(Recommended listening: 75 Seasons Suite by Tom Hedden from the Autumn Thunder Soundtrack, timestamp 5:00-6:25)
"Am I the only one who thinks this is really crazy?" Amos asked aloud. Five pairs of eyes stared back at him. After a few seconds of silence, he sighed. "I guess so, then."
The Jet Force Gemini Team and the Tribal Trio stood on the bridge of the stolen Drone transport ship. Looming in front of the main screen was an image of the last place the team had ever expected to have to revisit.
"Mizar's Palace? Really?" Amos continued to complain. "We are literally jumping straight into a scorching fire! This is the enemy stronghold!"
"Former enemy stronghold," Vela corrected.
"Because that makes it so much better, right?" Amos shot back sarcastically.
"It'll be a walk in the park," Vela brushed off calmly.
"Yeah, if the park was smack dab in the middle of the pits of hell."
"Relax, Amos," Juno tried to calm him. "We've been here before, we know the layout, and we're armed. Besides, you're the only one not getting off the ship. You should be happy!"
"Ha. Ha. Ha," Amos stretched out. "That's because I'm the only Tribal here that can fly this thing."
The surface below them flew by as the ship entered the planet's atmosphere. Miles of sand and desert extended in every direction but forward. In front of them, A large complex steadily grew larger and larger. In a few minutes, the ship was soaring over the heart of the small city. That was when the team noticed the first sign of something wrong.
"The Pyramid is gone!" Juno exclaimed.
"Why thank you, Captain Obvious," Vela rolled her eyes. "Anything else you'd like to point out?"
"Actually, I would, Commander Sarcasm," he replied. "There are no life signs. Anywhere."
"None?" Fae's eyes widened. "In the city?"
"On the planet," Juno corrected. "This just keeps getting weirder… I'm gonna set the ship down at the Pyramid's landing site. We'll hop out, take a look around, and if nothing seems wrong… we'll proceed as planned. Everyone good?"
Juno received nods from all parties present. He brought the ship down to coasting speed, and the city swirled beneath them. Soon, the ship had landed in large circular crater in the center of the city plaza. Juno left the ship's power running, just in case.
Careful to stay behind cover, Juno peered out from the ship's entrance. There didn't appear to be any surprises, and no enemies fired any greeting shots. He, Vela, and Lupus slowly circled the ship, looking outward for any signs of activity. Only a lonely wind answered them. The city was deserted.
"All right," Juno called inside the ship. "The place looks empty. We'll go and get our ships from the Landing Pads. You three stay here and wait for us to come back."
"Roger," Amos acknowledged. Nae and Fae got comfortable, knowing it might be awhile before the trio was done recollecting their ships. Lupus wasted no time bounding off towards the Chasm, just south of the city. Juno and Vela took their time, checking their gear and walking at an even pace.
"Do you really think the Drones left our ships right where they were?" Vela asked aloud. It had been a whole year since they'd arrived, raised hell, and confronted Mizar in his own palace. After the Tribals repaired their ancestor's ship to go after the escaped villain, they'd never had the chance to return and collect them.
"At first I wasn't so sure, since this planet was designated as a refugee planet for the remnants of the Drone Army," Juno explained. "I'd half expected them to be scavenged for parts, provided they could get past the security lockouts. Or that they didn't blow them up out of pure spite. But looking at the place now…"
"There are a million different reasons the Drones could have left this planet," Vela looked around cautiously. "But none of them are good. We already know they didn't just give up and go home." The thought made her ponder for a moment. "Hey, where are the Drones from, anyway?"
Juno raised an eyebrow. "Still not reading your mission reports, huh? They're from a boundary system, just at the edge of the Planetary Union. The Intel guys never were never really able to pin down why the Drone Army came here in the first place… but we know better."
Although not officially a member of the Planetary Union, the Drones occupying Tribal Space were slapped with severe sanctions on weapons and transportation. However, Earth, the primary military enforcer of the Union's policy, neglected to exert pressure on the Drones to follow these rules. Since they'd been getting regular, non-distress reports from the Tribals, the Gemini Team figured the Drones had learned their lesson. They had been very, very wrong.
"What do think is going on here? I mean really going on?" Vela asked.
"You sure are talkative today," Juno noticed. "What's up?"
"If I don't ask, you never tell me anything. I want to know what's going on in that head of yours. I know you've been thinking about it. The ride here wasn't that short."
"Someone sold us out," Juno started after a pause. "We've also been getting bogus reports from the Tribals. That means someone we know is either manipulating the Drones, or knows what the Drones are up to and is interested. The Drones are assembling a labor force. We know that because only the skilled Tribal miners were being taken for transport to Rith Essa. And then… there's that SOS…"
"And Barry's 'Revelation'," Vela added.
"And that," Juno logged it away in his mind. "So… right now, I've got nothing."
The pair reached the edge of the Citadel's Plaza, the furthest they could go without splitting up. Juno nodded to Vela, then turned to head toward the Plaza's main entrance. His sister stood still for a few seconds before calling out after him.
"We could go the same way, you know?" Vela stated. "Our ships are on the same pad."
"Why would we do that?" Juno asked quizzically, turning to face her. His sister was acting weird. Never too inquisitive, always a standalone, with a tough girl exterior. This wasn't like her at all.
Vela rolled her eyes and let her shoulders drop with a sigh. Shaking her head, she turned and proceeded towards the entrance to the water treatment center.
"Hey!" he shouted. "I thought you wanted to go together!"
"Not anymore, I don't," Vela replied without turning.
Juno threw up his hands in confusion, then dropped them, giving up. "Ugh… women." He headed for the plaza side entrance to the Temple, trying not to think about it.