The ship ended up crashing belly up on rocky ground. Owing to the skill of Otto, it skimmed across the ground before smashing nose-first into a mound of scrap slow enough that no one got hurt. While dazed, they all flopped out of the phantom which had now joined the many other ships left to rust and decay.

“Well, as far as crash landings are concerned that wasn’t too bad.” Bec said standing behind the two pilots.

“I can tell you it beats what happened to the Yissle. According to Markus, the thing was beyond salvageable.” Larek said.

“Ha ha… I’ll take his word for it,”

“On the topic of the Yissle…” Otto began. “Mind telling us who that ship belonged to.”

“Sure,” Bec nodded. “.... When we have the time,” He then turned about and walked away, leaving the pilots with their questions unanswered.

“If anyone comes asking, he’s gonna be going down with us,” Larek said to Otto.

“Agreed.”

Leaving the two pilots, Bec made his way over to Markus. His body glowed as his self-repairs were underway. Around him was Cliff, Mirage, Dale and Nel, all of whom were catching their collective breath.

“Yo. Good to see you in one piece,”

“As you,” Markus greeted, extending his right hand to shake Bec’s, completely engulfing the limb in his metal grip. “I had concerns that Altosk would have detained in my absence.”

“Who’d you think you’re talking to?” Bec chuckled. “So uh…” He looked among Cliff, Dale, Mirage and Nel that crowded around him. Of in the distance was Yuki, examining his katana close to were Otto and Larek were. The others were near the crashed phantom huddled around their ravenger ally. “Interesting friends you got.”

“You don’t know the half of it,” Cliff said as he approached, shaking Bec’s hand. “Bec right. Nice to meet you face to fa-ahh…”

Bec chuckled. “Don’t worry. I’m used to it.” He said tapping on his metal face. “Beside’s, I think it does wonders for my image.”

“R-Right…” Cliff nodded.

“.... Sad to say I kinda agree with him,” Dale said adjusting his glasses. “Makes him look like a rouge. A gunslinger for justice.”

“Thank you. At least someone understands,” Bec nodded.

“So… are we finally there,” Mirage said, looking up at the large cliff before them.

“Yep.” Bec pointed to an area off to the right where a large rail could be seen streaming from the bottom to the top. “Elevator to Figmar’s End is right there. We’ll stop by the bar then, let you guys have a breather, maybe a shower, then we’ll talk about what to do next.”

****

“Friends. Thank you.” Th’lak bowed, surrounded by Rodger, Meracle, Max, Sasha, Melvin and Cerberus. “Destroy fleet. Killed Shanks. Cripple Yiski. More than bargained. More than hoped.”

Off in the distance, a long trail of thick smoke could be seen from the chasm. They could not see the devastation, but if smoke could be seen from their position it could mean the blaze and devastation would have been serious.

“Aw shucks. It was nothing,” Rodger said to him, rubbing the back of his hair. “A real man always goes above and beyond!”

“Nyew…. I’m just glad those things aren’t shooting at us,” Meracle said, collapsing on the ground, both her tail and ears drooped. “... Thanks for your help Thall.”

“Yeah, we would’ve been hopelessly lost without you,” Sasha said.

Cerberus barked, approaching the ravenger. Th’lak lowered himself, raising his lower left hand gently stroking the fiery dog.

“Ha, If Cerberus likes you, I guess you’re alright,) Melvin said as Cerberus fell back to his master.

“You really helped us a lot,” Max said with a grin. “Need any help, just let us know and we’ll come running.”

“Not right now. We still need to find Allisa,”

“Oh… right.”

“No.” Th’lak shook his head. “In your debt. Th’lak is.” The ghost slowly emerged from his back. Th’lak looked towards it, slowly nodded his head. He lowered his body, extending his lower right arm to Rodger. The ghost flew past, hovering alongside Rodger’s left shoulder, blinking and beeping.

“Need assistance,” Th’lak stood back up. “Ghost, show you the way.”

The ghost hovered around Rodger. Stopping close to his face the samiet chuckled, tapping the machine in the center eye. The ghost then shrank by two inches before burring himself in Rodger’s tunic.

“Farewell. Friends of Char.” With a final word, Th’lak turned and scuttled away, swiftly disappearing into the scrap.

“See ya Thall! Thanks for ya help!” Rodger waved. Everyone watched as their unexpected ally vanished.

“Ha, guess they're not all bad,” Max said folding his arms.

“Yeah. I’m gonna miss him,” Sasha said with a smile.

****

After the brief respite to catch their collective breath, everyone regrouped once more. Bec leads them away from the crash site towards the elevator in the distance.

“Ahh, I could kill for a shower,” Mirage said stretching.

“And some new shoes,” Dale said looking at his sneakers that now had holes torn in them. “Hey Melvin. You can fix our stuff, right?”

“Clothes, Yeah. Easily,” Melvin said examining his own torn clothes.”

“Speaking of garment, it would behoove you to acquire new clothes,” Markus said.

“Bee-hoove?” Max tilted his head in confusion.

“‘Benefit’ you idiot,” Cliff said as Markus continued.

“Those clothes will draw too much attention, particularly if Altosk were to recognize them,”

“But where do we get new garments?” Nel asked.

“Once we arrive in Figmar’s end, we will proceed to the Far Edge bar at the edge of town. An…. aquatints of mine can help you.”

“Come on dude,” Bec tapped Markus on his left shoulder. “But it’s as he said. Blending in’ll make your lives easier.”

Nel suddenly stopped, reaching down to her knives. “Someone’s coming.”

“Bout time,” Bec chucked as everyone stood on guard. In the distance were two borgos armed with large guns. “Relax. I got this,” Bec waved overhead as he approached the two soldiers.

“Who goes there?” One of them bellowed.

“Giorga! Zolten! Didn’t your mothers tell you not to point those at everyone?” Bec said to them.

“Oh, it's just you Bec,” one of the borgos said lowering his gun. “Not causing any more trouble?”

“Hey come on. When’s the last time I’ve caused trouble for you guys?”

“You really wanna go into that?”

“..... Fair point,”

The other borgo looked over Bec’s shoulder at the large and messy group behind him. “Never seen you guys before. You with Bec.”

“Uh… Y-Yeah. You could say that,” Cliff nodded.

Seemingly satisfied with the answer, the borgo pointed to the smoke in the distance. “And I guess you had a hand in that?”

Bec turned to look at it. “Well, I can’t take all the credit. But let’s just say that fleet that’s been terrorizing the settlements along the wall is out of commission. Oh, and the krell to boot.”

“Ha! Best news I’ve heard all week,” The borgo cheered, slapping each other in the back. “Come on! We’ll escort you to the elevator.”

Bec gave the group a wave as the borgos began to walk away before following after them.

“Finally, someone nice,” Dale sighed with relief.

The cyborg outpost

After a brief stroll through more of the now-familiar scrap metal and makeshift pathways, the party finally reached the bottom of the massive cliff. At its base was a complex sealed off by large fences. Armed guards, hune, borgo and bunika stood vigil, watching for signs of attack likely from the ravengers. Automated turrets spooled on their axis, scanning the party as they approached. Bec spoke to the two borgo guards, eventually joined by a bunika who seemed to be the commander.

“Nyew?” Meracle mused as she noticed half of the bunika’s face was metal.

“You’ll see more of that when we get into town,” Otto said as the group was ushered into the compound. It was small, with only ten people manning its defenses. The inside was largely empty say for a single rectangle building and several consoles. At the far end was the elevator, a large platform connected to rails that scaled the entire cliff. Up close, it was difficult not to feel overwhelmed by the scale to which they would be ascending and how minuscule it seemed from where they began.

“Whoa,” Sasha got close to the edge. Mirage stood behind her, gently holding her back from falling off.

The large expanse they had traversed looked far smaller from up high. The towering mounds of garbage stretching towards the large wall at the far edge of the plain. The sun that appeared fixed above now baited the expansion in the light of a strange dawn.

Eventually the elevator reached the top of the cliff, a small junction built into a cave in the rock. After the gates opened, Bec lead them through the small tunnel back into the open.

“Okay folks. Welcome to Figmars End.”

Through the rusted iron gates was a long dirt road with metal buildings along the side of the road. While certainly far more sophisticated than the haphazard capsules of the ravengers, to those who called Terra their home the thought of an advanced shanty town came to mind. The buildings were square and rectangle blocks copied and pasted with additions and ornaments welded on. Large lights and banners lined the street. Like with all towns, even as one with such a run-down feel as this, it was still bustling with activity. Humans, borgo and bunika all roamed across the street. Venders sold wairs from machines to weapons. Strange vehicles that half the party could never have dreamed to have existed, ones that hover above the ground, flew back and forth. Large neon signs and small nameplates were dotted all over, written in a strange set of symbols the party had never seen before, and some so worn by the dirt it couldn’t even be considered legible even if one could understand it.

“So this is it?” Max said taking a step ahead of the party. “.... It’s kinda a dump.”

“Hey, that's very rude.” Sasha pouted.

“Well sure, it’s not Destiny’s judgment, Emerald falls or High Rise,” Bec said, taking in the full splendor of the town. “But it’s definitely not….. Well, Destiny’s judgment, Emerald falls or High Rise,” He finished in a defeated tone. “But the people around here are hard-working folks, and most importantly hate Altosk as much as I guess all of you.”

“It’s far removed from High Rise’s authority due to its location. As we appeared here undetected we should be safe here,” Markus explained. “That said we should move any discussion about our course of action to a more secluded place. There is no guarantee someone would not betray us to Altosk.”

“Yeah, you do that,” Larek said as he and Otto strolled past. “We’re going home.”

“You’re not gonna help us?” Max asked.

“Sorry, but we’ve had enough excitement to last a lifetime,” Otto said. “You guys are going up against Altosk and we want no part of that,”

“What he said,” Larek said before turning back around. “But seriously, I hope you get your friend back,”

Cliff nodded back. “Thanks for everything,”

With small goodbyes from all present, the two pilots took their leave, disappearing into the crowds.

“Alrighty,” Bec began to walk into the streets, “Follow me, and try not to draw too much attention to yourselves.”

Bec led the battered party down the Main Street of the town, doing their best to avoid the constant traffic of vehicles and people, a good portion of them giving wary glances. Whether it was the strange clothes, two of their numbers with tails or that they were just caution of outsiders, no one dared to approach or speak to them. Nel though did spy a few keeping their hands close to guns or whatever weapon they possessed.

Though what caught the attention of the others was that a majority of the townsfolk had metal appendages, raining from crudely made arms and legs, to eyes, jaws with one borgo having a gun grafted onto its left shoulder.

“Man, what’s with everyone here?” Rodger eventually asked. “They all got metal bits on them.”

“Noticed, did ya?” Bec chuckled. “You see, augments and prosthetics are expensive, more than what most people out of the cities can afford. That’s what makes towns like this close to dumping grounds so appealing. Cause of the abundance of parts, getting a new arm or leg won’t cost an arm or a leg. While you may have to be careful about who exactly operates on ya, augments round these parts are typically cheap to get and maintain.”

“That makes sense,” Dale said. “So that’s the same for the two of you?”

“Not… exactly,” Bec shook his head. “Markus and I got out metal parts from somewhere else, and a lot of our prosthetics are maintained by nanomachines. Well… I do at least.”

“My eather abilities allow me to maintain and repair myself, thus removing the need for a third party for the procedure,” Markus said. “And as you’ve witnessed, I can morph my body parts to adapt to the situation as permitted.”

“You’re gonna make me jealous.” Bec chuckled playfully tapping his fist on Markus’s left arm.

“Well, he’s an interesting character. I’ll give him that,” Mirage said as they continued.

“You trust him?” Yuki asked Nel who walked alongside him.

“No.” The assassin responded. “But I’m typically wary of any stranger we meet.”

“Right,”

The Far Edge bar

After a brief walk, ignoring more gathering gazes that fell on them, Bec led the party further out of town to a rocky overcrop. There, nestled into the base was a single, two-story shanty building with a large neon sign.

“And here we are. The Far Edge.” Bec said proudly as they approached.

“Is this… a bar?” Cliff asked as a guess.

“Sure is. Take it you got them where you’re from.”

“Y-Yeah. Just surprised to see one all the way out here, tucked out of the way.”

“Yeah… It was all we could afford at the time, but people know where we are at least. Little spit and shine and I’d say we’ve been able to turn a literal dump into a nice home at the edge of this biome.”

“With everything I’ve seen, this place has a real Wild West vibe,” Dale said.

“Wild West?” Rodger asked, earning him an exhausted sigh from Dale.

“Did you even bother to look at the books we gave you? I’m certain you can read them.”

“Wild west…” Nel pondered. “I think it refers to a society of inbred humans who capture travelers. They torture men and rape woman in order to produce hideous offspring.”

Both Cliff and Dale glanced at Nel. “What books are you even reading…?” Dale asked.

“I don’t even want to know…” Cliff sighed.

While they were talking, Markus stood in front, staring blankly at the sign, his right hand clenching into a fist.

“Is something wrong Markus?” Sasha asked.

“Hm… Ah, yes. I am alright.” Markus nodded.

“Well come on then,” Bec tapped the cyborg on the back. “Can’t keep her waiting forever.”

“.... I suppose not,” Without answering anyone, Markus strolled forwards towards the door large enough to accommodate his size. The door opened automatically and the cyborg squeezed through it. Small rays of light penetrated the partially blinded and dust-covered windows into the bar. Stools and tables lay in neet rows, machines and games along the wall, the barstool at the far end with a collection of multicolored liquids all neatly stored in their respective jugs.

“Sorry, we’re closed.” A voice called. Out from a back room, a large borgo draped in a dark pink vest walked out. “Ya all gonna need to-” The borgo woman froze.

“Berta...” Markus said bowing his head.

“Markus?”

“I-I am aware I’ve dropped by unannounced again-”

Before Markus could begin, the woman approached and threw her arms over his metal body, squeezing the life out of him if it were possible.

“How long are you gonna make me worry?!” The woman wept.

“.... I’m sorry,” Markus gently wrapped his arms around the woman.

“See, told you he was fine,” Bec casually strolled past them. “So you’re not mad anymore.”

“Oh I am still furious!” The woman snapped at Bec before tapping her forehead against Markus’s. She then freed herself from the cyborg, tears streaming down her eyes. “.... So Ion?”

Anticipating her question, Markus shook his head. “We did all we could, but they were one step ahead it seemed.”

A deep sigh came from the woman. “.... Poor thing.”

“Yeah…. That’s not the worst of it,” Bec pointed over his shoulder to the party outside. The woman wiped her eyes, blinking as she saw the group.

“The situation has become rather complex,” Markus said.

****

Berta, the borgo woman, leaned on the counter opposite, Markus, Bec and Cliff. “That’s… That’s quite a lot to take in.”

“We’re still trying to make sense of it ourselves,” Cliff said, taking a sip of his purple-colored drink.

Everyone had scattered all over the premises, occupying every seat in the establishment catching their collective breaths. They’d been walking, climbing and fighting for an entire night and were plainly exhausted by the endeavor. Even the energetic Max and Yuki showed signs of fatigue. Despite being complete strangers, Berta accommodated all of them without question, serving the adults an alcoholic beverage and the children a soft drink (which she assured was consumable for hunes). As everyone relaxed, fitting into human seats and small and large seats that were made for the two other races, Cliff, Nel, Dale, Mirage and Melvin tried to explain their situation as best as they could.

“I’d understand if you don’t believe us,” Melvin said.

“Na, I believe ya you're telling the truth,” Berta said. “Markus is no lier. He says ya from another world then I believe ya,”

“Thank you,” Markus bowed his head. “I realize this is placing a large inconvenience upon you,”

“Hey now. You know I could never say no to ya,” Berta sighed as she washed a glass. “So, Ion got close to this friend of yours, uh… Icha?”

“Allisa,” Nel corrected her. “She was taken after fighting one of Altosk’s heavy hitters. Ah, Leo right?”

The name alone was enough for Berta to shudder.

“Ha, if it was Leo she’s long gone,” Bec commented.

“Allisa’s alive!” Max blurted out.

“Yeah, no way she’s gonna get herself killed by one of them Altosk bastards!” Rodger added in.

“Although she was clearly beaten. We all saw that,” Yuki said, earning him a few piercing stairs.

“It’s as he said,” Markus said. “And if they went through the trouble to bring her back alive, I’m certain she is still alive for now,”

“Not encouraging,” Bec said, swirling a drink in his hand before bringing it to his metal lips.

“Hate to tell ya, but if she was taken with Ion then she’d be up there in Grand Vault.” Berta shook her head.

“In all probability, yes,” Markus bowed his head.

“This uh, Grand Vault,” Melvin said. “The pilots mentioned it before. They say it’s a tough fortress.”

“Sure is,” Berta nodded at the boy. “Was constructed bout four hundred years ago after the last great war, and in its history, not one army has been able to breach even the first wall.”

“It’s built on a terra where the only way in is by air.” Bec rested his drink on the bar, wiping a bit of liquid that escaped his metal lips. The main keep is situated on a small mountain and is surrounded by two layers and three defensive walls. Not to mention a ring of eather cannons that can down a fleet in about three seconds; courtesy of our resident madman professor Razz. Ha ha… talk about a fine mess I made,”

Nel leaned in on the bar, eyeing the cyborg who sat two seats away. “Care to elaborate on that?” Bec simply shook his head.

“The whole thing about traveling through the void. Yeah, that was my plan.”

“He’s also the one who ‘abducted’ Ion in the first place,” Berta added. “Brought her back here and roped those two poor pilots into this mess,”

“Nyow I get it,” Meracle said, sitting on her seat on all fours. “This is all your fault.”

“.... More or less,”

“I was also complacent in this as well,” Markus added. “I put it to her the option of changing her allegiance. I… perpetrated these events.”

“You did the right thing,” Berta said sternly. “That poor girls suffered for far too long.”

“And let’s face it; no one could’ve predicted things would end up like this,” Bec said gesturing to the group sitting behind them.

“So… what do we do now?” Sasha asked.

“Aint it obviously!” Max pounded his fists together. “We go to this Grand Vault and spring Allisa outta there!”

“And the fact that no army has ever breached it in over four centuries hasn’t dampened your resolve,” Dale said, gulping down his drink.

“So what? We busted those Ravenger things,”

“Barely,” Bec raised his drink, swirling the liquid around in its glass. “Look, you guys are tough, I can say that much. But just you guys alone won’t be enough to break into Grand Vault. Not only you have those eather cannons but standing between you and the keep is an army of highly trained soldiers with some serious firepower, powerful eather users like the lieutenants and the three Stars to get through.”

“Stars?” Cliff asked.

“There are three among their number who possess unbridled strength and prowess and have been granted high positions in Altosk’s command structure,” Markus explained. “The one who took your friend was Leo the Gunbreaker who is the official guardian of the Star Singer.”

“That’s not a title they just give to anyone, trust me.” Bec continued. “Then you got Marie the Blade Dancer and Mouro the unbreakable. Each one of them is an army in their own right.”

“Of course…” Dale sighed, “This is why I wanted to stay behind,”

“I do understand your desire to help your friend, and I share some of the blame for this current predicament. However, I would highly recommend against taking such brash action. Altosk will show you no mercy.” Markus bowed his head. “But you have my word, I will find a way to rescue your friend,”

The sobering mood sunk into the rest of the party. After coming all this way, they were no closer to rescuing Allisa than they were before. The next half an hour, the gang bounced ideas back and forth, trying to think of what their next course of action next. Max and Rodger were still fairly vocal on charging Grand Vault to liberate their long-lost friend while Cliff and Dale remained staunchly opposed to causing chaos. Things seemed to be going nowhere when Berta came up with a suggestion.

“Why don’t you ask Dr. Edger?”

Her suggestion sparked both Markus and Bec.

“Huh, didn’t think of that.”

“A friend of yours?” Nel asked.

“Dr. Edger was the man who operated on both myself and Bec.” Markus explained. “He is a highly skilled engineer renowned in the field of cybernetics and eather technology,”

“But more importantly, he was the chief scientist for Altosk before the governess and Razz forced him out. If anyone knows a way in, it's him.” Bec said. He then looked distracted, pulling out a small device.

“Sweet!” Rodger cheered as Bec walked away.

“Nyow, he can help us save Allisa!” Meracle said enthusiastically.

“I cannot promise anything, but it’s the only resource we have.” Markus said before a loud “ah shit” came from Bec before putting away the device.

“Is there a problem?” Yuki asked.

“Just got a call from the guards. Ciryn and her boys are here.”

“Ciryn?” Berta scowled. “What did you do this time?”

“For once, I have no idea,” Bec said walking to the counter.

“Uh… care to fill us in?” Dale asked. “An old girlfriend?”

“... Something like that.” Bec ducked under the counter. Suddenly the floor to the right began to move. Max, Cerberus and Rodger who were standing on it jumped as the floor parted into a cellar. “But for your own safety and saving me from a very long and heated explanation,” Bec rose from behind the counter. “Please make your way to the cellar and do not come out under any circumstances.”

Everyone looked at the path to the cellar confused.

“Expecting trouble?” Yuki asked.

“Hopefully not,” Bec crossed his fingers.

“I’d do what he says,” Berta said removing some of the finished glasses from the counter. “Ciryn’s not the patient sort, nor the trusting.”

“Alright,” Nel got up from her seat. “It’s best we don’t cause too much of a screen. For Allisa’s sake at least.”

As though her name carried with it a spell, everyone began to file their way down into the dark cellar without argument.

“You’d uh, better go to,” Bec said to Markus just as Mirage, Melvin and Cerberus ducked down into the cellar.

“Excuse me?”

“There’s a good chance Ciryn’s heard about Ion’s attempted exodus to Marina and she’s not gonna be that happy. With you at least.”

“I beg your pardon?”

Inspecting his revolver, Bec strolled out from behind the counter. “I… may have used your name with someone in Frontier to get Ion’s itinerary so I could ‘kidnap’ her.”

Markus looked to Berta who nodded.

“Hey it worked, didn’t it.” Bec said innocently.

Brooding, Markus got up from his stood and hulked down into the cellar. The floor moved in behind him, trapping the group below.

“You should be able to hear what’s going on. Just don’t make a sound.” Bec called out, “Alrighty,” twirling his hand cannon, turning out the cylinder to check if the gun was loaded. “Let’s say hello.”

****

Bec slowly inched his way to the door, resting at the left-hand side. Gun held up, his finger slowly inching towards the trigger. The door slid open with a large borgo standing at the threshold, a large chain gun in his hand. The borgo took a step forwards, spooling his weapon around. As he turned, Bec pounced, leaping on the gun before kneeing the brute in the chin. As he fell, a bunika lunged from the door, aiming an SMG, only for Bec to spin on his heal, grab the bunika by the ruff of her tunic while pressing his foot down hard on the borgos neck. Spinning again, Bec aimed his gun at the hune standing at the door, trying to bring his sniper rifle to bear.

“.... A dangit,” The hune, Ace swore as he slung his weapon.

“Haha, nice try.” Cheerfully, Bec dropped the bunika, Felica before getting off the borgo, Warrol.

“Ah shit, thought we had ya there,” Warrol said, holding his neck as he got up.

“Haven’t lost your touch boss,” Felica beamed. “Man, how long has it been?”

“Too long,” Bec said as he high-fived Ace. “Though I’d say you still got a long way to go if you wanna take me on,”

“Haven’t changed one bit I see,” Standing at the door, staff in hand was the fiery red-head, Ciryn.

“Good to see you too, oh illustrious leader of Frontier,” Bec sarcastically bowed before holding his weapon. “Good to see you still kicking,”

Ciryn gave a small smile before walking towards the counter along with her men. “Hey, Berta.”

“Heya Berta!” Felica waved as the trio took their seats to the left.

“Heya guys,” Berta smiled back. “The usual’s I take it.”

“He-ha, you know it!” Warrol said loudly as he lay his chain gun beside him.

“Make mine strong,” Ace said.

“Isn’t it too early to get intoxicated?” Felica scowled.

“After all that shit went down, I could use something to unwind.”

“Ha, I’m with ya there. Yo! Make mine strong too!” Warrol said loudly.

“Rowdy as always,” Berta chuckled. She ducked under the counter and brought out two bottles of amber and turquoise liquor. “Lucky for all’a ya I got something stashed away for you.” With a smile, she began pouring two drinks, placing them on the counter before sliding them to Ace and Warrol. Grasses raised, both took a drink while ignoring the disapproval stair from their bunika partner. “Anything for you, Ciryn?”

To her right sat Ciryn, her staff resting against the counter. “No thanks. I didn’t come here to drink.”

“Aw, don’t be like that. Least take the opportunity to relax once in a while,” Bec said cheerfully, taking a seat beside her.

“Good to see you’re still alive my dear,” Berta said as she tidied up more of the glasses left by the previous customers that were now huddled below their feet. “How’s Rika?”

The question was met with a stubborn silence from Ciryn.

“Come on girl. She’s still your sister,” Berta said to her folding her arms. She was once again met with silence.

“Forget it Berta,” Felica sighed. “Believe me, we’ve tried.”

“Sure do miss her,” Ace said raising his glass. “She’s the only thing that made Frontier come alive.”

“I hear ya. You just can’t replace someone like that.” Warrol said. “Uh, no offense,” He raised his glass to the vexed Ciryn.

“Scuse me, what am I?” Bec butted in.

“A jackass people put up with,” Ace said.

“Oh, right,” Bec sighed sarcastically, twirling his drink in one hand. “Thought I was a bit more then-”

“We didn’t come here to reminisce,” Ciryn interrupted impatiently. “We’re actually here on business,”

“Of course you are,”

Ciryn leaned back on her seat, folding her arms as she frowned at Bec. “I’m fine with you keeping in contact with the troops but I do mind when you exploit our information network for your own agenda.”

“Meaning… what exactly.”

“The Star Singer’s disappearance. That was you, wasn’t it?”

“.... Maybe,”

“Ha-ha! That’s our boss for ya!” Warrol shouted loudly. Ciryn silenced him with a quick glare before returning her attention to Bec.

“So what was the plan? Actually, let me guess.” Ciryn continued. “You and Markus were planning to smuggle her out of Ter’figmar altogether, take her to Marina and change her allegiance.”

“More or less,” Bec shrugged.

“Compromising everything we’ve worked towards-”

“No-no-no, what you’ve been working towards. I’m with your sister on that point.”

“As am I.” Berta’s smile had disappeared, now a frown directed at Ciryn. “I can’t believe you’re still going on about that. By the Ekon, she’s your friend.”

“That’s in the past,” Ciryn said coldly. “But the plan failed, didn’t it. Badly.”

“I wouldn’t put it that way but… yeah. Ion’s back with Altosk,” Bec sighed, raising his glass. “Come all this way to gloat.”

“She isn’t with Altosk.” Ciryn said. Both Bec and Berta snapped to her attention. “That inside source you used told us she was being transported back to Grand Vault aboard the Sovereign's Hope and we moved to liberate her.”

“... Oh don’t tell me,” Berta’s jaw dropped. “You didn’t attack that monster directly?!”

Ciryn did not respond at once, but the trio did look away awkwardly to avoid the furious gaze of the borgo woman.

“We used anti-ship lances to attack it and managed to cause significant damage.” Ciryn continued.

“And in the confusion, you managed to get Ion outta there?” Bec guessed.

“No. But-” Ciryn glanced down the counter to Ace. The sniper brought out a small hologram projector and slid it towards his boss. Ciryn tapped the center to activate it. It showed a picture of Ion in clothes similar to Markus’s new friends wore, her AST Berken, and a blond-haired girl who matched the description of ‘Allisa.’ Berta picked up on it as well, eyeing Bec as though praying to the Ekon he keeps quite.

“I got a good look at her. She ain’t one of us and She ain’t Altosk.” Ace said.

“One of yours?” Ciryn asked.

“Nnnnope. Never seen her before,” Bec shook his head. He had to keep up the act for now at least. “So, where was this taken? A base?”

“You uh… haven’t seen the news?” Warrol asked.

“Since it’s all Altosk crap, not really. Why?”

“That’s not important,” Ciryn said. “What’s important is that Ion is not with Altosk. If we find this girl we can-”

The main monitor for the bar flashed on as Berta flipped through the options to the news report. The announcer, Hogi, an old gray furred bunika was in the middle of reading the ongoing news in the cities, which usually was fluff pieces for Altosk.

“-our latest story. As you all know, over two weeks ago, the beloved Star Singer Ion was abducted. We have confirmed that the assailant for this heinous crime was none other than the agitator Bec and the distressed scientist Markus, as ween in this image-” Two images flashed up, showing off both Bec and Markus.

“Is my chin really that big?” Bec said jokingly.

“However, due to the diligent efforts of supreme commander Aralius and the First Star Leo; the Star Singer has been rescued from her imprisonment. The figutives are sadly still at large-”

“Really talking it up, isn’t he?” Felica scoffed.

“Man, listening to this shit makes me wanna break something,” Warrol spat.

“- Sovereign’s Hope. Sadly, after making it into Conduit T7, the ship was then attacked by Frontier led by none other than Ciryn-”

Both Berta and Bec turned to Ciryn, both their eyes wide with shock.

“-Sadly, many servicemen lost their lives but the enemy was repelled and the Star Singer has safely returned to Grand Vault. Due to the ordeal, we’ve been informed she is currently recovering and is unable to give a statement. I think I speak for all Ter’figmar when I say to Star Singer Ion, It moves my heart that you are safe and well. We wish you a swift recove-” The monitor was turned off by Berta. A heavy silence fell as Berta glared at the silent trio, her eyes burning with anger before turning to Ciryn.

“Please tell me that’s their usual crap,” She said slowly.

“...... Any attack on the Sovering’s Hope would be risky,” Ciryn said. “Especially with the Star Singer onboard-”

“How many?” Bec muttered.

“That’s not important-”

Bec banged his fist on the counter, knocking over a few of the glasses. He then got up from his stool, rubbing his forehead.

“All we’ve done is attack outposts and depots! If we’re going to take down Golmoria we need to strike big! Where it hurts! The Sovereign’s Hope is the single most powerful weapon in their arsenal. We have to take a shot sooner or later and hopefully in a place where security is lacking-”

“A CONDUIT!” Bec exploded. “By the Ekon, you’re lucky you didn’t bring the Enforcers down on you!”

“About that-” Ace began.

“Oh perfect, absolutely perfect!”

“Dones, gargoyles and they covered our retreat!” Ciryn fired back. “An opportunity like that doesn't come every day! We had to take the risk!”

“That’s the thing with you! Ends always justify the means and the cost! This is exactly why I left-!”

“You mean you ran away like my sister!”

‘Call it what you will, but if this shit is your idea of liberation, I’m glad I jumped ship when I did!”

“So you’d rather live your life hiding under that bitches boot then-!”

“ENOUGH!” Berta bellowed, her voice echoing through the bar. “That is enough. Both of you!”

Both Bec and Ciryn backed away from earth other, cooling down before beginning their discourse again.

“Okay, what exactly do you want from me?” Bec asked. “Why did you come here on the other side of Ter’Figmar just to speak with me of all people?”

Ciryn took in a deep breath, cooling her own head before continuing. “Ion’s on the run with that girl. My guess is, of all the people she’d turn to it would be my sister. We need to convince her to denounce Altosk so we can inspire the population to rise up against Golmoria.”

“You know Rika won’t let you use her like that,” Bec said.

“That’s why I need you to convince her-”

Bec laughed.

“At least-! At least let me know when they make contact. I’ll go over them myself and…

“And what? Convince her? Like you did before?”

Ciryn didn’t respond.

“..... You’re not gonna take her by force, are you?” Bec asked in a serious tone. “You… you wouldn’t…”

“.... If it comes to it.” She said eventually. “Just… Just do me this favor. And I promise… once Golmoria is overthrown then… I’ll see to it you get your face back. Your real face.”

Bec was speechless.

“.... What do you think?”

Silently, Bec returned to the counter and picked up his drink, swirling the remaining liquid in his hand as he took a seat. Then he slowly bowed his head. “... I think you should leave.”

A heavy silence fell as no one dared speak a word. Ciryn marched up to the counter, took her staff and turned about and stormed to the entrance. As the door opened she stopped. “You know… this is a nice town.” Slowly she glanced over her shoulder. “Suites a coward like you.” Bec gave her a backhanded wave as the door closed behind her.

The trio looked at each other awkwardly before they got up. “Uh… we Should… uh…” Warrol muttered as he grabbed his chain gun.

Ace pulled out a credit chip but Berta waved at him. “On the house. Just… stay alive.”

“Th-thanks…” Ace nodded, putting his credit chip away. “... See ya boss.”

“Y-Yeah. Uh…” Warrol nodded.

“It was… really good to see you again Bec,” Felica said as the three took their leave.

Once the door closed behind them, Betra pressed the button to open the cellar. Everyone that was huddled inside filed out once more, staring at Bec. They had clearly heard everything.

“Sorry you had to see that,” Bec sighed deeply, reaching towards the hologram projector that Ace had left behind. “Soooo, this friend of yours,” Activating it, projecting the image for all to see, Bec swung around on his stool, glass in hand and legs crossed. “That wouldn’t happen to be her would it?”