Survivors, Monsters and Murderers

by jetangel02

Night Raid and the Jaegers are prepared to battle each other to the death. But are either of them ready to stand against one of the galaxy's deadliest species? Their best hope lies with a group of survivors from beyond the stars. War is inevitable and death is certain. Courage and trust are their best weapons against the Xenomorph plague. Rated M for language, violence and gore.

14. Chapter 13

To All Readers: I apologize for yet another long delay. Many portions of the following chapters had to be reworked and rewritten to ensure the quality and consistency of the story. To meet demands, I've decided to put out the first portion which has been completed to my satisfaction. Much thanks for your reviews so far. Any kind of feedback is most appreciated, and that's why I strive to continue this Fic all the way to the end. Please enjoy this new chapter.

Disclaimer : I do not own any of the Aliens and Akame ga Kill! Franchises. Those belong to their respective owners.

Chapter 13: Repurpose

Revolutionary Army Main Base, South of the Empire

Rebel personnel have gathered around the front entrance, to greet the arrival of their own advance force of Imperial Arms users.

The first to step in through the gates was the female soldier with large bangs and Extase sheathed across her back. Behind her marched a tall man with a translucent visor covering the top portion of his face and brow who had Black Marlin equipped on his finger, and then followed by a short male soldier with a bob-but style hair carrying Scream in his hands.

Several leaders of the Revolutionary Army High Command stood out in front of the crowd, to receive the inbound group. "We are all pleased to see you back safely." their Supreme Commander spoke out in praise "Tell us, have you anything to report?" The female soldier who wields Extase saluted "We have confirmed, the Imperial forces which suddenly appeared at the Hadley colony, have been driven back by Night Raid and the Colonial Marines. The path leading up all the way to the Empire's southernmost outpost is clear and free for Us to access."

A wave of cheering and applause erupted throughout the base. The Supreme Commander spoke sidelong to his cohorts "It appears that Commander Najenda's report over the radio was true. Her and Ripley's people singlehandedly threw back an ambush that was sprung on them by General Esdeath." The other leaders continued speaking amongst themselves.

"Then, perhaps the second part of Najenda's report is true as well. Ripley herself really did defeat Esdeath, and sent the General's nigh invincible army back to the Empire like a whipped dog." "The Lieutenant and her people came through for Us, as promised." "Our victory over the Empire is all but assured."

The multiple chatter was drowned out at the sound of jet turbines growing louder and closer. From up above, the clouds dispersed to reveal the Dropship descending and flying straight towards the center of the base. Several Revolutionary Soldiers cleared a large area, to allow the Dropship to land.

As soon as the Ship touched down, the engines whined down, and the loading ramp began to lower. Down the ramp came Najenda and most of her Subordinates. They were all lugging wheeled pallet jacks stacked up high with boxes and crates.

"Night Raid, falling in." Najenda announced, whilst saluting to her superiors.

Before anyone can speak, the ground all around them rattled and shook as a light tremor rumbled throughout the base.

Amidst the confused rebels, someone shouted in panic "It's an Earthquake!" An alarm bell sounded out from one of the lookout towers. Its occupant cupped his hands and shouted "We have incoming! There, at the front gate!" The clamor of panic was then drowned out by an ensemble of spinning thread wheels and roaring engines.

Suddenly, something large erupted from the cover of the treeline, and trundled on over to where the rebel base, all the while emitting a bombastic melody of jamming chords and grungy vocals.

["War! Huh! Yeah! What is It good for!- Absolutely Nothing!"]

All eyes turned to the strange rolling object, as it came to a halt at the front gates.

At first glance it seemed like some sort of carriage that wasn't pulled by any sort of horse or mount. It was squat and ugly, with an awkward-shaped body held up by four pairs of wheels and axles. Behind it, trailed large rectangular trailers resembling metal wagons that were hitched up to the vehicle's rear-end, forming a long line of machines, metal, and wheels.

To add to the Revolutionary Army's bewilderment, three other machines rumbled and roared into view as they settled on either side of the first. In a whining hiss of pistons and hydraulics, all four crawlers halted their movements in near unison. Finally, the rambunctious accompanying music had been silenced.

The side of the first machine open up, as the cab door rolled back to let out its occupant. And Ripley stepped out onto the tractor's boarding steps, before facing the onlookers from the Revolutionary Army's main base.

"You can all relax. It's just me." Ripley called out. Beside her, in the other vehicles, Hicks, Susanoo, and Akame stepped out of their cabs, and waved out at the stupefied rebels.

"We've come, bearing gifts!" Hicks yelled out. Everyone started approaching, to examine what was brought to their doorstep, and found out that each of the machines were a small train van chalked full of tools, equipment, building materials, and supplies.

"You can all take a gander at the stuff, once it's inside." Hicks spoke, as he ducked back into the cab of his Daihotai Tractor "Right now, let's get everything offloaded. We've got a universe to save!" Ripley, Akame, and Susanoo followed suit, then once the path was clear, the convoy made it way into through the gates and into the base.

Wild Hunt Headquarters, Capitol of the Empire

Dorothea stood along the back of the annex which serves as her team's current residence, scrutinizing the spot where Syura had set up one of Shambhala's portals for the return trip from Hadley's Hope. All of Wild Hunt looked over the area where Champ had previously dug, and observed the stunted ruin of the Atmosphere Processor sitting in its place, the station's towering height stunted due to being relocated to a foundation that is five levels deeper than where the Processor had originally been found. "Well done, Champ." the vampire Alchemist congratulated "You've cleared enough space for a perfect fit."

"So." Enshin mentioned wryly "Is nobody going to talk about what We've all seen at the last minute, before coming back to the Capitol?" He leered at his fellow teammates "Or have I gone crazy?" In a rare display of concerned interest, Izou concurred "He's right. I saw It, too."

"We all saw It." affirmed Syura. He then cast a look straight towards Dorothea, as if expecting an explanation.

"It was probably an optical anomaly." Dorothea reasoned "caused by the disruption of space-time by Shambhala and the new portal formula We've implemented." To Everyone's surprise, it was Izou who contradicted her. "Something was there." he insisted "It was the same presence that had been following Us around, ever since We've arrived at the Colony." The swordsman then indicated at Dorothea, with the hilt of Kousetsu "It was observing Us in everything We were doing, whilst keeping a distance. That much I'm sure of."

Dorothea waved away the scrutiny "Whatever you think you all have seen, is of no consequence." She then motioned at the recently acquired ruin "What matters now, is that We've finally obtain Our fabulous prize."

"What was the point?" Enshin groaned "Was all that We went through, just so that you can bring this massive heap of trash to act as a yard ornament?"

Dorothea reached into her dress pocket, and walked up to the broad side of the processing station "Just watch." She then held up a blood red oval gem, and placed it against the cold, dark metal exterior.

At first, nothing happened, but then the Philosopher's Stone started to glow in steady pulses. Cascading energy started to course through the Processor's outer surface. Then, the stone began to glow brighter, as its pulses started to escalate into rapid frequency. The energy continued to race along the construction, expanding throughout the entirety.

Dorothea frowned with impatience, and pressed the Philosopher's Stone with harder force. "More!" she demanded, as the stone's light radiated with more intensity. The ripples of pulsing energy grew as well, as they surged along the contacting metalwork of the Processor's interior.

Suddenly, a booming groan sounded out from everywhere at once GGGRRRRNNNNNRRRR! Everyone from Wild Hunt, with the exception of Dorothea, hastily retreated to the confines of their headquarters, hoping to take cover shelter from the miraculous phenomenon taking place before their very eyes.

"IT'S WORKING!" Dorothea yelled out, her wailing voice nearly drowned out by the ever rising sound of metallic groaning and clanging. The Philosopher's Stone shimmering to the point of blindness, as the channeled energy spilled forth in torrents. By now, the event had everyone in the vicinity deprived of sight and sound, as if swallowed by a shining abyss.

Syura shielded his eyes and covered his ears, his mouth agape in utter wailing as if trying to affirm whether he was alive or dead. "WHAT THE HELL IS HAPPENING TO US!?" he screamed, hoping his voice could cut through the turbulence, even as his own ears couldn't hear anything over the calamitous upheaval.

Finally, after what seemed like forever, all of Wild Hunt could sense the pandemonium slowly ebb away. The tumultuous sound started to decline, and the blinding flash began to dim.

One by one the members of Wild Hunt sortied out from behind their headquarters, to investigate. The first thing they see is Dorothea still standing where she was holding out her hand which held the Philosopher's Stone. Only the stone had vanished, and in its place, the Alchemist could feel a cool smooth texture of freshly spun titanium composite.

Dorothea looked up and squinted her eyes back into focus "What?-!" her voice caught in her throat, as she beheld the awesome spectacle standing in front. She was then joined by her fellow teammates who stood by in awe, everyone too stupefied with disbelief at what they've just witnessed.

Sitting behind Wild Hunt's headquarters, with its reassembled top portion jutting above the surrounding buildings, was a fully restored Atmosphere Processor. Its entire construction had been completely mended by the power of the Philosopher's Stone transmutation abilities. Yet, the Processor's titanic height remained shortened, reaching only ¾ of the Royal Palace, thanks to the deeper placement of its underground foundations.

Syura looked over at what was once a giant heap of scorched metal and molten slag. Not a trace of the previously incurred devastation remained anywhere on the vast superstructure. "What the fuck did you do?" he breathlessly demanded. Dorothea gathered her composure, as she responded haughtily "I did what I promised." She turned to face everyone beside her, and widely held out her arms in a grandiose gesture "I've brought Us the means of remaking the entire World for Our own ambitions."

Seeing that nobody was about of say anything, the foreign Alchemist walked around the Atmosphere Processor, then returned to her point of origin and huffed in annoyance "All of the damned entrances are buried! We've sunk it too far below ground!" She placed a hand on her temple and tried to massage impending migraines of frustration.

"Okay, relax." she calmed herself "There's got to be another way inside…" Taking one more look at the processing station, Dorothea spotted what looked like a landing, set some ways above and along the side of the Processor's conic spire. The recessive cranny had the spacing to allow something large to pass through easily enough, and it was set reasonably low enough to reach through conventional means, thanks to the base foundation's subterranean location. "If this facility allowed access from the top" Dorothea reasoned "Then it should have other entry points for emergencies."

The short Alchemist scanned along the side of the processing plant, until her eyes rested on a small hatch set part-ways between the ground and the gaping landing platform. Below it, climbing bars were set firmly into the metal face of the building's side.

Dorothea turned to her comrades "Everyone stay here, while I go take a look at something." The other members of Wild Hunt stood by, as their shortest member scaled the steel wall, and up to the fire escape. Once there, she spent little time in working the latch release before prying it open, and peered inside. The small access hatch itself could only fit an average size adult, and further down its tunnel, there was a sturdy ladder leading up into a wide shaft

"Syura!" the Alchemist called down "You and I are going in, to check things out. Be sure to keep Shambhala handy." Dorothea then turned to the rest of Wild Hunt "Somebody send for the Prime Minister!" she instructed, before starting down the access tunnel "He'll want to see all of This."

Revolutionary Army Main Base, South of the Empire

It was crowded inside the main assembly hall where the rebel High Command, Colonial Marines, Night Raid, and several operatives had convened. A meeting was called by order of the Supreme Commander, at the request of Najenda as well as Ripley. Everybody crowded next to each other, as they sat in hastily assembled seats and table arrangements positioned in a round circle, whereas the majority crammed shoulder to shoulder with only a small gap to allow passage towards the middle spacing where Najenda placed herself in full view for all to see.

In front of all the relevant attendees, Night Raid's leader stood at attention in the center of the assembly, and addressed the final details of her debrief "And so, for the task of locating the Derelict, I have since volunteered Night Raid in performing this service to Lieutenant Ripley and the Colonial Marines."

A myriad of exclamations ensued at the announcement, but had quickly subsided, once the Supreme Commander stood to address the situation "First and foremost, Commander Najenda, All of Night Raid must be commended for their recent victories against the Imperial forces and the Jaegers." A string of cheers and applause were let out by many attending the meeting.

As soon as the assembly quieted down again, the Supreme Commander continued "Having said that, it is still quite unlike you, to forego your duties as a soldier of the Revolutionary Army, and take up another's cause, without so much as consulting your superiors." Another commotion followed, as many discussed and argued over the blunt observation.

The mob silenced itself when Najenda made to talk about her recent conduct. "With all due respect, if the wrong kind of people find that ship and discover what inside, We could be facing a far greater danger than what We have right now. It wasn't my intention to express dissent from my own comrades and fellow Revolutionaries." she explained "I am merely announcing my intentions by which Night Raid may save countless of lives, by preventing another Alien outbreak from happening."

"How did that kind of decision pan out for your team, before? Your recent clash with the Jaegers, was the direct result of such insubordination." The Supreme Commander's inquest caused quite a stir this time. Several people slightly gasped, others sere too grim to express their shock. Tatsumi, Lubbock, and Leone were even stoked into coming to their leader's defense. But Hicks had already clamped his hands on the two young men to restrain them, and Hudson placed himself in Leone"s way whilst speaking out "What's with this chicken-shit outfit!?" All eyes turned towards the ComTech as he steadied the buxom blonde in her place.

"Is there something you'd liked to add, Hicks?" asked the Supreme Commander.

"Hudson, sir..." The ComTech corrected, then nodded at the Corporal "He's Hicks."

"I haven't seen you before." the Supreme Commander stated. Hudson made a formal salute "I was hung up elsewhere. I've only recently fallen in."

"And, what makes you think you have a say in these matters?" imposed the Revolutionary leader. Hudson wasn't intimidated "How about the fact that it was my people who turned the whole shitty scenario around. Don't forget, It was the threat of Our Ship, that gave the Jaegers pause. It was Ripley, who got rid of Esdeath. And it was Our guns that blew those Imperial fuckers to hell, and sent them packing."

A solemn stillness came over the assembly "We're aware of the great service, provided by the Colonial Marines." admitted the Supreme Commander "We just didn't think you people would be so shrewd, as to hang that over all of our heads." Hudson shook his head "That's not what I'm trying to get at." He stood at the center of the gathering "The point I'm trying to make is, those whom you've sacrificed so much time and so many lives trying to keep at bay, got the shit kicked out of them by we very few in just half a day. But, don't think of us Marines as infallible either. We were just as much on the ropes, there beside Night Raid. Then, when the situation was at its darkest, all it really took was one Little Girl and an Imperial Arm, to take down a couple of those Jaegers whom even Night Raid couldn't beat, and brought all of us to victory."

There was a buzz of agreement humming among most of the assembly attendees. Close by, Mine hung her head low, and covered her face in shame, while trying to stifle her tears.

"And where is Ms. Jorden?" the Revolutionary leader pried "I've noticed, she isn't in your current company." It was Ripley who answered "We left her aboard the Sulaco, for further rest and recuperation. Her Imperial Arm took a lot out of her, from constant use." She nearly wished she hadn't provided that explanation. She could feel further distrust and scrutiny blanket over her to the point of being stifling, for allowing a child to be dragged into such a harrowing ordeal.

The Supreme Commander held out a coaxing hand "That Imperial Arm is dangerous, if misused. You should return it back to Us. It's already troubling enough, to know that you've had such a young soul wield that kind of power with reckless abandon." Ripley wasn't going to have none of what was being suggested "Newt saved Us from a being tortured and slaughtered at the hands of the Jaegers! She fearlessly stood and faced the enemy head-on, because she'd already faced far more terrible nightmares than the Empire's Minions, and she did it with no weapons and no training."

The Lieutenant felt sick about praising Newt's accomplishments in a battle that had no place whatsoever for a kid to be involved with. "Newt's a fighter." Ripley declared "She's a warrior, and a survivor. While I don't take pride in her willingness to fight at Our side, it couldn't be helped that she was made that way. Nor how her innocence was lost, the day her childhood became a living hell. But she carried on without giving up, despite how hopeless the cause may seem. That's why she stood toe to toe with the worst of them, and because of that, We're all standing here today being criticized by the same group who could only throw lives away at slowing those Monsters down. I'd liked to see any one of you come close to pulling off the same kind of shit We threw at Esdeath and her followers."

One of the rebels, the same female soldier who wields Extase, reached for her Imperial Arm in anger "You'd dare imply us incompetent!" Hicks placed himself before her, with arms raised "It's not an insult. It's just fact. You must understand, Our skills and technology were tailored specifically in the handling of situations like your own. From suppressing terrorist actions and piracy, to staging an insurgency within rogue colonies, We've done it all." The Corporal looked to see that he got the assembly's attention "The Colonial Marines can and will bring the Empire to its knees, that's a guarantee. But, Our search for the Derelict and the Bug Hunt afterwards, must take priority over your rebellion. That being said, if some of Your own could undergo the task for Us, and free up the time and effort, We can definitely put the hurt on those Imperial cocksuckers in exchange."

The Supreme Commander crossed his arms "So this is it then? The bargain that was promised? Your technology and arsenal, plus a shared joint effort in overthrowing the Empire, in exchange for discretionary deployment of Night Raid, to exterminate the Aliens wherever They may be found." He scratched at his stubbled beard "I can't help, but wonder if those terms seem a little too steep. What exactly have you brought to the table?"

Hicks reached into a side pocket of his uniform, and presented a small datapad tablet, then started reading the items displayed on the small screen "We have enough to fully equip two whole platoons. That includes small arms, explosive ordnance, chemical warfare and countermeasure, tracking and surveillance, and finally, point defense. It's about half of the Sulaco's total compliment, plus all of the Colony salvage."

The Revolutionary leader and most of his peers were taken aback "You're only providing that much?" he pressed "What about the rest, and your starship itself?" The Corporal shook his head "They're to be kept as a contingency and as a last resort, if the situation calls for it." Beside him, Hudson chimed in "If this is going to be a straight up fight to liberate a nation, then We can't risk total devastation to the land with excessive force. You wouldn't want to see what can happen, if you roll 7 canisters of CN-20 into a populated area."

The Supreme Commander wanted further confirmation "And you all stand by that resolution? To embroil yourselves in a conflict that does not involve you?" It was Bishop who explained the reasoning "Our military doctrine includes a mandate that We must neutralize any and all parties; be it individual, corporate, or national armed forces, who presents a clear and present threat to Colonial personnel and perceived custodial." Hudson made a reassuring grin "We virtually have standing orders to protect ourselves and our friends, by any means necessary. That includes Night Raid and all their associates. Why do you think, We're so generously providing Our gear and hardware to help the cause? By the way, once the fighting has all been done, We still expect a return of all remaining surplus. We'll be holding onto Spectator, as collateral."

All who are present eyed one another, to see if anyone had objections. When nobody put forth any qualms, the Supreme Commander shrugged in compliance "Very well. We'll abide by those terms. If you can properly outfit our battalions as fast as humanly possible, We'd very much appreciate it. In the meantime, I'm placing Night Raid at your complete disposal."

Hicks offered his hand to the Revolutionary leader which the latter shook vigorously. "Much oblige." Thanked the former, then the Supreme Commander turned to address the assembly once more "We've sent word of General Esdeath's demise. The Western nations have already started to mobilize, and should be marching on the Empire's western border in a matter of days." The Supreme Commander then gestured to his attending officers "We shall do the same, and make for the Southern Outpost. From there, We'll proceed toward the fortress Shisuikan, once We've mustered enough support from the common people." His attention then focused on the Colonial Marines "You've done much service for the Revolutionary Army, in eliminating Boric, the Rakshasa Demons, and even Esdeath herself . That's why I'm sanctioning Night Raid's expedition to search for this Derelict. But on one condition…" a soldier carrying a slip of parchment stepped forward and handed it to Najenda. "We've received a report, that the followers of the Path of Peace and their city of Kyoroch has gone silent with no word from them in the past few days. I'm handing Night Raid a secondary objective to investigate the situation with that religious order, as soon as the Eastern search party had completed their first task."

Tatsumi felt his stomach lurch at the news. He and his fellow teammates were already trying to come up with an explanation of what could possibly cause an entire city to go dark. There are plenty reasons, and none of them good. He looked over at Hicks, and could see him and the others were starting to make similar assumptions.

"Couldn't We have the Spy Team go and find out what is going on over there?" Chelsea asked, hoping her suggestion could set Everyone's mind at ease. "They're currently on assignment, within the Capitol." one of the Revolutionary soldiers, the tall visored man who wields Black Marlin's ring on his finger, explained "They've been following up on a rumor, that the Prime Minister may have assembled a new team of Imperial Arms users." A solemn pause came over Night Raid and the Colonial Marines. Just when they seemingly decimated the Jaegers, now a similar group may yet threaten their cause.

"Will wonders ever cease…" Hudson bemoaned "Bad shit just keeps on coming." Ripley held up a hand to the ComTech to quiet him down. "Ok. So it all falls to you, Najenda." she then said in a dry tone "Who goes with whom? And to where?"

Najenda held her chin as she grasped the situation. A minute passed by, when Night Raid's leader spoke "Whatever the circumstances surround Kyoroch and the Path of Peace, it does not affect Our plan in the slightest. We are going to approach this cautiously and without any rashness. The search for the Derelict remains Our number one priority. Only afterwards, will a select few of Us go back there to investigate. Whatever may be happening, I'm not going to put the entire team at risk because of it."

Mine can feel the disappointment emanate from Tatsumi, as well as dread and worry coming from Everyone else, but no one was willing to argue. They blundered into one trap already. If they do the same and rush things again, then they deserve to be caught and wiped out this time around.

"Night Raid will be split into two teams of four-man squads." Najenda continued "One will take the Southwest direction, while the other takes the Northeast." She gazed over her Subordinates, before nodding to herself "The Southwest team will consist of Mine, Lubbock, Susanoo, Myself" she then gestured to those whose names she hasn't called yet "The Northeast team will be Akame, Tatsumi, Chelsea, and Leone."

Atmosphere Processor, Capital of the Empire

Prime Minister Honest stood in front of a computer terminal which spanned nearly the entire side of the spacious room he and all of the members of Wild Hunt are now in. His new surroundings left quite an impression on him and the others, ever since Shambhala had teleported them into the processing station's main control room. Out through the adjoining windows on the side, one can view the industrial and strictly utilitarian complex that make up much of the Atmosphere Processor's interior.

"This station was a crucial tool in the Colony's task of terraforming the planet it was once on." Dorothea explained "According to the information and data We've dug up, it would draw in the air all around its base, put it through a refinement process which breaks down and reconfigure the base components, and release it as clean and breathable. If given enough time, it could transform a barren stormy wasteland into a bright sunny oasis. Takes decades, it seems."

"What good is a sad excuse of a weather machine gonna do Us?" grumbled Champ "Why would you bother restoring a busted up old heap like this?" Next to him, Enshin spat out in disgust "He's right! What use can We possibly get out of this stupid hunk of hardware?" he raised a fist as if to beat it against a console, but refrained once he met with a threatening glare from the Prime Minister.

Dorothea placed a hand on a nearby panel and rubbed at the smooth texture, causing a clean squeak to emit from the point of contact. "We didn't salvage this facility, to exploit its designated purpose. But rather the means of attaining the energy required to run it all."

There was a pause, as Everyone contemplated what sort of energy had been used to power every single device and mechanism within this building. But no one could fathom what could be used to independently sustain such a large and vast a construct.

"When can We get this place operational?" Honest demanded. To his right, Dorothea motioned over to the large computer they were facing "This seems to be the main terminal for control and interface with this station's systems." She stepped over to the controls, and felt along its side "With it, We should be able to work out and monitor all of the performance and status readings."

"How?" muttered Syura "It's not even working, like the rest if this damned place!" his rambling seized up as he caught himself, once he saw his father raise a hand for silence. "You do have a solution" Honest worded breathlessly "for this predicament?"

Dorothea brought out the Portable Terminal she had been carrying, and unfolded it atop of the station's control console "I may have an idea…" she pulled out a connection cord from a built-in compartment, and jacked it into the corresponding sockets.

A set of digital words appeared on the Portable Terminal's small screen [NEGOTIATING WITH THE HOST…] After a minute, a new set of words came up [SYSTEMS CURRENTLY INACTIVE. DO YOU WISH TO INITIALIZE? Y/N] Dorothea hastily pressed the Y button, and more words showed on the monitor [STARTUP PROCEDURES NOW COMMENCING. PLEASE STAND BY…]

THRRMMM! Everyone inside the control room then heard a deep humming thud sound off faintly from somewhere within the bowels of the station.

"What the hell was that!?" Enshin barked as he reached for Shamshir's hilt. His arm was then seized by Izou who quietly shook his head.

Soon after, came a buzzing sensation which grew into a rumble zzzhhhhrrrWHHRRRZZZZ!

All around them, The Prime Minister and Wild Hunt can feel the deep tremor of a long dead amalgamation of high-tech electronics coming to life. Valves, pumps, and compressors whisping and breathing. Gears, piston, and gyros whining and whirring. Generators thrumming and computers beeping. All an ensemble, as they colluded and linked with one another in unison to become one unit, one system. One machine.

"What has happened!?" Honest cried out in exasperation "This is Incredible!" He and the others' exclamations where suddenly drown out by a calm female voice blaring throughout the building.

["ATTENTION. FACILITY STARTUP PROCEDURES COMPLETED."]

The Atmosphere Processor has been reactivated. Its many components worked together in a vast cohesive network of subroutines and systems programming. All tasked in the support of one another, so that one thing may be produced in a constant even flow. It radiated from below, generated by the newly reconstituted fusion reactor. It is constantly kept in check by the cooling towers and heat exchangers residing in the lowers levels around it. It stemmed into the long winding latticework of pipes and conduits running along the ducts and shafts throughout the upper levels.

Inside the control room, Everyone felt it emanating all around them, that which has spread to envelope the entire building itself.

Power.

Absolute Power, born by the unnatural union of mechanical engineering and human ingenuity. Unrelenting Power, that can work miraculous change and alter the course of history if carefully used and maintained. Unbridled Power, that can end all things in devastation if it were ever unleashed. Nuclear Power has come into this World. And now is in the hands of the Empire.

The female spoke again, its disturbingly monotonous tone announcing its eloquent messages from every PA speaker scattered on every level.

["ALL PERSONNEL MAY NOW CONDUCT MAINTENANCE OPERATIONS."]

The large screens on every computer terminal flickered and lit up, as they began to display technical data readouts on every critical systems operating the processing station. "Oh, so pretty!" ogled a mesmerized Cosmina, as she took in the view of all the intricacies of sophisticated technology.

Back over at the Main Terminal, Dorothea unhooked the Portable Terminal, and looked up at the large viewscreen. Across the monitor, a row of words scrolled up [ERROR. ATMOSPHERIC CONDITIONS READING NOMINAL STATUS. SUSPENDING REFINEMENT PROCESS AND SWITCHING TO STANDBY MODE.] All around, the sound of functioning machines and computers has been cut drastically in half as certain systems began shutting down.

"What's going on?" Honest questioned. The foreign Alchemist shrugged "It doesn't matter. None of you need worry about it." she threw a couple of switches and focused on several monitor screen. ["REACTOR OUTPUT STABLE."] With a pleased expression, she then held up her hands in reassurance "I'm just making preparations for setting up some alterations to this place."

"What kind of alterations?" demanded Syura. Behind him, Champ yawned "Who cares? I'm bored here anyways. Aren't We done yet? I'd rather go do something else, than stand around here." Their shortest teammate merely wagged her finger "Sorry boys, but We're not quite done just yet."

Dorothea turned and made for the door leading out of the Control Room "I promised that We would attain the might of gods." She then beckoned for Everyone to follow "So. Shall we begin?"

Revolutionary Army Main Base, South of the Empire

Akame sat in the driver seat of the Jorden family's Daihotai Tractor. Her crimson eyes narrowed on a small monitor screen perched up on top of the dashboard. On the screen, a bright green dot came into view, followed by a blue dot positioned a ways below, and finally a long jagged line conjoined between them. Bishop was sitting in the passenger seat right next to her, as he light patted the GPS.

"I've set the navigational computers to home in on their respective coordinates" the Synthetic Android explained "The route displayed has been automatically charted out to provide the shortest and safest way to reach your destination." The red eyed assassin scrutinized the mapped out region, and vaguely recognized the region's layout "There are some passes and path that aren't really safe or stable for travel, are you sure this vehicle can make it through?" In the back compartment, Hicks answered her question as he loaded supply boxes into the cargo hold "These crawlers are all-terrain. There's hardly anything they can't roll over through. Also, pay attention to the sensors its got mounted on the front. They'll definitely tell you if there's an obstacle you'd need to drive around."

To assuage Akame's doubts, Bishop then added "All the maps on the GPS had been uploaded directly from the Sulaco's planetary imaging system from orbit. You'll be looking at realtime graphic data, weather conditions, and even traffic flow if there is any."

"And why couldn't the Sulaco just pinpoint the Derelict's location, like the Nostromo did when Ripley's crew first found it?" Najenda called up from below the crawler's boarding steps "It could save Us all this time and effort, if We could use the Dropship, and just fly there directly and in force." Behind her, Ripley came up wearing a frown "That's because, it had some sort of beacon actively broadcasting on a subtle band. The Sulaco's been scanning all frequencies, trying to pick up the signal, but found zilch this whole time." With a grimace, the Lieutenant shrugged "For whatever reason that dammed signal isn't turning up, it's either because that ship has stopped sending, or it may not be here at all."

Hicks climbed out of the cab and down the steps "This rig's ready to go. She's got everything Akame's group may possibly need. A weapons cache, camping gear and tents, sentry guns, a long distance transmitter with an uplink to this base and the ship" he paused, to indicate the long communications antenna protruding from the roof of the cab "and finally, enough M. to last a few weeks."

"What's an M.R.E?" Tatsumi asked, as he walked up to the Corporal. Chelsea trailed right behind him, while rummaging through the compartment of Gaea Foundation searching for a lollipop. "It's food…" Ripley answered with a pinched expression, as she watched the redhead leisurely stick the candy in her mouth. "I hope, it tastes better than all of that processed and packaged stuff you've been feeding us, back on the Sulaco." Chelsea suckled on her lollipop, enjoying the sweet flavor it provided "Can't imagine how you space people subside on that stuff for such a long time."

Ripley ignored the sharp critique of starship ration supplies, and stood by as the rest of Night Raid steadily convened around her and Najenda. Susanoo and Lubbock were making their way from the second Tractor which was being prepped by Hudson who was then joined by Bishop. Mine and Leone were just leaving the privies off to the side of the base's staging area. All around, Revolutionary soldiers stepped lively as they went about their own business throughout the base, with only a few stopping briefly to watch the group of assassins readying for departure.

"Is Everybody here?" Najenda spoke up "It's time Akame and her team went on their way, since they'll have to cover more ground, coming up from all the way down South, and going East."

"Come, let's say our farewells, and give them a good sendoff." Susanoo implored. He and Lubbock took turns grasping and shaking everyone else's hands, along with Mine and Ripley.

"You're the man of the group now, Tatsumi." Lubbock clapped the brown haired youth on the shoulder, while grinning "Don't let them wear you out." Tatsumi blushed and looked away "I've no idea what you're talking about." Lubbock continued to grin "Doesn't matter. You'll get it eventually." He was then shoved aside by Hicks. "Quit screwing around, and go give Bishop and Hudson a hand with the other crawler." the Corporal then clasped Tatsumi's forearm "The punk's gotta point though. Those women are tough as they come, but you care about them deeply, right?" The younger male brunette's face harden with stoicism "I'd give my life for any of them."

Hicks smiled at Tatsumi's selflessness "Don't be too cavalier with your own life, kid. In cases like these, it helps to have a greedy heart. You want everything to work out ok, so you fight to make it so. Keep it that simple, and the battles will take a lesser toll on you." Tatsumi hand drifted to Incursio's sheath "That sounds like something Bro would say." The Marine raised an eyebrow "Your man Bulat must have been cool guy." Tatsumi stiffened with awkwardness "Eh. That'd be one way of putting it. I'm sure you two would've hit it off to some extent. As long as you made your boundaries clear." He then bid his goodbye, and left the Corporal to wonder about his last statement.

Susanoo offered Leone a flask of alcoholic beverage he brewed himself, which the blonde accepted graciously. "Keep them safe." The humanoid Imperial Arm pleaded "And try not to make so much of a mess." Leone smiled mischievously, as she bid the peace gesture.

Mine folded her arms and turned her nose up at Chelsea "Try not to drag anyone down. It'd be such a waste, if you went and got someone killed, because of your own slip-up." Chelsea only smirked "Don't you worry about that. I'm sure Tatsumi and I will watch each other's backs while we're out there." The pink haired sharpshooter grew red with jealousy "Just leave already! You're annoying enough as it is." Her redheaded Comrade playfully stuck out her tongue, and wave goodbye, then boarded the crawler.

Tatsumi came up to Mine afterwards, and greeted her with a statement "Looks like We won't be seeing each other for a few days. Was there still something you want to talk to me about?" Mine bit her lip and blushed with embarrassment "Just…" she hesitated, then finally blurted "Don't get yourself killed or anything! Alright?" The green eyed fighter was taken aback by the sudden outburst, but he calmly nodded. "I'll be fine." he assured "I promise, I'll make you proud of me."

Mine regained her composure, and sighed "As long as you get through this well enough, I'll be happy." She nearly jumped, when Tatsumi patted her shoulder. "I'll be sure to oblige you. Let's both give it Our all on this mission, like We always do. What do ya say?" The Genius Sniper placed her hand over his, and chuckled "Yes. Let's both do Our best." With a salute, Tatsumi turned then clambered up the steps and into the cab of the Jordens' Tractor.

Najenda went over to Akame who climbed down out of the Jordens' Tractor. "Let's go over the plan again." Najenda instructed "Recite all of the instructions back to me." The younger woman racked her brain and jogged her memory. She then counted everything that came to mind "Drive straight on towards the coordinates. Take no unnecessary detours. If it becomes necessary, contact and notify base. Check in with base, once every hour. Failure to check in will result in the Dropship being dispatched on a search and rescue role. If the Derelict is found upon arrival to the coordinates, report findings to base, and cordon off the area, then secure the egg cache for orderly disposal. Use flame units only, to ensure no damage being done to the ship itself. On the other hand, if the Derelict is not found upon reaching the coordinates, inform base, and the Dropship will be deployed to assist the other party. We would then turn around and go the opposite direction, to rejoin the others as a final contingency."

Night Raid's leader smiled at hearing her Subordinate repeat everything that was previously discussed when Everyone started readying for the road trip, down to the very last syllable. "We maybe spilt up for a few days." she stated, as she saluted Leone who had begun to ascend the cab steps "But We'll be running things very tight, and by the book." She then gave Akame a buddy-hold around her left arm "Take care of yourself, and watch over the others. We'll see each other again very soon."

Akame nodded, and notice Ripley approaching beside her. "If you find that ship, whatever may be inside of it, destroy it regardless. Even at the cost of the Derelict itself, nothing comes out of that vessel alive besides You and the Others. Take no chances, you hear? Promise me." The red eyed assassin met the Lieutenant's dark gaze with her own crimson "I promise you, Ripley. All Aliens will be Eliminated." With a final wave farewell, Akame ascended the steps, and entered the cab to sit in n the driver's seat.

"Is Everybody buckled in?" Akame panned her view to see the status of the Tractor's other passengers.

Leone was in the berth quarters, fishing out a cup from a galley drawer, and filling it with ice from a dispenser on a mini-fridge. "Already made yourself at home, eh?" Chelsea smirked from the passenger seat behind Tatsumi who had navigation's seat at the front. "There aren't anymore places to sit up there." the buxom blonde lounged back in a couch, and started to throwback a swig of Susanoo's moonshine "Might as well take it easy back here. It's going to be a long trip."

Tatsumi swiveled his seat around, and frowned at the veteran assassin "Hey, don't be too liberal with whatever commodities you pull from back there. This Tractor still belongs to the Jordens. And by them, I mean Newt. It's virtually all she has left of her family. I'm sure she'd appreciate it if it was kept in moderation while We're using it." Leone smiled sincerely, before finishing her drink, dispose of the cup, and capped the bottle to prevent spilling it.

Chelsea sat upright, and buckled her seatbelt "Safety first. Right Tatsumi?" The green eyed fighter nodded in compliance, and fastened his own seatbelt. He then turned to the driver "We're all set Akame. It's high time We've hit the road."

Akame turned the ignition, and flipped a few switches Drrrv-rv-rv-rv! The crawler's engines then sputtered to life, and cranked in loud volume while remaining on idle. Akame then stepped on a clutch pedal, and threw several levers, putting the transmission into gear and throttle the vehicle forward.

The Daihotai Tractor rumbled along the staging area of the Revolutionary Army's base, as it made it way toward the gate. It amidst the cheers and farewells of rebel onlookers.

Jaegers' Quarters, Imperial Palace, Capitol of the Empire

Wave bustled along the Palace corridors with bags full of food and ingredients for tonight's dinner. He rounded a corner, and saw Run and Kurome standing off to the side. "Hey, you two." the sailor called out "I've figured I'd cook-" He went silent, as he noticed a large canvas screen erected before his Teammates, separating them from their rooms further ahead.

"What's all this?" Wave asked, as he carefully set the bags on the floor. Run greeted him, with a finger raised to his lips, then he beckoned for his fellow Jaeger to approach with discretion "They're Imperial Scientists. They've been sent by the Prime Minister, to gather materials from Dr. Stylish's lab." Wave was perplexed by this turn of events. "What kind of materials? And why from Stylish's lab?"

"I don't know." Run answered "We've been called out of our rooms, just a while ago. Told us to wait here, until they've finished." Wave was even more perturbed "So, We've essentially been kicked out of Our own home, by those who would just waltz in here and take whatever they want?" He turned aside and kicked at a wall in frustration "If General Esdeath was here, she would've ensured these guys didn't get too liberal with us Jaegers."

Run heaved a sigh, and calmly talked down to Wave "Esdeath is no longer here. It's just You and Me and Kurome. You might not like it, but We don't exactly have that kind of pull, like We once had when the General was around." He clamped both his arms atop of Wave's shoulders and murmured "If We're to have any chance of maintaining the status quo, We're going to have to play nice, and be concessive and contrite."

Kurome stared at the screen, as shapes of shadows and silhouettes darted across back and forth, often whilst carting large and heavy objects in front of them. "Whatever it is, there's a lot of it. And it seems they're almost done. I can hear less and less footsteps coming and going."

Suddenly, a voice sounded out from behind the screen "That's the last of it. Stand by for transport!" There was a loud buzzing of something being energized, then a bright flash of light shown vividly through the canvas, causing the observing Jaegers to hastily shield their eyes until the flash dissipated.

"What the hell just happened?" Wave asked, as he slowly approached the screen. He then carefully reached for one of the edge seams, and pulled it aside to reveal the area beyond. Much to his surprise, there was nobody in the vicinity, even though he had only heard the people who were here just a second ago.

"Where did they all go?" Kurome wondered "It sounded like a crowd had been here. Now they just up and vanished." She walked up to Wave, as if expecting an answer. "You said, they were after materials inside Dr. Stylish's lab?" Wave inquired at Run "Let's go have a look. Maybe they've congregated there."

Run walked past, and made his way over to Dr. Stylish's private quarters. It didn't take long for them to find the lab, since it was the only room with large doors left ajar.

"I can't say, I've ever been to this place." Wave confessed "I think, even before the Doctor's passing, only Seryu had ever frequently come here. Maybe General Esdeath as well, but I can't be too sure."

As the three Jaegers stepped through the door threshold, they can see that their time had been wasted. The lab was as empty and devoid of any object whatsoever. Whoever had been here, and whatever they've been doing, it had all gone without a trace.

"There's nothing here!" Wave groaned "Nothing at all." Run paced around the vacant area, and closely observed the floor. "Strange…" he mused "Judging by the dust trails and floor streaks left behind, it seems like a number of large objects had been gathered over there." he pointed toward the center of the room "And summarily conveyed elsewhere by some unconventional means."

Wave and Kurome were somewhat dumbfounded by Run's explanation. "What do you mean, unconventional?" Wave demanded "That they just piled everything they gathered In here, and just whisked it all away like magic? Get real." Run was reaching the end of his patience "I'm just explaining what they had evidently done. Not how they went and did it." Kurome stepped in between the two young men with both hands held up "Look, you guys. Whatever they've been up to in here, it clearly has nothing to do with Us. So let's just get out of here, and forget what just happened. Alright?"

Wave relaxed, and began to head back into the corridor "You're right, Kurome. Let's just put it behind Us, and get on with Our own business." He made his way back to the other end of the hallway, and gathered up his bags of food "At least it was over and done with quick. It's been such a hassle since coming back to the Capital."

When the sailor returned to his own quarters, his eyes widened, and his body stiffened, letting the bags of food spill out of his arms and drop to the floor. "What in the Hell!?" were the only set of words that could come out of his gaping mouth.

Wave's room was totally ransacked. His bed and nightstand had been over turned. A broken lamp rested above his tossed sheets. All the dressers and drawers had been yanked open, their contents spilled out along the floor. In the closet, his clothes were torn off their hangers, and thrown down to the bottom.

"Who could've done this!?" Wave frantically croaked. But before he could make sense of all this, a loud gasp came across the hallway from Kurome's room.

Wave immediately raced to his Teammate's quarters, and stood at the doorway. He sees her standing with her back to him. "Kurome, what's-!" he then stopped, and looked on in shock at the same state in which Kurome found her own room to be. Her entire wardrobe had all been trussed up and scattered, with shirts, skirts and panties littering every corner.

Kurome turned around with a look of confusion "Wave? Why is-"

"It happened to you too?" Run appeared behind them, in the hallway. And by the way he studied their bewildered faces, he could already guess what had happened. And shortly, all three of them came to the same stunning conclusion.

"They've been going through Our belongings!" Wave growled, overly furious at the blatant violation of their personal space.

Run tensed up, and held out his hands in a persuasive manner "Wave, calm down. It's only-" The sailor didn't want to hear any of it, as he angrily brushed aside his Comrade "Forget this! I'm going to issue a complaint! They have no right to pull this kind of nonsense on Us!"

Before Wave could get by him, Run forcefully stuck an arm against the wall to block his path. "Complain to whom?" questioned the blonde young man "I've told you before, You and I, We've no official rank in the chain of command. All our privileges and authority hung on direct subordination to General Esdeath. And all of that died along with her. With Our Commander gone, We've no means of effectively influencing any kind of action on Our own behalf."

Seeing that he had Wave's attention, Run continued to lecture "If We were to cause any sort of trouble, there'd be no stopping Our official disbandment. We'd be shipped off to God knows where, just to keep Us out of public eye, and nothing good would come of that."

Run checked to see if it was only him, Wave, and Kurome by themselves, before continuing "We have to keep our heads cool, if We're to stick together. At least, until the time is right, and an opportunity arises." Wave was put off by the vague reasoning "To do what, exactly?"

Run made absolutely sure no one else was nearby listening in on them, before confiding with his teammates "We may have a chance to actually earn a place within the hierarchy of the Empire's governing body. But only if we play Our cards right, and plan Our moves carefully by ear." He then indicated Mastema, still hanging from his shoulders "We still carry Imperial Arms, and We still harbor precious knowledge on the Colonial Marines and the Aliens. If We can somehow demonstrate Our usefulness in the field, We could still be able to curry favor with the Prime Minister or even the young Emperor himself. But We must be prudent, and not act rashly on any sort of situation. You understand?" Wave pondered the idea to himself. Behind him, Kurome just quietly stared.

Finally, the sailor nodded "Okay, fine. I'll go by what you said." Run smiled and relinquished his hold on him. Wave then retired to his room, and begun to set it back to proper tidying. Kurome stood patiently, while waiting for Run to vacate as well.

"Pardon the intrusion." Run said apologetically, as he turned to leave. "What could they be after?" Kurome asked "They seem to got what they came here for. What else could they think We've been harboring?"

For once, Run didn't have an answer to that question. Or rather he'd didn't want to answer that question correctly, for fear that his surmisals could hold true.

Isolated trail, Southwest of the Empire

Susanoo kept a close eye on the rough ridden horse path in front of the Daihotai Tractor, which served as a the main road towards the direction Najenda's group were heading. His user occupied the seat beside him, and was concentrating on discerning the distance remaining between them and the destination ahead.

"These winding paths seem to go on for another 50 miles, Su." Najenda spoke up "How's Our conveyance handling so far?" The humanoid Imperial Arm calmly work the crawler's steering control, then nodded a response "It's been doing just fine. They weren't exaggerating, when they told Us these vehicles were all-terrain."

In the back seat, Mine yawned with contempt "Yeah, but can't this ride get Us there any sooner? It's so boring back here." In the seated next to her, Lubbock fidgeted restlessly "I gotta agree. There ain't nothing to do in this cabin, except eat and sleep. We could really use something to pass the time."

Najenda grew annoyed with her Subordinate's complaints, but then she recalled something recently. "Hudson spoke with me, before We left base." she leaned forward on the dashboard, and popped open the glove box "He said, he'd left a little something for Us to take Our minds off the long ride." Night Raid's leader reached into the glove compartment, and retrieved a small case that was sealed with a zipper.

After examining it real quick, Najenda unzipped the case, and revealed the contents within. "What are these?" inside, were an assortment of micro sized disks held by clear pouches.

"Did you find something, Boss?" Lubbock asked, while craning his neck to peek over the shoulder-rest of his Commander's seat. Mine was also curious, and attempted to unbuckle herself, only to be chided by Susanoo to remain seated in a moving vehicle, which she grudgingly complied.

"It looks like, you insert them into something." Najenda speculated, as she plucked out a disk, and studied its ridged edging.

"There are several receptacle slots on the this system console, in front of the dashboard." Susanoo pointed out "Maybe one of then is compatible for input." His wielder gleaned over the array of insertion ports. She then selected one with the appropriate size and shape, and inserted the disk with its slats first until they smooth popped into place.

A few seconds ticked by, before a digital text lit up on a small indicator at the center of the console ["Track 01. 00:00-00:01"]

Suddenly a loud raucous of noise escaped from inlaid speakers all around the cab.

["Head Bangers in Leather! Sparks Fly in the Dead of the Night!"]

"It's more of that music, We've been hearing from the other devices and vehicles." Lubbock observed "I think Hicks mentioned a proper name for them back when We dropped out of the Sulaco." Mine wedged a finger in her ear, to dampen the sound "Yeah, their called Audio Tracks. Apparently, there are about as many variation of music as there a stars in space."

Najenda loomed over the audio controls "Here, this dial might control the volume." Her intuition proved correct, as she wound back the volume control, causing the song to play at a lower tone. "That's better. Now I can hear myself think."

"What else was in that case?" Mine inquired "Perhaps, We can listen to something more smooth and relaxing?" Najenda pawed through the case, and began flipping over other folds of pouches "Hang on, they got labels on them." She glossed over each disk, and read their marks "Rock. Rap. Country. Drake's Mix. Frost's Jam. Apone's racket. I can't make sense of all these music jargon." Her browsing led her to the last folds of pouches holding disks of a different shape and size.

"What are these?" Najenda wondered curiously, as she plucked out a disk, and studied it. "The label says Movies." she discovered, then went over the input console. After finding the appropriate slot, Night Raid's leader then popped in the movie disk in the same manner as she did the audio track.

A large viewscreen folded down from the cabin ceiling. It then flickered on, displaying a blueish light. On the top corner of the display, a white and bold lettering appeared ["PLAY FILM"]

The image then immediately changed into a video feature showing a scene being played out in a continuous presentation. [The film opens to a couple driving in an automobile, making their way down a countryside road, and pulling up into a cemetery.]

"Hey, cool." Lubbock exclaimed "It's one of those video shows Ripley told Us about, back when We first met her. They would film and record actor-portrayed features or documentaries, for entertainment and educational purposes."

Mine stiffened, as her eyes remained fixated on the monitor screen, as the movie continued rolling its feature [A tall man in a transient state, shambled toward the couple, and attempted to grab one of them, a young woman with short ginger hair. The woman's companion, a young middle aged man, tried to intervene, but was thrown aside amidst the scuffle, and smashed his head against a gravestone. The woman makes a horrified scream, and runs for her life in a panic, away from her assailant.]

"This is supposed to be entertaining?" the Genius Sniper asked skeptically "I can't imagine why anyone would enjoy watching something like this." Najenda just shrugs dismissively "Our country routinely makes people slaughter each other in arenas, for others' amusement. General Esdeath tortures her victims as a pastime, and the Capital publicly execute and crucify criminals, innocent or not, for the general populace to see. And you find it weird, for people from Earth to have professionals act out fictional scenarios of young couples being attacked by crazed individuals?"

"I don't think it's individuals." Lubbock remarked, as he continued to watch the movie. [The young woman reaches a seemingly abandoned house, where she is accosted by several more transient assailants which were subsequently dispatched by a newly arrived man. He then proceed to enlist the woman's aid in fortifying the house, as numerous more assailants slowly converged from the surrounding vicinity and shambled their way up toward the house's location.]

"Oh my God, they're dead!" Mine startled "It's an army of walking dead people. And they're after the living people, to devour them explicitly."

"This has got to be a fictional story." Lubbock reasoned "There's no way any of this can be real." Mine rapped her knuckles against a window of the cab "Hello? Haven't you forgotten? Akame's has a Sister whose Imperial Arm can literally raise the dead and have them kill on command. How's any of this farfetched, compared to the things We've seen."

"That's enough back there." Najenda commanded "Between walking dead people, and Imperial Arms and the Danger Beasts their based off of, they're nothing compared to the Aliens we're trying to help exterminate. So keep an open mind, and try not to dwell on any absurdities."

Night Raid's leader resumed sitting straight forward, and went over the GPS map screen "We've still got a long road ahead of Us, and a dangerous task to carry out at the end. So let's just enjoy whatever comforts afforded to Us in the meantime."

Mine took one more look at the video [The lonely house is just about to be overrun by the living dead, it's defenders grew more confused, desperate, and divided as they began to horribly die off one by one.] "Could We watch something else, instead?" she pleaded. Her Commander tossed the disk case over to the back "Here. See what else you can find, and just watch it for now. Maybe, you can learn something from it. I'm going to keep helping Su over here, with navigating Our way through these passes."

Najenda concentrated on the GPS navigational data "Su, it looks like We'll be clear, around the next bend. See if you can pick up more speed, once We made it past."

Mine held up the disk case in front of Lubbock "Hey, let's change it to something else." She demanded. The green haired youth put up a staving hand "Hold up. I want to see what happens next…"

Atmosphere Processor, Capital of the Empire

Down below Sub-Level 02, Prime Minister Honest stepped off the broad cargo lift of the elevator platform. His path ahead was marred by the coming and goings of Imperial Scientists ascending the stairs nearby and arriving down through the second freight elevator next to the one he used. Each one was either toting bags and cases full of tools, or hauling dolly carts full of heavy equipment.

Upon noticing him, many of the scientists stood aside to allow Honest to pass by them unimpeded. Once the Prime Minister made his way through towards the stairwell leading down into Sub-Level 03, all personnel resumed their deliberated tasks.

Bright signs of halogen illuminated the corners of each stair landing. "Sub-Level 03…Sub-Level 04…huff, its such a damned long way…" Honest continued descending the stairs, while cursing the fact that not even the freight elevators could bring so far down below, and also the fact that seeing the progress of his investment necessitated such a lengthy trip down here on foot.

"Maybe I should have Syura teleport me, using Shambhala." The Prime Minister mused whilst climbing down to the landing floor grille of Sub-Level 05, the absolute bottom of the Atmosphere Processor. Here, only the foundations lie beneath, beyond that is bedrock. And by Honest's own reckoning, the lowest depth of any structure in the Capital. To further emphasize the foreboding desolation of the station's lowest Sub-Level, dimly lit halogens glowed feebly against the dark, only enough to keep someone from mistakenly banging their head against a low hanging girder.

"Set It down, over there! And be quick about it!." Dorothea's voice rang out from within the bowels of Sub-Level 05. The sound easily carried off of the walls, with all of the thrumming and droning of machinery going on too far above to dampen anything heard below. "And be gentle!" her voice yelled out again "We can't afford to have anything damaged!"

Honest rounded a corner, and halted in place to register what he is seeing. Laid out before him, was an cobbled patchwork of control panels, computer monitors with adjoining blocks of hardwired microprocessors, and forensic examination trays for chemical and pathological analysis. All were tied together, via a near entangled mass connection of interwoven lines and cables. Every piece of equipment salvaged from Hadley's Hope, along with those removed from Dr. Stylish's personal quarters, and Dorothea's own contributions, have been gathered here according to the western foreigner's instruction.

"C'mon, c'mon! Get it all plugged in!" Dorothea stood amidst the jumble of assorted tech. In her hands was a junction box, its fuses undergoing careful configuration by her dexterous fingers. Dotted in places around the Alchemist, Imperial Scientists were inserting every possible chord into an available outlet socket leading to the circuit breaker.

"Okay, stand back!" Dorothea ordered "Once I throw the switch, some sparks may fly." She then set the power junction down gently, and trotted over to a large conduit. There, a lever hung on the side, which hovered nearly out of her reach. With a tiny hop, the Western Alchemist latched onto the killswitch, and pulled it down with her weight.

The switch gave way, and power flowed freely through from the conduit, down to junction box where it was filtered through the fuses and circuits, before trickling out to every piece of hardware. Bzzzt! Bzzzt! The junction buzzed angrily, and threatened to surge at any given moment, but the circuit breakers miraculously didn't trip as the fuses held.

Throughout the Sub-Level, a faint light began to overtake the prevalent gloom, as the area began to illuminate. At the center was the holding tank containing the Alien Xenomorph still under sedation and bobbing almost lifelessly within the culture fluid. There, the majority of devices were hooked directly to the glass tank, displaying bio-readouts, epidermal screening, intravenous intake, and excretory detectors.

The underground lab has been fully brought online, and able to facilitate every aspect of Dorothea's research needs.

"Fine work, at assembling every available means of accommodating your work." Honest complimented. Dorothea beamed with pride "Every component to the lab would've required ample amounts of power from a constant supply, hence why I had to recover this Atmosphere Processor, for its reactor. With it, I can generate an abundance of the necessary electricity, to run this lab and all the research I'll be conducting on the Specimen."

The Prime Minister then furrowed his brow "Yet, I cannot help but question the precise location which you've decided to place it all." The foreign genius calmly responded "Your having the main entrance connect to the secret corridors beneath the Palace. Why not seek some other access point to conjoin from outside ingress." She then pointed towards the stairwell's direction "Sub-Level 02 is reasonably close to the sewer mains. With a little excavating, the service tunnel which use to run on through to the Colony, could connect to an underground passage." Honest made a look of disgust "I do not want to have to trudge through mine and everyone else's shit, just to come and observe my most prized acquisition down here."

Dorothea only shook her head "There was no other way. Tapping into the reactor's power output wasn't a simple matter. The damned thing had flow regulators, cross-dampening limiters, and automatic emergency shutoffs in place, and made it harder to tamper with. It might've taken weeks, or maybe even months, to find a way to bypass each and every one of them." She gestured at the main power conduit with the lever "However, I soon found that if I manually pipe off one of the coil shunts, I can siphon a good portion of the fusion output, straight out of the reactor itself."

Dorothea then directed Honest's attention to the junction box. "The siphon line can afford to lead a certain distance away from the reactor. A couple of levels below can do it. But the distribution has to be close and tightknit. It's too big of a risk to leave a damaged or exposed livewire neglected. Should that happen, the breakers won't trip, the circuits get fried, and the whole junction will overload." She makes a revolving hand gesture "Which can cause a major discharge, and short out some critical systems in the upper Sub-Levels above us."

Honest stiffened with caution "Wouldn't that cause a major catastrophe? I've read the Jaeger reports, including the part with Private Hudson's debrief on what happened to this processing station when enough damage to it was incurred." He stole a quick glance at the ceiling, in the direction where the primary heat exchangers sat.

"Relax." Dorothea urged "I've already anticipated that sort of problem." She went over to a recently installed computer terminal, and activated its screen which displayed a digital layout of the station's Sub-Levels.

"The schematics We retrieved from the Colony, has provided a solution." Dorothea explained "So long as We can detect the anomaly in time beforehand." She then placed a hand on the conduit lever "In the event of a power surge, all we have to do to contain it, is to throw this emergency shut-off here, and isolate the surge. If a discharge does occur and critical systems are put offline, we can force a shutdown from a control terminal, and prevent a reactor overload. Even in the event of a possible meltdown, I may have an alternative solutions…" she diverted her attention to schematic image onscreen, and rapidly typed in several inputs on the keyboard, causing a torrent of numerical equations to scroll down over the screen display.

While Dorothea was shortly occupied, Honest took a moment to reach out and grab one of the Imperial Scientist closest to him. "I want men posted at that there lever, around the clock." he ordered "No one leaves it unattended for even an instant. Understood?" The scientist nodded his head in rapid succession, and immediately began assigning individuals to station themselves next to the emergency power shut-off.

Dorothea stepped away from the terminal, and held up her hands in calm confidence "Let me assure you, I've taken every possible scenario into account, and have set every contingency in place to counteract them." While the Prime Minister held faith that the western Alchemist's forethought does have merit, he didn't come this far in life without setting up fail-safes of his own.

Chapter 13: End

Thank you for reading. Please leave a review, and any feedback really helps me stay focused and dedicated. If you have any questions, let me know with PM. And if you like the story, please tell a friend. Next chapter, the road ahead is driven by personal reflection and unwavering resolve.