The Eden's Zero was put in a bind. Homura was held captive by Jigan King and his crew, who demanded the Black Moon Star fragment they acquired on Iceberg in exchanged for her safety in three days. There was nothing they could do but wait the clock, but they would use this time to plan their attack. Jinn looked in Weisz's direction. "Weisz, you know that guy, don't you? That's what it sounded like."

"Yeah." Weisz was sitting down, his elbows resting against a table. "He used to be a part of Seiber's group back on Norma."

"Eh?" Rebecca blinked. "I don't remember seeing someone as big as him when we were there. He's got a face I feel like I would have at least recognized."

"That's because he was already gone before you guys showed up." Weisz explained. "And based on how it sounds, he hasn't seen that other me since he did leave. So he's been doing his own thing for all that time, huh? I always wondered what he was up to, but I hate that I had to see him again like this. Damn, the years really weren't kind to him…"

"Why do you think he asked for three days?" Kleene looked to the others. "I would assume he wants the Star Fragment as soon as possible, right?"

"The robot that Rebecca and Homura fought is clearly a part of his crew, or at least working with him." Weisz explained. "Jigan is no idiot. He's perfectly aware of that he's done by kidnapping Homura. If I had to guess, his ship has a medical bay but it isn't anything like the Eden's Zeros's. As such, three days is probably how long it'll take for him to recover."

"I think it's safe to assume that all of us know that this will turn into a fight." Ivry said with her legs crossed.

"But we're at a disadvantage. We may have something he wants, but he also has Homura." Laguna said. "Which means that even if a fight does break out, our options are limited."

Pino looked towards Weisz. "Is this Jigan really the type of person to kill someone to get what he wants?" She was thinking back to that woman that clawed Homura once and made her scream out in pain. That was a noise she never heard before from anyone, least of all Homura.

"Is there anything we need to watch out for from him?" Shiki also asked. "You know him the most out of all of us, so even the tiniest detail would be helpful."

Weisz took a moment to think. For him, it had only been around 2 or so years since he last saw Jigan. But Jigan now was a man in his 60s. Despite his age, he was a behemoth of a man. "Jigan was always the type of person who talked about wanting the cosmos to know his name, no matter what it took. Thievery was only his first step, and he left Norma about a few weeks before Shiki, Rebecca, and Happy showed up. At least, that's the timeline it was for me. I wish I could say his treatment of Homura surprised me, but he was always doing the same to the bots that didn't have any use for him."

"So we should assume he really will kill her if we don't meet his demands…" Happy frowned. Their situation wasn't looking great so far.

"As for his combat capabilities, he's always been really strong physically. He uses his size and weight to his advantage." Weisz continued. "That said, I know that he has an Ether Gear, but he never shared what it was. Called his 'ace in the hole'. He always did keep his cards close to his chest. Hell, and that's before even considering whatever kind of crew he's assembled."

"I'm curious about that maid…" Ivry said. "I don't know what she did to Homura, but something about that wasn't right. But I can't glean any information about it from the video."

"Looks like we've got our work cut out for us then." Jinn let out a small sigh. "Something tells me this Jigan guy isn't just going to be happy with a simple trade."

"We'll figure out a plan of attack." Shiki told the others with confidence. "I don't like it right now, but it's probably for the best if we just wait it out and follow his demands. Homura's safety is our biggest priority."

"And if it comes to blows? What do you intend to do…?" Kleene asked Shiiki. She knew how he felt about hurting others that weren't classified as their enemies. This extended to even the Interstellar Union Army. Even though they were considered enemies of the cosmos, that did not mean Shiki considered them to be their enemies.

"As it stands, they kidnapped our friend and crewmate and are very intent on being our enemies. The last thing I want to do is kill them, but I want them to make sure they never try something like this again." That was Shiki's answer. One everyone could come to an agreement on.

Rebecca let out a quiet sigh herself. "Hang in there, Homura…"

.

.

Aboard the Angel Feather, the ship belonging to the Interstellar Union Army, they just received news about Iceberg's liberation. "Did you hear?" Victory asked his comrade Justice. "It seems like the Eden's Zero just managed to liberate yet another planet. Ever since the war ended, they've really been going all out…"

"They certainly enjoy doing whatever it is they like." Justice grumbled. "Supposedly their work on Iceberg was less than graceful. A factory was destroyed in the process."

"Ziggy's influence has begun to expand everywhere." Victory sighed. Even the government was struggling to keep up with Ziggy's growing empire. "If it weren't for them, I don't know how far behind we'd be…"

"Nonsense." Justice dismissed that notion. "I refuse to rely on those who break the law so severely. Conspiring with Elsie, working with Drakken's lackies…"

"You've said this time and time again." Victory had to shake his head. Sometimes, Justice repeated his points far too often. Even so, he did understand where his comrade was coming from. At the end of the day, the Eden's Zero was their enemy. "But let's be logical here. They've been beating us to planet after planet. If we somehow manage to capture them, what's that going to do for the cosmos?"

"Give us one less problem to deal with." Justice replied without missing a beat. "They have a lot to answer for, and I will make sure Homura Kogetsu answers for the death of Creed."

Nearby, Jessie was listening in on the conversation. There was a mixture of both guilt and relief on his face. Guilt because he was the one who panicked and shot Creed that day…but relief because he managed to successfully pin the blame on Homura. "…" But for his own sake, he decided to change the subject while he could. "Listen, I just heard received some information. It might not be anything, but just the other day, a star exploded in the Kaede cosmos. It didn't harm anything, but…that new trainee of ours, she..."

.

.

The Fiertia was quiet. Just about everyone was asleep now, except for Homura. Her body stung from her injuries and the claw mark on her back burned. It was difficult to get any rest with how she was tied up. That was fine, though, because she did have a plan. She had to bide her time, but the moment finally arose. She knew how to escape when bound. The weakness of Ether Gear was something she was able to overcome after two years. Red lines appeared along her wrists and claws appeared on her hands, slicing through the rope. "Ngh….!" Of course, the moment Homura had to put weight on her body, she nearly collapsed.

"My injuries still sting…and the mark on my back burns so much…" She grimaced. She felt pretty weak. There was no way she could put up a fight like this, but there was no way she could stay here either. Surely this ship had an escape pod or something she could use? Homura had to tread carefully, but it was odd how there wasn't a single person keeping watch over her. Maybe this was a blessing in disguise? Who would think she was able to break out of binds with Ether Gear? As she walked through the halls of the Fiertia, she saw a few doors cracked open. They all belonged to the crew, and it looked like everyone was truly asleep.

"How odd…but I will not complain." Homura whispered to herself, The downside was that she didn't know the layout of the ship, so it felt like a single misstep would lead to her getting caught. She then came across a large room which led to another, but there was a problem. This room belonged to the captain, and Jigan was fast asleep. Homura quietly called her Soul Blade and raised it over her head, preparing to step inside the room. However, the moment she tried, someone yanked her wrist back forcefully. "…!?" Homura turned and swung on instinct, but her sword was blocked by…..the bandaged arm of Blair Elfin. "The maid…!?"

"What the hell do you think you're doing…!?" Blair whispered. "Are you trying to get yourself killed?"

"I was trying to wound your captain." Homura stated. "I know it was a dangerous attempt, but I cannot stand idly by while he tries to threaten my crew. Do you intend to stop me?" Homura assumed a fighting stance,

"Do you even understand your position?" Blair crossed her arms. She did not take Homura seriously in the moment. "I understand you're probably running on fumes physically and mentally, but why don't you take a moment to even think about what's going on right now. Look at yourself." Blair even did the honors of holding a mirror in front of Homura.

"…." Homura had nothing to say. She looked about as bad as she felt.

"Everyone can sleep soundly because they don't consider you a threat." Blair stated bluntly. "Why do you think your injuries haven't been patched up at all? Or that you haven't even been fed."

"…You left a mark on my back." Homura frowned.

"Don't be such a baby, I didn't claw you hard enough to leave a lasting mark." Blair scoffed. "That was a scratch compared to what I could do."

"You never answered my question. Are you going to stop me?" Homura repeated herself.

"No." Blair shook her head. "You can do whatever you damn well please. I just thought I'd remind you of your position. If you go back to the bridge, you'll find some food. A dead hostage doesn't exactly make a good bargaining chip."

Homura was stunned. "…I cannot help but wonder if this woman is trying to help me…" She said her inner thoughts aloud as usual.

"W-Why are you speaking like that?" Blair shook her head. "Do whatever you want. Cause trouble and get yourself killed or be a good hostage and stay quiet. I don't care what you do." Having said that, Blair walked off.

Homura was stunned at the events that took place. She didn't think about it for long, because her stomach did rumble. "…Food does sound nice…" So she went back to the bridge only to see a plate of food and some water prepared for her. Was that Blair's doing…? Homura wasn't going to look a gift horse in the mouth, so she began to eat to restore her strength.

Blair was watching from the far end entrance of the bridge, letting out a quiet sigh. "Did we really have to pick up someone so rowdy…"

Hanabi slowly snuck up behind Blair, snickering quietly. "Showing our prisoner a bit of compassion, are you? That so unlike you, Blair." The blonde was eying her crewmate carefully, waiting for any change in reaction.

"That's not it at all. The more of a mess she makes, the more I have to clean up." Blair said. "I already had to clean up the blood from when I hit her. If she tried anything in her condition, there's no doubt her blood would splatter on these walls. A hostage is no use half dead."

"I suppose you have a point. Jigan would be pretty mad." Hanabi said while swaying from side to side. "But you let the prisoner roam free without her binds! Actually…I'm kinda surprised she got out on her own. It would be pretty bad if she wasn't already so beat up."

"I laced her food with some sedatives." Blair said. "She'll be out for a while and won't be any trouble. Watch." The moment Homura finished her food, she ended up collapsing from drowsiness. Blair then knelt down and picked Homura up. "I'll just lock her in a room somewhere where she can't be any trouble. If she breaks out and decides to attack, that's on her. I gave her my warning. But you can learn a lot about a person from how they act when captive."

"You're so weird, Blair." Hanabi teased. "But I guess you of all people would know that. So tell me, what did your powers of observation glean from this prisoner of ours?" As she asked this, she leaned against a wall curiously.

"The fact she's still conscious at all after everything says she's pretty tough, and despite being on fumes, she's still sharp." Blair said calmly. "She wanted to wound Jigan so severely it would give her an opening to escape. Yet if she really wanted to, she could've tried to off everyone in their sleep."

"But we knew she wouldn't be able to." Hanabi lifted her finger. "At least, not in her condition at present."

"That's not the important part. Even if she was able to, she couldn't. She passed up the chance entirely. So that tells me…that the crew of this Eden's Zero doesn't just kill people that are immediately against them." Blair replied.

"Oooh, that's a good point. So, what's the conclusion?" Hanabi already knew where this was going, but she just wanted to hear it come from Blair's mouth. That impish gaze in her blue eyes told the story.

Blair let out a sigh and rolled her eyes. Hanabi was annoyingly extra at times, but it was whatever. "There's no avoiding a fight with them. But now we know that if it ever comes down to a do or die moment…they won't be able to kill us out of principal. The members of the Fiertia don't have that principal…so we can kill them if we need to."