So you finally managed it, and are now happily dating and/or married to the Valkyrie of you dreams. Now what? How do you keep them happy and content, and make sure they stay yours?

The ways are many. In this chapter, we explore all the possible avenues, from good meals, to good sex, to inspiring conversation to a shoulder to cry on. Read on, to find out how to...

--"How to snag a Valkyrie", page 251

***

We had entered the IFV, and Red Knight had us guide the way to the failed shelter. There he sent off a small drone, to check it out. It looked like a little Pegasus in red and gold and was totally adorable.

I resolutely stayed out of the place, however.

"What are you checking for?" I asked.

"Eights can burrow through Concrete, given enough time. So I am checking for tunnels that might lead back to the Hive they are gathering biomass for."

"I see. I didn't notice any when I was in there, but then I was a bit... preoccupied." I said, mumbling towards the end.

"Yeah, this isn't the nicest sight. I'm having Gyaron obscure the worst of it, but it is sometimes necessary to be reminded of why we fight. That this isn't a game."

I didn't think I'd ever mistake fighting the Antis for a game. Then something struck me.

Why didn't you help me out when I was in there? Why didn't you block out my vision or something?

[Because I thought you needed to see this.]

I see. I thought dejectedly. Well, thanks for nothing, I guess.

[This is the consequence, Sylvi. The consequence of a failure to prepare, a failure to act. The Antithesis do not take prisoners, and they do not care. So, we have to care. Do you understand?]

I knew that. I replied, knowing that I hadn't known.

[We both know that isn't the case. You were chosen as a Vanguard because you are a fundamentally good, kind and caring person, Sylvi, among other reasons, but you have not known the consequences of inaction, of failure.]

I see.

[Keep in mind, that this was not the result of your failure. You were not here in Gdansk when this happened. But this was a failure all the same. And, for what it is worth, I will help you out in the future, should you need it. This is not a lesson you need to learn twice.]

I stayed silent after that, seeing piles of the dead in my minds eye. Someone had failed those people, failed them terribly. I would find out who.

After a short while, Red Knight spoke up.

"No tunnels in there, sadly. That would have been the easy way to locate the hive. Hornet, can I trouble you to help me look?"

I shook myself out of my ruminations.

"Sure. What am I looking for, though?

"A Hive. You know what they look like. It is likely to be well hidden, though, if you've already cleared the area once and didn't find it. Check basements and tunnels, sewers, that kind of thing."

I set to work, flying my swarm through various nooks and crannies, checking for recent tunnels and the tell-tale roots of a Hive.

Meanwhile, Titanite took a break and had a snack while Red Knight flew us around over the city in the IFV, using whatever scanners he had installed in the thing.

After what felt like way too long, but which was probably only about fifteen minutes of searching, I finally found the roots I was looking for in a tunnel underneath a manufactory. I indicated as much to Red Knigth and Titanite, while I concentrated my swarm and continued to map out the place, trying to locate the centre of the Hive. Suddenly, I lost contact with the lead two Wasps, the only warning being a brief glimpse of the outline of a tentacle of some kind. That thing had moved at ridiculous speeds.

I tried to approach from different sides, and had some luck determining the outskirts of the Hive, and thus the likely centre point, but every time I tried to approach that centre I was met with the impression of a tentacle and a dead Wasp. So, I had a Yellowjacket observe a sacrificial Wasp moving into a position where I had lost one previously, and finally saw the culprit. It was ridiculously well hidden on the ceiling of the tunnel, a mess of tentacles several meters long, connecting and sprouting from three distinct nodes or bodies in a circular arrangement.

[A Model Thirteen. Hive Guardians. Approach with extreme caution, or preferably, not at all.]

I had been relaying my findings to the others, and at the revelation that there were Thirteens guarding the Hive, Red Knight swore.

"I don't like those bastards. Titanite, is your armour rated for Thirteens?"

"Iryn says it is, but barely."

"Right, you're keeping well back as well, then. Support me from range. I'm not losing either of you to an overgrown stack of noodles. How many did you find, Hornet?"

"Well, I tried to approach through the three tunnels I've found leading towards the centre, so at least that many."

"Three Thirteens. Great. Well, nothing for it but to push through."

While this was going on, Red Knight had flown over to and landed next to a building with an entrance to the tunnels the Hive was located in. We got out of the IFV and walked through the building towards the stairs down to the tunnel, clearing out an attempted Model Four ambush in a hallway and a lone Three sniffing around in a little kitchen on the way there.

"So, Thirteens are dangerous, as you might have picked up. They really shouldn't have been here yet, Hives normally only produce Thirteens later in their life, but I guess this one felt threatened. Regardless, you need to take out all three of its 'bodies' before it'll die. It has a number of tentacles tipped with some sort of metal-bone composite that it flings around at extremely high speed. Stay well clear of them and try to take them out at range is my advice, until you have some sort of defence that'll stand up to them. And even then, staying back is still advisable. Hornet, I think your toxins might be useful against them, if you can target the nerve-clusters in it's bodies. Titanite, this is definitely a disintegrator target. Unless it is right next to me, then please don't."

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We indicated our understanding, and were soon descending into the tunnels. The lights weren't functional down here, but both Red Knight and Titanite turned on lights to illuminate the path ahead of them.

Eyon, why doesn't my suit have built-in lights?

[You didn't ask for any when you bought it, and it has low-light vision.]

I thought you were supposed to anticipate my needs.

[Do you want a flashlight?]

No, it's fine.

[So I did anticipate your needs.]

You're insufferable.

[Thank you.]

We approached the outskirts of the Hive, passing tunnel openings on the way, and began to meet a few dead models I'd stung on the way in. Red Knight indicated with a hand signal for us to keep back, then when neither of us understood him, told us to with words like a normal person.

We did so, slowing down as he walked ahead of us. I sent one of my Spyflies ahead with him, keeping slightly behind him but on the look-out for those Thirteens. The rest of my swarm I had spread out in the tunnels all around the Hive, with a substantial portion near my person.

He soon ran into a Model Three, which he dispatched with a single shot. The sound of it drew the attention of the Hive, however, and soon a stream of various Models came towards him. Some tried to attack us from behind, but my swarm intercepted those, and the few that made it to us were stabbed by Titanite with ease.

The stream continued to increase in numbers and Red Knight responded by shooting first in small bursts with his auto-rifle, then including his other single-shot exploding rifle, too, while the rail-gun on his shoulder kept up fire in a steady rhythm. Soon he was striding down a corridor of Antithesis corpses, kicking them to the side as he went.

I then spotted the Thirteen, hanging in a new position much further out, and flagged it for Red Knight. He engaged it by carefully lining up a shot and taking out one of its bodies right away, but his further shots were blocked by flailing tentacles as it approached him with surprising speed, dodging and changing directions constantly thanks to its many tentacles pulling it forward.

I pulled back my Spyfly, not wanting it to get in the way.

A keening wail went out, as the Hive let out a distress signal, but thankfully we had cleared the area above pretty thoroughly. Still, a pair of Bear-like, spike-filled Fives came lumbering out of the corridor alongside all the Threes and Fours and began flinging neurotoxin filled barbs at Red Knight, who was blocking both them and the Thirteens tentacles with shards of light in mid air, somehow. He shifted his attention to the Fives, and in two controlled bursts took them out. The Thirteen took the opportunity to try and engulf him totally, however, falling on him like so many giant wet noodles. It didn't look like Red Knight had an answer for that, so I quickly ran up within range of my Stinger to try and help, Titanite right behind me.

Red Knight had dropped his rifles and had pulled out a sword from somewhere, and was methodically cutting off tentacles and the occasional approaching Three. It looked like it'd take him a while to get all the tentacles though, so I tried to set up shots on the final two bodies of the Thirteen, and had soon shot them both.

It took a further ten seconds of flailing and cutting, during which time Titanite took over keeping the tunnel towards the hive clear of Antis with her pistol, but eventually the Thirteen spasmed its last and lay dead.

"Right. That's one dead. I fucking hate these bastards." Red Knight exclaimed over the voice comm. "Took you long enough to shoot the thing, Hornet."

"Sorry, I was out of range. Had to run closer to hit it."

"It's a melee fighter, and although it can move fast, it isn't that fast." He ribbed me gently.

"I see. Sorry, I prefer not being close."

"It's okay. Try staying in range of me when we engage the next one. Titanite, you keep her safe."

"Of course." Came her swift reply.

"Alright. Let's see if we can't rustle up the last of them." He said and stepped forward over the corpse of the Thirteen and towards where I could see an opening into a larger room. As he approached it, I got a better view from my Spyfly which was once again behind and above Red Knight. It was a large boiler room, by the looks of the pipes in there, but most of it was covered in Hive, so it was hard to tell.

Red Knight began sniping at the Tens and Fours in the room from a ways down the corridor, clearly trying to provoke a reaction. Soon enough he got one, and a number of Fives opened fire on him as two Thirteens swung into view from where they had been hiding in ambush, and a mess of Threes and Tens ran down the tunnel at him. Individually, none of it was seriously threatening, but the combination had Red Knight pressed. He dropped one of his rifles, a bulkier gun with a number of round tanks appeared in his hand, and he opened fire with literal fire from the flamethrower he had summoned from nowhere. The Thirteens didn't seem to care much and still advanced, but the mess of lesser Models cooked.

While this was going on, I saw another Thirteen leave the room through one of the other tunnels and swat my sentry Wasp out of the air. A Wasp further down met the same fate a few moments later, but caught it heading around and towards our rear before being smashed.

I stepped forward and tried to get clear shots on the Thirteens advancing on Red Knight, then realizing I didn't need clear shots to teleport things, and started "shooting" them anyway. Titanite stepped back to a nearby intersection, trying to get a straight line on the Thirteen approaching our rear, as I lost a Wasp and a Yellowjacket trying to get a sting in on it in a fancy pincer manoeuvre. Titanite then opened up with her disintegrator and I lost another Wasp, as the Thirteen started losing tentacles and the walls and ceiling started losing mass and possibly integrity.

Red Knight had blistered the Thirteens he was facing quite good, before switching back to his sword, and my toxins was starting to take their toll, too, slowing and hindering the remaining tentacles. One Thirteen finally died as Red Knight sliced its last functioning body in half, but he left himself open to a massive attack from the other. My heart was in my throat as two tentacles speared out towards his back, only to be met with yet more plates of light, deflecting the tentacles into the wall and ceiling respectively. Right.

I got my act together, as my Stinger fired continuously at the remaining Thirteen's last two bodies, then watched in horror as Titanite was assaulted behind me. Her bulky armour, seeming so much more impressive than Red Knights, nevertheless buckled and cracked under the assault of the Thirteen. It had lost a lot of tentacles and one body-node, but still managed to press her back as she tried to fend it off with gunfire and slashes of her yellow blade.

I turned and my Stinger started filling the bastard with toxins, but it still didn't die. Instead it, overpowered her, tipping her over and delivering a number of blows to her upper body, which held up, but didn't seem in good shape. I sent in my nearby swarm, stinging at every available surface, and yet it managed to rear back and send a spearing attack at a buckled part of the armour, slamming a tentacle straight through, before finally, finally collapsing on top of her, dead.

I rushed over, while Red Knight fended off a diminishing stream of Antis from the Hive, and Titanite managed to pull the Thirteen off of her. I sent my swarm to flood the Hive room and relieve Red Knight as I stepped up to Titanite and looked down on her. She had a hole in her armour, somewhere in her abdomen, and through it I could see a mess of blood, muscle and organs.

I heard a high-pitched wail, only to realize it came from me.

Eyon, help!

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A tube appeared in my hands. It luckily fit through the hole in her armour, and I shoved it in there, ignoring the grunt of pain I could hear from Katherine, then mashed the button on the back of the tube to apply the... whatever this was.

By this point I had stabbed everything in the Hive room at least a few times, and Red Knight had made it back to us.

"She alive?" He asked rather brusquely.

"Y-yeah, I'm pretty sure. She had h-hole in her, but I p-patched it up." I stammered out.

"Let me see." He said, and pulled me back gently.

I looked up as Katherine's helmet hissed open and her face became visible. She looked rather paler than normal as she smiled weakly at me.

"So, what's the verdict, doc?" She asked. "Will I be able to play the violin?"