This could be my last chapter of anything for a bit. 1) I need to force myself to work on original stuff for a change. 2) My sister forced me to join the pit orchestra for a musical she's directing... People say I'll enjoy it, but the jury's still out. Anyway, to this.

"We've got heavy contact coming up the road!" one of the guardsmen called.

Ruby checked the .50 cal machinegun's mount once more before nodding and looking up at the wall. "A large white flower should be painted on the front," she called. "Do you see it?"

"I just heard it right now. Wait a minute…" The guardsman fell silent for a few seconds. "Yes, it's them, but they've got a few more trucks than expected."

Ruby looked at the top of the wall and cocked her head. "I'm coming up." She patted the top of the tank twice before dropping off then climbing up the ladder. She stepped up beside the lookout. Sure enough, five trucks drove toward the camp, with the Sectopod on a flatbed for the second truck. She and her mom agreed on three. "What's going on mom?" Ruby mumbled to herself.

The convoy stopped in front of the gates and Summer poked her head out of the cab of the first vehicle. "Sorry I brought a couple extras. We had to get out in a hurry."

"What's going on in Detroit?"

"ADVENT is sending inspectors in the next two days. The jig is up. The signal's going out as soon as we fire our first shots and the factory and Ford Field are going up in smoke. Figured I'd take a few more MECs and some extra equipment."

Ruby shook her head. "Too bad they'll be too late." She looked down to the gate operator. "Open it up. Let the Lions in." As the large metal gates creaked open, Ruby turned around, raised her head, and scanned the western sky. Sure enough, the Skyranger was on approach. Ruby sighed and let a smile form on her face. She knew Yang was on the mission, and she knew Yang knew their mom was alive and well and would be fighting alongside them. She was looking forward to seeing her big sister's reaction to seeing their mom again.

The transport touched down and the engines powered off. The ramp lowered and Yang's head appeared in the crack. She looked from side to side, searching for something. Her gaze settled on Ruby and she slid off the half-lowered ramp. Her eyes shifted left to right as she walked up to her sister. "Where is she?" she whispered to her sister. Her voice quivered as she spoke.

"She's with the convoy." Ruby jerked a thumb in that direction. "She beat you by about a minute."

Yang nodded absentmindedly as she faced where Ruby indicated. She jerked her head side to side for a few seconds before she stiffened and she gasped. Ruby looked in that direction as well. Her mom pulled one of the straps keeping the Sectopod in place. She looked over her shoulder at her daughters. She smiled and waved. Yang sprinted forward and tackled her mom to the ground. Ruby couldn't help but smile and shake her head. If she wasn't so surprised at seeing her mom, she probably would have done the same.

"Ssshe issss… grrrown woman," a familiar voice said with unfamiliar gravellyness. Ruby turned toward the voice. Nalia slithered up to her from the Skyranger. "Mmmmuch like when we fffffirsssst mmmet." Her voice came from her mouth, not the translation button on her head.

"You can actually form words now." Ruby nodded. "Not bad. It took me years to get my first spoken words."

Nalia glared, hissed, and punched Ruby's shoulder. "I'mmmm not hatchling." She paused and shrugged. "Ssssssuprissssed I have sssssame voiccccce."

"Probably ADVENT tampering. I take it you'll be using that in combat?" Ruby pointed at the button.

"I want to talk on my own, but I'm not stupid." That time Nalia's voice came out of the translation button. She turned toward the mother and daughter still on the ground and hummed. "Of everyone I hoped to see, Summer was not one of them. What is she like?"

"Amazing." Ruby relaxed and shook her head. "You'll see for yourself soon enough. We need to get in the air."

As if on cue, Viki walked out of a nearby building with Dahlia right beside her. Viki wore full combat armor with a helmet under her right arm. Dahlia had something similar but with no helmet. "Everyone's here," Viki yelled, "everyone knows the plan. Load up and be ready to kick ADVENT butt. We need to move before they catch onto us."

"That's to us, too." Ruby started walking toward the Skyranger.

"Where's your sniper?" Nalia asked.

Ruby pulled her compacted weapon off her belt and shook it at the Viper. Nalia straightened and the sides of her head rose. "Courtesy of mom. If you've got the laser mags I asked for, I'll be fine."

After another second of staring, Nalia nodded. "They're on the Skyranger. I take it you've test fired a few times?"

"With bullets and laser rounds. It'll hold." Ruby smiled. "Besides, if something happens, mom can fix it in a few seconds."

"I suppose so." Nalia turned her head toward where Yang tackled Summer and froze. "Why is your mother glaring at me?"

Ruby faced her mom as well. Summer marched toward Nalia with a stern glare on her face. She stopped in front of the Bio Viper and looked Nalia up and down. "You claim to be my son in law's dragon. I'm not convinced."

Nalia and Ruby glanced at Yang, who just shrugged. "What do I-"

Summer raised her left hand, index finger out, and poked Nalia's nose. "Boop!"

Nalia yelped and recoiled. She brought both hands to her snout. "Why?"

Summer giggled before pulling Nalia into a tight hug. "It's good to see you again, Speedy!"

"If you four are done," Anderson called from the Skyranger, "we need to get in the air."

Summer released Nalia and poked her on the shoulder. "Come on, slow poke. Let's go." She walked past the Viper and up into the Skyranger.

Nalia blinked and cocked her head at Ruby. "Are you sure you aren't actually a clone of her?"

"I'm sure." Ruby followed her mom into the Skyranger. "Now let's go kill some bad guys." Her mom stiffened in the transport before taking a seat.

Rex stepped out of the cockpit and his helmeted head looked Ruby up and down. "Where's your weapon?"

Instead of saying something, Ruby grabbed her compacted weapon and expanded it to its sword form. Rex didn't outwardly react but Anderson jumped in his seat. "Don't worry. It's also a gun… and a massive scythe."

Anderson stared unblinkingly at the weapon. "That's the most anime bullshit I've seen in this entire war."

"Everyone, strap in!" Firebrand called from the cockpit. "The Commander wants us in the air ASAP."

Ruby folded up her weapon and took one of the seats closest to the ramp. Her laser mags were in a slot next to the seat. Nalia took the seat beside her and Yang opposite her. The ramp closed and the transport lifted off the ground. The intercom clicked and Central's voice came into the Skyranger. "We all know the plan, but I'm repeating it so we're all on the same page. We are launching our first two-pronged attack since the initial invasion. The local Resistance will use their force to attack the unidentified ADVENT facility. Their armor will hopefully draw the attention of the Sectopods and a few other troops. If that happens, Menace, you will proceed to assault the Transition facility. If not, you will wait for the Resistance armor to join you for the assault."

Yang and Summer exchanged a smirk and both laughed a little. Ruby got the unstated joke. Even powered down, the Winter Maiden and Yang together could level one of those walkers easily.

"Also," Tygan's voice cut in, "if at all possible, I request you would use the Skulljack on an ADVENT officer. We need to see what kind of information we can gather from the active implants."

"I'll do what I can, Doc," Anderson said while raising his right arm. A holographic blue claw extended from the hand.

"Once inside the facility," Central continued, "your goal is to hack into ADVENT's network then lay an X4 charge and get the hell out."

"Sounds simple enough," Summer said. "How can this possibly go wrong?"

"Hey, new girl," Anderson glared at Summer, "we don't talk like that around here."

Ruby scoffed. This version of her mom acted almost exactly like the one in her head, if maybe a bit more happy go lucky. "Good luck with that."

For most of the rest of the flight, the squad discussed potential strategies. They only knew the outside layout and forces, but they were fairly sure they could take out any infantry outside. The problem came from whatever was inside. At least it sounded like booby traps weren't ADVENT's style.

As Firebrand announced they were a minute away from the drop zone, Yang took a deep breath through the nose. Her eyes bulged and she held her head in her hands. "You okay, Goldmane?" Rex asked.

Yang raised her head and locked eyes with Ruby. "Aeiou."

Everyone from Remnant straightened in their seats. Ruby flicked her eyes to Nalia. The Viper's eyes unfocused for a few seconds before they regained their clarity. She blinked once. If Yang's reaction didn't confirm it, Nalia did. Halcyon was nearby.

"Aeiou?" Anderson looked around the Remmartians. "The hell's that supposed to mean?"

Yang stuck her thumbs at Ruby and Summer. "These two aren't the only ones with hardware in their heads. I've got a neural link to something nearby and we need to get it back."

Rex leaned forward. "Does ADVENT know we're here?"

Yang hesitated for less than a second. "No. Not a chance."

"You better be right about that," Firebrand called back. "We're about to head down." A few seconds later, the sound of the engines changed and the Skyranger nosed down. Yang faced the floor with her eyes darting all over the place. Her expression changed every few seconds. Nalia's tail flicked at nearly the same time. Ruby's mom occasionally looked between the two but had no other reactions.

The Skyranger touched down and the ramp lowered. Rex stood up and drew his pistols. "Form a perimeter around the Skyranger. We'll wait until we know the status of the Sectopods before moving out."

Ruby grabbed the laser mags beside her, stood up, and stepped out of the transport and looked around. There were plenty of trees around but no ADVENT. Not exactly surprising. They were a couple miles away from the facility. Yang stepped up to her side and the sisters walked toward the edge of the clearing together. "What do you got for me?" Ruby whispered.

"They plugged Halcyon into their systems almost immediately," Yang said. "He feels worn out, but he doesn't think they got much out of him. They mainly used him for extra processing power, biological computers and all that." Yang smirked. "Unfortunately for them, they've pushed a lot of data through him and he's got it all stored." She paused. "He knows the plan now and he's going to make sure the forces will be redeployed. He'll guide us through the facility to some other things as well… He's also searching for Cerise, Aaron, and anyone else that we know that could be here. But there's only so much he can do without attracting attention."

Ruby's steps hitched for a second before she nodded. "Tell him I said thanks."

"He's using my ears. He heard." Yang pat Ruby on the back. "He also told me to give you a hug for him but now doesn't seem like the time."

"Plenty of time later. We've got a job to do now."

Yang nodded. "He knows all troop movements. He'll let us know if anything comes this way." She paused. "Just don't expect him to be able to hack the Sectopods. They're on a separate system."

"Fair enough." Ruby leaned against a tree and stared towards the area where she knew the facility lay. For the show for the other members of Menace, she drew her frozen weapon and extended it to sword form. She held it down at her side but still ready if needed. If someone thought she was being careless, they might have been right, but she didn't care. Halcyon wouldn't let XCOM be ambushed.

Several minutes later, Ruby's earpiece chirped. "It looks like the bait worked," the Commander said. "The Sectopods and two trucks are moving toward the unknown facility. More than I expected. Menace, proceed to the Transition facility. I will be watching the facility from the air." Something clicked behind Ruby, then she heard several quiet whirrs. A small drone flew overhead before fading out of sight. If only they had the power and materials for that kind of stealth for the Avenger.

"You heard the man!" Rex yelled. "Everyone, move out!" He walked past Ruby with pistols in hand and at his sides. Ruby and Yang fell in behind him. Nalia, Summer, and Anderson spread out in either direction. Much like last time Ruby was in a forest on Earth, she was surprised about how quiet it was. There weren't many animals around except a few birds and squirrels. She'd need to ask someone about it.

A half hour later, the squad arrived at a hill overlooking the facility. Even though she'd seen the pictures, she expected it to be bigger. It was only two stories for a small section in the center. Six guard towers surrounded the facility along with metal barriers with holographic walls projected from the top. A few ADVENT guards, a Sectoid, and two Vipers patrolled outside or stood in the towers.

"Think that's all of them?" Ruby asked.

"Never assume so," Anderson said.

Of course, Ruby didn't. That was a cue for Yang to report. "As long as we don't royally mess it up, we should be fine." Ruby grimaced. She didn't like the stressed word. If she caught Yang's meaning, that wouldn't be fun.

"Rose," the Commander started, "you're our sniper. Please tell me that your new weapon has a sniper function."

"Sure does." Ruby adjusted her weapon and shifted it to its scythe form. Those who hadn't seen it flinched. "I can hit everyone and everything in sight." She took aim at one of the towers. "Just give me the word."

"Damn," Anderson breathed. "I swear I've seen that in an anime once."

"Rose, stay there and provide cover for the squad," the Commander ordered, no reaction in his voice. "Everyone else, approach the tower and…" He paused. "Who the hell is in their systems? How do we have a full view of the facility?"

"We are receiving this information from outside the ship," Shen said over the comms. "It's not an XCOM frequency, or ADVENT for that matter. It's too sophisticated for Old World militaries too. I can't pin the source."

"I don't like it," the Commander said. "Be on your toes, Menace. According to this, there are two more Vipers inside, a bunch of technicians… and the Viper King."

Rex sighed. "We knew it would show up again. Let's move, Menace." The squad ran down the hill with Ruby taking cover behind a large rock. Her family nodded at her as they passed. Ruby took aim at the guard in the tower closest to her and her squad.

Menace set up alongside one of the metal barriers. "We're in position," Rex said over comms. "Shadeslayer, on my mark, take out the tower. Everyone else, take down the squad in front of us. Three, two, one, mark!"

Ruby pulled her trigger and a laser round plunged straight into the Sniper's head. On the ground, Menace slaughtered the troopers and Sectoid in front of them. They never even got off a shot. The squad was clear for the moment, so Ruby shifted her aim to another tower. Just a simple Trooper was up there with his rifle aimed at Menace. Ruby pulled her trigger again and a red bolt lanced through the soldier's helmet. By the time she shifted to a third target, the Trooper had disappeared into the tower. A quick scan showed all the other towers had been abandoned as well. All other enemies were in cover that blocked her shots.

"This is Shadeslayer. I've taken out all my obvious targets. Want me to come down or stay up here?"

"I've seen you fight at close range," Rex started. "We could use you down here."

"Copy that." Ruby started running toward the facility. "We have eyes on the Viper King?"

"It's moving around the opposite side of the facility," the Commander said. "It doesn't look like it's in a hurry."

"Then let's finish these guys quickly," Yang said. "Hey, Google, you need to use that Skulljack on an Officer, right?"

"Yeah, why?" Anderson asked. "Just gotta get close to that one."

"I can help with that." As Ruby watched, Yang sprinted out of cover to a squad that consisted of an ADVENT Officer, Medic, and Duelist. Ruby stopped and lined up the Medic in her sights. She pulled the trigger and a laser shot plunged straight into the soldier's heart. Three shots from… Sun's Light plunged into the Duelist. Since when could her mom's weapon burst fire?

With her other opponents taken care of. Yang ran straight to the Officer and punched him in the gut. The force of the blow knocked the Officer into the wall behind it. Yang grabbed the soldier, hefted him over her head, and threw him toward where the rest of the squad hid behind cover. Ruby slid behind the barricade in time to see Anderson's dumbfounded expression. "The hell…"

"Soldier!" Rex yelled. "Use the Skulljack!"

Anderson shook himself off and raised his right arm. Two holographic prongs extended from his fist. He knelt by the prone form of the Officer and shoved the prongs into the base of the soldier's skull. The Officer twitched for a few seconds before lying still. Tygan went on about a wealth of information from the now dead soldier's implant while Ruby scanned the area for more targets. All that information was beyond her anyway.

Nalia hissed. "Something's not right."

"The Viper King?" Ruby asked. "That thing's not affecting you, is…" Ruby followed Nalia's line of sight. A black and purple ball hung in the air. Before it could register, it expanded horizontally and flashed. Ruby clenched her eyes then blinked to clear them. She dropped her jaw at what she saw.

What looked like a yellow and black human stood where the portal flashed. It shifted locations like it was glitching out. The only solid parts looked like something in the thing's head, and the gun in its hands.

"Commander, that appears to be the 'Codex' responsible for safeguarding the alien data stores," Tygan said. "We'll have to neutralize it if we intend to recover the data."

"I got it!" Yang yelled. She sprinted from behind the Codex and slashed Dawnbreaker at the thing's midsection. Her weapon went right through it like it wasn't there, yet it still reacted like it had been hit. Before anyone else could take a shot, the thing disappeared in a flash.

"Where'd it go?" Nalia asked.

"Up there!" Summer pointed to the top of the facility.

"Damn thing can teleport," Anderson growled.

"I got it." Ruby ejected her empty magazine and slammed a new one home. She took aim and… a purple and black vortex appeared around her and the rest of the squad behind the barricade.

"Move!" Rex ordered as he jumped over his cover. Ruby ran back toward the hill with Nalia and Anderson right behind her. She took cover behind a tree and sighted up the Codex.

Anderson swore next to her. "Gun's jammed!"

"Mine too." Nalia hissed and ejected her magazine.

Ruby pulled her trigger, but nothing happened. "The hell?" Laser rounds didn't jam. It should have been impossible. She ejected the mag and stared at it. The red light that indicated the charge blinked in and out. "Mine's weird too. Gotta look at these when we get back." She stashed that one away and grabbed a fresh mag. The new one held a full charge.

Just as she slammed the mag in, Ruby felt heat to her left and the area glowed green. Anderson screamed and fell to the ground. Ruby ducked and faced where the shot came from. The plasma trail hadn't faded away and it led to a rock near where Ruby took her first shots and another Codex.

"We were flanked!" Ruby pulled Anderson to the other side of their cover and looked up to where the first Codex was. Rex and Summer had the thing pinned down, but it had a clear shot at them. "Where the heck did this other one come from?"

"It appears that the Codex can clone itself when damaged," Tygan said.

"That would have been nice to know earlier!" Nalia hissed. She raised her rifle and fired at the Codex, forcing it behind cover. "Cover me." Nalia slithered out from behind cover and up toward the rock.

Ruby grit her teeth and aimed her gun. Nalia wasn't a dragon anymore and she couldn't take hits like she once could. The Codex poked out the side opposite Nalia and Ruby put a shot though the thing's wispy hair. It spun around and whipped around the other side of the rock, gun aimed at Ruby. Nalia raised her rifle and put three magnetic rounds into the Codex. The thing dropped its gun, reeled back and grabbed its head, and disappeared.

"One down." Ruby turned her attention to Anderson. His Gremlin was already hovering above him. It sprayed its medikit mist and Anderson's breath through his teeth grew a little more stable. Ruby returned her attention to the remaining Codex. Before she could raise her rifle, two of Rex' pistols shots plunged right into the thing's head. This one died in much the same way as the first.

"Yellow, black, flashy things down," Yang said. "Where are the oversized cobras?" As if they heard her, two normal Vipers and their King slithered around the facility. The Viper King roared at XCOM then slithered almost faster than Ruby could track into cover behind a tower. The others took up positions behind one of the barricades and opened fire.

Ruby sprinted toward the barrier closest to her and ducked behind that. Her mom rolled over the barrier and pressed up beside Ruby. "Just like Windpath all over again."

"You fought giant, gun wielding snakes within Windpath?"

"Well, it was a politician that turned out to be a drug lord, so yes."

"Yeah, I remember that one."

Yang jumped over the barrier as well and took cover on Ruby's other side. She fired a single blind shot from her shotgun before ejecting her magazine. "Anyone have a plan for that thing? That thing's as fast as us normally."

"Maybe." Ruby peeked over the barrier then faced her sister. "Do you have any ammo in your gauntlets?"

Yang shook her head. "Used it all up escaping this place. Didn't want to let MOCX know what they could do. They didn't even know this thing transforms." She hefted her weapon as she slammed a new mag home.

"Here's an idea, we-" Ruby was interrupted by the Viper King slithering around a corner and leveling its weapon at those behind the barrier. "-Move!" Ruby and Summer saw the thing and dove out of the way in time. But Yang wasn't facing the snake and got a laser shot to the shoulder for her trouble. "Yang!"

Yang screamed as she twisted and fell backward, firing a wild shot at the Viper King. The snake dove back behind cover, not that it was needed. "Sweet babies! That stings!" Angel's favorite curse sounded weird coming from her aunt.

Ruby brought her ice weapon around to shoot but the King's mouth was wide open facing her. A bluish white blob shot out of its throat and hit Ruby in the chest. It felt like she was punched by an Ursa. She saw frost form on the ground and her clothes. She saw the thing shoot the squad like this when they first met. Ruby should have been frozen solid. Instead, she had full freedom of movement.

The Viper King slithered to move around Ruby, but the Maiden stuck the rear spike of her weapon into and through the alien's tail. The King screeched and fell forward. The frozen weapon didn't even budge. On the ground, the snake turned its upper body around with its weapon aimed at its assailant. Ruby forced her own weapon down and plunged the tip of the blade into the Viper's chest. The thing yelped again and dropped its weapon.

"Looks like you miscalculated," Ruby growled. "I'm the Winter Maiden. I am ice." Using the blade as a pivot point, she ripped the rear end of her weapon up until the barrel pointed at the space between the Viper's eyes. She pulled the trigger and a laser plunged into the creature's head. It fell silent and its arms lay flat on the ground.

"King is down!" Central said. "Good work, people. It's over."

"Over?" Ruby looked around. She didn't see either of the other Vipers that escorted the King. She keyed her comms. "Confirm, no more hostiles in the area?"

"Conformed, Shadeslayer," the Commander said with a sigh. "All hostiles have been eliminated. We are detecting no outgoing transmissions. ADVENT doesn't even know we're here. They're directing all their attention to the other facility. Get what we need from inside that one and blow it to hell. Recovery team is already en route."

Ruby nodded to herself and pulled her weapon out of the corpse and looked it over. The King sure got a lot of blood on it, not to mention the fleshy bits hanging off the spike. Grimm never got Maní Bláto or Crescent Rose that dirty. She shook her weapon, flicking off most of the solid gore. Ruby tore a bit of the Viper's cape off and began wiping her weapon down.

As she wiped, she turned toward the facility and followed those already walking inside. Just inside the door, Anderson herded unarmed scientists away from the entry using one of Rex' pistols with his good arm. Some of them glared at the attacking soldiers, others looked like they'd need a change of pants soon. Ruby paid them no mind. Either they'd get out or they wouldn't.

Ruby saw her sister disappear behind a corner deeper in and followed. She rounded the corner and walked up the staircase. Upstairs, there was a long corridor that ran what looked like the entire floor. Her family stood about halfway down the hall. She compacted her weapon and walked to join her family. Her mom looked at her with a strange expression. Nalia grabbed one of Summer's arms and shook her head. What was that about?

"Your… weapon hold up alright?" her mom asked.

"Yeah. It works great. Thanks." Ruby looked at her compacted weapon. "You know, I never came up with a name besides Frozen Rose 15. If I'm going to be using this for a while… Íss Bláto. Hopefully won't need numbers." Ruby entered the room and faced where her family looked. She straightened up as she recognized the white room. "Is that…"

"Where they got us, yes." Yang leaned forward and rested her hands on the console in front of her. "Halcyon says the place isn't staffed. The Riftkeepers are expensive and require extensive repairs after they grab one of us."

"Riftkeeper?" Ruby cocked her head.

"He'll explain when we get to the Avenger." Yang turned around and faced an exposed pillar. "He also said that the best place to blow this place sky high is on that pillar in the room below us."

"I'll go tell Rex." Summer sounded resigned as she left the room.

Ruby watched her mom go then faced her sister. "How's your shoulder?"

Yang winced and rolled her wounded shoulder out. "Whatever that medic juice is, we need it on Remnant. It really dulls the pain. Think it might actually heal a bit too. But that plasma shot. I recommend not being hit by one of those. One shot ate up all my Aura and still did damage."

"Noted." Ruby paused as she looked around the observation room. "Where's Halcyon?" Ruby asked.

"In there." Nalia jerked a thumb to a server rack in the back corner. "You're the most tech savvy among us."

"Fair enough." Ruby walked to the cabinet and stopped in front of it. "Was he here when they got me?"

Yang sighed. "He says yes. Again, he'll explain everything when we have time. Also, don't worry about trashing the servers. He has most of the important information."

"Got it." Ruby opened the rack and scanned it up and down. She half expected Halcyon to be buried. Instead, a golden… hard drive with a sphere in the center rested on the bottom with dozens of wires sticking out of it. That was a different shape. "Is he safe to remove?"

"He says so."

"Okay." Ruby took a knee and grabbed a wire, then the altered Core. A shock ran up her arm, but not of electricity. She gasped and held her natural arm close to her chest. She stared at the core in front of her. Did she really feel that? She thought she heard Yang and Nalia say something behind her, but she didn't pay attention. Ruby slowly reached out and rested a hand on Halcyon's Core again.

The shock ran up her arm again. It wasn't nearly as strong as it would have been on Remnant, but it was there. Though distant, it was like she was touching an Eldunarí. Halcyon? Can you hear me?

The emotions were distant, but Ruby could still feel Halcyon's surprise. Ruby? It was like he whispered into her head.

Ruby blinked then yanked Halcyon's core out of its slot and held him tight to her chest. Several wires came with him. You don't know how good it is to have someone in my head again.

Maybe we'll have time for that later. We still have to blow this place and reclaim other, actual Rider tech.

"More of our stuff?" Ruby said out loud. "Lead the way."

I will, but could you please give me back to my Rider?

Ruby stiffened and jerked her head toward Yang. She hugged Halcyon tighter. Why would she… why wouldn't she? "Of course."

There will be plenty of time later, Ruby, Halcyon promised.

Yang walked over to her sister and held a hand out. Ruby hesitated for a second before placing Halcyon's Core in the outstretched hand. Yang shivered and a huge smile spread across her face. She stayed that way for a few seconds before opening a pouch on her belt and put Halcyon in. "This way." She left the room through the door opposite the way Ruby came in. Ruby followed with Nalia right behind her.

Back on the first floor, Yang led the way to a research lab of some sort. She opened one of the cabinets and gestured inside. "I think you might want a few things in here."

Ruby looked inside and her jaw dropped. Even though the fake skin wasn't in the best condition, she recognized her bionics. Her bionic eye also laid on one of the shelves. "Oh, hello, beautifuls." She looked down and stiffened. Violet's tonfa lay on the bottom shelf, but a compacted Crescent Rose rested on top of those. She didn't have either of her weapons with her when she was taken. Ruby glanced at Yang. "Let me guess, back on the Avenger?"

"Yeah." Yang nodded. "He's got a lot to say."

"Apparently." Ruby clipped her impossible weapon to her belt and handed the Tonfa to Nalia. She fit the loose bionic eye into a spare pouch and carried the arm and leg herself.

"X4 charges are set and active," Central said over comms. "Good work, Menace. Come on home."

None of the scientists Ruby saw before remained in the building. The rest of the squad was already walking toward the Skyranger. The recovery team's transport sat just outside ADVENT's former perimeter and their people scurried around like ants. Summer sat in Ruby's normal seat while Rex and Anderson took up the two closest in on the other side. Ruby shrugged and sat next to her mom. Nalia took the open seat next to her. Anderson gave Ruby a look, likely because of the extra limbs she carried.

After everyone was secure in their seats, the ramp closed but the Skyranger didn't take off. Probably something about covering the recovery team or setting off the X4. Some time during the wait, her mom and Nalia rested hands on Ruby's legs. She glanced at both of them. Both gave her strange looks. It kind of felt like the looks she got when she was under the effects of O'Donnell's Semblance. What was that about? She was fine. She didn't even take a hit in that fight. Did she say something?

About five minutes after the ramp closed, the transport's engines spun up and the Skyranger lifted off the ground. "Menace, brace for the shockwave," the Commander said. A few seconds later, the sound of an explosion reached them. Ruby grabbed her restraints as the whole ship shook like it was flying in a hurricane. Ruby had seen the X4 charges back on the Avenger. They weren't that big.

Ruby stared in the rough direction of the now former facility. "I gotta get me some of those." She glanced at Yang as she turned her head back to forward. Yang stared at the ramp with a smile on her face, her eyes glassy. Ruby narrowed her eyes and barely stopped a scowl. How was it fair her sister had her dragon but not her? She shook her head. That wasn't fair. But she couldn't shake the feeling.

Facilities! My gosh, it's going to be hard to keep them interesting.