Takeo V – Mexico, 7th February, 05:00
Fighting Aris and the soldiers with her was inevitable and, in the greater scheme of things, long overdue. However, that did not change what Takeo felt, crouching next to her body. She had not gone down without one hell of a fight, but her journey - and her crimes - ended here. Wearily, Takeo looked up to his companions. "We should bury her and the others."
"Yeah." Tao dropped on his ass to the ground. "I'm tired. Lemme rest a bit." They'd killed her. They were finally free. For good this time. "I'll get started." Karias didn't even need a shovel, lifting dirt telekinetically wasn't exactly something difficult, after all.
While the others started digging graves for the fallen, using their hands in lack of proper tools, Third approached Seira, who seemed to be the leader of this group, after all. "That's why I did not come along. We already feared someone might try to intercept us."
Seira nodded. "And why we did not either." She looked back over at her compatriots, and the corpses near them. "Aris. ...she was allied with Crombel." A simple observation.
". ...Crombel has been doing things behind our back for a while, thinking no one knows that." Third adjusted his sleeve. ". ...seems both he and Maduke kept an officially dead Union scientist for themselves."
". ...The things Aris brought look like Ignes's work."
"Yes. We gave him all the data we could salvage from her and Ninth's labs after their alleged deaths."
She nodded in response. That meant he had that data, and that he was a threat.
"This proves our suspicions regarding Thirteenth Elder, then." Third rubbed his forehead with an exhausted sigh. At least now they knew for certain. "I will report everything to the First Elder. How do we best contact you?"
"Tao." She called out to him. He was busy, but he had all the communications systems. "Phone number?"
Third pulled out a small notebook from one of his pockets as Tao dictated his number. He gave a nod when he was done. "Good. Both Second and Thirteen have been thorns in our sides for a long time." Even bigger thorns than Lukedonia, to be exact.
". ...From what I've heard, it's Crombel's fault we were enemies to begin with." Seeing as how investigating what he was up to was what led to all of those escalations.
Third smiled. "We have been enemies for much longer than that. Just not openly." Because the Union was not ready to face them. "We would have made a move sooner if the Noble Elders did not oppose to it all the time."
". ...'We' as in Lukedonia is not what I was referring to. 'We' as in the family that killed your Elders. I might not have had the strength to do so, there were only two capable, but they were simply doing it to protect their home."
"Only two?" That sounded about right. He remembered Fifth's reports. "The Noblesse and a human."
She nodded. "The. ...human. ...died. It is only the Noblesse left. And he judged the traitor nobles, not your human Elders." As she'd already said.
". ...I will transmit that." Then that meant that the strongest members of the noble faction were gone. That would interest First greatly. "This is no binding promise, but I am optimistic that the First Elder will agree to your proposition."
"Thank you." Even the meeting was good. It meant there was a possibility.
He looked back to the modified humans. "Union Escapees?"
". ...Please do not attempt to take them back. It will displease the Noblesse greatly. They left because they were tired of being forced to hurt people."
"Once allegiance is broken, it cannot be restored. Normally, we exterminate deserters, but I presume with you, they will not compromise our secrecy towards humans."
She blinked. "Why would they even want to do that?"
". ...In the past, escaped Union subjects have caused us great trouble."
". ...These three are no threat. They just want to live normal lives. Takeo in particular has had to deal with teammates killing anyone whom he's so much as bumped into during missions, even if they have nothing to do with him and are no threat. They would do nothing to compromise secrecy, because they already fear what you will do."
Third nodded. "Understood. Do you know which Elders they worked for?"
"M-21 was one of Crombel's experiments. Tao and Takeo were members of DA-5."
"I am not surprised."
". ...That they wanted to leave?" Or how they were mistreated. Though that probably wouldn't be surprising anyway. She didn't expect any different from the Union.
"The only scientists with even a bit of sense of morals work for either me or the First Elder directly."
". ...If morals are actually important, why hasn't something been done about the others before?"
"They are a necessary evil. Sacrifices are inevitable."
For what though? She did not ask. She wouldn't like the answer no matter what he said. There was never any excuse for things like this.
"We will leave your human friends alone and contact you once a decision has been made."
She nodded. "Thank you." Hopefully this meeting would at least lead to a truce.
He hesitated before pulling out a card. ". ...you can contact one of my agents that way, if there is need to do so before we call you back."
She took the card, holding it carefully as she looked it over, memorising it just in case since she'd be handing it off to Tao. "Thank you." It seemed she'd not stop saying that today.
"I am taking my leave now. Good luck, Miss Loyard." He signalled for the three Royal Guards to accompany him.
Seira turned, walking towards her companions. Tao sat on the ground, staring at the sky as their task completed. "I can hardly believe it."
Takeo nodded, helping M-21 cover the bodies with dirt. It felt wrong, because even if Aris was downright monstrous. ...she was still a person. And as he glanced at her face for a last time before Karias covered it, he felt as though he was seeing Teira again. His sister. Not the woman who destroyed his life. He turned away, feeling sick. "Are we supposed to pray or anything?"
"Dunno." Then, darkly, "does she deserve it?"
"Dunno," he repeated with a shrug. ". ...I guess no. Not really."
"Then we shouldn't." And that was that. "What do we do now?"
". ...Hey. Seira." Takeo looked up to her. ". ...do you know what we do now?"
"Go home. Wait for them to contact us." She handed the card to Tao. "That is for if we need to contact them first."
Tao looked down at the card. "Got it. So. ...we go back to Korea, you two go back to Lukedonia, correct?"
"Yes." Karias nodded at that. "Unless you three want to go to Lukedonia as well?"
"..." M-21 joined them, hands in his half-ripped clothes. ". ...If Crombel is really an enemy absolutely confirmed..."
"Third Elder seems to think that he is." Seira could state that much, at least.
". ...I don't know." Takeo ran a hand through his ponytail. ". ...I guess we should keep an eye on everything there."
Keep an eye. ...a chill ran through Tao. "Hey, if Aris was here, d'ya think he knew we came here too?" He knew of their fraternity with M-21, after all.
"..." Seira frowned. ". ...Third Elder said Aris was declared dead."
"We already know about the infighting." So Aris not being known was no big surprise.
"He must have hoped that she would not be traced back to him," M-21 mumbled. So he had gone unrecognised?
"Huh. Well, he's out of luck then, isn't he?" Tao let out an empty laugh.
M-21 sat with them. "We should stay in Korea and watch over everything," he said. "This is still our home, despite everything."
"And Boss's." And Boss couldn't take care of it anymore.
"Yeah. And Boss's," Takeo added quietly. "Let's get the helicopter. There's nothing here for us."
"Yeah." Tao, quite contrary to his personality, was quiet for once as he got the helicopter ready. "There's nothing here for us," he echoed. Dr. Aris was nothing more than a nightmare now.