They walked through an endless corridor, a maze-like partition of staircases and pathways. Each step the group took echoed loudly off the vast expansiveness of the surrounding dull colored walls. Each break they took was filled with the deafening sound of a machine humming, one that seemed to originate from all around them.

"The rendezvous point should be just up ahead," Dobermann called up from afar. She was leading the group up front while Amiya stayed vigilantly by his side. Too closely in fact. But he couldn't complain, not with his lack of remembrance.

Their relationship, what could it have been?

Dobermann was scouting the area up ahead, the exit to whatever underground system they were in, with another guard, when he noticed something strange. A small glint of light appeared, one that wasn't easily noticeable and could have been attributed to light reflecting off glass or something metallic. Yet his instincts told him otherwise.

"Dobermann, get back! It's a trap!" he called out without hesitation.

With the reflexes of a trained, veteran combatant, Dobermann immediately took a leap back, assuming a battle stance. The guard with her was not so lucky.

"Shit!" he screamed as he was pelted with multiple arrows.

So he was right. The shape of a reflection depends on the object's surface. In this case, the timing of the reflection suited perfectly with Dobermann crossing out into the open and the crossbowmen aiming his weapon. The shape didn't tell much, the light being too far and too small, but the size did. It narrowed down the options to the source being the metal head of an arrow.

Honestly, he was surprised his head could compute this much information at once and come to the correct conclusion so quickly. Was he some sort of genius before he got amnesia?

From above, countless masked men in white cloaks dropped down.

"We're falling back, cover me!" Dobermann ordered. She struggled to drag the downed guard with her as the Reunion members surged forward.

"Snipers!" Amiya called out urgently. They opened fire, suppressing the oncoming Reunion forces. In response, the Reunion snipers returned fire.

"Dokutah?" Amiya asked, noticing his lack of a reaction. "Are you alright?"

He gave Amiya a quick nod in response. Then, he took a deep breath, and yelled out an order. "Dobermann, leave the guard!"

"Doctor!?" A confused Dobermann shouted back in response. Still, she was not one to disobey orders from her superior as much as it went against her morals. Dropping the guard, she nimbly dashed back to cover.

"Dokutah!?" Amiya also cried out in tandem, just as shocked as Dobermann.

"No time to explain, just follow me!"

He led the squad to a thin, dark corridor. They passed numerous of these on the way to the exit. Where they led to, nobody knew. But the shadowy corridor would make for a good escape and choke-point.

"Defenders, take the rear!" he ordered, taking control of the situation. Two operators in heavy, bulky armor stepped forward, side by side, shoulder to shoulder. It was all the deployment space available in the cramped space. "Shields up!"

They obeyed without hesitation. Just in time too, as Reunion soldiers came in from the left and the right, firing volley after volley of arrows.

So his suspicions were not unfounded. There was a reason Reunion exposed themselves so quickly rather than waiting for all of them to get out in the open. They had a squad flanking from behind and were aiming to use the classic pincer technique to wipe them out. Fortunately, they didn't anticipate us scurrying down these dark corridors.

They don't lead to a dead end now, do they?

"How strong are these shields?" he asked the two defenders.

"Military grade, sir," one of them gruffly replied.

"So they can hold?"

"We can deal with the arrows fired at us easily enough," one of them started.

"But our shields might struggle a bit against arts from casters," the other one finished.

"Noted." Turning, he addressed the snipers of the squad. "Right, I want our best long distance sniper to provide cover for the two defenders."

An operator with a slick looking crossbow stepped up. The weapon he wielded contained an array of complex strings and mechanisms, including a scope. "I'm not as good as Scout, but I'd say I have a pretty good shot."

"Good, then I want you aiming for the casters in the back line."

"Roger."

The sniper took aim and fired. Shortly after, the screams of a Reunion soldier echoed loudly through the corridor.

"Caster down!"

Another shot, another caster killed. And another. And another, until all enemy casters were neutralized.

"Nice shooting, Deadeye," Amiya complimented. Everyone else gave similar sentiments.

"It was nothing, really," the sniper sheepishly said, scratching his head awkwardly. "I make those shots in my sleep, and it's nothing compared to Scout. Besides, none of the Reunion soldiers seem to have large shields or heavy armor. They've got no cover like us."

Deadeye patted both defenders gratefully on the shoulders, who up to this point had blocked numerous arrows.

"Appreciate the sentiment, brother."

"Doctor, orders?"

"We'll keep this backline formation as we slowly retreat. I want to avoid a direct confrontation if possible. They outnumber us, and I have a feeling they have yet to show their full strength," he said. Ambushes like these consisted of fast moving, mobile units. The big guns would more than likely arrive later on as reinforcements. Turning to Dobermann, he added, "Dobermann, assume position as commander of our backline."

Acknowledging the Doctor's orders, Dobermann assumed her position as commander. "Affirmative. Safeguard, Roadblock, keep your stance and make sure not a single arrow passes through your shields! Understood?"

"Yes ma'am!"

"Deadeye, continue your suppressive fire. Longshot, Subtle Sparrow, join him. For each step Reunion take, I want five arrows shot at them."

"Roger!"

With Dobermann commanding the backline, he could now focus his attention on other matters.

"Amiya," he said, addressing the bunny girl. "I want you to pick three operators best suited for scouting and recon to act as vanguard. If we have an additional medic to spare, send them as one of the three."

"Okay Dokutah! Isha, Swift, Gado."

The three people she called stepped forward.

"Scout the area ahead," he ordered. "Look for any potential escape routes or ambush points. I want a status report every minute. Buzz the comms three times if an emergency emerges. Clear?"

"Crystal," Swift confirmed, saluting before running off.

"You can count on us," Gado proudly proclaimed, fist hitting his chest, running after Swift

Isha, on the other hand, lingered behind. "Hey Doctor, if I do a good job, mind giving me a reward after?"

"Sure, why not," he replied nonchalantly. Not too much thought was given to Isha's question, his mind occupied elsewhere."

"Great~!" she exclaimed, running off.

"Amiya, do our supplies contain any wires?" he asked without missing a beat.

"They do," Amiya answered. She tilted her head sideways slightly, confused, "But what for?"

"Tripwire," he replied simply.

"You called?" A skinny man with a unique fire patterned headband stepped forward.

"I meant the type of trap, but since your code name is Tripwire, can you set some up ahead?"

"I'll try my best," he replied. "But I need time to properly set anything of value up."

Turning to look at the ever so slowly advancing Reunion soldiers, Tripwire knew that time was of the essence. He lacked sufficient time to set up any one of his effective traps.

"All I'll be able to manage are simple, easily avoidable and counterable traps."

"Don't worry about that." he reassured. "What I need is the illusion of a trap. Doesn't matter if it works or not."

"Alright then, I'll get to work."

"Dokutah?"

"It's quite a simple concept, really," he explained. "Best case scenario, the sight of these 'traps' would deter them from chasing us any further, whether they work or not. Unlikely, but one can hope."

"So you're hoping Reunion would slow their advance and become more cautious once they see the traps?" Amiya asked.

"More or less," he replied. He didn't elaborate.

Buzz.

"Oh, that must be the vanguard squad reporting," Amiya observed. "Amiya speaking. Report."

"Swift here. The corridor leads to a large room. Perfect to set up for a chokepoint or ambush. We're currently investigating the area. Over."

"Dokutah?"

"Have we been able to contact any other Rhodes Island squads?"

Two operators stepped up. They were non-combative, support operators. In this case, based on their gear containing a wide array of communication instruments, he surmised they specialized in relaying messages, and maybe other mechanical services.

"We have actually. Ace's squad is already on their way to our location," one of them replied. She wore a dark cap, dark shades, and a dark mask.

"Give or take 10 minutes and they'll be here," the other one replied.

"Thank you Komyun, Ikeshon. Good work. Dokutah, orders?"

"We'll have to hold up until then," he concluded with the information provided. A plan began rapidly forming in his head. "Komyun, Ikeshon, maintain contact with Ace's team. Relay everything I say to them."

"Understood."

"Amiya, I'm deploying you to join the backline."

"Huh? But Dokutah… I don't want to leave your side."

"I know you're concerned about my well being, but I'll be fine," he reassured Amiya. He understood, from her point of view that they were close, and after finally seeing each other after everyone but him knows how long, she doesn't want to leave his side again lest she lose her precious Dokutah once more. At least, that's what he surmised from his interactions with her.

"Besides," he added, "I have a feeling they're going to need your help."

As if on cue, Dobermann yelled out in an urgent tone, "Doctor! Incoming enemy reinforcements. Junkmen and Senior Casters spotted among them!"

"Holy shit, they're intercepting, blocking and deflecting all my arrows!" Long shot exclaimed in shock. "These guys are no longer ordinary, bottom tier soldiers!"

"Nghh! Enemy caster, the one with those scaly gloves and red mask is a problem," Roadblock observed whilst blocking enemy fire. "Medic!"

"Right here!"

"Alright Dokutah. I understand. I'll go," Amiya gave in. Her eyes contained a fiery determination in them. "But promise me you'll be safe."

He nodded, and off she went.

"This is Swift reporting." His voice was shaky and uneasy as he talked. "All exits in the room have been sealed shut. We can't break through. It's effectively a dead end."

"A dead end, huh? Good, then there's no need for further reporting, unless it's an emergency."

"Huh? I think this classifies as an emergency, don't you think?"

He chuckled. "No need to jump to conclusions, Swift. Just await our arrival, over."

"Doctor, Ace called, what should I tell him?" Komyun asked once he finished speaking with the vanguard team.

"Tell him we'll be showing Reunion how to properly execute a pincer attack. As for the details…"

"Doctor!" Tripwire called a little while later as the group continued their slow retreat backwards. "I've set up some traps. They're crude and rushed, and some of them probably don't even work. But it's the best I can do given the situation."

"Good job. Anyone got flashbangs?"

"Over here, sir," Ikeshon said. Wordlessly, he grabbed them from her hands. Then, he broke all of them except one. "Doctor?"

"Tripwire, set these broken flashbangs with the fake tripwires you set up. Make them obvious, and make them look as if we created them in a hurry."

"Already got you covered on that one, boss," he muttered.

"We'll leave the last, unbroken flashbang for the end. Unfortunately, it won't be in the middle of the dark corridor, but we'll have to make do."

The eyes of the operators widened at the Doctor's surprisingly clever strategy. For an improvised plan, it seemed quite reliable. But the common saying goes, no plan survives first contact, especially a makeshift one like this.

"Doctor! Our defenders can't hold on for much longer!" Dobermann called out urgently.

"What are you talking about, Captain Dobermann! I can do this all day- Arghhh!"

"Tripwire?"

"All set."

"Vanguard team, get prepared for our arrival."

"Roger."

"Everyone, we're speeding up our retreat! No need for suppressive fire anymore, just focus on falling back! We'll get to the room up ahead and set up a new choke point there and wait for Ace and his squad!"

""Roger!""

"Ace here. We've arrived and have maintained stealth so far. There are a few dozen Reunion soldiers standing guard outside, the rest seem to have chased after you guys. They're nothing we can't handle."

"Copy that. Don't get spotted and wait for the signal."

"Roger."

The advancing Reunion soldiers struggled initially at first, suffering heavy casualties. But once the reinforcements arrived, everything turned into a walk in the park.

"Stop!" the Reunion caster leader called out. "There's a trap right there!"

It was easily neutralized.

"Ha, that's the sixth one we've spotted and disarmed so far. So hastily put together, these Rhode Islanders must be desperate. I mean, some of them don't even work."

"What do you expect? Reports say they're a 'pharmaceutical company.'"

"Can't believe the commander was wary of these people. They're nothing but a bunch of scurrying pests waiting to be exterminated."

It didn't take long for Reunion to let their guard down and start ego tripping.

"Pathetic. None of these traps even work."

"I'd like to see the looks on their faces when they've realized they've run into a dead end."

"They're cornered now. Nowhere to run."

"It was a decent plan, running off into a thin corridor like this. Until it wasn't."

"Hahaha, it would have almost certainly worked if it didn't lead to a dead end!"

Laughter ensued. The atmosphere was cocky and laid back, victory already assured in the minds of the Reunion soldiers. They had no idea they were walking right into the palm of the Doctor's hands.

"Captain…" the guard beside Ace whispered impatiently. They've been stationed outside for what felt like eternity now, waiting for the Doctor's signal.

"Easy soldier. I know you're restless, but we gotta stick to the plan."

"I know, but I can't help but worry. What if they've already fallen inside?"

"Then the Reunion Soldiers would have left the area by now, no point for them staying. Besides, I know the Doctor, he's a good friend of mine. Prevailing against stacked odds is what he does best."

"If you say so…"

Suddenly, a commotion stirred from inside the corridor. There was a flash of bright white light and panicked screams. The Reunion soldiers shifted their attention away from guarding the entrance, some even going inside to investigate the commotion.

"That's our signal. Let's move!"

The Rhodes Island's battle cry quickly shifted the Reunion's soldiers' attention away from the corridor. If not for their masks, Ace would have been granted the sweet sight of their surprised, panic ridden faces greeting him as he smashed them to pieces with his hammer.

"Forward! Follow my lead!"

Ace and he team member easily pushed forward, breaking through the disorganized reunion lines like knife through butter. Over in the middle of the dark corridor, the blinded Reunion soldiers were caught, blinded in a brutal two-pronged attack with no hope of a counterattack. It was a crushing win in favor of Rhodes Island. The Doctor's first battle, first victory, ended in what could only be described as a 'three star victory.'

"We may have achieved perfect victory, but we still can't let our guard down."

"Yo," Ace said, kneeling down to get eye to eye with the exhausted Doctor sitting on the ground. "Long time no see… Hellastic."

"...Hellastic. Is that my… name?" he asked in a daze. Dead silence ensued, which the now named Hellastic took as an opportunity to continue talking. "Thank goodness, here I thought my name was the Doctor."

A pin drop could be heard as all the operators around him stared in shell-shocked silence. Did they just get commanded by a man with no memory to a perfect victory?

Ace was the quickest to recover. "So you've got amnesia, huh? Perhaps a side-effect from being frozen for so long. Nevermind that, as long as you're healthy. We'll have plenty of time to catch up back at Rhodes Island."

"Thank you, Ace."

Amiya, on the other hand, didn't recover. "D-Dokutah, you don't… you don't remember me?" she asked with downcast eyes and tears filling her eyes.

He suddenly felt guilty for being the cause of the poor bunny girl's grief. "S-Sorry. Bits and pieces do come to me periodically, but they make no sense. For the most part, when I think of the past, I draw blanks."

"N-No! Dokutah!" she wailed, collapsing onto Hellastic's chest, clinging tightly. She had already lost him once. Now, right as they were reunited, she felt as if she was going to lose him again. "Please don't go! I don't want to lose you again!"

Initially, Hellastic was a bit taken aback by Amiya's outburst. But all too soon, his instincts kicked in and he began soothing the young girl.

"Shh, Amiya, it's okay. I may not have my memories, but I'm still 'your Dokutah'" he said, gently rubbing her head and back. He received a sniffle to his chest in response. Amusingly, from afar, he could spot Dobermann watching Amiya with clear envy in her eyes.

"Now that we've put that behind us," Ace said, taking command, once Amiya, who sat cuddled beside Hellastic, recovered. "I want a sanity check on the Doctor."

All other personnel save Ace, Amiya, Dobermann and Hellastic weren't present in the room - some went to rest, others to stand guard.

"Sanity check? What's that?" Hellastic asked, confused. If they meant how tired his brain was, well, he was feeling quite lethargic. An insatiable craving for ramen popped up inside of him too.

"Dobermann…"

"H-Hey, in my defense, when we first recovered the Doctor, he was in no state log into PRTS."

"Then what about after?" Ace questioned, taking amusement to the fact that the normally strict and stoic Dobermann was acting all flustered.

"We were ambushed by Reunion."

"And in between?"

Her eyes flickered downward in an attempt to avoid eye contact. "...I was occupied…"

Ace let out a hearty laugh. "Kahaha! Leave it to the infamous Doctor to do that first thing after he's woken up from a years long slumber. You truly are an animal, Hellastic."

Dobermann coughed awkwardly, face burning red while Amiya let out a high pitch squeak, burying her face in her knees. Both were internally dying of embarrassment.

"Don't tell me…" Ace trailed off, observing the reaction of his two female companions. "Amiya too?"

"A-Ace…"

Ace let out a fake sniffle and wiped an imaginary tear off his face. "Rhodes Island's precious little bunny girl is all grown up now. I'd never thought I'd see the day," he teased whilst patting said girl on the head.

"No fair Ace," Amiya whined, pouting a little. "I was all grown up a while ago."

"Kahaha, whatever you say l'il bunny girl, whatever you say."

"I'm not little," Amiya protested, swatting away Ace's hand. "And can we please get back on topic?"

"Sure thing," Ace said, his attitude turning serious. "Hellastic, take this. It's a device that'll help you command the battlefield."

"Please log in."

"A unique communication device of some sort," Hellastic observed, taking the device from Ace's hands. He turned it over and analyzed it meticulously. "Fascinating."

"Please log in."

"It's one of a kind," Ace affirmed. "Its range is nigh infinite, which means you could command the battlefield from all the way back in Rhodes Island."

"There were times where I commanded from that far?" Hellastic asked, surprised.

"You're an invaluable asset to Rhodes Island," Dobermann answered, arms crossed. "It's why we're on this rescue mission in the first place."

"Please log in."

"I see," Hellastic responded. He really didn't. Sometimes, when making crucial life or death decisions, you have to physically be there yourself to grasp the true gravity of both the situation and your orders.

"To add onto what Dobermann said, Rhodes Island also carries out numerous missions across Terra. It would be too inefficient to have you physically overseeing each one of them."

What Ace didn't mention, however, was how cold that made him. When you're far away from the battle, you don't see the frightened looks in your operator's eyes, you don't feel the dreadful atmosphere of impending death, you don't feel like your life is in any risk or danger. It's much easier to make ruthless decisions, sacrificing operators for the sake of the operation, when you aren't there physically to see the immediate consequences. He wasn't always like this, but the constant battles changed him into a different man.

Ace is glad to see that with his Amnesia, he's reverted back to old, kinder self.

"Please log in."

"I still don't like it," Hellastic said, shaking his head. "What if communications are sabotaged or intercepted?"

"The device is special," Ace explained. "Not only is the range basically infinite, the messages it sends are encrypted so that it's impossible to intercept. And even if someone does manage to miraculously intercept it, you'll never be able to crack the code."

"Please log in."

To Hellastic, that sounded too good to be true. There has to be some sort of catch. Maybe the device drained the user's life force in exchange?

"The catch is-"

There it is.

"-that you can only do this with 12-13 operators at a time. You can also switch whoever these devices are connected to, just not during battle."

"I see," Hellastic muttered, turning over the device once more. It was light, sleek, and slim yet had a sturdy, unbreakable feel to it. He wonders what it's made of and what it's powered by.

"Please log in."

"Uhm, Dokutah," Amiya said, tugging at Hellastic's sleeve gently. "I think you should log in."

Looking away from the device and up at the expectant gazes of the three other people in the room, he came to the conclusion that, yeah, maybe he should log in, if at least to get the device to stop talking.

"Please log-"

He placed his finger on the circle.

"Welcome back, Doctor."

AN: Wow, an entire chapter with no smut? Unbelievable! Chapter titles will be indicative if the chapter is saucy or not. If they have an operator name in the front, that means it's a chapter with a lemon featuring that operator, else it's a normal, plot progression chapter like this one.

On a serious note, I wanted to take the AN to talk about my writing style and my awkwardness with third person. I don't write in the third person often. On another serious (and slightly longer one), I'm trying to have each character, at least the important ones, have unique dialogues they say. For example, Amiya calls the Doctor, Dokutah as like a pseudo nickname of sorts, Ace, being his close friend, calls him by his real name and everyone else just calls him Doctor. Another example is in the smut scenes and the way operators moan. Amiya has her 'Dokutah~!' and 'Kyaaa' while Dobermann has her 'Gah!' and her 'Nguhh' unique to them. Other operators too, will have unique ways of voicing their pleasure. Just wanted to bring that out there. Who knows, maybe I'll have a scene where the Doctor has to 'test' out a bunch of gloryholes and guess which operator is behind it.

Anyways, many thanks if you read the AN, and thanks to all those who favorited, followed, and reviewed!