"The Dragons are relentless…" General Lennox muttered, looking over the ruins of a city with Jaivan and Benelli not too far off. "Well, nothing we can do now. There's no one left alive, so we should move on to the next golem location. At least Sado's intact, so we got lucky this time."

"Well, there's more mess where this came from." Jaivan said, walking over to him. "Let's go check on the other locations."

"Yes." Lennox motioned for Benelli to come over. "We'll take Sado with us and proceed to check on other locations. I'd like to check on Barbados, he's been left in Slayheim too long."

Lennox and Benelli got into Lucifer and Jaivan got into Sado, the two Golems lifting into the air and flying off away from the destroyed cities left in the Dragons' wake.

"As soon as we're done, I'm going to the test site." Lennox told Benelli. "I want to make sure that our weapon is coming along without trouble."

Benelli nodded his acknowledgment while watching the sea and mountains passing beneath their transport.

Lucifer and Sado set down over in Slayheim, not too far from where Barbados was firing at a pair of Dragons flying overhead.

"Into the fray then, Sir?" Jaivan suggested jovially over the radio.

"Permission granted. Give the order, boys." Lennox replied. Benelli and Jaivan told their Golems to fire on the Dragons, who withdrew once they realized that it wouldn't be an easy win. "Follow them. Maybe we can find their home-base."

Lucifer and Sado lifted off again to pursue the Dragons. They followed them a good ways before the Dragons suddenly turned and fired at them, forcing them to dodge. While the golems repositioned themselves for attack, the Dragons were beamed out of the area.

"…Damn." Lennox gritted his teeth. "Well, let's head on to the test-site. We've done all we can without knowing where these damn things are being built."

The two Golems flew off for one of the Elw territories, Lennox directing them.

At the test-site, Springfield was standing next to the Guardian Blade, his eyes closed in concentration as one hand touched a sensor. "It's okay…you can get through this." He murmured. "I know it's scary, but you managed it in the enclosure. Let's show them you can overcome them."

He climbed onto the Guardian Blade and placed his hands on the sensors. "Let's fly." He said softly.

The Guardian Blade lifted into the sky. Encouraged, Springfield urged it to fire on a few ground targets.

"Springfield, we're going to send out some flying drones in a bit." Vassim told him. "Think she can handle that?"

"Let's give it a go." Springfield nodded.

"Alright." Vassim took off his headset and turned to Amelia. "Do you think that they're working together alright?"

"Well, I can sense some complications, but I think they'll manage." She assured him, touching the Tear Drop resting at her chest. "Let's let them try it."

"Alright, sending the drones." Vassim pushed a button on the console and put the headset back on. "There they are, Springfield."

"I see them." Springfield replied. Then the sky was lit up as the Guardian Blade fired at one drone after another, utterly destroying every one.

"Impressive." Lennox said as he walked over to them.

Vassim sighed, now accustomed to Lennox's unannounced visits.

Lennox placed a firm hand on Vassim's shoulder. "I take it the Guardians and the Blade are working well together now?"

"General Lennox!" Amelia looked over at him. "I didn't know you were coming! Oh, hello, Benelli and Jaivan." She nodded politely. The pair of soldiers returned with a light bow.

"Only Springfield can tell us for sure, but at least he's not growling every time he rides it now." Vassim offered. "So, that's a good sign."

"A very good sign. We're going to need the Blade to take out the Dragons. And they're increasing in number, which means there's a factory for them somewhere." Lennox huffed. "We need to destroy that thing." He nodded to Vassim. "Bring them in, I want to talk to him."

"Springfield, that's enough. Come on down." Vassim said into the headset. "General Lennox is here."

"…Right. Coming." Springfield replied. They watched as the small figure turned and flew towards them, settling down on a landing platform. Springfield gently patted the Guardian Blade before he got off, turning to them. "Alright, we're down."

Lennox walked over to him. "Well, you don't seem too worse for wear." He remarked. "Still suffering the Guardians' ridicule?"

"You still don't believe me." Springfield said flatly. "Professor Sylvestre has gotten rather concerned about my not being able to sleep peacefully. As soon as you put them in her, they have been..." He clenched his fists. "Constantly. In. My. Fucking. Mind!" He hissed. "And if you could link with her, you would understand the pain of working with them!" He sighed and closed his eyes, breathing slowly.

Jaivan cringed, unsure of Springfield's mood and overly casual tone.

"Perhaps. However, no one but you can link with her." Lennox said calmly. "So, we'll have to take your word for it. Aside from that, is she adjusting to their powers well?"

"Oh, that's the easy part." Springfield sighed. "However, it's giving her a warped personality. I'm hoping I can keep her sane, but I don't know how much more of them she can take."

"I'll talk to them." Amelia offered. "There has to be a way to convince them to make this easier on you two."

"Well, why don't you have a moment with someone other than her for a little bit?" Lennox suggested. "I'm afraid that Colt couldn't come, but I do have two of your colleagues with me."

"Colt is still on that mission?" Springfield asked, frowning.

"Yes." Lennox nodded. "He hasn't been seen by anyone since he went to Sanktberg three days ago, but the base at Yard has gotten a few radio calls from him about their progress."

"That's good." Springfield nodded. "I hope he's doing better than me…"

"He can be an accomplished soldier when he wants to be." Jaivan added, taking Lennox's earlier comment as his cue to join them. "And it's high time he take some responsibility. I'm sure herding those cats won't be too hard for him."

"Wait, what?" Springfield blinked. "He's…leading?"

"Yes." Lennox nodded. "I'm expecting him to come back more responsible."

"I hope so, too…" Springfield bit his lip nervously.

"Well, Wesson and Nils didn't seem that hard to manage to me, and Steven's a good person." Amelia smiled, taking off her headset and joining them. "How hard can his mission be?"

"Colt has never been a leader before. And they're going up against Berserk in Demon Territory." Springfield said, shaking his head.

"It's true, their chances aren't so good." Jaivan shrugged. "More than likely someone will die."

"Jaivan!" Amelia looked shocked and frowned. "They'll be fine! Steven is with them!"

'I wasn't talking about the kids.' Jaivan thought, scoffing quietly.

"Steven is using a gun that he's already lost once and he vanished during a battle." Lennox said coolly.

"But, Colt doesn't like Steven! He's bound to lie!" Amelia said, shaking her head.

"Whether it's true or not, Colt's words are what matters for this mission." Lennox replied.

"That doesn't mean that he's right!" Amelia stamped her foot.

"Princess Amelia, Colt's report matched with the ones that Wesson and Nils sent in. And even Steven admitted that using an unfamiliar weapon has been a challenge. He's not perfect. No one is." Lennox gave a smirk. "After all, humans are prone to error."

Amelia clenched her fists and then sighed heavily. "…You're right. I'm sorry."

Springfield smiled. "Well, Colt can be quite dependable when he has to be. I'm sure they're all just fine."