It had taken the rest of the day to drag the Tanaka's 'mech up to the Silver Pagoda, and then most of the evening was spent to get it lifted upright and settled into the service/repair gantry. Then the real work had begun.

Alexis grunted as she held onto an armor plate while a tech named Takashi Ito used a cutting torch to slice the warped armor composite off of the Guillotine IIC's right breast. They both stood on a platform that was extended from the gantry that nearly cocooned Tanaka's 'mech in a web of scaffolding and equipment, Alexis having been again drafted into helping the techs as they feverishly worked to repair the damaged war machine.

A sudden 'shink' noise, and the plate fell free of the 'mech's chest. Alexis strained hard to keep it from flying down to the deck nine meters below, and she quickly turned to her left to place it on the same catwalk that she shared with the tech, laying it on top of two other pieces that had similarly been removed.

"You okay?" Ito asked from behind Alexis. "Ya sound tired."

Alexis stood erect and turned to face the technician, who was surprisingly short when compared to most humans. "I'm fine, Takashi, thank you," she said, managing a small smile. "I just need a moment, which I'll have while you move us to the next plate."

"Okay then," the human replied with a smile of his own. He then turned off the torch and then placed it on the grating to his right, freeing his hands so that he could work the platform controls. Even as Alexis caught her breath, the repair platform moved as the large, pneumatic arm that supported it responded to Ito's guidance.

Alexis took the moment to remove the protective goggles she had been wearing so that she could rub her tired eyes. The pair had been doing the same work for the last two and a half hours, and despite the eyewear, the torch's intense flame had made Alexis' eyes squint almost shut every time. Not much like what you'd think a soldier's life would be like, she mused silently. Then she opened her eyes and looked around the 'mech cubicle, seeing that Tanaka and Stein were both working hard as well as they assisted the four dedicated technicians in their tasks. Still, it's nice to know that everyone's pitching in, and it's much better than just sitting around and waiting for something bad to happen.

She felt the platform jerk to a stop, and Ito turned his back to her as he bent over to retrieve the torch. "Eyes," he said, using the shorthand slang warning for people to protect their eyes. Alexis quickly replaced the dark goggles that had kept her retinas from becoming too damaged before, and once they were secure, she gave a thumb up to Ito, who then pointed to the next armor plate. Then he ignited the torch and went to work.

Alexis quickly leaned over just enough to grab the edge of the battered armor plate, thanking the Gods that the techs had found a good pair of thick gloves that could fit her small hands well enough. Another few minutes, and the plate came free, and Alexis again placed it on the small area set aside for the pieces.

"That's the last piece," Ito proclaimed as he shut off the torch and removed his goggles. Alexis followed suit and then looked at the oriental-descended man. "So, what's next then?"

Ito grunted. "Next, I'll need to examine the internal skeleton," he said, and gestured to the hole that the artillery shell had created. Although now it was larger, it looked slightly better with all of the twisted, bent, and blasted armor plates sliced off. "But for now, we could both use a breather." He then turned to the controls for the platform, and he quickly had it moved back to its 'docked' position; locked into the third level of the gantry.

Ito locked the controls, and then he turned to face Alexis. "After you," he said with a grin, as the platform was part of the starboard gantry, and thus the gatón was right in the path off of the narrow lift.

Alexis smirked at him. Then she turned and walked off of the platform, and Ito soon followed. Once on the main gantry, however, the tech used the extra space to slip past Alexis and gain the lead, moving for the elevator that would take the pair down to the main deck of the mech bay. Alexis followed him to the elevator. Soon the pair was standing in front of the wounded Guillotine IIC, looking up as two techs and Tanaka worked on the cockpit systems.

Alexis tilted her head a bit at the thought. 'Wounded?' Since when did I start to speak about machines in that manner? She wondered as she followed Ito to a low-slung transport cart, both sitting down on the now-empty bed of the cart. Just as she did sit, however, Alexis realized where the word had come from. I've heard Cassandra and the other MechWarriors speaking about their machines as if they were living things… And even the ship crewmen I've met here and on the Rodger Young speak of their ships having personality. She smirked a bit at the idea. It seems so silly, but then, who's to say they're wrong? Doesn't my own people's religion speak about spirits that inhabit things?

"Something funny?" Ito asked from where he sat next to the gatón. Alexis turned her head to look at him, but she found him staring up at the hole in the 70-ton 'mech's chest. "In a way," she said quietly, unsure if he was listening or not.

"In what way?" He asked, still looking at the 'mech, but now shifting his eyes along the length.

Alexis found it odd, but she dismissed it. He is Cassandra's personal tech, after all. He's probably worried as much as Cassandra is. "It's just… Interesting, the way your people talk of such complex machines as almost like they're real people."

Ito smiled at that, and he finally turned his head to look at Alexis. "Yeah, we're screwy like that," he said, and then turned to look at the 'mech again. He leaned back on the cart, putting his arms back to support his weight. "There's just somethin' about people that makes 'em want to give things a personality…" He shrugged as much as his position could allow. "But I dunno. I'm a tech, I know machines. You wanna know people, go talk to 'em."

Alexis smirked a bit. "Oh, you're a real help," she said sarcastically, though with enough tint in her voice to let Ito know she was joking. The latter simply chuckled a bit, and he continued to look up at the 'mech.

"Damn techies, always lazing about," came a voice from behind the pair, and they turned to see Commander Hernandez standing on the other side of the cart. Ito and Alexis quickly stood up and saluted him, which he returned quickly with a smirk. "So Ito, deciding to just take the rest of the day off?" He asked, still smirking.

"No sir," Ito replied. "Just taking a few minutes for a break."

Hernandez grunted. "Well, just don't let Captain Tanaka catch ya," he said with a wink. "You two take care now," he said, and then walked away.

Alexis let out a small breath. "I thought he was going to be angry."

Ito turned to her and smiled. "That's what I like about workin' on a small ship. The skipper's usually a decent chap, so long as you get your work done." He then sighed a bit and shook his head as he saw Hernandez walk along towards the gantry around the Guillotine IIC. "Not like a big ship. I don't think you could get me on the Rodger Young even if ya doubled my pay."

Alexis looked at Ito quizzically. "Really? It doesn't seem that much different here on the Pagoda than it is on the Young."

Ito shrugged. "Well, maybe it seems that way to you because you haven't seen as much of a ship's routine as I have," he said and then started off for the gantry. Alexis followed as he continued. "In any case, the skipper runs this ship pretty low-key. He doesn't care what goes on, so long as nothing's broken, stolen, and you get all your work done."

Alexis nodded at that. "When you put it that way, I do notice that some things are different," she replied. Then she frowned a bit. "But if it's nice that way, then how come ships like the Rodger Young aren't run the same way?"

Ito turned his head and gave her a look. Then he blinked and nodded to her. "I was about to ask you something rude, but then I remembered where you're from," he said with a smile as they approached the elevator at the rear of the gantry.

Alexis twitched an ear down in puzzlement. "I don't understand. How does being from somewhere different matter?"

Ito sighed. "I remember you tellin' me about your village. A nice, small one, from what you told me."

Alexis nodded as they reached the elevator and climbed on. "Yes, only a few hundred people."

"So you pretty much knew everybody, right?" Ito asked as he pressed the button for the mid-level and the elevator began to move upwards. "Or if not everybody, you at least knew someone from their family?"

Alexis nodded. "Yes, pretty much."

"Well, there ya go," Ito said as the small carriage stopped at their destination. "Basically, if someone did something bad, or just plain stupid, it'd get around to everyone right quick," he said as he opened the small safety door to the elevator and then walked off, heading for the repair platform. Alexis trailed behind, but her ears were focused forward and so she caught every word.

"I am not sure how I see the connection," she replied as they reached the platform and Ito began to lift the pieces of armor plating off of the smaller platform and onto a small, cargo elevator – one of two on the gantry, a one to each flank Alexis quickly bent over and pitched in.

"Well, you remember Neo Tokyo, right?" He asked, as they worked, and Alexis spared him a nod. "Well, do you think that a person in that city knows everyone else, or even their family?"

Alexis paused as she laid the last armor plate onto the lift, and then she looked up at Ito. "I suppose not if there are as many people in that city as doctor van Horn said there were."

Ito nodded. "I'm sure he told you the right number. Anyway, the point is," he paused for a second to walk onto the movable platform, and Alexis followed. "The point is that people, when they're in a small group, seek to work to gain each other's respect, or at least are kept in line by the fact that people know who they are, depending on just how good that man or woman is."

Ito took a moment to activate the platform and send it moving up towards the gaping hole in the Guillotine IIC's chest before going on. "In a larger group of people, however, anonymity tends to sap people's will, as people think 'why work so hard when no body knows, anyway?' Not to mention, it makes a cloak which the lower dregs of society use to get away with things that would never happen in a smaller group of people."

Alexis frowned as the platform came to a stop. "Well, I can certainly understand that from what Mikula has told me about living in his city, and from what I've seen strangers do to those they don't know," she said cautiously as Ito took out a flashlight and began to look over the internal structure of the 'mech. "But I've been told military life is very different from civilian life."

Ito nodded, though he continued to stare at the wrecked structural members. "It is, but it's not all that different, else regular people couldn't adapt to it and make a career out of it," he said as he reached down to the control panel with a hand and moved the platform another decimeter closer to the 'mech's chest. "In this case, discipline is needed for larger ships, because otherwise we'd just revert back to being like normal civilians, and then nothin' would get done."

Alexis blinked a few times to think this over. "So, what you're saying, is that in a larger group of people, more discipline is needed to keep everyone working together, as opposed to them working against each other?"

Ito paused in his inspection, and then he turned his head to look at Alexis. "You nailed it right on the head there," he said, his voice almost incredulous. Then he smiled and nodded towards the gatón. "Anyway, you're correct. A small group of people don't need as much discipline 'cuz they can more easily arrive at a mutual decision. But the more people you add in, the more complicated it gets." He then turned his head back to the task of inspecting the 'mech's skeleton. "And the more complicated it gets, the easier it is for things to break down and for malicious people to slip through the cracks and exploit the system."

Alexis nodded. "I think I see. Thank you, Takashi."

He shrugged. "Don't thank me yet. I'm a tech, not a professor. I'd talk it over with that doctor friend of yours first before you settle your mind on anything."

Alexis smiled lightly. "I will. So anyway," she said and gestured to the twisted frames of the 'mech they stood before. "How does it look in there?"

Ito grunted, as he moved the flashlight's beam from spot to spot. "Well, it looks better than I thought it would. Most of the blast was absorbed and deflected by the armor, and it seems that the damage inside is confined mainly to the armor support framework, rather than to any central supports."

Alexis blinked a bit as the words rolled over her. "And what does that mean, exactly?"

Ito chuckled as he turned off the flashlight and looked at Alexis. "It means that Captain Tanaka's 'mech is goin' to be fixed in two days at the rate we're movin' at."

The next day dawned over the Hercor plains, illuminating the area transformed by the arrival of the humans. The bright light from the planet's G9V type star touched the towering bulks of the Republic's DropShips that sat around the newly finished airfield, bathing them in brilliance.

Mikula watched the misleadingly beautiful scene from the back of his family's new house in Shulana, having spent the night there on a quick pass from Major Kujira. The Major had wanted to give the lupar some time to unwind from his last mission, and also to visit with his family, since his next assignment could take him away for an even longer amount of time.

That, and we both know that I might not come back at all, Mikula thought, letting a morbid feeling pass over him. It was soon gone in a moment, however, and he sighed. I can't let myself think like that. If I do, it will eat me up inside and I won't be an asset, but a liability. He smirked ruefully. Besides, if I were truly that worried, then I shouldn't have volunteered.

His mother had been predictably worried over his next mission, especially in light of what had happened to him in Tanzano. Just seeing my wound made her almost want to cry, Mikula knew. She's endured so much lately, thinking me, then Senmar lost, and then Pavlo and I leaving for so long, then the stress of building up a new town and then having it attacked… Mikula sighed, and he closed his eyes and shook his head. It seems we are cursed to live interesting lives.

A noise from the back of the house aroused him from his thoughts, and Mikula turned to see his mother walk out from the back door to the small building. "Hello, mother," he said to her as she walked up.

"Hello, Mikula," Tiana replied. "You're up earlier than usual. I hope you managed to get enough sleep last night?"

Mikula couldn't help but smile a bit at his mother's worry. "I did. I just like to get up earlier now."

Tiana smiled back. "Well, it's nice to see that our human friends have gotten you to learn a few good habits," she said amusedly, causing Mikula to blush a bit.

"Well, I suppose that anything is possible," he replied and grinned lopsidedly.

"Indeed," Tiana replied with a nod. "Pavlo's matured, and even Senmar seems to have lost some of his hotheadedness."

Mikula nodded back. "Well, Senmar and I had a few talks," he said sheepishly.

Tiana gave her son a look. "I'll bet you have. You were always the most vocal one, you know," she spoke and then smiled, causing Mikula to blush again. Then she turned serious. "You were also always the one to go off and do something that seemed to lack common sense, as well."

Mikula sighed. "Mother, please, I know you're worried-"

"It's not that Mikula," Tiana interrupted. Then she turned and looked out over at the DropShips sitting on or near the airfield to the north. "I'm always worried; a mother's bane." She looked at Mikula and smiled a bit to show that she was at least half-joking. Then the smile disappeared. "It's just that things have changed so much lately. Places, people, even the very things we once thought we knew." She turned back to the north and sighed. "You and Pavlo have changed the most of all. Sometimes I wonder if I'll wake up one day and find you two have forgotten me."

Mikula shook his head. "That will never happen, mother, I can assure you."

"I know, I know," Tiana replied. "It's just all this change is making me so wary. Everything new almost feels as if it's one change too many." She paused to sigh and shake her head again. "Not to mention all this fighting and death we've all seen. It makes me want to just lay down and cry."

The brittle tone of Tiana's voice told Mikula just how close to the truth this was. "Mother, please," he said haltingly, trying to find the right words. "I won't- I mean, I-" He stopped and sighed explosively. "I can't just not do this. People are counting on me to help them. Not to mention the many other people across the entire world who will be helped by the removal of the Wobbies from our planet."

Tiana tilted her head down. "Mikula, I know what a soldier's life entails. Your father spoke of it often when he was home. And his long absences said just as much when he was away." She looked up at her son, as he stood about a centimeter taller than her. "It is blood, and death, and the risk of not coming home again." Her voice faltered, and she turned her head away. "I don't want what happened to your father to happen to you. And especially, I don't want it happening to Alexis."

Mikula felt almost stricken when his mother used the gatón's name. "Don't bring her into this," he said, toning his voice down a bit. "She knows what kind of life I've led, what kind of life I lead now."

"That's not why I mentioned her," Tiana said as she turned to look at Mikula. "You didn't see her, when she thought you dead that night we arrived at Hercor. The way she seemed almost haunted, and that was before you two have gotten close." She then drew her arms up and crossed them. "Unless what you've been telling me is a lie?"

Mikula felt his ears go back in both embarrassment and anger. "You know I wouldn't lie to you, not about something that important to me!"

Tiana nodded. "Then you must know how much it would devastate her if you didn't come back… How it would devastate all of us," she said, the last part gently. "That kind of pain is almost unbearable. If I didn't have you and your brothers and sister to take care of, I… I don't know what I would have done." She said, and Mikula could see tears at the corner of her eyes. "And then this damned war started, where I first thought I'd lost you, and then Senmar, almost on the same day. I couldn't stand it anymore, Mikula, I couldn't stand sitting there, waiting for the army to take Kanu and Pavlo away as well.

"And so I left, and many others did." She paused, and then sniffed. "The Gods seem to have alternately blessed and cursed us since that day, and I can't help but thinking that now that we've been blessed again, finding you and Senmar still alive," Tiana paused and turned to wave towards the ships to the north. "And you bring such powerful, helpful friends in tow. I can't help but worry that soon the Gods will again seek to take from us, and I worry that it will be you."

Several moments passed then, with Tiana looking northwest, not really at the DropShips, but instead towards the forest. Mikula just stood there staring at his mother for several moments, before he turned his head and looked at he ground. "Mom… I know what kind of pain you speak of," he said, and then paused to catch his breath.

"When we rode off to find and stop the Kurrnaki, we had to take Alexis along. When we got to where we were going, we had a large fight and-" His voice choked up a bit. "And Alexis was hurt. Very, very badly hurt."

He took a moment to control his emotions as Tiana turned to face him. "The same weapon that wounded me that dark night, the same kind reached out and tore into her." He tightened his hands into fists and he screwed his eyes shut. "I grabbed her, held her in my arms, and felt the life begin to drain from her. If it wasn't for the timely arrival of van Horn's people, then she would surely have died that day." Emotion finally choked off his voice, and Mikula stood there quietly as he fought the pain-filled memories.

"Oh, Mikula," Tiana said gently and Mikula felt her step close, drawing him into the kind of hug that all mothers reserve for their children, no matter what their age. "I had no idea. You both mentioned that battle, but you never talked much about it."

"I know," Mikula said as he returned the embrace. "We don't speak of it much, because it's so painful." They both drew away from each other then, and Mikula opened his eyes, and he rubbed them a bit with the back of one hand. "But it happened. Both Alexis and I know what it's like, to feel the loss of someone we care about so very much…" His voice drifted off, and Mikula turned to look over towards the rising sun.

"Then you know of what I speak," Tiana said quietly. "What it's like."

Mikula bent his head down and closed his eyes. "Why did you let us become soldiers then, mother, if you knew so much about that pain?"

Tiana didn't reply, and so Mikula turned his head up and looked at his mother, only to see her with her head bent down much as his was a moment before. "I didn't really 'let' you," she said quietly. "Soldiering is in your blood. You and Kanu especially were old enough to know your father decently well, and you would have chosen his profession no matter what I said. And Pavlo and Senmar would have followed, eventually."

Mikula sighed, causing his mother to bring her head up to look at him. "Mother, that's not the whole truth, and we both know it," he said gently. "You regaled us with tales that father told you of past battles. You let us visit the Laughing Daukner and talk to the soldiers on leave who would go there, and you seemed happy when each one of us finished our training." He paused for a moment to collect his thoughts. "Why the change of heart now?"

Tiana sighed again. "It's not really…" She said quietly. "I was and still am proud of you. Proud of all of you, and all that you've done." She turned and looked at her son again. "But I'm also so weary of seeing you go out and risk your lives."

"But you know why we must do that," Mikula replied. "The pain Alexis and I felt before, seeing what we had thought to be each other's death. The pain of the attack that first night, of the blasting of Kuamket and everything since…" He paused to catch his breath. "What we've done, what we're going to do, it must be done. Not for glory or wealth, but because by doing it, we can prevent that pain from being revisited again and again upon everyone else.

"Pavlo, Alexis and I all know this. So does Kanu, Senmar… And so did Father," Mikula's voice faltered a bit at the last. "We choose this life, to go out and risk our lives, to even loose them if necessary, so that others need not fear for theirs. We do it because it's right." Even as he spoke, he heard the eerie echo of van Horn's voice from within his memories. "Because others can't do what we can do, don't know what we know. It's our responsibility."

Time seemed to stand still for a moment, despite the fact that Mikula could pick out the movement of vehicles in the distance. Then his mother spoke quietly. "Mikula… I hope you know that you've made me so very proud today."

Mikula blinked in surprise. "Wh-what?"

Tiana smiled at his confusion. "Don't get me wrong, I still am not happy you're leaving," she said and dropped the smile. "But now, at least, I am sure that you're doing it for the right reasons.

"I know you've matured much lately," Tiana continued, and she turned to walk a few paces further from the house. "But even then, I wanted to make sure that you still don't have those ridiculous images of glory and fame that some people in the army nurture until they end up dying on the battlefield." She sighed again "I know I should have more faith in you, but sometimes the allure of such cheap rewards is too great."

Mikula took a step towards her. "I can assure you, mother, all of those kinds of thoughts were burned out of me that night on the Tanzano plains."

Tiana turned and smiled at her son. "I'm glad to hear it," she said softly. Then she walked over and quickly hugged Mikula again. "You just do your best to come back."

"I will mother," Mikula replied as he hugged her back. "I will."

Alexis sat down on the ramp of the dropship Silver Pagoda that led from the ship's 'mech bay to the ground. The evening air was cool and clean, and a slight breeze blew from the northwest to waft the smell of the river towards the landed Republic ships. Alexis took a deep breath of the scent, relishing it despite the bitter hint of dead fish that rode upon it. It's a nice change of pace from the oil, grease, and burnt metal smells of the dropship, she thought tiredly. Everyone's been working on Cassandra's mech almost nonstop since last night.

She turned her head to the left, and Alexis easily peered into the yawning opening in the side of the 1,900-ton dropship. Inside, the lights of the 'mech bay easily showed the 70-ton Guillotine IIC standing within the framework of its repair gantry. The front of the 'mech was all fixed up, and it only lacked a coat of paint on top of the new armor plating that sat on the 'mech's right chest. Behind it, though, Alexis could see the movement of several people, including one in an exoskeleton.

Replacing the Gyro already, I see, she thought. They work quickly, though I wonder why they didn't ask me for help? Just as soon as she finished posing the question, though, a voice answered it. Because it's a lot more technical and sensitive than the work you can do. You'd be more a hindrance than any help.

Alexis wanted to feel bad at that, but instead, she felt a vague sense of relief. I guess they're not the only ones who would worry about me helping with that, she thought with a wry smile. I can't really blame them. It's all very complicated to me, and I haven't had the education needed. And if there's one thing all this training has taught me, it is that a person can do significant harm with machinery if he or she is ignorant of its proper use.

She turned her head then and looked straight ahead, watching the northern horizon darken as twilight faded into dark night. To the north, she knew, lay several more lupar cities… And in them, the enemy. Such terrible cost it might take to remove them, Alexis thought sadly. Earl spoke of 'urban warfare' enough to convince Pavlo, Mikula and I that it would be a last resort. But with all that's happened, with all the Wobbies' horrific actions… Will it be the only resort?

The sounds of metal hinges moving interrupted Alexis' train of thought, and she turned her head to look over her shoulder and at the city gate that sat just distant enough to avoid the backlash of a fusion-powered takeoff. Sure enough, the large gates were being pulled open from the inside via chains and pulleys, and Alexis could make out the forms of city guards moving to take positions just outside of the gatehouse.

Odd, I wonder what they're up to? Alexis mused silently as she stood up so that she could turn and watch the scene comfortably. She caught some movement from near the base of the Silver Pagoda, but she forced herself to remain calm, as she knew it to be only one of the soldiers from the 3rd Platoon under another ghillie suit. It seems I'm not the only one whose curiosity is piqued.

Alexis' attention was again drawn to the guards as someone walked out from the small phalanx of guards near the gate. The darkness hid the exact identity of the lupar, as it did to the other two who soon joined him. Then the three turned and headed towards the dropship, albeit at a slow pace.

With that, Alexis turned and walked at a fast pace into the cavernous 'mech bay, heading for the repair gantry around Tanaka's 'Guillotine IIC. She stopped about a meter beyond the forward most abutment of scaffolding, raised her hands to her muzzle, and then called out. "Captain!"

Tanaka looked up from where she had been supervising the installation of her 'mech's new gyro. The look on her face was sour, but Alexis didn't let it get to her, as she knew how worried the human was with the 'health' of her ride. "What is it?" Tanaka called back.

"Visitors from the city! They look official!" Alexis had to cry out then to be heard over the din of torches being lit up, and she averted her eyes, as she didn't have any welding glasses.

Although her vision was protected, Alexis could use her ears well enough to hear the clattering of Tanaka's boot-shod feet as she moved along the metal catwalk. Soon, the clattering changed, and then stopped, as Tanaka climbed down a ladder and then reached the main deck.

Alexis turned to look, wary to keep a hand in the line of sight between the welding and her eyes. She saw Tanaka approaching, the sour look still dominating her features, though the glint of curiosity shone in her eyes. "So, what do we got?"

"Looks like three lupar from the city," Alexis said, and then she paused, as she had to catch up with Tanaka as the latter walked right on past the gatón, heading for the open ramp/door. "I figure they must be decently important to merit opening the city gate," Alexis added as she caught up.

Tanaka nodded as the two walked down the ramp. "Good. Hopefully, it's a message from that council we met the other night."

"Such were my thoughts," Alexis replied as thy reached the bottom of the ramp and paused to let their eyes adjust to the lower light of the evening. "Although, I admit that I am a bit worried that they took so long."

Tanaka grunted and shrugged. "Such is the nature of a bureaucracy."

"I suppose," Alexis said dubiously. She now could squint and make out the image of the three lupar as they closed the distance.

Tanaka made an amused sound. "Didn't no one tell you 'bout committees, Alexis?"

The gatón glanced at Tanaka. "No…"

"A Committee is an organism with twenty feet, ten stomachs, and no brain," Tanaka relayed the old joke with a smile.

Alexis, however, just looked at the human quizzically. "I don't understand; the council had twelve people, not ten."

"I'll explain later," Tanaka replied as the three lupar cautiously halted about five meters from the two waiting for them. She then nudged Alexis, who shook her head to clear it of the vague imagery of Tanaka's joke, and then spoke. "Please, approach. No one will challenge you."

The three lupar hesitated a bit, but the one in the lead soon started forward, and when he wasn't annihilated, the other two followed. As they pulled closer and the light from the 'mech bay spilled over their features, Alexis easily recognized their leader as the commander of the gate from two nights ago.

The lupar, Nukarra, squinted a bit as the light made his eyes readjust. Then he blinked them clear and nodded at Alexis. "So, we meet again," he said with a hint of a smile on his muzzle.

"Indeed we do," Alexis returned neutrally. "My apologies if I seem rude, but it is getting late, and it would be quite nice of you to arrive at the point of your visit."

Nukarra blinked a bit in surprise, and one of the lupar behind him stifled a grin. "Well, aren't you the impatient one?"

Alexis blushed a bit at that. "As I said, I apologize if I offend, but time is not a commodity to spend unwisely at the moment."

Nukarra nodded at that. "I have been on campaigns before, so I can sympathize," he said gently, and Alexis felt her opinion towards the lupar climb up a bit. "So to get to the point, I have the council's decision."

Alexis nodded, but she also held up a hand towards Nukarra while she turned her head to look at Tanaka. "He has the ruling council's decision. Should we wait and have Sergeant Renard or Commander Hernandez listen as well?"

Tanaka shrugged. "It doesn't matter too much. I'm here, they trust my word, and I trust yours." She paused and smiled a bit as Alexis blushed lightly at the compliment. "And in any case, Renard will get an earful anyway," she said, lightly gesturing towards the rear of the three lupar. Alexis glanced that way, and she worked to keep a grin off of her face as she noticed that the armored trooper who had been sitting next to the Silver Pagoda had crept silently to stand behind the new arrivals.

"What is it?" Nukarra asked as he saw Alexis' face change expression. The gatón, however, just shook her head a bit. "I'm sorry, I was translating for my friend and she said something vaguely amusing." Not entirely untrue, as she did say something that led to my amusement, she rationalized. "So, what is the council's decision?"

Nukarra reached into a bag he carried on his right hip, and he pulled out a roll of paper that Alexis recognized easily as a scroll. She also saw the man in the Marauder armor shift slightly, but he obviously recognized the parchment for what it was as well, for he did nothing but shift on his feet again, causing the ghillie suit to sway a bit in the breeze.

Then Alexis' attention was brought back to Nukarra as he began to speak. "'The Ruling Council of Tanzano, guiding light of the city, paragons of-'" He paused, and then gave Alexis a look. "Do you want to full, florid prose, or just the real message?"

Alexis favored him with a wide smile. "The real message, or the 'meat' as my friends here would call it."

Nukarra nodded a bit, and he read over the scroll a bit before lowering it. "Basically, the council has denied your use of Tanzano or any area around it for you to use, and they want you gone 'at your earliest convenience.'"

Alexis blinked hard at that, and she was silent for a few moments. Then Tanaka nudged her and spoke. "Alexis, what is it? You look like you've seen a ghost."

Alexis turned her head to look at the human. "The council denied our request. We're to leave as soon as we can."

Tanaka stood there for a moment, her face impassive. Then she nodded. "Well, we tried, Alexis. You can lead a horse to water, but you can't make him drink."

Alexis tilted an ear down in puzzlement. "What?"

"Nevermind," Tanaka replied with a shake of her head. "Just tell 'em that that's fine. We'll be gone by this time tomorrow."

Alexis nodded slowly, and she turned back to look at Nukarra. "We understand. Please inform your superiors that we shall leave by this time tomorrow evening." The two guard lupar standing behind Nukarra relaxed visibly. Undoubtedly because they won't have to face us in a fight, she realized.

"Well, I cannot say I agree with the council's decision, but I thank you for not wanting to take issue with it," Nukarra said as he rolled up the scroll. "Do you wish to read this parchment so as to confirm what I've said?"

Alexis hesitated for a second. "Not to read, for I find no reason to doubt your word, but others would like to have it simply so that there is a proper record," she replied with a slight bow of her head towards the lupar.

Nukarra nodded and he held out the scroll, which Alexis took from his hands quickly. "I understand. Now, I beg your leave, for the Council expects a report from me as soon as possible."

Alexis nodded. "Of course. And please, if you can, relay our wishes of peace and prosperity to your council for us," she said with a small smile. "We shall not hold them in any great dishonor for their decision."

Nukarra nodded. "I thank you, miss," he replied, and then nodded towards Tanaka, who returned the gesture. "Have a good evening," he said, and then turned around, prompting his soldiers to follow suit.

…Only to startle in place as they laid eyes on the imposing bulk of a trooper in Marauder armor standing perfectly still behind them. Alexis watched as their ears and shoulders slumped down in sudden fright for a few seconds. Then they seemed to recover, helped along by chuckling from Tanaka and Alexis.

Nukarra turned around, and Alexis gave him a sheepish smile. "My apologies, but my friends here have a strange sense of humor," she said to him, and then changed languages and looked at Tanaka. "They're just going to head back now."

Tanaka nodded at the gatón, and then she turned her head to look at the armored trooper. "It's okay, son, let 'em go."

"Yes sir," the man replied, and he took a wide step to the back and his left, clearing a direct line path to the gate for the lupar. Nukarra watched this, and then he turned his head back and looked at Alexis. "Well played, and thank you." He said, and then turned and walked off for the gate. He strode purposefully, uncowed by the armored human, causing his two guards to quickly skitter around the infantryman so they could catch up to him.

Alexis watched them go, and then sighed as they reached the gate. "And I thought that I did well the other night…" She muttered in English for Tanaka's benefit.

The MechWarrior laid a friendly hand on Alexis' left shoulder. "You did do good," she said gently. "Sometimes, though, even our best isn't enough. You just have to accept that and move on."

Alexis looked at Tanaka and nodded. "That sounds true enough," she said quietly as Tanaka removed her hand. "So, what now?"

"Now, we go up to the bridge and report this directly to Major Kujira. Then, I'm headin' back to the 'mech bay and fixin' my ride before we leave."

Mikula felt strange as he clasped the cooling vest over his bare, furred chest. The ballistic cloth of the vest felt more unusual to him than any other human-made article he had worn thus far, and it was especially so with the weight of the coolant inside pulling down on his shoulders. It's almost like the armor I used to wear back when I was in the Tanzano army, he thought as the last clasp fit snugly together.

He was standing inside the 'mech bay of the USS Ronnie Cordova, the Leopard-class dropship that had carried Lieutenant Williams' lance across the stars, and now sat to the side of the new airfield. Around him were Sergeant Peter Nguyen, one of the MechWarriors of Williams' lance, his personal tech, and Lieutenant Williams himself. They were helping him to become familiar with the new equipment that he would need to use if he was to ride along in one of the Marauders' battlemechs.

"How's it feel?" Asked Nguyen's tech, and Mikula looked over at him. "Good. A little heavy, but it's seated fine now."

The man nodded. "Glad to hear it. It was a pain in the ass to adjust that for ya, so if you think there's anything wrong with it now, you'd better tell me while I still have everything ready."

Mikula frowned a bit, and he twisted a bit in several directions as he tried to find some common position of his body that could either undo the bindings on the upper part of the vest, or that would overly restrict him. "No, I dare say that it's as close to perfect as can be expected."

The tech smirked a bit. "Good. Now," he turned and looked at Williams. "If I ain't needed anymore sir?"

Williams nodded to him. "Thanks for your help, Smitty. Go take a load off."

Smitty smiled and he sketched a casual salute to Williams and Nguyen before he turned and entered the doorway in the bulkhead that Mikula stood near. The lupar and the other two humans watched him go before turning back to each other again. "Sorry 'bout Smitty," Nguyen commented after the door hatch closed. "He's a gruff one."

Mikula shrugged a bit. "I does not matter, as I take no offense," he replied. Then he bent his head down and looked over the front of the gray-colored vest, noting the small pockets sewn into the outer fabric and the loops that were there for MechWarriors to fit their biomonitor cables through. "It is a bit heavy, though."

Williams nodded as Mikula looked back up. "Yeah. Unfortunately, none of our cooling suits will fit your tail or legs, so we're stuck with the old tech the Guard gets," he said with a shrug. "Still, your friend with Tanaka seemed to not be too badly affected, and we'll be stickin' you with John in his cool-runnin' Hellbringer II, so it shouldn't matter too much."

Mikula nodded back. "Very well. I suppose I'm ready then."

"So I figured," Williams added with a faint smile. Then he turned his head and looked at Nguyen. "John, I'm gonna saddle up. You take care of mister Farkas here."

"Yes sir," Nguyen responded. Then he saluted Williams, who returned the gesture and then walked off through the cramped 'mech bay, heading for his own battlemech.

Nguyen watched him walk away for a bit before he turned back to Mikula and crossed his arms. "So, you got everything packed in that bag of yours?" He asked and gestured to the duffle bag lying next to Mikula's feet.

The lupar nodded again. "Yes sir. I have everything that I need."

"Good," Nguyen commented. "Well, let's get goin' then," he said, and then turned and started to walk off. Mikula quickly leaned over and grabbed his bag and the infantry helmet that he had been given back on New Honshu. He put the latter on top of his head, and the former he hefted up carefully, wary as he was of the weight. If I'm going to be riding in one of these large things, then why do I need to take my infantry armor along?

He banished the thought then, as Nguyen was drawing further away, and Mikula quickly moved off after the human, snaking through the various support gantries and equipment that crowded the 'mech bay of the Cordova. Unlike the Silver Pagoda and other Confederate-class DropShips assigned to the National Guard, the Ronnie Cordova didn't have her fighter bays removed for greater internal space. Thus, the space allocated for the four battlemechs of Williams' lance was much less than the comparatively large bay aboard the Pagoda.

Mikula acutely felt that size difference, as he had to be careful to squeeze his duffle and himself through the small spaces between machinery. Humans are so much larger, so how does Nguyen move so easily? Mikula asked himself as he headed aft. Then his thoughts stalled as he aught up with Nguyen and stood before the human's 'mech.

The Hellbringer II was the Republic's re-engineering of a Clan omnimech. Whereas the clan version sported massive amounts of pod space, but little else, the Republic had refitted the chassis to carry huge amounts of armor and equipment. Thus, the 65-ton omnimech looked like a bulkier version of its clan progenitor, but any pilot mistaking it for the thin-skinned clan 'mech would receive a terrible shock.

Mikula, of course, didn't know nor think about this. All he could do was gaze in awe at the ten-meter war machine as it stood in its own service gantry. The bay door to Mikula's left was already open. Though he couldn't see outside due to the darkness of night, but the lack of any outside illumination only served to heighten the foreboding appearance of the battlemech.

"Glad to see you appreciate a good machine," Nguyen said from Mikula's side, breaking the lupar from his reverie. Mikula turned and nodded at Nguyen. "Indeed. It's impressive, to say the least." He then turned and looked back up at the machine again. "It looks more fierce than most others I've seen."

Nguyen chuckled slightly, bringing the lupar's head down once again. "Well, the appearance was designed by the Clans to inspire fright into their opponents."

"Well, it certainly works, I think, since I'm not an enemy and even I'm intimidated," Mikula replied as he looked over the machine again. "It looks… Deadly."

Nguyen smiled broadly as Mikula looked over at the human again. "I'm glad you agree. Now," he gestured to the small gantry elevator to their right. "Let's go saddle up." With that, Nguyen walked over to the small platform, and Mikula followed right after.

The next few minutes were spent in mostly silence – or as silent as one could get with the noises of the lance's other three 'mechs starting up and techs making last minute checks. Mikula had long ago grown accustomed to the constant din in which humans tended to surround themselves, but the cacophony of a 'mech bay in full swing was starting to annoy him.

Then the elevator stopped, and the two walked out onto the catwalk that led to the back of the 'mech's cockpit. Nguyen walked out first, and he was inside the small space before Mikula could catch up. The latter paused at the entrance to the cockpit to let his eyes adjust to the far dimmer lighting inside the control area, and he was astounded at the array of controls. It's almost like the controls to one of their ships.

Nguyen was just sitting in his command chair, and he spared a moment from his start up routine to glance at Mikula. "The jump seat's over there," he said, gesturing to a small, slightly off-color panel set into the rear-left wall of the cockpit. Mikula saw that it had a latch at the top, and he stepped inside to work at it. Soon, he was sitting in the seat, holding his duffle bag and watching Nguyen as the human worked to attach the biosensor leads and power and coolant couplings to his Republic-issue cooling suit. Then he remembered about his duffle, and he quickly stood up and went to secure it in the cargo netting at the back of the cockpit, right next to Nguyen's own pack.

Mikula had just returned to his seat and buckled in when Nguyen turned and looked at him – somewhat uneasily as the MechWarrior had already put on his neurohelmet. "You buckled up yet?"

"I was about to, yes," Mikula replied, and he did as he said, pulling the straps together and fastening them.

"Okay then," Nguyen commented. "Could you do me a favor real quick?"

"Of course," Mikula replied with a quick nod.

"Ya see that lever to your left?" He asked, pointing with his left hand to a large and red two-pronged lever. "Pull it down and then use that latch at the bottom to lock it."

"All right," Mikula said and then he turned in his seat. He found the lever a bit harder to pull than it seemed at first, but soon he managed to get it all the way down, where it locked into place by itself with a 'click' noise. As soon as it did, a rumbling began beneath the cockpit, deep within the bowels of the 'mech.

"Thanks," Nguyen commented without looking as he typed in his passcode into the control console's keyboard.

"You're welcome," Mikula responded easily as he used the heavy-duty latch on the wall to lock the lever down. "But what did that do?"

"That's the reactor switch. By puttin' it into the 'on' position, you started the engine," Nguyen said as his holographic HUD popped into view between him and the cockpit's ferroglass screen. "So we got power now."

"I see," Mikula commented as Nguyen ran through the last startup checks. Amazing, he thought. Earl told me that they use the same power as the sun inside their engines, and yet it turns on at the flick of a switch.

Then Nguyen spoke, brining Mikula's attention back to the present. "Could you turn on your helmet radio so that the comm suite can add it into the network?"

"Certainly," Mikula replied and he quickly reached up to flick the small knob on the underside of the helmet's edge. The cackle of the radio's speaker near his right ear then intruded upon his consciousness, and then wavered as the microchips in the set and the communications gear in the Hellbringer II aligned their codes automatically. The cackle soon died, and all Mikula heard from the speaker were the sounds of the 'mech lance's common frequency.

"…So this girl starts grinding' on me, and I'm all 'what the fuck?'" Came the voice of a man who he recognized as the lance's Summoner II pilot.

"Cut the chatter, Fred, Harry." Williams' voice washed over the gruff laughter of the lance's fourth member. "Everybody ready to get goin' yet, or are y'all still strokin' your throttles?"

"Whiskey Four is good to go," came the voice of Harold Ferguson, the lance's Mad Dog II pilot.

"Whiskey three is ready to rock," Fred Jeffries' voice came next.

Mikula saw Nguyen blink oddly, and he realized that he must've used the eye-driven communications software that he'd heard about. "This is Whiskey Two, standin' by Ell-tee."

"Glad to see y'all ain't drunk," Williams commented after everyone was done. "Stand by for clearance, then form up three hundred meters north. That's the one with the big 'N' Harry."

Laughter from Nguyen and Jeffries rolled through the frequency at the crack, and it was met by low grumbling from Ferguson. Then it was cut off as they all could hear the raucous clatter of the 'mech bay's alarms ringing through their cockpits. Mikula heard it as well, and he looked out of the Hellbringer II's canopy to see yellow rotating lights flashing throughout the bay.

A moment passed in quiet anticipation before they heard a fifth voice on the unit's frequency. "Captain Delaney to Whiskey lance," came the voice of the Cordova's captain. "Y'all're clear to debark. Good luck boys, and bring me back somethin' to hang over the mess hall door."

Williams chuckled as he replied. "Will do cap'n," he said, and then his voice changed back into his normal tenor. "Okay boys, let's move."

With that, Nguyen pressed the throttle on his command couch's arm forward, and the 65-ton 'mech lurched forward. Mikula reached down and gripped the edges of the jump seat in much the same way Alexis had during her first ride atop a walking tank.

It only took a few multi-meter strides for the Hellbringer the march out of the side of the Ronnie Cordova and then walk down the ramp to the ground below. The heavy thuds of the diamond-tread feet on the ferrocrete of the airfield reverberated up through the skeleton, which let Mikula feel every jolt as the war machine moved under Nguyen's direction. Despite the swaying movements, Mikula managed to keep watch out the forward view screen as the Hellbringer turned and walked towards the rear of the Cordova, eventually clearing the large tail of the aerodynamic craft.

Nguyen pressed a control, and soon the HUD changed color as light-enhancement was added to the display. Mikula squinted a bit to make out the images on the holographic projection, which took some getting used to as it compressed the full 360 degree view from around the 'mech into a 180 degree arc. Ahead, he managed to make out the two images of Ferguson's Mad Dog and Williams' Timber Wolf striding forward at a leisurely pace. Another image off to the side of the HUD showed Jeffries' Summoner moving out of the Leopard-class dropship and making its turn to follow Nguyen's 'mech.

"Enjoying the ride so far?" Nguyen asked Mikula without turning his head, though he did mute their microphones first.

"If by enjoying, you mean that I feel ready to jump out, then yes," Mikula replied with a half-hearted joke.

Nguyen chuckled a bit. "Well, get used to it, 'cuz things are just gonna get worse from here on out."

Mikula rolled his eyes, though Nguyen couldn't see it. "Great," he muttered sarcastically.

The next day came and went, and soon Alexis found herself again sitting in the cockpit of Tanaka's Guillotine IIC as the 70-ton mech walked away from Tanzano, along a trade road that led to the north. Night was just falling, and Tanaka had turned on the spotlight on top of her machine to scan the road ahead as she led the procession of Oni lance and the tanks of Peterson's Checker lance.

Alexis still didn't understand why the Tanzano Ruling Council had denied their use of the area, but true to their word, the Republic was leaving on their request. Tanaka had spent over an hour in conversation with Major Kujira, Lieutenants Williams and Vickers, and with Captain Ladavic. When she had emerged again from the bridge of the Silver Pagoda, she had called all the personnel from the various ground forces and informed them of their new plan.

"We're gonna move north," Tanaka had said. "We'll move along the plains, lettin' the navy aerojocks give us cover along the way, and that'll grab the Blakests' attention while Whiskey lance moves through the forests and begins to pick off some of the Wobbies' outlying' encampments."

Which makes us a big target, Alexis knew. The idea made her nervous, but she did her best to not let it get to her. We've been targets since the Republic landed at Hercor. The attempted nuclear attack and the raid on the Silver Pagoda the other day are proof of it. Still, the idea of willingly making oneself a bigger, open target was somewhat unusual to her, having instincts that matched her camouflaged fur pattern. Her recent martial training had further drilled it into her that to be seen was not a good idea, and so the almost casual way in which the forces under Tanaka marched north seemed to her a very strange sight indeed.

Still, it's not like we'll be totally alone, Alexis reminded herself. Like Tanaka said, we'll have aerospace fighters nearby almost constantly, and the Vanquishers can ride down whenever we need help

The thought of the Mobile Infantry platoon above gave Alexis a vague feeling of homesickness. How odd, she thought. I don't think I've really felt homesick since… Well, since the caravan from Kuamket. She frowned as this new piece of data entered her consciousness. I guess that since then, I've been so busy… Dealing with attacks, helping the wounded, the time I thought Mikula and Earl were dead, she paused to control her feelings at that memory. And then all that happened around Hercor, then the trip away and fighting the Wobbies at that village… And then waking up on some strange new world… And everything else since.

"You okay Alexis?" Tanaka asked, startling the gatón a bit. "You look sad."

Alexis gave Tanaka a sheepish smile. "Not especially, I'm just… Thinking."

"'Bout what?" Tanaka asked good-naturedly.

"About many things," Alexis replied cautiously. Then she sighed. "But mostly about how strange things are for me now. All the unusual events that have led me up to this point."

Tanaka chuckled a bit. "That's life in a nutshell, ain't it?" She asked. "Some of us go through it with some big plan and all, and others just live from moment to moment… And either way, we don't quite end up where we'd expect."

Alexis nodded at the comment. "What you say has such truth in it…" She let her voice trail off. "Cassandra?"

"Yes?" Tanaka replied absentmindedly as she edged off of the road to avoid knocking over a tree that had grown at the roadside.

Alexis paused to gather some courage. "If I may ask, what sort of strange events led you to this place?"

The next few moments passed mostly silent, with only the low rumbling of the 'mech's fusion reactor and the thumps of its footfalls leaking in from outside the cockpit. If she hadn't known better, Alexis would have wondered if Tanaka had fallen asleep.

Then the human sighed. "Well… It started way back when I was a youngster just out of high school. I was only a little bit younger than you, and getting ready to attend NTU South." Tanaka smirked a bit. "Damned if I knew what the Hell I really wanted to do, but goin' to school is a must in today's world if you don't want to end up bein' a line worker."

"NTU?" Alexis asked quietly.

"Sorry, 'Neo Tokyo University,'" Tanaka explained. "The southern campus, to be precise, since the city's so big one campus can't hold every student, so they built five of 'em.

"Anyway, at the time, I was mainly interested in chemistry, so I worked for a Bachelor's in that. Oh, and since you'll probably ask, a Bachelor's is a four year degree in a general field."

Alexis blinked, though Tanaka couldn't see it as she was now concentrating on the road and her own memories. However, she could hear the confusion in the gatón's voice. "Four years? You can spend four years studying something?"

"Or more," Tanaka added casually. "There's a Master's and a Doctorate, too. Hell, Alexis, some people spend their entire lives studying one thing." She shrugged – hard to do with the neurohelmet riding on her shoulders. "The fields of science are so vast that no one person can know everything, so people pick something that suits them best and they work at it."

"Amazing…" Alexis said quietly. "But, if you were going to study chemistry, how did you end up here?"

Another moment passed before Tanaka replied. She sighed as she began. "It was into my third year at NTU when Neo Tokyo was attacked by pirates.

"It was the first, and so far, only successful landing of an enemy force onto the planet in all of history. The bastards came in at a pirate point just on the other side of Kyushu, and they accelerated in before the Navy could get their forces fully repositioned.

"Of course, that's not to say the bandits weren't whittled down some," Tanaka's voice took on a timbre of satisfaction. "Port Kure managed to snipe one of the bastards' DropShips right out of the sky with their naval particle cannons, though the other three ships managed to get by." She paused to maneuver her 'mech around a small hut that sat alongside the road. Alexis looked at it in the HUD and saw a pair of lupar standing outside and pointing at the two-legged war machine.

"Our fighters got a second one, but two of those ships managed to land near Neo Tokyo… Right in the southern portion, in fact." The captain's voice grew cold at the last. "There was an old Union and a Fury, and aboard they had twelve 'mechs, eight light tanks and APCs, and a lot of infantry…" She paused again, though not from any obstacle along the 'mech's path. "They made a beeline for the heart of the city… Right past where NTU's Southern campus is.

"I was in class when the civil warnings sounded." Tanaka shuddered. "Those alarm klaxons they use, they're some kind of strange mojo. Make the most horrific wailing sound you ever did hear… But it got results, 'cuz everyone started hunkering down at that." She snorted then. "Well, 'cept me and Paul, who was a good friend of mine.

"We couldn't help ourselves but to sneak out of the building we were in and take a look." Tanaka shook her head. "Bad idea. Someone in one of those 'mechs walkin' by must've seen us, 'cuz one of the APCs turned and bashed through the low wall that surrounded the campus."

Alexis shuddered involuntarily s she remembered her own encounter with a similar vehicle, but Tanaka didn't notice and she continued. "The APC didn't fire, but instead it let loose a whole goddamned platoon of the worst cutthroats and horrific bandits you ever did see came runnin' out.

"They fanned out, obviously more concerned with pillaging than real military discipline." Tanaka snorted then. "If they ever had it to begin with. Anyway, five of 'em see me and Paul, and they come a runnin' for us with guns raised."

Alexis leaned forward in her seat as Tanaka paused again to sigh collect her thoughts. "The thing is, though, is that the Republic not only allows private citizens to carry firearms, but the government actually encourages it." She smirked a bit, which Alexis could see in the reflection on the inside of the captain's neurohelmet visor. "Paul had his favorite toy out in a second, one of those old forty-five caliber pistols. He drilled a pair of holes in the first to priates before they realized that he was armed.

"Unfortunately, that was the last thing he did…" Tanaka's voice became distant and brittle. "Some bitch behind that first downed pair sent a hail of fletchettes from a needler into Paul's face." She sighed again as the emotions rose. "The docs say he died quickly, painlessly, so I guess it wasn't too bad."

"Anyway," she pressed on, her voice becoming a bit more neutral as she continued to speak. "I caught some needles myself, since I was a bit too close to Paul. The damn things ripped into the side of my head, took away most of my right ear. I fell to the ground, and I guess that's what saved me from any further attacks, since I must've looked dead to the pirates.

"Then while I was on the ground, a shadow appeared from above the building. The pirates all stopped and stared open-mouthed as a National Guard soldier jetted down in his Elemental armor." Tanaka's face blossomed into a grim smile. "The guy didn't even fire, but he simply crushed the woman's head with his laser arm as he landed." She chuckled a bit then. "The last two guys pissed themselves, so I guess they hadn't heard of battle armored infantry at the time. Unfortunately for them, the assholes didn't know when to run, and so the trooper choked one to death with his battle claw while he kicked to other guy in the chest with his right foot." Tanaka made a small, amused sound. "You haven't seen someone thoroughly kicked until you see 'em kicked by a guy in battle armor. The fucker must've flown fifteen meters before his body collapsed on the ground."

Silence suddenly returned then, somewhat unexpectedly to Alexis. After a moment, she wondered if Tanaka was going to continue and was about to ask when the captain sighed again. "Anyway. Paul's death hit me hard… But I heard a lot more people had it worse." She shook her head as she talked. "Some families were killed entirely when they were sitting in traffic when one of those bastards in a 'mech stomped their car." Tanaka nearly growled the words out, which Alexis found eerily similar to how some gatón sounded when angry.

"I saw all of that, remembered Paul's valiant attempt to protect me and the others in the building, and then how the National Guard raced in and beat the living shit out of every single pirate that didn't surrender. I decided then that I didn't want anyone else to die for no other reason than some bastard pirate king got a burr up his ass. So I joined the Guard, and haven't looked back."

The sheer enormity of the tale caused Alexis to sit in quiet contemplation. It was a silence that Tanaka didn't feel like disturbing either, having dredged up the ghosts of the past. And so the pair rode on in the eerie, shaking environment that was the command center for one of the most deadly war machines ever created.

A small, almost inconsequential thought entered Alexis' mind. At first, she didn't want to entertain it, but her natural curiosity took over. "Cassandra?"

"Hmm?" Tanaka hummed non-committaly.

"You said that needle blast took away part of your right ear… But you look fine to me."

Tanaka chuckled. A genuine, if somewhat strained chuckle. "You weren't all that good yourself when you arrived on New Honshu, now were you?" She asked good-naturedly, causing Alexis to blush. "As you've seen and experienced, our medicine can do wonders."

Alexis nodded at that. "Let us hope, then, that the same kind of miracles can be done with your martial prowess."

Tanaka laughed at that. "Truer words were never spoken," she said in good spirits, her memories banished for the moment. "I wish we could have a drink to that… Ah, well, remind me to get something with a kick at the next friendly village we get to."

Alexis chuckled. "Will do, captain."