Constructed long before the Fall of Marie, the Trost Refueling Station was certainly an old structure.

Prior to the Fall of Marie, the Refueling Station served as a secondary base of operations for the Garrison, acting as one of four minor bases that were constructed in each district of Rose.

Of course, the base ended up getting repurposed into a refueling station following the Fall of Marie, one that was now Survey Corp property. It was meant to replace the bases that were lost during the Fall and, sure, the Garrison only gave them one out of four of their bases, though it was still better than nothing.

Following the Trost breach and the subsequent sealage of the gate, however, the Refueling Station ended up serving no real purpose. The Survey Corps only really needed it to make sure that their equipment were fully functional before each expedition, something that was, by all means, redundant as they couldn't even depart from Trost at this point, and though the Garrison did make use of it from time to time, they had no real need for it due to how they didn't really use their Maneuver Gear as actively as their Survey Corp counterparts.

Due to this, the Military Tribunal did consider tearing down the base or repurposing it back into a Garrison base following the conclusion of the Trost incident, though they were quick to reconsider after Erwin Smith spoke to them after Mika's trial. The guy pulled a few strings to keep the otherwise redundant base as Survey Corp property, and ultimately, he managed it, with the Tribunal offering little resistance in allowing him to keep the structure.

After all, to the Tribunal, keeping Mikazuki and Eren in the same place was seen as extremely risky, and if they had to keep a redundant military base up to negate those risks, then so be it.

"Y'know, I never thought I'd be staying in the refuel base for longer than a few hours. Much less to babysit a kid."

Upon hearing that comment, courtesy of Gelgar, Henning, Lynne and Tomas allowed themselves to chuckle briefly while Nanaba simply rolled her eyes at her teammate's lack of seriousness towards the whole incident. Meanwhile, however, Mike and Mika both continued on as though they had not heard him.

Currently, the entirety of Team Mike plus Mikazuki were en route to the Trost refueling station via horseback, with Mike leading them all the while. By all means, the Team could very easily get there within a few minutes right after exiting the gates of Rose, though rather unfortunately, there was a rather… unfortunate setback that kept them from doing so.

For all his good points, horseback riding was not something that Mika could add to that list. Though he had been trained in it during his Cadet days, Augus was incredibly mediocre at actually riding on horseback, and he would've been lying if he said that he didn't almost fall off his horse on more than one occasion. Hell, by the time Mika had almost fallen off his horse for the third time in a row, Henning couldn't help but roll his eyes and take a verbal jab at the pilot.

"I honestly can't believe that this kid is the host to the Mechanical Titan," commented Henning, raising a brow rather incredulously as they rode on. His comment got a snicker from Gelgar while Tomas rolled his eyes at his junior's jab, though when Henning looked back at Mikazuki, he saw that he… well, he looked just as he always did. It was almost as though he didn't hear him! "Jeez, not even a flinch eh?"

Still nothing, and frankly speaking, that was enough to make Henning shudder as he sighed, having never met anyone like Augus prior to this.

"Kids these days," grumbled Henning, to which he rolled his eyes, only for Lynne to giggle a little as she smirked at him.

"You're one to talk, considering how you were just three years ago," joked Lynne, taking a jab at Henning's status as one of the younger members of Team Mike. Henning's face heated up indignantly at that, though he didn't care to retort as he held his tongue.

And all the while, Mika raised a brow at just how… familiar this all felt, though that thought was quickly ejected from his mind when the Trost refueling station came into view.

"We're almost there," pointed out Mike, stating the obvious as they closed the distance between themselves and the station. No one bothered to reply to that, mainly because they didn't need to. Mike had an odd habit of stating the obvious from time to time, and the entirety of his team was already used to it.

Rather unexpectedly, however…

"Ah."

No one expected Mika to respond, and when he did, they were quick to turn to him and stare in apparent shock, though said shock was quickly replaced with their usual expressions as they sighed.

"Well, he speaks…" commented Gelgar, to which Henning snorted and Lynne giggled a little. "Course' would be cool if he did it more often."

And to that, no one really objected.

Of all the buildings within the Trost district, the refueling station was, undoubtedly, the one most in disrepair.

For the past few days since the breach had been sealed, the reconstruction efforts remained strong, with a majority of the buildings within the district having been repaired back to how they looked before the breach by now. Even so, however, the refueling station was… not even halfway done with its repairs, and even that was putting it lightly.

Most materials needed to repair the building were given to the civilians as an apparent act of goodwill from the king within the confines of Sina, and even if they were not given to them, the complete reconstruction of the refueling base wouldn't have been sped up by too much either way. The reason for this was rather simple, really.

"I… don't remember that being there…" muttered Henning as soon as Team Mike entered the refueling station, reeling in their steeds as soon as they reached the center of the place's courtyard. The other members of his team turned to face him when they heard his comment, and they followed his gaze up to one of the towers of the refueling station… only to shudder when they noticed the massive slash mark on its side.

Said slash mark was one of many, however, as several other noticeable holes and marks could be seen, both on the interior and exterior of the refueling station, and when they were entering the structure, the team did take note of several oddly shaped imprints outside.

"All created by the Barbatos, no doubt," muttered Nanaba, still unable to shake her awe of the pure brute strength of the so-called Gundam. She had never seen the thing in action during the Fall of Maria, and as such, seeing even a fraction of what it could do was rather awe inspiring, to say the least. "Such strength is… impressive, to say the least."

"Yeah, though it would be better if it did not cause so much damage," added Tomas as he looked at Mika with a slightly raised brow. His response was a simple glance back from the corner of Mika's eye, showing that he acknowledged his comment but didn't care enough to follow through, prompting Tomas to sigh as he began dismounting his steed. "Yeah, I should've seen that coming."

"Regardless, he won't be getting back into that Barbatos thing for a while now, so I don't think it'll matter," quipt Gelgar as he and Nanaba dismounted their horses, with the former brushing himself off while Nanaba rolled her shoulder. "And besides, he'll have to fix all the crap he's broken with us, so it kinda evens out?"

"Look at you being positive," joked Lynne, smirking as she dismounted her horse rather simply alongside Mike, and once she was off, Lynne began stretching a little before she turned to see Mika drop onto the ground on both feet. He landed in a not so graceful manner, though she reckoned it wasn't too bad for a junior soldier.

"Hey, it's part of my charm," quipt Gelgar, finger gunning his senior, who rolled her eyes whilst smiling as Mike huffed a little in amusement. For as well rounded and serious as they were on the field, Team Mike, minus Mike himself, were rather rowdy whilst off it, and though rather unbecoming of him to admit, Zacharius quite liked it. It just made them feel more like family and not mere soldiers.

But even so…

"It's good to stay positive, but don't forget why we're here," ordered Mike, catching the attention of his team members and Mika as he spoke. Members of Team Mike stood at attention upon hearing him, a clear sign of respect for their Commander, though Mika simply glanced over in his general direction with a raised brow. "We will be assisting in the reconstruction efforts for the refueling station whilst we are here. In the meantime, the old dormitories are at the northern end of the base. They are undoubtedly in less than ideal conditions, so you'll have to get them cleaned up."

"Roger that, Mike," said Tomas, giving a mild nod, only to glance at Mikazuki with a raised brow. The pilot didn't seem to be listening at all, as his attention seemed to be fixed on a particularly large hole in the refuel station. Noticing that, Tomas coughed into his fist and pointed at the pilot. "And… what about him?"

"He will be providing assistance. He may be the… pilot of the Barbatos, but he also needs to contribute outside of battle," replied Mike, narrowing his eyes at the pilot, only to raise a brow when Augus popped a raisin into his mouth. Huh… where'd he get that, anyways? Well, that was probably not important anyways, and besides, he wasn't done speaking for once. "I want at least one person by his side at all times. Never allow him to be alone."

"Yes sir," replied Tomas with a nod, with the other members of Team Mike nodding, showing that they heard him as well as they glanced at Mikazuki. After a short period of silence, Gelgar cleared his throat and spoke up.

"Well, in that case, who's gonna be the first to babysit him?"

By all means, Gelgar didn't expect that comment to backfire on him… but here he was… babysitting Mikazuki before everyone else in his team.

Mere seconds after he had asked that question back then, Gelgar was ordered by Mike himself to be the first to keep an eye out for Mikazuki, and though he threw a small fit back then, the pompadour haired man didn't object as he did as he was told. He may not have liked it, but he wasn't going to disobey Mike, or all people, and all that led to the present, with Gelgar and Mikazuki walking off to the dormitories whilst everyone else did various other tasks that Mike had assigned to them, tasks that were certainly more interesting than babysitting Mika.

Pinching the bridge of his nose to relieve his irritation, Gelgar grumbled to himself as he walked on with Mikazuki tailing him like a lost, feral puppy. A lost feral puppy that controlled a massive machine of ultra death, but a feral puppy nonetheless. Simply put, Augus appeared incredibly easy to handle, so much so that Gelgar reckoned that he could take him on and subdue him with little issue, though he wasn't gonna take that risk unless absolutely necessary.

Of course, Gelgar didn't exactly have much reason to subdue him now, or all times, and if he were honest, he didn't see himself having to do so for the foreseeable future. This was because, like a feral puppy, Gelgar doubted that Mika would attack unless provoked into doing so, but when forced into doing so, Augus would most likely fight with all his ferocity until either he or his assailant was killed.

'Jeez, I've had him on a leash for less than an hour and I'm already comparing him to a dog,' thought Gelgar after realizing how his comparison of Mika to a dog was getting a little out of hand, prompting him to sigh and shake his head as he leaned it back and placed both hands behind his neck. 'Though… to his credit, the kid does look like he wants to rip my throat out like an actual feral dog…'

Shuddering as he visualised that thought, Gelgar glanced back at Mika, who didn't notice his gaze as he continued walking. This allowed Gelgar to avoid direct eye contact with Mika as he stared into those eyes of his, and truth be told, the senior soldier had to suppress a shudder as he looked away.

'Man, that kid looks like he'd rip my spine out and continue on like nothing happened…' thought Gelgar with a mild shudder as he shook his head, sighing as he lowered both his arms and continued on walking, frowning as he glanced back at Augus once more, only to flinch when he saw that the young man was staring back at him this time. Gelgar swallowed a little when he noticed that, though at that point, a rather dumb idea popped into his head, and after a bit of consideration, Gelgar shrugged and acted on it.

Besides, it wouldn't hurt to talk to the guy, right? If they were gonna babysit him for god knows how long, they may as well get to know him better.

"So, Mikazuki, you got anything interesting to share, or is hosting the Barbatos or whatever your only source of bragging rights?" inquired Gelgar, his sarcasm rather apparent as Mika quirked a brow at him, seemingly not understanding what he was asking, prompting his senior to roll his eyes. "I mean, you got anything to talk about?"

"Nothing interesting," replied Mika, raising a brow as he glanced at Gelgar, who scoffed at that before he turned away from him.

"Jeez, not much of a talker, eh?" quipt Gelgar, rolling his eyes as he continued on walking, only to get no response, something that more or less answered his question as the pompadour haired man snorted. "You know, you kinda remind me of the Commander and Captain, in a bad way at least. You need to talk more, open up a little."

"..." no response from Augus, who remained silent, something that felt like a metaphorical fuck you to Gelgar, who rolled his eyes as they continued walking. Even so, Gelgar didn't exactly find any reason to stop talking just to pass the time. Sure, he probably wouldn't get a response from the kid, but hey, it's better than nothing when it came to passing the time.

"So, anything you can tell us about that Barbatos of yours?" continued Gelgar, smiling a little as he spoke. Behind him, Mika raised an eyebrow, unsure of what to make of the question, though Gelgar didn't take note of it due to how his back was turned towards Augus. "That Gundam of yours, as you call it, just interests me. And y'know, we always wanna learn more about the things that interest us, so here I am, doing just that, and who better to answer my questions than the one most knowledgeable about the damn thing?"

"...ah," was Gelgar's only response from Mika, and though it wasn't much, it showed that Mika was, at the very least, still paying attention to what he was saying. That was a nice step forward, Gelgar reckoned, and acting on it, the guy continued.

"So… what exactly is Barbatos, anyways? You said that it's a Gundam. The heck even is that? Some sorta highly evolved Titan or something?" inquired Gelgar, opting to get the basics out of the way first and foremost as he and Mika stopped in front of a door to one of the many dormitories within the refueling station. Grabbing the handle, Gelgar turned it and swung the door open with little issue.

"Barbatos isn't a Titan. Barbatos is Barbatos," replied Mika, short and simple as he and Gelgar entered the room, with the latter flinching at just how dusty the place looked. Mika had no opinion on the matter as he walked in and placed a hand atop the cabinet that was closest to him. Brushing a hand over it, Augus winced a little when he saw how much dust had gathered on his palm, though he was quick to wipe it off before turning back to Gelgar, who had kicked the side of the room's study desk, causing the layer of dust atop it to bounce up just a little.

"... ok?" muttered Gelgar upon hearing Mika's claim, and not long after, he shook his head and scratched his chin. "So… a Gundam isn't a Titan, and it's its own thing, huh?"

"Ah," confirmed Mika as he approached the bed that rested near the corner of the room. The bed seemed to be the dustiest thing in the room, with its top being coated in a rather thick layer. It was so thick that when Mika poked the mattress, the layer of dust cracked a little, much to his amusement.

"Well in that case, what exactly is a Gundam, anyways?" asked Gelger, to which Mika shrugged.

"It's a Mobile Suit," answered Mika, glancing at Gelgar, who appeared a little confused at the term, though he nodded a little to save face.

"Mobile… suit, eh? Weird name, I prefer Gundam," admitted Gelger, pulling the chair for the room's study table out and sitting on it, ignoring how dusty it was as he sat his ass down upon it and stared at Mika, who didn't return the favor. "But either way, how do you control the damn thing, exactly?"

"I don't know," replied Mika with a shrug, sitting down on the dusty bed as he spoke. Gelgar appeared bewildered at that whilst Augus didn't even care that him sitting on the bed caused the dust to crack as he continued speaking. "The Alaya Vijnana helps me control Barbatos better, I think. Or it's just muscle memory."

"I don't know what that Alaya whatever is, and quite honestly I don't really care, but if you really do use muscle memory to control it, then I'm impressed," quipt Gelgar, smirking as he crossed his arms and leaned back on the chair. There was so much more Gelgar wished to ask, primarily due to his natural curiosity, though even so, he doubted that Mika would share everything with, especially after having only spoken to him for at most five minutes, and as such, he opted to ask some of the more mundane problems for now. "Hey, so, are they more Gundams out there?"

"I already told the old man that I'm the only one with a Gundam," replied Mika, raising a brow as Gelgar snorted.

"Yeah? Well, you didn't sound too sure, so spill. How many others are there?" shot Gelgar, to which Mika raised a brow and scratched his cheek. He paused briefly before shrugging, finding no real harm in answering as he nodded.

"I think Chocolate Man said that there were 72 of them, but I think there are less of them now," replied Mika, and at that, things got pretty out of hand real quick.

"Whoa whoa whoa, you're telling me that there's one that has a big ass axe?"

"Ah. Gusion Rebake."

"And it's like your Barbatos, but green? And it has four arms?!"

"Ah."

Confusion was the first thing that Lynne felt as she walked up to the room that Gelgar and Mikazuki Augus had entered nearly half an hour ago. The two had not left it for long enough that Mike had Lynne leave to check on them just in case. Lynne didn't mind at all, though it did take her some time to track them down.

Then again, considering how loudly Gelgar was speaking, it wasn't too hard, she reckoned.

"Oh, and that Ryusei Go thing? God damn, it's dumb, but I fucking love it!"

"Shino loved it too."

Raising a brow at that, Lynne took note of those strange terms as soon as she could hear them. Gusion Rebake, Ryusei Go… Shino? She didn't know what any of those things meant, though they sounded rather important in some way, and as such, she kept them in mind as she peeked into the room…

… and she was quick to raise a brow when she saw that Gelgar had a flask of alcohol in his hand as he sat on a rather dusty chair, leaning back on it as he took a long sip from the flask. Huh, what a sight to behold, this was. Though by no means an antisocial, Gelgar wasn't the type of person to speak to those whom he didn't know too well in such a relaxed manner, so to see him do so, with Mikazuki especially, was a surprise to be sure.

Much more of a surprise was how Mika seemed to actually be speaking with him instead of being spoken to! To think that someone as antisocial as him would allow such a thing to happen… it was definitely unexpected, though not in a bad way.

Before Lynne could think too much about it, however, the pilot seemed to notice her peeking in, with Mika raising one of his brows when he made eye contact with her. Gelgar was quick to follow Mika's gaze and was quick to make eye contact with Lynne, prompting him to smirk and offer a two fingered salute.

"Sup, Lynne?" greeted Gelgar, smiling as he greeted her with as much enthusiasm as any drunk guy would have. Mika didn't offer any greeting as he simply stared at the woman, with his light blues locking onto Lynne's brown pair. Rather surprisingly, Lynne didn't seem phased by his gaze as she offered him a gentle, almost motherly smile, one that made Augus flinch a little for reasons not known to Lynne.

"Gelgar, you were meant to look after Mikazuki, not share a drink with him," reminded Lynne sarcastically, to which Gelgar scoffed as he pointed his flask holding hand towards Mika, who raised a brow at that unexpected movement, though he didn't comment on it as Gelgar replied.

"Well, the big guy didn't say anything about not having a drink with Mika, so I don't see much of a problem!" defended Gelgar, a notion that made Lynne shudder, with her thinking that Gelgar had given Mika some alcohol, though she soon realized that Mika's gaze was a little too clear to be under the influence of alcohol, and with that in mind, she sighed in relief, though to Gelgar, it looked more like an irritated one. "But Imma just say; I didn't share any with him. Honest. Trust me, the guy looks too young to be drinking anyways!"

"I see. Well, regardless, I should inform you that Commander Mike is just a tad worried about your absence. It would be in your best interest to go and assure him that you're alright, preferably right now. In person," explained Lynne, gesturing for Gelgar to get a move on before Mike actually got worried enough to seek Gelgar out personally.

"Oh yeah? And what about Mika? Someone has to babysit him, and all things considered, I think we're developing a long and powerful relationship!" claimed Gelgar, nearly slapping the boy in question in the face as he pointed at him. Augus did, admittedly, flinch just a little at that, though he was quick to recover and glare at Gelgar in annoyance and confusion as Lynne rolled her eyes. Man, a slightly drunk Gelgar truly is something else…

"Well, you may continue growing your long and unbreakable bond after you've reported to Mike. I'll keep an eye on Mika while you're gone, so get a move on, Gelgar, before I throw you out," threatened Lynne, and though her tone reflected quite a bit of sarcasm, that smile of hers told Gelgar that she was not lying. Hell, the fact that she has done it before in the past did do quite a bit to increase Gelgar's unease, and within a handful of seconds, he quickly got up and marched out.

"R-Right, I hear you, ma'am," assured Gelgar, frowning as he staggered out of the room. He hasn't had enough alcohol that he'd just pass out right there and then, though he's had just enough to make him walk with less stability, and as such, it made for quite the sight as both Lynne and Mika watched him awkwardly stumble out of the room, nearly falling over on more than one occasion.

"Jeez, he needs to control his alcohol consumption," lamented Lynne as Gelgar began stumbling down the hallway, leaving Lynne to enter the room and have a look around, brushing her long brown hair behind her ears as she did so. The woman scoffed at just how dusty the place was, though she was quick to disregard most of it as she shook her head and leaned against a wall, crossing her arms as she glanced over at Mika.

Though unenthused, Mika did at the very least make eye contact with her as well, so that was a plus, Lynne supposed.

After some time, however, Lynne realized that Mika seemed less than keen on doing anything other than just stare at her. Hell, the guy didn't even break eye contact with her, with him seeming keen on staring at her for as long as possible. Rather unsurprisingly, however, it didn't take long for things got a little too awkward for Lynne to handle as she cleared her throat.

"How are you holding up, Mikazuki Augus?" asked Lynne, and upon hearing her, Mika noticeably quirked an eyebrow up, a telltale sign of confusion at her question, and it prompted Lynne to chuckle awkwardly as she shook her head. "I mean to ask if, so far, you're doing alright under our care. Has Gelgar been annoying you? If so, then I do apologise. He tends to be like that with the new recruits. Things get worse when he's drunk."

"Gelgar is annoying, but he helps pass the time," replied Mika with a shrug, and though there was undoubtedly a small amount of irritation in his voice, Lynne couldn't help but notice how he didn't actually sound genuinely annoyed at Gelgar. It made Lynne rather curious, though she kept it under wraps for now. "He asks a lot of questions."

"That's Gel for you. He asks a lot, perhaps too much sometimes, but he enjoys getting closer to his fellow soldiers," assured Lynne, smiling a little as she rolled her shoulder. Mika nodded in acknowledgement of that, and at that, silence prevailed for a brief moment before Lynne cleared her throat. "Though I will admit, it's in our nature to ask questions. Humans are naturally curious creatures, after all."

"Ah," was Lynne's answer, to which she rolled her eyes. Definitely not much of a talker, he was, though it didn't stop her from speaking as she approached Augus and took a seat next to him, prompting the pilot to raise a brow as she did so.

"For someone as young looking as you, you certainly don't act your age," commented Lynne, smiling a little playfully as she spoke, to which Mika raised a brow, not understanding what his senior meant as she chuckled. "Most kids your age would be either booing us or asking for our autographs, but you? You're different, and that interests me. If I'm asking too much, you can tell me to stop, but if I'm not…"

And at that, Lynne paused briefly as her eyes locked onto Mika's, and the former's shone with quite a bit of curiosity as she leaned back a little, smiling gently as she continued speaking.

"I'd like to know more about you, Mikazuki Augus," finished Lynne, and at that, Augus raised a brow, sighing a little when he acknowledged that this was more or less the same thing that Gelgar had asked him quite a while back, and he shook his head before responding in the same manner.

"There's nothing interesting for you to know," replied Mika, shrugging a little as Lynne rolled her eyes.

"Psh, nonsense," quipt Lynne, waving off Mika's response as she offered a smirk, one that made Augus raise a brow as he tilted his head just a little, showing off his confusion more than anything else, prompting Lynne to chuckle a little. He may have been the pilot of Barbatos, but, as Lynne had expected, beneath that emotional mask of his was a simple soul. One that was just as human as the rest of them.

'A lot of soldiers think less of you just because you're the host of that Gundam. They fear you, think that you're some sort of monster, but I'm not about to make that mistake,' thought Lynne as she lifted an arm up to gently punch Augus in the shoulder, an act that barely caused him to flinch, though at the very least, he did raise a brow in confusion, one that made Lynne's smile grow in size. 'In the end, you, me and even Eren Jaeger are all humans. We shouldn't divide ourselves any further, but unite together and become stronger.'

"Everyone has a story to tell, Mikazuki Augus," continued Lynne, smiling gently as she lowered her arm. Mika didn't seem to have any opinion on that comment, though he at least allowed her to continue talking. "It doesn't really matter how insignificant it is. Every soldier has a tale to tell, a goal to accomplish and, above all, the potential to create a legend. So, with all that said, I'd like to at least hear how your legend started, at the very least."

"My… legend?" echoed a confused Mikazuki, to which Lynne chuckled a little as she nodded.

"Yeah, kid. Considering what the Hell you've got under control, I'd say that it won't take long before you become a living legend, much like Levi or Mike! Hell, I think that you're pretty much one already, considering how popular that Barbatos of yours is already!" assured Lynne, and to that, Mika couldn't help but feel a mild blush consume his face as he processed that information, one that left as quickly as it came as the pilot composed himself. A legend, huh? Mika never did strive to become a legend, with all that he ever wanted being to protect Orga and his old friends and, more recently, his new family.

And with that in mind…

"... not interested. I… don't want to be a legend," countered Mika, raising a hand to wave Lynne off as he frowned, confusing her greatly as she tilted her head. Not interested in becoming a legend…? That was absurd! Mika may have been an emotionless young man, but Lynne highly doubted that he lacked any ambitions! Most soldiers would grasp at every chance at being a legend, after all, and as such… why…

"Pardon me…?" muttered Lynne, still rather surprised as she stared at Mika, who snorted a little as he returned the favour, and at that, the young woman noticed that, despite his gaze still being rather cold, there was an oddly unfamiliar glint in his eyes… one that reflected just a small amount of snarkiness as he glanced at her.

"It just doesn't interest me. Being a legend doesn't help me protect my family, so it doesn't matter to me at all," answered Mika, and at that, realization dawned upon Lynne as she raised her brows, though before long, she smiled and lowered them before chuckling to himself.

"I see… so you're one of those soldiers, huh?" muttered Lynne, allowing a gentle smile to appear on her lips as she began seeing Mika in a new light.

"Those… soldiers?" echoed Mika, to which Lynne waved him off.

"Oh, don't worry about that. Just… me saying random stuff," replied Lynne offhandedly, though she didn't allow her gaze to break from Mika as she eyed him with newfound interest.

'Those kinds of soldiers are incredibly rare to come by,' thought Lynne as she rubbed her chin. 'Those who boast incredible strength yet have enough compassion to restrain themselves for the sake of others… not many can claim to have such a quality. And yet, here we have the host to perhaps the most powerful weapon within these walls with such a trait…'

As that thought finished, Lynne found herself smirking a little, confusing Mika quite a bit as she did, and his confusion only grew when his senior placed a hand atop his head, patting it gently as she did. Though sudden, Mika didn't see any reason to stop her as he simply raised a brow whilst Lynne chuckled a little.

'I can say for sure, but I have a feeling that you'll be going far around here, Mika, be it with or without Barbatos…'

Some time later

"..."

"..."

Things were certainly rather awkward as Mika and Nanaba sat in one of the several cafeteria tables, and even then, it would be putting things lightly. No words were exchanged between the two blue eyed soldiers for the longest time, though that much was expected. Neither could be considered talkers, after all.

Several minutes prior, Lynne had been approached by Nanaba, who informed her that Mike wanted to speak to her whilst she and Mikazuki were walking down one of the hallways in the refueling station at the suggestion of the senior soldier, who didn't wish to stay in the dusty room for longer than necessary.

After a quick farewell from Lynne, complete with a wave of her hand, a gesture that Mika, shockingly enough, returned however unenthusiastically, Nanaba realized that she was now, more or less, in charge of keeping an eye of Mika, much to her dismay, though she didn't go against her duties as she sighed and motioned for the pilot to follow her.

They walked for quite some time, with Nanaba taking several turns along the way. How they even ended up in the cafeteria for the refueling station was a mystery to her, though she didn't question it as she took a seat, with Augus sitting opposite to her. And there they sat… quietly… for an undocumented amount of time.

From time to time, Mika would reach into his pocket and pull a raisin out, popping it into his mouth with little concern as Nanaba raised a brow in confusion. It seemed almost as though the kid had an endless supply of raisins, though where he got it from was a mystery to her. Perhaps he had magic? Very unlikely, but it wasn't out of the realm of possibility at this point, what with Barbatos being a thing and all that.

It became rather apparent to Mika after some time, however, that Nanaba was staring at him rather intently, and it confused him for a moment, though after some time, he glanced at the raisin he had halfway up to his mouth and raised a brow before shrugging and handing it over to Nanaba. At that unexpected gesture, Nanaba could only raise a brow in confusion, though after some consideration, she decided to take the raisin against her better judgement.

"... thanks?" muttered Nanaba, taking a sniff of the raisin as Mika simply watched. She wasn't as good as Mike when it came to sniffing, though she could still easily tell if something was poisoned or not, and the raisin she had was certainly not poisoned, and without much of a second thought, she popped it into her mouth and chewed. "Not bad I guess. Where'd you get them."

"Ah," replied Mika absentmindedly, popping another into his mouth as he nodded. "Miss Sakura gave them to me a long time ago. I don't know why they're not spoiled yet, but she's a good farmer."

"Miss Sakura, huh. Never heard of her, but she sounds like a good person," commented Nanaba, raising a brow as Mika snorted.

"I know," muttered Mika, shaking his head as he had another raisin, continuing before he finished chewing. "Miss Sakura does her best to support her family. Her farm doesn't bring in much, but she still does her best."

And to that, Nanaba couldn't help but slack her shoulders a little as she snorted. Family, huh?

"Family… you're here fighting for their betterment, huh? Admirable, I suppose, but ultimately foolish," muttered Nanaba, barely audible as she flashed the faintest of smiles, and at that, Mika raised a brow as she shook her head bitterly. "Pardon me. Just… rambling a little"

"Ah," replied Augus, nodding faintly as Nanaba scoffed.

"How's it feel, though? To have a family worth fighting for?" inquired Nanaba, her voice sounding rather… uneasy as she raised a brow at Augus, and at that, the pilot raised one as well before shrugging.

"Doesn't feel much different. I'm here to protect them, and if they survive, then that's good," replied Mika, and at that, Nanaba scoffed.

"That's noble of you, I guess," muttered Nanaba with a shrug, to which Mika shrugged as well, showing his indifference as his senior rubbed her chin. "But… why go through all the effort?"

"What's that supposed to mean?" countered Mika, and at that, Nanaba exhaled sharply through her nostrils before staring off to the side.

'Why bother protecting them when they probably won't do the same for you?' asked Nanaba mentally, though she stopped herself from speaking it out as she shook her head and made eye contact with the pilot, who didn't break eye contact as she scoffed.

"Nothing… it's nothing, kid. Just… thinking about things," assured Nanaba, waving the pilot off as he raised a brow in confusion, though he didn't say anything else as the blonde sighed and buried her face in her hands, silently pondering over several things as she did so. She was so absorbed in her thoughts that she ended up zoning out for a short while, so much so that she didn't even acknowledge how Mika had stood up and walked off after a short while.

She knew that she's hit low points in her life before, but now, for her to feel envious of some kid's familial bonds with people who weren't even related to him by blood… well… it made her heart ache quite a bit as she leaned forward, resting her elbows on the table and burying her face in her palms.

At this point in time… Mika didn't matter to her. Nor did her duties.

No, all that mattered were her thoughts… and it remained that way for quite a while as Nanaba sighed into her palms.

'Lucky little bastard…'

"Nanaba abandoned her duties, eh? That's a rare sight indeed."

Raising a brow as he turned towards the one who spoke, Mika didn't react too much when he saw that Henning was approaching him with an amount of swagger that Augus had not seen before. Hell, even Shino didn't walk with that amount of swagger unless absurdly drunk, and the latter issue only happened once in Mika's recent memory.

Currently, Mikazuki was standing right in front of a massive hole in the wall, a massive hole that was (unintentionally) placed there by Barbatos during the Trost incident, rather silently, staring out at the district rather disinterestedly all the while. He did feel a little surprised when Henning managed to sneak up on him as effectively as he did, though he didn't think much of it as his senior eyed him from head to toe, sizing him up before chuckling.

"Heh, well I don't blame her. I wouldn't wanna babysit you either, but here I am," continued Henning, crossing his arms as he spoke. The guy sounded rather confident of himself, so much so that it annoyed Mika a little, though he didn't bother to comment on it. Besides, he supposed that he did have good reason to be that way. Being a part of one of the more highly regarded Survey Corp teams came with an ego boost, he supposed. "The Hell did you do to her, anyways? She's been acting off."

"I don't know," answered Mika truthfully, to which Henning rolled his eyes and snorted.

"Whatever you say, kid," quipt Henning, and at that, silence prevailed for a short while before the senior soldier placed a hand along the edge of the hole in the wall. "So, you did this, huh?"

"Barbatos did it," corrected Mika, staring up at Henning with a raised brow, with his blue eyes meeting his senior's brown pair. Henning chuckled at that, nodding to show his acknowledgement, before he shook his head, though what he didn't notice was how Mika seemed to be staring at the guy for quite some time.

Henning looked oddly familiar to him, and it took Augus a short while to figure out why.

'He looks like Nac,' thought Mika, drawing a connection between Nac and Henning through their similar hairstyles as he offered a mild snort. It was more than likely a coincidence, but the thought of Nac styling his hair up to be like Henning's wasn't too far fetched, considering how much he admired the Survey Corps. Hell, the thought was enough to make Mika snort in amusement, prompting Henning to glance at him in confusion.

"Oi, is something funny, kid?" inquired Henning, and in response, Mika offered him a sideways glance.

"No. You just remind me of someone," replied Mika, to which Henning smirked and rubbed his chin.

"Oh? Well, what is it that reminds you of em? Is it my natural charisma? The dashing looks? Or are they at least a tenth as good as I am in battle?" asked Henning, allowing his ego to show through briefly as Mika rolled his eyes. So Henning was one of those soldiers, huh? Well, Mika could've guessed that from just looking at him, though he reckoned that it was nice to have confirmation.

He also reckoned that it would also be nice to have a small bit of fun as well…

"It's just the hair. Everything else reminds me of dirt," quipt Mika, to which Henning smirked, only for said smirk to fade and give way to a horribly insulted expression as he glared at his junior.

"W-WHAT'S THAT SUPPOSED TO MEAN?!" demanded Henning, to which Mika shrugged and popped a raisin into his mouth, staring out into Trost as he chewed it.

"I'm sure you're smart, so you figure it out," replied Mika, and at that, Henning more or less lost it as he continued railing on Mika, who saw fit to ignore most of his comments as he ate more raisins.

And truth be told, it was entertaining. Augus was never one with words, but whenever he got it right, he really got it right.

Hours later

"I hear that you've put quite the dent in Henning's ego."

Raising a brow at that comment, Mika glanced off to his side and was quick to make eye contact with Tomas, who stood not far behind him as he spoke. The two were currently standing in the courtyard of the refueling station, with Mika having been watched over by Lynne before she was carted off by Gelgar, who claimed that Mike wanted to speak to him. The guy appeared rather drunk, though not as much as it was several hours prior.

All things considered, Mika quite liked Lynne. She was rather nosy, though she did have good intentions. Her motherly nature was something that Mika quite liked, and her general appearance was similar to another woman whom he had come to accept as his mother, so much so that he couldn't help but draw several similarities between the two. Because of that, it was probably for the best that he didn't stick around her for too long…

With Lynne gone for a brief moment, with Gelgar not able to babysit Mika due to him also being called in by Mike, Mikazuki found himself alone in the refueling station's courtyard. It was fine, for the most part, with Mika just standing there and staring up into the sky as he made the most of his alone time.

What he didn't expect, however, was for Tomas to be the one who would break be the next to babysit him. It came as a surprise, to be sure, though Augus didn't seem keen on complaining as he made eye contact with Tomas before nodding.

"Ah. It wasn't that hard," replied Mika, raising a brow at Tomas, who quirked one of his own up in acknowledgment. "I just said what was on my mind and he was dumb enough to fall for it."

"Psh, so that was unintentional, huh?" quipt Tomas, shaking his head as Augus shrugged.

"I guess," replied the pilot, and at that, the two stood in silence as they glanced up at the sky, silently watching as the sun set. It was quite the sight, all things considered, and though they've seen it many times, neither Mika nor Tomas could get over it. It was just so captivating…

Beautiful, yet fleeting… sunsets could very well be considered a reflection of life itself. It was beautiful, sure, but it would not be there for long, and as such, one had to enjoy it for as long as they could or just outright ignore it. Mika wasn't keen on the second option as he kept his gaze up at the setting sun, entranced by its beauty as the light reflected off his blue eyes.

"I wish to… thank you, Mikazuki Augus," spoke up Tomas after some time, prompting Mika to glance away from the sunset and make eye contact with Tomas. Blue eyes met dark red as Tomas smiled at the pilot, with his smile reflecting quite a bit of warmth as he nodded towards Mika… respectfully? Yeah, that was probably the word that best described that smile as Mika raised a brow, prompting Tomas to elaborate. "Your involvement in the closage of the breach has undoubtedly saved more lives than any of us can attest to. Without you or your Gundam, we might not have even been able to seal the breach, or at the very least not without suffering heavy losses. And as such, to thank you is the least that I can do."

"... you're welcome," was all Mika really bothered to say as he offered a mild nod, one that made Tomas chuckle briefly before waving the pilot off.

"I look forward to working with you on the field, Mikazuki," said Tomas, nodding at the pilot as Augus raised a brow at that unexpected comment, though before long, he flashed a small, practically unnoticeable smile of his own as he nodded as well.

"Ah," replied Mika, and at that, both went silent as they stared up at the retreating sun, with both content with staring at it to pass the time.

"It's beautiful, isn't it?" piped up Tomas after some time, and without tearing his gaze away from the sunset, Mika nodded.

"Yeah. It is."

How rare, this was…

It's been less than a day… and yet the members of Team Mike seemed to already be warming up to their charge. With the exception of Nanaba, the members of his team were all getting rather close to the pilot, though Henning seemed more pissed at Mika's wounding of his ego than anything, though the comments that he made whilst speaking with Mike didn't really have any real sense of malice behind them.

"That kid got lucky! I'll smack his ego twice as hard next time!" claimed Henning hours prior, and Mike couldn't really do much more than wish the guy luck at this point. Mika didn't seem to be bound by concepts like personal benefit or have an ego the size of his, after all. Hell, if anything, Mika didn't seem to be normal at all.

The thought of Mika being… abnormal, for the lack of a better word, was backed up by his smell. It was so unlike anything Mike has ever sniffed before in his life, a mixture of so many contradicting smells and scents that it honestly gave him a headache. Not many people could attest to being as contradicting in scent as the pilot, and as such, it gave Mike good reason to keep a close eye on him…

And it seemed to pay off, as evident how he narrowed his eyes when he noticed Mika standing up from his seat next to Henning and brush his pants off, though before he could think much on it, a yell from Gelgar caught his attention.

The entirety of Team Mike had gathered in the refueling station's cafeteria for the night, a regular thing for them at this point. Off the field, they were always very keen on spending time with one another, and Mike reckoned that it was due to the fact that not one of them had anyone else to spend time with.

Every member of Team Mike was, in laymen's terms, an outlier. Someone who was just different in some way, and even amongst the Survey Corps, their uniqueness shone through. Their relationships with one another were mostly professional, though they would've been lying if they said that they didn't enjoy speaking to one another, sharing light hearted insults as they shared several bottles of alcohol between themselves.

"And apparently… MIKA USED SOME BLACK THING ON BARBATOS' CHEST THAT CAUGHT THE SPIKY SWORD! THAT'S COMEDY GOLD!" bellowed Gelgar as Henning laughed out loud. The two men were terribly drunk by then, having plowed through the first five cups with little issue only to stumble and fall after the sixth. It was impressive, really.

"Oh man, next you'll tell me that he strangled some guy that's taller than him with little issue!" replied Henning, wiping a tear from his eye as he elbowed Nanaba, whose head was resting on her arms, and her arms were, in turn, resting against the table. "Right, Nana?"

"..." no comment from Nanaba, who simply mumbled silently in her sleep with an overturned cup of alcohol by her side. Mike noticeably rolled his eyes at that, remembering how Nanaba was never exactly the best when it came to drinking. Out of the six of them, she was probably the worst, though Tomas was a good contender for that.

"The wonders of being young, eh?"

Speak of the devil, right as he thought about him, Tomas showed up and stood next to Mike, smiling a little as he did so. Mike nodded in response to Tomas' comment before turning back to see Gelgar and Henning sharing yet another laugh, and truth be told, he cracked a smile at that as well. Those two were the younger members of their team, and it certainly didn't take a genius to see that.

"Has Lynne returned?" inquired Mike, glancing at Tomas, who shook his head.

"Unfortunately, no. She's still out at Rose. Told me she was searching for something," explained Tomas, crossing his arms as he spoke. "Not sure what it is, exactly, but it's gotta be important."

"Perhaps," muttered Mike, and at that, the Elite narrowed his eyes when he saw Mika make his way towards the cafeteria exit. Tomas followed his Commander's gaze and took note of it as well, though before he could pursue, Mike placed a hand atop his shoulder to stay him. "Keep an eye on Nanaba, Gelgar and Henning. I'll follow him."

"Yes sir," was Tomas' instant reply, and at that, Mike nodded before leaving. His team was like that, they trusted his judgement, and in return, he trusted theirs. Such was the basis for any and all teams that wished to be successful. The foundation of any good team came in the form of trust, and without trust, a team would not survive even a single expedition.

Exiting the cafeteria, Mike gently shut the door behind him, more for Nanaba's sake than anything, though it probably didn't matter as, if she were to wake up, the sound of Gelgar and Henning laughing up a storm would've done so already. Hell, they were so loud that Mike reckoned that perhaps those outside the refueling base could hear them!

But still, that wasn't his problem. No, his problem was Mika, whom he had to keep an eye on, and with that in mind, Zacharius began to follow the pilot, though not before he removed his Survey Corp jacket and rolled it up before placing it atop a nearby crate.

He may not have been as recognizable as, say, Levi or Erwin, but he was still a noteworthy soldier. It would be best to minimize the attention drawn to him in any way possible, and at the moment, the fastest way was to remove his jacket… and maybe stop sniffing for a bit, though that was off the table.

With that done, Mike took a deep breath in and followed Mika out of the refueling station. By all means, he should probably just knock him out and drag him back to the station, but Mike's instincts stopped him from doing so as he followed the pilot down several turns through Trost, unsure of where he was going, exactly.

If anything, Zacharius was grateful that it was already nighttime. There were less people out on the streets, and though that would've made it easier to spot him, it also meant that he wouldn't lose sight of Mika anytime soon. That, and with it being dark out, Mike's presence would be concealed much easier.

'Where are you going, Mikazuki Augus…?' was the main thought that ran through Mike's head as time flew by, with the pilot not stopping for even a second as he took several elaborate turns. Mike doubted that the kid wanted to get to his Gundam, as he was headed east, away from where it was being held. Besides, why go east, of all places…? There wasn't much here outside of a few buildings and a massive field…

And suddenly, Mika stopped, in front of a house, no less. Noticing this, Mike stopped as well and positioned himself behind a stack of crates, with less than a third of his body poking out to let him observe what was going on. The Elite raised a brow when he noticed how Mika was just… staring into the house through a window. The pilot didn't move much as he did so, only shifting a hand up to place it against the glass as he looked in.

'Hm. I guess there's something in that house that's important to him. Or… someone," thought Mike, only to frown when he noticed Mika stepping away from the window before he turned on his heel and began sprinting away from it, only stopping after he turned a corner and disappeared from view. The Elite would've been lying if he said that he wasn't shocked by just how fast someone as short as Mika could run, though he didn't put more thought into it as he heard the door to the house Mika was looking into unlock and swing open.

"H-Hello…?" came a voice, distinctively female and noticeably strained. Mike didn't peek out at the speaker this time, though he could smell the nervousness that emanated from the speaker. Nervousness… and hopefulness. Almost as though she was wishing that someone specific came out of nowhere to embrace her, though before long, that smell was gone, and not long after, the sound of a door shutting could be head, prompting Mike to frown and stare out to see that the house was back to how it was, only without Mika peeking into it.

'That woman… Mika must know her,' thought Mike, more or less stating the obvious as he turned and began to make his return to the refueling station. 'They must be a part of the family he wishes to protect. I should look more into this when I get back.'

And at that, the Elite felt something wet hit the top of his head, followed by several more droplets soon after, and it was then where he realized that it was raining… something that he didn't notice with his nose hours prior. That was enough to make him scoff a little as he began walking back to the station, ignoring the rain that soon followed.

'Guess we can't be lucky all the time, huh?'

"Mike, you look like you've wadded through the ravine!"

That was the first thing that Lynne said when she saw the state of Mike after his return, and all things considered, she wasn't wrong. Having walked form the east end of Trost to the center typically took a while without a horse, and Mike did it whilst it was raining! Granted, it only took him ten minutes, but the rain still soaked him from head to toe, and his hair covered his eyes, making him effectively blind unless he manually moved them away.

"I know. Where were you, Lynne?" asked Mike, glossing over the fact that he looked like he waddled through the Trost ravine as he allowed his bangs to fall and cover his eyes. In response, his subordinate held back a laugh as she bit her lips, trying to get over how goofy Mike looked at the moment before clearing her throat.

"I was in Rose. Mikazuki interested me quite a bit, sir, and I… decided to do a bit of digging regarding his history," explained Lynne, to which Mike raised a brow… and Lynne couldn't see that. All she could see was one of Mike's soaked bangs raising a little. "Erm… I think I should get you a towel."

"That would be nice," assured Mike as Lynne ran off to get one. It took her a few seconds but she managed it, and Mike was quick to dry his hair back to its usual glory before nodding. "Thank you, Lynne. But back on topic, you do realize that Keith Shadis has promised to give us a copy of Mikazuki Augus' Trainee records before the week ends, yes?"

"Well, the guy's busy, so I thought to just do it ahead of time," replied Lynne sheepishly, holding up a set of documents as Mike dried his hand. Once that was done, he took the documents from Lynne and nodded.

"Though it would've been better to wait, I guess this is also a good thing. Thank you, Lynne. I'll read through it later," thanked Mike, and at that, Lynne nodded with a small smile, though before she left, she cleared her throat a little.

"Oh and… uh… you may want to get some beds ready. The others aren't in the best of conditions," advised Lynne, jerking a thumb towards the cafeteria as she spoke. Mike raised a brow at that as he nodded, more or less expecting what was to come as he walked towards the cafeteria, with Lynne sighing to herself as she rolled her shoulder.

Cafeteria

… great. Tomas was pressured into drinking with them.

Poor guy, he didn't stand much of a chance. From where he stood, Mike couldn't help but wince a little when he saw the second oldest member of the group laying face first on the ground, one hand stretched out whilst the other rested by his side. Poor guy, he was never a heavy drinker, and judging by how he was laying, Mike reckoned that he may or may not have drunk two whole cups before passing out.

Similarly, Henning and Gelgar seemed to have passed out not too long ago as well, with the two of them laying their heads on the table they were sitting behind alongside Nanaba. The sight was enough to make Mike chuckle a little as he shook his head. This seemed to happen regularly, and as unfortunate as the hangovers would be the next day, Mike couldn't deny that his teammates did derive some fun from this, so he let them be.

What he didn't expect to see, however, was Mika, of all people, sitting on a nearby table… drinking a cup of alcohol as he did.

"... you seem too young to be drinking," commented Mike as he yanked on his collar, frowning at how wet he still was, though he didn't think much on it as he shook his head.

"And you look too old to be swimming in the ravine," retorted Mika, to which Mike nodded in acknowledgement.

"Touche," quipt Mike, shrugging as he moved to get himself cleaned. Once he was gone, however, Mika shrugged and took another sip and wiped his lips. He wasn't want to drink alcohol, but he had to indulge himself from time to time.

"Hey, got a spare cup?"

Raising a brow at that, Mika raised a brow when he heard Lynne smiling at him from the other side of the table. How and when she got there without him knowing was beyond Mika's comprehension, though he didn't question it as he pulled another cup of alcohol out of seemingly nowhere and handed it to her.

"Thanks. Cheers, kid."

"Ah."

And to that, Lynne snickered and chugged down her cup. Meanwhile, Mika simply snorted a little and took a sip from his.

These next few days would certainly be pretty intriguing… and yet…

'You better be keeping Nac and Mina safe while I'm gone, Annie…' thought Mika, oddly snarky as he took another sip from his cup before snorting.

'Huh… so this is what Shino meant when he said feeling lightheaded.'

I've returned!

Is that a good thing? Probably not, but it does feel good to be back with Tekketsu No Kyojin Remastered. It's been over a month at this point, and I hope I didn't make you guys wait too much.

I'll be honest, I did struggle quite a bit with this chapter. Henning, Lynne and Tomas didn't exactly have any personalities or history post Rose breach arc I could build off effectively, so I had to make a few up. I do hope they were alright…

The story will, once more, slow down from here on for character interactions. I do apologise for this, but it's just something I really like. I just like writing characters… but if you don't, you could very well skip the next few chapters if you want.

Not much else to say, so onto the review replies!

SamBridger: well you're the first to review the chapter so I believe you

starscreamer11: well here's more!

Setsuna Ritzy: heh, I'm really glad you really enjoyed the past two chapters! And I suppose I could give myself more credit, though it won't be easy considering how the Hell I am. But even so, I do appreciate your pep talk, and don't worry, I didn't feel offended!

Spyro Fanboy: well considering how things are gonna slow down from here on… I guess?

Jollyreader: psh, it isn't that good. It's just a hobby of mine… but thanks either way!

budianakubu: I doubt they know about napalm, honestly. They don't seem to have full auto guns if I'm not wrong so napalm is a longshot.

Deadman344156: thanks! And I'll stay safe, you stay safe too!

Guestimondo: well no worries, as of now, there are no secrets needed to be kept from Mika… as of now

Shadow: well, here's what comes next. I… hope you enjoyed?

Mark1: well he's not illiterate, but I reckon that he isn't too good just yet. That's… my only real excuse right now. That and receiving information from the AV System is probably much faster than actually reading the display, though this is arguable. Oh and here's the update! Hope you enjoyed!

CrossZBuild: depends, really. I'm not sure what material we can compare the hardening material to, but if we consider it to be as hard as diamonds, we can presume that at best, the Female Titan could at least lightly damage Barbatos a little with it. That's how I put it anyhow.

That's essentially all the reviews. So… see you guys next chapter!