Episode 6: Pierced

- Justice

With a mighty rumble the cave-in is worked away at the top. It took a lot of pushing, groaning, sweating and even some frustrated punching but Team 1 finally managed to create enough room to climb over. Although they quickly wish they did not do that as a putrid, vile and potent smell instantly assaults their nasal passages.

"Oh my stars!" Kip utters, squeezing her nose tightly while Calamity goes on a hate-filled tangent in Lylatian while covering her nose with her arm.

What they see is nothing pleasant either. It is just like the brochure said. The only time one would wish the projected view was an advertisement lie. The destruction, the smoke, the wrapped corpses and the broken Aparoid machine in the ground.

"This is rancid! I've had some dirty jobs before but never like this." Kip continues as she comes closer to the machine but keeps her distance.

"Urgh… this is worse than the aftermath of Trevor's Taco Tuesday attempt." Calamity adds as her mind fills up with images she wished she'd forgotten by now.

"Wait, Taco Tuesday?"

"I'll tell you about that some day, not now. It will only make things worse."

"I'll hold you to that. Let's find Patch and…"

Kip cannot finish her sentence before she hears something behind them. Far away but loud enough to hear. Calamity hears it too and instinctively they turn around in the blink of an eye aiming their weapons. They can see nothing but another cave-in although the sounds are definitely coming from behind it. It sounds like talking but nothing is intelligible so far.

"Could that be Team 2?" Calamity whispers.

Kip in turn looks around a little more and sees the numerous corpses of guards around. As well the bullet cases that surround her feet.

"Here's to hoping. If all this mess is any indication, I think we can consider ourselves lucky."

Then Calamity notices something. Something she saw at the cave-in they previously overcame. There is a piece missing from the pile. Big enough for someone or something to crawl through. She connects the dots and mentions that PAL was ahead of them.

"You think that the machine did all this? I didn't hear Phantom mention anything about giving him any guns."

"Psh! I wouldn't trust a word that arctic bastard says." she fusses maliciously.

"He's done nothing but spout absolute bull ever since he joined up. I could see him expand that machine of his into a weapon of mass destruction."

"You really don't like him, do you?"

Calamity turns to the roo with a very sour expression. Although Kip suspects this sourness is not just because of Phantom.

"Gotcha."

They then turn their full attention to the front as the talking comes closer. They cannot exactly make out any of the voices exactly as the echo of the hallway is distorting it. Calamity decides not to take any unnecessary risks and tries to make a wide corner around so she can position herself against the wall. Just around the corner from these unknown people so that she pops out and gives them a very close-up meeting with the barrel of her shotgun.

However, on her way there she unfortunately hits a scattered machine part on the floor with her foot which produces a sound loud enough for those unknown people to hear. She freezes immediately but this does not help; there is already talk at the end of that tunnel of a strange sound coming from that room. Calamity curses internally but Kip has the composure to call out the necessary things.

"This is the Cornerian Army! Whoever you are, I suggest you approach the rock wall and throw any and all weaponry through the hole. Then, one by one, crawl through and prepare to be interrogated. Or else, we will open fire!" she states loud and clear, mostly bluffing as to sound intimidating but what is she realistically going to do if they poke their weapons through and start firing into the room?

There is a moment of silence before a snarky, familiar voice blurts out that he definitely hopes they would open fire if they were enemies. But they are not, so keep those safeties on. And also, they might want to stand back from the cave-in. Calamity grumbles hearing that voice and returns to Kip's side. Who, with a supporting pat on the shoulder manages to calm the dog's nerves down.

Moments later, they hear a thick and loud thud. Comparable to a battering ram slamming against a tenacious door. When another hits, they can clearly see the rock wall starts to bulge outward. Then a final smack breaks whatever held it up and it crumbles to pieces. To reveal Team 2 alive and standing. For the most part as PAL is literally holding Phantom up. The arctic fox turns around to greet them.

"Thank the stars you two are okay!" Kip sighs relieved.

"Three actually." Patches corrects.

"We wouldn't have stood here if it wasn't for PAL. He dispatched the bastards chasing us after we were caught in a pickle."

She half expects Phantom to remark on the fact that it was her fault for leading them into a dead end as she can see the petty snarkiness for a few moments in his facial expression, but instead he only adds positively to her side of the story. Even if it took some effort for him.

"Really? Well, good job then PAL." Calamity states, muttering more and more of her sentence the more it goes on.

"Shall we? This place gives me the total creeps."

The four others are in complete agreement about this and silently communicate this with each other. At that moment, Trevor has arrived at the location. After making sure that it is him, he climbs out through. When asked as to why he did not just stay back, he states that they cannot leave yet.

"The Major has seen the pictures but has said that he only saw mummies attached to some tubing and a smoking machine. Knowing how some assholes will respond, he wants irrefutable evidence that these freaks have been committing war crimes and illegal experiments. But he also wants this place wiped off the face of Corneria. So…"

He puts his hands in his sides, almost too uncomfortable to finish his sentence. The stench is not helping either.

"So the Major wants us to desecrate those corpses one last time. We need to unravel the bodies, take some DNA-samples for identification and photograph in what state the bodies were found in. Then blow everything up. I uh… I did not agree obviously but I was overruled."

Trevor spits after telling this to get rid of the bad taste in his mouth. These orders are heavy on everyone. But perhaps it falls the heaviest on Phantom and Calamity. Whereas he starts gagging at the very thought of it, Calamity implodes. Freezing in place completely. Her hairs standing at attention in the span of a second. And Trevor is not blind to this.

"Alright, he never specified who had to do the dirty deed. Cal, Phantom. Set yourselves in the hallway we all come from so you don't have to see this."

Phantom complies and stumbles into that hallway while keeping his mouth covered. Trevor then approaches Calamity to unfreeze her. A small touch from him to her instantly startles her awake.

"Cal, it's me. No worries."

The pair hugs as she definitely needs one right now. However, they do still have a job to do so they will save the emotional stuff for later. At least this helped already.

"Take off your grenade belt. I want you and Phantom to manipulate the fuses to make it last as long as possible. Preferably a few minutes. See what you'll end up with. And, be nice to Phantom for a bit."

"I promise to leave him alive." she chuckles.

"That's all I ask."

She nods and with a final quick hug the two walk towards Phantom. As Trevor needs PAL for the photography and to record all of this properly he comes along. The arctic fox understands why PAL has to decouple but he will need some help with it. As PAL is keeping him standing and functioning properly given the injury his foot has sustained along with his lack of CID.

"As it was before you joined up huh?" Trevor comments.

"At least then I wasn't hurt." Phantom snarks back before he grabs Trevor's hand and gets off the ground.

Then Calamity grabs on to his other arm to keep him standing upright. Then PAL decouples by first retracting the straps and then removing the plug he injected into his lower back. Much like a mosquito would do, the wound is closed up. In a far less itchy way.

When Calamity looks a little awkward at this, Phantom tells her without words that she does not want to know. Now that PAL is floating almost free again, his influence over Phantom's body wanes quickly and he starts to collapse. Trevor and Calamity catch him and put him back into his previous seated position against the wall.

The last thing that has to happen is to arrange for an alternative oxygen tank. Phantom tells Trevor that there is one left in the CID. Trevor fetches it along with the CID itself. He can clearly see some surface damage from the dozens of boots that have stepped on it, as well as the pulled ejection handle. The very reason why he is standing here with the machine in his hands without his friend's corpse attached to it.

With that positive thought in his hand, he walks back over. Following the given instructions, he removes the oxygen tank, makes sure that PAL can transfer over the oxygen he had stored internally and then attaches it to the tube stuck up the arctic fox's nose. Who is glad he is still able to breathe properly.

"You're gonna be okay?"

"I'll be fine Sarge. Go do your nasty business so we can get out of this hellhole. The two of us will get busy with the grenades."

Trevor smiles and gives him a pat on the shoulder before joining back with the others to deliver some justice to those unfortunates. Together with Patches, Kip and PAL. There are six corpses in total so each has two to unpack. The others will keep their weapons ready in case some kind of weird Aparoid sludgy creature attempts to do something stupid.

- From An Outside View

Trevor volunteers himself to start and he picks the one on the furthest right. He starts taking off the bandages and rags that have the poor soul imprisoned. However, it is harder than expected as it is not exactly wrapping paper. So he grabs a knife and cuts it up like a freshly arrived package.

The contents of this package have a terrible smell but nothing really too gruesome in terms of details. It seems he got lucky as this corpse is in pretty alright condition. Aside from the exit wound in the forehead. This man was executed. The only other wounds include the incisions made for the tubes to go in. Both of the tubes were placed next to each other with some space in between them. And the goal might have been to pump something Aparoid-ish into the kidneys? Or into the intestines? The very thought of it makes his vision blurry and his stomach upset.

Drawn weapons are pulled back and PAL starts taking photographs. Kip meanwhile works the fingers to get a set of fingerprints and a drop of the man's blood from the head wound. Patches remains distant from the whole thing. To let them do their job unimpeded but also to see that those two can work together very efficiently too.

Much like he does with her, they almost finish each other's sentences, banter like they are siblings or old lovers and are in sync when it comes to business. Off work however, they are a complete klutz. Like that one time after their graduation Trevor wanted a re-do from the party that was held after Corneria City's liberation. As he could not participate due to a shattered shin. So he re-did with her and with the roo. And in both instances they were terrible. But in particular the both of them were on a whole different level. It looked ridiculous but they had fantastic fun. A true partner she is to him and he is to her.

Another reminder of how their friendship is different from the one she herself has with Trevor. In some ways closer and in others somewhat more distant. It almost makes her wish she could integrate those parts she admires into her friendship with him. But what she has now, is beautiful in its own right. She would not trade it for all the gold in Lylat.

However, she cannot observe it for much longer as they are done. And Trevor is concerned about her just standing there, observing absent-mindedly. Fearing that, much like with Calamity and Phantom, she too would rather not be here. She declines that however, stating that is just another nightmare to add to the pile.

"Yeah, I know the feeling. Let me guess; that house?"

"Not something you easily forget." she sighs.

"You don't. All you can do is cope with it. So do leave if you need to."

She appreciates him saying that but it is not necessary right now. They better get to finishing up this corpse unpacking before the smell makes them keel over.

"Then by all means, pick your pick." Trevor cheekily states, to which Patches characteristically rolls her eyes but proceeds to do so anyway.

Now it is his turn to take the DNA samples and for Kip to stand back. Using his knife, Patches cuts open her mummy. And instantly the odor coming from it is at least ten times as bad as the previous one. The built up, nasty gasses can now escape and overwhelm the both of them for a moment.

"Oh fuck! Not again… come on!" Patches complains as she tears it all open to get it over with.

What they find is a viciously mauled and almost steaming corpse. Their rib cage has been torn open and their face has been caved in by either a rifle butt, a boot or a combination of both. Trevor states that at the very least it will not be an issue to gain a DNA sample in an effort to bring some light to the dark situation.

Which results in him receiving a bop to the forearm from Patches for being a dark wiseass. But Trevor, while rubbing his arm, says that he cannot help it. And that, secretly, she likes it. Which almost earns him another one but instead she states that she wants to be the bigger person in this and tells PAL to come over to do his business.

As they bicker back and forth, get in each other's way or talk through and over each other, Kip can see that despite the funky interactions, they are not losing any efficiency. Not the most smooth operation but effective regardless. How else could those two have survived in that infection zone? The total anarchy that place was in makes it even more miraculous that a Special Forces sniper and an ex-cop could cooperate, survive and even thrive in the end. Snagged, hurt, beaten and broken, yet still standing together.

It is an imperfect relationship but it does not need to be perfect to work. Like siblings; arguing about the smallest little things but in the end coming out on top together. No matter how different in terms of personality they might be. She is a proper +1 to Trevor, an unmissable part that he made part of himself. In turn, he also became her +1. To lean on and to get support from, without being parasitic about it.

It makes her smile from ear to ear that despite those differences, she would not trade what she has with Trevor for all the money a merc could ever wish for in the entirety of Lylat.

Just outside the room in the hallway, Phantom has been busy huffing oxygen while finicking with the fuses. To stretch out the delay for as long as possible while also connecting them together to create one long fuse. Which, in theory, should give the team enough time to get out of there.

Calamity was helping for some time too but is now more preoccupied with looking around the corner at the foursome inspecting the corpses. Like a small child that was not invited to the cool kids club and was forced to watch from afar to get some kind of joy out of theirs. And it does not take long for Phantom to notice.

"If I'm such a bore, you can just stand up and join them." he comments sarcastically while turning his attention back to the fuses.

"I might if you don't shut your mouth." Calamity hisses back.

"What did I say wrong?"

"If you don't know by now…"

He sighs but does not bring it up. What would be the point anyway? She is never going to be forgiving him at all. She has already made up her mind about him. He is the big bad man and any changes she might have given him before are no longer available. So why bother? He could better busy himself with those fuses while she looks on like a forgotten puppy. After all, it seems that it is Kip's turn now to cut one open and it is a definite stinker.

He keeps this up for what feels like a couple of minutes but in reality it has been barely 30 seconds. What is going on? Normally he would feel absolutely nothing. It was a fact and he could not shake that. But now… with the multitude of cracks that have started to appear… he feels more caring. Besides, having her sit there and not aid him with something important is the perfect excuse for him to hide the fact that he is doing it for different, less tough-guy reasons.

"You know, I get it. I'm the new guy, I made a terrible impression and kept up that appearance. Against better knowledge."

Hearing his voice makes her grind her teeth as much as it makes her roll her eyes. She makes a fist but keeps in the promise she made to Trevor in the back of her head. Then again, he only said to keep him "alive". Not intact, which could be useful.

"I wish I knew in hindsight." Phantom continues.

"Obviously, that in and of itself is hindsight really. Point is… I wanna do better. And I know you've seen my attempts. I came alive out of that hallway only because I worked together well with Patches. Or, sorry, Ashley for that matter."

Calamity sighs and returns to her previous sitting position. Although thoroughly irritated, she gives the arctic fox the attention he was so desperately craving.

"Okay, what do you want?"

"Well, I'd like for you to resume working on your side of the fuses. It is your belt after all. But moreover, I wanna apologize for being a bastard through and through. And also for hurting Trevor. Because, I know what he means to you."

Calamity simply huffs.

"What would you know about that?" she lowkey snarls.

"Well, because he's my friend. Heck, my only friend besides PAL to be perfectly honest. Despite us being apart for a year at one time, he still picked me to be part of this group."

She utters a scornful chuckle.

"He doesn't always have the best ideas in the world, evidently. But he doesn't have to be perfect for me to like him."

"Oh, I'm not saying I'm some kind of prize. I'm quite lucky to have just two friends in life. I can be happy with just two. Because, like you, I care immensely for them. I just… don't always show it properly until it's too late."

He sighs and stops finnicking with the fuses. Then he starts drumming his finger awkwardly as he musters all his inner strength and tries to put the words in the right order.

"But you know what; when PAL came for us, he had to overcome a programming block. Something that I left in from the olden days where I couldn't exactly trust him properly… I never took it out. That was a problem because it prevented him from rescuing us like his directive was. Long story short: he had to glitch his way out of that obsolete setting. Resetting everything that was pre-installed. All orders, all directives, all descriptions of what we were to him… all for him to fill himself. And you know what he did? He dubbed me as his partner. Now that… that was something special."

Phantom smiles; he did it. He got it out. Satisfied with that bit of self-realization being in the open now, he picks up the belt and starts going again. Calamity meanwhile has taken a moment to let all of those meaningful words work in on her. And she finds that they have barely any meaning to her. Therefore, she puts her head against the wall behind her wishing she had either alcohol or a cigarette for this moment.

"Nice sob story." she states dry, which gets his attention.

"Look, I accept your apology. And I do see that you try to better yourself. But some things cannot be fixed. They are just broken. The only reason why I haven't caved your head in, is because of Trevor. Because he likes you. And unlike you, I would never try to actively hurt him." she snaps at him one more time.

Then she takes a moment of silence before she beckons to him to hand her her side of the belt so she can resume work. Stunned, Phantom hands it over to her and in silence the two of them work together but separate.

Calamity's answer was unexpected but it does make sense in context. Like with scars or electrical equipment, not everything can be restored back to how it was. And with people, eventually one runs out of chances to make up for lost opportunities and mend wounds. Clearly, he is too late with her. What he can accomplish with Patches and Kip, he can no longer with her. And he will have to find peace with that.

"At least I made you chuckle. That's a win in my book." he then comments out of nowhere.

The suddenness combined with the value he attaches to something so minute tickles something inside her. She bursts out into unrestricted giggling before coming down and agreeing that he did make her chuckle. Even if it was at his expense.

"Yeah, I guess you did. Heh heh… you're so dumb. Now, let's get busy before Trevor starts screaming at me too."

Better to be seen as dumb than an asshole. At least he can be the source of a smile instead of a stain to scorn and snarl at. It is tethering on a narrow ledge but it is progress regardless. Not holding on for dear life just yet, again.

- Timebomb

While the atmosphere has somewhat improved at the grenade belt department, it has completely died at the side of the amateur forensics club. They found that the other three corpses were in such a terrible condition, that even dark humor was not enough anymore. With the most tackled one, it was very easy to collect a DNA sample, as mush with bones was really all that was left. Torn to shreds, cut up, chopped up, beaten and pulped. The rotten stench of unsetting decay of revealed remnants of organs together with the sickening image of an innocent person so ravaged for such a vile purpose; Aparoid experimentation.

PAL's light has been flickering between black and gray the whole time. For Trevor, Patches and Kip the feelings are shared. There is shock and horror written across their faces. They have each seen some nasty stuff during the original Aparoid invasion, but that was less bad. Because it was done by the Aparoids themselves. This, is done by people like them. Who for some reason are helping those disgusting bugs with these horrifying experiments. Even if the traces of Aparoids found throughout were not sentient, it is not hard to figure out something or someone is controlling the efforts.

As Calamity comes to bring the fixed grenade belt, they can feel the instant transition of atmospheres. The four are absolutely done for today. As she now gives Trevor a necessary hug, PAL hooks back up to Phantom to make sure he too can stand. And soon run as the grenade belt is ready.

"Excellent, good job the two of you. Right, I need a "pathmaker" to Hansel and Gretel our way out of here and two volunteers to scout ahead and eliminate any bastard or obstacle in our way. Wait at the entrance until I barrel through. Then, with everyone together again, we'll get the fuck out of this horror show and give those poor souls a proper cremation. To let them rest." Trevor states, the words not leaving his lips without them trembling.

"Did we get all DNA-samples so that their families can have their dues as well?" Phantom asks, just to be sure.

"All DNA-samples stored into the internal memory and ready for instant transmission to Tacker Field the moment we have reception again." PAL replies.

"They will be delighted to know that we will avenge them by crushing every single accomplice until they are dust as well."

"I'm afraid not everyone hates those bugs as much as you do, PAL." Trevor answers.

"Now, who will be my volunteers?"

"I'll go." Calamity almost instantly calls out as she cracks her knuckles.

"I'll join her." Kip adds shortly after.

"Alrighty. Phantom, that leaves you as the pathfinder. Have yourself and PAL drops directional indications. I don't care if you use actual bread crumbs, just make it clear. Oh, and don't forget to bring your hunk of metal with you. We'll need it for the OK signal."

"So that leaves you and Specialist Patch… I mean Ashley, behind?" Phantom asks, quickly correcting himself due his proximity to Calamity.

"Yup. A leader normally leads from the front. And I'll be getting to that position the moment I drop this whole belt down this shaft and annihilate this whole joint."

The whole vibe that Trevor gives is essentially that if they did a poor job of wiring this properly, he'd rather be the Captain going down with the ship alongside his XO.

"Got it, Sarge!"

Phantom knows better than to argue with Trevor in that regard. Calamity tells Trevor not to do anything stupid while she is ahead of him and Kip states that she will relay when they have arrived. Using the same signal Phantom used to get PAL into alert mode. Then the four leave to do their job.

Which leaves just Trevor and Patches with the grenade belt. Waiting for the signal. Which can only be received because PAL did some funky stuff with Trevor's radio. In the meantime, they share a moment of silence. Not out of respect for the dead, but simply because forcing a conversation on is awkward without a topic.

"When the alarm goes off, you want me to piggyback you out again?" Trevor then suddenly brings up out of nowhere.

"What? Oh, you silly bastard. I'm not the same ex-cop from nine months ago. I can take care of myself."

"I figured I'd at least offer. And for the record, I'm really glad you aren't the same ex-cop from nine months ago. You've gotten so much better than you were then."

Those words make her heart beat faster and make her flustered. She tries to hide it but she knows this is no use as the broad smile on his face pretty much betrays that he already spotted it. She hits on the forearm again but very softly, much like a fist bump.

"Although your choice of footwear still leaves something to be desired."

And there he goes, ruining the wholesome mood with one of his dumb remarks. On the cusp of uttering a naughty word and almost striking him, she instead gives in and starts laughing.

"Oh, shut up you. You know you love 'em. I know you love 'em."

"Make me shut up then."

"You're such a child, I swear."

"You know you love me. I know you love me."

Their banter gets interrupted by the audible, slightly annoying buzzing sound of Phantom's CID sending the OK signal. Trevor turns his radio off for that moment to shut off the alarm and then the two of them stand up. He grabs the belt and holds it over the smoking hole.

"Here we go. After "1", I pull the pin and then we bolt."

"Did Phantom tell you how long the fuse was?"

"I believe I told him to make it at least several minutes. Whether or not he accomplished this… I honestly forgot to ask."

"Here's to hoping then. I'm ready." she nods, whereupon Trevor starts to count down.

On "2" his index finger hooks itself around the pin and it feels that for a moment everything freezes. The hallway to the exit is in sight and soon they will be out of this underground death trap. All these horrible and horrific sights which will soon be cleansed in fire and be buried under tons of rubble and soil.

"1! Drop!"

At the moment, the characteristic noise of the pin being removed sounds and Trevor lets go of the belt. He can just about see it disappear down into the smoking hole before he turns around and is hot on the heels of Patches. Which are not hard to miss.

Driven by adrenaline and the rush at first, then the realization of not exactly knowing how long that makeshift fuse will last sets in and the drive to survive takes care of the rest. Using broken parts scattered on the ground from Phantom's CID to guide their way out. Unbeknownst to them, after a solid minute of freefalling, the grenade belt has finally reached the bottom of the shaft. And its fuse about halfway through burning.

Quite a big mass of Aparoid sludge has managed to survive at the bottom. And without any control or orders received from the hivemind, it writhes and flounders to try and get out. Stuck inside the bottom of the pipe and otherwise buried underneath the burned remains of what can be considered its brethren. All it knows is that it is in danger and has to flee but it cannot. Therefore, it panics. For it is all it can do as the fuse continues to burn.

At that moment, Patches and Trevor have reached the hallway that leads back out to the building. They can spot a few more dead guards that were not there before but do not mind them much. As long as they stay dead, they are just prone obstacles that need to be jumped over. Nothing more.

Trevor's radio crackles to life, allowing him to tell the three ahead of him that they are here and they should really book it. He tells PAL to radio for extraction on the double. In his head, he counts their numbers to check if all of his team members are all complete. Patches 2, Kip 3, Calamity 4 and with Phantom that is 5. And he leaves the tunnel last as PAL calls for that extraction.

"PAL to Base, we require extraction on the double. Mission complete."

"PAL? Sorry, still gotta get used to your voice. The truck is on its way. Five minutes out." Nelson reports.

"Negative, Nelson! We need extraction between now and present!" Trevor butts in.

"We have an active explosive in the pipeline with a makeshift fuse that can blow at any moment! So if you want us to return un-crispy, you get us out of here!"

"I'll tell the truck to hurry up, get out of there ASAP then! Stay alive out there, I'll do my best."

"I know you do Nelly, see you back at Tacker!"

Trevor then cuts the comms and makes his team take a left as he reckons that is a faster route. PAL is quick to agree. Then he catches up with Kip, who was in the lead and overtakes her. They are getting into more and more familiar territory and Trevor knows to direct them even more, which is far easier from the front.

Some leftover guards now seem to want to come along but there is no more room on the truck. Not for them at least. While running for the exit, Trevor manages to fire off a few shots that make them think twice about joining them. Especially when one of them collapses because of an unfortunate projectile to the stomach.

The door to outside appears then and Trevor makes a mad dash for it. The little aches he feels in his restored leg be damned for now it is the turn of his right shoulder to bear the brunt once more. He slams the door open, comes to a stop by digging his heels in the sand before holding the door open so everyone else can get out without trouble.

Again, he counts those that pass him by but this time out loud. Kip 3, Calamity 4, Patches 2 and ending on Phantom 5 again. Then he slams the door shut and goes after them. Whether it was the shockwave from him slamming the door shut or the fuse finally burning through, the grenade belt detonates.

One by one, sequentially they go off. The cramped pipe and the very flammable Aparoid mulch create a perfect blaze. Like when a bullet is fired down the barrel, the explosion is expanding and looking for a way out. The bottom holds strong but there is freedom at the top. Squeezed and sufficiently fueled, the all-consuming flame erupts out of the Aparoid hole like a volcano. Accompanied by a hellish noise with accents of shrieking bugs as they are turned to ash. The ground shakes violently to boot as the cave system starts to collapse in on itself. While the hallways fill with an inferno that glasses the walls inside and consumes the corpses of guards and workers alike.

A blast of fire then barrels down the hallway into the building with a loud noise, like the crack of a lighting bolt. All windows glow a bright orange before the shockwave causes them to shatter and shower shards of glass all over the courtyards. The shock is enough to make the Nova 7 team stumble even if they are already close to the gate.

However, as he looks back, Trevor can see it's not over yet. More will come. And checking his watch, that truck is still at least three minutes out. There is a moment of panic but he hides it well as he tells his team to get out of the courtyard. Out of the very least that is several seconds more for him to think.

"Get back to our original starting positions! That is enough distance!" he yells out, not really sure about that.

"Need a lift?" a familiar feminine voice then sounds in his ear.

Whereupon from behind the mountain, in what can only be described as an act of pure idiocy and daredevil attitude, an Army transport ship emerges. It flies fast and low before it descends down before Nova 7 with the engines still running. It does not turn to show its side, instead opening up the back end that is normally reserved for vehicles. And out comes deliverance because standing on the ramp is Corporal Munt on the left, Lieutenant Damian on the right and the female crew chief in the middle some distance behind the other two.

"Cherokee!? Munt?! Lieutenant!? What the… ah, bugger it! Nova 7, get in and get out!" Trevor blurts as he pushes them to get in.

Which all of them do happily. Trevor grabs Munt's hand and Patches jumps into Damian's before each helps the other team mates on. All the while the fires start to burst out of more and more windows and the cramped interiors along with electrical equipment present cause it grow even larger and get completely out of control.

"2, 5, 3, 4 and why not; 6! All accounted for! Cherokee, get us the hell out of here!"

"I hear ya!" is the answer given before the pilot puts their visor back on and takes off.

All the while cracks in the ground begin to sprout like roots from the building. It begins to shift and collapse in on itself as the area around it is terraformed by the fiery violence inside the building and underneath the planet's crust. The last thing one can see is the total eradication of the building as an explosion consumes it all in a glorious conflagration. Which in turn is swallowed by the terraformation of the ground beneath as the cave system beneath it collapses. Then it disappears from view, into a cloud of sand and dust.

It is a true spectacle to see and hear, even if some wished they brought either sunglasses, earplugs or popcorn. Phantom in particular is enjoying it a ton, saying something about in his native tongue. Roughly translated, it is to emphasize the size of the fireball and destruction to the others around him. All the while, Trevor just whistles the breakdown portion of a song as the ramp door closes and they are underway back to Tacker Field.

"PAL to Base, cancel that truck. We have found alternative transportation back to you. Over."

Cheers and relieved sighs follow as the ramp door locks itself in place. They are safe, alive and mostly intact. Trevor's radio then comes to life as the Major speaks. Although it does not start off with a congratulations as the mutt states he finally now knows where Damian is.

"There you are, you birdbrain! You utter fool! Hijacking the 64th Marines and Cherokee 3-0 with you on top of that! What were you thinking!? … And why didn't you take me along? Next time think about my needs too, eh? Heh heh!" the Major chuckles before addressing everyone else.

"Anywho, Nova 7, once again fantastic work. Despite the horrors you've encountered, you got out alive. See you all soon at base for a debrief. Take your well-deserved rest until then. Major out."

- Bravery

"Hey Munt. Thanks for the extraction. We really needed it. Consider whatever favor you thought you owed us paid."

"Favor? Are you mad? I'd pulled your ass out of that fire for free." Munt counters, whereupon he locks into a handshake with Trevor.

"The 64th will always have your back. Especially after you pulled out our asses from that disaster on Fortuna. Call us in whenever, don't care when, don't care where."

"I'll be sure to abuse that pledge for my own, nefarious ends for sure."

"Buy me a drink first before you start that eh?"

The two laugh like old friends before Phantom butts in, whining that he is not allowed to make abusive relationship jokes while they are. Only to be swiftly slapped on the back of his head by Patches. And is told that yes, those two are allowed to do so as everyone is sure that their intentions are strictly humorous. And with him, it is fairly unsure.

He grumbles but largely accepts it as the rest of the 64th dismount before Munt joins them. They are back at base and they might have some explaining to do to explain their absence. But that will be alright. He bids a farewell to Nova 7 as the ramp door closes and Cherokee 3-0 takes off again. With the destination of Tacker Field. Back home.

Trevor looks over the people he sees before him inside the ship. Veterans of another successful mission, even if it had an ugly side to it. No one expected things to turn this dark, nevermind that it was all linked with those bloody Aparoids of all creatures. Why could it not have been something more common? Like Andross die-hards looking to ruin Lylat again?

It has had an effect on several of his team members. And he goes into doctor mode for a moment. Something he has not had to do for some time now, as there was always medical staff on hand at the base and nothing really bad has happened up until now.

Kip has nothing noticeable going on; she is used to this kind of horrific stuff. In her times as a mercenary, she has seen cruelty and horror like this. Some tales she has stored in her memory banks almost rival this and even if this is several notches worse, it does not strike her as that much worse.

For Patches it is worse, but not by much. Just another nightmare to add to the pile before any awfulness is likely snuffed out from being buried between a ton of blue feathers and posh sweet talk. Yet, in those inevitable moments where she is alone or her thoughts wander, it will replay over and over. RDX might be needed should it become debilitating. He should still have a stash somewhere.

However, for Calamity and Phantom this kind of stuff was much worse. In particular for Calamity, who beyond her Nova 7 training, never had any experience with military matters or death at such a horrific scale. Whereas Phantom hides it by muttering to himself and to PAL, Calamity has completely shut herself out from the world. Even a hug will not help in this situation. The stare into nothingness along with her glazed over eyes tell him enough. And make him doubt if bringing her along this journey was such a good idea. Perhaps Fox was right to boot Krystal off the team?

Wait, what is he saying? He is nothing like that arrogant blowhard. He will talk it over with her instead of stabbing her in the back. Communication is important at every step in the relationship, even just before marriage. And he is going to marry that hound sitting opposite of him. Business comes first but then, it is time for suits and wedding gowns.

He knows she will not react, but he knows that whenever he was stuck in a thousand yard stare like that, he wished someone would show that they were with him. So he reaches over and puts his hand on her knee in a supportive manner. Predictably, she does not react very much aside from a short shiver. They will be home soon.

About a half hour later they are back at the base. With the truck actually bringing them home, just not the whole way through. Surprisingly, they are not met with just Nelson, but also the Major. Who welcomes them back with open arms but makes Damian bend over so he can smack him properly on the back of the head. Not hard at all; no use in hurting someone who is taller as well as wider than you and can snap you like a twig.

"Now get in, team. We got some things to discuss."

Back at 99F, the team sits down. The mood is glum and somewhat murky. Might also have something to do with the lighting in the room failing. Despite PAL's attempt to quickly fix it, it requires a lightbulb change. And he does not have one in reserve, so this arcane atmosphere will do.

The Major starts off with something special to lighten the mood before going to the "meat and potatoes". He turns to PAL and lets him have the limelight. Whereupon PAL explains what had happened below ground after the Ejection Protocol was triggered. How he had to effectively corrupt everything hard-coded to him to break free from antiquated protocols. Which prevented him from saving Team 2.

In short, he had to erase everything that was told him from creation and joining Nova 7 onwards. He then filled in the blanks with everything he knew and everything he considered. So far, he has only done Phantom and Patches because there was urgency behind that. And he would like to identify every Nova 7 member how he sees fit. Just like everyone in this room has their own opinions about each other, he feels entitled to that as well.

"With your permission, Major, I would like to start this process of reintegration. Because I enjoy being part of this team and I wish to have my memory banks filled correctly." PAL states, ending his say.

The Major contemplates it for a moment before he hangs back.

"I think I can only give permission for myself regarding this. So a yes from me. But I think everyone should agree at the very least."

So PAL looks around the room and no one is resistant to this proposal.

"I am pleased, thank you. Then I shall start."

PAL goes around like a floating camera to identify everyone based on proximity. Of course, skipping Patches and Phantom because they have already had that treatment. With each team member, upon completion, he shows a green light. No matter how high the rank or how little interaction he has had with them in the past.

With that done, PAL reconnects with Phantom and the Major can continue the meeting, with the focus on the aftermath of the mission.

He starts by reiterating that they have done a really good job, especially under these circumstances. They have collected so much evidence and uncovered a disgusting attempt by an unknown individual or group to bring the Aparoids back from extinction. The device that was pumping pulp out of the corpses and pumping disgusting purple sludge back in, was meant to see in what state a body has, or rather can be for the Aparoidation to take effect. Literally using dead people to resurrect those bugs like zombies. Corpses that were severely tackled, were also undergoing accelerated decomposition because of this. Hence why they were so decayed despite being dead for only so long.

Furthermore, they have found a mass grave northeast of the remains of the building which was uncovered by the sinkhole pulling the surrounds down with it. So far it is a rough count of about 200 or so people dressed as construction workers. Which supports the story given by the unexpected source from within, who in turn, was also found alive with a strange marking around his neck and some bruises. But all around, he was fine.

"Some ex-prop Lieutenant. Actually, it's the same one that peed his pants in front of Bones and Patches over there." he chuckles before turning back to the serious matter.

Why are these terrorists doing this? They do not know yet. Who are they? Also still largely unknown, although everything keeps pointing to Bakers Building. So they will soon strike at the third location once the top brass has been informed about everything and gives the green light for Operation Sunshine, the expected second-to-last assault. But the details will be given at a later date.

"I want all of you to know that if I had known this was lurking in those caves, I would've had the fleet bomb that site from orbit. The last thing I want to happen is for you guys to have it even tougher. This job isn't easy; it's damn hard! But if I can help it, I'll make it as easy as possible for you. Hence why, if you need it, we have trained and qualified doctors on staff. And not just for physical injuries, but mental ones as well. Use it and let me know so I can assure exceptions in our schedules will be made. Remember; there's no shame in admitting you need help. If anyone shames you for that, they're mine. Or the Lieutenant's or Trevor's. I can assure you."

The Major's words do lighten up the mood a bit more but the team is not in that much of a mood to speak. He understands. He dismisses everyone and tells them they are relieved of duties for as long as they do not have the green light to go ahead and strike the third target. In the meantime, everyone can do as they please.

"Remember this at the very least; you all are the bravest fighters Corneria has ever seen. Take pride in that. Nova 7, forever!"

The team splits up after that. Trevor goes to have something to eat with Phantom as both are famished. Calamity goes to her room while Patches hangs with Kip as she wants to see what she was talking about on the way back home when it came to using her tail like a weapon.

During that feast, in which both ignore proper manners and etiquette by eating like pigs by scarfing down everything. Only when their predatory hunger has been sedated, do they use the napkins provided to make themselves more presentable. And while the conversation quickly devolves into typical dude talk and complaining about everything and nothing, it gradually turns more serious.

Trevor shares with him that he sort of regrets bringing Calamity and him along for this ride. Because he saw what had happened with the two of them. The arctic fox cannot deny that what he saw was horrific and he will need time to process that properly. However, despite all that was against him, he does not regret going along with it. Because in the end, it has brought him so much more than it took from him.

Soon after, Patches and Kip join in. And while some points are reiterated and comfortable hands are placed on the sore spots of each one of the team members, Trevor can see someone else is missing from this group. Someone whose sore spots may need more attention.

When the group splits up when it is nearing sundown, Trevor is tempted to tuck in early but something is pulling him over to Calamity's room. Normally he would wait for her to choose to lay in with him or stay over in her own room but now he is not sure she will even have enough energy or will to think that over. So he takes the initiative.

He walks down the hallway to her- and Kip's room. And right away, he can hear uncanny sounds coming from behind that door. It sounds like bone hitting a hollow metal pipe, followed by a quick snuffed out squeal of pain. And after that there is a moment of silence before he can hear a soft crying and sniffling.

He is almost afraid to open the door but he has to check on her. So he knocks first so she does not get scared by a man suddenly standing in the doorway.

"Cal? You okay?"

"I'm not here… and the door is locked." is the reply he is given.

He is tempted to give her that privacy but he does not think it very wise considering the circumstances. So he opens the door, which is not locked and he sees Calamity sitting on the bottom bunk. Withdrawn, weak and sobbing while her hand is held up like a hurt animal. Upon seeing him, she withdraws even further out of shame that he has to see her like this. But he quickly closes the distance and sits down next to her. He puts his arm around her and gives her a tight hug.

Then he lets go and tends to her hand. The one she hit the bedframe with. It is just bruised, which hurts but will leave neither a broken bone or a scar. So he instead tends to the bigger injury she has. She is hesitant to share but he knows how to pull it out from her. Not with violence, but with understanding. He knows very well how it feels.

Eventually any resistance she has breaks and all she can do is cling to her man, her rock, her fiancée before bursting into a massive rant. How could they do this? How could anyone help those horrible Aparoids come back to live? Do they not realize how much carnage and suffering it will cause? Have people not suffered enough? Why!?

So many questions and to most there are no or only simple answers. For money, for kicks. For reputation, for the urge to do evil. Psycho's, sicko's and sociopaths galore. Warmongers that live for the fire and destruction of warfare. However, not accepting or understanding people can be like this, causes her a ton of stress. On top of the horrific images that play like a horror movie every time she closes her eyes to blink. She is totally broken as her grip on him loosens and she falls into his lap.

Where she lets all the waterworks run free. Nothing is held back. Trevor cannot find any words to soothe her pain so instead he strokes through her hair and massages the hard spot just below her ear as he knows she likes it there.

"Please… stay here with me Trevor…" she pleads with him after she almost chokes on her own phlegm.

"Of course! I'm not going anywhere until you feel better." he swears to her.

"I'll always be there for you."

She grabs onto his clothing with one hand for that important contact and he holds her other in his own. And there go the waterworks again. He lets it happen; it is better to get it all out then to have it clog up everything.

…

…

…

The door opens and Kip stands in the doorway. The light from behind her shining into her otherwise dark room. She is confused at first as she instantly sees Trevor sitting where Calamity normally sits. However looking down she can see her laying and sleeping on Trevor's lap. Her face is pale and the red around her eyes shows that she has cried herself to sleep. Trevor himself is only awake by slither, slipping in and out of it. Only when he notices someone standing in the doorway does he wake up a little more.

"Kip? What are you doing here?" Trevor slurs as he rubs his eye with the only hand available to him.

"This is my room; I should ask you that. But I would already know the answer."

She leans against the door post.

"How long has she been asleep for?"

"Not that long. Today took a lot out of her."

"It took a lot out of all of us." she sighs.

"That's our curse; we can sigh about it. Because we are "brave" according to her. We fight the good fight because no one else will otherwise."

"And she doesn't think of herself as brave then?"

"I know right? Maybe one day, we too can be brave like her and let it all out. Till that time, we must stay strong."

Trevor's interpretation of "brave" was not something she was thinking about when she called Calamity that. But the more she lets his words sink in, the more she understands them. Those nasty scars the both of them can pretty much tally now. Each hurts in a unique way but the impacts are lessened with each subsequent one. One learns to live with them for as long as the guns are blazing. But in those moments of quiet… they split open. And allowing yourself to utter that in any way like Calamity has done, is perhaps braver than some people are willing to admit.

She enters the room and closes the door behind her. She approaches Calamity, dries and wipes away any tear residue before giving her a kiss on the forehead. She wishes her a good night before grabbing some extra pillows from Patches' stash so she can stuff them behind Trevor. She is sure that the bunny will not mind.

"You can stay over as long as she needs you to. After that, I would really suggest you talk with her about seeking help." Kip states with a worried tone as she looks over the wreck her fellow Militia has turned into.

"I will. Both of those things. Thank you, Kip."

She smiles.

"My pleasure, Trevor. Goodnight to you as well."

Epilogue: You Got A "Friend" In Me

Back at the bench, sitting in his comfort zone. Having just swallowed a recently acquired box of RDX from the 24/7 pharmacy, he is trying to focus and to keep those bad thoughts away. It is not easy; flashes of purple, intermixed with red and laced with how gruesome he assumes that the corpses looked like. PAL did not want to show it to him and he is happy in the end that he did not. From what he heard, it was enough to put Patches, Kip and Trevor down. And those people had the most experience when it came to brutality and Aparoids.

Although he really does not hope to ever encounter such horrific situations again, he does not think he will be that lucky. Considering that the enemy they are sure to fight will do this to them without a second thought. There is no choice in this matter. If he pulls back now, he will be disappointing everyone, affirming the view of a few select disbelievers and he will sell himself short big time.

So instead, he will focus on tomorrow. And hope that those RDX tablets work as well as Trevor has described them working. In the meantime, he will busy himself with PAL and making sure his partner is alright.

It still tickles him that that floating gray triangle, of his accord, called him a partner. Throughout everything they went through, it would make perfect sense. But PAL was to begin with more of a prisoner and a potential liability than a trusted friend. Over time this smoothed out and now it is time to remove all kinks and old bondages that might prove detrimental in the future. There will not be another self-corruption needed next time.

But first he needs to fix his CID, otherwise there will be no way he can breathe properly. With PAL's assistance, he manages to find why the CID stopped working and manages to get it working again. He will leave it pulled in overnight for obvious reasons but for now, 40% battery will have to do.

Now it is time for PAL to self-diagnose. That is of course, if he himself wants to. Again, this is an old protocol. So that Phantom could weed out anything suspicious or malicious that PAL tried to hide. And sometimes, there were some things he had to remove. The contents of which shall be spared but the relationship between the two was rough to say the least.

However, PAL does not mind as he prefers not to look at his own internals for too long and floats himself daintily onto the docking station. Which makes him shut down in the way he was when Patches was around yesterday. On Phantom's screen, pretty much everything that PAL has in terms of software and files. Running a custom made program, he sifts through file after file to see what and where something has changed since yesterday.

"So, what did you think of today, bud?"

".-. - ... .. - .. ...- ."

"Yeah? How come?"

".- . / -.. . ... - .-. - -.- . -.. / - ... . / .- .-. .- .-. - .. -.. ... / .. / -.-. - ..- .-.. -.. / -. - - / .- .. ... ... / ..-. - .-. / - - .-. ."

"This Aparoid obsession of yours must end at some point. Right?"

".- ... . -. / - ... . -.- / .- .-. . / .- .-.. .-.. / .-. . -.. ..- -.-. . -.. / - - / .- ... ... / .- -. -.. / -.. .. .-. - -.-.-"

"When you say all, do you…"

He stops to prepare to swallow a potential bitter pill as he fidgets around with a pencil that was just near his keyboard.

"... also mean yourself?"

".-.-.- .-.-.- .-.-.- -. - / .- -. ... .- . .-."

"Fine, give me nothing then. Just let me know when you plan to do it so I can at least make myself ready."

".. / .- .. ... ... .-.-.- .-.-.- .-.-.- / - ... . .-. . / .- .- ... / .- -. - - ... . .-. / .- .- -.-"

"There is, PAL. That's the thing. You of all people should, especially now, realize that there is always a choice. Heck, I choose to be less of a prick. If I can change…"

He continues his argument with a hand gesture before returning to pay attention to the screen before him. The red eye comes back online and looks right at him as purple light shines from his top. A gray edge shrouds it. Then the machine thinks about the words Patches told him.

So, you're gonna what? Just shut down before him? That would break his heart.

And here he can see it before him. The purple shrinks and makes way for the gray.

".. / -.. - / -. - - / -.- -. - .- .-.-.- .-.-.- .-.-.- / .. / .- - / - - .-. -. .-.-.- / .. / ... .- - . / - ... . - / ... - / - ..- -.-. ... .-.-.- / -... ..- - / .. / .- - / - ... . - .-.-.-"

"No, you're not."

Unexpectedly to him, the gray changes to green pixel by pixel.

". -..- -.-. ..- ... . / - . ..-.."

"You are a person. To me. And to me you are far more than just one thing or creature. Even if you are part Aparoid, what does that matter? You are not like them! You don't think, act or feel like them…"

Then the arctic fox turns to PAL. Displaying a face both sour and hopeful. Sour in that he has to try and drill this truth into his mainframe but hopeful in that he hopes that he will get it because he drills it into him.

"... you're my best friend. My partner. And when I heard you call me such as well, I felt such jubilation! I-I… don't wanna lose you. I want to be your partner long after we smoked all of the Aparoids out of existence! Moreover, I can live because of you! Mentally and physically."

The green begins to overtake even the purple now as gradually more and more pixels surrender to the green. The coupling on the docking station begins to fail slowly and the connection to him and the computer degrades. Phantom does not notice because he is too enthralled in his emotions.

"Please… I-I know it's tough… to reconsider held ideas. You know what I'm on about. But if I can do it… if I can try! … then I'm 100% sure you can. I mean you already did! So why not… more? I hope you take that into consideration. I-I… my heart would just shatter without you, buddy."

What sounds, feels and looks like a spark suddenly shoots through his systems. It is unexpected and it rushes so fast through him that he can barely notice it. It makes him shiver and his light turns bright green instantly. Is this what love is? Or at least, the machine-learned equivalent of it? It feels so rich and vibrant, but unlike the hate he knew and cherished, this is not dark. It is still enveloping, surrounding one in a feeling of bliss but it feels more colorful. With flashes of pink and blue. It is pleasant beyond description and makes him feel… safe?

The coupling hooks let go and like a flung projectile PAL smashes himself into Phantom's chest to effectively nuzzle like a little cute critter would. The fox is surprised but quickly wraps his arms around his green metal friend. This is not the result he was expecting but he prefers this to the alternative.

PAL reiterates that he will miss him terribly but that he has always seen it as his purpose to totally rid the universe of the Aparoid threat. Which means his self-termination. But he has gained a new perspective and he will think it over. The very least he can do for his partner.

After this, PAL floats back to his station so that Phantom can complete the diagnosis. And he notices something that was not there before. A text file that is thoroughly corrupted. No name, no date of creation and it is not a file recognized by the system. Probably a result of PAL's self-corruption from back at the cave system.

It strikes him as odd however. But he will look at it tomorrow. Right now, he has had enough of today and all the emotional baggage that came with it. Plus, the RDX is making him sleepy, a common side effect of actual RDX, not the watered down version.

He wishes PAL a goodnight while he plugs his CID into the wall so it can charge while he sleeps wearing it. Nothing worse than trying to sleep with a clogged nose after all. The light is turned off and both are off their respective equivalent of dreamland.

However, while PAL is "sleeping", his inner workings are still going. And a particular file is transmitting a live feed complete with audio to an unknown location. Inside of a dark room with only the lighting of the massive computer to keep its only occupant company.

The figure rewinds the collected footage all the way back to the beginning of the transmission; the moment PAL rushed out of the security room. Then, the figure fast-forwards it to the highlights. PAL's self-corruption for example, which admittedly nearly fried the planted bug.

Then he skips to perhaps the most important bits: the self-designation of the members of the machine's teammates. With their names, designations, ranks and roles readable from backed-up textfiles. Finally he can put the pictures taken with the correct information.

Along with other files that were up for grabs, like the negative mentioning of a certain Lieutenant-Colonel Rook and his investigation into MilCiv controversies. And now, this person also knows where Nova 7 operates and who commands it.

A raspy, crackling like a campfire and glitched voice comes out of the figure's mouth, stating that "they are inside of The Potential" whereupon a much more normal voice replies from the same mouth that they should still be careful. They have them now; it is a matter of waiting where they will strike next. In the meantime, simply observe and sift through more files that are available.

"When they are at their most vulnerable, we will strike."

"ThE PoTeNtIaL wIlL bE oUrS! cOrNeRiA wIlL bUrN!"

Then a door opens up behind him and a marsupial of undeterminable species trots in, with trembling knees.

"My Lord, I hope I am not disturbing… but the Node is nearing termination. What would you wish for us to do?"

"Nothing. Leave it to waste away. We have different priorities now. Ready Epsilon team; I am sure they are itching for revenge for the death of their brethren at the Corneria Site. And find me a list of anyone high profile that has something against these Army schmucks."

Out of the computer, a list is printed and then thrown on the ground next to him by him like it is scrap. To him it is, but to the marsupial it is something to be picked up and adhere to. Or else.

"Y-yes my Lord! Right away!"

Whereupon the creature legs it out of the room and closes the door behind him. Back into the darkness where the screen is his only light.

"We Do NoT nEeD aNy MoRe MeRcEnArIeS!"

"Who said I was willing to pay them? This is my way of getting rid of them. Then, we can focus on the professionals and we can use our secret weapon."

"WhY dElAy? UsE iT wHeRe ThEy Go, ThEn SeNd ThE pAwNs ThErE tOo."

"Ooooh devilish! I approve. Should it fail, we still have the Epsilon Team. After all, we will soon know exactly where they live and how they operate. And how to take control and make their friend… ours!"

Phase 2 END