"I can't believe Kallen," Navarro said. "I told him it would be a bad idea to give chase to the kid and he just went nuts."

"Of course he did," Stanley said. "Kallen's been hung up on this thing since he lost the unit."

"Well, he still wants us looking over C.C.T.V. footage," Navarro said. "Any luck there?"

"Not really, I just got him running and ducking into someone's car. Haven't checked much further ahead."

"Well, give me an update when you find something," Navarro said. "I need to step out for a second."

"Gotcha," Stanley said. "You know where I'll be."

----------------------------------------

We had been dropped off near the forest's entrance. I looked around over the rolling hills and rocky plains, and took a good long look into the thick forest ahead. I wanted to enjoy the view for a little bit, but we'd need to go in immediately.

"We're sticking together," Meiko ordered. "It'll be real easy to get lost in there. You all will stay behind me. Get lost, and I'll be real mad to pull a rescue operation."

"Got it," I said, nodding.

"Don't space on me, either, Griff," Meiko said. "I know it's a nice view, but we're not here for that."

I nodded again.

"Finally," Meiko added, "we could be walking into a trap. I know we've all been over this, but we're being careful. Weapons ready, and ready to fire at a moment's notice. Do not not hesitate to open fire if you see something. But be sure to identify your targets as well."

With that said, Meiko turned around, and led us into the forest. Our helmets lit up a map marker to walk to, and we kept in line.

It was odd seeing such life-like trees that I often forgot this place was virtual to begin with. But the further we got in, I'd be reminded of where we were as we came across a tree that had been knocked over.

It looked almost as if it was on fire as parts of it disintegrated off of it. Particles fluttered away, little by little, as the dead tree started disappearing.

"Weird," I said.

"Definitely, even if it is modeled off our own, it still has its own rules," Meiko said.

"It's kinda pretty," Miku commented. "Also kind of sad."

"Ain't all that different from the people," Meiko said. "We've seen that firsthand. In the end, it's all data."

"Firsthand?" Miku asked.

"Yeah," I said. "I remember when we were still looking for you, and a team came with us. We lost one of the guys that came with us. He decayed the same way as the tree we're seeing."

"Sorry you had to go through that," Miku said.

"It's okay," I said. "It's a conflict, virtual or not. Just wish I could have done more."

"Can't do much about that now," Luka said. "Hopefully you're not too shaken, but what's happened has happened."

"I got my reasons to be with you guys," I said. "It'll take more than that to get rid of me."

"Right," Meiko said. "Then let's keep moving. Keep the chatter down as we move further in."

"Yes, ma'am!" Miku said.

I nodded, and we all moved ahead, further in.

Time passed as we moved further into the thick green forest. We moved close to the marker. Our weapons were drawn, and we were ready for any ambush, if any were to come about.

"Gumi here," Gumi said. "You're approaching the objective. Still trying to trace where the message came from, but I have nothing. Our messenger is pretty sneaky."

"All the more reason not to trust it," Meiko said. "We still doing this?"

"Obviously. I want to see what it is they want us to see, if anything."

"And if we end up in a bind?" I asked.

"You're all resourceful enough," Gumi said. "I'm confident you can get yourself out."

"Sure," I said. "Let's just hope we're not walking into a trap."

"That too. Would rather it not be, but without risk, we're going nowhere."

Gumi sat for a second before adding something else.

"Hang on," Gumi said.

"What's going on?" Meiko asked.

"I got another message."

"That good or bad?" I asked.

"It says that you're getting close. They're giving me new coordinates. Go there."

The marker lit up nearby. We moved out.

The road started to rise as we ran through the forest. It started leading to large rock formations. The marker sat right at a rock.

"Is this where we need to go?" Luka asked.

"Looks like it," Gumi said. "The message says 'it's behind the rock.'"

I looked over at everyone, a puzzled look hidden behind my helmet.

Meiko reached her hand over to the rock, about to pull on it. Instead, her hand phased through it.

"Guess I see what they wanted," Meiko said.

"Seems to work like the same camo system the Rangers base is hidden behind," I said.

"Might be the same one," Gumi said. "Maybe that's who is directing us."

"So we follow them?" Meiko asked.

"If they're willing to help, we have to see what it is."

"Let's hope you're right, Gumi," Meiko said.

We all walked in, single file, into the fake rock.

"Certainly dark enough to be a cave," I said. The false rock worked both ways, blocking any light from coming in. "I can't see anything."

"Flashlights on, then," Meiko said. "We might be able to see in here, but your eyes can't."

"Appreciate it," I said, my flashlight switching on.

Small water drips could be heard as the cave got bigger. The farther we walked through it, the bigger it got.

"Starting to look like there's something here," Meiko said.

"Do you guys see anything ahead of us?" I asked.

"Not yet, but it does certainly look like there could be something here," Luka said.

The cave started to narrow again, and we continued on. Our footsteps echoing throughout the empty cave.

"It's dead quiet here," Meiko said. "I don't like it."

"Don't have to like it," Luka said. "Whatever is in here, it's something we need to find."

Without a second thought, Meiko turned her attention to something behind a corner.

"I think I know what it is you mean."

Luka looked at her, and Meiko stepped ahead. We all saw what she meant as we turned the same corner.

"No way," I said, my mouth agape.

"This is definitely it," Luka said.

In front of us was a giant round door. Almost similar to a vault.

"Something hidden away just for us?" Miku asked.

"If it were for anyone else," Meiko said, "we wouldn't have known about it."

This was definitely it. I put my finger over my radio and attempted to hail Gumi.

Nothing. We were too far underground and there was no energy signature to bounce a signal off of. Our only hope was to get inside so we could establish contact again with her.

"Best to get this open as soon as possible," Luka said.

"If there are any vents nearby," Meiko commented, "maybe we can get Griff to crawl in again."

I rolled my eyes.

"Doesn't seem like that will be necessary," Luka said. "There's a terminal here."

Luka walked up to the computer that was seated next to the entrance.

"Huh," Luka said. "It says it needs a neural-link verification."

"You mean a watcher?" I asked.

"Well, why don't you give yours a try, Griff." Meiko said.

"Meiko," Luka said, "I'm already standing here. You don't need to order everyone around."

"Either Griff does it or you do, I don't care. Let's just get this open."

"Again, stop ordering me around." Luka said.

"Whatever," Meiko said.

Luka placed her left wrist over the terminal.

"Access granted," the terminal read, and the giant door started circling.

It spun, slowly whirring as the internal mechanisms started unlocking from the inside. The door pulled back, and pulled up to the ceiling above. A catwalk extended, inviting us to step inside.

"Well, better take them up on it," I said. "Seems to me this is what we were directed to."

"Has to be," Meiko said. "Let's see what they left us."

We stepped inside, greeted by a mesmerizing showcase of high-tech computers sitting below the catwalk.

"I think we found Gumi's new home," Meiko commented.

We stepped down the staircase.

"Is this another Operating Room?" I asked.

"Sure looks like it," Luka said. "I think this all but confirms that's who our anonymous senders were. Everything is still left on, too. Looks like they rolled out the red carpet for us."

Luka then made a call on her radio.

"Gumi?" Luka asked. "Gumi, we're seeing significant energy readings here. Are you able to get my signal?"

"As best as I can do, Luka," Gumi said. "Once you got into that cave, the signal died soon after. Getting an established link here was no cakewalk, either."

"Are you seeing what we're seeing?" I asked.

"Absolutely," Gumi replied, joyfully. "And you can't imagine how much I'd love to see it for myself. So much data hidden away, I'd imagine."

"Why can't you come in here, Gumi?" Miku inquired.

"Because someone has to stay here and monitor your conditions. Unless we can get someone to cover me, I'm effectively unable to follow you guys into the scanners."

"Well," Meiko said, "we'll take a look around for you. Document everything we can."

"Of course," Gumi said. "I'd be slobbering over all of this if I didn't have any manners. Take a look around. If you find anything, give me a holler."

I took my helmet off, and shook my head.

"Certainly seems to have the same design as the Operating Room," I said. "Someone seems to enjoy their underground facilities."

"Couldn't blame them," Miku said. "This stuff looks expensive."

I walked up to a large rectangular table with a grid layout. It lit up almost immediately, showing a map of the facility layout. The facility name was on display as well. Noted as the "Interspace Monitoring Facility, 'Stargazer Base.'"

"Fascinating," Gumi said, "Other-Earth is little more than just one planet in the middle of it all. It's a simulated recreation of our planet. If I'm theorizing this right, Interspace is the equivalent to our own solar system. Possibly our galaxy."

"Is that what that funnel is for?" I asked.

"I looked into that a little bit, but didn't really have much time to read into it. What with needing to build a plan and all. The funnel you and Meiko observed during your rescue operation seems to be, from my analysis, the only way one can leave out into Interspace."

"Huh," I said. "No atmosphere?"

"Nope. The sun isn't actually like our sun either. Imagine that Other-Earth is just one giant room. The sky's the ceiling, and the sun here? Basically a massive lightbulb. A big lightbulb that rotates next to a moon, so it simulates night and day."

"This place is something else," I said, playing with the holomap. "Almost makes me think who built it in the first place."

Just then, the holomap started flashing red, and an alarm started blaring. Meiko and Luka turned their attention to us, and ran over.

The holomap cleared itself and a message appeared on it, along with the same message on the computer monitors that lined the facility.

"Hello," it greeted, "and congratulations on finding the Stargazer Base. You have done well, Operators. Just as we believed you would."

I wondered who "we" even was.

"We've been studying you carefully. Every move, every action. We can safely say that we share a common goal, and want to help you."

"Do they now?" Meiko asked.

"That goal: stopping Duodecim. We're aware of them. This base is a show of good faith that you will put your skills to good use, and help us stop them. We cannot give any information away, as it will also jeopardize our involvement, but we believe you can still take them on."

"'Show of good faith,' huh?" I said.

"Guess they trust us that much. Question is, can we trust them?" Meiko said.

"We understand that we are of questionable origin," the message continued. "We also believe that you will find many questions that can be answered if you seek them out. We will provide you with support the best we can, but it is up to you how you use your resources. We will be in touch."

The message stopped, and disappeared. The lights returned to their ambient blue.

"Do you think we can trust it?" I asked.

"They gave us this base," Luka said. "If it were Duodecim, they wouldn't waste their time. They'd just hit us here and now."

"Good point," Meiko said.

"I'm with Luka," Gumi said. "Duodecim's presence is limited, especially when we had taken the Atraxis Dome away from them. They still need to find a new way into Interspace."

"Why's that?" Miku asked. "They have a scanner. What's stopping them?"

"Correction: had a scanner," Gumi said. "The scanner was wrecked when you jumped into it."

"Oh, well then," Miku said. "Good to know I broke something on my way out."

"However," Gumi added, "Duodecim had to have another way of sending their drones here. I'm not sure how, but I'm sure there's an explanation. I'll need to look into it."

"Doesn't matter," Meiko said. "We know they're here. We need to make sure they don't do anything to bring harm to the residents here."

"They might try already," I said. "So what do you think we should do next?"

"Next," Gumi said. "I'm still putting together a plan for our next operation. Considering how hectic the past week has been, I think I finally have something. I'll have Luka patch me into the Stargazer base's systems, and we'll see about a plan from here."

Luka nodded, and headed for a nearby computer, getting right to work.

"Meiko, Griff, Miku," Gumi added, "I want you three to investigate elsewhere. If you feel the need to rest, do so, but try to be quick."

"Alright Gumi," Meiko said. "If we're going to be here a while, do you suppose there'll be sleeping quarters?"

"I can tell you all of that in a second. I'm patching into the system as we speak."

The radio clicked and beeped, and Gumi returned.

"Looks like I have a layout of the whole place. Just needed to collect some blueprints and we're back up and ready to go."

"What'd you find?" I asked.

"Well, an elevator, for one thing. For another, this place is huge. Like, the size of the Rangers base."

"No way," I said. "Really?"

"Yes," Gumi said, "really. Maybe not quite as big, but it's definitely big enough that it'll fit our needs. I'm looking it over, too. There's a mess hall and sleeping quarters. An armory, a hangar, a med station. These are definitely the same people that built our base."

"Mess hall?" I asked, my stomach starting to growl. "Is there even food in a virtual place like this?"

"You'd be shocked," Gumi said. "Fact is, even the residents of Interspace have to eat. I guess you haven't really been here all that long to feel the need to eat, huh?"

"Guess not," I said. "Wouldn't mind trying out a… Virtual meal?"

"You can in a second. There's one floor I'm looking at. Hang on, is this…?"

"What's up, Gumi?" Miku asked.

"Get down to the lowest floor. I'll explain there."

"Wait," Meiko yelled, "Gumi, tell us what's going on!"

Gumi didn't respond.

"Damn it!" Meiko yelled.

Luka ran over to us. "Did she just disconnect from us without saying anything!?"

"Afraid so," Meiko said. "She wanted us at the bottom floor. Some stupid reason, probably. She loves to keep us in suspense, doesn't she?"

Luka let out a frustrated sigh, and we all ran to the elevator. I hit the button that led to the bottom floor, designated as the "transport laboratory."

"Why does Gumi feel the need for us to head there, and why can't she just tell us whatever the hell it is she's doing?" Meiko asked, frustrated.

"That's just how she is," Luka answered.

"Sounds to me like you're making excuses for her again," Meiko said, snidely.

"Well maybe she needs someone in her corner. Gumi's different, Meiko. You know that."

"Can you guys not fight, please?" Miku said. "I know you're both frustrated but we need to be careful right now."

The two shook their heads. I shot Miku a look that said, "hey, good job defusing that."

The elevator opened, and Gumi was standing in front of us.

"Hey, guys," Gumi said. "Surprised to see me?"

We definitely were.

----------------------------------------

After yesterday's antics, I wondered if Griff would ever want to talk to me again. I tried shooting him a text, but he didn't answer. I wondered if he was either mad at me, or busy with something.

A case of literary theft: this tale is not rightfully on Amazon; if you see it, report the violation.

It still didn't make sense to me just who his friends were. Miku I understood felt like was around his age, but the other girl? She seemed to be in college. What was he doing hanging around people like that?

And then Duodecim, that really stood out to me. Why were they questioning him? He didn't really explain, but he did seem like he wanted to tell me everything.

I wanted to know, but those answers weren't going to come around anytime soon. Instead of sitting around the house today, I decided I'd get my boxes unpacked and finally make myself at home.

There were about three boxes stacked on top of each other sitting by my dresser. Another large box sat by my closet, already opened. It had my clothes in it, but I didn't get everything unpacked right away.

I opened the box up, and started hanging my clothes up. Some were shirts I didn't even remember I had. One being a shirt for the Magical Girl Agency television series. I remembered watching it a lot as a kid, and my mom got me this shirt thinking I was still into it.

I sighed, and hung it up. Back then, things were simpler. Mom and Dad seemed happier, too. And I didn't seem so glum, either.

But you can't undo the past. I remember being told that plenty, especially when I was a kid. It was one of the things Mom used to always say when either Satsuki or I did something, usually when it involved us getting reprimanded. Like the time I broke Satsuki's doll. I still remember it. I remember crying hysterically while Satsuki yelled at Mom about it, and how Mom would tell me to be careful next time.

It felt so long ago, but I still remembered all of it. It really was simple back then. Here we were, one big happy family. I wondered if we could still be one with all that had happened.

I had finished hanging up all the other clothes. Most of them were just plain shirts and pants. I didn't really ever have a complex wardrobe. Anything that was complex came from Satsuki's hand-me-downs.

Then I dug in and found my old yellow flat cap. It was still clean and smelled like it was washed recently. I put it on, and it still fit. I regretted not wearing it on the plane when we moved here, but luckily, I found it again.

"Akira," Mom announced. "Lunch is almost ready. Do you want to come out?"

"Sure, Mom!" I said. "Be out in a second."

Just as I entered the kitchen, a knock came at our front door.

"Oh," Mom said. "I'll get it. Just grab whatever you want to eat."

I nodded, and sat down. Mom answered the door.

"Hello, ma'am," a man spoke. "I'm Agent Stanley and this is Agent Navarro, we're from Duodecim Security. Can we talk to you?"

I almost dropped my food. They were here for me now. I panicked, my heart started racing. I couldn't move. Were they here about Griff?

"O-Of course," Mom said, timidly. "We were about to sit down and have lunch, but you can come in."

"We're aware that your daughter may have been involved with someone we've been trying to get a hold of. Can we talk with her?"

"What's she done?" Mom asked.

"She isn't in any trouble, rest assured," Navarro said. "We just have a couple of questions for her."

The two agents and Mom walked into the kitchen.

"Ah," Stanley said, "and you must be Akira."

"Y-yes," I said, sheepishly.

Mom and the two agents sat down at the table.

"We just wanted to make sure that you were safe. Our main concern is this person here."

They took out a tablet with a photo on it. It was a close-up of Griff running.

"Do you know him?" Stanley asked.

I nodded.

"And his name?"

"It's Griff," I replied.

"Okay," Navarro said. "And you're friends with him?"

"Is this important?" Mom asked. "What does Griff have to do with this?!"

"Griff may be involved with some bad people and we want to ensure his safety. Do you happen to know where he went, Akira?"

"All I know is he had friends he met up with," I answered. Stanley jotted something down on a notepad he took out.

"So," Navarro said, "do you know his friends? Have you met them?"

"Yes," I answered. "They were both girls. One of them was his girlfriend, about his age. Another was a girl that seemed to be in college."

"Uh-huh," Stanley said, rubbing his chin. "Well, we appreciate you talking with us."

"Is something the matter?" Mom asked. "Did Griff get involved with something dangerous?"

"Potentially," Stanley answered. "We can't really answer much more regarding our investigation. One last question though."

"Yes?"

"Could you tell us their names?"

"Meiko was the girl with brown hair. And the girl with teal hair was Miku. Why?"

"We just needed to make clarification. If anything else comes up, we'll contact you."

Navarro pulled a card out of his suit pocket.

"If you have anything in our investigation that you believe would be valuable to us, don't hesitate to give us a call."

Mom nodded. I felt my heart racing.

I don't know what I just did, but I'm worried I just put Griff in danger. I need to contact him.

I sent him a quick text message.

"Something just happened. Reply soon as you can. It's serious."

Mom walked back in, giving me a serious look.

"Akira," she said. "What's going on?"

"I wish I could tell you," I said. "But all I know is Griff might be in trouble."

"What do you mean?"

"I don't know, I just feel like I did something wrong telling those agents about Griff."

"Do you think Griff is involved with bad people?"

"I think he's mixed up in a bad situation. I'll try calling him."

"He doesn't seem like the type," Mom said. "Just be careful. I'm trying really hard not to go back on what we said last night."

"Thanks, Mom," I said. "I appreciate it."

----------------------------------------

"How did you even get here!?" Meiko asked.

"Full-body scanner, duh!" Gumi replied.

"And where's your jumpsuit?" Luka asked.

"Don't need one!"

"And what about getting back home!?" I asked. "Don't we need someone back at the Operating Room!?"

"Nope!" Gumi shouted cheerfully. "Turns out everything works the same here! Isn't it great!?"

Meiko's brow furrowed."But why did you just up and stop talking, Gumi? Do you know how frustrating that is?"

"Look, I just wanted to surprise everyone. And I did, didn't I?"

"That is besides the point," Luka scolded. "Can you try harder to tell us what you're planning before you do it?"

"But then it wouldn't be a surprise!"

Meiko covered her face with her hands.

"I swear to God," Meiko said. "If you weren't the only reason we could get home, I'd strangle you right now."

"Oh well," Gumi said. "It worked. That's what matters. Even better is that we have a new base to go to and from, and even better than that, it's one I can work in!"

"Guys," I interjected, "we're getting sidetracked. Can we get back to what we were doing here?"

Meiko, Luka, and Gumi looked at me.

"He's right," Luka said. "We should go back up and check out the base."

"I mean, I have everything mapped out in my head," Gumi said. "Did you know this base has an aircraft hangar? Like, how cool is it that they managed to squeeze one in here?"

"Gumi, please!" Meiko said. "We get you're smart, but focus!"

"Fine, okay," Gumi said. "Let's go back up to the main base, and we'll talk about it there."

We rode back up to the main base, and Gumi walked in ahead of us. She sounded amazed at what she was seeing.

"What on Earth have I been missing?" Gumi said.

"A lot, apparently," Meiko said.

"This is so much different than seeing it from the computer. I'm shocked I didn't try jumping in here sooner!"

"Probably better you didn't," Luka said. "We'd have no way back without you."

"We're smart, we could have figured it out," Gumi said.

"Anyways," Meiko said, "we should really be working on a plan."

"Of course. Lemme take a look at the holomap you guys found."

We walked over to the holomap, and Gumi started messing with it.

"Hmm, I wonder," Gumi said, gliding her fingers along the holographic display, and pinched her finger and her thumb together.

Suddenly, the map shifted to a view of Interspace, with Other-Earth located on it. Other planets surrounded it. None of them looked anywhere close to our solar system. It was as if someone placed them around at random, and left them that way.

"Fascinating," Gumi said. "Since there's no sun to orbit around, the planets just don't orbit."

"They don't orbit?" Miku asked.

"They don't. They don't even spin. And even more, they don't even have an atmosphere. Look at this."

She zoomed the holomap to Other-Earth.

"That funnel you found near the Dome," Gumi explained. "That's an exit. Ships go in and go out of it. There's a bunch throughout Other-Earth."

"Would it be safe to assume that's every planet?" I asked.

"It's safe to assume every mass that floats in Interspace functions to that degree, yes. However, there might be others that you can enter freely into. Though I can't be sure. I've only been looking into this for a little while, after all."

"The fact you picked all this up from just a holomap is pretty impressive," Miku said.

"I pick up on things fast," Gumi said. "That aside, I wonder what else is beyond this system."

She zoomed the map back out, further this time. Our system was one of five, it seemed. With ours being in the "Alpha System." The others were the "Beta," "Charlie," "Delta," and "Echo,' sector. There was a sixth one as well, which was left unexplored and unnamed.

"I'll have to investigate these later," Gumi said. "Beta and Delta are colored red, while the other three are green."

"I wonder if it's hostilities," Luka said. "Can you pull up the Homeland Station that the Rangers were in before it was destroyed?"

"I'll find what's left of it," Gumi said.

She zoomed the map back to our system, and located the Homeland Station. It was still in pieces.

"Check to see if we can find the other stations they were connected to," Meiko said. "Maybe we can send this over to them."

It connected strands to the other stations. Most of them turned red, reading "offline."

"It's worse than I thought," Gumi said. "I thought Homeland Station was the only one that Unity's Hand hit, but it looks like they went for others shortly after. There's still some left out there, but I'm worried they might not have anywhere left except their base."

"Hang on," Meiko said. "One of these is pointing to Other-Earth. Gumi, is there a colony here?"

Gumi took the map back to Other-Earth. It led back to the City of Connection.

"Didn't know the Rangers had a relationship with Connection," I said.

"There's still a lot we don't know about this place," Luka said. "Assuming the Rangers did have a relationship with Connection, what's your point?"

"I'm wondering," Meiko said. "It's one of the few places that hasn't been attacked. Unity's Hand has a presence out here, so why haven't they struck it?"

"Maybe they had attacked enough colonies?" Miku suggested. "You guys know more than I do about this place."

"You'll learn," Gumi assured Miku. "But I didn't think of that angle. I think I need to look into what was going on with the Rangers and Unity's Hand during peace talks."

"If you'll be doing that, then, what do you want us to do?" I asked.

"I say we head back home," Gumi said. "If Meiko's right about this, then we might be making our next stop at Connection. Unity's Hand can't be far behind. They might try to attack them soon, and we need to stop them."

"Fine, then," I said. "Back to base. Hope we can take it easy for a little while before things flare up."

"Can't guarantee anything," Meiko said. "Keep your ears out. The moment things pop off, we'll need to be ready."

I nodded, and we headed back to the Operating Room.

----------------------------------------

"So that confirms it, then," Kallen said into his handset. "Miku's back where she was originally."

"Don't you mean V.C.D.-01, sir?"

"Nevermind that, Stanley," Kallen said. "Director's aren't here. Refer to it as whatever the Hell you want. The point is; we know where she went. We just need to get our hands on the boy now."

"That won't be easy, sir," Stanley said.

"And why's that?"

"His uncle. You know how we looked into his background? Well, the crazy thing is, he's definitely an enigma."

"And what do you mean by that?" Kallen inquired.

"We looked into this 'David Kruger' guy alright. About as well as we could, anyways. Government background gave us a full name, home address, and workplace. Tried to go further and we couldn't find anything. His work is some shell company of a shell company. Everything has proxies upon proxies"

"So you think he's an agent?" Kallen asked.

"Agent of something, sure," Stanley answered. "That or he's a nobody, but he sure didn't seem like a nobody when we talked to him. Either someone tipped him off about us, or this wasn't his first rodeo."

"We leave no options open," Kallen said. "The fact we have a lead to Miku, and possibly the rest of the escapees, the directors will be groveling by the end of this."

"Well," Stanley said, "I'll make sure we figure out where he's going. If we're lucky, we can find both of them next to each other.

"We'll try something soon," Kallen said. "We can't repeat the mallcrasher incident, but we can try something close to it."

"We'll be listening."

"See to it that you do," Kallen said.

After our investigation into Stargazer base today, I felt exhausted. Not that we had done much moving around, but because we had so much to still cover. It felt more like I was getting information overload. If there was one thing Gumi was good at, it was giving me too much information to reasonably take in at once. Not to say she wasn't good at anything else, because that would be untrue.

Once we arrived back in the real world, Gumi got right to work and started skimming documents on the supercomputer.

"Anything you want me to do?" I asked.

"I think we're good today," Gumi said. "If this is going the way I think it's going to go, you might want to get as much rest as you can."

I nodded.

"Guess I'm taking you home, then," Meiko said.

"Aww," Miku pouted. "I wanted to hang out with him just a little longer."

"Sorry," I said. "If only I could stay here the night again. It was fun the last time I did."

"I'd be worried about raising suspicion, especially after yesterday's antics."

"Right," I said. "Guess that settles that."

"Come on," Meiko said. "I'll take you home."

I left for the locker room and returned back in my normal attire. Miku walked up to me to see me off.

"Tell Akira the next time you talk to her I said, 'hi,' okay?"

"Of course," I said. "You seem like a fan of hers."

"She seems sweet," Miku said. "I'd like to actually hang out with her again real soon."

"Maybe I can try arranging something. It'll be kind of risky, though, seeing as you can't really be in public."

"Well," Miku said, "you're kind of in the same boat yourself."

"Sure seems that way," I said. "Can't even go out for something to eat without agents stopping me, it seems."

Miku gave me a quick hug and saw me off as I headed back up to Meiko's car.

Once I got outside the base, my phone started vibrating. A bunch of messages started showing up on my phone.

"Need to talk with you. It's urgent."

They were from Akira. I decided to call her up.

"Griff!?" She said, a little exasperated.

"What's going on?" I asked.

"Those two guys from yesterday that stopped you came by."

"You didn't talk to them, did you?" I asked.

"They came into our house and had me answer questions."

"What did you tell them?"

"They asked me who you were with and what was happening, I tried not to say too much."

"You didn't tell them about Miku, did you?"

Akira didn't answer. I asked again.

"You didn't tell them about Miku, did you?"

"I-I did," Akira answered.

"That's not good," I said.

"Why isn't that good!?"

I paused and thought about whether or not I should tell her. I looked over at Meiko, who was listening in.

"Okay," I said. "We need to figure something out. How much do you think they know?"

"All I told them was you were in the same car as Miku and Meiko. I didn't tell them anything else."

"Alright," I said. "Look, Aki. I'm not mad. I'm sorry I got you into this mess."

"What's going to happen to you?" She asked.

"I don't know yet," I said. "But I'm worried I might be gone for a while."

Aki stayed silent.

"I'm sorry," I said, "but I'll make it up to you."

I hung up, and told Meiko.

"Crap," Meiko said. "That's not good."

"No," I said, "it isn't. I worry they'll keep the pressure on Aki and she'll crack. They got info out of her because they couldn't get it out of me."

"And they'll keep doing that until they get to you."

"You think they'll hurt her?" I asked.

"No," Meiko said, "but they'll definitely make her life Hell until she cracks. Since they know Miku is back and around town, they'll keep looking for her. They'll start knocking on your door pretty soon, too."

"I wonder if they already have," I said. "Wouldn't shock me."

"Well, come on. I'll take you home, and you'll need to lay low for the time until we get back."

This sucked, but now I knew how Miku and everyone else felt about hiding out.

I got into Meiko's car, and sighed.

"It'll be alright," Meiko said. "They'll have to go through me before they get to you."

"Thanks," I smiled, "wish I could say the same."

"You aren't the android here," Meiko said. "Don't worry."

----------------------------------------

Meiko had returned to the forest near the Operating Room. It was still early enough in the day that she didn't feel the urge to immediately return to the base.

She sat in her car for a little while. Her mind was focused on the days ahead, and also the danger following with it. Meiko wasn't scared, though. She was prepared for anything. She worried, however, about everyone else.

"I just wonder where you might have gone off to," Meiko said to herself, her fingers trembling against the steering wheel.

She almost ended up ramming her fist into the steering wheel. Resisting the urge, she took a deep breath, and stepped out of her car. Meiko decided she'd stay outside and calm down before even trying to socialize with anyone else. Meiko knew the risks of staying outside for a long period of time, but she hated being underground more. She took her time, letting the sounds of the empty forest wash over her.

Back underground, Miku sat in her room looking over a tablet Gumi lent her. It detailed plenty, mostly over what Gumi herself knew, but also to the extent that everyone else knew. It was clearly written to speed Miku's knowledge along without information overload. Likely because Gumi had a habit of saying too much, causing most listeners to lose interest, or be unable to follow entirely. This made it much easier for her, and possibly anyone else reading it.

Her reading was interrupted, however, when someone knocked on her door. Miku put the tablet down next to Yukine, and stood up to answer. It was Luka.

"Oh, hey Luka," Miku said. "What brings you here?"

"Just checking in," Luka said. "You kind of got dropped into our laps and we haven't been able to relax since. I figured I'd come see you, face-to-face."

"Sorry we haven't had time to talk," Miku said.

"Well," Luka said, pushing Yukine to the side, and sitting down next to Miku, "we have time now. If you'd like, we can go outside or eat at the mess hall, if you feel like a change of locale would help."

"I wouldn't mind that," Miku said, "I could stand to see the real world for a bit."

"Outside it is," Luka said.

Miku and Luka emerged from the elevator leading to the outside. The two girls walked up and out to the woods near the abandoned power station.

"So, I don't think I want to dance around the topic, so I won't," Luka said, rather directly.

Miku crossed her arms and leaned against a wall.

"I know it's not comfortable, but I'm sorta worried about you, and I just want to make sure you're okay."

Miku nodded.

"Do you have any evidence of Duodecim mass producing us? Did you see anything in there?"

"No," Miku said. "No one said anything about it. I think I'm just assuming based on all of the facilities I was being led around in."

"That makes sense," Luka said. "And just so you know, we didn't find anything in the database that would imply that was happening, either."

"That's good to hear," Miku said.

"Now, most of that information is classified, so we can't be sure entirely. But I have a good feeling we're unique to Duodecim, otherwise they wouldn't want us back so badly."

"Do you ever wonder why we were built, Luka?"

"Well, of course I do, I think all of us do. It's one of the great questions that no one can really find an answer for."

"I guess that's what freaked me out the most about that dream," Miku said, coming back to the topic at hand. "It's not even the idea of being mass produced. It's what's behind that. To have yourself copied and not knowing if you're the original. I felt like I was being driven insane by seeing myself copied. Feeling like I'm not anything more than a machine."

"And that's okay, Miku," Luka said, reassuringly. "We left to go carve our own path, didn't we?"

"We did," Miku said. "It's just hard to cope with the fact I'm not human, no matter how much I might look human."

"Yeah," Luka nodded, "but you have someone who accepts that, and despite all of the secrecy, he still wanted to accept you."

Miku parted some of her teal hair away from her eyes, and smiled.

"He did, didn't he?"

"I'd say so. I think he also wants to help us see to it that we can live normal lives. But he mostly signed on to find out what happened to you in the beginning."

"In the end, I guess I can't be mad at him," Miku said, letting out a small chuckle.

"Well," Luka said, "I need to get going. I'm glad you talked with me today. If you have anything that's bugging you, don't hesitate to talk to me, okay?"

"Okay, Luka," Miku said. "I appreciate you listening. I didn't mean to worry you."

"That's kind of my thing," Luka said. "I'm kind of Gumi's go-to for listening, so this is nothing new."

Miku and Luka decided to part ways once they both got back into the base. Miku would head off into her room and look over the tablet Gumi had given her.

However, she got distracted. Still sitting by the table next to her private terminal was a collection of books that she had purchased during her time as a runaway from Duodecim. Books on music theory, photography, and aviation all sat in a nice stack. She was glad to have seen them returned.

She looked over at the tablet, and wondered if she could get away with taking reading something a little more "fun" in her eyes.

She decided to crack open the book on aviation and aircraft again. She remembered where she bought it, and why. It was sitting in a local hobby store up the road from the train station near her house. The idea of flying planes sounded like a wonderful time.

Miku looked through the photos of airplanes that took off into the endless blue above, and let out a sigh. She remembered how the first time after escaping from Duodecim, she would look up at the sky for herself, and feel like she was finally free.

But in her mind, as free as she had felt, she felt like she wanted more. She wanted to fly above in the sky, and see everything the way the birds did. She fantasized about being able to pilot her own plane, and see the world for herself. She wanted to take off and head for the stratosphere.

But she knew that wasn't meant for her. Not now.

But, then, a thought occurred to Miku. She closed her book and shifted her chair back to her private terminal.

"I wonder if Gumi gave me access rights to see about this," Miku said, browsing the database.

She scrolled over to the database file for the V.R. pods that sat on another floor. She was looking for a detailed analysis to see if there was a particular simulation available.

There was, sitting right next to the "Advanced Vehicle Operations" training sat the "Beginning Aircraft and Flight Training."

Miku wondered if she could sneak in a couple of hours learning to try it out. She planned on trying it out soon. Although it wouldn't be the same as flying a real aircraft, she still wanted to see about doing it.

----------------------------------------

Meiko woke up to the sound of her phone buzzing. It was around 10 P.M., and she had just realized she had dozed off. It tended to happen when Meiko stayed in her car too long and relaxed with alcohol in her system. It never made her drunk, but it certainly calmed her nerves.

After her phone kept ringing, Meiko reached into her pocket, and pulled it out. It was from Griff. She answered immediately.

"Hey, Griff, what's up?"

On the other end was a rather older sounding man. It wasn't Griff, clearly, and it sounded tense.

"I wanted to meet you," he said.

"Who is this, and why are you calling from Griff's phone?"

"I can't tell you anything right now," the voice replied, "but just know, I mean no harm."

"How do I expect you to believe that? From the way it sounds, you have Griff hostage!"

"And unless you meet me, you aren't going to know. I'm at the parking structure by the Palmview Train Station. Come alone. We need to speak."

He hung up. Meiko turned on her car immediately without hesitation. This was clearly a trap, and she should have told Gumi and the others, but Meiko didn't have the patience to wait for the others.

Instead, she put the car in drive, and sped out of the woods into the street. She was going to take care of this herself.

Once she had arrived at the structure, she drove to a nearby parking spot, and opened her glovebox. Inside, a Glock 24 sat there, with two magazines. She kept it in her car for situations like this. She loaded the sidearm, and racked the slide. If this was a trap, she'd fight her way out.

She got out of her car, and placed the gun in her jean's backside, and kept her right hand over it. She kept an ear out for anyone suspicous.

Meiko took out her phone, still keeping watch around her surroundings. She dialed Griff's number, seeing if he was okay.

"I wouldn't recommend doing that, Miss Sakine," said a man's voice from the dark.

Meiko pulled out her gun and aimed it.

"No need to pull the gun on me," he said. "I'm not armed."

"Show yourself," she ordered.

He hid behind the shadow, but Meiko could see him in the shadow with her low-light vision.

It was definitely a man, but he looked familiar to her.

"I'm not armed," he said, holding a M1911 handgun, with the magazine out of it, and the slide pulled back. He stepped out into the light.

His hair was blonde and he wore a nice black suit, and he looked serious.

"My name is David Kruger," he said.

Meiko lowered her gun, and swore under her breath. This man was Griff's caretaker; and now it seemed like he was more than just some guy who had guardianship over Griff's life.