The next morning, Greg met with the Generals to let them know the situation with the Technocracy. "The- The Technocracy just left?!?" Lapodala asked incredulously.

"I made a very persuasive argument." Greg shrugged.

"You can't argue with-" Lapodala began.

"But I just did." Greg cut her off. "Funny how it worked, huh? Maybe all that rhetoric you've had shoved down your throat isn't as solid as you'd like to think." He paused. "Though, to be fair, my argument did involve proving that they couldn't win. I don't think you guys have that option, at least not on a larger scale. Individual battles, sure, but this war wouldn't be a thing if you guys were capable of a decisive victory." He paused again. "Plus, they didn't exactly leave. They're just waiting. Cause here, they definitely lose, but if the Technocracy wins across the entire planet, they can still 'win' by default. I just convinced them to not waste their lives throwing themselves at a problem that could just solve itself."

"And what happens when we win?" Lapodala asked, raising an eyebrow at him. "Do you think they will simply roll over and die for us?"

Greg scratched his head. "I… honestly haven't thought that far yet. I suppose… we give them a choice? Accept mana or die? That's your usual MO, isn't it? Not like they have much choice. Though I was thinking, the Technocracy has all this technology to keep mana out, and y'all can transform into whatever race you want, so why not let the people who want to avoid mana do so, but the only way for them to have kids is to use a mage as a surrogate? The kid will naturally adjust to mana in the womb, but they won't be mages from birth, right? Will they still need to be awakened?" Lapodala nodded hesitantly. "Great, so they can still be raised by their parents in the mana-free zone, and once they're ready, they can leave to join Mage society no problem. And so, all the integration problems will be solved in a generation!"

"That is an… interesting idea, but there's one issue." Lapodala shook her head. "We don't have the technology to keep mana out, and we can't make it even if we knew how! Mana interferes with technology on a fundamental level, causing anything we try to make to break down."

"So work with the Technocracy." Greg shrugged.

"Ah, yes, because they will be so willing to plan for their own extinction." Bianca commented, rolling her eyes. Greg turned to frown at her, and she flushed slightly. "I'm just saying, we have to be realistic here. The only way they're going to work with the mages is if they have no other options. I agree that we should be trying to find a better solution, but relying on the Technocracy won't be an option until it's already too late."

Greg sighed. "Okay, that's fair." He frowned for a moment, before snapping his fingers in realization. "I'll do it! I can go steal their technology and use it no problem! My smoke doesn't give two shits about mana. Hell, I have one of their implants in my head right now. Really convenient. Would recommend. Though I do have to pretty much constantly repair the ones in my mage bodies… so not really an option for you guys. But I'm sure you knew that."

"This is all well and good, but it isn't something we need to deal with now." The punk interjected. "Earth was already fucked. What we need to focus on is surviving this war with the Technocracy. Our battle is dealt with, sure, but there are still dozens-"

"Thousands." Lapodala interjected.

"-of other-" The punk continued.

"Thousands, really?" Greg asked curiously.

"-battles that-" The punk soldiered on, frustration beginning to build in his tone.

"It makes sense." Bianca shrugged. "We have about two hundred thousand people here. Times a thousand, that's two hundred million. We had about eight billion people on Earth before everything happened, so that would make a survival rate of… two and a half percent. And we know it's better than that, so yeah, a couple thousand makes sense. Plus, we may not even be the only world sent here."

"Guys!" The punk smacked the table, getting their attention. "We need to focus! No matter how many people there are-"

"It's just your world." Lapodala commented. "Think of it as a relocation, making this your new home planet."

"No matter-" The punk growled.

"You did that on purpose." Greg chuckled, noticing Lapodala's slight smirk.

"Fuck!" The punk threw up his hands in frustration.

"He does have a good point though." Bianca muttered. "What are we going to do about the other battles? Should we send reinforcements?"

Lapodala snorted. "If you think we're letting you people anywhere near the rest of your race until this war is over, you're out of your minds. No, you all can just sit tight and wait for all this to be over."

"I find it funny that you think you can stop me from going anywhere." Greg retorted.

Lapodala glared at him. "It'd be pointless anyway. You can reach maybe a few other ships in the time it takes for this war to end, and after that, we shall be telling them all the truth anyway. You would only distract them when they need to be focused on the immediate threat."

Greg blinked. "Wait, seriously? You're telling them?"

"Of course. We believe it is necessary to hide the truth initially, to keep everyone focused on the task at hand, but once this world is safe, you shall have the time to come to terms with the necessity of what we did." Lapodala explained. "We don't hide from the evils we must commit to save the universe, we simply recognize that there is a time and a place for truth, and during a war to determine the fate of an entire planet is not that time. Look how it almost turned out for you."

Greg paused, considering that. He thought of all the things that they could have done, probably should have done, if they weren't so focused on how to deal with the Mage Republic, ignoring the very real threat of the Technocracy right in front of them. The Generals had essentially spent the entire time bickering instead of doing their jobs and coming up with plans to address the situation. "That… is a fair point." Greg tentatively agreed, not exactly happy about the realization. Carelessly blabbing seriously could have doomed everyone here. The only reason it hadn't was because Greg was ridiculous and could turn into a freaking lightning ball. Otherwise, their only chance would have been to assault a fortified position to destroy those cannons, which… well, they might have won, but a lot of people would be dead by the time they did.

Lapodala shook her head. "Do you really think we'd leave a ticking time bomb alone like that? Eventually the truth will get out, either when someone tries to go back to Earth, or they join the military and witness us doing the same to another planet, and then a loyal population would suddenly turn on us for our betrayal. No, we will help you settle in on the planet, then tell you, and let you sort it out in peace."

"I assume this is another one of your 'we've tried everything and this is what works' things?" Greg commented with a sigh. That was the problem with dealing with a giant galactic empire. They'd spent so much time and resources to get to this point, that pretty much every problem had been addressed in pretty much every way possible.

Lapodala nodded. "Of course."

"Wait, hold on." The preppy dude interjected. "You're saying we should just sit here and wait to see how all this falls out?!? To just sit tight and see if we live or die!?!"

"What other options do you have?" Lapodala asked. "As I said, there are thousands of other ships and this war will be over in a week or two. There is no such thing as a prolonged siege in this type of battle. No matter what you do, you cannot affect the end result of this conflict. But do not be too concerned. Your species, as a whole, is rather… gifted at warfare. I'm fairly confident you will triumph and take this planet as your own."

"And if we don't?" The nerdy girl asked.

"Then we all will die as the shield fails and the Technocracy's World Cannon cracks this planet like an egg, turning it into a mass of resources to fuel their ever increasing need for energy." Lapodala shrugged. "Such is life."

*

"So, yeah, that's it. All we can do is wait." Greg shrugged after explaining the results of the meeting to Tessa and the rest, including Narita. "The punk and the preppy dude aren't happy, but Lapodala has a point. Anything we do at the moment will probably do more harm than good."

"I'm beginning to develop a certain level of respect for this Mage Republic." Narita commented. "They aren't… classically evil, in the usual way large empires can be, nor are they classically good… they are rather solidly neutral. Or more actually, practical. They have a goal, and they are pursuing it in the best way they know how."

Victor blinked at her, before turning to Greg. "So we're friends with her now? Kind of a quick turn around from being a soldier of the Technocracy just a bit ago."

Greg sighed. "It's complicated and something I really don't want to get into right now, but yeah, we're friends now."

Victor shrugged. "Fair enough."

"Wait, did you say she's from the Technocracy?!?" Jake asked incredulously.

"That's so cool!" Casey exclaimed, turning towards Narita bright eyed. "What's it like? Do you guys have deep dive VR? How about robots? AI? Did you reach the singularity!?!"

Narita blinked at Casey for a moment, before smiling lightly. "We do have deep dive VR, though it is mostly used as a way to maintain a cohesive community across interstellar distances. I'd be willing to bet the Mage Republic has something similar as well, though given your situation, you may not have access to it yet. As for robots and AI… the Technocracy has judged such things to be unnecessarily limiting, precisely because of the failure to achieve the singularity. Without the ability to develop independently, any machine will rapidly be rendered obsolete by someone with even the most basic implant. Therefore robots are only used as unskilled labor."

"Aw." Casey pouted in disappointment.

"Casey, you're a mage." Victor rolled his eyes. "Even if there were intelligent robots, your mana would fry them."

"Man, mechanical races would be screwed by magic." Greg commented.

"Not necessarily." Narita replied. "A mechanical race may be adaptable enough to integrate magic into their technology, or to adapt magic to suit their needs. Take this ship for example. Purely magical, yet also an advanced technology. The base principles are different, but the results are the same."

"So you're saying we might need to worry about magic robots at some point?" Greg asked, raising an eyebrow at her.

"Oh! What if magic is the key to the singularity!" Casey exclaimed. "The systematic nature of technology combined with the unpredictability of magic to create a unique life form!"

"Isn't the point of this entire war that magic and technology don't combine?" Jake asked, sighing as he gave up his attempts to freak out over the fact that Narita was from the Technocracy. It was so hard to be dramatic around these people.

"They don't combine yet." Casey retorted. "One should never give up just because someone else says you can't. You gotta bang your head into that wall yourself!"

Narita chuckled. "I like you."

Casey smiled back. "Sorry, I'm taken."

"Anyway, since the war is out of our hands for the moment, we should consider what our plans are going to be for after, right?" Tessa interjected. "This world… it's going to be ours. Humanity's, at least. With little to no governing structure. And after the Republic drops the 'we're the ones who fucked up Earth' bomb, it's going to be chaos. Someone needs to step in and establish order." Everyone turned to look at Greg.

"Whoa, hey, no." Greg protested, raising his hands. "We have established that I'm not exactly the leadership type. I kill things good and have a relatively firm grasp on my baser instincts. That's it. I can't even force myself to care about the general well-being of humanity, let alone muster up the motivation to actually do something about it."

"I think you're missing the point." Victor commented with a grin. "This isn't about being a leader. It's about establishing order. Very different. One is administrative. The other… Well, that's just about having the biggest stick." He finished with a chuckle.

"Exactly." Tessa nodded. "You don't need to tell anyone what to do or anything, you just need to make sure they know there are consequences for…" She trailed off, searching for the words to describe what she was thinking, before grinning as it hit her. "For being an asshole."

Greg blinked. "Huh… Well, I am good at killing things."

"Oooh, it's going to be just like old times!" Debbie squealed. "Can I help? Oh, please can I help!?!" She asked, grabbing Greg's arm and jumping up and down like a little kid.

"Hm, that's a good point." Jake muttered. "Even with Greg's frankly ridiculous abilities, there's no way he can be everywhere. He's going to need help, particularly when it comes to information gathering."

"Obviously we're going to need an organization to make this work." Tessa agreed, waving off Greg's sharp look as it looked like they were about to thrust him into a leadership role again. "I can handle the administration. You just focus on being the biggest stick you can be."

"Kinky." Victor snickered, before yelping as Brittany elbowed him and gave him a warning look.

"In that case, we should get spider girl on board as well." Greg nodded. "She helped me with stuff like this back on Earth."

"Spider girl?" Carlos asked, confused.

"He means Bianca." Tessa rolled her eyes. "You seriously need to get better at remembering names. At least 'punk' and 'preppy dude' are still relevant, but Bianca doesn't even look like a spider person anymore!"

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"Well, yeah, but the only other way I know how to describe her is busty goth chick, and that just seems overly sexual." Greg replied.

"Why not just call her the 'goth chick' then?" Rachel asked.

"Rachel, when you talk about goth chicks, the busty is implied." Carlos explained in a serious tone. "Man, I miss the internet."

"If he hadn't said it, I would have." Victor nodded in agreement.

"Though if this deep dive VR thing is real…" Jake muttered, getting the entire room to look at him. "What? Everyone's thinking it! And I'm the only guy here who's actually single! I need a damn outlet!"

"You know, if you'd stop going after unobtainable girls…" Carlos muttered.

"At least, unobtainable for you." Victor added.

"Enough!" Tessa snapped, glaring at the three of them. Victor and Carlos just shrugged, while Jake gave her a helpless 'what did I do' look. Tessa just shook her head at him before continuing. "We're going to need to recruit a lot of people, obviously, but before that, I think we need to clarify what exactly we're going to be doing. We have a big stick, yes, but what exactly are we going to hit with it? No offense Greg, but we're going to need something a bit more concrete than asshole as a definition."

Greg frowned. "Why would that offend me?" He muttered absently.

"I think the core of the issue is what exactly we're trying to accomplish." Brittany commented. "Are we trying to set ourselves up as a pseudo police force? Or are we just trying to keep people from turning into monsters?"

"Is there a difference?" Jake asked, frowning.

Brittany nodded. "Of course. A police force needs to deal with minor crimes, such as theft, drug dealing, smuggling, exploitation, and so on."

Greg shook his head. "If we want to handle stuff like that, we'd need to set up prisons and crap, because there's no way we're killing anyone for anything like that. Way too much work in my opinion. We should just focus on taking out the major problems."

"Okay, but what defines a major problem?" Brittany asked, raising an eyebrow at him. "Where do we draw the line?"

"Murder, rape, torture, slavery." Greg replied, raising a finger as he listed each one. "Any sort of abuse of power, be it personal or political."

"Okay, but what definition of murder? What definition of rape?" Brittany continued. "Are we going to kill someone because they got drunk at a party and slept with someone they shouldn't have? For killing the man they caught sleeping with their wife?"

Greg frowned. "I think- I don't think our focus should be on individual crimes. That's something for people to take care of on their own, people who know the situation. Our focus should be on society at large. Not going after people who commit crimes, but groups that allow people to abuse others. Not the rapist, but the government official who uses his position to rape… does that make sense?"

Victor nodded. "Basically, you don't want to police people, you want to police governments."

"Exactly!" Greg exclaimed. "There are always going to be criminals, but the problem we're facing is that in this new society based on individual power, the people in charge won't necessarily be good people, they'll just be powerful people. So what we need to do is make sure those powerful people are at least decent."

Brittany frowned at him. "That still isn't very concrete. You need actual standards by which to judge these people, not just arbitrarily label them as good or bad."

Greg frowned back. "I think if it isn't obvious, it isn't our problem. You don't need standards to know that genocide is bad. You don't need to argue that a dictator who kills anyone who disagrees with him needs to be put down. You don't need to ask yourself whether a warlord who forces every attractive woman in the area to be a part of his harem is a problem. People who act to hurt people with little to no justification, or commit egregious acts in violation of someone's basic rights are a problem, and it's obvious they're a problem. Trying to define what is clearly obvious to everyone will only create loopholes that people will take advantage of to do precisely what we're trying to prevent. They won't commit genocide, they'll just put people in a position to get killed. They won't kill their political rivals, they'll just imprison them for life. They won't force anyone to be a part of their harem, but they'll make it clear that not being a part of their harem will result in consequences that are perfectly legal, yet still result in a completely shitty way to live. All the while, pointing at our rules and saying 'see, we aren't doing anything, so you can't touch us'."

"But if we simply judge people based on our own whims, then how are people supposed to trust us!" Brittany protested. "If we act arbitrarily, then we lose all credibility! We won't be a force of order, we'll be a force of chaos!"

"We don't need credibility." Tessa commented in a soft tone. "We aren't seeking legitimacy or acceptance. We're looking to solve problems. We'll be the chaos that keeps everyone else in order. The boogeyman that haunts the dreams of the corrupt. We don't need anyone to like us, we just need them to fear us."

"Oh, I got chills." Victor chuckled. "But against my better judgment, I do have to ask: what's to keep us from becoming corrupt? We can say we only take out those who are obviously evil, but how do we make sure our judgment is sound? How do we keep our own biases from dictating our actions? Because you know what they say about power. It tends to go to your head."

"Since one of our requirements is that it should be obvious that a problem needs to be handled, then why not make it so that everyone has to agree to act before we do anything?" Casey offered. "That way, we all keep each other in check, and if even one of us has reservations, we can't do anything."

"Unanimous seems a little harsh." Victor frowned. "How about two thirds? A supermajority. I don't want to let someone heinous go just cause Linda in human resources doesn't want to hurt anyone."

Casey rolled her eyes. "I didn't mean everyone everyone. Just the core group. Us, Bianca, the management level personnel. The people who actually have to go out and take care of the problem."

Brittany sighed. "Do you guys have something against concrete definitions?!? Seriously, just make a council or something. The nine most important people in the organization. Then make the decision need to be unanimous."

"How are we supposed to determine the nine most important people in the organization?" Jake asked. "Obviously Tessa and Greg will be on there, but who else?"

"Oh, me, me!" Debbie exclaimed excitedly.

"Absolutely not." Tessa glared at her. "You'd vote to kill the freaking pope!"

"I think this decision can wait until we know who exactly is going to be a part of the organization." Brittany commented. "We shouldn't make any decisions until we know what all our options are."

"Seconded." Greg agreed. "We need to figure out what everyone's roles will be first. Like, if we put Victor on permanent spy duty, he can't exactly be on the council, because he'll never be around to vote."

"Greg, we were never putting Victor on the council either." Tessa shook her head, suddenly becoming very aware that this may not be the best group to start what basically amounted to an international terrorist organization with.

"I am offended by your accurate judgment of my character." Victor replied with a grin.

Narita coughed slightly, drawing their attention. "I'm not going to comment on your intentions in this endeavor, but I believe I must point out something you all seem to be ignoring at the moment. If you wish this to work, you must not only be powerful, you must also be secretive. You aren't relying on any form of legitimacy, therefore you will open yourselves up to attack. People will try to tear you down to prove that you aren't a threat. Your friends, family, and loved ones will all become targets to weaken your resolve. The more powerful you are, the less people know about you, the safer you will be."

Greg raised an eyebrow at her. "Superhero trope?"

She shrugged. "It's a trope because it's true. You are targeting evil men. They won't play by any rules, they'll simply try to hurt you in any way they can."

"If we're doing the whole Superhero thing, we definitely need costumes." Casey grinned, rubbing her hands together.

"Not costumes, uniforms." Tessa replied.

Casey's expression twisted. "But uniforms are for the bad guys!"

"Well, we aren't exactly the good guys, now are we?" Victor commented.

"Oh, fuck, we could be Hydra!" Carlos exclaimed. "Nine headed council, a leader who endlessly regenerates and multiplies, it's perfect!"

"Pretty sure Hydra is taken." Greg pointed out. "Plus, I'm less of a hydra, and more of a… hivemind? Yeah, hivemind. One mind, multiple bodies, not one body, multiple minds."

Carlos rolled his eyes. "Hydra can't be taken. It's a mythical creature, so no one owns it. Plus, I'm pretty sure copyright law isn't a thing anymore."

"Good riddance." Victor snorted. "That shit was completely nonsensical."

Greg rolled his eyes. "My point is that Hydra is associated with villains already. Even if we aren't exactly good, we don't want to appear evil."

"We don't?" Carlos asked, looking genuinely confused. "Why not? It seems like it'd make our jobs easier. If people think we're good, then they'll think they can keep us from acting against them by threatening innocents or something. In which case, we have to choose between letting them continue being awful and risking whatever threat they've set up. It'd just make the job messier. Plus, people expect good people to do good things, like charity and whatnot, which would distract from the whole point, right? So why not just be evil? No one expects evil people to do anything!"

"But if we're only going after bad guys, why would people think we're evil?" Debbie asked.

Carlos paused, frowning. "We could spread rumors?" He offered noncommittally.

Greg shook his head. "Maybe we just shouldn't worry about our image in the first place. We're not trying to sell anything, we're trying to do a job. Anything that doesn't contribute to doing that job is just a distraction. Therefore, we don't need to name our organization, because a name isn't going to affect what we do. We need basic costumes to hide our identities, but that's it. No one needs to dress up in colorful tights and call themselves Captain Awesome to do the job. We just- we should keep things practical."

Casey snorted. "Greg, we're talking about forming one of the most powerful organizations in the world, because that's what we'll need to be to pull this off. If we were worried about being practical, we'd be focusing on hunting the creatures in the area and making a fucking farm or something, cause that's what we should be worried about after this war is over. The only reason we're even entertaining this idea is because you're bullshit and if anyone has a chance to pull it off, it's you."

Greg blinked. That… was a good point. Were they getting a little ahead of themselves here? Considering the power of the Generals… if he assumed they were some of the most powerful on the planet, then he wasn't worried about his ability to punish them if he needed to. However, if not… Greg shook his head. He remembered too clearly the things he'd seen when he was dealing with the ferals. He wouldn't just sit back and watch the world devolve into that shit again. Even if he couldn't do a lot, he needed to at least do something. "Maybe it's a long shot, and maybe it shouldn't be our focus, but… I can't sit back and watch people be abused for no reason. Not when I have the ability to do something about it."

"Maybe formalizing it into an organization isn't the best idea…" Tessa muttered in agreement.

"No, I think we need the organization, so we can check ourselves." Brittany insisted. "Otherwise we're just a roving gang of murderers."

"Yeah, but if we're an organization that doesn't end up doing anything, then what's the point?" Tessa asked.

"Well, if we do it that way, why not have it just be us?" Jake asked. "Like, you know, this." He waved his hands at the group gathered around. "I mean, we're going to be depending on Greg to actually do anything anyway. The rest of us can just act as… balance."

"A scathing, but undoubtedly accurate, evaluation of our capabilities." Victor sighed. "But we can't police the world with just us, now can we?"

"I don't think it needs to be about policing the world… just about solving problems." Jake replied. "I mean, there's no way we can solve all problems everywhere. It's never going to happen. But if we travel around, keeping our eyes open… we can do something."

"So you're thinking less of an organization, and more of a team…" Greg muttered, nodding slowly. "Hell, we could keep that up for a while, couldn't we? We could travel the galaxy just… solving problems."

"There are always more problems." Victor chuckled.

"If we're traveling all the time, how are we going to take care of Ash and the other kids?" Tessa frowned. Greg froze, blinking as Tessa began to glare at him. "Please tell me you didn't forget about our daughter!" She growled.

"I didn't forget about her." Greg muttered. "I forgot about the other three… shit, we're going to be trucking around a whole freaking nursery, aren't we?"

"Does this mean we'll have to include Meredith in all this?" Casey asked. "If she wants to be involved with her kid… we can't just steal them from her."

"If she doesn't want to go…" Tessa frowned.

"I'll stay here." Jake replied. "I don't need to be a part of this, but I do need to be there for my kid."

"I suppose that brings up another point. Are we just going to abandon any responsibilities we have here?" Brittany asked. "Tessa is a Colonel, and half the rest of us are in some sort of command position. We know there's going to be chaos once the Technocracy is no longer a threat. Are we really going to steal a significant chunk of the current leadership structure in the midst of all that?"

"We're going to need a new leadership structure anyway." Tessa shook her head. "This system based purely on power may be decent for military matters, but for an actual government there's no way it's going to work. Making it clear that something needs to change by bowing out will actually help."

"Do you really think the Generals are just going to give up power like that?" Victor sighed.

"Honestly, I think most of them would. The only two that actually seem to want power are the punk and the preppy dude. The rest just sit back and listen until something needs to be done." Greg replied with a shrug. "I think they're only really there cause they have to be."

"Either way, we're specifically trying to avoid becoming a part of some government." Tessa interjected. "If we stick around… that's going to be impossible. Greg already has too much influence with the Generals. Even if he doesn't have an official position, he has power here. We need to leave before things go too far."

"So we're leaving no matter what?" Casey asked.

Tessa nodded. "I think we have to. Unless Greg really wants to end up as the Supreme Ruler of New Earth."

Greg's expression twisted. "Fuck no. Shit, I think I'd kill myself… if I could kill myself."

"Then I suppose we need to figure out who's coming with us." Jake nodded. "I'll need to talk to Meredith."

"Should we still try and get Bianca to join?" Carlos asked.

"She'd definitely be an asset…" Tessa muttered. "But so would a lot of people." She paused. "For now, I think we should limit it to personal relations. People we have to take, at least until we have a better idea of what this is actually going to look like. Once we have a better grasp of what we're doing, what skills we need… then we can start looking to recruit."

"Before that, is everyone here actually on board?" Greg asked. "Tessa and I are definitely going, but the rest of you… I mean, I'd definitely prefer it if you did come, but you don't have to. I can't imagine this is going to be the most comfortable life, so if you'd prefer to stay here, where you already have something to build on, no one is going to blame you."

Victor snorted. "You aren't getting rid of me that easily."

"Or me!" Debbie exclaimed. "Without you guys, this place would just be boring!"

Casey glanced at Emily, who nodded, before turning back to Greg with a beaming smile. "We're in too!"

Brittany gave Victor a look, before sighing. "I suppose I'll have to join, just to make sure you all don't end up doing something crazy."

Narita coughed slightly. "I know I'm new, but I would be very interested in seeing how this little… experiment turns out." Greg gave her a look, before nodding in acceptance.

Everyone turned to look at the four holdouts: Jake, Carlos, Rachel, and Sarah. Sarah flushed. "I- I don't know how much help I would be, but if you'll have me… I would like to join."

Jake shook his head. "For me, it depends on Meredith. If she comes, I'm in. If not, I have to stay with my kid."

"What if Meredith isn't interested in being involved with the kid?" Greg asked.

Jake blinked as if he hadn't considered that possibility. "Huh… then I'm still in? But I can't imagine she wouldn't want to be involved… it's her kid too, right?"

Greg shrugged. "Some people just don't want to deal with the responsibility of a kid, and I'm not going to force her to."

Jake went silent with a thoughtful frown on his face as everyone's focus turned to Carlos and Rachel. Carlos turned to Rachel, before letting out a sigh. "I would love to join. You guys are my peeps! But… I- it's up to Rachel. I'm going to stay with her, no matter what she decides."

Rachel hesitated, glancing at Carlos, before grabbing his hand with a smile. "I also want to go. You all… you're my family! I couldn't just abandon you."

Greg clapped his hands. "Then that's everyone, isn't it? Once this war is over…" He grinned. "Let's hunt some assholes."