Alyosha sat down in order to regain some energy, sweat dripping down from his brow as he stared at the mass of destroyed Raptures ahead of them. Scratching his cheek and lazily looking toward the distant horizon, where the sun set behind the flat-topped mountains of the Western Deserts, gently laying down as the starlight began poking through the fading blue of the sky.

He slouched forward a bit, feeling the slight shift in the weight of his MJOLNIR and mumbling, "Spartans see this thing as a second skin, huh…?" before looking at the rest of the crew. They were by the berm of one of the 'Roads' leading out of the AO, watching a distant exchange of tracers between a Rapture force and a pair of IFVs.

Kelly walked over to him, handing him a sandwich they'd packed with some of the Cheese, then sat on her stomach and looked over the berm. She told him, "I'm on watch now, commander. Go get some shuteye," as she peered down her helmet's heavily-polarized visor. The man nodded, stood up and walked off the berm toward the small camp they'd built in a wide ditch.

As he entered the Counters' tent, he saw Rapi cleaning her rifle. In the light of the heat lamp hanging from the top of the tent, the young woman looked just as ethereal and beautiful as ever. Her red eyes looked slightly clouded, eyes locked on adjusting the gun's head-spacing. Her lips were slightly curled into an almost inscrutable expression and her hair glistened in the light, too.

He couldn't help himself, cracking a small smile as he saw her there, in her own cubby hole, tending to her gun like there wasn't anything else in the world. She'd stripped damaged parts of her armor off, leaving her usual attire visible, though even it was slightly battle-damaged, with tears and holes in her beret and even a couple in her jacket.

She jumped slightly, a small and unusual twitch. Her gaze gently shifted to the right and she rubbed the back of her neck with her gloved hand, mumbling something, before returning to her work. The other two were fast asleep in the rear, to nobody's surprise, while Rio was outside providing overwatch through a combination of her rifle's ORACLE scope and the Wombat drones overhead for a platoon of allied scouts.

He cleared his throat gently, causing Rapi to twitch again. She looked toward him, mouth slightly open and eyes wide. She showed a small smile, nodding in greeting before waving him over. He smiled back, then walked over and sat himself down onto the sand as gently as he could, to which Rapi whispered, "I tend to forget MJOLNIR weighs half-a-ton in its standard configuration."

"Heh, yeah…" He replied, "Though it sure feels weightless when it's on," and he scratched the back of his head, right near the brainstem. There, he felt the highly-advanced cybernetic implant that connected him to this highly-capable piece of equipment, his own personal Spartan-tier Neural Lace. Part of him knew it was also used to interface with AI, but he didn't care about that right now.

She said to him, "Doctor Halsey made sure to both cut down on weight and enhance its capabilities with the addition of Goddessium plating and circuitry…" as she finally slid the barrel back into its cowling and threaded it tightly into place. She set the rifle down and continued, "By all accounts, with the energy shield emitters and Goddessium-enhanced nerve connections, it might as well be a whole new body. Does it feel strange?"

"Sometimes," He shrugged, "The weirdest part is probably the Neural Interface used to link the armor right to my brain," before he tapped the thing again. Some raw flesh still remained there, alongside the prickles of buzzcut hair and the faint feeling of the adhesive of a bandage he couldn't properly scrape off. He continued, "It makes it react to my thoughts…"

"Instead of your actions," Rapi finished, cracking a small smile, "Give it enough time and you might even gain Spartan Time," and pausing as she saw him split the food item he was given in two, handing her a piece. She nodded, "Thank you," then calmly unwrapped it and took a bite, feeling the tang and bitterness of whatever cheese this was supposed to be.

The Ark's Splendamin supply had been supplemented by the Spirit of Fire's food storage and what little farming could be done aboard, courtesy of the few remaining colony supplies that had remained in some storage room on board. Not to mention the Cheese Caves they kept finding more and more of in the same general area.

They heard the quiet coughing of a silenced firearm, tensing and turning to the door, before a Marine, namely Mike Shevchenko, poked his head in with a smoking assault rifle with a silencer. He told them in a whisper, "Chill. I think we scared off some of those active camo drones Matis met in the Manhattan operation…"

"We ever figure out what kinda tech they recovered from there?" Alyosha asked in a similarly low voice. Mike made a couple hand signals, namely a shrug of his shoulders and a few intricate motions that simply said 'I don't know' and 'Eggheads still working', to which Alyosha nodded. The Marine walked off, going back on patrol.

The gentle drone of a Scorpion's engine filled their ears next and the sound of infantry, including more Nikkes, dismounting to provide support followed in its wake. Alyosha sighed and looked at Rapi, then said, "Anyways… Spartan Time, huh? What, like the bullet time in those old Max Payne games or something?"

Rapi blinked, confused. He asked, "You… Don't really do entertainment all that much, do you?"

"We have a lot of work to take care of in the Outpost, so… I hardly have the time," The girl replied, leaning forward as she took a bite out of her own food. She mumbled, "I did try to listen to music, but… I've yet to find something that I like," while looking at the food. She took a bite, then sighed as she chewed. Alyosha chuckled at that, then leaned back and shrugged.

"I can recommend a few things, though Stella'd probably kick my ass, heh," Alyosha laughed awkwardly, rubbing the back of his neck. Rapi looked up at him, both interested and confused, before he clarified, "Look, I used to listen to music really loudly when we were back home. As kids do. Might've annoyed her to death with the stuff I listen to."

"You did," Stella voiced from next to them, sitting upright suddenly and unveiling herself from underneath her sleeping bag, causing Alyosha and Rapi to jump slightly. She looked at the two, a grin on her face, then said, "You better not listen to my brother, Rapi. I quite like the peace and quiet I have right now in the dorms," in a most menacing tone.

Both the Commander and his Executive Officer nodded. She beamed brightly as if she hadn't just threatened them, then said, "Okay, thank you~!" in a slightly exaggerated, sharp, yet still whispered voice before diving back down to bed. The two breathed a sigh, before they locked eyes with each-other again and let out a couple giggles.

… Syuen, meanwhile, watched this, quite clearly awake, from her own little cot in the tent. A small smile crossed her lips, before she mumbled to herself, "Can't believe I'm siding with these idiots," with a genuinely caring tone, before turning around to face away from the light and sleep properly. She was gonna have next watch.

Meanwhile, outside, PALAIMON and TALOS patrolled the perimeter with their respective pilots, the latter of the two currently donning a multi-launch guided missile system on his back as they walked around, plus a heavy directional energy shield on his left arm. Kilo smiled, humming a tune as they bestrode the perimeter, noting, "So, you play Titanfall, too?"

"I do, actually!" Daniel chuckled, "It's why I wanted to be a mech pilot… Among other things," and he scanned the horizon with PALAIMON's advanced sensors. He continued, "Though I guess being under Missilis's payroll like Rusty or the rest of her gang wasn't exactly a good thing…" and he paused, scanning the area ahead for the silhouettes of hostile units, plus EM fields from camouflage modules. He asked, "PALAIMON, mind keeping us updated if our sensors pick up more cloakers? Their electromagnetic frequencies should be an easy spot for the new suite…"

"UNDERSTOOD, PILOT." The AI replied. The young man aboard smiled, then nodded.

"Honestly, man," Kilo chuckled awkwardly, "I'm glad doctor Halsey and doctor Anders took over. I hear they're doing some pretty interesting changes to everything from the MMR Vocational School to the Research Center itself," before she panned to the right and saw a few vehicles approaching. Her IFF tags pinged them as Pioneer, or Goddess Squad.

Snow, to everyone's surprise, rode an old bike forward, modified with tires specifically for offroad activities. Scarlet and Rapunzel rode in on the back of a Warthog with a whole other platoon of heavily-armed Nikkes as support, while a Saddleback MRAP brought up the rear, its gauss cannon pointed the way of the enemy.

As the crews arrived and dismounted, with Snow parking her bike just behind the berm, Chief walked over to greet them with Delta. The sniper girl said, "Good to see you here… Thanks for the prompt arrival, too."

"We'd have been here sooner," Snow admitted, scratching her cheek, "But Chatterbox is moving, harassing every OP from here to the old Nevada border fifty klicks North. Going by his attack patterns, he's gonna swing back through here to try and do some more damage to you all," all while the others walked off their vehicles.

"Indeed. 'Tis most annoying this foul ape continues to escape our pursuit," Scarlet spoke, hand on the hilt of Fleetly Fading. She looked at the Spartan and asked, "Perchance, have you seen Samuel, Master Chief? Mine mind wishes to impart some wisdom into the young man about his desire to study melee combat."

"... I think he's training with Will, actually," Chief replied, the faintest hint of fear audible in his usually stoic voice. The tallest of the Spartans at fourteen was currently training with the one Spartan who actually favored close quarters combat and heavy weapons on how to fight with his hands and any melee weapon available.

"Oooh~," Scarlet chuckled mischievously, "Hark, perhaps though might tell me where they be?" only to watch Chief point toward an area off to the far side of the encampment, next to a few turrets, where the two Spartans were actively fighting, kicking up massive clouds of dust. She bowed and smiled, "I thank ye, o, Master Chief. May thy night and day tomorrow be free of problems," then she walked off to join in on the training.

Delta commented jokingly, "She certainly seems a little less drunk."

Snow chuckled, crossing her arms while Rapunzel scanned the areas around them with her new heavy armor's sensor suites, then replied, "You can thank us visiting Chief Deputy Andersen every once in a while for it… She still goes to tend to her gardens, seeing as she doesn't like being bound to the Ark, but visiting the old man's helping mend some things…" and she looked at her shoulder pad, at the apple with two bites out of it, before mumbling, "For some, more than others," as she wiped the dust off of it. Chief nodded in understanding while the rest of his team slowly fanned out from their tent to replace them.

Blues and Luckies alike, that was. He paused as he saw Rapunzel's attention taken away from her scans the moment she saw Fred. She smiled at him, a faint red flush on her cheeks as she watched him approach, walking up to her side. She and him began to speak, much to the Chief's surprise, with Cortana whispering to him, "They did hang out together a while… Though I think Veta's gonna be mad he got snatched up by the Future Pope," and she smirked.

Chief didn't wanna know, honestly.


The Ark

Outer Rim Reconstruction Project:Northern Area

Noble Team had taken after Dare's request and moved forward with a plan to meet the seedy underground of the Ark. Three organizations fought for control of the Underground itself, all while keeping the Outer Rim happy:The Seimeikai, based off of an old Japanese Yakuza family that got in, the Hedonia Mafia, as hinted at, being an Italian mob family of some type, and the Peony Association, a descendant of an old Triads family.

If there was anyone who would have intel about illicit movements, it would probably be these three. And the area where they picked to meet was Neutral Ground, namely one of the Northern Reconstruction Project headquarters. Around them, the Ark's external defenses were expanded outward, while refugee centers and new buildings sprung up from the occupied grounds like nothing else.

The Refugee Centers were mostly being used to vet the civilians coming into the Ark after the fortifications surrounding the Ark were disassembled and moved to the farthest edges of the City's reach, well beyond the Outer Rim's edge, in order to provide more room for expansion. From roads to pipelines and water supplies as brought over by UNSC excavation, repair and engineering teams from underground wells, from high-rise buildings to maglev tram lines and from military checkpoints and bases to humanitarian aid delivery centers, the skeletons of buildings and infrastructure sprouted as if from nothing.

Security teams made up of Mass Production Nikkes, the Ark Police and, to nobody's surprise, members of the aforementioned three criminal organizations, all lead by Nikkes, keeping watch while the people were being tended to. Carter hummed as they approached a military checkpoint guarded by MPs. He watched them vet a family of refugees, ragged-looking civilians with their kids, from this area of the Outer Rim.

He sighed, then leaned back against the wall and watched Kat writing up a report on her datapad. K and D, meanwhile, were ever-watchful, the former visibly excited while the later retained some degree of professionalism. Jun sat in the corner, poking the barrel of his rifle through an open window, Emile was sat in the back sharpening his knife in the darkness, Rosenda was stacking grenades and Thom was just being Thom:Incredibly calm.

Jorge, meanwhile, was downstairs, helping the Police and Nikkes vet through the people and welcoming the children with candy and stuff. A very Jorge thing to do, Carter thought as he walked over to Kat, leaning onto the table and placing a hand on her shoulder. She looked up, then turned the laptop to show him what she was writing and reading.

Notes on the Squad in charge of the Ark's criminal enterprises. UNDERGROUND QUEEN. Three Nikkes were part of it, as mentioned:Sakura of the Seimeikai, Rosanna of Hedonia and Moran of the Peony Organization. Three very different personalities. Three very different organizations. Three very different women.

"We're gonna have our hands full again," Mumbled Carter. He straightened up, looking around the somewhat barren meeting room. There were a few Marines and Product-23-class Nikkes present as guards. The entire squad was, to everyone's surprise, under Tetra, Mustang's company. The man was nothing if not full of surprises when it came to his Nikkes.

The hum of hydrogen engines filled their ears, with Jun turning his head. He spoke, "Three cars, heavily armored. They're here," before shouldering his rifle and watching them descend from the vehicles. The lead of them turned to face the other two, then turned to Jun, her burning red eyes locking onto him.

He smirked, then mumbled, "Good eye," before standing up from the window and slinging his rifle onto his back. Footsteps echoed as the women and their escorts climbed the stairs, high-heels clicking against the concrete. Kat and Carter exchanged one quick look to confirm that all members of the party were ready before they turned their gaze to the door.

It slid open, with the first member of the team, a beautiful white and black-haired woman with long, wavy hair and burning scarlet eyes, stepped through the door. Clad in what was more of a parody of an Italian mobster's uniform, considering the too-short jacket and the shorts, the gold chains and the fluffy 'snake' around her shoulders, plus the extremely ornate Tommy-gun reproduction.

Rosanna, leader of Hedonia, smirked and spoke, "Well, well, well… I didn't expect they'd send Spartans to say hello," as she walked away from the door. Following her in, the leader of the Seimeikai, Sakura, entered, smoking from some sort of ornate pipe as she arranged the jacket she wore over her traditional Japanese clothing, an Arisaka copy hanging off her shoulder.

She took a deep puff, then hummed and spoke, "Indeed… Quite the party," her voice sharper than Rosanna's own melodious, somewhat beautiful one. Finally, out of all the members, a more proud and happy-looking woman walked in, sliding her scarlet aviators in place on the front of her own uniform's 'breast window' as she hefted an ancient firearm of some kind. She smiled, pushing a hand through her black hair.

"Ya kidding? This is honestly kind of interesting. Especially after the government change," Moran, the Peony Association's commander, spoke, her voice a bit more gruff despite her not smoking. She raised a hand and greeted, "Hello there," all while their own escorts, namely Peony Guards, Seimeikai soldiers and Hedonia gangsters stepped inside.

Rosanna hummed, looking at them and putting a hand on her hip before her gaze finally settled onto Carter. She spoke to him, "I'm gonna guess you're the leader, going by the look," while her eyes scanned the room and each member of Noble Team, scrutinizing them. Seemingly content, she spoke, "A bit cold…"

"Ma'am," The man nodded, "Suppose it comes with the job."

Rosanna let out a dry chuckle, stating, "Indeed. Intel Hawks and combat units like you all are always a bit on the colder side of emotion. Especially clear after the warning we got from Mustang," before crossing her arms as well, to mirror the man. She added, "How about we start this off on the right foot with getting to know each-other a bit better. Before we get down to brass tacks, that is."

Carter nodded, then introduced himself, "I'm Carter. Noble One. This is Kat, Noble Two," and he pointed at the girl as she was typing. Kat gave a simple wave with her mechanical arm, while Carter went on to point the others out, "Jun and Emile, Three and Four," and Emile was the one to raise his curved Kukri to say hi, "And Thom and Rosenda, seven and eight," before he watched the second-to-last Spartan give a mock salute.

The leader of Hedonia hummed, then nodded and said, "Alright, then. My name's Rosanna and I lead Hedonia," before leaning onto the table and stating, "Let's put all our cards on the table here, I think we're the most disappointed we weren't called up for the Coup. Would've loved to give little miss Missilis a piece of my mind…" and her men laughed. Noble remained unfazed.

Beside her, Sakura rolled her eyes, then put a hand up to her chest and spoke, "Sakura, of the Seimeikai. Forgive Rosanna. She is certainly the most brash one of us," which got her a glare from the woman. She tilted her head to the chairs in front of them, as if telling them it was impolite for anyone to be standing, then sat down and continued, "With that in mind… Why are your numbers so skewed? You skipped three members."

"You saw Jorge, Number Five, downstairs, tending to the people being evacuated," Carter replied, which made Moran perk up, while Sakura cracked a small smirk. He then sighed and added, "And our current Number Six has been missing since before our arrival here. Intel's open to read if you want to know how the Counters found us," before he sat himself down, too.

"That's concerning," Moran began, leaning onto the table, "You guys need any help finding them?"

"We're okay," Kat spoke softly, "He'll show up somewhere. Always does," then she closed her laptop.

The Peony leader hummed, then perked up and said, "Oh, right. Name's Moran. I'm the leader of the Peony Association. We tend to do what your Number Five does more often than not. Humanitarian work if you can believe it," while smiling. She continued, "So… Hate to be the one to break the niceness, but why are we here?"

Carter was blunt and to the point. "We believe UNDERWORLD QUEEN might have viable intel to help us track down several important targets. Namely, Chief Deputy Dhoban, born in the Outer Rim, and several fugitive Nikkes that are believed to be part of the Heavenly Ascension terrorist group. Chief squad among them seems to be Exotic."

The three women stared, surprised, before Rosanna spoke up, "Intelligence exchange, huh? Sounds normal enough," before waving forward one of her members. The suit-clad mafia officer leaned forward and Rosanna whispered something to her, before letting her go as soon as she got a nod of confirmation. She told them, "Hedonia will keep our eyes peeled. HA has its own smuggling channels, though."

"Dhoban, huh…" Sakura mumbled, "That brutish bastard has always been something of a loose cannon in the Ark's military, but he was loyal to the Central Government to a fault for getting him out of the Outer Rim," and she rubbed her chin. Turning to Carter, she continued, "A penchant for hating Nikkes notwithstanding, why would he work with Exotic? Anarchist terrorists are not his style."

"Times of crisis make strange bedfellows, ma'am," Carter replied curtly, getting a short laugh out of Rosanna. Ignoring it, he continued, "I don't think he likes the fact we took over," and he cast a glance back toward one of the old buildings about to be demolished to make way for new living areas in the Outer Rim. He looked back at them.

"Hm," Moran took a thinker's pose, pursing her lips and staring up at the ceiling. When a seemingly brainstorm struck her with an idea, she snapped her fingers and asked, "Hey, doesn't Viper operate with them? Tetra Nikke like us. Loves using Blabla, the phone app… I doubt she'd stop even as a fugitive unless Dhoban broke her phone, so we can probably use that to track them," and she saw the other two stare at her and smile. She shrugged, "What?"

Rosanna quipped, "Using your brains for once. Color me impressed, Moran."

"Oh, shut it," The woman answered in a low growl, "I'm smart," and Sakura's smile grew a bit as she nodded in approval. Moran sighed in annoyance, looked at Carter and said, "Ask Mustang or Doc Halsey to give you permission to use the tracking system on the Blabla app. Might make this ten times easier for everyone…"

The Seimeikai leader added, "And if you require backup, you can call us in as well."

"We appreciate it," Carter spoke, then looked at K and D sitting in the corner, stating, "I almost forgot Perilous Siege was here. They've been incredibly quiet," and he suddenly saw all three Underworld Queen leaders tense up. They locked gazes with the women in the corner, with K baring her fangs in a grin while D simply nodded to them in greeting.

"... Could'a warned us," Rosanna grumbled, "Anyway… That all?"

"For now, yes," Carter replied, "Thanks for your time. We'll check the app and wait to hear any Intel your groups gather," to which the three Criminal Gang leaders gave their nods of approval. Rosanna gave a wink to Carter, before they stood up and excused themselves, leaving the place with their guards… While bickering quietly like old friends.

Kat spoke, "This is gonna go well," sarcastically. She added, "I get Mustang has them wrapped around his finger," while Carter was looking at her, "But that doesn't make them any less dangerous. They're a squad commanding the forces of the three greatest criminal enterprises in this area. A little skepticism is warranted, sir. Don't you think?" and she got a nod from her boss. The others gave their own approval in different ways.

… They were on a bit of a Headhunt. Like the good old days…