Chapter 28

Before and After

Many Federation fleets began to lose their hope as they confronted the warship known as Talwar near the borders of the Vendeen system. About five Federation battleships had surrounded it almost an hour ago ensuring their victory, but the large sword-shaped Alliance warship refused to go down so easily. With an impulsive strike much more powerful than that of creation cannons caused the five battleships to destruct immediately. Before the other Alliance battleships reinforcements could arrive to protect the rear, the Federation tried with all their force to eliminate the Talwar to the best of their abilities.

"What's going on now!" General Reed, from Federation Station #16, demanded to know details from the second-in commander of the Conqueror through the communication link about the situation at the Vendeen border.

"General Reed! The situation is worsening. If we keep going like this, even our back-up warships will go down in no time!" General Grims replied in an extremely awkward manner.

"I want you to forget about any back-up ships or reinforcements! Send them all down there at once, understand?"

If the Federation were to bring in all their battleships down to the border at once, one small impact could destroy all the Federation fleets in one shot. That was the power of the Alliance's battleships. Without reinforcements, it would take hours to bring in other warships to the border and by that time, breaking in through the rear would be just as impossible. In short, this could possibly be their only chance and Reed was willing to take the risk. However, Grims wasn't too sure of the idea...

"But General..."

"Trust me on this one, Grims. If we can bring down the Talwar then the rest will be a cinch. Notify the commander of this change at once!" Reed commanded strictly.

"Yes, General Reed!" Suddenly, the comm link disconnected General Reed from Federation Station #16 and the Conqueror sent a transmission to the commander of the flagship near Vendeen hoping they would respond. Suddenly, a middle-aged handsome man with long brown hair and glasses was seen on the comm link.

"Major General Grims..." he said looking awfully calm considering the situation in Vendeen.

"Reginald! What's the situation over there?"

"The flagship is currently functioning at maximum efficiency. The battleships surrounding the Talwar are all below 30 now... and going down at a constant rate."

"Damn, they'll need to hold out just a bit longer! There's been a major change coming directly from the General himself. Move back the flagship and send reinforcements immediately to the border."

"What?"

"This is an order from the General!"

"Fine, understood."

The plan seemed to work. Instead of arriving at the border one group at a time, all Federation fleets charged in towards the lone Alliance warship all at once. Even the Talwar's shield couldn't withstand that much impact. Combined together, all the Federation battleships would boast a magnitude power that would go through the roof.

"Alright! It's working!" Fayt cheered from the back as he watched the general receive details from Commander Reginald through the comm link. Suddenly, the comm link now instantly connected to space station #16 back with General Reed on the screen.

"Well, it seems things are going much more efficiently! And it's thanks to Paulin. The whole plan was his idea of course." General Reed spoke with an unusual grin on his face.

Grims took a deep breath and a sigh of relief before giving a response, "Whew! I guess i'll check with Reginald on what's going on now!" The comm link changed connections once again to Commander Reginald, commander of the flagship.

"Well, I guess it wasn't such a bad idea after all." Reginald replied in a very sedate manner.

"Yes, but the appreciation should go towards Paulin. He could possibly be labelled as a hero and get a promotion to a few ranks higher up if we strike a success now." Grims chuckled as if he was only joking.

Commander Reginald simply looked down and whispered to himself... "Heh, I guess you had one over me this time Paulin." The rivalry between him and Paulin was still very existent.

However, everyone spoke too soon. As the Talwar started to back away slowly, about two or three Federation battleships engaged in combat were instantly blown to bits from an unseen force. Reginald tried to look at the battlefield, but there were no other Alliance ships in position other than the Talwar. This could mean only one thing...

"Major General!" Reginald exclaimed much more frantically this time. "There are warships present on the border which are invisible to the naked eye! The radar doesn't read anything either."

"Damn it... those things. That's the last thing we needed!"

"However, if we can fire towards it successfully then we can locate the position of these hidden ships in no time on the radar!" Reginald suggested. The comm link switched back over to General Reed.

"General! Have you heard!" Grims asked in a very anxious manner.

General Reed did not lose his confident appearance despite the terrible news, "Yes... we'll have to go along with Reginald's suggestion. And right now we have no choice, but to send in the third fleet. Start bringing in the Conqueror to the border as well!"

"This ship...?" Grims shot back a nervous look at Reed.

"Indeed. It is our best chance."

"Very well, I will do my best." replied Grims boldly as he lifted his head up high.

"Godspeed, Major General."

And with that, the comm link disconnected completely from both the station and the flagship. Major General Grims turned around and faced Fayt and Albel once again who were fully aware of the situation by now.

"Alright... this ship is going to head for battle. However, once we get near the Vendeen border... we'll try to pull close enough behind the Talwar where we will be able to release the shuttle in which you will boarding. In fact, you should start boarding immediately... I will contact you through the communicator and notify you once it begins to launch towards the planet of Vendeen. And don't worry, I assure you there won't be any anomalies during the trip." the major general spoke with an almost emotionless expression on his face. It was the kind of expression you would see on a stiff military soldier when speaking to his superiors.

"General Grims... please, just be safe." a concerned Fayt said as him and Albel made their way towards the transporter room which was connected to that of the shuttle.

"Good luck, boys... this one's up to you." Grims whispered but the two were no longer around to hear his words.

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Klaus IV didn't suffer from as much damage as Mirage thought, but most of the damage occured inside her heart as she stared once more at her father's grave just at the edge of the cliff before leaving for the train station along with Cliff. It had been a long day, and Mirage had already informed the superintendent of the dojos located in Trena and the vast regions of Lazeria about the damage caused in the Jingu school. The government was obviously willing to pay the cost for the damage, and they had also planned to act against the Alliance for meddling within matters of Klaus. Quark figured it would be best not to inform the Klaus government about the reasons of the invasion, otherwise they will be held responsible for the attack and will probably be forced to disband once again. Meanwhile... Maria, Lieber, Xeim, Misty, and Welch waited at the nearest train station in Lazeria where they awaited the arrival of Mirage and Cliff.

"What are you thinking about Maria?" Lieber asked as he took a seat next to Maria who was sitting on the small bench near the wall.

"It's... nothing really." Maria shook her head in a hesitant fashion looking slightly depressed. Lieber figured it would be best to leave Maria alone in these situations. Whenever she was not willing to tell what was on her mind, she always preferred to be alone.

However, It wasn't long before Maria herself began to speak to him, "Hey, Lieber... doesn't it feel odd to you to return back home this way? I mean... not that it's been such a long time for you, but still..."

"I suppose, but it's not like I really have a family to look back to here. Steeg and me are the only ones so wherever we go... we prefer to stick together. Marietta, on the other hand, is surely very concerned about her family. Fortunately, they didn't suffer from any drastic incidents... I made sure of that just before arriving at the train station."

"Well that's a relief." Maria sighed as she looked down at her stretched legs while her mind wandered, "I wonder how Mirage and Cliff are?"

"Oh! Speak of the devil and look... they're here!" Welch exclaimed amusingly as she noticed two familiar figures in the distance jumping off the train along with the other Klausians in the train station. It was Mirage and Cliff.

"Cliff! Mirage!" Maria and the others ran towards them glad to see that everyone was now safe. Mirage and Cliff looked as if they had just been through hell, and why wouldn't they? So much had happened in Trena and many Klausian citizens who lost their family must have felt the same way. Upon hearing the death of Dan Koas... everyone's mood began to turn gloomy. They expressed their apologies in a very grief manner and Maria was willing to share a hug with her former mentor as she noticed that her cheeks were dry from all the tears that must have been streaming down them.

"Guys... thanks, but it's okay now. What's happened has happened, and i'm willing to move away from all of it now." Mirage said softly yet quietly showing a tad bit of grief in her tone. Although she had gotten over the incident, there was something inside her that wouldn't let it get past her mind so easily. Maybe it was because she cared too much for her father, how could something like that have been forgotten so quickly? It was impossible. But as a captain, Mirage knew it was her responsibility to show some charisma and keep everyone in the right mood... and for that sake, she tried to absorb any feelings that were still beating in her heart.

"So... what are you gonna do about the dojo?" Cliff asked.

"I've already had a word with the director in Trena... he said that the government holds themselves responsible for the attack and they'd be willing to pay for the damage. That makes me feel kind of guilty now." replied Mirage as she hung her head low.

Cliff nodded slightly in return, "I know just what you mean. But we can't just go around tellin' the government all the details... it's just gonna cause more helluva ruckus."

"I know. Well, in any case, I guess the dojo will have to be closed for a while... i've left a note to Glenn, my neighbor, to look things for me." Just as Mirage finished speaking, there was a transmission being sent on her communicator. Maria noted that it must have been Marietta. And it indeed was... she spoke in her enthusiastic tone as usual.

"Captain, do you read me?"

"Marietta... what is it?"

"There's good news! The Federation has managed to break through the rear of the Vendeen system successfully! Our destination is clear now."

"That's a relief..."

"What's the condition there? Or do you prefer to keep that for later as usual?"

"...Yes."

"Alright, I guess i'll just have to pray everything's alright until then."

Mirage slid the compact communicator back into her vest pocket as everyone gave her a look of curiosity.

"What is it?" Xeim asked bluntly.

"We managed to get past their barriers." Mirage spoke as she let out a sigh of relief.

"Alright then, I guess there is no reason to stick around here any longer. Still... so many lives were lost, and all just because of a crazy terrorist bent on getting back at Quark." said Maria while shaking her head. The thoughts still rang inside Mirage's head. It was that man, Rudra, one of the Specialists who killed her father... and he would have to pay for it. Ever since that incident, Mirage promised herself to get to the end of this no matter what it takes. Not so much to avenge her father's murder, but so no one else would have to suffer the pain she went through earlier yesterday.

"We'll stop them... no matter what it takes." Mirage announced as she clenched her fist tightly.

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A station nearby the Klaus government HQ in Lazeria existed as the headquarters for Quark. Although the interior didn't consist of much other than a few local members, a storage room that supplied weapons, and a hangar which regularly held transporters for Quark's ships including its flagship, the Diplo. It wasn't much of a sight since the original Quark headquarters existed within Klaus III before it was disbanded four years ago. Cliff, who willed to leave for Vendeen by himself so he can gather further details on the Alliance was just about ready to depart from Klaus IV in Quark's transport ship known as the Lancer. Other Quark personnel who prepared themselves for the journey had boarded the Lancer already as Cliff gave his farewells to the rest of the group in the hangar of the headquarters.

"You sure about this, Cliff?" Mirage asked once again with a much more concerned voice this time. "Maybe it'd help to have us along as well."

Cliff shook his head as he shrugged calmly, "Would ya relax already? You gotta take it easy for once... although i'm still flattered of how concerned you are for me."

"I'm more worried about how reckless you'll get with your hunches than about your safety. And when you're up against the Alliance, there's no telling what you'll end up doing." Mirage shot back in a very monotonous tone which turned out to be amusing for the group.

"Ouch. Still cold as ever, I see." Cliff chuckled.

"You know... I still find it surprising how easily the Federation was able to get past the Alliance's defense." Maria noted.

Cliff could only agree, "Yeah... it's not like the Alliance to just sit back in their pajamas and watch the Federation attacking their warships. I'm sure that Wakou already has something up his sleeve."

"Right. So whatever you do... be careful, Cliff." Mirage

"Alright, i'll look into everything I can 'bout these synchronological labs. Just leave it to me..."

"Cliff..." Xeim stepped forward in that instant as he looked towards Cliff confusingly, "You've been with the Alliance for quite a while now. Tell me then, have you heard of anything known as the 'Supreme Deity'?"

That was the same name Mirage, Lieber, and Xeim had heard only once throughout their lifetime but for Xeim... once was enough for it to keep ringing in his head constantly since it came from the demon known as Rodrigue. This little clue Rodrigue left them back at the Sanctuary of Linga could possibly help him find out more about Rodrigue. Of course, he could just track down the evil demon himself, Xeim knew what area Rodrigue is likely to hide in. It was the only place demons preferred to dwell in.

"Supreme Deity ya say? Well, can't say I can recall exactly... but there was a bar near a mechanics shop I owned back in Klaus III when I was 20 known as the Drunkard's Deity, but I kinda doubt that's what you're looking for," Cliff said as he tried to think of any other similarities with the term 'Supreme Deity' but nothing else came to mind. "Yep, that's all there is to it."

"Drunkard's Deity...? What kind of name is that for a bar anyway?" Welch asked as she scratched her head with the tip of her fingers.

"Most bars have a tendency of having silly names from my sightings." Mirage mentioned.

"Lancar and I used to visit that bar almost everyday, we guessed the owner was probably drunk himself while coming up with the name." replied an amused Cliff just as a transmission hit his communicator, "Oh! There we go... guess those guys at the ship can't really hold onto their pants any longer. Well... I guess i'm gonna have to take off now then."

"Good luck, Cliff." Maria nodded as she gave him a warm smile.

"We're counting on you!" Lieber cheered.

"Cliff, just... take care." spoke Mirage while seeing Cliff walk over to the transporter of the hangar slowly. He turned around at that instant and took a good look at the group before saying...

"If you guys happen to find anything interesting... just keep in touch."

The Lancer was one of the newest Klausian models for transport ships. It didn't have the advanced space-time displacement shields most Federation transport ships have, but the electromagnetic shield wasn't something that could be looked over so easily. The EMS often boasted the ability to block a variety of magnitudes of energy and since the Lancer was no warship, the EMS carried by this transport ship had limited power compared to the others. As Cliff started to board the ship... Mirage, Maria, Lieber, Misty, Xeim, and Welch waved their hands to give their farewell to him who nodded in return with a delighted expression on his face. Neither Mirage nor the rest of the group liked having Cliff leave their side but atleast the though of Cliff fighting by their side was still in their hearts and Mirage learned that was enough to satisfy her. All she could do now is contact the Diplo once again and have them transported back up to their flagship.