbed her. With all the time they spent where all they knew of the First Order was just that it existed and Run told him his guess on what was going on, it was very clear that regardless of if it was true that Kylo Ren was involved in some way. The arrival of this organization triggered something within Kurome. It seemed to reignite various memories that were long since dormant, the kind that one wished would be nothing more than just some random nightmare. Whatever it was? All he knew from that point on was that he'd dedicate the rest of his days to keeping her safe and as far from the First Order as humanly possible and at first, it seemed to be possible.

That was until that one moment, that single moment which continued to replay in his mind as he was pacing where in the seconds that followed his big hero moment where he punched the dark warrior away, he watched as Kurome completely lost consciousness which he remembered causing his heart to completely sink. The very promise he made was already broken and in such a short span of time. It was thanks to him not being able to get there faster or even just staying by her side the whole way through that he now found himself truly at risk of losing her.

"How could I be so stupid? So careless?" The barrage of internal berating sounded off. "I made a promise to you. A promise I'd keep you safe. I told you about my concerns!" Eventually one particular thought came to mind that caused him to become totally incensed. A moment that was so intimate, so personal and so sweet which was shared between them that he stopped pacing, turned to the wall near the doorway to Kurome's room, put his hands against it and without warning, he slammed his cranium against it. "You admitted your love and how did I repay that?! I was so stupid that I couldn't stay by your side! I was such a massive dumbass that I pursued my fight with Tatsumi instead of making sure you were safe and sound!" Enraged, the swordsman's fists balled up even more, his nails now digging into his flesh. A few seconds later, he brought his arm back and with a rage-filled growl, he struck the wall, the force of which caused a decent hairline crack to develop. However, he didn't exactly bother to see it as he kept his head held low which along with his expression, showed a degree of shame and anger.

Inside the room, a deeply concerned Akame sat in a chair by her younger sister's bed, her right hand lightly clasping her wrist while another rested at her thigh. She noted the hour on the clock with a sigh. While she wasn't expecting a speedy recovery, with all the bad news that was present in the world as of late, she yearned for the world to just give them a break. A spark of hope that would let her know like a gentle mother bandaging a wound that everything was going to be okay.

But with all that had happened? Even she was starting to have her doubts.

Thinking to all that had happened, she carefully shifted her gaze to one of the few windows and watched as life progressed. It was a sight that should've brought her solace. The trees were flowing gracefully in the wind as blue skies shimmered beautifully with birds and many other different types of wildlife simply living free and enjoying their time. These simple things had on many occasions beforehand, even after dealing with the most taxing of missions, brought her peace and a sense of comfort. It reminded her both of what she was fighting for and how life didn't have to always be about slaughtering a selected target. However, this time was different. This time instead of thinking about how peaceful the environment was and how one day there would be a time where it'd forever retain that peace? She couldn't help but think about how impossible that idea was increasingly becoming. Every little detail from the birds to the trees brought her a degree of sorrow. Even the wind in the moments she heard it sounded mournful, almost as a herald to what would eventually, inevitably, become of civilization with the First Order's prolonged stay.

Though she also couldn't help but think about what happened to her partner. In fact if it wasn't for what was going on with Kurome, Akame had already made it clear to herself that she would've, without question, grabbed her sword and charged out to find him, prepared even for the possibility of going to the ends of the Earth to find him but like even the very idea of a happy ending to this story. It was nothing more than a fantasy.

One painful, cruel fantasy.


Author's Addendum:

Let's just start with the most obvious considering the date. I saw The Last Jedi and I absolutely loved it. It moved the story forward, provided a lot of interesting twists and turns that I didn't expect and while it was flawed in areas? I think I have overall my new favorite Star Wars film though I will have to see it a second time before I totally confirm that.

Anyways, for this chapter I decided to go for something that I had no idea on if whether or not it was going to work because with this being a fanfiction? There are elements that usually people don't expect. In this case, I'm going to be honest, as I was writing this out? The ideas for dialogue were just not coming to me. As I was writing this, there were multiple times where I just wrote dialogue and then removed it right afterwards because I felt it didn't work and while admittedly I could've delayed this to work out more dialogue? I decided "Fuck it, my audience are a bunch of mature grown adults and I'm an author so why don't I experiment a bit?" and thus I came up with this chapter which is a lot more I guess you can say event-based than it is dialogue. For this one? I really wanted to emphasize that the world is in deep shit with the First Order's arrival. After all, with this being a story in which the First Order are the main focus in some ways? I think it makes a lot of sense to finally show off what has been going on and really emphasize that feeling of hopelessness, particularly in the beginning parts of this where I decided to kind of partially base it on Episode 3 of Akame ga Kill when Tatsumi and Mine are out shopping. In fact, it's why I included those two guys that they met and humiliated to save a girl only to then twist it so that they were shot down by First Order Deathtroopers (Yes, Deathtroopers, like the ones you see in Rogue One.). It's also why I had one of the wanted posters brought in since honestly, I think the soldiers wouldn't be stupid and I also wanted to have Night Raid members make a genuine mistake to acknowledge a small complaint Lord Asmodeus had with the very first chapter where he mentioned that I seemed to be giving Night Raid plot armor.

Of course I didn't really believe that to be the case but for this chapter? I decided to make that so. Fun fact, originally for this chapter I planned on the possibility of the two of them witnessing an execution only to have Seryu recognize the members of Night Raid which would lead to Hux (who'd have Honest's ring back in his possession after Kylo borrowed it.) disabling at least Lubbock and taking him under arrest. After some thinking however? I decided to make this plot-point while keeping Lubbock as the one who's under arrest. Would he be put up for execution? I don't think so or at least not yet. As for why the trooper only pulled out Lubbock's? It comes down to importance. Lubbock was one of the original defectors from the Empire and was the one who helped Najenda escape. With that in mind? They believe that it'd make the most sense to capture him and since he already decided to let his emotions take over? It made him easy pickings. As for Mine? Well I'm just going to say right now that I think they'd let her go. The reason for this is because the First Order in this story, regardless of how good it is? It suffers from a major flaw. In their efforts to rid themselves of the weakness the Galactic Empire had developed? They've become overly confident and arrogant with troopers occasionally doing their own thing because with the additional training that was done to make them better than the previous forces? Some troopers have their own idea on how to conduct missions. Basically it's introducing the idea of what happens when one takes improvement too far and if any of you have seen The Last Jedi yet or at least have been exposed to a good majority of Star Wars? You know what happens when it comes to overconfidence and arrogance.

With that said guys, thank you all so much for reading. Next chapter I'll actually be focusing on some stuff on the other side of the galaxy and some other stuff down on Earth not with Night Raid but with a certain mask wearing, flamethrower-wielding but oddly kind beefcake. Again, thank you so much, may the Force be with you.