Chapter 19

A Bold Confrontation

Back at the 2nd sector's rear area, it was Cliff this time who was having trouble keeping up with Mirage. He had lost some of his confidence without his enigmatic device which allowed Mirage to take full advantage over him.

"Give it up, Cliff!" Mirage said as she delivered another roundhouse kick across his left cheek bringing him down once again. "It won't work this time..."

"Grrrr..." Cliff was agitated, he knew if there was one person who would not let herself be affected by taunts, it was Mirage. "This feels just like that time back at Jingu."

"Well, thank goodness your memory is still intact." said Mirage.

Cliff stood back up and took about four steps back. "But that doesn't mean i'm gonna let you win...! Hammer of Might!" he roared as two sets of explosion hit straight in Mirage's direction causing the ground to disfigure just a little. Mirage did her best to block the attack but the impact caused her to lose her balance. He then found his chance to start charging up his powerful technique after seeing Mirage in a recovering position. Seeing this, Mirage got back up and instead of taking him down before he gets a chance to strike, she took a stance to prepare for what was coming for her.

"I'll flatten you with this! MAX SHOCKWAAVE!" Cliff screamed expelling a surge of shock from his palms as he thrusted his fist outwards towards Mirage.

Mirage, who was ready for his technique, leaped into a height large enough to escape the attack as she cartwheeled into the air towards Cliff. The calm and collected leader of Quark delivered a quick uppercut with her fist straight onto Cliff's jaw while he was still in his attacking position.

"Oof!" Cliff shouted after receiving the blow.

"Crescent Locus!" yelled Mirage delivering a kick which extended so high that it created four crescents in the direction of Cliff with each hit lifting him in the air. Mirage then draw back her right foot trying to put all her energy in that leg, "Triple Kick! Hah! Hah! HYAAH!" The three large kicks were able to catch Cliff in mid-air delivering a massive blow causing him to crash onto the closed exit. Just after the contact, the exit started to open back up.

"Ugh... that's g-good... Mirage..." Cliff spoke his last words before falling unconscious defeated.

Mirage stood in her position keeping her eyes on Cliff as she saw him down, not being able to get back up. Just then her thoughts were interrupted by Welch, Ascal, Xeim, and Lieber who rushed through the open gate with ample time.

"Thank goodness you're all fine!" Mirage exclaimed as she looked at each of them proudly.

"...Yeah, you too capt'n." Lieber replied as he looked around. "Where's Maria? She's not here yet?"

"I'm guessing she's still somewhere near the tower." Xeim said as he walked towards the large cylindrical containers that looked like drum cans. "So these must be it. The Fenrir crystals."

"It'd be a shame to have all of these stuff go to waste, but it's probably our only hope at the moment. We've gotta hurry, we took care of them for now but they're gonna be bringing reinforcements soon!" Ascal said as he looked towards Welch.

"Alright then, here goes..." Welch stepped towards the containers of the crystals and kneeled down beside one of them. "I suppose one of them will do just fine."

All the sectors within the base must have already been in a pool of blood by now. The explosion would most definitely create a lot more of it. The area behind the second sector could almost pass for a small garden. It wasn't covered by any metallic exterior, but instead was surrounded by a slightly stained glass. Mirage figured this would be the right time to contact the Diplo in the meantime but Welch looked as if she already had something to say.

"Alright, all done!" Welch said frantically as she got back up. The red-colored device looked more like a mine than an actual bomb.

"That was quick," Ascal smiled looking impressed. "Now we've gotta find Maria and get outta here fast!"

"Wait..." Mirage stopped to look towards Cliff who was still lying in the same position. "We have to take him with us!"

"What?" asked Xeim who was caught by surprise. "What do you mean 'take him'! We can't just take an enemy with us..."

Mirage gave him an annoyed look. "Trust me, I know what i'm doing!"

Xeim sighed agreeing to his captain's orders. He walked towards Cliff and carried him on his shoulder with ease. Although he wasn't as large as Cliff was, their strength was definitely comparable.

Once they were ready to head back out, it wasn't long before Maria joined them just when they reached the interior of the first sector. She was able to do an impressive job of infiltrating the tower quickly and using the exits to Quark's advantage.

"Well done, Maria. Now we just have to get out this place before the explosive takes effect." Mirage advised to which Maria nodded quickly. However, the other exits began to open as well and brigades of Alliance soldiers were being transported through an odd-looking transporter in each room as they chased down the intruders.

"Get them!" they shouted as they chased them through the main sector of the base. They then commenced the firing using disrupter rifles but weren't able to make contact due to Quark making their escape just in the nick of time.

Just at the exit, a huge explosion took place at the other end of the base. The explosion's impact however was extending outside the radius of the base. Mirage and the others made a huge leap as far away from the explosion as they could. The two Klausians found themselves on a steep hill in the woods as they rolled further and further away from the base until they got back into the entrance of the Southern Woods. The last thing they saw of the base was a smoke of cloud rising many meters above the ground, scraps of metal and glasses from the base reached all the way to the entrance of the woods.

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The crew decided to head back to Neel's laboratory once they had met up and cleaned up any mess they had with them just as they headed out of the Southern Woods.

"Whew! That takes care of that one." Lieber said as he wiped the sweat of his forehead.

"It's been a while since i've gotten any contact from the Diplo." Mirage said as she picked up her communicator to check for any incoming transmissions.

"So... any transmissions?" Maria asked hopefully.

The communicator was only receiving loud scrambling noises, but Mirage slowly noticed that she was starting to pick up a voice.

"Hold on! I think i've got them!" announced Mirage gladly. "Diplo! Do you read me?"

"Loud and clear, captain! It's been a while!" exclaimed Marietta excitedly.

"YAY! They're back!" Welch shouted in a cheerful manner while jumping delirously.

Mirage was incredibly joyous to hear Marietta's voice, "Good timing, Marietta. We're just about finished here as well. Transport us up!" she said.

"So how did it go! I've been impatient to listen about what's been happening on Vanguard."

"That will have to wait, unfortunately. It will take far too long to explain everything." Mirage replied firmly.

"Alright! I guess i'll wait for all the news until you get back then." Marietta replied.

"See you soon, then."

"Aren't we going to head to Neel's lab first?" Xeim asked as he was still carrying Cliff on his shoulder.

Mirage shook her head, "We can't have you lugging Cliff around everywhere. So i'll tell you what... i'll have Marietta transport you to the Diplo right away with Cliff. The rest of us will be there once we clarify the situation to the Requiem Code."

"Roger." Xeim nodded.

"Oh... and make sure you take Cliff to Anastasia first thing right away." Mirage gave her orders as she looked towards Cliff with a sympathetic and compassionate expression on her face.

Upon reaching the lab, Ricardo congratulated Mirage, Ascal, and the others on their success.

"So it worked!" he said as he clenched his fist tightly.

"Yes, we've finally played our cards right, and I have to thank you for it Ricardo." Mirage said as she gave the professor a look of gratitude.

"Yeah, ya know... you'd have made a real good Savior yourself!" Ascal said amusingly. "After me, of course."

Ricardo slapped his hand on his chest before giving a sarcastic reply, "My... your words are too kind, Savior!"

"That base was the big one. So it looks like your Calamity troubles should be worn down now!" Welch said energetically.

"Indeed. So I assume the Outer Alliance has been fully well taken care of now?" asked Ricardo as he started biting his fingernails from curiosity.

"No..." Misty shook her head. "Shin barely managed to escape. But he won't pose much threat here anymore, we'll take care of him."

"That's good to hear. Don't you guys worry about the other bases..." Ricardo said. "I and Ascal along with the royal guards can take care of them from here. I may not be as well equipped as your chirpy friend, but I have some handy supplies with me."

"I look forward to visiting you again when I get the chance." Mirage smiled before bidding farewell to the professor.

Ricardo nodded as he pushed his specs back with his fingers, "Do take care now."

Before heading out, Ascal asked them to escort him back to Rashfall. It was a long trip, but Mirage figured that this will atleast give her a chance to address the situation to the Royal Requiem Code personally.

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The town of Rashfall had already begun celebrating the Savior's first success once everyone had returned to Ascal's much pleased royal home. There were fireworks and confetti blown at the dramatic entry of Ascal Ribuel. Many chants could be heard far into the crowd shouting, 'Savior! Savior!'

Upon the entry of the royal manor, once they got through the crowd, they were personally greeted by the Chancellor who led them once again to the throne. Along with Lord Dran and the Chancellor, also present there was a young girl about the age of Ascal dressed royally. She apparently had a close connection with Ascal.

"Kuleha... is that you!" Ascal glanced towards her in amazement.

"Ascal!" she ran towards him and the two shared a rejoiceful embrace. They obviously had a lot more going than they claimed.

"Savior... you have done well on your mission. I've also heard that your success wiped most of the Calamity right away! There is nothing I can do to return what you have done for me, son." Lord Dran spoke in a much more confident tone than earlier.

"Yes, a fine job indeed." Kuleha agreed to the Lord's every word.

"Father..." Ascal looked up towards his old man with gratitude. "Your Majesty, if there is anyone to thank... it is not me. It is this strong-minded lady and her companions who have helped me all along." he said as he looked back towards Mirage.

"Ah yes... forgive us for our suspicions earlier." the Chancellor bowed towards the others in respect. "We don't know how to thank you for how much you've helped us even though we are complete strangers in your eyes."

"That's not true." Mirage shook her head as she slowly stood up to speak before the Chancellor. "You're not strangers to us. After all the time we've spent here, and all the people we've met... we too are now part of this world. It's the kind of connection all places in the world have with each other, even with Gernn. I'm sure you feel the same way too."

Lord Dran nodded with a slight smile on his face, "That's right, once all the yogens have been fulfilled... it will be time that we settle our differences. So what will you all do now?"

"We're going to go back where we came from. Our job has not been completed yet." Lieber replied.

Ascal looked at them raising an eyebrow, "Where's Xeim? Isn't he with you guys?"

"No, Xeim has already taken off with Cliff." Mirage said.

"You should atleast stay for dinner?" requested Lord Dran.

Mirage, however, refused politely. "That won't be necessary, your Majesty. Thank you for your concern." she said while bowing.

"Oh right, I don't think i've introduced you to her yet," Ascal interrupted as he looked towards Kuleha. "That's Kuleha, she's the daughter of the Lord's closest friend who passed away few years ago."

Welch gave her an aesthetic look. "She's very pretty!"

"I've heard what you all have done not only for Ascal but for the Requiem Code as well..." Kuleha said as she started shaking Mirage's hand. "I couldn't thank you enough for everything."

Ascal gave his usual smirk as he looked towards his companions and friends, " So I guess it's goodbye from here. I still haven't fulfilled the role as my Savior, but i'll take care of the rest."

"Just don't overdo yourself, Ascal. And Kuleha, you take care as well." Mirage replied as they started to head back out.

"I'll be looking forward to the next time you decide to pay us a visit again. Ya'll don't go hurting yourselves now... and good luck..." Ascal said as he waved his arm.

"Will do..." replied Lieber.

After everyone bidded farewell and thanked each other, Mirage and the others took the south exit of Rashfall and found themselves back into the forested region, except it was almost midnight by now.

"Okay then, we're heading back to the Diplo." Mirage announced as she gave a quick glimpse towards the others.

Once Mirage got a hold of Marietta again, they were instantly transported back to the Diplo from just outside the city. The last thing they saw of Rashfall were the fireworks being blown into the air as the stars gazed down upon the manor. It was almost like the whole town was being blessed for its effort to demolish the Calamity once and for all.