Chapter 25: Briefing

As Alain expectated once night rolled around, Jill had called a meeting to discuss Leon's arrival.

"I think something needs to be said first." Jill began, staring at Jasmine as the older woman feigned an innocent look. "I'm surprised you still had one of those communicators hanging around."

"It was just to be on the safe side of things." Jasmine answered. "Just in case they ever decided to get back into contact with us. Better to have it and not need it than go without after all."

"And I thought I specifically said we would have nothing to do with CROSS after what happened at Farbanti." Jill growled, her eyes turning towards Alain. "As for you, how aware were you?"

"Don't look at me." Alain said. "First I heard about someone showing up was Momoka. And I only found out it was someone from CROSS because of you. I have one of those communicators too, but they didn't contact me ahead of time like they did Jill."

"So you have been in contact with them outside of excursions."

"I have." Alain admitted. Jill grunted and lit a cigarette.

"Hmph. Too late to punish you over that now. But, they're still butting into business that isn't theirs."

"Jill, be realistic." Maggy argued. "Without them we'd have been in one hell of a mess. The Inspector is easy enough to get around. But some general with a reputation like that? We'd have been high and dry within a few days of a top-down inspection."

"I… can't help but agree." Salia spoke up. "As much as we can do, it's simply that they know these procedures better than us."

"Besides, Arzenal itself have the manpower for some of the stuff they pull." Alain added. Jill shot him a glare. "Honestly, I think Leon coming here is a good thing. We could use CROSS's help. Especially if things start to go badly."

"We don't need their help." Jill bit. "We have Villkiss, not to mention a Rider for it who knows what she's doing. And we have the recent discovery of the Wyvern's Twin Drive system. If we get that functioning, even better."

"Villkiss alone isn't enough for Libertus, and you know it." Alain said.

Before Jill could reply, a sequential tapping on the door drew their attention. Jill reached for the revolver on her desk, Alain putting up a hand as he went to the door.

"Ignore it." But despite Jill's order, Alain rapped back. The countersign was given, and he opened it.

"Forget the code already?" To Jill's aggravation, Leon, now absent the hair dye and contacts of his disguise, strode into the room. "Or are you just that unhappy to see me?"

"Why am I not surprised you knew this would be happening?" Jill muttered. "Alain, you tipped him off, didn't you?"

"I have no idea what you could be implying." Alain's smirk made it obvious to Jill as he shut the door. But like her thoughts on his contacting CROSS, it was too late for repercussions. "Besides, it's not like he doesn't know about this. Happened all the time back then."

"Not wrong about that." Jasmine chuckled. "I was wondering when you'd show up too, Leon. Been ages since I saw you."

"Same." Leon nodded and shook Jasmine's hand. "Sorry about the phrasing earlier. Being convincing in this little role of mine is a must though."

"Hah, sure a cheeky one like you actually kind of enjoys it."

"Well, might not be that big of a lie." Leon admitted as he noticed the almost cow eyed looks he was getting from Salia and Mei, a chuckle leaving the man as he turned to the girls. "Speaking of long times, hey there. Out of curiosity, how much do you remember?"

"Leon Bartlett." Salia said. "You were a member of the main Libertus squad ten years ago. I don't remember much besides that. Sorry."

"Eh, he was one of them?!" Mei gasped, Leon nodding. "N-Nice to meet you! I wish I remembered anything, but…"

"Don't sweat it kid. You were barely out of diapers back then, so I don't blame you." Leon assured them. "Alain tells me you're also a Captain yourself now, Salia."

"I am." Salia confirmed. "It's troublesome sometimes, but, recently my squad has done well. Though we have had our setbacks. Especially because of Ange."

"I see." Leon hummed. Just from looking Salia over, he could get a read on her mindset. 'She always admired Jill back then. Or rather, she admired Alektra. I can imagine Salia would rather be the one piloting Villkiss in this situation. But it takes more than talent to pilot that machine. Has Jill not told her that?' "So, mind if I say just why it is I'm here at Arzenal? I guess it's obvious that it's more than keeping the NMB off your asses."

"Please do." Maggy cooed, coming up on Leon's side. "Also, might I add it's nice to see you again Leon."

"Maggy…" Leon sighed. "As forward as ever I see."

"You have no idea." Alain shuddered, Maggy giving him a flirty smirk.

"So tell us." Jill said, leaning back into her chair. "What reason does CROSS have for inserting someone into Arzenal? You obviously hope to get something out of this venture of yours, am I right?"

"From what I overhead, I'm hoping for the same thing some of the others in this room are. Renewing cooperation between Arzenal and CROSS in the event the Mana Kingdoms come knocking." Leon pulled out a stack of papers, the very files he'd had Emma print out for him earlier. "After the Misurugi incident we've been on alert just like they are. While my guys are keeping track of things to make sure word doesn't get out about our little set up, we have Tusk running intel in Misurugi."

"I get it." Jasmine said. "Them sending that General here probably wasn't just about saving face. If they're likely to plan something, they probably wanted to know exactly what's been going on here if they suddenly doubt what Emma can manage."

"That sounds right." Maggy hummed. "They do say knowing is half the battle. I mean after all, they send us Norma here to fight and die for our entire lives. We're basically an elite force just waiting to be deployed for something other than DRAGON hunts."

"Well, if you were listening in on us, then you'd know you won't get that cooperation." Jill said, pushing the files back to Leon. "This Libertus won't involve your people. After Farbanti, I'm not taking those risks again."

"We still don't know how that happened either." Leon said. "Farbanti was as much a disaster for the Ancient Humans as it was Arzenal's forces. Don't blame us for not being able to act on a lack of intel so quickly. Besides, as has been pointed out, you don't exactly have the means to pull off that kind of operation on your own."

"We have manpower, we have firepower, and we have the thing we'd need to get around it." Jill replied. The air between the two was getting even frostier, so the others kept quiet to let them hash it out. "And I'm not about to say how we would to you. Whatever CROSS does is their own business. Just tell them to stay out of mine."

"Wasn't Libertus supposed to be for all of us?" Leon countered. Jill's expression went dark. "Rather selfish of you Jill, taking on a liberation for an entire people solely for yourself."

"Jill he's right." Salia said, a bit of hesitation in her voice. "For everything we have at Arzenal, engaging in Libertus would be a lot more than just us taking action. We're talking about something that could become a full out war. You don't win those with just a base full of people and two strong Para-mail."

"Logistics are always the end game of war." Alain added.

"And since when were you two so concerned about logistics?" Jill bit. Alain glared. Salia went quiet like a dog who'd been hit. "The two of you simply have jobs to do in order to reach that end. Do them. That's all."

"A bit too harsh even for you." Jasmine said.

"I am here for a week as it is." Leon said. "My goal isn't to convince you over a single night. I have time to change your mind."

"Don't count on it. Now get out of my office before I stop being cordial."

"Hmph. When we get word from Tusk, I'll come back around. Have a good night. Also, I'll be sitting in on any sorties that happen. I'm interested in seeing how Arzenal still operates." Leon turned sharply and left the office. Quiet sighs of relief went through Alain, Salia, and Mei as the air finally loosened up a bit. 'This is going to be harder than I thought.' Alain thought.

"Well, that was stimulating." Maggy mused. "But, honestly Jill, it's something to think about. Who knows what kind of connections and resources CROSS has going for them that we don't. If it's for Libertus, why not work with them again?"

"And he is right about the logistics." Mei said. "We may have the Aurora in dock, but Arzenal's current numbers are too much for it. Its bays have more than enough room for the Para-mail we have on hand, but in terms of personnel it would be way too crowded."

"We'd make do if we ever have to use it." Jill said. "Also, make sure the fact the Aurora is here stays a secret. I don't want Bartlett finding out."

"It doesn't exactly make for a perfect workaround to the logistics problem you know?" Alain noted.

"Perhaps… but we're lucky in that we have means at all. And this time, losing won't be on the list. The other Ragna-mails don't have pilots, and if Ange can truly awaken Villkiss, not even that Nightmare would stand a chance."

"We can't be sure about that." Jasmine said. "Even if Ange can do that, she's still not that experienced. Three months of piloting, even as talented as she is, isn't much. If they come for us now, before Villkiss is awakened, and before we find out how to get Wyvern to operate at full capacity, we're finished. You know that, right?"

"Then we hope CROSS actually buys us time. If they so insist on butting in, let's just use them."

"I… I could pilot the Villkiss instead!" Salia blurted out. "I know I couldn't control it four years ago, but it's different now! There has to be some workaround to that supposed biometric lock. We should be prepared for an action we can't expect, right?"

"If you can't do something, then you just can't do something." Jill said. And again Salia looked like she'd been struck. "Ange and Hilda will be released from their confinement in a few days. We have some time at least."

"But…"

"Salia. The role I need you to play is right where you are. If you can't keep that in mind then I have no need of you." Again Alain felt himself irked as Salia quietly complied to Jill. The mere air about it, it didn't sit right with him. "We're adjourning for tonight. Salia, Alain, you're sortieing after all. Mei, make sure everything is prepared. If the pattern holds, then a Singular should appear tomorrow. If it does, then afterwards we're going to begin testing with the Wyvern to see if we can't activate this Twin Drive system."

"Yes ma'am." All three saluted and left, leaving the older women by themselves in the space.

"I'd at least think about what's on offer if I were you." Jasmine said. "Take it from a businesswoman." She and Maggy followed suit in leaving as Jill leaned back in her chair and let out a long drag of smoke. 'I know. I know damn well what's at stake with this Libertus. But… I simply can't accept their help. With what I know… what I did. This is my war to wage.'

Despite the days spent in effective squalor thanks to lockup, Ange would dare say she was thankful to Alain for smuggling in things for her and Hilda to wash up with. 'Just a little bit of soap can go a long way for sure.' Though the guards had given her and Hilda odd looks at seeing them look less dirty than expected, luckily they didn't seem to care enough to investigate.

"You think that CROSS guy's shown up by now?" Hilda said. Being in lockup and all, it wasn't like the two girls heard much of what was going on. But word tended to get around Arzenal pretty quickly, and even when stuck in their little hole, they heard a thing or two come along the grapevine.

"Probably. Seems to just be rumors for now though." Ange sighed. "How many days has it been anyway?"

"Five."

"Ugh…"

As Ange groaned, the girls looked to the side at the now tell-tale clunk of the main door sliding open. The tapping of boots on the hard floor echoed down the quiet hallway, and a tall man in a uniform stepped into view. Emma hurried after him, and she cleared her throat to get the attention of the girls.

"Both of you, at attention." The Inspector ordered. Ange and Hilda lazily complied and stood. "Allow me to introduce the man from the NMB who's here to inspect Arzenal thanks to your antics. This is Major Vincent Snow, and he's here to speak with you."

"Oh, we're so honored." Hilda drawled.

"I'd cut it with the sarcasm were I in your place." Snow flatly said. "I was simply curious as to what kind of Norma would be so brazen as to actually attempt to escape this place. Former Princess Angelise makes almost too much sense. You caused quite the ruckus in Misurugi three months ago."

"At this point that's something I'm proud of." Ange bit. "Those people can go to hell."

"And crass as expected I see." He scoffed. "Inspector, I'd like to speak to these two in a more disclosed location. The interrogation room perhaps?"

"Of course, Major. Guard!" Emma barked. "Get some cuffs, we're moving these two to the interrogation room to speak with the Major."

"Yes ma'am."

'Talk about some sense of decorum.' Ange thought. Once the guard had returned with restraints, the girls were swiftly secured and hauled off behind the Major and Emma. As they were brought into the room, Ange grumbled to herself quietly. The last time she'd seen the plain, drab space of the interrogation room was when she'd been brought to Arzenal, and those certainly weren't pleasant memories.

"Inspector, I would like this conversation to be private. Could you wait outside for a few moments?"

"Of course, sir. Though I would suggest caution. Even in restraints…"

"I assure you Bronson, I will be fine. I'll call once I'm done speaking with them. Dismissed." Emma saluted and left the room. And as soon as she was gone, the Major undid the girls' restraints, and the stern air around him lifted. Luckily for them as well, the room was duly sound proofed so nothing would carry out even if someone tried eavesdropping.

"Let's get down to business." Leon said, taking a seat and gesturing to the others at the room's table. "As you've probably assumed, I'm a CROSS agent and not some NMB spook. The name's Leon Bartlett. I've got something of a history when it comes to this place."

"I figured as much." Ange huffed.

"Sure as hell fooled the Inspector though." Hilda said. "So, just what are you here to ask us two Breakout Sisters hmm?"

"Where'd you get that?" Ange questioned.

"Heard the guards muttering it the other night."

"Well, you two certainly seem to get along." Leon chuckled. "All I've really got is some questions. Particularly for you, Ange. You're Villkiss's Rider, and by this point I'm sure you have plenty of questions about why that's seemingly so important."

"Damn right I do." Ange affirmed. "The Commander isn't telling me a thing until I'm out of lockup though. She's stubborn."

"Trust me, I know Jill quite well. That's an understatement." Ange raised a brow to the tone Leon took. "And you, Hilda, right? What is it you've heard so far yourself?"

"Not too much." Hilda admitted. "Alain's being secretive too. He at least told me a bit about that Libertus thing that happened ten years ago. So, I've got my own questions. Ange and I are basically in the same boat when it comes to the answers we want."

"And I can assure you both you'll get them." Leon said. "And I can at least say there's secrecy around it for a reason. What happened ten years ago and what's surrounding it is just as much a mystery to us at CROSS as it is the survivors here in Arzenal. The Disaster of Farbanti is something we're not entirely clear about ourselves. All we know is somehow, information about our plans got out. And then we were attacked by the Crimson Nightmare."

"So I heard." Hilda said. "Your guys nearly shit themselves when it crashed in on us during our escape. What the hell was that machine? And what's the deal with Villkiss and Wyvern anyway? What's so special about them that the Commander is hung up on? And what the hell is it about Alain's buddy that whoever that Crimson guy's boss is has an eye on it?"

"Wait, what?" Leon paused. 'Does Embryo know about the Wyvern? If he does…' no better time like now to ask Hilda what she knew. "Where did you hear about that?"

"Alain said it himself. Some guy called… Embryo or something." Now Hilda certainly had Leon's attention. "According to Alain that guy knows about Wyvern. Apparently this guy has some interest in it. Who the hell is Embryo?"

"Embryo is… well he's the man who created this world." Leon said. Ange and Hilda both raised a brow. "And I mean that quite literally. Everything about this world has Embryo as the man behind it all. When Jill finally talks to you, that's who you need to ask her about, Ange."

"And what about the other question?" Ange said. "What makes Villkiss and Wyvern so special that everyone makes such a big deal out of it? Hell, my own Captain gives me dirty looks half the time whenever we would sortie."

"So Salia really is hung up about it." Leon sighed. "Some of those answers are better saved for later. But… well, those machines are special for a lot of reasons. Technically speaking, neither are actually Para-mails. Villkiss in particular is what we call a Ragna-mail."

" A what mail?" Hilda muttered.

"Think of them as the progenitors to Para-mails. The prototypical technology beds they were all derived from. Years ago, the Ancient Humans managed to steal away the Villkiss from Embryo. They figured, if they had one of "God's" angels, they could fight back. The problem was finding a pilot." Leon paused for any questions, but the girl's seemed content to just listen. "See, the Ragna-mails have biometric locks on each of them. Each lock is tuned to a certain set of bio-signatures. And ironically, those signatures are tied to the bloodlines who rule over each of the Mana Nations."

"Wait… you're saying I can pilot Villkiss only because I'm a member of Misurugi's royal family?" Ange had never actually given it much thought before. But at times she did think Villkiss was just a bit strange for a machine. For one, there was how in her first flight with it, how it had miraculously gone from a barely functioning death trap to outperforming everything besides the Wyvern. Since then, she hadn't put much time into thinking about it. Trying to make her way in Arzenal took up all of her energy. But now she had a reason to. "What else is there about Villkiss then?"

"I think it's best if I let Villkiss's former pilot explain that one to you." The vagueness of Leon's statement was just confusing. If Alain hadn't already told the girls exactly who that was anyway. "I'm saying to ask Jill what it all means. If she was already planning to tell you soon, then just go with it. A long time ago, she was the one piloting that machine. She knows just what it can do."

"Great, more waiting." Ange grumbled.

"So then what's the deal with Wyvern?" Hilda said. "Alain's told me it's been with the Ancient Humans for a long time, even longer than Villkiss."

"That's correct. And I guess you could say Embryo's interest in it is exactly what makes Wyvern special itself. It's a wonder anything about it has even come out recently thanks to Alain managing to break through whatever system locks it had. I've been looking over the data he gave me, and it's something. A lot of answers we weren't sure we would get."

"And I can only guess that's about it." Hilda sighed. "So, you answered our questions. What do you want to know?"

"Not much. I just want to know what the odds are of people like you helping us in CROSS out if things get hairy. See, we're expecting the Mana Nations to act, and soon. We have Tusk on recon trying to see if he can't find anything out. Whatever it is, we're expecting some kind of reckoning."

"You're not putting the idiot in danger, are you?" Ange's eyes narrowed. Leon couldn't help but show a glint in his eyes as he caught the change in the girl's mood.

"Don't worry at all Princess. Tusk may be a bit of a klutz, but he knows damn well what he's doing in the field. If there's anyone we could trust to find a way to bug the Misurugi Palace and have no one be the wiser, it'd be him."

"Bet you wouldn't be saying that if you knew about his stupid habit." Ange scoffed. "Hard to believe he can do anything smoothly sometimes."

"Ah, so that's what High Roller was grumbling about Tusk not mentioning. I suppose it's a story for another time." Ange just rolled her eyes. "Anyway, for now just wait out this little tenure of yours. Once we can actually get things rolling, that'll be the time for some more in depth talks about what's behind all of this."

"Might as well enjoy the down time while we have it." Hilda sighed.

"Exactly." Once the restraints were back on the girls, Leon cleared his throat and stood up before going to the door and throwing it open. "I hope from now on, you two fools will know your place as Norma! A summary execution should have been in order from the beginning, but you're lucky Lady Misty is a merciful person."

"Yes, sir." The response from the girl's was dryly put. But, as Emma watched them stride out, she seemed certainly pleased with the chewing out he had apparently given them.

"I hope they weren't too flippant." Emma said, adjusting her glasses as she gave the girl's a cold stare.

"I expected nothing less from a pair of Norma. I only hope once they're put back on duty their Captain can whip them into shape. Since I will still be here once they're out, perhaps I can assist in that."

"Of course, sir!" Emma straightened her posture up. "I will also ensure no other Norma cause you trouble again. Honestly these two are always a handful. Ange especially. The trouble she caused soon after getting here was the worst experience I've had."

"And you do have my sympathies." Leon said. "So, Bronson, once these two are returned to their cells, how about we chat over lunch? A first encounter is expected today and I'd like to eat before it, wouldn't you agree?" And now Ange and Hilda were rolling their eyes. Though they knew it was all a bit, seeing Leon buttering up the Inspector was gag inducing to watch.

"I-I would be delighted!" Emma's face flushed a bit, getting a deeper red when Leon flashed a small grin.

"A pleasure then. Guards, take these two back to their cell. I hope you two take the rest of the time in lockup to reflect on your foolishness." The guards saluted and took Ange and Hilda away. As he and Emma turned to make way for the cafeteria, he took a glance back. 'Angelise Ikaruga Misurugi. Alektra lacked something when she piloted Villkiss, but maybe this girl can get Villkiss to be all we need it to be. She's got that rebellious spirit. Which is good, so long as it's in check. But I also need to know what kinds of methods Alektra's been using to mentor these kids. And all while trying to convince her to work with us. Talk about a workload.'

"Alright, I can finally say I'm nearly back in top form!"

Naomi clapped her hands as she cleared the test mission. An ever helpful tool for Para-mail simulators was that they could be tuned to reflect the performance of a pilot's own machine. So while training in preparation for her first sortie since awakening, Naomi had been able to get back into the feel of piloting her Halberd.

Even with a sortie due that same day, Salia had wanted to make sure Naomi was ready for it. So in the time they had while waiting for the alert to come in, they'd gone to the simulators to run through a few quick drills. Naomi's situation was a unique one, and they had to be sure she was in good form.

"It's all looking good." Salia said as Naomi climbed out. "Maneuvers are fine, reactions are good… No dizziness or anything? I know your Halberd can pull some pretty big g-forces during maneuvers."

"Well, it's not much but there is a bit of dizziness. So long as I don't push myself, I should be fine." Naomi said, sitting down on another stool. Her expression was, mostly, settled, but Salia was good at reading a mood. She could tell something was bothering her.

"Maggy also cleared you on the psyche eval. But Naomi, if we get out there, and being confronted by DRAGONs again is too much, hang back and let us fight." Salia said. "I'm saying that as your captain and your friend. Nobody's died in this squad for the past few months. I'm making sure it stays that way. I don't need Ange around to do that."

"Or Alain?"

"Alain… that's different." 'I figured she was in a mood herself.' Naomi thought. She'd noticed it since the other night that something was bothering her. 'Alain wouldn't tell me the details either. I wonder what it is.' "It's not like I don't appreciate it when he's in the team, it's just…"

"I didn't mean it that way. Sorry." Naomi apologized. "Besides, Alain told me all about when you took charge with that virgin a few weeks ago. You're a good Captain."

"D-Did he?" Salia's face flushed a bit as she started playing with one of her pig tails.

"Yeah. And between you and me, he probably finds it sexy when you're assertive like that." Naomi flashed an amused smirk as Salia's face flushed deeper. "But don't worry, I've been thinking about this for a while. I really don't know how I'll react once I'm actually in the cockpit again. If I'm being honest it's kind of scary. I think back to that day a few months ago, and all I remember is being scared shitless."

"Maybe it's a good thing." Salia said. "There's a lot of Norma here who've been fighting for so long they aren't scared. But that's because a lot of them have just accepted they're going to die fighting in the cockpit. They've just stopped caring about living."

"You don't say?" Naomi murmured. She knew perfectly well what Salia meant. Plenty of times over the years, they'd all seen friends come and go. It was all too common for a Norma to start as a bright-eyed rookie that, if they were lucky enough not to go down in their first few missions, have any of that optimism shaved away as they survive while others died. Zola was a prime example. A squad like Garm, where the members were all relatively well adjusted in part thanks to their tight-knit nature, was something of a rarity. It wasn't like any of them lacked problems of their own.

But that was just how things were expected to be on Arzenal.

'And then there's how Alain's been since that mission.' She thought. While his mood had certainly improved since his return, Naomi still had to wonder what had caused Alain to start going through such a bout of self-reflection. 'What did he come across that shook him so badly?' then she had a thought. "Hey, Salia, is there a chance you…"

"Attention squadrons." The sudden blare of the alarm and Pamela's voice cut Naomi off. "Singular has been detected. Garm and Mobius Squadron, please head to the hangar and prepare to launch. Repeat…"

"We can talk once we're back from the mission." Salia said as she hurried off. Naomi nodded and followed. 'I'd been thinking about it for a while but… Salia and Alain seem to know things others on Arzenal don't. Something feels… off. And I really want to find out why, and what they know about it.'

Naomi slapped herself on the cheeks to focus. She could try and get an answer later. 'Better to keep my head on for what's coming rather than worry about something way past it. Even if it's terrifying… I want to fly alongside them again.'

A/N

This is one of those moments where I REALLY wish I had at least a passing knowledge of the video game and how Naomi is characterized in it. But, gotta make do with what one has right? I am also surprised this has all ended up being a lot longer than I thought it'd be. But, eh, that's a good thing in a manner anyway.