Darling in the FranXX: The Reaper Squadron

Chapter 2: Found

Time skip: 5 hours

The sun was just starting to set when the members of the squadron reconvened at the entrance to Ark 03. Crow and Raven were carrying several items as well as a few backpacks, Reaper and Owl had a container full of rations. Only Cypress and Snake came up empty handed.

"What was the status of the Reaper cache you two?" Reaper asked.

"We managed to recover several supplies but the cache itself is uninhabitable." Crow replied.

"We found several weeks' worth of rations, as well as enough communicators for all of us." Raven stated, handing communicators to everyone.

Reaper communicators were the most valuable assets the squadron could have. Extending from the wrist to a quarter way up the arm, they were all black with a red holo-display. The communicators had a range of up to 20 miles without a satellite uplink. They were solar powered with a life of 2 weeks before they needed to be recharged, with the charge time only taking about an hour of full sun before being fully charged. They were one of the few pieces of tech left that did not run on magma energy.

"We also found several Hackers as well as five Eden disks." Crow stated. Reaper's eyes narrowed.

"That's strange. I didn't stash any Eden disks here, I was sure I destroyed them all." Reaper said.

Hackers, as the name implies, can hack into any system without fail. No matter the firewall or security on the target system a Hacker can get through it. The average time to break into a system is 5.3 seconds. Eden disks were a device made by Reaper himself using a method that he would never reveal. When deployed, they can create a Garden of Eden like zone in a radius of about 2 miles. Rejuvenating everything in the zone, from the trees to the soil and minerals in the ground, to pre-magma energy conditions. Due to their power, Reaper thought he destroyed all the disks before being frozen, evidently, he was wrong. Though how someone was able to replicate them he did not know.

"There was nothing of interest in the north sector?" Owl asked.

"The only thing we found was information," Snake said, "and it wasn't anything we already didn't know. The Ark project was completed and sealed, then two years after completion the city was overrun by Klaxosaurs. Everybody still in the city either died or fled. Where they went though was not stated."

"We found an old army barracks in the west sector of the city." Reaper said. "Except for some outer parts, its mostly intact. It should be suitable as a base of operations until we can go to somewhere more suitable."

"Is there a Reaper Base anywhere nearby?" Cypress asked, thinking that one of their old bases would be a good place to go while they figured out what their next move was.

"The nearest Reaper Base is Base 15 to the northwest, but it is a 3-week trek by foot. We don't currently have the supplies to make the trip, so either we need to make several vehicles to get us there, which we don't have the time or materials for, or we scavenge up enough supplies from here then make the trek." Snake said.

"Alright, lets retreat to the barracks then." Crow said.

Reaper looked to the rest of the squad to see if they agreed. They all nodded.

"Then let's go." Reaper said.

Time skip: 2 weeks

"Children, in preparation for your next sortie we had sent in a drone to check and see if there any Klaxosaurs but…" Nana announced. "It appears that someone has already been killing them. Judging by the number as well as the type killed I have a hunch that there is a lost squad within the city. So, your orders have changed to rescuing the lost squad and returning them to the plantation."

All of Squad 13 sat in the briefing room listening to Nana speak. They were a 5 guy 5 girl team. Starting with the guys, Goro, also known as Code 056, is a tall and averagely built man, being the tallest in Squad 13, with blond loose-spiked hair styled into an undercut. Next is Zorome. Zorome, also known as Code 666, has unruly light brown hair which flares out on the sides and back. He has long bangs which mostly cover his forehead. Standing at 5'3'' he is the shortest of Squad 13. After him is Futoshi. Futoshi, also known as Code 214, has a hefty build and a kind face. He is quite tall, being the second tallest next to Goro. He has short auburn-brown hair that hangs lightly over his forehead. Next up is Hiro. Hiro, known as Code 016, has an average build, height, and a standard "slim" male physique. He had black, shaggy hair and is known as the unofficial leader of the children at the Garden. Finally, for the guys there is Mitsuru. Mitsuru, known as Code 326, has a very clean and proper appearance with sharp features. He has piercing deep green eyes and is 5'5'' being the second shortest in the group of guys between Zorome and Hiro. He has olive-brown hair which he wears slicked back.

For the girls, first up Ichigo. Ichigo, known as Code 015, has soft green eyes and a petite build, being the shortest among the parasites in Squad 13. She wears her straight and short blue hair in a razor-cut hairstyle, where her hair hangs lengthier on the right side of her face. She has free-falling bangs that mostly covers her right eye and one long strand of hair on the left side of her face. Next is Kokoro. Kokoro, known as Code 556, has a fair complexion, calm, rich blue eyes. She has long, wavy, ashen-blonde hair and long bangs framing her forehead and face. She wears a lacy blue headband to keep her hair out of her face. After her is Miku. Miku, known as Code 390, is a petite girl with auburn red hair and sea blue eyes. Her hair is done up in girlish pigtails with a small cowlick at the top of her head. Next up, we have Ikuno. Ikuno, known as Code 196, has deep purple hair tied into a short ponytail using a blue butterfly clip and bangs on either side of her weary green eyes. She wears a pair of black-rimmed glasses. Last, but certainly not least, we have Zero Two. Zero Two, known as Code 002, has a slender and athletic figure; she is the tallest girl in the squad and even taller than most of the boys as well. She has waist-length, long pink hair with straight bangs covering her forehead and a pair of red horns on her head. She had sharp, cyan eyes with rings around the pupils and pinkish-red eyeliner.

Hachi noticed Ichigo had her hand up.

"Question?" Hachi asked.

"What types were identified and if a squad can take them out they why deploy a FranXX?" Ichigo asked. She knew that they were a relatively new squad, but she did not think that command thought that they were that incapable.

"The types identified were several of the Conrad class as well as a few of the Mohorovic class. The FranXX is being deployed in case a horde shows up." Nana said.

Conrad class Klaxosaurs were the weakest type of Klaxosaur. Generally smaller than a FranXX, they are not much of a threat unless they gather in numbers. If enough gather in an area, they can merge to form a Mohorovic class. Mohorovic class Klaxosaurs, Moho class for short, are a medium sized Klaxosaurs that can be a serious threat to plantations if left unattended.

"The FranXX is also being deployed in case this turns out to be a trap." Hachi said. "While this would not normally be the case the video taken by the drone makes me think otherwise. Watch, and tell me what you think of this."

Everyone gazed into the curved screen that was displaying the live feed from the drone before it ended. It was scanning the city as ordered and the number and type of dead Klaxosaurs that covered the area had already been noted. Just before it was about to leave, the drone detected movement in the old army barracks and was ordered to investigate. However just as it entered the dark space it was grabbed from behind. Although it squirmed and spun it was unable to break free of its captor's hold. Using its remaining resistance, the drone looked up to see Reaper and his squad. The last thing the drone saw was a scythe appearing before the feed ended.

Everyone's eyes were glued to the screen as they tried to comprehend what they just witnessed, although it was Ichigo and Goro who had real reason to be curious. Goro had seen that the scythe appeared to come out of the shadows themselves although that could have just been due to the lighting in the area. Ichigo had noticed one very important fact, all their eyes were glowing red.

"Who is that?" Zero Two asked. Her cyan eyes were locked on Reaper and she had a diabolical grin on her face.

"Currently we don't know but that is where you come in. We haven't found a plantation that has a squad that has a uniform like that, so we are skeptical…" Nana explained while studying Reaper's uniform.

"Are they Adults? They look old enough to be." Zorome said. Which sparked chatter amongst the squad.

"Enough talking! Let's get this done quick and easy. Move out!" Hachi's voice effectively silencing the room as everyone left to get organized.

Meanwhile 1 hour ago

Inside the army barracks, the Reaper Squadron was taking a well-earned break. They had spent the last two weeks scouring the city looking for supplies and had nearly gathered everything they needed.

"We nearly have enough supplies to make the trip Reaper." Raven said as she and Owl were going through the supplies that they had gathered.

"Is there anywhere we haven't searched yet?" Reaper asked, as he leaned up against one of the walls.

"Well there is a section in the south sector we hadn't…" Owl trailed off, her head snapping to the right and looking at a wall.

"Owl?" Crow asked from his place on the couch that they had found.

"Reaper, we've got a drone in the area." Owl said.

"How far?" He asked, pushing himself off the wall and coming to stand by her side. His eyes beginning to glow.

Owl closed her eyes and listened. "About a mile and half away and circling the area." She replied, opening her eyes.

"Cypress, go disturb the curtains by the entrance window. See if you can lure it into the barracks." Reaper said as he turned off the lights and moved to the side of the door where he couldn't be seen.

"Yes sir." She said as the rest of the squad stacked up on either side of the door and waited.

There was several minutes of silence before Cypress returned. "It's on its way." She said falling in line with everyone else.

There was a minute and a half of silence before the whirring of the drone could be heard by everyone else. They waited in tense silence for the drone to appear, as soon as it did, Reaper grabbed it from behind. It tried its best to escape but was unable to break the hold that Reaper had on it. As Crow brought out his scythe to kill it Reaper saw the camera turn up to look at them. The drone gave a pitiful whine as Crow stabbed it. When it finally stopped moving Reaper said,

"Prepare yourselves, we are about to have some company."

A/N: And done. Alright, things are starting to get interesting now aren't they. Also worry not, I plan on giving Hiro and Zero Two the happy ending that we all wanted. As a side note, with the addition of the Reaper Squadron, some events are going to pan out differently and some won't happen at all. Criticism is greatly appreciated, and flames will be used to roast marshmallows. Ciao!