After their successful attack in Moscow, the 203rd, Reformed Society and the Fatebreakers headed back to Imperial East Border Temporary Camp 21. While Tanya's troops celebrated by drinking through the night, all on DJ of course… the heroes weren't feeling so hot.

"Still a little roughed up by the news?" Belladonna asked.

"Honestly, it was going to end one of two ways. Either Anson woke up on his own, or he dies of his wounds. And I knew that right from the start." Agito said. "But at least now, I'm past stage one: denial."

"At least you're past one stage of grief." Tanya said walking up.

"How's Ethox doing, Major?" Koenig asked.

"Not well." Tanya said, shaking her head. "According to the medic, he's out of shock, but he's staying in his room. I'm on my way to have a talk with him."

"You sure? When Talion died, he was a complete mess. Who knows how much uncontrollable emotion he'll have now that we know Anson's gone." Nemo said.

"It's best if we nip this in the bud now. With the man's daughter out for blood, and Zenos Road and his cronies still at large, we need everyone at their best. I'll knock some sense into him if I have to." the major replied.

"Be careful with him. Do you want any help in reeling him in?" Koren said.

"I think I'll manage. I feel responsible for him considering Anson's death was my doing." Tanya said. "He was on the enemy side, but he died because he turned into a Heartless, not because Being X made him self destruct." Tanya said.

"When you think about it like that, I guess all of us were to blame." Agito said.

"Such is the tragedies of war, unfortunately. Not everyone gets to have a happy ending." Jade said.

"But Ethox always wants everyone to survive and have the perfect ending, no matter who's on what side." Lily said.

"He needs to understand that not all stories can end that way. Hopefully you can talk some sense into him, Tanya." Goblin Slayer said.

"As the Fatebreakers' Second In Command, and liaison between Mythos Hearts and the Empire, I'm the only one who can face Ethox and his now likely torrent of uncontrollable emotions." Tanya said. "Its time to be the commander."

And so, Tanya headed to Ethox's room in the temporary camp, prepared for the worst. With a steady heart, and focus in her eyes, she knocked on the door to his room.

"Ethox, It's Tanya." Tanya greeted.

"...It's open." Ethox's voice came from inside.

The young girl opened the door to see Ethox sitting in a chair, staring up at the moon outside the window.

"I'm surprised. I would've expected you to act much differently after recovering from the shock of hearing the news Anson died." Tanya said.

"...What's the point in lashing out? It's not going to change anything." Ethox said morosely. "Honestly…I'm not sure anything would have."

"This is the first time you've heard news this devastating, I take it?" Tanya asked. "I can honestly say that you're thinking about lots of things. One of them being, what would've went differently, if Anson did not suffer everything that happened that day."

"I should've done more for him back at the Fjord. I could've saved him from Being X, from becoming a Heartless…. From participating more in this stupid war!" Ethox said.

"Maybe. But the fact remains he was doomed to die no matter what. He is a soldier, he would risk even his own life, if it meant his daughter wouldn't have to suffer." Tanya said. "And well…everyone here knows how that turned out. Now his own daughter is out for blood, driven by revenge."

Ethox was silent, not responding.

"...Why are you upset?" Tanya asked.

"...It's not their fault." Ethox said. "If they had known what Being X was really like…if they had known the whole story…do you think they might've done things differently?"

"...I'm not sure." Tanya admitted. "Anson, for all of his religious fervor, seemed like a good man. Maybe he would have done differently. But what does that matter? What's it going to take to stop you from having a repeat of what happened with Talion?"

"This isn't like what happened to Talion." Ethox said. "At least he knew what the risks were. He knew his fate. But Anson, and Mary? They have no idea Being X doesn't care. They don't know they're just…pawns for him to use against you. They were just…pieces on a chessboard! They didn't have a choice!"

"No. I think Mary does have one." Tanya said. "She chose to fight because she wants revenge. She can walk away at any time, go home, and we'll never give her a second thought. But she won't do that. Because she's doing the one thing a soldier should never do: bring their personal feelings onto the battlefield."

"And she's not gonna stop fighting until we're dead." Ethox said. "It's…it's just not fair."

"Such is the nature of war, Ethox. This is the harsh reality we live in. What I've become accustomed to ever since I came here after I died in another life. What Being X is forcing me to go through so he can try to make me believe in him." Tanya said. "But I'm not going to give him the satisfaction of what he wants. I fight to survive. But you can't keep fighting because you want to save everyone, even your own enemies. Remember how Nariko accepted her fate, and you did as well? You have to now let it sink in that there are some fates that are unbreakable, that the hardest part about being an adventurer, of being a hero? Is that you can't save everyone. There are times where you have to make tough calls. And it may seem out-of-character to say this, but… You shouldn't be afraid to make mistakes. After all… Theo's biggest mistake created you."

Ethox looked down as he contemplated Tanya's words.

"Whatever the case, try and feel better before we move out again. I won't waste time keeping an eye on you if you can't take care of yourself." Tanya said as she turned to leave.

"...Tanya?" Ethox asked.

"What?"

"...Can I have a hug?"

Tanya was silent for a moment before she scoffed, rolled Her eyes, walked over to the Nobody and hugged him from behind.

"...Thank you, Tanya."

"Ask something like that from me again, and I'll shoot you in the foot." Tanya stated as she walked out of the room.

Ethox sighed as he looked out into the sky. He was thankful for what Tanya told him… because she was right.

While the heroes recovered and prepared for the next battle, other forces did the same, such as in temporary quarters for the multinational team…

Mary stood over a suitcase, packing it in preparation for a go ahead to move.

"You recovered rather quickly." a voice said as the girl turned to see Drake leaning at the foot of the bed. "I planned for you to have a longer rest."

"I can't rest." Mary said. "We need to show the people of the Federation why we're here."

"You don't get to argue that with me." Drake said. "This team is a high-level political matter."

"Our ally's capital was attacked. Are we really going to let politics tell us we can't help them?" Mary asked.

"That's not what you want, though, right?" Drake asked.

"What? No, I-"

"If you wanted to help our allies, as you claim, you would have followed my orders and stayed back." Drake said. "You put our whole team at risk. And for what?"

"We can't just let the Empire get away with things like this!" Mary protested. "The Federation-"

"Can't even protect their own capital." Drake interrupted her. "You know why? Because they gave all of their mages away to monsters for god knows what. These people aren't good, Sioux. They aren't worth dying for."

"But they're working with us to fight the Empire!" Mary said. "We should all fight together against them! For humanity! For the world!"

"...You want revenge for your father that badly?" Drake asked, causing Mary to fall silent. "I know what happened to him. I can understand why you hate the Empire, and those allies of theirs. But you're a soldier. Not a murderer. Not an avenger. You don't bring your vendettas onto the battlefield. If you want to go out of your way to get revenge, then I can have discharge papers ready for you by tomorrow. Is that what you want?"

"...No, sir." Mary replied.

"I thought so." Drake said as he walked towards the door. "We're leaving Moscow in the morning. Your grudge isn't coming with us."

As Willam left, Mary couldn't help but look at a photo of her as a child with her parents, and cried a bit before she glared with yellow eyes.

"Within the empire… there are demons I must defeat!" She declared

Back at Imperial East Border Temporary Camp 21, the sound of a bugle horn pierced the darkness after the entire company spent the whole night partying. Mostly everyone was passed out from revelry. But Tanya made sure that wasn't the case.

"Everyone, wake up!" Tanya ordered, getting her main team to their feet, although Grantz banged his head on the bar as everyone else gathered up to the sound of the buckle.

"Oh my me, Tanya, do you even know what time it is?" Aqua asked groggily.

"When you're in my world, you don't get the comfort of sleep that much, Aqua. Maybe you shouldn't have had too much to drink during the party." Tanya said. "In any case, Strategic HQ sent us a love letter. Captain Weiss, get the battalion together."

"Yes, Ma'am!" Matheus said.

"Hurry! We'll begin the briefing as soon as you're done." Tanya said.

"Tanya, what's this all about?" Le Kraken asked.

"Our next mission. And according to HQ, this will more than likely bring Zenos Road out of hiding." Tanya said, getting the group's attention.

In the war room, everyone was looking at a map of how the Federation was moving against the Empire, and how the borders were being stretched.

"Its been ten days since the war began, and the borders have moved quite a bit, as you can see." Tanya said.

"The enemy has divided into three general groups." Matheus stated, pointing out each of them. "Group A is moving to the north. Group B is directly attacking the Empire. And Group C is moving into Dakia. Group B seems to be the largest, according to the reports."

"There's no sense in attacking that group head on. HQ wants us to start at the North and work our way down, trapping the center group in a pincer attack." Tanya said.

"So what part do we play in this strategy?" Mirror Match asked.

Tanya slammed her cup of coffee down on a desk. "To act as a mobile flying column. We'll be going ahead of the main units from central command that are heading north."

"That's a problem. We can't ignore Group B's pressure that they're putting on." DJ said. "They've got the numbers advantage."

"So is it a question of whether the center group can hold out long enough while we attack Group A?" Jessica asked.

"Jessica, it's not the numbers on paper, it's what's inside that counts." Tanya said. "Communists always believe that the party is right. They put politics above military logic. And if you go against that, you're purged. So answer me this: is an army like that a real army?"

"Of course not." Cheetah said.

A knock on the door was then heard as Viktoriya soon came in.

"Everyone, we just received an emergency request from the eastern forces." the first company commander reported. "The 3rd and 32nd divisions are serving as the rear guard with withdraw, but they're surrounded at Tiegenhoff."

"But aren't the eastern forces closer? Why can't they handle it?" Kazuma asked.

"Think about it. Tiegenoff is a very advantageous position. Having that territory will give us control of a railway hub that will bring us right at the Federation's doorstep." Cheetah said.

"Which means, the Federation will stop at nothing to take it for themselves so they can stop any railway supply transport operations in their tracks…." Darkness started.

"And an attack on Tiegenoff would be something the Federation simply can't help but enlist Zenos Road and the Heavenly Kings to be a part of!" Le Kraken finished.

Tanya gave her signature smirk. "Exactly, you two. You could say it's a critical point in strategic HQ's northern operations."

"I see! It's as Minerva said!" Matheus observed. "We'd be able to resupply, almost on the fly. Moreover, it's on a river and easy to defend, especially since it's a fair distance away from eastern borders."

"It's the perfect base!" Grantz added.

"Wonderful." Tanya evilly grinned. "Rescuing Tiegennoff is the ultimate aufheben. We can give both the eastern forces and Strategic HQ what they want, and finally drag Zenos Road out into the open so we can finish him off once and for all. We're gonna do it."

"Yes, Ma'am!" Tanya's main team said.

"Not without me, you're not." a voice said as Ethox came in. All the grief and sadness, lamenting over what happened with Anson and Mary had left his eyes. Now, they were filled with confidence and restored courage.

"Ethox! You're fully recovered!" Lily said.

"Yeah. Sorry to worry you guys so much." Ethox said. "I've had the whole night to think about Tanya's talk with me, and I've decided. She's right. I can't keep going forward with my adventuring career thinking I can for sure give every mission a perfect ending. If it comes down to it…then I'll put an end to the Sioux's grief." he said.

"...I'll look forward to it." Tanya said, understanding Ethox's meaning. "Now, let's put an end to this long war we've had with Zenos. Lieutenant Serebryakov, have the troops load up all the medical supplies they can carry."

"Roget that!" Viktoriya saluted.

"It'd be nice if we could also bring some relief stuff for the people stationed at Tiegenhoff, but unfortunately, we don't have enough Whiskey and cigarettes to go around." DJ said.

"Oh, that won't be a problem." Grantz said.

"We won a bunch from the eastern forces playing cards yesterday." Matheus said. "I was going to put them in the battalion's warehouse, but we should share them with our allies!"

"Geez, Matheus. Don't you know how to show a little restraint at a party?" Captain Cold asked.

"Actually, it was Lieutenant Serebryakov and Kazuma who took their stuff." Matheus informed them.

"Pro tip: never play cards against a guy with a Luck stat like mine." Kazuma said.

"...Don't you have any shame?" Valfor asked.

"Nope." Kazuma smiled.

Viktoriya merely chuckled sheepishly.

The next day, at Tiegenhoff…

"There's so many of them! Give up, damn it!" a mage yelled as he and his men fired upon the Federation soldiers from above.

Imperial 49th Mage Battalion, Major

Jotuck Hofen

"Major, there's too many of them! Our defenses in the northeast won't hold!" one of his troops yelled.

"Damn it! We need help. I don't care where it comes from…" Jotuck said to himself.

"Tiegenhoff Control to 49th Mage Battalion. Reinforcements are on their way." a voice said over the major's comm.

"Allies?" Jotuck said before he saw a bombardment of spells shatter the enemy lines. "You came!"

Not long after the 502nd, Fatebreakers and Reformed Society arrived, the tides quickly turned and the battle was won. After which, the group met with Hofen formally as the sun was setting.

"Sorry to keep you all waiting." Rayleigh said.

"It's no problem at all, you came just in time." Jotuk said. "Let me introduce myself. I am Major Hofen, with the 49th Mage Battalion of the 3rd Division."

"Major Degurechaff, 302nd Mage Division, liaison to Mythos Hearts from Strategic Headquarters." Tanya saluted.

"HQ is this way, I'll take you all there." Jotuk motioned for the group to follow, leading them past where the wounded were being treated. "Our mission is to protect HQ and wipe out the survivors. What about you?"

"Well…we're here to make a stand." Ethox said. "We're going to have company in the next couple of days. You guys'll need to be ready."

"With people like you at our side, I think I like our odds." Jotuk laughed. "I'll be sure to buy your group drinks after that battle."

"Be careful, quite a few of us are heavy drinkers." Tanya replied.

"You're gonna wanna keep the good stuff away from Aqua. Once she gets going, she's hard to stop." DJ said. "I think she might make you bankrupt faster than any of us."

Joktuk laughed again. "All right, then! My whole battalion will pay for them! Have your big drinkers drink all they like!"

"Heh, you're going to regret those words." DJ said.

"But my men will be happy to hear that. Well, we'll be off then." Tanya said as they took their leave.

"So the rumors about the 203rd were true. They really do have odd company supporting them, and a child leading them." Joktuk said. "But I don't think we could ever ask for more dependable allies."