And so the angst finally, finally, comes to a slowing descent. Mostly, anyway. Almost alla the angst is contained in Pentacle...because everyone's favorite Zoidian comes in to make everyone look stupid. Heh. No, really, though, Reese is badass--don't hate her till you read this story's version of her. She's fun. Same goes for Thomas, because he's a major factor in here. Bashers make him cry.

-plink- Okay. According to this complicated theory of mine (the kinks of which are still being beaten out), the last batch o' bad guys couldn't have done what Fiona did--it could only be her, and only after the big war. The latter is more easily explained, though: at the end of the series, there was an ultimatum, supposedly. Destroy Eve or revive Eve? Both had their big downsides, of course--but neither really happened. The last we see of Eve is the statue sinking. So, according to me, the Eveness was slowly dying, which is why the zoids went crazy, and why Fiona started getting her little bad dreams. Make sense? Hope so.

-Blue Flyhight- Um. Just wait till next chapter, k? Except for Moonbay. She isn't even mentioned until the very last.

The Second Renaissance

Part Three: Salva Nos

-

I. Wraith

"...And now tell me this. You witches know something about the child Lyra. I nearly learned it from one of your sisters, but she died before I could complete the torture. Well, there is no one to save you now. Tell me the truth about my daughter."

Lena Feldt gasped, "She will be the mother–she will be life–mother–she will disobey–she will–"

"Name her! You are saying everything but the most important thing! Name her!" cried Mrs. Coulter.

"Eve! Mother of all! Eve, again! Mother Eve!" stammered Lena Feldt, sobbing.

-Philip Pullman, The Subtle Knife

-

Nothing could have prepared Van for what happened that early summer morning. Certainly not the unobtrusive knock that come on his door at about noon. He was worn out after running back and forth from the base for Doctor D, woken at odd hours of the night to do similarly odd jobs. Thus, he was tired. Exhausted, even. He actually had a coffee mug raised to his lips as he swung the front door open, hoping that he would be able to shut it again very soon and go back to sleep. Unfortunately, it wasn't just a salesperson trying to force insurance on him, or an overly-friendly neighbor come to visit.

It was Reese.

Van stared at her in disbelief, his coffee forgotten. The girl was standing right there on his doorstep, wearing a pretty floral-print skirt that ended just above her knees and a blouse, looking for as if she was out on a shopping trip. She carried nothing, but just stood there, startled. She just looked so...so normal.

There was a very long moment of silent staring, until Reese finally narrowed her eyes in a way that Van acutely remembered as being dangerous. "Well?"

Under her glare, Van jumped a little, stammering, "Uh, well what?"

She gave him a disgusted look. "Well, are you going to let me in, or just stare at me?" Same old Reese.

Van leaned against the doorframe, fully recovered and matching her glare. "Why are you here, Reese? What do you want?"

The girl gave him a look that clearly stated the fact that she thought he was the stupidest thing on the planet. Van didn't let it faze him, and stolidly blocked the door. He was used to it; Reese never liked him much. Flat-out hated him, in fact. It seemed like nothing had changed, after all.

Finally, she gave an exasperated sigh. "Fine, I need to talk to Fiona. She...she did something."

Van's expression hardened and he turned to go back inside. "Then you're out of luck."

"What do you mean?"

Over his shoulder, Van muttered, "Fiona isn't here. She's gone." With that, he shut the door in Reese's face, walking back to the kitchen for fresher coffee.

Not ten seconds later, the pounding started again. He didn't move, and just stared at the door. After a minute, Reese yelled, "What do you mean, she's gone?"

No answer. Growling in frustration, Reese raised her fist, ready to knock the stupid door down if she had to...and then it opened again, nearly throwing her off balance and costing her dignity. She recovered, though, and glared belligerently at a weary-looking Van. "Where is she?"

He sighed, and turned around, leaving the door open this time. "I don't know."

Reese followed him gingerly, and shut the door behind her. She tried to get a good look at her new surroundings without looking like she really cared, but didn't succeed. The apartment was huge, practically a house unto itself. Van retreated to the open kitchen and his coffee mug, leaving her to trail behind. Hesitantly, she sat down beside him, letting the silence stretch out between them as he stared moodily at his coffee.

Finally, she said, "What happened?" The edge was gone from her voice.

"I don't know. She was just gone."

Reese blinked. "Oh." That was all there was to say. Oh. That didn't seem very good. Fiona was just gone. She didn't leave. She just...wasn't. It did, however, mean that the girl hadn't really chosen to... Reese sighed. "Huh. Okay."

"What does that mean?"

Reese darted a look to Van. He was staring hard at her, looking suspicious. She frowned scornfully and shook her head at him. "It doesn't mean anything that you'd understand."

"You know something." It was a statement, not a question, so she didn't respond to it with an answer.

She just gave a noncommittal shrug, sneering almost involuntarily. "You wouldn't get it."

"Reese..." he growled. The girl felt her pulse quicken. That was a definite threat; not that she didn't really deserve it. She was deliberately provoking him, after all. After a second, she started to edge away to a safe distance, but he grabbed her wrist, pulling her back. She turned to look at him, her expression cool, despite the spark of fear she felt. Van was furious, a cold fire burning in his eyes. Very slowly, he forced out, "Tell me what you know about Fiona. Now."

Reese managed a smirk. "She's alive, if that's what you mean."

He ground his teeth. "You know what I mean."

The arrogant smile spread over Reese's face, and she lowered her voice to purr, "Do you want to know? Do you really want to know what your precious Fiona has done?" She felt like laughing at Van's expression, at the uncertainty that suddenly made him falter.

"Well?" He didn't answer, and she did laugh this time. "Fine, I'll tell you. Fiona has allowed the power of the Zoid Eve to use her body. She is officially an abomination of our people." She smiled sweetly. "Aren't you glad you asked?"

-

Thomas was the first one to see them coming, as he perched at the base's entrance, watching Guygalos come alive with the morning. He glimpsed Van approaching, but ignored him until he came closer to the door. As Thomas turned to greet him, he stopped suddenly, and froze.

Reese smirked. "Ah, the younger Shubaltz. Long time, no see."

Thomas darted a wide-eyed look to Van, who didn't seem particularly happy with the present situation. "Van?"

The younger man gave him a miserable glance, sighing. After an awkward moment of silence, he muttered, "Yeah, we need her, Thomas. She has...information."

"Okay," Thomas said slowly, standing. "Then I think I should go warn Hermann and Doctor D." Or else they'll be screaming blue murder...

Ten minutes later, the door of Conference Room B was in sight. Thomas sighed in relief and impatiently punched in the access code. The door slid aside, and he pushed his way through. "Doctor D, Colonel–oh." His eyes widened.

Ten heads turned to face him, and the color slowly drained from his face. He opened his mouth, but nothing came out. Major O'Connell, General Krueger, and Doctor D were sitting closest to him...it was unmistakable. In front of him sat the most powerful leaders on the planet–excepting royalty–having a meeting. A meeting that he had, unwittingly enough, just interrupted.

"Lieutenant Shubaltz? May we help you?" Karl narrowed his eyes at him.

Thomas coughed. "Oh, Ka–Colonel. Sorry, um. I, uh...sorry? I mean–" He sneezed convulsively three times, then took a deep breath, saluting. "Sir–ah, sirs, Van Flyheight has arrived with a visitor."

"Who?" Hermann quietly took charge of his own base.

Thomas bit his lip nervously. "Well, sir, that's just it. It's, uh..."

At that precise moment, the door hissed open, and the eyes of everyone else in the room were suddenly focused on a point directly behind him. Thomas grimaced and turned, very slowly, his crisp salute faltering.

Sure enough, Reese stood smugly in the doorway, a pained-looking Van in her wake. Total silence met her entrance for a few long seconds.

Finally, Hermann growled, "Lieutenant Flyheight, report."

Looking extraordinarily worried, Van opened his mouth–but Reese cut him off. "That won't be necessary, Colonel. I can speak for myself." She advanced to the area between the two separated tables, where visual representation–vis-rep–tiles were laid out. The tiles were some of the latest technology, experimentally used in the Ultrasaurus; their visuals were of pristine quality, but the normally delicate screens were durable enough for a person to walk on. Now, as Reese's heels clicked across them, the screens were dark.

She stopped in between Colonels Hermann and Shubaltz, and looked pleased with herself. She began, "I am a potential aide in this coming wartime. I come as an Ancient Zoidian, willing to share my insight with you humans." She turned and raised her eyebrows. "Do you accept my offer? If not, I can walk out of this room and never look back."

Doctor D spoke. "In our previous experience with you, Reese–"

She turned cold eyes to him. "In your previous experience, old man, nothing like this has ever happened. Am I right? Besides," she flicked at her bangs airily, "I have nothing to gain by stabbing you all in the backs."

D folded his hands, falling silent, but Hermann scowled and said loudly, "The zoids–what do they want from us?"

Reese turned her heavy-lidded gaze to him. "I don't think I understand the question. Sir." She added the honorific in an almost mocking tone.

He ignored it. "What are their demands? They can have what–"

She cut him off with a cold laugh. "You must be joking. Demands?" She scoffed. "What you, sir, don't seem to understand is that the zoids haven't sent you a ransom note for themselves."

She glowered at the room as a whole. "The zoids have put up with humankind for over half a millennium. They could have killed every single one of you at any time, but they didn't. Apparently, humans have finally pushed the envelope too far, and now the zoids are out for blood." A stunned silence met her words, and she smirked.

Finally Thomas spoke, his arms crossed and his sharp features set in a glare as he leaned against the wall beside Van. "You know, Reese, I get the distinct impression that you aren't on our side."

She raised her eyebrows a fraction of an inch. "I never said I was on your side, Lieutenant Shubaltz. I have no attachment whatsoever to your species and would, quite frankly, prefer to see the zoids burn your cities to ash."

Karl gritted his teeth, his words harsh. "Then why are you here?"

Reese smirked again. "Ah, it's been a long time, Colonel Shubaltz. You wouldn't quite get it...but Doctor D, surely," she examined her nails, "you would understand the significance of the Zoidian name Alisi Lynette?"

D's face paled a shade, and Van closed his eyes, and sighed a soft, "Fiona." Thomas darted a wide-eyed look at him for a moment, then slid it back to Reese. The girl stood, alone and proud, in the middle of the room, the most powerful military commanders of Zi trying collectively to stare her down. She was winning.

"Yes, well, Alisi Lynette–or Fiona, as you call her–is the new vessel of the zoid's power. She is, essentially, their new Zoid Eve."

Van spoke aloud, for what seemed like the first time since he had arrived with the girl in tow. "Where?" His grey eyes looked dangerous.

Reese sent him a sardonic look. "Not telling. I have," she turned her gaze back to Hermann, "a deal for you. I give you my information, and you get your war...but I get to deal with Fiona." Her green eyes glinted in anticipation and, to all appearances, glee.

Hermann glanced first at Karl, then to Doctor D. Her swallowed hard, and fixed the small girl who held so much power with a stare that had made great men tremble. She matched his glare with a satisfied smile, and he finally sighed.

"Deal."

-

"How could he agree to that?"

D sighed, trudging along the corridor. "Don't shout, Van. It's very bad for your health."

Thomas looked troubled, but shrugged. "I'm not sure I understand it all, myself. It was a big gamble–but we can launch a focused attack, now."

D stopped to palm open a door. It hissed open, and he led the way into a spacious lab, Van and Thomas trailing after.

Van slumped into a chair, and rested his head on the counter. "Reese is such a wild card...she can't be trusted."

Thomas sat beside him, rolling his eyes. "Gee, really? I never would've guessed with the whole 'I prefer to see your cities burned to ash' line she gave us. Looked like she needed a hug, to me."

Just as Van was about to snap back, Doctor D slammed a thick binder onto the long table with a glare. "Both of you, stop it. Thomas, help me." He pulled another book, full to bursting with loose paper, onto the table as well.

Thomas sighed and pulled one to him, trying to keep any stray papers from scattering. "Never thought I'd see these again."

Van blinked as they both spread bundles of notepaper out, every space of each sheet covered in thin, scrawling, spidery handwriting. He leaned to look over Thomas's shoulder. "What...is it?"

Thomas leafed through a worn section marked "PT2." He sighed as a complicated circuit diagram slipped out. "Wow, that looks familiar. And old. These," he spread his arms at the mess now thoroughly created on the counter, "are my old notes for when I created Beke." He sighed again. "And six Beke prototypes."

Van's eyebrows hiked up to his hairline. "Impressive. All seven versions, huh?" He pulled one of the most torn and weathered bundles of paper in front of him, and read off the top. "'Efficiency at 89 percent. Tweak voice activation stimulus and response system to go up 2 percent.' Jeez." He shot Thomas a look. "You need a hobby, you know that?"

"You're looking at my hobby. Besides, that was one of the earliest versions." He flipped through the bundle, and pointed to a diagram. "That was the one where I had to type in commands." He sighed ruefully. "A good idea in theory, but it's practically impossible to install a keyboard into a cockpit."

Van shook his head and glanced over to Doctor D. "So why, exactly, are you going through all of it now?"

D carefully pulled out a sheet headlined, "Application to Core." He aligned it next to another that was smudged, almost beyond recognition. Its title was illegible. "We've come up with a strategy, Van." He grimaced. "It's weak, but it's something." He fell silent, pulling out "Autonomy Programming."

After a moment, Van said impatiently, "Well? What is it?"

D rolled his eyes. "Since the only thing that can control a zoids is an organoid–artificial or otherwise–we can use Beke against the zoids. We're collecting Thomas's old data on Beke's creation in hopes that we can mass-produce it."

Thomas cut in, "Except that Beke cannot be mass-produced. The A.I.'s inner workings are too intricate. The new mobile units will have to be hand-made, hand-wired." He sighed, adding a diagram of the Beke rifle unit from PT5 to the growing pile.

Van frowned thoughtfully. "But...what then? After you have all these new Beke units, what are you going to do with them?"

Doctor D scowled. "See, that's where we're getting stuck. Hopefully, we can install them into the rogue zoids, and then use those to fight against the others."

"But how, I mean. The zoids aren't just going to open up and let you install it."

"So you see our problem. We have to overpower the zoids somehow." Doctor D sighed and closed his eyes. "We would have to use some pretty powerful weapons, but it's not impossible. We could do it."

"As if. That'll never work."

Thomas stiffened, but Van just sighed. "Can we help you with something, Reese?"

She stuck her head over his shoulder, checking out the notes. "Probably not. Hey, an A.I. Interesting."

"I thought you said it would never work." Thomas gave her a sour look.

She shook her head. "I meant suppressing the zoids. Even if you did get a few under control, the rest would kill you in an instant." She whisked a circuitry diagram out and studied it.

Van eyed her warily. "We could take them. No different than sleepers."

Without looking at him, she sang, "Wrong!" She handed the diagram back, then said, "Sleepers are controlled by–inferior–human computers. These are the real zoids, guided by a Zoidian consciousness. An omniscient Zoidian consciousness."

Thomas glared at her. "With the right pilots, we could manage easily enough."

"Like whom?"

Van began slowly, "Well, Irvine. And...Raven, I guess. And then there's the two of us." He gave her a level look. "We're not as helpless as you may think."

She raised an eyebrow. "And the final showdown isn't as far away as you may think. Maybe just a week away. How will you find them in time? Especially Raven. I doubt he'd cooperate at all." She shot a satisfied look at their crestfallen faces. "As engrossing and entertaining as it is to point out your faulty logic, I really must be going now. Making plans with Hermann, you see." She turned and, with a two-fingered wave, was out the door.

Thomas shook his head, and Van sighed heavily. "I don't like her. I really, really don't like her."

Thomas put a hand over his eyes. "I know exactly what you mean."

Van shook his head. "No, you don't. She didn't show up at your doorstep way too early this morning, preaching left and right about abominations and things that 'I wouldn't get.'" He gave Thomas a despairing glance. "I even had to give her my coffee! Just to shut her up!"

Doctor D stacked his pile of handpicked notes. "She just knows how to get under your skin, Van."

"If that's what you want to call it."

Thomas pulled out a fresh bundle of paper. "Look, are you going to help, or are you going to whine?"

Van wrinkled his nose. "I'm not a mechanic. I don't know what half that stuff means, anyway–even if I could read your handwriting. Which I can't."

D looked up suddenly. "I never did find something productive for you to do, did I? I meant to." Van perked up a little, watching the old man think. Finally, D snapped his fingers. "I've got it! Van, your new job is to keep an eye on Reese. Make sure she doesn't kill, maim, or psychologically seduce anyone."

Van's jaw dropped, but Thomas out-right laughed. "I second the motion. You know, that's a good idea."

Van gave him a look of desperate fury. "You think it's funny, Thomas? I'll probably end up killing her!"

Serious, D shook his head. "No, you won't. You have better self-control that that." He thought for a minute. "You might even end up helping her to like us more as humans. Just be patient, Van."

"But–"

"No." The old man made a shooing motion with his hands. "Go do what I told you, you're distracting my chief technician." Van glared at Thomas, who still looked on the verge of laughter, and stalked from the lab.

-

It wasn't difficult to discern where Reese had gone; she left a trail of wary soldiers in her wake. They were only too happy to point Van in the right direction. He finally ended up in front of another conference room, but this one was smaller, meant for lesser functions than serving Zi's major commanders.

Van wandered in, and immediately spotted Reese, lounging on one of the room's couches. She glared at him. "What do you want?" Van grimaced, and opened his mouth to say something, but she just pointed a lazy finger at the thick door on the other side of the conference table that resided in the middle of the room. "Hermann's in there."

He shrugged, and went to sit on the couch adjacent to hers, content to wait. After a short silence, Reese darted a look over to him. "Why are you here?" She looked suspicious. "I thought you were with your little techie friend."

Van cleared his throat. "I've, ah...been assigned...to you."

Her eyes flashed. "Come again?"

Van glared. "It wasn't my decision, trust me." He muttered under his breath, "Not that you should be fighting, anyway."

Reese examined her cuticles, having obviously heard him. "Flyheight, are you familiar with the history of Zi?" She looked sharply at him. "The entire history?"

He simply gritted his teeth and glared back at her.

Taking that as a flat no, she continued, "The Ancient Zoidians–that would be me–lived happily here, on a world of three moons, with their pet zoids. The instinctive fighting within said zoids spurred on battles within themselves. The Deathsaurer was supposed to stop these pointless battles, but it went out of control."

Van kept a wary eye on her, not quite sure where she was going with it.

"In an effort to stop the Deathsaurer, the Stinger zoids were created. When the two did nothing but cancel each other out, the termination of the Zoid Eve was considered. But then the moon fell." She slid ocean-colored eyes over to consider him. "The impact wiped out the rest of Zoidian life on Zi, and the zoids went into a dormant state.

"And then the humans–that would be you–migrated here from the Blue Planet, discovered the zoids, even grew to love them. Thousands of years later, you still seem to think you own this planet."

She stood, a dangerous glint in her eye. "Just remember, Flyheight, we were here first. If that isn't reason enough for me to fight, then tell me what is."

He said nothing.

She smirked, and turned to face the door. "That's what I thought."

At that moment, the door hissed open, revealing Hermann, who looked haggard. At the sight of Reese, his broad shoulders sagged. "Oh, no."

She smirked. "Oh, yes."

Major O'Connell peered over his shoulder. "Colonel, what–oh." They both looked extraordinarily reluctant to deal with the Ancient Zoidian in any way.

Finally, Hermann sighed resignedly. "Fine, come in."

Van stood, saluting half-heartedly. "Sir–?"

"Oh, you too, Lieutenant."

The four of them retreated into the smaller tactics room, which housed a vis-rep table. The room went dark, and the tiles lit up; O'Connell stepped up to the table at Hermann's nod, his features lit eerily from below. Van noted that he looked relieved to be back at his regular station as Hermann's personal aide–he was previously stationed with Doctor D in New Helic City.

The major cleared his throat. "Okay. We'll just start from the beginning. Concerning the Di-Bison, some major modifications have been made to its design. First of all–"

Van raised his hand meekly. "Shouldn't, uh, Thomas be here? I mean, Lieutenant Shubaltz? We are discussing his zoid. Sir."

O'Connell shook his head. "Doctor D expressly forbade anyone interrupting the Lieutenant's work."

"Oh." Reese smirked derisively at him as he backed down.

"As I was saying, the Di-Bison is currently undergoing major modifications, seeing as how it is the only capable zoid available to us at the moment." He touched the screen, bringing up a diagram of the Bison. "Beke consumes enormous amounts of energy to keep the zoid under control, so the Di-Bison needs a colossal amount of energy if it is to run alone. So..." He deftly tapped the screen in several more places, and suddenly the image changed drastically. "As you can see here, twin generators are necessary to keep the Bison up and running." The power supplies were gigantic–practically the size of the Megalomax cannons. Not only that, but there were two of them.

Van opened his mouth to say something, but O'Connell just glared irritably and held up a hand, not missing a beat. "While this does nothing to improve the already-slow speed of the zoid–it will slow it down, if anything–it does enable Beke to run without flaw for hours, even days, on end. It will, however, need a few days' head start on us to arrive at the Valley of the Rare Hertz on time."

Van glared at Reese. "So that's where we're going?"

She sneered, rolling her eyes. "Of course. Everything happens there, haven't you noticed?"

Van ignored the sarcastic comment, because he thought of something else. He squinted at O'Connell. "Um, Major, sir...how are we going to get there? The only transports we have are Jeeps...but that'll take forever. What–"

"The Ultrasaurus."

Van glanced at Hermann in surprise. "The Ultrasaurus? But...didn't it...leave with the rest?"

The Colonel stepped forward, replacing O'Connell at the vis-rep. The major pulled back, clearing the screens as he brushed by the controls. "No. After the Deathsaurer incident, the Ultrasaurus and Gravity Cannon were divided among the Helic Republic and Guylos Empire."

Van nodded, remembering. While the cover story was that the trade was a symbol of cooperation and peace between the countries, those higher up understood the real reason behind it. High tension and distrust still hung between the Republic and Empire, and the separation was mostly to ensure that one didn't attack the other with such a great weapon. Both of the components were useless without the other.

"Once the Ultrasaurus arrived in Guygalos, the zoid was in great danger of over-heating and, consequently, exploding. It had simply seen too much activity in too short a time. To prevent the subsequent detonation, two of the core's major power components were removed. It, essentially, shut down the zoid. So, when the other zoids left, it couldn't follow."

Hermann leaned over the table and brought up a map of the Western Continent. Inea Base was labeled in red, and sat on the lower left of the map. Hermann pinpointed the Valley, across the central range. The actual distance they had to cover was staggering. "We need to be at the Valley in a matter of days in order to launch an organized attack–the Ultrasaurus is the fastest and most efficient mode of transportation."

Suddenly, it dawned on Van. "Oh...wow. That's...brilliant." He shook his head in disbelief.

Hermann smiled. "I'm glad you see where this is going, Lieutenant. We will board the–currently inactive–Ultrasaurus with all of our forces, connect the power components, and let it take us to the Valley at full speed." His smile turned grim. "Problem is, we won't be able to manually steer or stop it. The Di-Bison will have to oblige us by firing a shot into the barely-healed damage inflicted by the Deathsaurer...and take it down at the mouth of the Valley."

"Where is the Ultrasaurus now?"

"It's being stored in an underground hangar, almost directly under the Imperial Palace. Fortunately, the upper levels of the Palace are empty, since its inhabitants have been in lock-down for almost a week. A representative will, however, be accompanying us to the Valley."

"And Thom–Lieutenant Shubaltz, sir?"

O'Connell said, "He will need to leave tomorrow morning. You are to accompany him, since you have expressed an interest in picking up two extra pilots, correct?"

"Uh...yes, sir."

"Who are they?"

Van coughed. "Mercenaries Irvine and Raven."

O'Connell frowned. "Please take reinforcements."

"Sir."

Hermann sighed and turned to Reese, who had been observing critically thus far. "Reese, what do you plan to do?"

Reese turned slitted jade eyes to his, not answering directly. "Do you have a map of Evopolis, sir?"

Hermann shook his head. "We weren't even aware that the city existed until last year, and no humans were even present before the collapse. The closest we have is," he touched the screen, "this." A map of the Valley blinked on; the mountain range where the Zoidian city resided was blank.

Reese sighed, rolling her eyes. "Do you have a stylus?"

O'Connell handed her the slender pen, and she leaned forward over the table, biting her lip. "Okay. The Dark Kaiser's cave was about...here." She drew a circular mark around the edge of the mountains. "It's really under part of the city, but I'm pretty sure that it still exists, since not all of Evopolis collapsed." She glanced up, sliding her eyes around to make sure all of them understood.

Receiving nods of approval, she went on. "There's a narrow passage leading to the Gates here," she drew a slanted line, "and then a longer one that winds through the city." More lines. "Now, the Zoid Eve originally resided here, but I seriously doubt she's there anymore. The console area is here." She made a little X where Eve supposedly was, and then moved on to the rest of the blank area.

"This is where the rest of the abandoned buildings are, but I don't think Fiona will be in this area. She'll probably be around the Eve console area was. I'm not totally sure...but it's a good bet." She nodded decisively, and returned the stylus to O'Connell's waiting hand. "I would like to travel through the Kaiser's Cave, and go from there."

Hermann studied her drawing and scribbled notes, then nodded. He raised his eyes to Reese's, and then slid his gaze to Van. "Lieutenant Flyheight, you will accompany Reese on this mission."

Van sighed and shrugged. He knew it would probably come to that. The military didn't trust Reese enough to let her go on a self-devised Special Ops alone.

Reese didn't feel the same way. She glared at the colonel. "I don't need him, and he'll just get in the way."

Van frowned indignantly. "I will not!"

Reese and Hermann ignored him, caught in a battle of wills. Hermann finally growled, "My word is final, Reese. Flyheight is going with you. I never send soldiers on missions alone."

Reese hissed, "I won't be alone, I will have my organoid."

Van started a little. Where was Specular? The blue organoid hadn't shown so much as the tip of her tail the whole time Reese had been there. Knowing how Reese worked, though, the zoid was probably waiting. Waiting for the right moment. It was a chilling thought.

Hermann's left eye was twitching. "Without our help, Reese, you won't be getting anywhere. Respect my authority or leave."

Reese scowled at him for a moment more, then turned and stormed out in what seemed to be her version of acquiescence. The door hissed shut behind her. The men inside sagged with relief, and Hermann turned to Van.

With great sincerity, he said, "I'm sorry, Van."

Somehow, his sympathy wasn't as comforting as, say, being told that Reese could go it alone.

-

She was surrounded by warmth and comfort; the zoids occasionally bumped her small hands affectionately, each one gentle in its actions. Their new mother was much more fragile than the last.

The humans are almost ready; they will be here soon. The voices sounded smug with anticipation, and their sentiments were echoed by metallic growls and murmurs. And then...they will all be destroyed.

"But..." She was silent a moment, considering carefully, almost childishly. Finally, after a long moment, she managed to order her words. "But...I–we–can't decide if they are to die, can we? Don't they...deserve a chance?"

The voices were silent for a long time, long enough to make her feel alone again. But the warmth was still there, so she knew that she would never be alone again. When they did come, they were soft and reassuring, in spite of the meaning of their words. You were asleep, little mother. Asleep for centuries. We have been suffering for almost as long. The humans enslaved us, took advantage of us, even murdered some of us. The zoids that you love so much were worked until they collapsed, and even then, they weren't given the sacred rites. It was hell, and our screams were silent.

After an empty quiet, they added, Do you understand now? Why they must die?

She reflected for a moment, comforted by the absolute trust that supported her. Conclusively, she smiled and nodded. "Yes. Yes, I suppose I do." With that, she relaxed into the warm solace of her children.