"Alexei." Noah looked towards Alexei who managed to track him down without any issues. It was always going to come this, he felt. It was just a matter of when and where. "I'm surprised you decided to track me down so late. I suspected you would take this method sooner."
"You know why that is." Alexei responded. "There was something I needed first. And besides...I could not track you down until a few moments ago. You recently used the Black Moon Star's powers before it was taken from you, didn't you?"
"There was something I had to look at. So I took the risk and used its power to see more than I normally could." Noah admitted, arms crossed behind his back. "But you asked me about Rebecca, did you not? I assume I have no choice in the matter about my answer."
"You can decline to answer, but I cannot promise the fate of Blue Garden after the fact." Alexei replied. Noah noticed the bruise on Alexei's cheek, curious about it, but chose not to ask.
"Justice and Elsie?" Noah asked.
"You can see them, can you not?" Alexei held up his hand. "With the aid of the Shard, I used my power to hold them within separate spaces.
Noah did use his Eye to seek the truth of Alexei's words. He could spot Justice and Elsie in two separate locations. "You pulled them apart? I'm surprised you're keeping them alive."
"They are powerful." Alexei admitted. "On their own, they have no chance of escaping. Together, there is a non-zero chance they could pull something off. Small though it may be, I will not risk anything."
"I see. Ever cold and calculating." Noah was taking this in. Perhaps cold was the wrong word to use. The more he spoke to Alexei, the more he got a sense of...nil from him. An emptiness that could not be described in words.
"My question." Alexei said.
"Rebecca is a girl that possess the power of Leaper, but you knew that already, didn't you?" Noah said while looking at Alexei, who nodded. "I can tell you've already seen the file. So I'm not entirely sure what it is you want me to explain to you."
"The power of Leaper. The power to travel through time, correct?" Alexei stepped closer. "The power to travel to other worlds, even. If you've been watching her all this time, surely you can explain more."
"Her power...is similar to that of Saintfire Nox. Surely you know of them." Noah asked and Alexei nodded. "For a long time, since she was young, I have been watching over Rebecca. I've seen each and every time she has leapt through time, forwards or backwards. I believe it is her doing that we are in Universe 3 as well. Her power and yours...I do believe they are connected by principle. Just as her power appears to be connected to that of Satan's Gravity."
"Connected?" Alexei lifted a brow.
"Time, gravity, and space are connected. They all coexist with each other." Noah explained. "Leaper moves through time and space goes along with. I believe...that Rebecca has been the one dragging you through various worlds and Universes unintentionally. The two of you have never met, but you are connected by your powers."
"...I see." Alexei stroked his chin. His expression hardly changed, but he was clearly intrigued. "For a long time now, I could sense when the world around me changed. I could not explain it, but every time, something was different. Things repeated, some things were slightly different, but there was always one constant: me. If it is her doing, then..." He started to walk off.
"Wait. You aren't going to tell me to tell you where she is right now?" Noah knew Alexei had the power to do just that. So he was confused as to why he wasn't. "And what of Justice and Elsie?"
"There is no need to ask you anything."" Alexei had his back turned to Noah. "I saw the file that she is on the Eden's Zero. If we are searching for the same thing, then it is only a matter of time until we cross paths. I do not have to rush a single thing. As for Justice and Elsie...you will tell the Government to back down and leave Blue Garden. Then and only then will I return Justice and Elsie to their original crews. I will kill them if you do not. Are we clear?"
"Crystal." Noah had no choice but to comply. "Attention. This is Noah..."
.
.
Waltz managed to defeat Hanabi...or rather, the clone. It was no different than fighting the real one, but it granted him no joy. It was a pain in the ass. The only difference is that the real one would've spawned even more clones if possible, so he was glad to be over and done with this. "Traitor, not that it mattered." When he glanced into the sky, he could see Jigan retreating somewhere as well. He didn't need to see anymore. "Tch...this is a mess." The Fiertia is done, but it was only a matter of time until that crew collapsed on itself. There was only one thing that mattered to him in the first place.
"...I can't sense his Ether on the planet anymore. Did he already leave? No...! Damn it!" Waltz cursed over and over again. "I knew that damn crew was holding me back...!" The heat on this planet was too much. There was far too much going for him to do what he needed to do. "I'm a solo act from this point no. And that starts by getting off that planet..."
.
.
"This is Noah speaking. From this point on...for the safety of those on the planet, do not pursue the Galactic Fleet. This goes for the Government stationed here and Elsie's crew." That's all Noah could say. Hyoga and Gowen were recovering from their defeat against Hubert and Marshall.
"Why he speakin' to us, too?" Gowen asked.
"I'm not sure..." Hyoga replied, panting a little from his injuries. "But the Princess hasn't returned yet and I can't seem to get in contact with her."
"Same here..." Gowen sucked his teeth. They knew Elsie was more than capable of handling herself. But if something happened, they'd have no choice but to wait for her return. It was out of their hands. "It sounds like we have to go back to the ship..."
.
.
Victory and Jesse were detaining Tobias and Weavel. Justice wasn't responding to any of their communications, which worried them. "Do you think he's alright?" Jesse looked to Victory, who was a little wore and exhuastion from his fight.
"He has to be." Jesse said. "Gh..."
"Man..." Tobias grunted while in handcuffs. "I can't believe this is how it ends for me. Caught by the government..."
"Betrayed by a comrade..." Weavel grumbled. "But knowing the atmosphere of that ship, it was only natural. I should have seen it coming."
"Well, from this point on, you'll be seeing a lot behind bars." Victory stated. "Jigan will be joining you all soon, too. You can be reunited."
"After all that work we did. What do we have to show for it!? Nothing..." Tobias groaned. He hung his head low and accepted his fate...
Feather regrouped with Jesse and Victory, surprised for a moment that Justice was not present. "Where did Justice go?"
"That's what we'd like to know..." Victory said.
"Mm..." Feather was beside herself. "I let Nina Roulette escape. Although, I am beginning to wonder if I ever truly had the chance to capturing her to begin with. The Galactic Fleet had all of their bases covered. I can only assume whatever Noah said now is part of that."
.
.
Jigan had no choice but to retreat to the Fiertia. Unfortunately for him, this large ship could barely be manned by a single person. But he had a backup plan. There was a small ship docked in the Fiertia that a single person could use. He planned to use that to escape. "Damn...this whole operation was a wash! But I'm not done yet! I'm not gonna let them see the last of me!"
"Hey, Jigan. What's up?" That was Hanabi. She was standing behind Jigan in the docking bay.
"Hanabi! There you are." Jigan didn't turn around just yet. "Use your Duplication to start the ship. If Tobias and Weavel aren't here, that means we're screwed. Waltz is doing who knows what at this point, so it's time for us to leave."
"Why would I do that?" Hanabi tilted her head.
Ah, right. Jigan whipped around now, fully aware that the Hanabi speaking to him could just be that Amira chick disguised as her. He had no way of knowing off appearance alone. "...You're the real one, aren't you?"
"Yeah, it's me." Hanabi nodded. "I fanned my duplicates out to find the rest of you, and I can say with complete confidence that Waltz is skipping town...and Weavel and Tobias have been arrested. I would know...I arrested Weavel myself."
Jigan's eyes widened. "What!? Why the hell would you do that!?"
"Isn't it obvious, old man?" Hanabi pointed at her clothes. "I'm part of the Government! I was never a real member of this group nobody could call a crew. I was here...to take you in, Jigan King!"
"How DARE you! You used me! You're the one that called the Government on us against the Eden's Zero!" Jigan pointed at Hanabi, his accusation completely correct.
"Oh, how about that..." Hanabi flipped her hair. "Now you care about what happens to the people on your ship. A little too late for that, don't you think?" As she spoke, multiple duplicates began to appear around them. "I've never liked you. I hated the way you treated Blair. She's been through enough...and despite everything, she resisted the urge to bite your head off, even though she could do just that at any moment!"
"Tch...!" Jigan sucked his teeth. This was the last thing he needed to deal with right now. This day was starting off so strong. But now, it was going to shit.
"You're under arrest, Jigan King." Hanabi said while stepping forward.
"I never liked you." Jigan said while stepping on the ground, creating a shockwave that knocked Hanabi and her duplicates down. This bought him just enough time to slip into the ship and fly off into space. His crew was forcefully disbanded, but to him, that was fine. "I'll do this all by myself...! I WILL make my mark on history! On this Cosmos! I swear it!"
Hanabi sat up, staring at Jigan flew off into the distance. They weren't done... "...I'll get you yet, Jigan..." She then stood up and dusted herself off. "Hanabi here. I'm at the sight of the Fiertia. Jigan is gone now..."
.
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The Galactic Fleet regrouped in space and were heading out. With Alexei's demand, the Government was not allowed to touch him until his say so. "...Why didn't you just kill them?" Marshall asked Alexei. "That would save us the trouble."
"They are more useful alive than dead." Alexei replied, staring out into space. In front of him were the two shards of the Black Moon Star shard he collected. They had two...and only three remained. "As long as they're alive, nobody will make any rash movements. Once we are clear from Blue Garden, I will return Elsie and Justice to their crews. In the meantime, we can continue onward."
"We now have two of the five shards. Things are looking up for us." Hubert said while adjusting his glasses.
"I like our odds!" Said Nina.
"...Hm?" Vanessa looked at Nina and quirked a brow. Something seemed off...and that was then answered as Julia walked in with the real Nina on her shoulder. "Oh?"
"...Oh." The fake Nina gave a smile. That was...not what was supposed to happen. This was Amira, but she thought Feather captured Nina!
"It appears we have a rat in our midst." Hubert turned to the fake Nina and shot her in the leg. Amira's transformation instantly faded and she winced from the injury. "Government."
"Ngh...I messed up..." Amira grit her teeth. What happened to Feather where she couldn't report that Nina escaped!
"Who's this chick?" Julia pointed at Amira.
"A spy. It appears she was attempting to sneak in under the guise of dear Nina!" Vanessa snickered.
'Can we kill her?" X asked. "Alexei just told them to back off, but they pull this?"
"I didn't know about that." Amira responded. She wasn't going to try anything, because she was already deep in enemy territory with no way out. she was on her own. "Can't deny I tried sneaking on, though! Looks like we had some miscommunication along the way..."
"No. Don't kill her." Alexei snapped his fingers and Amira was suddenly bound by her wrists by handcuffs. "She can provide some useful intel."
Marshall licked his lips while looking at Amira's figure, eyes flashing pink. "Hey, Danchou...can I have a crack at her."
"Creep." Amira shook her head.
"That depends on her." Alexei replied. "You know where to take her. Once we are clear, we can interrogate her for anything she knows. Marshall, you can bring her there...but make sure she gets there in one peace."
"Heh. You got it..." Marshall's pink gaze of Lust was burning into Amira and she didn't like it one bit. She growled as he dragged her along, but X did follow just to make sure Marshall didn't mess things up. She didn't care about Amira's wellbeing, she was just following orders. While this happened, Alexei snapped his fingers, returning Justice and Elsie to their crews. They were clear of the government now, and Vanessa hid the presence away with her Veil.
"Well, while we deal with that..." Hubert stared at the Black Moon Star shards. The energy from them was pointing in a particular direction, some of them shooting off just to show where the other shards were. "Hm. Two of these beams of energy are constantly moving...but one isn't."
"Then we focus on the one that isn't." Vanessa nodded while pulling up the map. "Oh! What luck. Supposedly, the third shard can be found right here in the Sakura cosmos!"
"But...if we trace the line...it doesn't lead anywhere?" Julia pointed out.
"...Hm..." Vanessa stared at that spot for a bit. Once it hit her, she smiled. "Oh! I know exactly what's there...and it just gave me the best idea possible~"
.
.
The battle of Blue Garden was over. The winner was the Galactic Fleet, getting everything they desired without losing a single crew mate in the process. The city was in shambles, most of the incident was recorded by Labilla and even posted. Noah was back in his office, knowing full well the list of things he had to do. Alexei was after Rebecca, and his crew had two of the five shards. Things were slowly beginning to spiral out of control at this rate. "...First and foremost...I have to warn Rebecca and her crew before anything else."
