Location: Western Region; "Resquis" - Oregon, United States of America.
Time: 07:00 - PST, -7 hours pre-raid.
Operation: [RESQUIS ELIMINATION]
Operation status: Called off
After living in the city of Odessa, in Texas, for a few years - he was picked by the Resistance during an Earth sweep, and fought alongside under Jeremiah's cause [https://img.wattpad.com/9b2544637c29d923de1e991deff3c4d9449c2a57/68747470733a2f2f73332e616d617a6f6e6177732e636f6d2f776174747061642d6d656469612d736572766963652f53746f7279496d6167652f59457457594b63514d73414e46773d3d2d313031373537373433372e313636306163656363383863653963343539303239343236343036342e706e67?s=fit&w=1280&h=1280]
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The 5th Army retreated without any warning - entirely withdrawing from Resquis. The Resistance soldiers were left baffled and confused, watching the 5th Army leave everything behind. This included the corpses of their fallen, all the soldiers that had been captured, and the Resistance troopers that they themselves had captured.
War watched them leave from the roof, scrambling to get into their vehicles. Silence ebbed in once more as dawn broke. He huffed to himself. The rain had stopped, thankfully. He felt at his exposed chin, groaning to himself. It would be a pain in the ass to try and fix this fucking thing.
Despite it all, his viewport remained green for the most part - grinning at a confused Jacob. He dragged the boy along to the front of the school, following the summons of Jerimiah and Aaron. The latter’s head was covered in bandages, apparently he’d had a table broken over his head.
All the major combatants, including Equinox’s children, had gathered outside already. War and Jacob were the last among them. Jacob looked up, repurposed airstrikes and aerial combat troopers flew around overhead. The troopers were escorting a set of similarly repurposed OverWatch dropships. The Logos on the side had been painted over.
The dropship landed, the side door opening to reveal Jermiah, still outfitted in combat gear, stepping out. Following shortly behind him was Equinox, the large man cramped in the small confines of the ship.
“Good work gentlemen, we gained a lot tonight,” Jeremiah turned to Nox, “and thank you Equinox. I’m not sure we would have been able to take the station without you.”
The gathered crowd gave a collective ‘OORAH!”’
War walked over to Death, Jacob wandering away. Jeremiah faced Nox as he spoke.
Nox tightened the cloth around his eyes, smiling, “Killing armies worth of men is something I am profoundly familiar with. I’m sure it’ll be harder in the future, now that they know I’m active again.”
Jeremiah smiled despite the notion, “It’ll be alright. Go, your kids will want to speak to you.”
Equinox gave him a small smile, before walking away towards his kids. Jeremiah could see that the blue haired one had returned, although she wore casual clothes, instead of her uniform.
Jeremiah approached War and Death, catching them in the middle of their conversation.
"Your ahhhh… plans definitely panned out.” War was saying, his arms crossed.
"Yes. It all occurred as expected.” Death said, his tone surprisingly jovial.
War waved an idle hand, nodding to Jerimiah, “We were right to assume that Sector C’s champion defenders would focus all of their assets on the academy,” War smiled, “If we can keep this up we’ll have them done for in no time.”
“I wouldn’t get your hopes up just yet,” Jeremiah said, joining the conversation, “their defenses were strong. Even with our godly help, the amount that we were able to steal didn’t meet our expected marg-”
“Is that all you people really care about?” Jacob said, interrupting Jeremiah, “assets? Not a single mention for the students that put their lives on the line for a cause that did not concern them in the slightest?” He crossed his arms.
Jeremiah could see the boy was clearly upset, yet his mind still wandered away from the boy’s troubles. This had been a victory for them, he wouldn’t let Jacob ruin the mood.
“Jacob I assure you, Resquis was always a priority. We… simply took an opportunity that was presented to us.” He said, the veins in his neck bulging slightly.
Jacobs' eyes grew hard, “Don’t you dare try downplaying this - Resquis was always going to play second fiddle to your little war.” He spat out the last word, stomping off.
War grunted, “He might act older than what he claims to be sometimes, might act like the weight of the world is on his shoulders - but he can’t help but be a child at heart.” Jeremiah nodded his agreement.
“He’ll learn eventually that it never seems fair when a judgment call doesn’t swing the direction you want it to.” Jeremiah grunted.
Odessa, who had taken a seat on the grass to their left, groaned as he rested his back on a box, listening absently to their hushed conversation. He was pretty sure that he hadn’t even seen him sit down.
The man looked around, marking the faces and bodies of everyone here. He could see Jerimiah, and, War - Death, and, the rest of the horsemen, most plainly. He let his eyes wander over grunt soldiers, and the like, even sparing a glance for Nox, and his kids.
But it was the new guy that caught his attention.
Odessa looked him over from top to bottom. He had black unkempt hair, faded along the sides - and sickly pale yellow eyes. He had chiseled features, his jawline stark against the softer aspects of his face - most notably his upturned mouth. He was slimly built, sporting a tattered looking black cardigan over a gray t-shirt, black tattered jeans, brown boots. He stood maybe a foot and a half shorter than Equinox.
His entire outfit seemed a little rundown, in fact.
Odessa watched the man start looking around, seemingly unnoticed by the rest of the camp. Poking around behind dropships and eavesdropping on conversations.
Odessa, a brow raised, looked to his left and shoved his hands into a patch of gravel, closing them in his fist. He raised his arm, and chucked the ball of gravel at the man trying to get his attention. He couldn’t be bothered walking all that way.
He watched as they flew towards him and then…
They hung in the air, unmoving.
The man turned his head very slowly towards Odess, an eyebrow cocked. Odessa couldn’t help but squirm under his gaze. The man raised his hand and made a flicking motion.
Each grain of gravel smacked Odessa in the face, the tiny rocks getting into his still open wounds.
“Son of a bitch!” Odessa said, rubbing at his wounds.
The man approached him, cutting through the crowds of people, and crouched down next to him.
His accent was very… American. “Didn’t your mom ever teach you to treat your elders with respect?” He gave Odessa a seemingly sincere smile, before brushing the gravel off of his shoulders. Odessa sat there in stunned silence.
Jeremiah, who had been facing Odessa, finally seemed to catch onto the man’s existence, and approached with haste.
Yet it was Nox that got there first, stepping between Odessa and the man - staring him down.
If he could do that without eyes, Odessa thought to himself.
The pale eyed man didn’t break the fictional eye-contact. His face tightened in supposed displeasure.
Nox balled and unballed his fists, before speaking.
“You ignored my calls Takashi,” Nox said between clenched teeth, “I thought that was very, very, rude.”
Nox’s kids flanked their dad, confused looks on their faces.
Takashi’s unease seemed to lighten, as he smiled at the kids, “Nox you know fineeee well that only having a day to answer summons across figurative dimensions is hard - the moment I got little magical ping I set out,” he looked to Jerimiah giving him a disdainful look, “by the time I had got here, the battle had already started. I thought it would have been unwise to enter into a battle that I didn’t have the bearings of.”
Jeremiah seethed.
“You know FINE well which side is the right side to fight for Izumi - tonight we fought for the hope of millions. Just like you used to. We showed them tonight we are more than some insignificant gnat.”
“I see,” Takashi said, stepping around Nox, “and yet I can’t help but figure that the 5th Army might not be my highest priority. You claim to be what’s left of our,” he waved his hand backwards towards Nox, “though it would seem that your oh so lofty ideals and goals are not what we stood for.”
“Our goal is to liberate the entire cluster! Isn’t that what YOU fought for boy?” Jeremiah shouted. The four horsemen flanked him, as Nox flanked Takashi.
“Not at all - we never fought for liberation initially, that goal was much too high and mighty for what we were - we fought to protect the innocent from the ruling elite. Do you realise what the total collapse of an entire star government means for those they rule over? We never had the ability to replace them until the final decades of our conflict - THAT’S when our goals changed.” Takashi shouted back - Nox nodding behind him.
“Liberation is far more important than the simple goal of protecting the innocent - they’re both complimentary!” Jeremiah refuted, “we have the strength, and the determination that you didn’t,” Jeremiah continued, “what makes us truly different from the Council is the fact that they had deities on their side. Ruling over them. You may have overpowered the OverWatch of old but they had you matched in quantity. The only reason you’ve been summoned is to give us an edge in this conflict.” He pointed at Takashi, “At the end of the day you abandoned your oaths. I had hoped you might see this as an opportunity at penance.” Jeremiah spat.
Takashi seemed unimpressed, “Liberation isn’t everything. Sacrifice too much to this conflict and it will consume everything you hope to protect, everything you hope to liberate,” he spat out the words, “My day’s of combatting OverWatch are over. I never abandoned my oaths, they were stripped from me, taken and broken. I won’t fight this petty war for you.” Takashi growled.
Nox put his hand on the man’s shoulder, turning him to face him, “We called each other brother, once upon a time,” he began, “and I had hoped that this conflict might allow us to do so once more. I understand that you might not want to fight them right now. But these people deserve some help, like it or not, they’re fighting for the right thing here I’m sure of it.”
Takashi seemed to soften at the words, turning back to Jerimiah as the director walked away, “I know a man on this planet, he’s the headmaster of Kukui University. He might be able to provide you with your next stepping stone.”
Takashi looked back to Nox, the taller man giving him a content smile.
Nox slung his arm around Takashi, leading him away, “Come - we have much to catch up on.”
Jeremiah watched them leave, Nox’s kids happily talking at, rather than to Takashi.
"Find Aaron,” Jeremiah whispered to Odessa.
https://i.imgur.com/mA3AY5I.png [https://i.imgur.com/mA3AY5I.png]
Planet: 0001-C.
Location: Capital City.
Time: Ten days since [OPERATION: RESQUIS ELIMINATION] - Standard Earth Time.
Prompting War to nod and walk into the building [https://img.wattpad.com/5f84b6db434f7571c85008f2cb38e2027ffefa4e/68747470733a2f2f73332e616d617a6f6e6177732e636f6d2f776174747061642d6d656469612d736572766963652f53746f7279496d6167652f78376752464665475f6a326b4f413d3d2d313031373537373433372e313636306163663065323638306563633535363737333833383135312e706e67?s=fit&w=1280&h=1280]
Marude’s delayed response to the raid on Station-9 had cost not only him, but the ruling members of Sector C, their credibility. This ‘failure’ had shaken the entire bureaucratic body of the Sector, causing chaos that was so far stretching - it had managed to reach the 5th Army’s Cosmic Senate.
This text was taken from Royal Road. Help the author by reading the original version there.
A meeting between Sector C’s ‘Joint Staff’ was organized, called into existence by the chairman - The Administrator of the Joint Staff Commission - to discuss their next steps. The Joint Staff Commission consisted of members from the military and government, although the body was an assembly, the commission only operated on a sectoral level - meaning that both Sector A, and B, had their own Joint Staff.
Prominent figures like High Admiral Marude, and Admiral Kirsk are typically the ones in charge of ensuring that their sector operated smoothly - granting Marude in this instance the title of - “Chief of Operations.”
They met in a particularly unremarkable conference hall within the bowels of Nexus Embla, A single holotable surrounded by chairs in a windowless room. Although the higher ups within the Military and Government were aware of their ‘shadow-organization’ most regular members of either one were not or were on a 'need to know basis'. The general public aren't even aware of the Commission, the Administrator is publicly said to govern each Sector by himself and does the tasks that the Joint Staff does, such as assigning legislators, choosing governors and commissars, and so on. As such they kept their meetings hidden, and mostly secret.
Marude tapped a nail against his teeth, looking out over the room. It was… tense. He glanced to his side - looking at Kirsk. The man gave him a knowing look. General Rei - The Associate Chief of Defence - was also present at the meeting. The actual Chief of Defence, Karl Fergus, was absent, for reasons Marude didn’t want to, or couldn’t, understand.
Opposite Rei, sat a man in a white uniform - sporting a pair of golden epaulets, gray eyes, snow white hair, and thinly rimmed glasses. Grand Admiral Juuro Harima, the leading officer for all naval operations within Sector C; Granting him the title - “The Chief of Navy”. It was this man that had ordered Marude to pull his forces out of Resquis, to engage those at the botched counter-attack of Station-9.
The last member missing, The Chief of Enlistment, was Ryan Ericsson. Other than him and the Chief of Defence, the only other missing member was the Chairman himself.
Kirsk swallowed, the noise audible. He seemed rather calm and collected on the outside, but inside he was unfathomably worried for his superiors mental wellbeing. He could see that Marude was grinding his teeth even more than usual, and muttering to himself things like, how did the hell did I slip up this badly, and, My career is done for, a demotion’ll just be the start.
“This is so awfully unlike you, Marude,” Rei drawled, drawing everyone's attention, “Who would have thought that one of OverWatch's top overachievers would fail this badly.” Rei picked at his cybernetic fingers.
Kirsk could see that Marude’s rage was now barely contained. With how much he was grinding his teeth - The Admiral thought that he’d end up with stumps.
Harima gave Marude an apathetic grimace, before looking around.
"Director Ericsson and General Fergus are absent once again." He said.
"I suppose that’s typical for Ryan. He would rather keep recruits in check than waste his time in egocentric meetings.” Rei said, stacking more papers.
“As for Fergus,” Kirsk said, lighting a cigar, “He seems to be prioritizing his own… agenda. Rather than that of his duties.”
Their sparse conversation was interrupted as a prefect walked into the room - holding a tablet in his hands, he spoke:
“Chairman of the Joint Staff Commission: Administrator X.”
Marude sat up straight at the sight of the man walking into the room. Kirsk could see that he had begun to sweat profusely.
Administrator X was a tall, lean yet muscular, tanned man with jet black hair and hawkish features, his eyes were hard and swamp green. His tunic uniform bears the same design as the military's, although the appearance is more of an olive green colour. It came with a pair of silver shoulder boards, indicative of his status as an Administrator of the entirety of OverWatch.
The seated members of the commission stood, crossing their arms in an X salute. Despite its name, the salute actually originated in the first Era, thanks to the last emperor of OverWatch - Emperor Xilax.
X sat down, everyone sitting as he did.
“It’s concerning,” he began, “that this ‘Resistance’ has managed to best us, even by such a small amount. By using one of the oldest tricks in the book no less,” he laughed to himself, “we’ve clearly underestimated them.”
“Yes well, with all due respect my Admin,” Rei said, “this… er… militia? Is physically weak. They don’t have the technology nor manpower to truly challenge us.”
“What of this god like being, that tore entire sections out of my Station and threw them out into deep space?” X asked, “Would you not consider that sort of power a threat to this supposed leg up we have in manpower?”
Harima interjected, saying, “Not only that - but they seem to compensate for their other shortcomings with guerrilla warfare tactics. The lengths they went to, to collect these ‘Four Horsemen’ further supports this.”
X nodded, his chin on a closed fist.
“I’ll give them credit. They’ve gathered a decently hefty force and have seemed to progress according to what they would find acceptable,” X sighed, “This loss on our part, seems to be a deserving victory. We were momentarily outsmarted. Opposing my 5th Army will prove… utmost unwise, I fear they will find.”
“This accidental failure, shouldn’t prove to be significant in the long run,” Kirsk said, “but rumors have begun to stir that we have some sort of weakness - and this loss seems to prove that to dissenters. I fear that our enemies will begin to go to more extreme lengths to capitalize on it.” Kirsk coughed, nodding to the Admin.
“I’m aware. The Union of Communications has already asked me if they should cover it up, I’ve told them not to.” X said - Marude seemed to be caught off guard. It was Rei and Harima that spoke up however.
"But Sir! We’re sure to be seen as weak!” Rei raised his voice.
"Are you sure this is a wise choice Sir?”
X smiled at them both, “Yes - I am sure. Let them have this little victory. It will be seen as something so insignificant - so small - that it does not prove we are weak at all. We will teach them to fear the consequences of their actions.”
"By doing what?" Marude asked.
X gave him a sidelong glance, “That’s what I’d like to know Marude. I did greenlit this operation of yours - Have we gotten a better picture of their Initiative?” He asked calmly.
Marude gulped slightly, sweating even more, "The Navy's information network is doing its best to-" X cut him off with a waved hand.
“Yes I know what they’ve been doing, it was all in your official report. I want results, not a status update.” X said, his arms crossed.
Marude sighed, fumbling across his tablet with shaky fingers. He swiped across a screen, bringing up a hologram. It illuminated the space before them, within the center of the table. It displayed a map of the Pacific Region - but it zoomed into its northernmost territory. A 3D display of a building with two large towers on its roof - rotated slowly before them.
“Before the raid on Resquis was commissioned, OWISCB Agent Naofa Niro,” X seemed to perk up at her name, Marude caught it, screaming inside, but he continued, “and her partner, Naval Command Operative Kenya - discovered ties between an unknown, and now extinct, extremist rebel cell, and this Educational Institution; Kukui University.” He paused, “She presented it during our last briefing,” He grimaced, “So… I had my subordinate look into it before the raid began,” X nodded, as if that was what he was supposed to have done, “and sure enough, the surges at Maplewood and Resquis weren’t the only counts of malignant refugee fluctuation.”
The hologram shifted, displaying images of land storage vehicles parked outside of the university, in its parking lot, with thermal signatures within “These vehicles were all that Site-11 had to report on. We believe these vehicles carrying people, coupled with Naofa’s evidence, is enough to designate Kukui University as another refugee hotspot.” Marude said, laying down his PDA.
X nodded, seemingly intrigued by this new development, and the surfacing opportunity. “Then we make an example of them. Show the Resistance what will happen if they continue to push the 5th Army. Show them what happens when you disrupt the order and peace that we have so carefully established.”
The commission began to nod to one another.
“I am proposing that we Greenlight another operation, this time on Kukui University. Let there be no mistakes this time,” he looked at Marude, “and let there be no mercy. Remind them never to take us for fools ever again.” He roared, before standing and pointing at Marude.
“Despite your slip up Marude, I will be placing you in charge once again. Consider it a second chance.” X smiled.
"I assure you, nothing of the sort will happen.” Ensured Marude.
“We have little time to act, I will consult with the Ruling Council. Letting this group grow further could damage our presence, and the peace of the entire supercluster. Stand by for further updates. I am adjourning this meeting.”
X left.
Marude hoped this second chance would pay off.
https://i.imgur.com/mA3AY5I.png [https://i.imgur.com/mA3AY5I.png]
Location: Northern Region; Ramsey County - North Dakota, United States of America
Time: One hour - pre-contact.
It was a warm spring morning, cascading mists and sparse sunlight lit the massive campus of Kukui University. Rivaling, and sometimes surpassing, the likes of Yale, Stanford, and M.I.T - Kukui was especially popular among those gifted in the arts of Science and Technology - being a largely S.T.E.M oriented school. With both high interest, and competition, the Universities standards were absurdly high, being one of the only universities in the country to have an acceptance rate below four percent.
The most distinct aspects of the university were its two towers, the eastern named “The Tower of Genodiya,” the headmaster's late father acting as its namesake. The western tower was named “The Tower of Kioku,” or the tower of remembrance. The western tower was visually distinct from its counterpart, although nobody knew who designed it, just that it was built to commemorate and remind those attending Kukui of the tragic fire that took Kukui High.
Location: Northern Region - Earth [https://img.wattpad.com/698b724557eac28e1d6a3cad85235ec7e0fbe8ab/68747470733a2f2f73332e616d617a6f6e6177732e636f6d2f776174747061642d6d656469612d736572766963652f53746f7279496d6167652f3333764249455a694954587265773d3d2d313031373537373433372e313636306163666463633833666432353133343939373233373530362e706e67?s=fit&w=1280&h=1280]
Takashi Izumi, the man that led the Resistance to the university, had his fair share of history with the Kukui Educational line. During the early 1990’s, Takashi befriended the then headmaster of Kukui High - ‘Xepheniah Kukui’ - the same man that acts as the headmaster for the university. Their shared history had spurred an intense trust - both feeling as though they could trust the other with their lives.
Takashi sat atop the ledge of the western terrace on the top floor - staring out towards the sun.
He turned towards a set of footsteps approaching from behind him.
It was an old asian man, maybe in his sixties. Takashi recognised him as the deputy headmaster.
“He’s waiting for you.” The man said with a bow. Takashi nodded, hopping down off of the ledge.
The deputy led him down into the building, towards the headmasters office. It had been a while since he’d deigned to visit his old friend, but he still felt as if he could recall the room with perfect detail. The feeling of the blue fiber carpet under his feet, the dark-oak wooden couches that flanked a coffee table. A dark wooden desk by a large window, the headmaster’s computer sitting to the right side. A blue orchid sat behind his chair on the windowsill, beneath a stained glass window.
When he finally entered, the headmaster smiled.
“Mr. Chen - If you would be as kind as to leave us?” the headmaster spoke in a raspy voice.
The deputy nodded, and left promptly, shutting the door with a soft click. Takashi sat on one of the couches. Xepheniah stood, sitting on the one opposite him.
Takashi could see the man was the same as ever. A stoic, yet calm, figure in a red turtleneck; gray speckled white hair, pale skin - stark blue eyes. The old man fixed his thin glasses as he sat.
“We haven’t spoken in nearly three months now, Takashi. I assume this sudden appearance could only mean… a few things, seldom,” he smiled, “unless you’re here to finally pay off that debt?” He cheekily remarked.
Takashi chuckled, “Look - that fight between those two street brawlers was at least fifty fifty, I’m poor right now away.” He said with a yawn
“A poor, interdimensional god, that lives to the standards of a forgotten street urchin.” Xepheniah sighed.
“Yeah yeah - I’m here because there’s something big going on in the supercluster,” he removed a small puck shaped holo-disk from his pocket, it projected the Resistance’s emblem, “There’s a new intergalactic rebellion.” he began, Xeph was already frowning, clearly having already decided he didn’t want to hear it, “And before you decide to tell me to fuck off, I just need you to listen - I made them a promise.”
The old man waved a hand for him to continue.
“They call themselves, ‘The Resistance Initiative’, they’re not entirely like the previous groups that we’ve been taking in. This one actually managed to triumph against the 5th, as small as it was. I think it may, thanks to a thorough beating from an old friend, be worth giving them a helping hand.” Takashi leaned back. Xeph stroked at his chin.
“I assume you mean Equinox? He’s active again?” Xeph said.
Takashi nodded, “He’s sitting in on Mr. Brenner's lecture right now - with the rest of his… idiot children.” He smiled as he spoke.
Xeph sighed.
“This better not get me into trouble again, last week I had a state trooper visiting me after complaints of a possible miscount.” Xeph groaned.
"It’ll be fine, I’m sure.” Takashi smiled.
"Unless they want me to house more of their ‘refugees’.” Xeph said.
Takashi shook his head, “Not this time. They spoke of something different. The university is heavily Isolated, they want to ahhhh… set up a base around here.” He could already feel the discontent rippling off of the old man, “Perhaps they could use the old catacombs, I dunno. It’s seeeeeemingly undetectable? endless?” Takashi shrugged.
Xeph sighed, standing up after a moment of deliberation, “I shall need to speak to the man in charge, before I make any real decisions.” he looked to Takashi, “You will look after the school while I’m gone?” He grabbed his cane, and a long yellow coat.
Takashi nodded, sitting in his office chair - before falling asleep.
He awoke to the sounds of whirring, and screams.
Takashi rocketed to the window, spotting a helicopter flying over-head.
He ran to the roof, spotting Aurora looking over the railing.
“What’s going on?” he asked as he approached.
Aurora growled, “It seems they’ve found us. Those spies Cassian spotted a while back? Must have been them scoping the place out,” she rolled her shoulders, “this won’t be as easy as Resquis, uncle, they’ll be seeking to make an example of us.” she said, looking at Takashi.
Takashi looked over the railing down at the front of the school. He could see the back of a very tall man - with blazing red hair. Nox was already down there, watching them enter the building. They seemed to, for the moment, not notice him.
He couldn’t see Filianore anywhere.
“What’s your dad doing?” Takashi said, his hands twitching.
“He was scoping them out,” Aurora said, “Filianore’s up in the tower, keeping an eye on things.”
Takashi looked up, barely able to spot the drifting white silk that she wore - he looked back down, staring directly at Nox.
Nox turned to look towards the top of the building, his form disassembling into a purple smog.
Takashi watched the same smog emanate from the floorboards, reconstructing Nox.
“This looks like a preliminary force,” Nox said, “You’re gonna have to deal with them without me at first - we’re talking forty five, an hour - I need to go retrieve Aurora’s weapon’s from the bottom of the ocean?” He gave his daughter a forlorn look, “It’ll take me a second to get there and back, but as soon as I’ve reawakened them she’ll be able to summon them on her own.”
Aurora gave them a pout, “It’s not my fault you all chose me to go undercover! I’d have been spotted if I kept them on me! Throwing them into the ocean seemed smart”
Takashi nodded, “We’ll be fine at first. Just be quick.”
Nox nodded, “I’m leaving now - keep them safe Takashi.”
Nox vanished into smog and starlight - Takashi could feel his looming power traveling at intense speeds towards Point Nemo.
Aurora gripped Takashi’s sleeve, leading him towards the stairwell down into the school, “C’mon - I can only hear the echoes of their conversations from up here - I need to get closer.”
Takashi let her lead him to the stairwell just before the bottom floor, it only took them about fifteen minutes to get there - meaning it would be about half an hour before Nox got back. He could see the same OverWatch troops that had been present at Resquis, lining students up - pushing them through a set of scanners. They must have started while Takashi slept, they had a head start.
Aurora sighed a hand on the ground, her eyes closed, “They landed on the roof just after we left - they’ve managed to abduct the entire administration. Most of the student body is ahead of us, sorted into two groups - that second one, group B, has about 40 people - they’re being led outside.”
Takashi nodded, grasping her wrist.
They folded in on themselves, reappearing outside - not far from where he could see that scar faced man from Resquis leading them towards the pond. Pushing them to their knees.
Aurora got low, “When you’re ready, uncle.”
The scar-faced man raised a hand, “FIRE!” he roared.
Takashi and Aurora erupted onto the scene, both wielding horrible ancient magic.
Takashi would uphold his oaths, no matter what had been said.
Takashi would save them all.