"Peppermint," Klaus addressed Veridiana as she entered his office. "Your interview will now begin."

"What would you like to know, Commander?"

She watched him type away on his keyboard.

Looking around, she noticed several cameras were focused on her. Veridiana felt as if every sense of privacy was being taken away from her.

"Where do we begin? I have all your basic information, but not anything about your history. How long have you been a pilot? How did you train? And why?"

"War, sir."

"I need a better answer than that."

She frowned. "I've been piloting Sister for two years. But when I was 16, I was first trained by a man called Jax. My caretaker."

"Caretaker?"

Veridiana could tell that he wanted an answer. Was there a point in lying? She wasn't exactly shy about her past. Most of her life was merely spent preparing for the day to finally take command of Sister. But, the only time she did get proper pilot training was when she finally convinced Jax.

"Yes, when I was 9, I lost my parents to the war. So Jax stepped in and raised me. He's, well, he's the only one I got. I don't know anyone from my family's side. No blood relatives ever came to get me out of the war. As of now, the only person I consider family is in Delta Sector Penitentiary."

"I see," Click, click, click. He typed so quickly that it almost sounded mechanical. "Now, I want you to tell me everything. But before that, I will ask you an important question: Why did you want to join the Midnight Misfits?"

"You were the only one who answered my email."

He raised a brow. "Seeing your origins. I am not surprised. Now, tell me from the beginning. And don't shy away from the details."

Chapter 4: The Linebreakers

As Veridiana walked out of Klaus' office, she was met by her squad leader along with Hangman and Revolution. Everyone else seemed to have left for their homes. Hangman gave her a good pat on the shoulder and a kind smile.

It had been a long day, and she couldn't wait to finally relax in her own tub. She never had a bathtub before. Back at Travesk, she and along with the other girls had to share one shower room because water was scarce. Especially the hot water. Now, she could freely use as much water as she wanted. Maybe even waste it. She shouldn't take it for granted.

Now, Veridian- no, Peppermint. That's her name now. Everyone here called each other by their callsign.

Now, Peppermint had so many plans for tomorrow. Best of all, she got paid for her first mission. Perhaps she could finally buy her own clothes.

"Well, I hope you'll last long enough."

Revolution spoke which derailed her train of thought.

"Have some faith!" Hangman said. "She did well in her first mission."

"She proved to be decent enough," German said. "I don't want to see you slacking off, Peppermint. Be at your best."

"I will, sir. I won't let you down."

When the four got back home, Peppermint noticed something different. There was a strange silence in the air despite Hangman and Rev conversing.

German stopped by the stairs and pulled out his phone. She gave him a short goodbye but was ignored. As she ascended the stairs, she noticed that Rev and Hangman continued their conversation. She recalled as well that Hangman's room was on the third floor, the first door by the stairs.

"Surprise!"

The whole rooftop practically flashed in a blinding light. It took a moment, but Pepper's eyes adjusted to the sudden change. The whole area was packed with people and music filled the silent air. Her suspicions were right, there was indeed something wrong. But Pepper didn't expect this. Everyone from her squad greeted her with open arms. Lonely, who was the closest, popped a party popper right on her.

"Headshot," He muttered proudly.

"Congratulations, Peppermint!" Basilisk said as he approached with a decorated cake. "We've planned this party for you the moment you came back from your mission!"

"To think I betted against you," Pillory claimed.

Warden scoffed. "Don't listen to her, no one was making bets."

"Anyway!" Hangman wrapped an arm around the girl. "What are you guys waiting for? A permission? Let's party!"

The whole crowd cheered and whooped as the music grew louder. Though this was technically her party, Veridiana noticed everyone in her squad doing their own thing. Nova was back at performing tricks for validation. Stalwart, Raccoon, and Lonely kept to themselves by the drinks.

She saw that Pillory, despite the large object around her neck, was receiving attention from a lot of guys. Warden was with her, and she just stood there eyeing everyone who talked to Pillory. Rev was conversing with a few of the party guests. Basilisk opted to just stick with Aquila and Weather along with three others who Pepper hadn't met before.

"Eat up, Pepper! This is your night, so have fun!"

Hangman returned with food and drinks.

"I don't believe I deserve this,"

He scoffed. "Don't be like that! You survived, that is all that matters. Another day lived another chance to die. Always appreciate what you got, Pepper."

"Hey!"

A small group approached the two.

"Guys!" Hangman greeted them joyfully. "Pepper, these are squad Junkyard!"

A man stepped up and shook her hand. "The name is Trusty, these are my friends: Maximus, Valstrax, Kill Wolf, Cashew, Ace, Tomato Bunny, and Soot."

His team greeted her as they were named. Trusty himself was quite short, just as tall as Hangman. Strangely enough, he also t looked like Hangman, albeit he had a mustache instead of a full beard. Maximus was a gal with a dark complexion and long straight black hair. Valstrax was like Nova, a machine instead of a human.

Perhaps he was a cyborg, or something more. Kill Wolf was one of the tallest, an aura of brilliance exuded from the man. Cashew was the smallest of the bunch, and somewhat weak in comparison with the rest. That was merely how Pepper saw the small woman. The most pale of the group as well. Ace looked calm and composed. His neon blue hair almost glowed in the dark. The man even had heterochromia with red and blue eyes.

Tomato Bunny. Peppermint could see why that was her callsign. The woman adorned a pair of fake rabbit ears, and she was red all over. Red hair, red clothes- the whole picture. It was definitely her color. And finally, Soot. Like Quick Raccoon, Soot was wearing a mask, one that resembled the dragon of old. She could already tell that his affinity was fire from his appearance alone.

"The Junkyard is like our sister squad. We always got paired up with them in a lot of missions."

"There's a few of you." Peppermint noted.

"Ah, well, there used to be a bunch of us. But they moved on," Trusty explained. "We are so excited to work with you one day, and don't worry, we will watch your back."

"Likewise,"

They gave her a short goodbye before returning to the party.

"Interesting bunch," She commented as she eyed Val curiously. "Is that one a robot?"

"Him? Well, he's basically a drone, I guess. Don't think I ever met the real Val."

"Is Nova the same?"

"Nova is… well, it ain't my story to tell. So if you wanna know, ask him yourself. Now eat up, or else German is gonna scold you for not filling up your empty stomach."

"He's right," The rest of the Linebreakers soon joined them in their little corner. Warden brought with her a couple of hard drinks, one was hers and the other was Pillory's. "German is always strict about that. If he finds out that you skipped a meal, he's going to force-feed you an energy bar."

Pillory snickered. "Hey, you guys remember Moonlight skipping breakfast and German made her eat that fruit and nut bar? Then she got a reaction due to her nut allergy? Funny, I tell ya."

"She transferred to squad DemoDerby after that." Warden said.

Nova shrugged his shoulders. "Eh, if she followed the rules, maybe she wouldn't have. Plus, she transferred because she thought that German wanted to actually kill her."

"That's even funnier!" Pillory nearly fell over from laughing. "Man, I wish that girl showed up so I could laugh at her face!"

This tale has been unlawfully lifted without the author's consent. Report any appearances on Amazon.

"That is not nice," Basilisk commented.

"Why are you still wearing shades at night?"

"Hey, I'm curious about something!" All eyes landed on Rev. "Why did you name her Peppermint?"

Lonely scoffed at him. "If you were perceptive, you would've noticed that she was always eating those breath mints."

"Yeah, Lonely is right." Hangman said. "I did name her after that."

"Better than mine. Hey, Warden, let me drink my beer."

Pepper watched as Warden pressed the bottle to Pillory's lips. While they were on the subject, she should ask something. "Why do you wear that thing around your neck?"

"Huh, this?" Basilisk asked, perplexed as he presented his necklace. It was the same as the one he gifted to her.

"No, why is Pillory wearing a pillory?"

"Oh, well, you're the first person who isn't curious about my necklace, ha!"

"As for Pillory's pillory?" Hangman frowned.

"She used to be a pirate," Everyone nearly screamed as German joined the conversation. He showed up out of the blue and brought with him his strange aura. Every time Pepper looked at him she could hear a muffled white noise. "The Federal Prison of Igneous saw fit that she wears the pillory as a badge of shame and service."

"You were a pirate?"

Pillory smirked. "Yeah, it was one wild ride up until I got… caught." The light in her eyes vanished for a moment before she smiled once again. "Hey, enough about me! So, what was your life before this, kid?"

"Nothing noteworthy, I assure you," Pepper said. "I spent most of my life at the last remaining school in Travesk. But I didn't finish, because I focused on training instead of education. When I turned 16, I started my mech pilot training. Then when I was almost 18, the last rebel leader, Jax, surrendered to the Union. I am not ashamed to say this; I am a friend of his. And here I am."

"You're 18? Huh, the youngest one here for sure." Nova said.

"Quite the story," Raccoon said. Pepper had forgotten that she was there as well. "I think I read about Jax, but didn't think you knew him."

"I knew him better than most, honestly."

"Wait, you were a rebel?" Pillory grinned. "I'm starting to like you more, new girl. Union can go eat a dreck."

Warden struck the back of Pillory's head before taking a sip from her drink. "Hey, is it true what he did? The whole coup thing? Pretty brutal if you ask me."

Pepper looked down at her food. She remembered how Jax took over the rebellion for a selfless reason. "Yeah…" There were times she wondered if it was even worth it.

"Veridiana," She woke up from her stupor as she found herself not among her squad, but surrounded by cold concrete.

"Commander Jax!" She saluted as her surrogate father addressed her.

"At ease," He said with a grim look on his face.

He walked over to a nearby desk where a strange device lay. Jax caressed it gently in his hands. But when he turned to face her, he wore a kind assuring smile. One that showed a hint of sorrow.

"Hey, listen, this war has gone long enough. We are about to hit 20 years, and I don't know if I can take it anymore."

"What are you implying, sir?"

"I have a plan, all I need is some faith in me. No one knows about this but you. Can I trust you, Veridiana?"

She gave him a hardened look. "Always."

"Good, so here's the plan…"

"Pepper!"

"Hm?" Peppermint was snapped out of her trip through memory lane.

"You were distracted there, kid. Come on, let me introduce you to someone."

As the others conversed, Hangman led Pepper away. They then met two soldiers in their combat armor. She would've mistaken them as standard Midnight Misfits infantry, but their armor was painted black.

"Peppermint, these are the VoidSong. That's the squad leader, Virgo, and his right-hand gal, Cancer."

"So," Virgo grinned sadistically. "The new blood for the meat grinder. Awfully young."

Cancer arched a brow. "Do you honestly believe that she can be trusted, Hangman? She seems to be frail, and quite unreliable."

"She's a good fighter, I assure you."

Virgo shrugged his shoulders. "I don't know, I think you should just quit while you're ahead, kid. You'll just bring trouble for the rest of us."

She shot them both a cold glare. Pepper was reminded of her comrades back in the war. These two ridiculed her just because she was simply young.

"I am capable of performing well in battle," She argued.

Virgo stared at her strangely. "You talk weird."

"Well, it was nice meeting you, child. But perhaps we should be on our way. We don't exactly have time to babysit you. And Hangman, please come by once in a while, I truly miss your presence."

"Next time, C! Bye, V!"

As the two left the party, Pepper crossed her arms furiously. "I do not like them."

"Oh, don't worry. They didn't mean all that."

"Hangman, I know you're being nice, but you can't lie to me. Those two are jerks."

"I mean, yeah. But hey, it isn't like they are out to get you or anything. Come on, there's still a few others I want you to meet."

The little meet and greet went on for most of the night. Hangman introduced a few fellow Lancers, her peers. Then some workers who showed up at the party. And finally, the tech support. People the Linebreakers considered as friends.

Once they met most of the guests, Hangman brought them back with the others where they all enjoyed the food. And by the time they returned, it seemed that Pillory was out cold after emptying so many bottles. This of course left her at the mercy of Nova who had a marker. Him, Rev, and Raccoon started to make art on the poor girl's face.

Soon enough, the guests started to leave group by group. They said their goodbyes and one last "Welcome" to Peppermint. So the group decided to just chat and learn more about each other.

"You're a priest?" Peppermint asked with eyes wide.

Basilisk chuckled. "Since I was a teen. See, my brother was a priest and inspired me to follow his footsteps and spread the word of God. As well as teaching the masses to be kind and caring."

"Hypocrite," Nova said.

"Why's that?" Peppermint curiously asked the metal man.

"Guy goes on to talk about caring and kindness, and the goodness of your heart. But he has the most kill count out of all of us!"

"I do not see an issue with that."

"She's right, Nova." Warden agreed. "Everyone here can believe whatever they like, they can exercise it. Our work doesn't change who we are."

"Ha!" Hangman laughed. "It doesn't, does it?"

"I am actually far more interested in the fact why you are wearing shades despite the time." Peppermint said.

"Oh, well, I have natural night vision." Basilisk answered.

"Oh, before I forget!" Raccoon nearly scared Pepper as she suddenly spoke. It must be some sort of psychic ability that shrouded Raccoon's presence.

How else was she able to easily disappear from Pepper's mind?

"I got you something!" Raccoon handed her a thick book.

"We were supposed to bring gifts!?" Nova exclaimed.

Pepper stared at the book in her hand. It was heavy with a leather cover. There was only a title and a slot on the front, nothing on the back. Written on the table of contents were the names of major manufacturers and Horus. "Thank you, Raccoon, but… What is it?"

"This is… the complete information of the standard mech frames available to all Lancers. Here you'll find the history and function. Even your Everest frame is listed there. I've also encircled the ones that we are using. This way you'll understand us better, especially in combat."

"Oh, this one looks like Hangman's!" She pointed out. "Huh, yours is just a standard issue?"

"I'd decorate it, yes, but no point in wasting money on paint and fancy parts. Remember that cannon melting my arm?"

Nova shoved Hangman aside and told Pepper to find his mech frame. Wasn't that difficult seeing that Raccoon named the pages with their callsign.

As this went on, someone else walked up to the squad.

"Well, if it isn't my man, German."

"Hell Walker, I didn't think you'd show up."

"You know me, G, I can't just miss the welcoming party. So, this the new blood?" The man was a giant, and his voice was smooth like silk. An aura of confidence seeped out of him with a charismatic flow.

"Veridiana Demarini, you may call me Peppermint, sir."

He chuckled. "Well, you're a proper one, that's for sure. Hell Walker, or you can call me Mike, I run the squad DemoDerby. Nice to meet you, kid." Just the way he talked reminded her of those radio hosts who could talk down even the most dangerous of people.

"Walker, how are squad WatchDogs? Losing squad members is something I am afraid of despite my experience. Especially losing two." Pepper perked up the moment German asked that question. As well as his comment.

"Boy, they didn't take it that well. Star Lord might be lazy, but he was a good guy."

She froze as German's eyes met her, his head didn't move, just his eyes. Pepper could feel her vision getting blurry and the white noise returned.

"Yes, and Dune was an exceptional scout. Shame he died in combat." He said. Then he broke away and spoke with Hell Walker about something else.

Though it was a simple conversation, and somewhat false, she knew that it was a warning for her not to go against the Midnight Misfits.

"What happened to Dune?" She asked bluntly. This caught the attention of the others, who then rushed over to silence the girl. Even Pillory woke up and joined as well. They all clasped her mouth shut.

As this happened, Lonely and Stalwart watched in silence. Lonely shook his head at Pepper as if telling her to shut up.

"He died in combat," German answered. As he said this, everyone simply agreed that this happened.

With that, German left them. Walker said his goodbye and followed after.

"Pepper, I know you're new around here. But don't just ask about Dune. Never mention him ever again." Hangman explained to her.

"He's right," Warden said. "If you know what's good for you, then drop it."

"What happened to Dune? What did Stalwart do to him?" She asked the moment they removed their hands.

"What did we say?" Pillory frowned. "Did you hear us, kid? Drop it!"

"I want to know,"

Lonely tilted his head to the side. His cold corpse-like gaze met hers. "Fine,"

This caught everyone by surprise.

Lonely turned to Stalwart and asked for permission. "Acknowledged," Stalwart spoke for the first time. He wasn't entirely mute after all.

His voice was deep and cold. Just from one word, Peppermint saw a wave of aura for a moment. It was logical and stoic. And for once, she could finally get a read on him. Only for this time.

Lonely then took a seat next to her. "Let me explain, kid, Stalwart and I have only been here for 12 years. But only he became the Commander's executioner. The Midnight Misfits has a long line of rule breakers. And if they go too far, and they get the attention, Klaus calls in either Stalwart or the VoidSong squad. They take care of murderers, traitors, and degenerates."

"Why are you explaining this to me? It isn't what I wanted to hear."

"Context." He said. "As for what happened to Dune. There's a place in the fortress, somewhere under the North Tower. We can call it an oubliette, but truthfully, it is more of a maze, a series of tunnels instead of some deep pit. If you haven't guessed it by now, we throw the unwanted in."

"Why were such tunnels even built?"

"For the exact purpose of giving false hope." Hangman answered. "I was here when they first built it. Thought it was some secret exit, but when Klaus explained to me years later, I realized that that place is a graveyard."

"First," Lonely continued. "they tell you that there's an exit. Right after breaking your leg and leaving a big cut. It won't be fatal, and you won't bleed out as long as you keep pressure. Stalwart is careful and precise with a knife. Blood loss is the least of your problems, it's the wound infection. But leaving the corpses to fester isn't good for our health, so Hell Walker and his crew clean up the tunnels with fire."

Peppermint finally understood. They condemned Dune to a sadistic death sentence. If the wound doesn't get you, then starvation would. Thrown into a place where you were told that an escape existed. A frightening situation. And if you did survive for weeks, then Hell Walker would come in and purge the system.

"So Dune might as well be dead." She concluded.

"Bingo, kid!" Pillory said. "Now, forget the whole thing. Not like you'll end up down there! And don't mind German, he's just making sure you don't do something you'll regret."

"Who knows about the tunnels?"

"Us, VoidSong, DemoDerby, that Ivory chick and her friends." Pillory listed off. "That's all. Anyway! You guys wanna do something? Hey, Weather, still married?"

Pillory asked as she batted her eyes at him.

"Even if I wasn't, I still have standards." Her seduction wasn't good enough for the Colonel.

She turned toward the silent giant. "Stalwart? Can I finally see what's under that armor?"

He simply grunted. It was a big clear "no".

"You guys are boring. I'll go find myself a real man."

"No man is gonna like a girl who looks like a clown." Nova said as he, Rev, and Raccoon stifled a laugh.

"You drecks! What the hell did you do!?"

She struggled to get up on her feet, so much so that her pillory accidentally knocked Hangman down as she rushed over to Warden who was ready with her phone. The front camera was on for her to see what they had done.

Fury filled her heart as she finally witnessed the crime on her face. "I'll kill you drecks!" She promised as she went after the three artists.

Once everyone calmed down, they started cleaning up the rooftop. German had left a while ago, so it was only the 11 of them working. Pillory couldn't exactly help due to her fashion choice. And she lorded it over the three people that wronged her.

During the process of tidying the rooftop up, Peppermint couldn't help but listen to Aquila. The man sang to his heart out, which boosted their motivation greatly. It started out smooth and calm, but as he continued, the song developed into something passionate. But when he reached the climax, only then it felt intense. Though Stalwart focused more on cleaning, the rest took a break just to hear Aquila sing.

It was a spectacle, a private little show just for them.

If she was interested in him before, then Pepper's attraction to the man grew. And luckily she kept herself from swooning. Last thing she needed was to be teased by her squad mates.

"That was amazing! What song was that?" She asked.

"I don't know, honestly. I've only heard it twice on the radio."

"That, my good friends, was My Way by the amazing and spectacular Frank Sinatra." Hangman swooped in to answer.

"This man, I wish to meet him one day!" Aquila said as he smiled brightly.

Hangman shook his head woefully. "Sorry bud, but Mr. Sinatra was a singer of the old world. Died back in 1998 AD. Or over 6000 BU, in this case."

"Frank Sinatra, I am glad his legacy is honored after thousands of years," Aquila said as he held his fist close to his heart. "Very well! As of now, my new quest shall be to discover his works. I hope that this won't be a treacherous journey."

Pillory curled her lip disapprovingly. "Ugh, sometimes you're such a nerd."

"Alright, looks like Stalwart finished up for everyone here. Thanks, big man!" Hangman gave Stalwart an approving pat on the shoulder.

Everyone started telling Pepper goodbye after they wrapped things up. And one by one they descended the steps. When it was just Hangman and her left, he stared off into the sky.

"You can hardly see the whole thing, but the stars still look amazing, don't they?"

It was a tough question to answer. There was too much light pollution coming from the North Tower fortress to see the stars. But despite that, she was still in awe at how beautiful the universe was. And though she felt miniscule in comparison, there was something that made her feel happy just from seeing the starry night.

War, violence, and corruption.

No one can escape such things unless they live in a perfect world. Everyone was different no matter how much you tried to change that. There would always be conflict. Hatred for one another.

But against all that, there's still kindness and hope. If Cradle achieved Eden, then perhaps the rest of the universe could follow in their footsteps in the near future. No more pain or suffering. The people despite their flaws could unite. Because after the end of the day, everyone everywhere lived under the same sky.