"Why are you following me and my Darling?"
With the force pushing on his back, Eighty-Three could not breathe properly. Stuck against the wall, his lungs could not fill themselves with air, preventing the pilot from replying. But the one that asked the question did not seem to get that.
"Why were you creeping behind us like that?"
This second question was asked with much more frustration in the voice. However, this shift of tone did not change the fact that Eighty-Three was unable to speak. He struggled for a few seconds, trying to shift to a slightly more comfortable position, but the only thing it did was anger the interrogator.
Before he knew it, he was violently thrown towards the other side of the cabin. The contact with the wall was hard, enough to leave him completely groggy on the ground.
"Zero Two! Stop!"
Even if he could not really process what was happening, Eighty-Three at least picked up that it was someone else that had spoken up. Through his fuzzy vision, he could just see two silhouettes towering above him, their face darkened by the backlighting of the elevator neon lights.
One of the two shadows kneeled down and started snapping its fingers just above his eyes.
"Hey. Are you alright?"
"Yeah... I... I think so," replied Eighty-Three as he rubbed his face.
After a few seconds had passed, blurriness had faded enough for him to finally make sense of what was all around him. Just in front of his eyes was a young male pilot. Simply by looking at his face, it was clear that he had not been a pilot for more than one year or two. With his slightly messy dark haircut and complete lack of facial hair on his chin, he did not look older than sixteen or seventeen. The worried blue eyes that were pointed straight towards Eighty-Three and the tone of his question made it clear that he was not the one that had attacked him, so he turned his look towards the other silhouette.
Standing tall was a young woman who clearly stood out. Even at an initial glance, there was not a single thing about her that looked usual for a pilot of the Entity. The first thing he saw was her bright red uniform that contrasted heavily with the regular shades of grey and dark blue. It was not even a dye or a regular uniform made of a different fabric, but rather a completely different design that he had never seen before. In fact, with its more complex shoulder pads and golden accents here and there, it felt as if whoever was supposed to wear such a uniform was more important than squadron officers.
The surprise and the confusion caused Eighty-Three to quickly scan her from head to toe to understand more, but his gaze quickly stopped over one detail. On the top of her head, in the middle of long hair of an unnatural pink shade, were two red horns. They were not that large, as someone standing behind her could probably not see them, but they overshadowed other details that he had not seen yet like the unusual shape of her pupils or the thin stripes of red skin right under her eyes.
It seems that she caught on this dumbfounded stare, and it very clearly did not make her happy.
"Why were you following us?"
"You have something against Papa, am I right?"
Both were taken aback by the quick reply and remained silent as Eighty-Three stood back up on his feet. Even if they had not really moved, he could feel how they had shifted into a more defensive stance.
"What makes you think that?"
They were unsure, doubtful of that older pilot that had suddenly started to follow them around. They had to see how much trust he was worthy of.
"With the armed guard that escorted your two squad mates, it gives the impression they do not really trust you. And if Papa does not trust you, it might cause you not to trust him in return."
The two looked at each other for a quick second as if to share their opinion. When they turned back towards Eighty-Three, it was the boy that asked his question.
"Even then, why would you attempt to interfere with the affairs of another squadron?"
What had started as an assault had suddenly shifted into a strange interview. But if he wanted to get them to help him, he would have to explain them what he had discovered. Problem was, nothing was guaranteed and they could as well just denounce him to the Entity. It was a bet.
And right now, he felt like trying his luck.
"Well let's just say I have some problems with the Entity myself, and that I am looking for people to assist me."
"And what proves that you are on our side?"
The pink-haired woman was still using a hostile tone when she asked her question, giving the impression that Eighty-Three had touched a key spot. And it only raised the probability of an alliance.
"I know some things that the Entity has been lying about. I have seen things outside of the Settlements that I never expected to see. And I have met people that were not supposed to live where they did."
He knew they would ask for further proofs, so he just reached down in his pocket. The two remained silent as they watched him pull out something in a closed fist. He extended his arm between them and finally opened his hand, revealing a small memory stick with a strange label on it.
"What is this?"
"This stick has been given to me by someone living in the middle of old ruins. It contains hours upon hours of music from genres I did not even know existed. This is the proof that I have seen what Papa tried to hide, and this is the reason I am looking for the truth. But I cannot do it alone."
The woman picked up the drive and examined it very closely. She even went as far as smelling it, which only confused Eighty-Three even more. But it still allowed her to reach some sort of conclusion. The boy looked at her, and when she finally looked back, she nodded.
"Come with us."
The boy reached for the lift control panel and pressed the button to open the doors. It seemed that during this entire scene, they had actually gone down several floors but with all the action going on, Eighty-Three had not realized it. Across the corridor from the lift was a large number painted on the wall, indicating that they had reached the level of the barracks.
The boy was the first to come out of the elevator, the woman closely following him. Eighty-Three was left with no choice but to step out as well. As he expected, the rest of their group was waiting for the two, and as he expected, he immediately felt all the looks turn towards him. Why would they not? None of them had heard the explanation, and they still had all the reasons to be suspicious.
The only ones that were not looking at him in suspicion but rather in confusion were the boy and the girl he had noticed earlier. In fact, they were the reason he was here in the first place. And while he looked at them, he could only wonder if Frederic had seen him like this when they met.
"Who is that?"
The question came from one girl from the group. She was not towering above anyone, yet she was easily standing out as a leader.
"Someone who is seeking help, and who might be able to help us in return," stated the pink-haired woman.
The leader slightly nodded, but still kept a somewhat suspicious look. It was as if, while she trusted her squad mates, she did not trust Eighty-Three.
"Ok let's move back to the barracks. I don't want to stay out here in the open."
With another head movement, she ordered the entire group to move. And Eighty-Three followed.
While they walked, both parties kept silently examining each other. But nobody spoke up as they passed through the various doors leading to the area dedicated to their squadron. By being right among them, he could tell that the entire team were young new pilots. In fact, he was almost half a dozen centimeters taller than the blond boy who was the highest size in the group.
A quick glance at their shoulder patch revealed a large number thirteen embroidered over the black background. He was quick to make the connection with the squadron encountered during the training dogfight, but he kept his mouth shut. He was already walking on a tight rope, so there was no need to shoot himself in the foot on top of that.
As expected, the barrack of squadron thirteen was no different from the rooms of all the others. The main room was as long as it was wide, divided in two parts by a large curtain that could be pulled off or on to either open the space or split the boys and the girls. Along the walls, following a symmetrical pattern, were bunks and individual cabinets for people to store stuff in, while at the back, each side had a door leading to a simple bathroom with toilets and showers.
As the group entered, some headed towards their beds to get a place to sit on, but all kept their looks towards Eighty-Three. Finally, when all settled, it was the short leader that finally spoke up.
"So... Are we going to get an introduction?"
The pilot made sure he was right in the middle of the room before straightening his back to appear as tall as possible.
"Of course. I am Code Zero Eight Three, but you can call me Eighty-Three. I am a FRANV pilot in the squadron of Settlement Twenty, and I do not trust the Human Protection Entity anymore."
As a way to emphasize his words, and maybe also to add a bit of dramatic effect to the situation, he pulled his music player out of his pocket and unplugged the headphones before pressing the play button, launching a random song from the extensive playlist.
As a soft guitar started to play over the small yet powerful speakers, he started to explain everything. The last mission he went on, the unexpected response from the Klaxosaurs, the crash, Fifty's injuries, the ruins, meeting Frederic, the small village inside the church, the handover of the data stick and all the revelations made by Maria. Some members of the audience started to look at each other to share their feelings on this improvised presentation, but they were still all ears to both his words and the music.
At the moment the distorted riff kicked in, it felt as if he had suddenly gained a lot of points just by looking at their reactions. It was clear that none of them had heard anything similar, and it made him smile. But he knew that bringing forward proofs of past events could only do so much with the trust towards the future.
Tu bosses toute ta vie pour payer ta pierre tombale.
Tu masques ton visage en lisant ton journal.
Tu marches tel un robot dans les couloirs du métro.
Les gens ne te touchent pas, il faut faire le premier pas.
"And what exactly do you want? What does this have to do with us?"
The questions came from the blond boy that Eighty-Three had noticed earlier, and by the tone, it seemed he also had a role as a leader in the group.
Tu voudrais dialoguer sans renvoyer la balle.
Impossible d'avancer sans ton gilet pare-balle.
Tu voudrais donner des yeux à la justice.
Impossible de violer cette femme pleine de vices.
"And I will answer with another question. Do you know what happened to your friends? And by that, I mean do you really know for sure?"
Antisocial, tu perds ton sang-froid.
Repense à toutes ces années de service.
Antisocial, bientôt les années de sévices.
Enfin le temps perdu qu'on ne rattrape plus.
The only reply Eighty-Three got was silence. And even when he turned towards the two in question, he could only see confused looks.
"Okay, you don't have any idea..." he sighed.
Ecraser les gens est devenu ton passe-temps.
En les éclaboussant, tu deviens gênant.
Dans ton désespoir, il reste un peu d'espoir.
Celui de voir les gens sans fard et moins bâtards.
"Well, we were minding our own business when armed guards raided our living area and took them away... Today they finally came back and they just could not remember anything."
That statement came from another girl of the group who looked extremely serious with her glasses and her hair tied behind her head.
"And wouldn't you like to know the truth?"
Mais cesse de faire le point, serre plutôt les poings.
Bouge de ta retraite, ta conduite est trop parfaite.
Relève la gueule, je suis là, t'es pas seul.
Ceux qui t'enviaient, aujourd'hui te jugeraient.
The question was rhetorical, but the few nods he could pick up in the audience were enough to tell him that they had the mindset Eighty-Three thought they would have. So, it was with a small smile at the corner of his mouth that he continued.
"Well I'd like to know the truth as well."
Antisocial, tu perds ton sang-froid.
Repense à toutes ces années de service.
Antisocial, bientôt les années de sévices.
Enfin le temps perdu qu'on ne rattrape plus.
"And you want our help for that..."
This comment came from a male voice behind him, so Eighty-Three spun on his heels and pointed a finger towards the only boy he could see.
"Bingo! You got it. Now you probably still do not trust me, and I understand. I mean we do not know each other and I just show up asking for help, so I'll see what I can do with your two friends. Good?"
Tu bosses toute ta vie pour payer ta pierre tombale.
Tu masques ton visage en lisant ton journal.
Tu marches tel un robot dans les couloirs du métro.
Les gens ne te touchent pas, il faut faire le premier pas.
For a few seconds, nobody replied. It was until the amnesic boy stood up from the bed he was sitting on.
"I know that what the adults have told me is not the truth. If you tell me who I really am, I'd trust you."
He himself turned his look towards the amnesiac who simply nodded in a more reserved manner.
Tu voudrais dialoguer sans renvoyer la balle.
Impossible d'avancer sans ton gilet pare-balle.
Tu voudrais donner des yeux a la justice.
Impossible de violer cette femme pleine de vices.
"Well it looks like we have ourselves a deal. Just give me a few days and I'll see what I can find. But I don't think you have introduced yourself yet."
"I... I am Mitsuru. Or at least that was what I have been told."
Now it was Eighty-Three that did not reply, taken aback by the name he had been told. He would not have reacted like this had he been told a regular identification number, or a nickname derived from it. But here, it was an actual name like the officers and the higher ups of the Entity.
It seemed the members of the thirteenth squadron were also surprised. But for them, it was the pilot's reaction that was different from their expectations. After all, they had spent their entire lives using those names and could not imagine someone finding them strange. And some awkward explanations later, they all introduced themselves to Eighty-Three.
First, there were Code Three Two Six, Mitsuru, and Code Five Five Six, Kokoro. Thirteen Delta. The children with lost memories.
Code Two One Four, Futoshi, and Code One Nine Six, Ikuno. Thirteen Charlie. The polar opposites.
Code Six Six Six, Zorome, and Code Three Nine Zero, Miku. Thirteen Bravo. The couple that means trouble.
Code Zero Five Six, Goro, and Code Zero One Five, Ichigo. Thirteen Alpha. The leaders of the pack.
And finally, the crew that stood out most in this squadron.
Code Zero One Six, Hiro, and Code Zero Zero Two, Zero Two. Thirteen X-Ray. A woman and her Darling.
"So... Do you actually have any plan at all right now?" asked Ichigo with a bit warmer tone.
"Not exactly. But give me a few days and I'll try to snoop around and find something. And if I can't do it myself, I am sure I know someone..."
Eighty-Three stopped himself in the middle of his explanation when he felt something creep up his neck. Quickly turning around out of surprise, he could see Zero Two, her tongue out. Without him noticing, she had snuck up behind him and literally got a taste of his sweat.
When his look met hers, they did not move for a split second, the time for Eighty-Three to process what had happened. When his brain finally understood what had just happened, he made a confused step backwards.
"What the... What's wrong with you?" he yelled as a smile appeared at the corner of her mouth.
"You should maybe go back to your squadron. They might be worried about you."
She stated that as if nothing strange had happened, but she still had a point. It was still a bit confused that he stepped back towards the exit.
"Yeah... I'll contact you if I find anything."
And after a quick salute, he left the room and headed back towards the elevators, disappearing behind the various automatic doors.
Now that they were back between just themselves, they all turned towards Zero Two to get her take on this unlikely new possible ally.
"So? What did you feel?" asked Hiro.
"Determination."
Sometimes, even when you know what to look for and where to look for it, there are still many hurdles in your path blocking you.
Maria knew what she was looking for and where to look for it. But when she tried to access the files of the test pilots, the computer system of the archives was quick to reject her for her lack of authorization. Despite her best efforts to go around those restrictions, each time she was sent back to her starting point without having learned any new information.
What was even more frustrating was that she could still access most of the files of the rest of their team. But even then, all the information linked to the mysterious crew was redacted out, keeping her from accessing all the interesting details.
All the rest was pretty usual. Dozens, if not hundreds of common paperwork like mission reports or performance evaluations that she knew by heart with how many of those she had filled up over her career. The only thing out of the ordinary was that it seemed something had happened just a few days before the start of the exercise. It was enough to get several classified documents in each file with very similar time frames, but she could not really tell anything from that alone. If she had to guess, it was very likely linked to the test pilots she wanted to know about.
And as with so many situations before that, looking for answers only created more interrogations.
As the monitor displayed one of many error messages, her head was scrambling to find new ways to go forward. If her own attempts to access the archives could not go any further, she would have to ask someone for more information. But who?
Werner?
In their last discussion, she had felt pretty clearly that he was far from revealing anything on those test pilots. And even if it seemed that he had changed, she still knew him. He was not going to change his mind that easily.
Naomi?
Her longtime friend had already told her so much about this entire thing that she immediately became a possible source for more information. However, Maria also had the impression that the Japanese woman had told too much. Getting more from her would most likely have consequences for both of them.
Apart from those two, there was just one person that could answer her questions.
Hachi.
But not only had she not talked to him for a very long time, he would be the hardest one to get any information out of. After his accident and his long operation, he closed himself off, sharing almost no emotions. Only a form of his former sense of duty remained, making him a perfect tool for higher ups in the Entity. Someone that executed orders without any questions was very much sought after, especially in contexts involving secret information. However, she was not exactly sure of how he might have changed over all this time. Maybe all those years with Werner changed him, maybe not.
It was a gamble without any safe bet. But a gamble she had to make.
Probably for the first time in at least a century, she took a decision perfectly knowing that it would probably not work and that there was no backup. She could hear her inner self yelling that this entire situation was bad as she left a message on Hachi's communicator asking for a meeting. For a moment, she even hoped that he would not answer and that it would end right there.
But he answered.
Her heart was beating faster and faster as she walked down the corridor leading to the meeting location, the observation deck of one of the hangars. Maybe it was the fact that she was finally going to face the consequences of her biggest past failure that was putting her in such a state, but she could not tell herself. When she stopped in front of the door, she slowly breathed in and out to calm herself and brushed off the sweat from her forehead.
With a slightly lower heartbeat, she waved her hand in front of the control panel, causing the two panels to slide out of her way.
Observation decks were far from being the most comfortable rooms available, but they gave the best view on whatever was happening inside a particular hangar, making them perfect for demonstrations. The only pieces of furniture were chairs surrounding a large table, but she did not focus on them.
On the other side, facing the long bay window, stood the man she had come to see. He was deeply focused on whatever was happening in the hangar below. So much so that when she stepped in, he did not even turn around to welcome her.
"Officer Kanawara," she simply said to get his attention.
But he did not flinch. It was with his head straight still that he replied.
"Officer Emidova. You should see what is on the other side of this window."
His tone was completely emotionless, a robotic speech only here to give orders and deliver reports to Werner. But she could not do anything but follow his instructions.
When she stopped next to him and looked through the clear glass, her heart skipped a beat. In front of her eyes was the experimental plane she had been after for all this time. It might have been a bit small inside a hangar designed for FRANVs, but it was still imposing with its deployed inverted wings and canards. All around the FRANX, ground crews and engineers of the research team were scrambling, working on and with equipment that she could not identify.
Then, when work seemed over, most of those working on the plane backed off, out of the way of two approaching silhouettes. Even if their gear was vastly different, it was easy to guess who they were as they headed straight towards the two ladders leading to the cockpit. The flight suits were simpler than what pilots under her orders were issued. In fact, the more she looked, the more she noticed what was missing. They had no life jackets around their necks, no pouches on their arms or legs and the anti-g equipment seemed to be hidden under or within the fireproof suits. And the same feeling of simple appearance came out of the helmets. From where she was, they looked like plain metal spheres with one slit for the eyes, one hole for the neck and an oxygen tube sticking out in front of the mouth. It came without saying that whatever technology was hiding inside of it was probably the opposite of simplicity.
She kept observing the two pilots as they climbed up in their cockpit and strapped themselves in with the help of some ground crews. Everything seemed familiar so far until the canopy closed down on them. The machine finally started to come to life as its engines started to roar and its variable geometry elements moved into their different positions as a final check. But while all of this was happening, the pilots did not seem to move their heads in any way.
As if they were controlling the plane using only their minds.
When she finally made the connections in her head, she immediately turned towards Hachi who was still looking through the window.
"This..." she started as her heart rate sky rocketed. "This is a complete mind-link, isn't it?"
For some reason, it felt as if he had been expecting the question.
"It is. The brains of both pilot and co-pilot are linked to the inboard computer to control not only sensors and identification, but also weapons, communications and piloting."
While he delivered his reply in his cold voice, the last ground crews that were still around pulled off the ladders and whatever remained near the jet. Shortly after, the large hangar doors started to slowly roll out of the way. What Maria had not noticed when she had entered was the small radio transmitter sitting on the observation deck table. She was startled when a robotic voice suddenly started to speak through it.
« Tower, Thirteen X-Ray. Requesting permission to taxi, over. »
While the words very much understandable, the intonation had nothing natural to it. In fact, this voice felt closer to how the personal assistant in her office talked than an actual human being. But there were no doubts that the one doing the talking was the pilot of the jet.
« Understood, Thirteen X-Ray. You are cleared to taxi to point Charlie and wait for takeoff clearance. »
The sound of the engines softly became louder as the plane finally came into motion and rolled out of the hangar and onto the taxiway. Both observers remained silent while they watched, listening to the standard radio communications with the tower.
Then, the sound faded away, leaving Maria to turn back toward Hachi.
"I know you wanted to see me because of this." His statement was so close to the truth that she could not reply. "The doctor has told me that you met him and what he explained to you. And with all the data you had most likely gathered for the engagement between squadrons Thirteen and Twenty, this was the most likely event."
In a normal situation, she would probably would have made a sarcastic comment about how his analytic nature, but here, she just wanted answers.
"How... How did you actually do it? I thought that there was a bottleneck with the computer hardware when it tried to handle two minds at once..."
"We completely changed the architecture of the system. This is why the doctor told you that there was no intention of transitioning crews of the current generation to the next. Not only would it require new formations, but a vast majority of pilots currently deployed would not be fit for this new architecture."
And as always, a reply only leads to more questions.
"What do you mean? Have you changed things so much that even the co-pilots cannot use it?"
"Mind-link is not about getting sensor data directly into the brain anymore. Now, we do not simply link up two minds to a computer at a same time, we link two minds together first."
"Wait, what?"
Her reaction of surprise was completely genuine. But he ignored her sudden remark and continued on with his explanation, seemingly without emotion.
"This is not something that can be done by any pair of pilots. In fact, this is not something that can be handled by unmodified human brains. The genetic sources had to be modified to get stable connections and the pilots have to think very much alike to get results that are combat worthy."
"So, I guess this is why Werner said those two test pilots gave him trouble, huh?"
"We were expecting a high number of problems, but I think that the way the doctor involved himself with the new pilots has led him to take decisions that I would have advised against to better the life of the young pilots. I even have some suspicions on whether or not said issues had consequences, even minor, on his behavior and mental health."
Somehow, this comment managed to get a small laugh out of Maria.
"Werner? Changing his behavior to help kids out? Are we really talking about that grumpy old man that would yell at everyone when you and Naomi broke a piece of the prototype? I mean, I guess people change with time..."
She willingly referenced a past they had in common to see what kind of reaction he would have. And while he still continued with his same emotionless tone, she could have sworn she had seen him raise the corner of his lip in an extremely small smile. However, the positive feelings it brought would not last very long.
"He was already really involved with the wellbeing of the first generations of pilots. The facilities that many call the Garden are based on his ideas. But it really became personal when, out of all the test subjects that had been produced, only a single pair of genetically modified embryos were still alive after nine months. One male and one female. Sadly, the boy passed away only a few weeks after birth due to unforeseen complications. With only one subject alive, the doctor took matters directly into his own hands and started to act like a father."
The sudden dark turn taken by the story kept Maria completely silent. There was not much she could say about sad events like those ones. The silence was only broken by the radio coming back to life.
« Tower, Thirteen X-Ray. On stand-by at point Charlie. Requesting permission to takeoff. »
« Thirteen X-Ray, you are cleared for takeoff on runway one six. Wind heading three one zero, six knots. Climb to five thousand feet and link up with mission control. Over. »
« Copy that, Tower. Runway one six, wind three one zero at six knots and climb five thousand feet. Thirteen X-Ray out. »
Outside, the roar of the engines made itself heard again in the distance. But only a few seconds later, the noise started to fade out again as the jet disappeared into the clouds.
And without her saying anything, he continued.
With the same voice, he went on about the troubles of finding a suitable partner for the only remaining pilot. At first, they kept her alone during most of the childhood phase, as both an effort to keep the project secret and to make sure she could support basic simulations. Due to a lack of accessibility of some of the key resources needed, making new generations was already out of the question. So, they looked for pilots that did not have co-pilots and picked the one with the best expected results. The two lived together for a few months and do training gradually growing in intensity before reaching the point at which the two ended up in the cockpit of the FRANX.
But as expected, there were no miracles. Quickly, the poor pilot started to suffer from brain damage that rendered him unfit for action. That forced the research staff to seek another pilot and start the cycle once again, hoping that small changes to their method would twist the results around.
They did not.
While there were some outliers, most did not make it past three sorties before they had to be pulled out of the cockpit on a stretcher. And while they were far from achieving their original goal, the higher ups of the research team and even the board of the Entity itself deemed the sacrifice worth it for all the data it allowed them to gather.
This loop kept on for a very long time. A large number of transport aircraft would unload the FRANX, all the necessary equipment and personnel at a Settlement, a poor soul would start training alongside the genetically modified co-pilot before jumping into the cockpit and becoming almost braindead.
And when people stopped expecting anything, a miracle happened.
The cargo planes landed at Settlement Thirteen to pick a pilot whose partner had been heavily injured in a transport accident just before their real deployment. And somehow, everything worked right away. The two immediately bonded together, and when the doctor complied with her demand of immediately starting real sorties, everything functioned right away. By the time they had expected to actually start those tests, the FRANX was taking part in live combat missions against the Klaxosaurs.
"For months, we continued at breakneck speeds, reaching milestone after milestone without any sign of faltering. All of this leads us up to today where they will soon take part in one of the most important military operations in the history of the Entity."
He finished his story just like he had finished them. Without a trace of emotion. Maria was thankful for all the information she had just been given, but there was just something that she could not figure out.
"Why are you telling me all of this? If this is so much of a secret, then why are you handing over all of it on a silver plate?" At first, he remained silent. "Naomi didn't say anything about this. Werner didn't tell anything about this. So why you?"
"Because I feel this is the right thing for me to do."
This reply only left her dumbfounded. If there was one thing that defined Hachi, even before his accident, was that he took his order and secret very seriously above his feelings.
"What... What do you mean?"
"I know that you have done many things for me in the past. I had to find a way to pay you back. And saving you the trouble of seeking all this information you were looking for seemed largely more than enough."
She was truly speechless. This information seemed way too important, and yet he told all of it just as a thank you. This was too big. Something had to be lying underneath, but at the same time it was hard to imagine Hachi, of all people, hiding or lying about what he says.
"I... Thanks..."
It was the only word that could come out of her mouth after long silent seconds.
"Now, you can focus more on your tasks as Squadron Officer. I have exchanged with many during those testing periods, so I know that time is a valuable resource for you."
Maria could just nod before wishing him goodbye and leaving him alone to his business. As she headed back towards the small room that she was using as a temporary office, she started to feel a lot lighter, relieved that a vast majority of her questions had been answered. Sure, she still had in mind Hachi's story and she knew that other suspicious secret projects would arise from that, but for now, she just wished for a bit of stability to get some work done.
He had looked thoroughly for ideas and information, but Eighty-Three had not found anything regarding the two pilots he wanted to help. It was obvious that medical information was not going to be available through the terminals of the library, yet he had still hoped for at least a small hint. Not much came out of this, though not without reading a bit more about the official version of the history of the Entity.
And from all the tales of past battles in strategy books to the stories behind the ruins of large cities in geography books, the impression it gave was that of a humanity spontaneously joining forces to form the Human Protection Entity under the benevolent watch of the Chairman and develop the best weapons to fight the Klaxosaurs. And of course, what better way to fight the enemy than to send in heroic warriors trained from birth to be humanity's champions in this war for survival. There were as well some more detailed explanations around the purposes of Mobile Settlements, and while the arguments about resource gathering and the extremely important number of security measures needed for sedentary life like the facility he was in were still making some sense, he could only roll his eyes at the paragraph saying that autonomous life outside of the Mobile Settlement network was simply impossible.
The results so far were that he had barely gone forward with his current task that was already costing him much of his time between training sessions with Fifty. And he had the feeling that something was coming soon. Training missions started to be more and more collaborative between squadrons, giving no doubt that the final stage of the exercise was coming soon. If he wanted to do something, he had to do it quickly.
To get medical data, he had to go where medical data was stored. And there were not that many places that fit the description. He had gone to the medical wing with Fifty several times already, accompanying her in an effort to seem less distant, so he knew the layout a bit. But he would still need to make a first visit to identify where he could go to find what he wanted. He had flown reconnaissance mission before, he knew what he had to do.
While waiting in front of the elevator that would take him on the floor of the medical wing, he started wondering what he would tell if someone asked him what he was doing there. Faking an illness or an injury? That would only lead to more trouble. Maybe come in as if to look for Fifty? That would make him look like an idiot for not knowing where his partner was.
"So. How is your search going?"
Deep in his thoughts, he had not noticed the silhouette coming from behind him as the elevator doors opened. Startled, he tried to turn around but was instead softly pushed into the cabin. A split second was more than enough to recognize the pinked-haired figure.
"Ah, dammit." The surprised reaction made her laugh which was much to his displeasure. "Why would you do this?"
"A pilot must always stay aware of his surroundings. You did not seem very aware. How is your search going?"
"I have an idea as to where to look for, but I do not think it will be easy to access it without any issue."
"So, what is your plan?"
Quickly, he gave her a rundown of the situation with the medical wing and the possibility of finding the files there. He barely had the time to finish that she went on and pressed the button corresponding to the floor he wished to go to.
"Hey! What are you doing? I need to go there alone!"
"You just said you were going to have trouble accessing a terminal with the files on it, did you not?"
"Of course! That is why I need to go there once before making a decision on how to get that data with the clearance I have. Maybe I could…"
"Maybe you could access that directly with an S grade clearance."
Zero Two's statement was so ridiculous that this time, it was Eighty-Three that laughed.
"An S clearance? I mean sure, that would probably get me anywhere, but not even squadron officers have..."
"Then I guess this will not be of any use to you."
She interrupted him by raising her arm, turning the inside of her wrist towards the older pilot. As expected, there was a small plastic bracelet which contained the chip carrying the clearance chip. And engraved on it was a small S letter.
"I… How… How did you get that?"
She simply shrugged off his interrogations.
"The perks of working with certain people."
He did not reply. As the elevator lifted them towards their destination, he could not help but wonder who exactly she was. Everything about her seemed strange and out of the ordinary, from the ways she acted to, obviously, her physical attributes. In fact, he wondered if he should try and look at her own file to discover more on this strange creature.
But, lost in his thoughts, he had not realized that his examination was the complete opposite of discreet.
"You're wondering about the horns, aren't you?"
This snap back to reality made Eighty-Three falter, trying to find an excuse.
"Wha… No… No I'm not…"
"Does they make me inhuman?"
"In… Inhuman? I… No. Why would they?" He was still faltering, but this time more out of confusion than embarrassment. "I mean you have two legs, two arms, a head with everything on it and at the right place. I mean sure, nobody would expect something like that…"
"You do not know me for very long, so I want an honest answer. Do you consider me as a monster?"
"What? No! You are not different than any of us. We're all freaks anyway. Even the adults are freaks with their immortality. As far as I'm concerned, we are all on the same page here."
She did not reply. He could only guess whether or not she was satisfied with his answer to a question that probably meant more to her than it would seem. Maybe she wanted to find more things about herself at the end.
The rest of the ride was silent. Eighty-Three could only wonder what was going to happen. Zero Two did not say anything either, but he could not tell why. She seemed prepared, too prepared for the upcoming events. As if she had already trespassed on unauthorized areas before.
When the door opened, she was the first one to exit the lift. When he stepped out, she was already a few meters down the corridor that led to their destination, the medical wing. Walls on both sides were covered by windows, giving a good look at the large cooling towers of the Magma refineries that were transforming the precious raw resource day and night for use in the many plants present on the site. The clouds that slowly rose from the towers slowly drifted away in the wind, without any care for limitations or clearances.
But he was not the type to go on wishing he was a cloud or something like that. He was who he was and he had no reason to change it. Still, there were things around him that needed to change. And that what was really on his mind.
When Zero Two reached the closed door, she stopped herself right in front the control panel.
"Behold," she stated before waving her hand before the detector.
The device beeped and a small light started to flash green, immediately relieving Eighty-Three from a huge weight over his heart. On the other side was a large room he already knew. On a normal occasion, he would have pressed a button on the same panel before stating the reason of his visit. If it was considered reasonable, someone would have opened the door for him and asked the pilot to wait in that room.
In the middle of the room were many chairs meant for those waiting for members of the medical crew to take them for an appointment. On his regular visits with Fifty, he would not go any further than this while his teammate would go on with a nurse down one of the numerous corridors that lead to all the various rooms.
Everything felt awfully calm at this hour of the day. All the chairs were empty and nobody was going up the corridors. The only thing that was there was the sound of their own footsteps and the low buzz of the neon lights.
"So… What now?"
Zero Two's question almost made Eighty-Three jump.
"Why do you mean 'what now'? I don't know! You're the one that went on like you had a plan… I guess we have to find an archive or something."
She simply nodded in acknowledgement before turning around and heading down one corridor seemingly at random. And he could only follow. She was walking way too confidently to be someone that did not knew where she was going. Had she done something like this before?
On both sides of the cold corridors, all the doors were exactly the same, with the numbers written on them being the only differences. He already knew what was behind them, similar hospital room hosting people under treatment. Everyone did something in their life that earned them a trip in on those for a few days. Sadly, for Fifty, it had also cost her a leg.
The walk felt like it went on for hours. Hours of a neon white empty corridor and identical doors with no end in sight. At least until the corridor finally turned and what was written on the door changed. Those were not patient rooms anymore, but rather the offices of the main doctors that worked in the medical wing. Most of the time, they would be inside, receiving people during appointments. But sometimes, they would be unavailable, out for a different business or on break, which meant that their offices would be empty. A quick peek at the control panels of the doors was enough to determine which room was a suitable target for their reconnaissance mission. Zero Two waved her bracelet near the control panel of one of those empty offices, opening the door wide open for them to enter.
The office was far from being as large as Maria's office in Settlement Twenty, but it was still a large room. Large enough at least to fit many pieces of medical equipment useful for all kind of examinations. On the far side from the door was also a large desk with a monitor and the personal belongings of the owner of this office. At this point, he knew what he had to do. There was no turning back, but he was still very much unsure.
"Aren't we going to get caught? Isn't there a security camera looking at us right now?"
And once again, she simply shrugged it off.
"Why would it? We entered here with all the right clearance. You clearly overestimate the capabilities of the Entity."
A light press on the side of the monitor was enough to spark it to life. It started to display a clean menu screen, filled with the icons of all kinds of different applications. They were not interested in any of those though, they only wanted the archives.
"Scanner… Electrocardiogram… Prescription… Come on, where are those files! Here?"
With the mouse, he selected an icon label 'med. arch.', and it seemed to work as the screen changed to display a question prompt.
HPE Medical Archives
Which type of file do you wish to access?
Civilian personnel
Military non-pilot personnel
Pilots
By selecting the correct option, a list appeared. A long list of numbers too long to be fully displayed, starting at Zero Zero One and going all the way to numbers in the hundreds. Now all they had to do was pick up the correct number and read all the info in it.
"Let's see… What's the number of the boy? Code Three…"
"Three Two Six. Here," she continued, pointing with her finger the number she had just told.
A double click on the designated number opened another window and made Eighty-Three's heartbeat rise. In the top left corner of the screen were a photo and other pieces of general information that allowed them to confirm they were inside the right file. Now all they had to do is go through the long list of documents to find exactly what they wanted.
"Looks like I can sort all of these by time. When did everything happen?"
"Everything happened in the last week… At least that's how long they have been taken away from us."
A few maneuvers later, the list had been shortened to only a handful, and they hoped that what was on top was what they were looking for. Without hesitation, he opened it, revealing a text document apparently written by a member of the internal security division of the Entity.
"As per security report Thirteen Two Two Five," Eighty-Three started to read, "Code Three Two Six must undergo a cognitive alteration procedure to ensure his loyalty towards the members of his squadron, the FRANV pilot corps and the Human Protection Entity. The procedure must start as soon as possible."
"Cognitive alteration… Of course it is. What else would it be?"
What he made of Zero Two's comment was simple. She knew what it was, and he did not.
"What in the world does that mean?" he asked, really hoping for an answer to dissipate the fog that was starting to form.
"It means that Mitsuru and Kokoro stepped too far away from the rank to earn them a trip to the room where they erase people's memories. We all had very strong suspicions, but now we have proof. Can you access that security report?"
"Doesn't look like it... This doctor must not have the security clearance required. And I don't think your bracelet is going to do anything."
Zero Two shook her head, clearly showing that she was thinking the same thing. They could only hope to find about it another way.
"Now, what about Kokoro..."
"I doubt this would be much dif..."
Her hand suddenly slammed into the desk, interrupting him in the middle of his sentence.
"Check Kokoro's file!"
Far from him the idea of doing against her will, especially when her voice had suddenly shifted. So, he complied, selecting the numbers Five Five Six from the long list. After sorting the documents, both found the exact same results as with Mitsuru.
However, there were also some that did not match with anything. Without a word spoken between Eighty-Three and Zero Two, he opened the first one.
"What is this?"
He was confused. Larges tables containing various numbers that did not make any sense at first glance.
"Analysis results..." replied Zero Two that was not much more confident. "Urinal analysis maybe? What would they be looking for in her urine?"
Below the confusing numbers was a paragraph that seemed to sum up the findings of that analysis.
"After study of the compounds found inside the urine of Code Five Five Six," he started to read out loud without really realizing it, "all signs concur with the presence of a fertilized egg. The estimated start of the pregnancy is of one week or less, which seems to confirm the information given in security report Thirteen Two Two Five."
He was not really sure that what he had read was real. He turned his head towards Zero Two, hoping for her to tell he was dreaming. But she was just focused on the screen, and she kept reading.
"Following written instructions given in the mentioned report, Code Five Five Six will undergo Protocol Tango in the shortest delays possible."
Of course, in the list of documents was a report about such a protocol, and it was quickly opened. So much was at stakes now. But what they read in it made them speechless. Unless for a single world he had been never used before.
"Fuck!"
Welcome and thank you for reading the sixth chapter of Discoveries.
I hope that this chapter makes it clear that, no, I am not getting rid of the original cast. And as you might have guessed, it is not simply a cameo for a single chapter but rather they will be a central part of my story.
What's next? As I return to school, I will start to write for my GATE story but I am really looking forward to when I'll continue Discoveries, especially to expand the story of other characters that, so far, have not been featured all that much.
Anyway, thank you all for reading and I'll see you in the next chapter.