Far East Branch - Lobby

Operations within the Den continued normally over the next few days. After assisting Karel on a dangerous mission on Aegis Island, Neo found herself returning to battle once more to assist Shun after taking on yet another quest that he clearly couldn't handle. Upon its completion, she took a brief respite before returning once again to field operations, much to the concern of her guardian. It seemed that all Neo did these days was hunt, feed, bathe, and sleep, in that order, occasionally messing up his room in the process.

Conferring with their comrades served little purpose as it turned out that none of them knew any more than he did. The woman had been spending increasingly less time around her teammates as of late, often assisting soldiers from other units with their missions. While this wasn't necessarily a bad thing, such destructive behavior was usually indicative of a much deeper problem. But for the life of him, he couldn't figure out what it was. Even her so called 'boyfriend' had been seeing very little of her, despite his increasing efforts.

But among all of the members she had assisted, it seemed that Tatsumi in particular had been monopolizing most of her time. After receiving a list from Paylor Sakaki half a mile long, the Defense Unit Captain had been working overtime to collect all of the resources for this unusual endeavor. What the Doctor actually planned to do with all of their gathered supplies remained a mystery.

"Brendan."

The other God Eater turned at the sound of an angry veteran's voice, halting his footsteps as he approached "Soma. What's up?"

"What the hell is going on with Neo?"

"Um… excuse me?"

"She's been taking on a ridiculous number of missions lately. I spoke with Hibari, and it turns out the majority of them are with members of your unit."

Brendan sighed, shaking his head under Soma's watchful gaze. "Ah, so that's what this is about. Yeah, Dr. Sakaki asked Tatsumi to go on some retrieval missions. I saw the list; it was really long…"

"Yeah, no kidding."

"I'm sure it'll help in some way or another, but he issues the most cruel missions with the straightest face."

"That's the old man for you. Look, if you see that woman, tell her -" Soma paused his sentence as a head of violet hair caught his attention. Wandering from the Mess Hall, Neo was making her way through the main lobby towards the stairwell. Judging from her direction, she was likely heading to the weapons hangar. "Neo!"

At the sound of Soma's shout, she turned, moving instead in their direction. Stopping a few feet away from them, she looked curiously between the pair.

"Where are you going?"

"Mission. Tatsumi requires my assistance for resource collection."

"Again?!"

"Is that a problem?"

"Yes! You haven't rested in days. What the hell is going on with you all of a sudden?"

Neo shrugged, turning her eyes briefly to the other God Eater. "Brendan, will you be assisting as well?"

He shook his head. "Not this time. I've got another mission to take care of."

"I'll join you." Gunter approached, overhearing their conversation. He offered a playful wink to the New Type, who nodded her head.

"Oh no, you are not going on another mission. You need to rest."

"I'm fine, Soma."

"No, you're not. You've been acting -"

"Soma, I'm going. You are free to come along if you wish."

Soma's face twisted into an angry scowl as the New Type waved him off. While she appeared tepid on the surface, he could hear the bite in her tone. Something was definitely upsetting her.

Smirking, Gunter gently rested a hand on the New Type's shoulder. "Don't worry about Neo, Soma. I'll take good care of her. Promise."

The veteran's frown deepened, his eyes narrowing as he observed the pair. While he had no doubt that Neo could take care of herself, he had far less faith in her suitor. Yet strangely enough, it wasn't Gunter's strength that bothered him. Having fought alongside him during Thor's Banquet, he was more than familiar with his battle prowess. No. Something else was bothering him, getting under his skin.

But what?

His eye twitched with irritation as Gunter smiled down at the smaller woman. A strange feeling rose in the pit of his stomach at sight of it, coiling even tighter as that same woman smirked back at him. What the hell were those two smiling about? Crossing his arms, he growled in frustration. It seemed there would be no stopping her. "Fine. But you will rest when this is over."

Neo shrugged, turning and making her way towards the exit. Disregarding the blonde following behind her, she disappeared through the metal doors. Shaking his head, Soma followed after them, in a markedly worse mood than he started in. Behind them, Brendan simply shook his head. He would never understand any one of them.

He paused as he made his way towards the mission desk for his own assignment, turning back to look after the retreating group. His eyes narrowed as her violet hair vanished behind the doors. Having spent relatively little time around the New Type, he had never gotten a chance to take a good look at her. But now that he had, he couldn't help but notice that she looked oddly familiar.

. . .

Forgotten Carrier

The journey to their destination was a strained one, the four members sitting silently in their helicopter. The air was thick with tension as all four God Eaters stared at one another. More specifically, Tatsumi stared at Soma, Soma stared at Gunter, Gunter stared at Neo, and Neo stared off into space, not paying attention to any one of them. The Captain sighed, wondering if the three of them would be able to get through their mission without too much hassle.

Their arrival hadn't been much better, with Neo waltzing out of the helicopter with a blank stare on her face. Gunter followed after her, keeping an eye out for any approaching threats as they moved. Behind them, Soma did the same, eyeing the area around them while keeping an even closer eye on the other God Eater. Bringing up the rear, Tatsumi simply stared, trying to figure out what was going on between the three of them.

While mood swings and snappy tendencies were a common occurrence with the cranky veteran, somehow, he seemed to be in an even worse mood than usual. One would think that he would be less so, hunting with a comrade. Why did he seem so tense? Could it be Gunter's presence that was bothering him?

…Or was it Gunter's presence around Neo?

He almost sighed with relief when Hibari's voice came through the radio, testing their signals. "Come in, Squadron. This is Hibari, do you read?"

"Oh, the honey-voiced Hibari whispering in my ear. I'll give you one hell of a show!"

Soma facepalmed at the ridiculous monologue, his tension with Gunter temporarily forgotten. Did that moron never learn? Gunter chuckled silently at his attempt, eyeing the woman beside him to gauge her reaction. Unsurprisingly, she offered none, her eyes staring forward as though she hadn't heard him at all.

The sigh Hibari gave was audible through the line. "The… enthusiasm is appreciated, Tatsumi, but recklessness is not."

"Ma'am, yes, ma'am!" Tatsumi signed off, exhaling quietly to himself at yet another failed attempt. Groaning, he picked up his pace slightly, jogging to catch up to his blonde-haired comrade. When he reached him, he lowered his voice to a quiet grumble. "Spurned again… what am I doing wrong?"

"Well, for one thing, your timing could use some work." Gunter muttered back, noting his flirtation during an active mission.

Tatsumi shook his head. "It happens outside of missions too. I even started using more adjectives and descriptive compliments like you suggested."

"Did it help?"

"Not even a little." He muttered, turning his attention to the New Type now wandering slightly ahead of them. "You've gotta tell me your secret. Please, I'll do anything."

Gunter shook his head. "Sure. When I figure it out, you'll be the first to know."

"Eh?" Tatsumi slowed his pace slightly, staring at his comrade as he continued forward. He couldn't help but notice the tension in his shoulders as he spoke, nor the disappointment in his voice. He almost sounded frustrated. Having been working on her for so long, he had simply assumed his success, as that had always been the case in the past. Could it be that Neo was giving him even more difficulty than Hibari was giving him? Making a note to prod him about it later, the Captain fell back to the rear guard, drifting behind Soma as he strode passed.

As Tatsumi moved behind him, Soma smirked slightly at their conversation. With his enhanced hearing, he had heard every word. It didn't surprise him too much to hear that Gunter hadn't gotten very far. For a moment, he could hear Ichiro's words in his mind as he recalled the start of all this foolishness.

Gunter can't handle Neo.

It seemed that his prediction was ringing true… and for some reason, that amused him to no end.

Suddenly, Neo picked up her speed, accelerating from a slow walk to a light trot. Taking note, her teammates followed after her, alarmed by her sudden change in pace. Her reasoning became clear before long as they reached the end of the derelict bridge. Near the edge of the structure were a group of Fallen Cocoon Maidens. It seemed that Neo's senses had gotten stronger as well, having detected the threats slightly before Soma.

Tatsumi gripped his God Arc in preparation as they approached. Gunter and Soma did nothing, knowing full well that there was little point in trying to intervene. Their targets would be slain before they even lifted their blades. And that was precisely what happened. Skipping into the center of the group, she twirled her scythe like a baton, dancing around the needles as they deployed. Blood spattered in every direction as Neo spun, slicing through her enemies to the music in her head. One brave Maiden attempted to stun her, launching a crackling sphere in her direction. She frowned, absorbing the strike and felling it with a single swing.

Behind her, Tatsumi lowered his sword, looking more than a bit surprised. Despite seeing her in combat on a few occasions, he still hadn't gotten used to her violent efficiency. And if she kept up that pace, chances were Neo would be the one putting on a show for them. His mouth twitched slightly at the thought. How would he be able to impress Hibari now? Shaking his head, he continued forward, paying little mind to the woman as she began to crouch. But she halted her actions at the sound of Soma's voice, sounding even more irritated than usual.

"Haas, mind making those eyes somewhere else?"

Twitching, Gunter turned to the veteran, looking a bit miffed at both his interruption and callout. "I'll look wherever I want to, thanks."

"Tch, what else is new?"

"What's your problem?"

"You're my problem. And you're making her uncomfortable."

"What was that?"

At the sound of the escalating argument, Tatsumi quicky retreated to mitigate it. The last thing they needed was a brawl before their mission even began. Neo stared for a moment, confused by Soma's sudden outburst. Gunter always stared at her. Why show concern now?

'Eh?' Neo's eye widened slightly, as she watched them, receiving her answer. While his snippy complaints were directed towards Gunter, his eyes were fixed pointedly in her direction. And as he inclined his head in the subtlest of motions, she realized what he was doing. He had noticed her attempting to feed… and was creating a distraction. Not wishing to waste the opportunity he provided, she quickly dropped to her knees, violently tearing out the cores of each and every one and shoving them into her mouth.

"Guys, come on, don't start." Tatsumi frowned, eyeing both men with a stern look.

Soma scowled back. "How about staying focused?"

"How about minding your own business?" Gunter snapped, growing irritated with his sudden meddling.

"Gladly." With that final word, he walked past them, all previous tension gone and leaving the other two in utter confusion. As he watched Neo quickly wipe the blood from her lips, he knew that his job was done. His eyes watched her as he passed, noting her grateful nod in his direction. He simply smirked in response, before continuing on his way.

Following their staged altercation, the remainder of their journey was in relative silence. With Tatsumi taking point, Neo followed behind, looking occasionally between the two men on either side of her. Gunter stood to her right, almost defiantly so, and Soma stood on her left, looking highly amused… or as amused as he was capable of. It seemed her childhood friend took great joy in getting under the other God Eater's skin.

But his trolling quickly came to a standstill. Both his and Neo's movements slowed, their senses alerting them to an Aragami presence. Gunter paused after two steps, quickly realizing that the New Type was no longer by his side. Turning, he stared at the pair, frozen in place as their faces wore similar looks of concentration. What the hell was going on with them?

Within moments, his question was answered.

Snapping her head forward, Neo focused on her team's current Captain, unwittingly walking right into a trap. Then, she was in motion. Accelerating with a burst of Oracle cells, she left Soma behind, blowing Gunter's bangs as she streaked passed him. She said no words, appearing at Tatsumi's side in a matter of seconds. He didn't even have time make an utterance as she grabbed him by the jacket and all but launched him out of the way. The sound of electricity reached her ears as the Borg fired, tossing lightning spheres towards the ground in his old position. Absorbing the shock, she lifted her scythe and rushed around the corner after her target.

Gunter blinked as she soaked in the charge, shaking his head to make sure his eyes weren't playing tricks on him. While he had seen it once before in the Wailing Plains, the phenomenon was still very new to him. "Damn… New Types are something else." He muttered, rushing to aid his befuddled Captain.

"Yeah." Soma affirmed, taking off after her. It seemed Gunter was still under the impression that her power was a New Type trait, and he had no intention of correcting him. Wrapping around the corner, the veteran found an unsurprising but highly entertaining sight. Neo was locked in a swordfight, or more accurately, a game of keep away as she bounced and danced around the Camlann's thrusting needle. And she looked nothing short of delighted. "Of course…" Rolling his eyes, he joined her.

Tatsumi and Gunter quickly followed up the rear, the former still looking slightly perplexed. His brain still hadn't entirely processed what had happened. One moment, he was walking along the buildings… and the next, he was airborne. Had Neo thrown him? Deciding not to ponder too much on it, he joined his teammate in wrapping around the bend.

The sight that met them was amusing to say the least. The Borg was all but spinning in circles, trying to figure out which way to turn as Neo darted around its legs, swiping it with every pass. From the outer perimeter, Soma was doing the same, placing heavy strikes whenever the opportunity presented itself. The two of them almost seemed to be… enjoying themselves.

Gunter shook his head at the pair. It seemed that Neo would be Neo, regardless of who she was currently working with. "Well, let's go, Boss. You wanted to put on a show, right?" Smirking, he leapt into the brawl, targeting the Borg's shields.

"Unbelievable." The Captain sighed, following his brash teammate into battle.

Their strategy worked surprisingly well. Despite having three melees in relatively close proximity, their staggered weapon types proved highly beneficial. With Tatsumi's Short Blade, his rapid, precise strikes made for easy harassment. Leaping through the air, he placed a series of slashes against the tail with every pass. With Gunter's Long Blade and swift fighting style, he made for an effective striker. Working in tandem with his Captain, he alternated between ground and aerial combat, targeting the needle whenever Tatsumi came down.

With Neo's Variant Scythe and Sniper Gun, she played the role of switch-hitter and agitator. Using her high mobility and weapon versatility, she alternated between swift strikes and bullets, aiming to cause as much disruption as possible. Soma's heavy-hitting Buster Blade left him spending most of his time in wait, placing powerful, opportunistic strikes whenever he could. With the Borg spinning in every direction, he relied on Neo to lure it into position, before unleashing hell with a full-force Charge Crush.

And aggravate it she did, maneuvering around beneath the monster's body, emerging in front. Shifting into gun form, she took aim, firing a hail of bullets towards the Borg's sensitive armored chest. To protect itself, it lifted its arms, forming the shield. She smirked, chortling as the monster fell right into her devious trap. Rolling to the side, she cleared the way for Soma, who rushed forward and brought down his blade with crushing force. A loud screech echoed through the area as the monster reared back, flailing its unbound limbs.

"Incoming!" Tatsumi warned, watching the tail begin to lower.

The team followed his command, each using their own method to evade the attack. With a light, nimble weapon, Tatsumi leapt back into the air, allowing the tail to pass underneath of him. Gunter slid, allowing the tail to soar overhead, clipping the appendage as it passed. Soma and Neo worked in combination, with Soma raising his tower shield to guard. Neo looped around and crouched, allowing him to protect her until the threat had passed. Then, utilizing his large shield, she leapt off of it, soaring overhead to meet the needle as it rose again. With a well-placed swing, she shattered the spike, earning another angry shriek as she finished off Gunter's work.

With the creature dazed and confused, Tatsumi completed his task, placing a series of rapid strikes along the entire length of the tail as he came down. The tell-tale crack told them he had succeeded in his quest, unbinding the cells and sending the monster spiraling completely out of control.

And that was the moment Neo had been waiting for. Darting towards Soma, she met his gaze. He nodded to her, reading her intentions. After fighting alongside of her for so long, he was accustomed to her habits. Deploying his shield once more, he angled the massive tower for her, allowing her to launch herself into the air. Soaring overhead, she shifted into sniper form and took aim. The enraged Borg opened his chest cavity, displaying multiple rows of serrated teeth. And she responded with four blazing pierce bullets directly into the center.

The flaming projectiles tore through its body, destroying it from the inside.

The three men backed away as the Borg collapsed onto the ground, unmoving. Neo landed a short distance away, placing her weapon on the ground with a satisfied grin. Bending to the side, she stretched out her tense muscles, leaving one of the other three to extract the core.

Tatsumi smiled, happy with their work. "Nice job, team! I've always wanted to hunt one of these."

"Anytime, Boss." Gunter smirked, shifting his eyes for a moment to Neo. While it was clear that she was cooling down, he could tell that she still wasn't entirely satisfied. He would never understand where she got her energy from.

"Alright, squad. Let's split up and finish the rest of this list."

At the sound of Tatsumi's command, Soma swung his blade over his shoulder. "Great. The sooner we finish, the sooner we can get back."

Neo nodded, grabbing her God Arc and heading off into the city. She was relieved for an opportunity to get away from the 2nd Unit pair. Free to feed as she pleased, the New Type wandered through the city streets, leaving the three of them behind.