CHAPTER 39

UGLY TRUTHS

As the rain ended, all across the surrounding acres of apple orchards the chilly mist from the storm had set in, concealing the dead bodies of the four police officers. Apart from the lingering pitter patter of dwindling rain, it was quiet which allowed the soldiers and investigative team from the NMB to search for clues as to where their quarry had fled. A few yards away, Dutch Villson leaned against an apple tree. A sudden complication had arisen which forced him to step away for a private call. Apparently, the former Princess of Misurugi, one of the Norma they were searching for, had been captured by her brother Emperor Julio. And Master Embryo was less than pleased with the news.

"Apologies master, for overlooking this." Dutch said. It all made sense to him, the increase in security all around Misarugi and the Imperial palace for the past 12 hours. 'Stupid boy.' he inwardly cursed. 'He's caused a lot of damage and compromise in our security because of that little stunt he and his sister have pulled."'

"I expect more than an apology Mr. Villson." Embryo scolded him as he read his book. "You and your team were tasked in capturing the former Princess and bringing her to me."

"We still can Master Embryo. Just say the word and I'll personally have her taken into custody. Even Prince Julio can't refuse a request from the NMB." Embryo pursed his lips and shut his book.

"Hold off on that for now. I'm sure Alektra has some plan of her own in motion to save her. And if so, we can use this to our advantage later on."

"But master what if Julio has her executed?" Dutch worried. "Is it really worth the risk to the plan?"

"That is my concern not yours." Embryo warned. "You just need to follow your orders. Is that clear?"

"Yes sir." Dutch bowed his head.

"Speaking of which have you found the other Norma yet?"

"Negative. Evidence suggest she was picked up by an accomplice. Most likely another one of those terrorists or an ancient folk survivor. But we'll pick up their trail soon enough."

"For your sake I sincerely hope so." Embryo ended the call and Dutch relaxed that he had not gotten whiff that Subject Alpha was outside of Arzenal. 'Master dosen't need to know until I've personally dealt with him.' He was in hot water as it was and still had another chore to deal with as he called his secretary. "Ms Yung-si have the witnesses been detained?"

"Yes, Sir Villson, under the circumstances they've complied…positively." She said nervously. "We've kept them all in the same bunker until further orders from you sir."

"Good." said Dutch coldly. "Once they've fallen asleep have the staff flood the chamber with Zyklon-B."

"Commander, you don't mean…" Ms Yong-si gave a horrified gulp.

"It has to be done. Subject Alpha's existence can never be found out or it's all our heads. This is a matter of the greater good. See that it's done." Dutch cut the call and saw out the corner of his eye Jeffry walking towards him.

"Commander when do we move on?" Jeffry worried. "We must find the male Norma before it kills more people."

"We'll find the little abomination very soon I suspect. We just need to wait until the hunters arrive." It was then that Dutch noticed how Jeffry looked slightly disturbed. "Something wrong?"

"I overheard you talking." said Jeffry hesitantly. "What did you mean by Zyklon-B? I thought you wanted to take Subject Alpha alive for interrogation. Isn't that chemical supposed to be deadly?" Jeffry's face went white with shock. "Wait does this have to do with the witnesses?"

"It needs to be done. We can't risk such a major security breach." Dutch said as simply as if killing a fly.

"Wait…you mean…we have to…" Jeffry couldn't comprehend what his Commander was telling him. "Commander this is…surely, they'll keep it secret if they stayed under supervision from the NMB. There are innocent children among them. We can't do that to them." Jeffry took a step back seeing the darkness in his Commander's orange flame eyes.

"I'd like to let you in on a very important secret I learned 18 years ago. Something I wish I learned when I was your age, boy." Dutch said softly as he slowly circled Jeffry. "You see, POWER, real power, doesn't come to those who were born strong, or fast, or intelligent. No. It comes to those who will do ANYTHING to achieve it." Dutch waited to see if his protégé would protest further or accept the reality, but the sudden arrival of two military Mana cruisers demanded his immediate attention. Ten newly arrived soldiers dressed in camo green tactical suits with the letters G.L.C printed across their vests stood in line with their captain in front. "Jadis. A pleasure to see you again." Behind Jadis her chosen team, all veterans of the Galian Labor Camp looked on form. Jadis' mere presence was usually enough to get her men in line. At her side, her large Boerboel mastiff Winston walked steadily by its master's side, his massive head disproportionally large even for his lumbering body and his blackened muzzle a sharp contrast to his short cream fur.

"I heard you had a spot of bother with a group of civilians." Jadis smirked, her narrow yellow eyes gleaming with cruel satisfaction as she beckoned towards the dead officers. "Who were these unfortunate souls looking for?" Dutch displayed a file of one of the escaped Norma. "Well, well, well… Hildegard Schlievogt." Jadis snarked. "I remember her. That one had a mouth on her too, but not as much as her beloved Captain. No doubt she's in league with the Male Norma. Is it true Subject Alpha is out of Arzenal?" Dutch nodded then gestured to the crime scene were other footprints appeared in the mud that didn't belong to the escaped Norma. "How can you be so sure that it was Subject Alpha that did this? It could have been one of the Ancient Folk or another human terrorist." The smile on Dutch's face twisted into an insane grin.

"I know it in my bones, that little freak of nature did this." Before he could explain further Dutch received another urgent call from one of his tech staff back at base.

"Commander, we finally got a signal location, I'm sending you the details now."

"Excellent." Dutch said smoothly. "Let's get going Lieutenant I'll explain everything once we arrive."

"Mama, please don't leave me." Hilda pleaded, reaching her hand out into the darkness towards her mother who protectively held her replacement daughter in her arms.

"Get away from us!" Mama's voice rang out as Hilda was pulled back by an unknown force as her mother drifted further away into the never-ending darkness. "Filthy Norma, I wish I had never given birth to you!"

"Mama no!"

Hilda's eyes burst open, her blurred vision slowly clearing as she woke up. Her head was pounding, and her entire body was wracked with pain as the memories of yesterday came flooding back to her. "Where am I?" She winced as she looked around. Her vision came into clearer focus and Hilda found that rather a cell she was in a small cave, the dim sunlight of dawn crawling in through the entrance. "Where am I?" She wondered as she tried to recall what happened.

Laying beaten and motionless on the wet muddy ground with the four cops standing over her, Hilda closed her eyes and prepared to meet her fate. Everything she fought for was all for nothing. And now all she wanted was to die. 'Go on.' She dared them. 'Just put me out of my misery.' Her arms were roughly yanked up as she was dragged away when suddenly she was dropped to the ground. There was a commotion she recognized as a brawl and then footsteps approaching her. Through her swollen eye, she saw a figure kneeling over her. 'Do it.' She dared. 'Just get it over with.'

However, instead she felt the figure lift her up off the ground and carry her. 'Stop it! What are you doing? Please, just leave me alone so I can die!' But the way she was held as if this person was protecting her. Something she hadn't felt since with Mama. 'Whoever you are, please don't let me go.'

Hilda rose to a sitting position and looked down to see a jacket covering her. She shifted a bit and the jacket fell down to around her torso, making Hilda gasp in alarm as she saw her body was naked and wrapped in gauze. "What the hell is going on?"

"You're awake." A voice said. On reflex, her hand clenched over a rock ready to defend herself when she saw a red-light flicker across the figure's left wrist. She'd recognize that bracelet anywhere.

"Cal!" Hilda gasped loudly feeling another stab of pain. How was he here? And how did he escape from Arzenal? "What…how are you…how did you get here?"

"Take it easy." Cal advised. "Those cops did a real number on you." Cal crouched next to her and Hilda could see that his clothes were all creased like they had just dried. "We're in a cave deep in the forest. I brought you here after I saved you from them. Sorry about the clothes. You were soaking wet and freezing to death." It was then Hilda realized he was the one who stripped her naked. Cal brandished a bottle of water and 2 pills but she did not take them, her darkening face glaring menacingly at him. "What's that look for?" White-hot anger flared up inside Hilda as she punched Cal in the jaw with all her strength, knocking Cal back on his ass as he held his now bleeding mouth. "OW! Have you lost your friggin mind?!" Hilda had never felt so furious in her life. Here she was beaten, humiliated, naked and stuck in some hole like a rabbit with this pervert! Why did he have to help her. Why couldn't have he just stayed at Arzenal and let her die?

"I told you to forget about me you asshole!" She screamed at him. "Why did you have to come after me! Why couldn't you just stayed away and be happy with everyone else?!" Even through her bruised and stiff body Hilda protested, wanting nothing more than to wring Cal's little neck as she began to smack and punch every part of him as she chased him out of the cave until Cal managed to grab her in a full Nelson.

"Will you calm down you idiot!" he yelled as Hilda continued to flail in his grip.

"Let go of me! Let..." Another dagger erupted in her ribs and Hilda fell on her hands and knees taking in deep sharp breaths.

"Have you finished now you hysterical bitch?!" Hilda's eyes bulged in shock and anger. Cal had never called her that before. "Is this how you thank me for saving you? First you lie to me, knock me out cold and now try to attack me? I swear to God, if you weren't already beaten to a pulp, I'd smack you all the way back to Arzenal! So knock it off and reign your attitude in because you're already on thin ice with me right now!" The shock of Cal's outburst brought Hilda back to her senses and she reluctantly allowed him to help her to her feet and lead her back into the cave.

Once inside, Hilda curled up in a ball as far away from Cal as she could, pulling his jacket around her naked frame and began sniffling. Cal didn't know what he was supposed to do with her. Especially since he was still irritated from her sudden outburst. "Your dress is in the skyhook drying off. Here put this on." Cal said testily, throwing his t-shirt to Hilda that landed on her shoulder. "I've been wearing it for a few hours so it's dry already." He let out an exhausted sigh as she continued to sniffle. "If you want me to listen, I'll…"

"Oh shut up and give me some privacy!" Hilda snapped. Looking away for a few seconds Cal glanced back quickly to see Hilda had his t shirt stretched over her legs with her knees held to her chest, his jacket wrapped around her like a blanket. She gulped down the two pain killers and threw the water bottle in frustration at the floor. Half an hour passed by in awkward silence and things had not gone at all how Cal had hoped. He assumed Hilda would be relieved or even pleased to see him but instead she seemed both angry and resentful towards him. 'What the hell's her problem?' Cal frowned until he recalled what she murmured last night. 'Mama? Did Hilda have a mother? Why did she not tell me or Rosalie and Chris?'

"Why did you escape?" He finally asked. "Why did you abandon us? I know Ange was trying to save her sister but what's your excuse? Were we nothing but an inconvenience to you all this time?" Cal said coldly, willing to at least hear her out. A single tear ran down Hilda's bruised cheek but she didn't answer. "Fine. I give up then." Cal crossed his arms and looked out to the forest outside. The sun was rising over the treelined and the sky above it was colorless and bright as dawn fell upon them both.

"Yeah, you're right. Everything at Arzenal was an inconvenience to me." Hilda answered stiffly as if the words were lodged in her throat. Cal turned around and saw her staring at the ground as if she could not bear to look at him. "I hated that place. I hated everyone there. All I wanted was to go home. Back to my Mama." Cal's heart sank as he recalled Hilda's dead expression when she was walking lifelessly in the rain. 'Did soldiers or the police kill her mother, just like they did to Gramps?' It was all becoming clear. Naomi had explained that Hilda was a late arrival at the age of 6 and had a prior life on the outside world compared to most Norma.

"I get it." Cal said sympathetically. "You wanted to see your mother again. I wish you would have told me. I know what it's like to lose someone who tried to keep you safe."

"No, you don't get it you bastard!" Hilda growled. "You know nothing."

"Try me."

"Fine!" She tched. "Before I arrived at Arzenal it was just me and Mama. Even though it was just the two of us, we were happy. Mama did everything to keep me safe, to keep my existence as a Norma secret. Even cutting off contact from her friends and family." Cal felt a horrible guilty feeling in his stomach as he realized Gramps must have felt the same. Isolated with nothing but the two of them together. As she spoke, Cal saw tears were spilling from Hilda's eyes. "I could tell Mama was lonely but she still did everything for me. Right until the end when I was taken away from her. That's why I escaped. I just wanted everything to be how it was before. But it was all for nothing."

"What happened?" Cal said carefully, feeling though Hilda would attack him again if he said the wrong thing. "Was your mother…"

"Dead?" Hilda interrupted with a bitter chuckle. "It probably would have been better if she was. I risked everything and left everything behind. All so I could go home to a mother who had replaced me with another daughter as if I never existed. Satisfied?!" Hilda hugged her legs tightly, burying her head against them.

"Hilda, I…" Cal found himself unable to speak and he perched closer to try and comfort her. "I understand how you're feeling."

"No you don't!" Hilda's screamed. "And don't you dare try to pretend that you can. The way you used to talk about your life before you got to Arzenal. I was jealous of you. That you had that life longer than I did. Your life had been so much better than everyone at Arzenal combined so don't tell me that you understand! You might have lost your Gramps, but at least he never replaced, rejected or abandoned you like trash." The guilt filling Cal's chest like some monstrous weight. Seeing Hilda in this state was a reminder of how good of a life he had and how he had taken Gramps and their island for granted. But he also felt slightly stung. He did know to some degree how she was feeling. In truth Gramps only saved him because his daughter died and all he was in his Gramps eyes was a replacement for the love he would have borne for his own child. But the rejection was the worst part. It brought up a memory the had long suppressed. Of that day he called Gramps 'Dad,' for the first and very last time.

"Happy birthday Cal." Gramps said cheerfully handing Cal his birthday present for his sixth birthday.

"Oh boy, oh boy!" Cal cheered excitedly tearing the wrapping paper apart to see it was a soccer ball, just what he always wanted. His very first Soccer ball. "Oh thank you, thank you, thank you!" Cal leapt to his Gramps with joy and hugged him around the waist tightly, feeling this was the best day of his life.

"Anything for you." Gramps ruffled his hair affectionately. "I love you Cal."

Cal had never felt so happy in his life and uttered out his heart. "I love you…Dad." Cal expected a hug, but Gramps remained still, stiff as a board and almost pale. "Dad what… "

"Don't call me that!" Gramps roared. "Don't ever…" And Gramps stopped as he saw the look of terror on Cal's face. He half fled out the door and didn't come back until night but Cal didn't talk to him out of fear of making him angry again. Finally, just after Cal went to bed, Gramps came into his room and sat on the edge of the mattress.

"Cal," Gramps said softly. "I'm sorry. I shouldn't have yelled at you like that." Cal sat up and timidly looked up at the large man who was the only family he had ever known. "Look. I love you. But you can't call me Dad. Someday, when you're older and a little wiser I'll explain to you why. But for now, I want you to promise me that you'll never call me that again. Just Gramps okay." Cal swallowed the lump in his throat and threw his arms around Gramps's torso. And ever since that day he never uttered or called Gramps his father ever again.

Cal felt a rush of bitterness, remembering Gramps's actions and now knowing the reason for it. Cal glanced back to Hilda and shifted position so he now sat in front of her as she lifted her head to look at him. "I'm sorry you had to go through that." Cal said gently. "And you're right. I could never know what it feels like to be abandoned like that. But things will get better. I'm sure everyone back at Arzenal will forgive you if you just tell them the truth."

"Just forget it." Hilda said hollowly. "Everyone hates me now. Mama, my squad mates. They all think I'm disgusting and want nothing to do with me. What's the point?"

"That's not true." Cal told her hopefully. "I'm sure the others will forgive you. Especially Vivian. She hasn't got a hateful bone in her body." He prayed that would be the case because once Libertus began, Cal knew for everyone in Arzenal and their squad their friendship and teamwork could be their key to victory. "We all make mistakes or do something we regret. I know what it's like wanting to turn the clock backwards but we learn and grow from it." Hilda wiped her eyes and looked away in annoyance.

"Why are you always like this? God you're are just like the way Zola used to be. It's why I hated your guts." Hilda said scornfully as if wanting to get everything off her chest. "You've always been like this, ever since the first day I met you. You're too nice for your own good, always trying to help others and make them happy, even when there's no reason for you to do it." Hilda let out a deep sigh. "It's why Zola liked you so much. She always preferred you over me because I'm nothing like you." Well that was unexpected. Hilda had not mentioned Zola in a long while.

"That's a little harsh don't you think?" He told her. "She didn't prefer me over you. She looked out for us all remember?"

"You don't get it. You never saw who she was before. When I was in preschool; me, Rosalie and Chris idolized her. She was like a big sister to us, our hero. But you heard what she went through with Jadis. After that she didn't think her life was worth a damn." Hilda's expression crumbled, like she was in deep mourning for her former Captain. "Surely you noticed the first few months when you arrived how the older Norma felt uncomfortable around her, even Scarlett. She had so many no strings attached 'relationships' after her and Scarlett broke up, but that wasn't enough for her. That's when she started her 'collection' and you know how aggressive and dominant she was in getting what she wanted. Zola made it no secret that she wanted to add me back when I was in the third squad. And as soon as I was fifteen and promoted to the First Squad, I was fair game."

"Hilda, I don't understand, what are you trying to say? Did Zola…" Cal said feebly knowing firsthand how hard Zola tried to get in his pants. "…Did she rape you?"

"No!" Hilda said briskly. "I submitted to her without a fight. You know what she was like, she always looked out for her squad mates, but she especially took care of those she had the most fun with." Hilda bit her lip, her face twisted in pain. "So, I did everything in my power to make sure to always keep my place as her favorite. I not only lived comfortably but I knew she'd keep me safe during Sorties, all because I whored myself to her."

"Hilda that's enough." Cal said sternly. "It wasn't your fault."

"It was! Because a part of me hoped I could make her happy, to bring her back to her old self after everything she suffered through because of that bitch Jadis. I had hoped that maybe…she could love me because there was a time when I did love her with all my heart." Hilda finally locked eyes with Cal's, and they were full of bitter resentment. "And that's when you arrived. I saw Zola happy again for the first time in the years because of you. And don't say it's not true because you were the one, she spent most of her nights with. Even on the night she died. I hated you for that and I know deep down if she was still here, she would have abandoned me for Scarlett or you! Just like Mama abandoned. She was right. I am nothing but a filthy Norma. A disgusting whoring Norma!" Tears were spilling uncontrollably from her eyes now and Cal could not bear to sit back and let her torture herself like this.

"Hilda listen to me, you're more than…" But his words were lost as Hilda sprang up, her face red with fury.

"YOU WERE EVERYTHING I WANTED TO BE FOR ZOLA!" Hilda bellowed at the top of her lungs pinning Cal by his shoulders against the cave wall and Cal stared at her in a mixture of shock and understanding. "You were her beacon of light! Why? Why did it have to be you? Zola and Mama, they abandoned me for someone else! I hate you! I hate you!" She began pounding her fists on his chest before her anguish crying and screams were muffled as she slammed her face deep into Cal's chest as all her bottled-up pain and emotions were let out and Cal knew he was seeing Hilda for the very first time. Not a pilot, fighter, or a tough as nails comrade, but a vulnerable and tired young woman in desperate need of someone to save her. So Cal did the only thing he could think of to do and wrapped his arms around her, not wanting to let go.

"I'm sorry Hilda. And I swear I won't abandon you." He finally whispered and after a few minutes, Hilda, mentally and emotionally exhausted fell asleep in his arms.

Between east of the Dawn pillar and north of the Imperial palace, within his personal study within the Dawn Foundation, Embryo studied a list of names from Arzenal's records provided by Dutch's staff. The six Norma on the list were very special indeed, each one had a minimum of five years Para-Mail combat experience without significant injury and had two encounters with unknown DRAGON types. The cream of the crop and the perfect candidates to pilot the Ragna-mail.

A swipe of his finger and the list scrolled down the Mana screen: Salia, Scarlett, Rosalie, Vivian, Ersha. 'These women are very talented and strong.' Embryo thought. 'How kind of Alektra to provide them on a silver platter.' At the bottom was a girl with voluminous crimson red hair done in twin tails. Hilda, the Norma Dutch was searching for. 'She will be the first to come to my side.' But of even greater interest were the two individuals above her: Ange and Cal.

"It appears the former Princess of Misurugi has already met her end before your plan even began." Came a voice from behind him. Embryo looked back to see none other than Blackadder with his arms folded in the corner of the room.

"How long have you been standing there?" Embryo asked.

"I just arrived." Blackadder shrugged. "There have been talks of a public execution from within the Imperial gardens. A hanging in fact. Are you sure we shouldn't do something about it?"

"It's of no concern." Embryo said dismissively. "If they plan to have a clean execution then we can easily retrieve her body whole afterwards. I'm certain I can repair such minor damage easily enough."

"Why waste our time with the exiled princess?" Blackadder demanded. "She may have mastered the Bilkis but so could any Norma once the biometric locks are disabled. Plus, my…our trump card, Subject Alpha."

"Subject Alpha is another matter we'll deal with later. For now, he's right where we need him to be. If we have two of his comrades on our side, then we'll be able to persuade him without force to come to us." Embryo looked out the window to the city of Misurugi. "As for the Princess, you know very well why I need her. More than any woman in this world."

"Such a shame you don't trust Mr. Villson with the truth about your intentions for this Ange or Subject Alpha." Blackadder said slyly and Embryo gave him an impatient glare. "Are you afraid if he knew the truth about her or his brother's discovery regarding Subject Alpha and the royal bloodline then your dog will bite its owner?" Embryo closed the screen and slowly turned his chair to face Blackadder.

"You forget your place." Embryo warned. "I told you before, Villson is my most loyal enforcer. And I'd remind you what your purpose in life is as my most valuable servant?"

"Yes Master." Blackadder nodded.

"Good. Now, let's hope Dutch Villson brings in this Hilda soon. She will be the first seed for the new and better humanity." The thought made Embryo smile as he sipped his Chamomile tea. "Once we have all our pilots then we get Subject Alpha on our side for what is to come."

Once the brush became too thick to drive through, Dutch and his team continued on foot. Dawn was turning to a bright morning sky, but he could walk for a thousand miles if he had to. Subject Alpha was close now. He could feel it.

"You still haven't explained why you've taken us to this part of the mountains." Jadis griped as she and Winston walked along side Dutch. "Do you even know where Subject Alpha is?"

"I do indeed." Dutch answered, a hungry look in his eyes. "That little bastard has lived all his life with Gaz and knows how to survive in these environments. Especially in a storm."

"But how do you know which direction he went?"

"I've theorized that Subject Alpha is using one of those ancient apes' flight vehicles since no Para-mail can fly over our shores without being detected." Dutch explained.

"But how could he get his hands on one of those. I didn't find any of the sort when I was inspector of Arzenal." Jadis argued. "Unless…"

"It belonged to Gaz." Dutch confirmed. "Gaz used that same vehicle to get Subject Alpha away that night. I've suspected he was in league with the Norma and the Ancient Folk all these years." Dutch displayed a Mana screen that showed a map of the woods of their current position and a large red circle imposed over the terrain. "Those stealth aircraft are equipped with a sensor jammer, but my team is able to track them since my staff of engineers dismantled a few of them after the rebellion. Downside is we can only home in on their locater beacon within a 25-mile radius. It's one of the reasons we found those 2 terrorist hideouts. And now we'll use it to find Subject Alpha and the escaped Norma."

"What do you want us to do?" Jadis said eagerly as Winston gave a low growl.

"Take your men and sweep the perimeter that encircles this entire area. Me and my men will take the left side. You and your team will sweep the right. We'll flush him out eventually. He won't escape my grasp a second time." Dutch clenched his hand into a tight fist, the thought of finally getting his hands on the Male Norma was a better high than the rarest of liquor. "If your team locate him first contact me and I'll be there as soon as I can. Detain him but do not harm him… much." Jadis nodded and all 20 soldiers split off into two groups. At the head of his own squad, Dutch's gaze snapped to Jeffry whose head seemed elsewhere. Most likely regarding the executed witnesses. "Listen to me boy." Dutch hissed to him. "Take your mind away from those that don't concern you. Make your father proud and finish the task he was originally given in retrieving Subject Alpha."

"Yes Commander." Jeffry nodded with a determined look.

"Good man." Dutch said, his eyes narrowing at the forests surrounding him. "Now then...where are you hiding, Subject Alpha?"

The silence of the forest was only broken by Hilda's soft rhythmic breathing as she slept against Cal's shoulder. Every so often he glanced outside checking no one was around and only going out to retrieve essentials from the skyhook, such as snacks and Hilda's now dry dress and underwear. Once she was up, they would need to move on and get to the Endurant Harbor. He just hoped whoever was looking for them had moved on.

With all that was going on Cal had almost forgotten of the horrors he had discovered in Trager's study. The overwhelming thirst for information played on his mind and he couldn't resist the temptation to look again. Cal retrieved the two files he had hidden behind a few rocks at the back of the cave and studied the file he was dreading to look upon again.

'SUBJECT BETA.'

Cal's heart drummed against his lungs as a sickening feeling in his stomach began to churn. The images of the thing inside were something he did not want to relive again but he had to find out what Subject Beta was. Cal flipped through the pages but none of it made any sense to him. Most of the notes contained complicated mathematics and something called the 'Aura Program.' He kept on reading until he got to a picture of the subject now fully grown and ready to hatch from its incubator. The photos were what intrigued him the most. The first several months of Subject Beta's creation it looked like a scaly black alien which only grew more grotesque as it matured. 'Who or what is this thing?' Cal puzzled. The appearance of this creature or human made him feel ill but once it was 8 months old and the 'Aura Program' was used, the thing looked like a completely normal baby. But unlike Cal and his mother its hair was a shock of white. One thing was for certain to Cal, it wasn't human.

'Donnie Villson? Wasn't that Gramp's best friend's brother and what did he have to do with this?' Cal read on. From what Jill, Jasmine and Maggie had told him, Donnie was Trager's personal assistant and someone Gramps had respected.

'PATIENT AGE: 9 MONTHS, GENDER: MALE, OBSERVING PHYSICIAN: DR. RICHARD TRAGER.'

'THANKS TO THE ENERGY PROVIDED BY AURA, THE SUBJECT CONTINUED TO IMPROVE BY THE DAY AND WILL BE FINALLY READY TO LEAVE ITS SUPPORT MACHINE. TEST HAVE SHOWN A RAPID INCREASE IN IT'S GENETICS WITH THE ADDED DNA ADJUSTMENTS TO IMPROVE ITS SENSES. WITH THE LOSS OF SUBJECT ALPHA, SUBJECT BETA IS OUR BEST PLAN B AND MIGHT BE A BIGGER IMPROVEMENT THAN WE HOPED. ONLY TIME WILL TELL.'

'What were they trying to create?' Cal wondered. Why did they want to create both him and this Subject Beta if they weren't planning on killing him like Trager had told him? What was the purpose for his birth and this thing's creation? Cal tried to push these thoughts out of his mind feeling his brain would melt. But those eyes still haunted Cal, those demon-like sky-blue eyes looking back at him like a mirror.

'Eyes, sky blue eyes.' Cal felt his heart stop as he put down Subject Beta's file and looked upon his mother's. Once he opened her file, he was shocked by how young she was. Pictures of her when she was pregnant with him made her look not much older than Hilda. From what her notes explained she had been kept in the lab since she was 3 months old and was used for experimentation when she hit 16. It only made Cal more infuriated and less guilty for killing Trager. 'I wish I could have met you Mother.' Cal sighed. 'You deserved more than the life that was forced upon you.' He just wished he had more to remember her by. If he closed his eyes, he could envision her face and what she would have looked like today, the sound of her voice, and her warm embrace whenever he was sad. A sudden stir against his shoulder broke his train of thought followed by a soft moan as Hilda's eyes blinked open, and Cal snapped the file shut.

Unlike the first time she woke up in this cave, Hilda felt a sense of calm, safety, and warmth as she lifted her head to look at Cal's face. "How are you holding up?" He asked.

"I feel like shit." Hilda said, groggily shifting herself off him and removed the ice pack from her eye. The swelling had gone down so she could at least look out of it again. "But I feel a little better than before." She reassured. "How long have I been out?"

"Roughly 3 hours." Cal told her and Hilda saw through the now many grey clouds the sun halfway to its apex. "Here you should eat something." Cal brandished a large bag of half-eaten potato chips. It wasn't an ideal breakfast, but she was starving. As Hilda ate, she noticed how stoic Cal's tone was with her. Though she was glad she had gotten everything off her chest she had kept bottled inside all these years, she hoped that she wasn't too harsh on him. She had now just noticed the strip of gauze wrapped underneath his chest and a small dry blood stain underneath his left arm pit.

"Your wounded!" She gasped in concern. 'Did he get that while trying to save me?' She wondered. "Look I'm sorry about earlier. I might have gone overboard." Cal scoffed as if that was evident when she had punched him in the jaw. "But thank you, for saving my life back there." It was then she noticed Cal shuffling something behind his back. "What's that?"

"Nothing, just notes." Cal dismissed, but Hilda wasn't buying that excuse and before Cal could stop her, she snatched a blue file he was hiding. She just had enough time to glimpse for a half a second a mugshot of a young woman with lank raven black hair and emotionally drained sky-blue eyes before Cal snatched the file back off her. "Be careful with that!" Cal said sharply. "You don't touch this! Don't ever touch it!"

"Okay calm down idiot." she snapped back pulling his jacket over her. 'The hell's his problem?' She expected Cal to argue back but his face was full of hurt as if he was keeping something from her. "Who is that woman?" She pressed on. "Those eyes kind of look like yours." Hilda swallowed a lump in her throat as it came together. "Is that your mother?!" Cal's eyes closed tightly as he let out a deep sigh as if it took every effort of him to keep his cool.

"Yes." He whispered. "This is the only thing I have of her."

"But where did you get that?" There was a long pause as Cal looked like he was trying to make his mind up on whether he should answer.

"Do you remember when I told you all, about the humans trying to kill me when I was born and that my Gramps saved me?"

"Yeah." Hilda answered.

"Well, I didn't exactly tell you all the whole truth." Hilda listened intently as Cal told her everything. The experimentation on the Norma in the secret lab, his mother and Gramps's real past, and how his Gramps had accidently caused a fire that killed Cal's mother in the process of saving him. Hilda listened quietly but her eyes widened in shock. "Truth is, I didn't find Arzenal by accident." Cal continued. "Gramps was friends with the Commander and had a long-distance relationship with Jasmine. He knew where to send me so the humans wouldn't take me back to that place or kill me like they planned when I was born."

"Why didn't you tell us this?" Hilda asked.

"Because I couldn't risk putting everyone at Arzenal in danger with the Inspector around." Cal said heavily. "The only reason I even revealed as much as I did was to show Coco the reality of how cruel humans can be. But I was too late to save her."

"Hey that wasn't your fault." Hilda said sternly. "Who else knows about this?"

"Gramps told Jill, Jasmine and Maggie who in return told me." Cal revealed. "Salia knows the whole story, Mei only knows the important bits and…" Cal paused as his throat tightened. "Naomi was the first I told…before Salia." Hilda glanced down at his right wrist and saw the rose gold glint of Naomi's bracelet in its place. "She saved me from doing something stupid after I found out the truth, without her I..." Tears were now forming in his eyes. "She was there for me even after I acted so selfishly in pushing you all away." Cal was on the verge of a breakdown as he tried his hardest to keep it together. It was just like that night Naomi died. Hilda remembered how broken Cal was that night and how she had comforted him in his need. And now he had done the same for her when she needed someone the most. Her heart gave a little flutter of gratitude towards Cal and that he needed her as much as she needed him now.

"I know it's sucks that's she's gone, but at least you didn't let it eat you up completely." Hilda said gently.

"I'm not so sure." Cal said emptily clearing his eyes. "I've done a lot of stupid things after she passed. Lost my temper, even had thought about hurting others, even Ange. I tried my best to not go down that path of hate like Gramps said, but now my hands are covered in blood. I can argue Trager had it coming but it still makes me no better than the humans. In the end, I couldn't even keep my promise to Gramps." Cal looked down at his palm that clenched into a tight fist.

"You're a wuss." Cal turned back to Hilda as she smiled at him. "But at least you're honest and always keep moving forward, no matter how much blood is on your hands." She shifted more closely to him feeling her heart swell as her body began to feel warm. "We're both filthy because of our past actions. But at least we're honest about it."

"When did you get so cute." Cal sniggered and Hilda felt she could smack him for that.

"You're such an ass." She laughed.

"Yeah," Cal smiled back at her warmly, "wonder where I learned that from?" Hilda looked into Cal's eyes and found she couldn't look away. She had never cared much for men. As far as she was concerned, they were all her enemies since they were all human. But with Cal it was different. And not just because he was a Norma like her. They had fought together, with each other, and when she was at her lowest, he had come for her. Somehow, he had become a fixture in her life and she couldn't imagine her world without him anymore.

Plus, she had always had a thing for blue eyes.

Before she knew it, Hilda's fingers entwined with his and suddenly felt as if something was pulling her towards him. Cal's cheeks flushed but he did not pull away. Hilda was so close she felt her face burn up as her heart beat faster. Before their lips touched however, Cal eyes bulged open in horror as his head snapped to the cave entrance. "Cal what's…"

"Quiet." He whispered, pulling her to his chest.

"What are you doing you…" But Cal put a hand over her mouth as he stared intently out of the cave entrance.

"You hear that?" Hilda did not speak or move but listened more carefully and faintly heard the snap of a twig in the distance below the hill. Then she saw them with a jolt of panic, some 150 yards away deep in the thick brush and trees were two soldiers, one in camo green and the other in black. Their blood red goggles that fitted over their dark grey tactical masks scanning the forest all around them.

Cal's insides plunged into the pit of his stomach. The two soldiers were drawing nearer towards the fallen down tree he had hidden the skyhook behind. "We need to go now!" He whispered urgently to Hilda who stripped out of his t-shirt and jacket and began to change back into her own clothing. Once Cal was fully dressed, he stuffed the 2 files back inside his inner jacket pocket and aimed his crossbow to chest height. "Stay right behind me." He told her quietly. "They haven't seen us yet but we need to get past them." With only one of her hair bands retrieved Hilda did her hair in a single ponytail as she bent down closer to Cal.

"How are we getting out of here?" She asked quietly.

"I've got a vehicle parked behind that fallen tree." Cal observed the two soldiers walk past the tree thanking his lucky stars he covered it with a few branches and leaves. Once the soldiers turned their backs away from them, Cal and Hilda crept down the hill quickly and quietly before taking cover behind a large tree surrounded by thick berry bushes. Keeping a low profile and their ears pricked for any sound of footsteps, they didn't dare peek their heads out to check the soldiers' positions in fears of being spotted. More than once they had to stop and crouch lower as the two soldiers walked back around, passing by them only a few feet away.

"The signal is getting stronger in this area." They heard one of them call to his friend. "It should be around here somewhere." Cal and Hilda stayed still what seemed like eternity, as the two soldiers walked around and around as if looking for something.

"I found it over here!" One of them yelled as Cal heard footsteps running towards the skyhook.

"They've found the skyhook." Cal cursed. "Listen, sounds like they're calling in reinforcements." Cal peeked his head sideways around a tree and saw the two soldiers contacting someone on their Mana screens. "I'm gonna need your help. Take this." Cal bent back down to Hilda who looked uneasy as he handed her his crossbow.

"Are you crazy? How are you planning on getting rid of them both with just one bolt?" She hissed.

"I'm gonna create a distraction and get one of them away from there." Cal explained. "If I can do that the other should be easy pickings."

"Cal wait, are you sure you can handle this?"

"Don't worry about me, I've got you watching my back if anything goes wrong." Cal winked which made Hilda go slightly pink around the ears. Going down on all fours, Cal drew his combat blade out of his pocket and made his way under the cover of low scrub. Making his way behind a particularly large trunk to his left fifty feet from the soldiers, Cal's eyes searched the area around him and picked up a pretty heavy rock, checking to ensure the soldiers had their backs turned to him before he threw the rock with all his might.

"What was that?!" One soldier said as the impact of the rock landing among the leaves and rustling underbrush echoed off the trees.

"I'll go check it out." His comrade offered. "You stay here and watch my back." Cal readied his blade, hearing the approaching soldier drawing nearer his position and ready to pounce when he got close enough. 'Not yet Hilda.' Cal prayed. 'Wait until he's far enough away so I can get the drop on him.' As the first soldier was closing in, a soft thump followed by a gurgling noise made him snap around.

"What was that? Corporal answer me!" With his enemy less than 10 feet away, Cal lunged out from his hiding place. The soldier had little time to react as Cal swung his leg around, knocking the rifle from the soldier's grip then drove his knee into his gut that knocked him against a nearby tree. The impact knocked his helmet off center and he barely had time to remove it before Cal placed the edge of his knife against the soldier's throat. Immediately, Cal was surprised by how young he was. He had shoulder length curly blonde hair, turquoise eyes, and a face that would make the girls of Arzenal tear each other's hair out just to even look at him.

"Tough bastard, aren't you?!" The young man snarled, his eyes rolling to his gun laying a few feet away. It would be easier to kill him and be done with it, but after all the chaos Cal had caused there wasn't any need for any further blood on his hands.

"Just walk away and we'll let you go!" Cal warned.

"Wanna bet?" Cal turned around quickly to the sudden voice behind him and was hit hard in the gut by the stock of a rifle. Cal wheezed painfully as the wind was knocked out of him and dropped his blade, his anger rising at the surprise attack.

"You son of a bitch!" Cal growled through clenched teeth rushing up to punch his new attacker in the face with all the strength he could muster. The tall figure dropped their gun then slowly turned their head back around to reveal the face of a woman. She towered over Cal, her silver hair done in a tight bun and her horrible yellow eyes glared at him with an insane delight.

"You got one hell of a punch freak." She laughed licking the blood from the side of her mouth. "Did your precious Captain Zola teach you that right hook?" Cal flinched. How did this woman know about Zola? Then it hit him with a rush of trepidation and anger. From what Scarlett and Zola described of her, this must be Jadis. Cal quickly looked behind the tall woman and realized Hilda wasn't at the skyhook. What was she doing? "I must say your cuter than I thought." Jadis said wickedly and Cal winced. Her harsh voice was like iron scraping on stone. "Such a shame I'll have to mess up your pretty little face."

"Lieutenant be careful, he's strong." The young soldier warned, now aiming his reclaimed rifle at Cal.

"Stand down private Jeffry. I can handle this one on my own."

"Try it you bitch." Cal snarled; his teeth bared as he raised his fists.

"Oh you think you can take me on?!" Jadis smirked in amusement.

"I'm not afraid of you."

"You will be." Cal struck first with a left jab that brushed Jadi's left cheek as she dodged. In response, Jadis grabbed his arm and the collar of his shirt, flipping him over her shoulder and onto his back. Slightly dazed, Cal rolled to the side just in time to avoid Jadis' boot as she stomped down on where his face would have been. She twisted and pulled back her leg for a kick, but Cal spun and swung his own heel into her standing ankle, knocking her face first to the ground. But Jadis quickly recovered, and her long arms reached out before Cal could defend himself as one of her hands caught him by the neck and began choking him with her horrible spider-like fingers. Cal reached his hand around the back of her head and grabbed a fistful of Jadi's tight bun and head butted her hard in the face.

Dropping him and grunting in pain Cal rolled to his feet as Jadis righted herself, wiping her bleeding nose as she and Cal stared at each other down. "Not bad, for trash!" Jadis mocked not phased by the hard blow to her face.

"What about for a Norma?" Cal fired back as he grabbed his knife off the ground.

"Is there a difference?" Cal stepped back and ducked, avoiding two kicks from Jadis. Cal swiped his blade from side to side, intending to slice Jadis' neck open who dodged left and right. Cal jabbed his blade forward when Jadis shifted sideways, locking her arm under his to stop the blow and twisting it around into a cross arm clutch. Cal felt his entire body paralyzed from the strain as Jadis wrapped her free arm around his neck in a chokehold and cut off his breath

"Is that all? Pathetic." Jadis said in mock disappointment. "But what should I expect from someone who learned to fight from that worthless little bitch Zola."

"Lieutenant watch out!" Jeffry yelled as he suddenly dived in front of Jadis forming a Mana shield as a crossbow bolt streaked through the air towards them. But though he was able to shield her, the ricochet off the barrier altered its path to carve a long gash lip to ear across Jeffry's right cheek, causing him to collapse in shock and pain as Hilda came charging towards them.

"I'll fucking kill you bitch!" Hilda roared hurling the crossbow at Jadis. Throwing Cal aside, Jadis caught the crossbow, spun, and threw it back at Hilda who barely ducked in time. Jadis was quick to capitalize on Hilda's open defense as she charged forward and punched Hilda in the stomach hard enough to lift her off her feet. For a moment, Cal was afraid the blow had killed Hilda, but she moaned in agony and gasped weakly on the ground. Seeing that Jeffry had dropped his rifle, Cal reached for the weapon when a sudden growl caught his ear. Images of Star when she had gone rabid flashed through his mind and he looked up in terror as the largest, most massive hound he had ever seen stalked out of the underbrush towards him, its thick muscles rippling beneath its cream-colored fur and its pearly white fangs a striking contrast to its black muzzle. A second later, something grabbed the scalp of his hair and yanked it back before Jadis's face appeared beside him, pulling his neck so far back it was though she was about to slit his throat before she whispered in his ear.

"I suggest you hold still and don't fight." She warned almost teasingly. "My darling Winston hasn't had his breakfast today and your throat looks mighty tasty. Now, be a good little boy and tell me where you are heading? I know you're in league with the Ancient Folk and the terrorists. They must have told you where you could go to find safety. Not that it would do you any good of course."

"Screw you!" Cal spat. In response, Jadis punched him hard across the jaw.

"You think you're something special?" She hissed, still holding Cal's hair and began to shake his head and Cal felt several of his hairs part from his scalp as he tried to pull away. "You are nothing but a freak of nature. Just another filthy weak Norma like the rest of your kind." With her free hand, she clutched Cal's wrist with such force it felt it would break and pulled his arm behind his back into a tight painful hold. "I know you didn't get that aircraft from Arzenal. In whom are you in league with outside of Arzenal? Where are they hiding?!"

"I don't know what you're talking about." Cal croaked. By now, other soldiers had emerged from the surrounding wood. Two of them had pinned down Hilda while the rest surrounded him and Jadis.

"So that's how you want it? Fine." Jadis said as she roughly shoved him into the ground. "Hold him!" One soldier pressed his knee on Cal's back while another squeezed his boot on the back of his neck while a third pressed the barrel of his rifle right into Cal's temple. They were trapped, outnumbered, and outgunned. Cal's eyes looked up to meet Hilda's who looked completely petrified. He had failed her, his mission, everyone back at Arzenal. Now they were both going to die.

"Call in the Commander, he'll be wanting to see this." Jadis ordered. As they waited, Cal looked around for any opportunity for him and Hilda to escape but the soldiers had formed a tight circle with no gaps. Then another arrived on the scene, but one of them looked different than the rest. Unlike his comrades he was dressed in a fancy crimson red suit complete with a tie and a long black Roma coat. His orange flamed eyes fixed on Cal like a predator about to land a killing strike on its prey and a cruel triumphant smile curled his lip.

"Well I must say, it's a pleasure to finally meet you face to face after all this time, Subject Alpha."

TO BE CONTINUED…

ARTHORS NOTES

Well I hope you all enjoyed that, now were coming to the most pivotal moments of this story and the Cross Ange cannon. Can't belive I've made it to this point, something I've been planning since the start. Once again, big thanks to Eric Michael Kline for editing these chapters and check out his own Cross Ange story, The Knight of Hilda.

Chapter 40. CAL vs. DUTCH. Coming November 25th.

Keep your eyes peeled for the next chapter, it's gonna be a blood bath.