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Several miles up in the blue sky, Quinn drew in a sharp breath as a familiar sight came before her. A black and white patterned advanced flying command base, capable of both flight and underwater operations thanks to its massive and strange looking turbines in the shapes of claws. The figures on board that she could see seemed untroubled by lack of air or massive gusts of winds thanks to the force fields that surround the entire thing. This mobile fortress's known to everyone as the X base.

As the helicopter transporting her came closer to the base, she noticed that there were already several people awaiting her entrance. The one's whose white armor was glistening against the sunlight could only be Copen and the red dot next to him was who else but Lola. Still her attention immediately focused on the white gown wearing young man that was heavily leaning on a railing.

Gunvolt.

He's alive!

He's back!

Years worth of memories and emotions about her dearest friend poured into her brain, almost threatening to have her jump down and GLOMP the Azure Striker the moment she's sure the fall wouldn't kill her nor seriously injure the latter. However it was his posture that stopped most of that as even from this far away, she could see the way he was holding onto himself, nerves all strung up.

"So that's the Azure Striker? He looks quite frail for some legendary warrior…."

A rude scoff put Quinn back to planet earth, coming from a female humanoid robot with yellow highlights, a partial wasp and bee design theme and an old school plane-like features on her.

"Miss Vespa," Quinn said calmly, long used to the other's….strong personality. She has to, as Vespa is both the commander of the air unit (and there's no not knowing one's superior officer) and her kind-off friend, "It's not very "high-class" to just assume things out of people you've yet to know."

"Hmm." the other girl doesn't reply, instead giving the people below a sharper look before opening the door and taking to the sky herself, still close enough to the Helicopter so Quinn can hear her.

"I suppose you're right," she finally concedes, then continues, "That said I'm not dense enough to know when not to intrude on a touching reunion. If you need me, you know where my quarters lie."

"Alright, see you later." Quinn makes no protest against that, when the latter decides on something, it will be done no matter what after all. That's not to say she doesn't want some private but…

Oh well, that can be left for later. Quinn jumped off the helicopter the moment it hit the ground and was standing in front of Gunvolt in an instant. She then made as if to embrace him but stopped with her hands about an inch away from his shoulders when she noticed: The condition he's currently in.

"Why aren't you back in bed?" she said in a worried voice. "You can barely stand."

"It's nice to see you again, too, Quinn," Gunvolt said with a weak, uncertain smile. Oh and it took everything in Quinn to not hold him tightly here and there and promise nothing bad will ever happen to him again. Sure, he's grown an inch or two taller but he's lost most of the meat on his bones and the dark circles around his eyes also screamed the message that he badly needs rest.

"We will talk later, Gv, for now I am simply glad you are still alive and intact. Go, back to bed with you."

Gunvolt opened his mouth to protest but Lola, ever so helpful, simply bounced her pod form against him and ushered him back to the recovery ward without room for argument. Quinn watched them leave, then turned to Copen.

"Thank you, thank you so much for finally bringing him back," she said full of gratitude, again resisting the urge to hug someone because that would make Copen very, very uncomfortable.

"It's…" he stops himself from automatically dismissing the emotion, "You are welcome."

"So, now that he's back.." Quinn continues, "I bet you're wondering if I will stick around, huh?"

"You have no intention of leaving him," Copen replied, his gaze shifting towards the med bay's direction. "Working here is the most freedom he can get for the time, and it's also the safest."

"I know that," Quinn said, fake punching one of his arms. (The fact he only rolled his eyes in response really drove home the notion that he's someone she can consider a friend by now.)
"Look at what happened because I couldn't defend myself. Never again will I fail him."

"...Do you think you're different now then?"

"Of course, sure I'm just a human but I trained my butt off here for a reason!" that wasn't a lie, what was once a soft and kind looking teenager, was now a soft and kind adult woman whose got thin but well-developed muscles on her, a good aim with most firearms and one heck of a knack towards disabling martial arts. Short of artificial enhancements, she's already at her physical peak.

Then again, she works for the support unit for a reason. As her high sensitivity towards other people also translated into a mind fit for predicting how they will react and giving counter-suggestions. Her working as the voice in the earpiece is relatively low-risk, but still, she's a very important member.

"A confident answer," which might as well mean good in Copen's language, "I'll see what we can do to make sure the two of you can work together once a proper rank has been established for him."

"Thank you." Copen nods to her response then moves to leave, "Oh, one last thing!"

"That stab wound (on Gunvolt)...you're the one responsible for it, aren't you?"

"...I am."

"Ok….well, don't do it again." She's definitely not okay with (as for as she knows) must have been roughhousing her friend. "I'll forgive you, but repeat it, and we won't be friends anymore."

I'll keep it in mind."

Vespa didn't need an audio or visual cue to notice that Lola had floated into her room and was just hovering behind her. Her propellers could detect any change in the wind for a reason, still she turned around and raised an eyebrow in silent question from where she sat, cup of tea in hand.

"You didn't greet back," Vespa had to hold in a groan, even though the round object had no face to show emotions on, the tone of her voice was enough to imagine her pouting in displeasure.

"I didn't see the need to, besides our creator isn't a fan of not being efficient with one's time either."

"Well, it still would have been nice to wave back at Dadpen and I," again, she had to hold in a groan, while it is accurate that in organic terms they would be her 'parents' to acknowledge it even in a teasing manner was strange and to say with that nickname was nothing short but criminal.

"Let's spare us both the 'rebelling daughter and disapproving mom' act and get to the point," Vespa stretched her other hand out in front of Lola, examining the back of it as if the sight was far more interesting than anything the other could say, before glancing back. "I need my 'me-time'."

"Fine, do you remember the coordinates of the Sumeragi Future Institute of Technology?"

"I do."

"Good, your next mission is to bomb it to smithereens in the midst of night. We want no doubt whatsoever on the Azure Striker's survival and so, all loose ends need to be taken care off."

"Why not send Autochrome then?" she had to ask, sure, she has anti-radar functions, swift flight and more than enough control over her Ex-weapon to send a gigantic hurricane S-fit's way but all of that pales to compare against the massive energy beams her brother can unleash, his masterful optic camouflage and the fact he can reach several mach speeds while still being absolutely silent.

"Because it can't be too good a job, not to imply anything about you! But, the conclusion people need to come to is that an army came and leveled the place...an terrorist army if you get me."

"A false flag operation. You mean to blame the attack on forces of QUILL slash others?"

"Yes, that and well, any subjects stuck in there are better off given this swift mercy anyway."

Funny, Vespa would almost be surprised by the moral ambiguity in the act she's ordered to commit but that would imply she hasn't done jobs like these before. A strong military base needs to be felt needed to stay afloat after all. And she doesn't care too much about whatever that says about it.

"When do you want me to act?" she asks.

"Tonight."

"Isn't that a bit close? To have it bombed right after the Adept Slayer visited it?"

"Don't worry, I've already got all I need to make the reason for the attack be passed off as some insider leaking the location off the Azure Striker to terrorists, that way we can both keep his alive status a secret and not be punished for it once he's inevitably will return to the battlefield."

"That said, I must insist. There can't be ANY survivors, okay Vespy?"

"Hmph, failure isn't a word in my vocabulary."

"But you just said it though."

"You know what I meant!"

No one could really blame Gunvolt for getting restless after having spent three and a half years in a cell. The others recuperating in the same room and Null – the name of the female robot currently working for the medical unit – quickly gave up on trying to get him to stay in bed, on the condition that he not do anything even remotely strenuous and not spend too long in the sun. Stay hydrated, don't re-open your wounds, no running or climbing, come back for meals and pills, don't go too far from the medical platform, if you feel even slightly light-headed or tired sit down immediately, et cetera, et cetera. As long as he behaved himself, it was figured that being able to stretch his legs would actually go a long way in helping him recover.

Gunvolt wasn't great behaving himself.

Which is why it was a good thing that Quinn seemed to bump into him the second he changed a corner. Before he could say anything she already asked him if she hurted him by bumping into him.

"I'm not that fragile," Gunvolt grumbled in response.

"I don't like the idea of you crippling yourself because you didn't rest enough," she replied but quickly changed the subject as well, "Where are you going anyway? Has anyone given you a tour?"

"No, they haven't." He replied, a small smile on his face as he registered and took the invitation.

"Well, leave that to me then!" And so she did, in what seemed to be an hour or less she got Gunvolt to see different areas of the giant fortress, like a kitchen with a gigantic freezer where he had to be assured that no, that pale girl laying prone underwater isn't someone who fell and froze to death, or the garden that looked more like a jungle and was way bigger on the inside than he thought possible, alongside more bizarre rooms the further they went. Finally they found themselves at a shooting range where he saw Copen and a green gremlin sized robot practicing together.

The moment their entrance was noticed however, the green guy started to scowl and he made a motion of ignoring them, his shots becoming less accurate as he did so due to dwindling focus.

"Hmm." Copen watched the green bot with a frown. "Stop, you're losing focus."

"Forgive me commander!" the bot replied way too loudly for how squeaky his voice was, one could compare the sensation to hearing a nail scratch against a chalkboard. "I just do not like onlookers!"

Guess it's better to leave them be then, Gunvolt thought. Ready to just move away, only to be stopped by a hand on shoulder from Quinn, who smiled good naturally in return.

"If it's onlookers you have a problem with, then how about rivals to compare against?" she asked, well, challenged, the robot in turn looked at her with a more peeved look and seemed about to probably flatly reject her if not request the two of them leave only for Copen to interrupt him.

"I think that's an idea worth following up upon." Copen nodded, looking the bot straight in the eyes even as it tried to convey his displeasure non-verbally. "I noticed you weren't trying as hard as you could against me, perhaps facing someone you're not afraid to humiliate would do wonders."

Though he said that with a warm tone, the taunt was blatant and got Gunvolt's blood pumping.

"We'll see about that," Gunvolt replied as he put on protective earmuffs and a pistol, before twirling the firearm in one arm and then shooting six rapid shots towards a target. Expecting to hit dead center. Instead, none of his marks hit and the green guy had the audacity to raise an eyebrow at him.

"All talk and no walk as they say it seems." he continued, looking at Copen in what was clearly a sign for approval. "I am surprised that this man could have ever troubled you, Commander."

"Well, in his defense," Copen said, a small smile on his face. "He was more skilled then."

"It's not like prison time lets me practice my marksmanship…" Gunvolt said back in return, hating the way it sounded like an excuse even though it wasn't. The real blow against him however came when he noticed that Quinn was holding in a laugh, one fist held against her mouth to do so.

"Quinn!" he couldn't help but say a second after. "Not you too…"

"S-sorry, Gv." She said apologetically, bright smile still on her. "It's just that…"

"Just, what?"

"Well, it's nice to see you all getting along with each other." She said.

Gunvolt had nothing to say that. Nor did the other two, still, the best thing he could say is that it only took him ten or so shots before his bullets finally hit at least the body of his targets.

Copen won by the way, with the green guy second, Quinn third and him deadlast.

He'll be sure to become number one again as soon as possible.

Gunvolt found himself skulking around the shooting range quite a lot after that. He knew why, although he didn't entirely want to admit one of the reasons to himself – he wanted to see Copen again. When they talked, it was somehow… easier for Gunvolt to act like nothing had happened at S-fit. After all, here he was standing in front of one of his most bitter enemies, and there was nothing in their conversations or hell, even the way Copen looked at him to indicate that they had been anything but fellow classmates turned friends at an older age in terms of vibes given.

It was like that godforsaken moment before his rescue had just been a dream. A really, really awful dream. That moment's pain and despair seemed like it belonged to someone else entirely. The whole three and a half years, in fact, seemed like they had happened to some other Gunvolt, and not him.

Quinn wouldn't approve of such a thought at all, if anything, the moment she finds out what Copen did would definitely be a road burner to any friendship they might have had. So Gunvolt didn't tell her about it or anyone else. The best he could do right now is move on and forget it ever happened.

Speaking about seeing Copen, Gunvolt thought about directly visiting him tonight. He had learned that the guy sleeps somewhere on his own on the command block and well, he might as well visit.

"Where are you going, Gunvolt?" Null spoke up from her post at the medical block entrance, one that just so happens to give off a perfect view of anyone leaving the sleeping quarters of the injured.

"Out." he replied. He didn't know if he was allowed or not, so he just said it as if he could instead.

"At this time of night? Oh!" She suddenly seemed to gain an idea as to why. "Oooh...well, don't get into any trouble…" she replied with a conspiring wink and a wave as he left in confusion.

He asked directions from another soldier that had the night shift to find out where Copen's quarters exactly are, and the other soldiers he passed didn't question him either. That was fine by him.

Soon enough he found the door, knocked on it and heard Copen's voice: "Just one minute, I was getting ready for bed."

"It's only me," Gunvolt called back.

A pause, then Copen opened the door. He was partially undressed, his black suit hanging open to chest-level and his hair slightly wet. "Something you wanted to talk about?" he said, smelling of a strange shampoo, obviously having showered just a moment ago. "Gunvolt?"

"I…"

He stepped back, gesturing. "Come in, Gunvolt. You can sit down if you like."

The only place to really sit down Copen's bed, but Gunvolt didn't let that stop him.

"To what do I owe the pleasure?" Copen asked, a sentence Gunvolt never thought he would hear.

"I just… wanted to see you."

"Hmm." Oh, that sentence alone seemed to give Copen pause. "You've grown strangely attached to me as of late, haven't you?" his tone was curious but also a bit soft, obvious he didn't mind it.

Gunvolt broke eye contact. "Strange indeed.."

"Not that I'm complaining. Why, it almost feels like you've forgiven me." He made to finish taking off his full body suit. "Do you mind?"

"No, go ahead."

"So, Gunvolt." Copen said, continuing undressing in front of Gunvolt as though it were the most normal thing in the world, "have you forgiven me?"

"...no. I mean… no, I haven't. I can't."

"Forgive me in particular, or forgive someone in general?"

"I don't…" Gunvolt ran a hand over his hair in something like frustration. "I don't even think about what happened, Copen. I don't want to. And either way it doesn't matter, it – it wasn't exactly the first time. It barely stands out. Everything else is a blur."

"Mm."

"And you – you did it to save me."

"That I did."

There was a long silence. Gunvolt stared at his lap, and Copen, stripped down to his boxers, took his sweet time putting on a nightshirt.

"But you did enjoy yourself, didn't you?" Gunvolt said with a begrudging, accusatory bitterness. "You got off on it."

"So did you."

Gunvolt flinched. Copen was standing in front of him, looking down at him.

"So I did," Gunvolt said, his mouth dry.

Copen took his face in his hands, tilting it up to look at him, and scrutinized him. There was a look in his eye that Gunvolt would have liked to believe was pensive but it was really just calculating.

"We all do strange things when we listen to our bodies, Gunvolt," he said.

Gunvolt swallowed hard. "I never wanted any of that. Never."

"What about now?"

"I- don't… know how to answer that."

But that was answer enough to Copen as he…

Let go of Gunvolt and just sat beside him, before putting one hand over one of his.

"Do you feel sexual attraction towards me, Gunvolt?" he asked.

For reasons he couldn't articulate, adrenaline flushed through Gunvolt and his heart thumped in his chest. "What?"

"Did you come to me tonight, in courtship for sex, Gunvolt?" Copen clarified.

"What?" he said again, and then the question finally struck to him. "No!"

"Interesting, perhaps you weren't aware of the signals you were sending." Copen said inquisitive, clearly not meant to provoke him. That doesn't the stop the words from being so anyway.

"What makes you even think I'm attracted to you?" Gunvolt snapped.

"The fact you've visited me in the middle of the night out of all people, how I can't tell if you are wearing pants under that gown, the quickening of your breath and heartbeat, the intensity in your eyes and the fact you haven't removed my hand from yours yet." Copen stated like a grocery list.

"Well, I, that's…" in hindsight those were good points, and now that he thinks of it he might be feeling arousal, but he really didn't want to think of that now, but how do you remember not to think about the elephant without thinking about the elephant? Gunvolt exhaled slowly and…

"I need a shower," he said, changing the subject. "Mind if I use yours?"

"Interesting non-sequitur, but sure, knock yourself out."

Annoyed, hot, and sore, Gunvolt gladly stumbled into the bathroom. It wasn't really proper of him to just intrude into someone's bedroom, lead them on and then shower but fuck it, he needed this.

Once he was done, the bedroom naturally felt colder than the steam filled bathroom, but it wasn't uncomfortable. He delayed putting his clothes back on, instead taking a seat again with a towel covering his lower region, just some distance away Copen was having a cup of tea put on a small table. "Do you want some green tea?" he offered, "It does wonders to you after a shower."

Ok, that was it. "What happened to the Copen I know and why did you take his skin?"

"Is that a real question or sarcasm?" Copen asked.

"Real," Gunvolt replied as he took the tea offer anyway. "You're so...different now."

"Well, I won't write you a novel, I just grew up with time. That's a part of life."

"You're avoiding the subject. At least I think you are."

"I'm not lying though. With time and age came wisdom, and with that came the realization that I simply felt too strongly about certain things and if I didn't get over it, I'd either die young as I alienize all friends and family (Past and future) and achieve nothing in the long run or…"

"Or I evolve and become a better me. One that WILL make a difference." Copen stated.

"And joining Sumeragi, the status quo enforcers is your way of changing things?" Gunvolt asked.

"I can't overthrow Sumeragi and get what I want." Copen replies, taking a sip midway, "if Sumeragi falls then society will devolve into chaos until someone else takes charge and I am not the kind of person that could reinstall a healthier society, if anything I'd become a dictator. Likewise I can't allow anyone else to overthrow them lest they create a 'heaven' that's either for adepts or humans, but never both. Thus the only route for me left is to change Sumeragi from within."

"And how will you do that?"

"Simple, by becoming someone so important that they can't get rid of me. That way I'll be someone that can share ideas with the directors and slowly but surely change society for the better."

"...what if you have to sacrifice someone or even the lesser people for the majority to strive?"

"Obvious trick question. Why not ask me if I'll try to use a muse to take over the world?"

The conversation continued that way for a while, Gunvolt trying to spin anything Copen says into something bad and him in return finding a counter to that. It shouldn't have amused either of them to do this, but somehow it still did. Maybe it's because they've both faced people like that before.

The first thing that came to Gunvolt's mind when he woke up and realized he was still in Copen's bed, was that he still wearing his clothes and that nothing on his body felt painful or even sore.

The second was that he is fucking cuddling the guy. Some part of his asleep brain must have mistaken the guy for a pillow and thus attached to him out of natural instinct.

That had to be it.

Still what surprised him even more was how innocent the adept slayer looked when he was asleep, sure, the ugly scar on one side of his face clearly showed he is a man but the fact the person that once vowed to commit complete extermination was now letting someone of the same race lie in his bed without anything to guard him was saying a lot about him. If Gunvolt wanted it, really wanted it, he could probably find a sharp object in the room and deal a fatal blow to Copen before the latter is even capable of waking up. He had the thought in the back of his mind the moment he saw the collar on his neck, part of him determined to die fighting if the latter was trying to trick him into becoming his personal weapon. But as the thought of that died, he felt something.

He wasn't sure what it was – some emotion he'd forgotten the name of – but as he watched Copen sleep, he felt… something.

AN: And we're stopping here for today.

The fun part of this fic is (or at least I think so) whether not you think Copen has romantic intent towards Gunvolt or if he's just ready to use the guy no matter what it takes. I'd love to hear what you think, but that said until next time.