They stood in the command centre. Garrison leant over the great map table which projected the entire layout of Elysium and it's island. The Arbiter moved between colonels and commanders, receiving reports of doom from all.

Reese considered their position. Elysium was well defended, they should have the advantage... But why had the ministry chosen now to attack?

A drone operator called him over, the assault force would be coming into view soon. He watched the grainy footage of mountains and fields flying by until the first hostile made themselves known. A small unit, likely recon. They were sent to get some idea of Alliance presence.

"Drop." Reese ordered. The drone operator pressed three buttons before the squad was wiped away in a huge explosion. The camera raised to show the rest of the oncoming forces. A soldier stood in every available inch of the island. As many bullets as blades of grass. Most of the forces where mechs, robots designed to look humanoid. Overhead hovered a full fleet of aircraft, bombers that resembled flying fortresses; one man fighters in the image of a steel swallow and hundreds of troop carriers... All just waiting.

"Lieutenant?" Garrison said, beckoning for him to join the table. Reese stepped from the monitor and swerved between frantic command crew. Officers shouted orders, ensigns debated armament distribution and crewmen ran papers and orders throughout the base.

Reese slipped between two women debating about the placement of civilian vehicles and stood before Garrison and the Arbiter's council. "Sir?"

Garrison handed him a tablet. On it was a blurry image captured from a drone, it looked like the shadow of a giant nearly dwarfing a mountain.

"What can you tell us?" The Arbiter asked. She was not a woman to mince words. All who were elected into the office of the Arbiter were forced to hide their identity. She wore an ornate mask, not like the ones a Mack would wear but full faced and eerie. It was black and red, looking almost threatening considering it marked an elected official. "The mark of a war time leader" Reese silently supposed.

In truth, Reese knew nothing of what he was looking at. They were likely hoping his time fighting with the Ministry would have provided him some insight into any new potential weapons. Unfortunately, any new gear created during his time with the ministry would be completely obsolete by now. It had been a lifetime since he called himself a MOG.

"Nothing, ma'am. I don't even know what I'm supposed to be looking at." Reese admitted. Worry fell blatant on Garrison's grizzled old face. He scruffed his beard and furrowed his brow.

"Sergeant Black identified it herself." Garrison told him. "It's the new Titan class."

A titan class? When Reese had last seen a Titan class it was more or less an excessively tall weapons platform. Maybe as tall as ten metres. This? It must have been at least eighty. The kind of power required to make it function could supply... Half of Hypatia. That's when he remembered, the prototype he stole! He had assumed that the ministry had created it as an alternative fuel source, but no.

"Sir, they must have created a hidden copy of the prototype power generator. The kind of weapons it could power with such a device... We need to target it right away!" Reese suggested to Garrison. "Send me out. I'll find a weakness and report back."

Stolen from its rightful place, this narrative is not meant to be on Amazon; report any sightings.

"It is a good idea" Garrison agreed while facing the Arbiter. She shook her head and pulled out another tablet.

"We have other need of Raptor's skill set." She said.

Reese turned to Garrison in disbelief before rounding on the Arbiter. "But, ma'am! I must insist, that device is out largest immediate threat."

"I agree." She said harshly. "And for it, I have a plan. I will remind you that you are in fact a mere Lieutenant now... Yours is not to reason why, yours is but to do or die. You will follow orders and trust that your superiors have a plan greater than yourself. Understand... Lieutenant Reese?" Her annoyance was plain to see. Her voice spat out his name like a poisoned meal. He could not see her eyes through her mask but he could feel them, she was sizing him up. Not for a fight but for a court-martial. He knew she would never actually do so, but that didn't mean she wouldn't love to. He bowed his head in apology and stepped back from the table.

"Bernard." She said in a scornful tone. She expected him to say something as a reprimand.

"I will deal with my squad, Arbiter, in my own time. Tell me of this task we are to complete." He said. He sounded as harsh as she, a strange tone for the old man to take. He and the Arbiter had a respectful relationship at the worst of times so it seemed out of character for him to speak to her with such coldness.

"Very well, commander." She began dismissive of his tone. An image appeared on the map table. A 3D scan of a temporary base.

"This is the MOG forward operations base(FOB)." She began. A maze of tents and sandbags marked the boundaries of a small bunker. "It is soon to get much larger. I'm talking four meter walls, weapon bunkers and aerial surveillance drones. It will be a bonafide fortress."

The projection changed to show a predicted layout. Watchtowers lined the rows of tents, drones patrolled the walls and a thick concrete dome covered it all.

"They're preparing for a siege. These are familiar tactics from the old days." She finished. Garrison took the tablet from her and the hologram rotated.

"Do we know who's in charge?" He asked. The Arbiter nodded.

"I believe so. This is why I wanted Reese to attend this brief in person." She explained as a profile appeared, replacing the map. A man, a familiar man, was presented before him. Strong, stout and tall. Serious and effective.

It read: Sect Head Hosun Akyama, councillor of the armed forces.

"Councillor?" Reese scoffed. "He's been busy."

"I understand you two are acquainted?" The Arbiter nudged. Her tone was disapproving, almost disgusted.

"We were, ma'am. Though, he was a colonel back then. Hosun Akyama is a brilliant strategist but a mid-tier soldier. He will want direct oversight of the siege. I'd say he is already at the FOB but..." He trailed off.

"But?" The Arbiter urged.

"But... He knows i'm here. He won't make a move till he has dealt with Raptor, with me."

"And what makes you so special?"

Reese considered his words carefully. It wouldn't be wise to tell her too much, but he had to give her something. "Hosun Akyama is a brilliant strategist... But nobody cared. He was just some dumb fisherman in the eyes of the ministry. That was until he met somebody with the capabilities required to fulfil his plans." He explained.

"Akemi?" Garrison intuited.

"Yes, sir. Ito Akemi fulfilled mission after mission under his command. She assassinated and infiltrated and instigated all over the world. She is the reason a fisherman became a colonel, and I suppose - a councillor." Reese continued. The Arbiter grew frustrated, her tone short and agitated.

"Yes, yes... All very interesting. What does this 'Ito Akemi' have to do with you?"

"That's simple, ma'am. She's my mother."