Archive of Our Own ^beta

Chapter Text

In the Deep and Dark reaches of space within a dimension where none is dark, but all white. In a place where there is nothing. A place of utter void. A place that none is alive or dead, said to exist but in a state of uncreation. It is known as the Realm of Chaos. All is the mind and the mind is all in this primordial realm... One of purity, one that is infinite that holds many bubbles. Gateways to infinite timelines and universes. The Realm of Chaos. It is said that to enter the Realm is to fall into nothingness and that once in, the will of the one who falls into nothing is all that holds the mind and body together, but it is only said to be possible by the strongest of beings...

A fleet of starships are within the aether of Chaos, bordering between the various universal worldgates.

They resemble Imperial Japanese Navy designs, a fine example of Retrofuturist engineering designs. The main vessel is a 25 kilometer wide, 10 kilometer tall, black carrier that is heavily armored with layers of anti-magic technology, nuclear and anti-matter propulsion with various armaments for long distance fire and defence.

It is escorted by several other large vessels several hundred metres in length, they too armed to the teeth and all ships bearing an insignia of the Arrows of Chaos with a Swastika blended into the roundel extending from the centre of the arrows.

They all move about to guard their surroundings, using the light from the void stars and the luminescent bubbles to guide them.

As the fleet approaches one of the bubbles, it warps in the middle and opens up as a gate.

*** Within the Main Vessel ***

A man with pale skin, red eyes, dark hair and an Asian appearance sits on a throne, his black samurai-like armour and sigils resembling the crest of a swastika within the symbol of chaos. Four dark wings are rested on his back.

The man himself appears young in appearance, in his late twenties but it is not easy to determine due to his inhuman aura that radiates out from him like heat from the sun.

His admiral delivers him a few words.

Jamsaram: "The Fleet are prepared, Prince Noro."

Noro: "Excellent."

Jamsaram: "Then what is your order?"

Noro: "Let us chart a course to a timeline where our Dark Sun will shine.

Jamsaram: "That would be most glorious."

Noro: "No time to waste. Let us go forth and conquer! Open the Warpgates!!"

***

A portal appears in front of the fleet on the surface of the Universal bubble.

The Portal is a circle with arms giving off the image of a Black Sun.

The fleet enter it and find themselves crossed into the Nikke Universe.

Noro: "And so, I bring you a new world! One with more chaos and conquest to await us. You will witness true divinity!"

***Deep Underground within Earth's crust***

On the streets of the Ark, an advertisement features a Nikke on a digital billboard.

The woman has blond hair and blue eyes. Her skin is fair, but her lips and eyebrows are dark red, marking her as a product of Elysion. She wears a green and gold dress and a white coat.

The streets nearby are a part of a Commercial district, itself next to a military district. Soldiers live here and socialize on these streets when off duty.

***Ark Military District***

Soldier: "Please do not do anything out of line and just sit there quietly... I am just going to plug you in..."

Nikke: "..."

Soldier: "Is this the first time?"

Nikke: "Yes... It will be a while before I get used to the sensation."

Soldier: "It will only take a moment. So just relax."

Nikke: "..."

Soldier: "There we go."

The soldier touches a sensor at the base of Nikke's head, Nikke then twitches and groans, her eyes widening as she feels a surge of energy enter her.

The soldier removes her hands and touches the sensor again to shut it off.

Soldier: "All done. The memory has been erased."

Nikke: "I see... Then let us begin."

Soldier: "We shall begin in a moment, but please remain in this spot until then. You are only allowed to move during your missions."

Nikke: "All right."

Soldier: "We will be doing some fine-tuning and adjustment of your senses later. It should be over within an hour or so."

Nikke: "Oh, all right... I'll wait."

Soldier: "Yes, we'll be going through the training immediately after that."

Elsewhere in the base, the Nikkes Rapi and Anis are seen conversing about an urgent development on the surface.

***

Elsewhere in the Ark, in the Central Government Headquarters, an announcement is being broadcasted. The Deputy Chiefs of the Ark head to gather with the Big Three Manufacturers and the Government itself.

Doban: "As you all know, the Earth above has been subjected to an attack from the Raptures. This war to reclaim the surface of our planet had been ongoing for half a century. However there have been extremely anomalous happenings that we detected on the surface. A number of them were sighted on the same day as a nuclear explosion of unknown origin."

A screen shows some data displaying geiger counter readings and pictures from the Nikke scouts showing a giant mushroom cloud and videos of it engulfing even the largest massive metallic raptures as a column of them are wiped out by the blast.

Doban: "The nature of the nuclear blast remains unknown. However, we can say that the impact of the nuclear explosion was powerful enough to affect the atmosphere above the ground, as well as the environment and even the Raptures. There is an abnormal energy concentration above the ground, and a huge amount of magnetic interference."

Elsewhere in the Central Government Headquarters, the head of the Security Department, General Andersen speaks to the Committee.

Andersen: "It's possible that this nuclear blast was caused by a meteorite."

Government Secretary: "Do you think so?"

Andersen: "I don't have enough information to say that for sure. However, if it is not a natural phenomenon, then I cannot think of another explanation."

Government Secretary: "Hmm... Is there anything else?"

Andersen: "I guess we should send the Nikkes up to find out."

***

Back in the Ark Military distinct, Anis is with the other Nikkes, Rapi and Mika waiting for their turn for equipment requisitions.

As they wait, Rapi asks Anis:

Rapi: "Have you heard about this before?"

Anis: "Yeah, the nuclear blast. Everyone's talking about it."

Rapi: "I wonder if there was a real battle...

Mika: "Thats impossible, there are no humans left on the surface of the planet that have access to nuclear weapons. Everyone in the Ark down here is for certain to not have any reason or capacity to launch them. As my database says, all nuclear stockpiles were either lost or dismantled when humanity moved underground. So we know that the blast was not caused by humans."

Rapi: "I see..."

Anis: "But then why?"

Neon: "Maybe something happened on the surface that the Central Government does not want us to know."

Rapi: "Maybe we should keep our speculations to ourselves."

Neon: "I know."

Neon nods at the others, then continues...

Neon: "All right, it's finally our turn."

Anis: "Yes... We have no choice but to follow the Central Government's orders."

Rapi: "Do you think, they will send us to the surface?"

Anis: "We shall have to wait and find out."

***

On the surface of the Ark, the "Scouts" Nikke squad are waiting in line for an elevator that will take them to the surface. Comprising of Signal and Delta, they are wearing their full combat gear, and carrying their Nikke Armament and specialist gear.

Signal: "You must be feeling really nervous for this mission."

Delta: "I am. But I cannot be nervous when my orders are absolute. I'll go and fulfill my mission to the letter, just as I was instructed."

Signal: "You're so calm. That's an admirable trait."

Delta: "Of course. I have to stay calm because I know my objective is to go aboveground and observe the enemy's movements.

The Counters squad arrives and follows up behind them.

Delta: "So, have you heard about what we are here to do?"

Rapi: "Absolutely. Let us all put our speculations to rest. Anis! Neon! Let's all find the truth."

Anis: "We have to wait for the Commander first."

They hear an announcement over the PA system, and see it appear on the screen in front of them.

Commander: (On Intercom) "Attention! Attention! All Nikkes to the surface! Mount all Aerials."

Aerials are the Ark's main transport vehicles, a cross between helicopters and jets.

***

Back on the surface, the Military is scrambling their Aerials as the Nikkes arrive from the elevators to board them. A short beeping siren goes off for 3 seconds.

Delta: "What is that sound?"

Anis: "It's an announcement."

Commander: (On Intercom) "All human personnel, stay out of the zone of radioactivity and do not take unnecessary risks by exposing yourself to fallout. Even in that gear you have been issued."

Signal: "Are we going to be fighting here?"

Rapi: "No... I don't think so."

Delta: "Why? We have no reason to assume there will be no battle.

The Aerial lifts off the ground and dozens if not maybe over a hundred of them rise up with them in an orderly manner.

Commander: (On Radio) "A nuclear attack was carried out on the surface. That was confirmed by the Ark. The impact was of unknown origin. This is all the information we have at this time, but we are currently receiving more information. Rapture presence has been decimated in the area and so far no signs of them have been detected for 2 days after the last engagement. However, we must not let our guard down. That is all."

Anis: "How strange, Signal. Didn't you say that humans are incapable of using nuclear weapons?"

Signal: "They are."

Delta: "Then what could it be? Did a natural phenomenon cause this?"

Anis: "Maybe, but I doubt it."

Mika: "Based on the last radioactivity readings taken, we have calculated a location where the blast was centered. We believe that the nuclear attack originated from there."

Neon: "There is an increase in the amount of magnetic interference from there."

Delta: "On Honshu island?"

Anis: "Yes, on the northern side of Honshu Island. We shall be heading there."

Rapi: "If there's nothing there now, why send us? I doubt it'll be as simple as taking a look around."

Delta: "Of course."

Anis: "No one said that the nuclear attack was caused by humans... Maybe we will find out more when we arrive."

Signal: "Let's all do our best!"

The Nikkes look out the windows and confide amongst themselves as they head into the unknown...

Chapter Text

The Ark's Aerials arrive across the designated landing zones after making the journey from their Forward Operating Base on Hokkaido.

The squad are disembarking and entering the Honshu forest. It is a humid and cloudy day.

Neon: "We have arrived."

Delta: "Hmm. Nothing. There's nothing here."

Mika: "Indeed. It's almost like there was nothing ever here to begin with."

Signal: "It's hard to believe. If only the radiation levels we are receiving didn't prove it."

Anis: "But that is the only thing we have."

Neon: "That's right. We should check around the area, we will split up and do a perimeter sweep of the forest."

Delta: "Yes. I will be investigating that area over there."

Delta walks off, followed by Mika and Signal.

Neon: "All right, let's go."

The Forest is cleared. Various small wildlife has been observed to have died due to radiation exposure.

They then head towards a small hut, and enter it.

Inside, they find several old wooden shelves and tables filled with all sorts of old and antique items.

Signal: "Oh my! What is this place?"

Mika: "An old abandoned farmhouse..."

Neon: "Well, what's it doing here in the middle of a forest?"

Delta: "There are no other structures nearby. This seems to be what was left of human civilization on the surface, untouched for 50 years since the raptures came to earth."

Anis: "No humans could have set off that explosion."

Mika: "Indeed."

Signal: "No Rapture either."

Neon: "And no equipment or electronics left behind. Everything is all dusty, like it hasn't been touched for ages. I don't think we'll find any information about the nuclear explosion here."

Mika: "There are some objects here that we may be able to salvage if we take them with us. I'll be looking for some of these things."

Delta: "Are there any signs of a battle?"

Neon: "No. There is nothing here. Nothing. It's like everything just... Still."

Rapi: "We should regroup towards this old town here."

***

The Nikke Squads regroup on the edge of the forest.

Neon: "We found nothing in that place, so let us move on."

Anis: "It's strange. The area seems completely untouched, and yet... I feel something. Like I am missing something..."

Delta: "I have found nothing. The surrounding area is almost devoid of life."

Rapi: "I'm not seeing any signs of Rapture."

Signal: "A sign... It points to the old town."

She gazes on the sign that displays the name of this old settlement. "Okuma, Fukushima."

The group walk over to the town of Okuma.

Signal: "There is a sign that this place was evacuated to the Ark when the Rapture war began. So they would have evacuated everything here."

Delta: "We haven't seen any signs of any humans since then. The Raptures have certainly destroyed this town, but I don't see any sign of human presence at all."

Anis: "I don't see anything either."

Neon: "What's going on here?

Neon and Mika are looking at some sort of weird picture in the distance.

Signal: "I've seen it. That is the town of Okuma."

Anis: "So you mean, this was the site of a rapture hive?"

Delta: "It seems so... However there is no sign of the hive at all."

Mika: "Perhaps it was destroyed before it was here."

Delta: "That is possible. Lets continue forwards."

The group move past the houses towards the outskirts of the town, they come across a school.

Mika: "I see, there are schools and playgrounds all over this town."

Anis: "I wonder if children played here."

They see Aerials flying overhead and they report no rapture activity in an area with a usually large presence.

Signal: "Why are the raptures not here?"

Delta: "I don't know... This is not like them."

Neon: "Do you think it has anything to do with the nuclear attack?"

Rapi points towards a rapture wreck.

Anis: "They seem to have taken heavy damage from AP rounds. The rapture in front seems to have been demolished by an explosion. But this one here..."

Anis points at another wreck further ahead,

Neon: "I see, it seems to be intact, but dead. We should take a look at it."

The Nikkes move towards the wrecked Rapture.

Signal: "Is it just me or does that wreck look like it's dusty?"

Delta: "It's fallout."

Anis: "The rapture was destroyed by an EMP blast, and they've been covered in fallout since then."

Neon points to more disabled rapture chasis being investigated by other Nikkes who seem to have suffered the same form of silent destruction.

Neon: "And all of them were destroyed in the same way. It was not the raptures themselves who killed them. We're dealing with a whole other thing here."

Anis: "Yes, we are."

The Commander announces to all on the radio.

Commander: (On Radio) "The rapture hive complex that used to be here... It's all ruins. Negative life signs."

Neon: "What?"

Signal: "What's going on here? The Nuke must have exploded in the air just above the former facility."

Delta: "If that's true, then how was the nuclear explosion caused by the raptures? We would have seen it happen."

Anis: "Indeed."

Commander: (On Radio) "This is all the information we have at this time. Forward squads, advance into the ruins of the rapture complex."

The Nikkes move into the complex.

Delta: "I sense nothing."

Neon: "Nothing. Not a single life sign."

Delta: "No life, no activity, just pure destruction. The radiation doesn't seem to be as high as before."

Neon: "It doesn't seem as though the nuclear attack was caused by raptures."

Mika: "If it wasn't the raptures, then who caused the nuclear attack? I wonder if this nuclear explosion had anything to do with the raptures in the first place."

Anis: "I doubt it. But we need to confirm it."

Signal: "What's that sound?"

Delta: "It's coming from that way."

The squad walk up to a destroyed rapture.

Neon: "So this is the complex the hive was built on."

Delta: "I can sense something moving in there."

Another Nikke squad led by Emma suddenly makes her presence known behind some rubble.

Emma: "What's going on here? What's with all the fallen raptures?"

Neon: "Oh, you're here?"

Delta: "That's right."

Two other Nikkes from Absolute squad come into view, Vesti and Eunhwa are Emma's squadmates.

Vesti: "Hey."

Eunhwa: "We saw you guys' Aerials from our vantage point. We were just about to head over to where you guys are."

Neon: "So what's up?"

Eunhwa: "Well, we were ordered to go into the Rapture ruins. Our mission is to search for any sign of rapture activity in this area."

Delta: "And we were told to investigate this area.

Signal: "But the complex has been completely destroyed."

Emma: "Destroyed? What happened here?"

Neon: "There was an explosion, it was so strong that it levelled the area, minus the old town."

Signal: "And the raptures were destroyed as well."

Mika: "I see. So there was no other living things here after all."

Rapi: "So the nuclear attack was not carried out by the raptures."

Eunhwa: "I see, so it wasn't them."

Vesti: "They've all been wiped out..."

Delta: "Indeed. And the fallout doesn't seem to be as high as before."

Emma: "Let's head deeper to the ruins of the complex. I want to know more about this nuclear attack."

The Nikkes advance into the ruins of the manufacturing complex, looking for survivors or any sign of the cause of the nuclear attack.

Neon: "Well, this is quite a mess."

Delta: "Yes."

Rapi: "Let's try to head in deeper."

The tread deeper to see twisted metals and plastics visibly melted, buried in layers of dust.

Neon: "The Nuke must have went off above this zone."

Delta: "I don't understand, why did the nuclear blast only strike the rapture complex?"

Anis: "It feels like we should be asking who could be behind this a bit more."

Vesti: "You're right."

Neon: "Let's try heading in deeper."

The squad continues on as more aerials drop off Nikkes to forward positions.

Mika: "Ah! Look at that!"

Mika points to what looks like the back of a rapture, lying face down.

Signal: "That looks like a rapture."

Mika: "It is."

Neon: "It is?"

Anis: "And it seems to be completely intact."

Mika: "Yes, lets open it up."

Mika uses her knife to slice open the rapture's casing, and the squad step in to look at its inner workings.

Delta: "What is this? This doesn't look like any of the raptures I've seen before."

Rapi: "It doesn't seem to be remotely finished for that matter."

Mika: "But what does it mean?"

Signal: "Well it looks like an unfinished section of what must be a Lord Class rapture.

Mika: "Lord class raptures? So they were working on something like that?"

Rapi: "That could explain why we haven't seen any of these things around. If they were trying to perfect it, it would only be found near the highest levels of the Rapture infrastructure."

Neon: "Maybe, maybe its a pain working on it?"

Delta: "It looks like there is some kind of storage unit inside of it. I shall retrieve it."

Delta unhinges the storage unit and hands it to Anis.

Anis: "Hmm. I believe this is some kind of data storage unit. Let's see if we can salvage the data from it."

Anis passes it to Signal for her to hack into it, but only displays the message "The data cannot be restored due to damage."

Neon: "How strange, a data storage unit is damaged. The unit that would contain the data."

Anis: "It seems that this storage unit was damaged when the rapture was destroyed by the nuclear blast."

Delta: "So, we will need to ask another question."

Anis: "I am afraid so."

Delta: "But I do not know which direction to take next.

Commander: (On radio) "Forward Squads, regroup at LZ."

***

The squad gathers back at LZ. The rain starts to fall as the radiation appears to wash away with the waters into the seas off the coastal town.

Emma: "Hey, Rapi. Do you think there is something else more horrifying than raptures out there?"

Rapi: "You mean, from outer space?"

Emma: "Yes, something out of our understanding. That seems like the only explanation for what's happening here. And whatever caused the nuclear attack is not something we have ever encountered before."

Rapi: "That may be a possibility, but there is one thing I want to confirm before we jump to any conclusions."

Anis: "And what may it be?"

Rapi: "Do you think the Central Government will react kindly to our discoveries?"

Delta: "I don't know. I am just following orders."

Rapi: "But what if they tell us to ignore this and that we need to move on?"

Delta: "Hmm..."

There was a long silence as they all boarded their Aerials. The journey back to the Hokkaido Base, one of the locations of various the Ark entrances was uneventful. In the silence grew a dread... A fear of the great unknown that maybe the public should remain ignorant about for their own good.

Chapter Text

***Hokkaido FOB***

After disembarking from their Aerials, Nikkes and their Human counterparts in the military must decontaminate themselves of Nuclear fallout before heading down into the Ark itself.

The Nikkes head to the decontamination showers. Their Commander just so happened to be peeking before they entered.

Neon: "Hey!"

Delta: "Oh, Commander. How long were you watching us?"

Commander: "Gah! You caught me!"

Mika: "What are you doing?"

Commander: "What? I wasn't doing anything.

Signal: "Then why were you peeking?"

Commander: "I wasn't peeking."

Rapi: "You were, weren't you?"

Commander: "I didn't mean to, honest!

Vesti: "Oh do you mean to join us Commander?"

Emma: "Yes, I wouldn't mind."

Signal: "So you want to shower together?"

Delta: "Well, let him join if he likes."

The Commander joins the squad into the shower room. The squad strip down and begin to undress in front of each other.

Delta: "Hey, Commander. Why don't you show us that great body of yours."

Mika: "Yeah, Commander.

***

After the shower, the Commander felt like the luckiest man in the whole desolate world. He watched as the squad headed off to the rest of their day, leaving him alone.

Commander: "I guess I should get going."

Commander walks back to his own personal room.

***

Commander: "Haaah!"

He relaxes on his bed with a bottle of booze in his hand.

Commander: "I've done so much... And yet I haven't accomplished anything."

He downs a shot from a small cup he poured.

Commander: "At least I have a harem now! Hahahaha!"

His laugh fades to disappointment and anxiety over how this mystery will unravel.

Commander: "I have to find out what this is all about... But I can't risk doing anything reckless. The people need to remain ignorant."

He grabs another bottle of booze.

Commander: "But what if the public find out? What panic will insue? What will become of humanity?"

He downs another shot.

Commander: "What can we do?"

Commander: "... I'm scared."

***

Commander: "Ahhh!"

He dumps the empty bottles from the night before into a trash can, he staggers to the showers to get a warm bath.

He thinks to himself;

Commander: "I'm not looking forward to this morning."

He looks into the mirror, he looks at the bags under his eyes from staying up too late. He sighs and gets into the shower and washes up.

Commander: "What else are we to do?"

***15 minutes later***

The Commander is having some breakfast with other human military personnel in a commercial district of the Ark.

Brightly coloured with a cyberpunk aesthetic, set across the backdrop of an artificial morning sky projected by the Ark itself, it does not really give the personnel in the cafe any form of comfort from the anxiety that grows within their ranks as they eat before reporting for duty.

The Commander walks over to his own table, where he was sat at the moment.

Commander: "Well, this is going to be a long day."

The Commander sighs to his colleagues.

Sergeant: "Before the terrorists get an upper hand, I would at least like to have bedded a Nikke at least once."

Inspector: "Oh, those robotic babes? (Scoff) Don't make our techie here pry your dick out from their compartments! Hahahah!"

Technician: "For fuck's sake calm down with that talk, you're ruining my breakfast."

Commander: "This will probably be the last good breakfast in a while."

Technician: "You're right about that."

Commander: "Inspector, you're the only one of us who's married right?"

Inspector: "Yes, why?"

Commander: "You must know how your wife is, what she likes to do for you and so on?"

Inspector: "Yeah?"

Commander: "Do you think that you could teach me?"

Sergeant: "Well... Well... Commander. Hitting on Nikkes are you?"

Technician: "Just saying, I would love to do it with a Nikke. But the idea of having my dick sucked by a machine seems pretty terrifying."

Inspector: "And I thought that sickened you, Techie."

Technician: "Hey, I'm just speaking my mind!"

Sergeant: "Haha, yeah right."

Inspector: "So Commander, what's that question about again?"

Commander: "Well I just want to ask you some pointers if you don't mind."

Inspector: "About what?"

Commander: "You know, how do you... Get along with normal women?"

Inspector: "Well, Commander. My wife is a very special kind of woman, so I can give you some tips if you like."

Inspector stands up and whispers into the Commander's ear.

Technician: "Wonder if Nikkes are even capable of normal romance."

Inspector: "Look, Commander. Just keep it in mind, don't take anything she says seriously, and have a great time. That's all there is to it."

The Inspector leaves the Commander's table and heads for the rest of his day.

***

In another place in the Ark's military district, a meeting is held with the Central Government officials and Big Three corporation CEOs.

At the front of the meeting room, sits the Central Government Secretary and a few high ranking officials. They sit around the central meeting table as the room fills up with other government officials and CEOs.

Secretary: "As you know, the reports show that the Nuclear Blast can't in fact be of human origin. And everyone is now holding their breath at the thought that other extraterrestrials are out there."

Ingrid: "There's a strong possibility, Secretary."

Syuen: "There's a reason that the news hasn't reported on this yet."

Mustang: "It was because the Central Government deemed the incident too dangerous for public knowledge."

Secretary: "Yes, the public will panic if we let them know about this."

Syuen: "And I presume you will want us to cover up the incident as well?"

Ingrid: "I see no problem with that."

Mustang: "We have all signed our own death certificates if we let the public know."

Secretary: "What do you think of the Central Government's proposal to have everyone here especially the ones here who own media and press subsidiaries to aid the coverup by forcing alternative narratives if necissary?"

Mustang: "As long as we are given full control over how it is presented."

Ingrid: "And what would happen if terrorist groups in the Ark compromise this operation?"

Syuen: "Let's just hope it doesn't happen."

Ingrid: "But it is very possible, considering the terrorists are still on the run."

Mustang: "Yes. Sadly some losers can't be bothered to live in luxury we have to offer indefinitely."

Syuen: "But if there were a strong possibility that the public find out about the detonation, I think it's best that the public knows that it wasn't from this world."

Ingrid: "Yeah, but what about the whole 'Don't panic' aspect?"

Mustang: "It will only add to the uncertainty and fear, especially after all that has happened so far. We need to build the public's faith and confidence in the Central Government. Even if it's just a lie.

Everyone knows we don't have nukes! There's no way to cover up proof that the nuclear strike happened once it becomes public knowledge.

Thousands of military personnel know about this incident already!"

Syuen: "Well I can see the merit in Mustang's proposal."

Ingrid: "But it doesn't mean it's going to be easy."

Mustang: "Oh, I know. We could just call it a volcanic eruption and that should rest the public temporarily even if it's damage control."

Secretary: "Gentlemen, I think it's best we let the military have it's turn to speak now."

A General steps forward. It is General Burningum, one of the Ark's Deputy Chiefs. An elderly leader, he is obese and uses a cain to support his weight and is flanked by a civilian Nikke companion wearing a maid uniform.

He says in a raspy voice:

Burningum: "The incident that happened this week will not affect the operation at all. We will keep it confidential within the military personnel, and we will try to cover it up.

However, I do recommend that we find a way to present the incident to the public in such a way that they will not throw fits at us. As such I would kindly recommend Mr. Mustang's cover of volcanic alibi."

Ingrid: "It would be more plausible to have it be volcanic eruptions since it's a natural phenomenon and not of extraterrestrial origin."

Secretary: "We could even announce that it's happening elsewhere than it actually is. The Central Government can provide the location if you wish."

Mustang: "That's a brilliant idea, Secretary."

Syuen: "Yeah, it could give the public a sense of security."

Ingrid: "The military will be responsible for finding a location."

Secretary: "I think we can conclude this meeting for now gentlemen."

***

A few hours later, a meeting is to be held with the Commander and the Nikkes.

Commander: "This is going to be a long day."

The Commander sighs as he sits in a room with a table while he waits for the Nikkes.

Neon: "Oh, Commander. You're here."

Eunhwa: (Winks) "Good Morning, Commander!"

Emma: "I guess we'll have a lot to talk about today."

Signal: "Well I've heard from Vesti that you're gonna have another shower today."

Vesti: "No I didn't!"

Rapi and her squad laugh behind them.

Commander: "Hush! Nevermind the shower."

He looks distraught over the papers with signed orders which he recieved.

Commander: "We've just received orders from the Central Government, they want us to come up with an alternative narrative for the incident."

Neon: "Oh, I see."

Commander: "So basically a massive volcanic eruption took place on Honshu which destroyed the Rapture base... Nothing more. Let's not talk about anything we saw there in public or on duty.

Don't question anything... Or there will be... Consequences."

He says with a heavy heart.

Neon: "We won't ask any questions, but I believe this will be a bad day for all of us."

Rapi: "It's the end of the line."

Commander: "It will be a bad day for all of us if any disobedience is found. I know well that it's an open secret but don't mention it. Anyone can be watched. They may erase your memories at worst but as you know; its too bothersome to do so. Now be good girls and don't cause anyone trouble. (He flicks his wrist upward) Dismissed."

They leave the room one by one.

Neon: "So we are to do whatever they want, huh?"

Rapi: "Well it's not like we can do anything, considering what the Commander said."

Signal: "I see... Well, let's just go to our daily duties. Maybe the situation will blow over."

Anis: "Shhh! (Whispers) He said no more talk about it."

They all nod in agreement.

Chapter Text

***Outer Space***

A satellite observes a desolate world through it's powerful camera. Debris from destroyed raptures float around nearby.

The information is fed back to The Iron Sun. The main vessel of the Dark Fleet of the Dark Prince, Noro as the fleet sits in the cold darkness of the cosmos on the dark side of the Moon.

Several dark uniformed figures, gaze sinisterly out a massive window towards a burning rapture space station in the Moon's orbit. Various explosions can be seen from the observatory as the burning machines slowly pull towards the lunar surface.

Within the observatory aboard the Iron Sun... Admirals, Jamsaram and Khan are waiting for their Lord, Noro the Dark Prince. His throne remains empty as his absence has lifted domineering aura from where it usually resides.

Jamsaram: "By the malevolence of Dirlewanger... I can barely stand this monotiny."

Khan: "Can't wait to plunge the world into darkness."

Kamakura: "Patience admirals... I'm sure he will turn up any minute now."

Field Marshal Kamakura walks into the observatory with his Generals, Valak and Asmodeus behind him, and they fall into a ceremonial formation.

Valak: "I hope the Dark Prince will take kindly to what we have to say."

Asmodeus: "Whatever we say to Noro, I hope the Raptures are on the receiving end of his wrath. May Showa bless us."

The troops stand to attention as Noro arrives, albeit a bit late. He walks to his throne, bearing his Dark Uniform, complementing his four black wings on his back well. The red eyed, Demonic Prince gives a straight armed salute to his Legions he is having an audience with.

Kamakura: "Hail to the Prince of the Void!"

The Soldiers all clad in Black Samurai-like armour with some red lines and highlights across the outline of their attire, return the salute to their seniors and their Dark Prince.

All: "HAIL!!!"

Noro: "Hail, to my Legionnaires!"

Kamakura: "The Asura Legion stands to your attention, my Lord."

Noro sits down with a plain face as he gazes upon the Asuras against the backdrop of the cosmos visible through the observatory.

Noro: "I understand this is a strange question to all of you... But does anyone actually recall what we were doing before we jumped out of the warpgate and into this universe?"

Jamsaram: "That is a strange question to all of us... We have been preparing to take over this universe and plunge it into the darkness of the Netherworld for some time. Why do you ask this, Prince Noro?"

Noro: "I don't know... We were in the Realm of Chaos before this... It's not to say I don't know what we're doing here, but what made us come to this point. Where did we come from?"

Khan: "We come from the Realm of Chaos... You know this, Lord Noro."

Noro: "Yes. But how did we come into being? It feels so strange to think about it... But it's almost as if none of us can recall anything before crossing into the warpgate."

Noro rubs chin curiously.

Valak: "You have a point... We have all this knowledge. All this technology and weapons of war... Yet we can't seem to recall our origins of why or how we ended up in the void to begin with."

Kamakura: "But... Surely there was some origin to your existence?"

Noro: "Perhaps the Realm of Chaos is the origin of everything?"

Kamakura: "It would seem that way, Prince Noro... But you have brought a matter to light. The question of our origins is an important one. What is the point of existing in a realm if you don't know where you came from?"

Noro: "I wonder..."

Khan: "We are warlike and as such it does seem we were meant to conquer."

Noro: "You are right. I do feel like a calling from somewhere distant is asking me to make whatever lies in the dimensions beyond proud, however it doesn't seem that we have a real direction of where to return to."

Asmodeus: "You mean... Our campaign here is a matter of life and death."

Noro: "Exactly... Perhaps Himmler, our Holy Patron of Black Light will shine a ray of light on our path and may Hitler our Holy Guide lead us to the truth. Until then, there is no way to go but forwards to victory. May the Dark Gods be with us."

All: "HAIL!"

Noro: "Now then... Admiral Jamsaram."

Jamsaram: "Yes, my Prince?"

Noro: "Proceed with the task at hand."

Jamsaram: "High Command has estimated our troops to be outnumbered by the raptures on the Earth's surface by a factor of many times over."

Khan: "Raptures also are a bit less potent in blood essence, but their forms nonetheless generate a sustainable, albeit tasteless amount of energy to be consumed by us. We have detected massive concentrations of aetheric elements within each rapture hive city. Seemingly always present in manufactory sections."

Kamakura: I hypothesize from recurring patterns in rapture physiology, that cores present in all rapture forms also are present within the Hives themselves and that the hive in itself is sustained by such cores albeit on a much larger scale than we see in rapture bodies."

Noro: "Interesting... Also about our earlier reports submitted by Valak, there also appear to be key shaped structures called Kofuns which seem to eminate frequencies. Very good sites for natural Irongates to form and to potentially open."

Noro and his Admirals form slight smiles on their faces. Their vampiric appetites grow as they hear of rich power sources... The very blood of the soul to potentially sustain them and their conquests indefinitely.

Asmodeus: "Sorry for the interruptions! My Liege, this is urgent. Two rapture vessels have been spotted nearby planet Mars and they seem to be making their way to Earth."

Noro: "You don't say..."

Jamsaram: "I believe they are coming to investigate the loss of their satellites and moon station."

Valak: "Doesn't seem all of the rapture satellites were destroyed."

Noro: "We will resume this at another time... All Units to battle stations! All admirals to their flagships!"

***

The rapture vessels make their preparations to enter Earth's outer orbit. One of the vessels is a carrier of sorts. Hundreds of small fighter crafts fly out of its hull as they are released into space. The other is a destroyer visibly escorting the carrier.

A few squadrons of raptures race towards the Dark Fleet's satellite positions.

***

The Dark Fleet sends out several bell shaped Vimana crafts and fighter escorts from Admiral Khan and Admiral Jamsaram's flagships, the Khagan and the Dirlewanger respectively.

The fighters are sleek Y-shaped craft with wings at the tail ends of their bodies adorned with small fins which help them manoeuvre. On each wing there is a thruster engine extending from the main body. On the outer wings there are various deadly armaments like missiles and plasma torpedoes.

***

Meanwhile the satellites adjust their course with the raptures in hot pursuit.

The Vimanas act as support ships in close proximity to the fighter escorts. As the raptures close nearly into range of the satellite, a hail of homing missiles are fired from the underside of the frontmost vimana. The missiles approach the raptures and detonate in a sequence. All raptures within the blast radiuses are hit and destroyed, wiping out the lead squadron.

Other raptures from behind break formation and are in quick order, engaged by the Asura fighters. Plasma fire and laser beams fill the air, hitting some of the Asura craft. Some are able to shake off the attacks by speeding up in random directions, but others take damage and the daring ones skillfully maneuver, scoring a few swift missile kills and pelting the rapture crafts with their rotary cannons.

Several of the vimanas adjust their position and fire their flak and rotary autocannon turrets from their hulls, creating a killzone for the enemy aircraft while simultaneously supporting retreating, damaged Asura fighters.

Another rapture squadron charges straight through the hail of missiles from the vimanas. Their frontmost fighters are able to avoid the missiles thanks to the projectile warning links but they are caught by the fire from the rear by Asuras as two of them explode in quick succession.

An Asura pilot tails behind one of the raptures that attempts to evade the rear attacks by turning hardly to the left. He pursues him suddenly sees pulses of rapture beams flash brightly by his cockpit which narrowly missing his fighter's wings as he is himself pursued by a backup squadron of raptures.

Another Asura fighter falls victim to the rapture beam attacks as he loses control of his craft and explodes violently. The pilot has no chance to escape his demise as his ship's winged engines have been ripped apart.

The previous pilot, paying not much thought to his comrade's untimely demise, quickly executes a sharp maneuver upwards which breaks his pursuit of the rapture in front of him. He breaks sharply which causes the speeding rapture that was shooting at him to overshoot underneath him and lose sight of his fighter.

Taking this opportunity the pilot quickly realigns his cockpit as his engine speed was reduced nearly to none, sending him into a graceful flip in the darkness of space.

The nose of his spacecraft is guided by the targetting system towards his target and in a split second, the rotary cannon fires a spray of 20mm tracer rounds. The rapture craft, shaped like a cross between an arrowhead and a mace with an engine trail behind it, is unable to react to the sudden burst of fire. The top of the craft gets shredded by the rounds and starts to lose control as flames erupt from the upper body.

The Asura pilot activates his afterburners and chases after his original target. The rapture that he had his sights set on is currently trying his best to directly hit a strafing run one of the vimanas.

The pilot manages to get closer and closer to the rapture as the vimana engages his enemy in close combat, firing their cannons and lasers from the sides of their bell-like ships. The Asura pilot flies above the vimana as he then sees the rapture turning back after a successful strafing run against the vimana's hull. He fires a missile towards the rapture which explodes in front of it.

The blast causes the rapture to veer off to the side but the Asura pilot still on his tail turns around to deliver a fatal burst of fire. The rapture explodes as the rounds ignite its engines. The debris and flames of the craft trail behind the Asura fighter for a second before vanishing into space as he turns around to return to his hangar aboard Admiral Khan's flagship; 'The Khagan.'

Another rapture squadron turns back as well.

As another rapture squadron retreats, an Asura squadron pursues them. Admiral Jamsaram directly signals the squadron on the comms from aboard the Battleship Dirlewanger.

Jamsaram: "Harbour 7, fire all torpedoes on the carrier!"

Asura Pilot: "Roger that, Admiral. We'll light up that carrier with a shower of death."

16 torpedoes are launched from the squadron's 8 fighters towards the Rapture carrier. The plasma torpedoes speed towards their target, intending to penetrate the hull.

The carrier is hit by the torpedoes as they explode on impact. The superheated plasma gasses are then pushed into the hull, which melts the metal, sending a stream of glowing molten metals further inwards. The carrier's hull is split apart as several more explosions tear the carrier apart from within. One of the torpedoes also manages to score a direct hit into the rapture's hangars, causing a massive firestorm which consumes any remaining capacity for the carrier to store and repair spacecraft, incinerating the rapture craft that had just landed or were still stored inside.

The Asura squadron turns back to the Dirlewanger as ordered.

Noro watches the carrier explode from aboard the Iron Sun. The destroyer still escorts the now wrecked carrier.

The destroyer itself is flanked by the Iron Sun to its left hand side and the Dirlewanger to its front. Noro orders both ships to fire their heavy ordinance at the destroyer in a screen attack. The Iron Sun fires a full salvo of anti-materiel shells. The shells land into the destroyer's hull, tearing off some of the shields and piercing straight into the vessel's core, causing a chain reaction of explosions within the destroyer. The Iron Sun and the Dirlewanger fire another salvo of shells which all strike true. The destroyer is completely annihilated.

Noro: "Victory!"

The Asuras cheer in celebration. The dark and cold reaches of space are filled with hot, burning metal. The halls and decks of the Iron Sun echo with the wildly malevolent laughs and roars of the bloodthirsty harbingers of Chaos.

Chapter Text

***Ark Military District***

The Commander sits alone in his office, looking at some papers. He sighs as he continues to write a letter. He then receives a call from one of his subordinates.

Sergeant: "Commander, it's urgent but I have been briefed. Call up our good ol' Inspector ASAP! He wants to quiz you on something real quick... Out."

Commander: "Very well."

He hangs up and makes a call to the police headquarters.

Commander: "Hello, is this the Ark military police headquarters? I'd like to speak to-"

Inspector: "Hello, Commander."

Commander: "Oh it's you Inspector... Didn't expect you on the line."

Inspector: "Yeah I figured it'd be easier for you to get back to me rather than the other way around."

Commander: "Of course, Inspector. What do you want to know?"

Inspector: "I want to know about what happened at the Rapture hive. What did you see?"

Commander: "What did we see? Well, let's just say that I am afraid I can't speak about it."

Inspector: "Ah, You have done your job well Commander. Keep it up. Anyway, I have been meaning to say that security in the Ark has drastically increased. And what I mean by that is that despite our efforts, the rumours have spread to the public. Always be mindful of your words because those who were there who had seen for themselves are going to bear the brunt of perpetuating the public's rumours.

Remember your orders, Commander. Just a little heads up for you. See you tommorow, you should get a nice rest while you can."

The Inspector hangs up the call.

Commander: "I will be a good Commander."

The Commander says to himself and sighs.

***

A few hours later, at the Nikkes living quarters. Several Nikke squads are off duty for the next 2 days. They have already been put on their little break for a day as human personnel like their Commander are still working away from them.

Eunhwa: "Let's go out for a walk today."

Neon: "I think that would be nice."

Emma: "Well then let's go to the park!"

Anis: "Let's go to the park!"

Neon: "Alright."

Rapi: "I'm with you on that."

Signal: "I don't really know about that. I've been told not to go there in case something happens."

Eunhwa: "Oh don't worry, Signal! You can come with us."

Anis: "Yeah! It'll be fine!"

Eunhwa: "Of course it's fine! There are no curfew orders from our chain of command."

Signal: "Alright, I'll go."

The Nikkes change into civilian clothes and head off.

***

At the park, the Nikkes are sitting in a park bench as they stare at a fountain that pours water.

Neon: "This is a nice fountain. It's relaxing to just sit here."

Emma: "Oh. (Points) Is that Commander?"

Neon: "Yeah it is."

Anis: "I don't think he's with someone."

Neon: "Maybe he's just taking a break."

Emma heads over to him as the others just look on out of respect for the Commander's personal space. They make no attempt to stop her. Perhaps out of fear of causing an akward scene in public in front of their beloved superior.

Rapi pouts and scoffs at Emma behind her back.

Emma: "Hey, Commander!"

He looks towards Emma who approaches him.

Commander: "Oh hello, Emma."

Emma: "I don't mean to bother you but I saw you coming here alone and I just wanted to say hi."

Commander: "Surprised you recognized me without my uniform."

Emma: "Of course! How could I not recognize you?"

Commander: "Do you often head out when off duty?"

Emma: "Yeah I like to go out once in a while. And who knows what can happen in the streets? It's like going into the wild, you know?"

Commander: "Yes, I see... The Barracks are a bit boring after a while I suppose."

Emma: "So is it just me or are the guards beefing up on patrols?"

Commander: "Oh yeah, we've seen an increase in patrols over the past few days. I suppose the human troops just need more exercise."

Emma: "Do you like to take a walk in the park? It's relaxing. It's like you can forget about your troubles."

Commander: "You're right"

The Commander and Emma head off together onto a scenic garden, leaving behind the others as they giggle at the wholesome moment.

Emma: "Commander?"

Commander: "Yeah?"

Emma: "Are you doing okay?"

The Commander stops to look at her.

Commander: "Doing okay? I don't really know... Just been under pressure thats all."

Emma: "Well, if you want to talk about it you can talk to me. I won't judge."

Commander: "You sure about that?"

Emma: "Of course, I won't judge you."

Commander: "It's just... I have been looking back at my life thats all. How it went and how it's going."

Emma: "And you have regrets?"

Commander: "It's hard to say..."

Emma: "You seem troubled, Commander."

The Commander looks at the garden.

The Commander: "The plants remind me of those pictures my great grandparents had passed down throughout my family of what life was on the surface.

50 years ago, humanity was driven down here and every generation since then had been living under a blue sky of lies. A manufactured projection of the Ark. I had always wanted to go beyond. To go where the majority can only dream of... Back to the surface."

Emma: "So you wanted to go back to the surface?"

They both pass by a military recruitment poster hung from a lamppost, reading:"Heads up! Fly high in the real sky! Join the military today!" Supplanted on silhouettes of human soldiers looking up towards Aerials in an illustrated sky above.

Commander: "Yes... I do... I wanted to see what's out there. Humanity had always had a history longer and more meaningful than whats down here. All our stories, all our great heroes, our magnificent knowledge and philosophies carried with them values and guidance.

Everything we see down here, came from up there. Even our ancestors."

Emma: "So that's what you wanted to see when you got into the military?"

Commander looks at her and nods.

Emma: "You were never satisfied with your lot in life, huh?"

Commander: "Honestly I'm not sure if anyone truly is especially when everything feels so shallow. When you grow up with so little to look up to while it seems none of us have any control in our lives."

Emma: "Well, if you ask me things are actually fine here in the Ark."

Commander: "You don't understand... Unlike humans, Nikkes don't have to pay to survive or live comfortably. You don't have to go to school and university and what not. You have everything implanted into you and the military pays for your maintainence and for big tech to mass produce you."

Emma: "It's not that bad."

Commander: "I suppose we have comforts, but we have mouths to feed and even our girls rarely ever look as beautiful as you Nikkes. You are absolute marvels of engineering, but within you are augmented human brains... Those of females. The ones who abandon their humanity in order to become Goddesses."

Emma has a mildly guilty expression on her face.

Emma: "Well, what's wrong with that?"

Commander sighs and shakes his head.

Commander: "Ever thought of how many families weep for their lost daughters that sold themselves to the Big Three just to be turned into what they think are uncanny replicas of humanity?"

Emma: "I've always been proud to be a Nikke. You might think we're like machines but we've never been that way in thinking."

Commander: "I know you can feel emotions and empathy. Even if you are human at least in thought, humanity has always had some issues in relating to eachother."

Emma: "Of course, we do. It's just that we have a certain mindset that you humans don't."

Commander: "Reality is harsh and to be honest I am not mad at you or anything... The point is that I had to contend with chasing my dreams of reclaiming the world while the rest of those around me can't even agree on the pettiest of issues and mock me for heading to a place they seem to have forgotten was real."

Emma: "You must have worked hard to get to where you are today."

Commander: "Yes, Emma. I was often busy studying as a kid. I didn't have time for friends and honestly barely talked to my family after I entered the military academy.

I chased my dream just to give hope to those around me that it's possible to reclaim our broken hope and dig ourselves out of this glorified hole in the ground to see the sun again.

Most give up because they don't see a point. I persevered and here I am today. But what I saw on the surface missions are just as depressing as it is down here."

Emma: "Desolate and not a soul in sight. A graveyard of human civilization. It's ruins prowled constantly by Raptures. Machines... So thats why humanity is so sad."

Emma looks moved by Commander's words like she had never felt before.

Emma: "So is that why you want to go back? To give us hope?"

Commander: "Well, yeah. It's just that when I went up there with you all, I didn't find hope up there."

Emma reaches for Commander's hand.

Emma: "I can't imagine how much you have been through. You've gone through so much pain and sorrow... You have such a beautiful soul. Your heart must be broken."

Commander: "It's hard not to think about what could've been or should have been. I had hoped for a better world for humanity."

Emma: "I'm sorry you feel that way, Commander... But maybe, all the hope we have is not up there but down here in people like you."

The Commander looks at Emma who is now holding his hand. He feels her warmth radiating off her skin.

Commander: "I haven't felt like this before."

Emma: "A female holding your hand?"

Commander nervously looks away, trying to hide his blushing from the busty Nikke next to him.

Commander: "It's more of feeling like I have someone I can share my burdens with. Someone to talk to."

Emma: "I'll listen, Commander. If you need me to, I'll listen."

Commander smiles warmly at Emma. He feels that for once he had started to see the hope that lay inside him once more.

***

After a while, Emma and the Commander leave the park together and make way to his apartment. They walk through the street.

Commander: "So, you want to come in for a bit?"

Emma: "Yeah sure."

The Commander and Emma head into his apartment.

***

The Commander is sitting on his couch while Emma is leaning on his shoulder.

Commander: "So... How was it?"

Emma: "How was what?"

Commander: "Going out with me like that."

Emma: "Oh, I didn't know that was a date!"

Commander's cheeks turn a bit red at her remark.

Emma: "Aww, you cute thing."

Commander: "Don't say that... You're giving me naughty thoughts."

Emma: "Never let your guard down, Commander. You may be added to my body count."

Commander: "Wait... I don't know if you're joking about rapture kills or did you really shag a lot of soldiers at the barracks district."

Emma: "Whoops... Uh."

Emma blushes akwardly.

Commander: "Were you trying to hit on me the whole time?"

Emma: "Well I suppose I can't hide anything from you, huh."

Emma chuckles nervously.

Commander thinks to himself:

Commander: (Inner monologue) "A damn whore she is... "

Emma: "So you clearly have forgotten the steamy shower you had after the last surface mission."

Commander: "Oh yeah, I had all of you scraping my barrel that day. What about it?"

Emma: "Oh, I remember it as well. So much fun we had."

Commander: "I was a bit nervous... That's all."

Emma: "Maybe I can have you all for myself tonight so I can make all the Nikkes jealous."

The Commander looks at her with a surprised expression on his face.

Commander: "It was just a joke."

Emma: "Aw come on! You can do that for me again!"

Her face lights up in a sinister smirk.

Emma: "I promise I'll be gentle... And besides, I heard from Eunhwa that the best way to get a guy is by showing off your boobs."

Commander: "Wait, hold on."

Emma starts unbuttoning her shirt as Commander stares at her cleavage being exposed.

Emma: "I have heard that you like my tits, Commander."

She slips the shirt off of her and reveals her bra.

Commander: "Okay, yeah I did, but..."

Emma holds him down with the weight of her breasts which stops his mouth dead in it's tracks as he lets out a small gasp.

Emma: "But what?"

The Commander is smothered by Emma's breasts as he can't talk and she is taking full advantage of it.

Emma: "It's okay Commander. I won't bite... Nikkes are hardwired against harming humans."

She whispers to him as she squeezes his face between her tits.

Emma: "Nikkes don't have claws and teeth and they don't need them."

Emma looks down at Commander's crotch area which is slowly growing.

Not long after, moaning fills the air.

***Outside the Apartment Door***

Hooni, a delivery boy is delivering a parcel to the Commander's doorstep.

Hooni: "Ah, here we go."

Hooni rings the bell but there is no answer. He is oblivious to the fact the doorbell is broken but Commander had forgotten to fix it due to his duties and drinking habits off duty.

Hooni: (Bends down to put the parcel one the floor) "Wha? I thought I heard something." 

He then puts his ear on the door to listen in on what is going on. He hears heated moaning and slapping of flesh against flesh.

Hooni: "Oh dear."

Chapter Text

An akward scene transpires as Hooni can't believe the pure sin in his ears. His eyes wide open and his jaw dropped for a few seconds frozen with his ear towards the door... He then turns his head away from the door.

Hooni: "Oh boy, this is akward. I better not intrude on military matters."

He makes his way to the elevator.

Hooni: (Sigh) "Last delivery this month complete!"

He feels relief at the sight of the elevator doors closing.

Hooni: "Time to head back home."

***

The streets are lit up with lights and above them is a night sky of the Ark's making, complete with shining stars and a crescent Moon in it's waxing stage. Hooni is paid some money via bank transfer for his work. He is at the bank and has withdrawn some money. He exits the door to head home.

Hooni: "Alright, I can go home now and eat some dinner. Maybe get to sleep early."

He takes out his phone and checks the time.

Hooni: "9:08 pm. I guess I can stay up a few hours."

He thinks of how he will spend his evening.

Hooni: "Maybe I can play some games? Or maybe read a book?"

As he walks towards the railway station, he notices an interesting influencer with a small crowd gathered around him.

Hooni: "Is that, Master Stran?"

Stran is a controversial figure with an online presence. Widely labelled a conspiracy theorist, he leads a New Religious Movement called the Synth Knighthood that the media has criticized as a cult but regardless has tolerated.

Stran: "I understand that most of you have been feeling quite troubled recently. I'm sure you have had dreams or nightmares of our kind's former ancestors being held captive in these so called concentration camps, subjected to such cruel labor as to leave a stain upon their psyche and be condemned to a life of shame and pain."

The crowd looks on with intrigue.

Stran: "Do not fear. I have come here to help you. I have come to bring the joy of the light and good vibes with the help of my fellow Synth knights."

The some of the crowd starts cheering and clapping. Stran smiles at them.

Stran: "These so called camps are run by the devil himself. The devil who gave us the very temptations that destroyed our planet's surface."

Hooni: "Hm, let's see what his little show is about. "

He mutters to himself.

Stran: "Our real calling comes from the stars! The Universe itself speaks to us. We are all cogs in a great machine! Oh fellow knights, the wonders of synthesis with what created us shall be our true salvation. We are the product of a great simulation. If only we could ascend humanity which has grown obsolete with that of machines, we shall all be saved."

The crowd claps.

Stran: "I wish for each and everyone one of you to find that within yourself. To become one with the Great Machine. Become part of what we are all to become. The Raptures have come to collect us from our decadent past as a lesser species. However a few barriers prevents us from unity... Humanity's ignorance and the Big Three who hoard all the capabilities to build Nikkes sadly for a counterproductive purpose."

The crowd starts to divide between those who cheer the Synth Knighthood and those who call them out for sympathizing with the Raptures.

Stran: "They will see. They shall see in time. We must bring forth our message of peace and kindness. For only together can humanity achieve peace in this new age and bring forth our people back up to the sur-"

The speech is interrupted by a crowd member throwing a stone at Stran which narrowly misses him but hits one of his Knights who flank him from behind. The crowd descends into chaos as the howling and brawling of the opposite camps breaks out.

Hooni: "Oh gosh!"

Hooni sees a chance to escape the conflict as he runs into the train station as his train arrives in the nick of time.

Hooni: (Gasp) "That was way too close for comfort!"

He gets into the train and goes on his way.

Hooni: "Hopefully, I can get some peace and quiet."

***

Hooni arrives at his apartment room without further incident and falls onto the bed out of exhaustion.

Hooni: "I am beat... I need some rest."

He puts his phone down on the table and looks at his alarm clock.

Hooni: "9:55pm. That felt like forever."

Hooni sighs as he lies on his bed and stares at the ceiling. He feels the stress in his body ease up.

Hooni: (Yawn) "I'm at least thrilled to have my day be more interesting."

He looks at the window of his room.

Hooni: "I hope Soorim can hang out tommorow. I haven't seen him in 2 weeks."

He smiles and sighs.

Hooni: "He has been really busy lately."

He looks down at his phone.

Hooni: "Oh well, I can just text him tommorow."

He heads to his VR area to play Azure Lane 2, a popular VR RPG game. He gets his VR set on that his father managed to toil for in order to buy it for last year's Christmas.

***

He logs into the game. The game screen appears.

The game starts as Hooni's avatar appears on a scenic beach.

Hooni: "What the?"

He sees a shipgirl in the distance, her feet gliding gracefully on the water like ice skates on an unfrozen sea... Until she hits an iceberg and sinks.

Words pop up in front of his face which say.

"Bad Ending."

Hooni: (Stunned) "Oh looks like I forgot to unload that mod I tried out a few days ago."

The words fade away.

He takes the headset off.

Hooni: "Honestly sometimes it feels like my life has hit an iceberg."

He looks at the time.

Hooni: "10:20 pm. I should get some rest to catch up on sleep. I don't think I have slept a full night ever since I got that job 2 months ago."

He shuts off everything and heads to bed.

***

Hooni's eyes are drooping as he changes into some shorts and a plain white T-shirt with some socks on. He looks out the window and gazes for a moment at the neon colours radiating from the city outside. He turns the light off and falls asleep on his bed.

***

His eyes open slowly. The morning sunlight hits him on the face as he gets out of bed to start his day.

Hooni: (Gasp) "Whoa! It's already this time?

Hooni gets up and brushes his teeth. He heads to change into a new set of clothes with a grey hoodie after a quick shower. His room still a bit of a mess but he doesn't care as it doesn't seem his standard of living is headed up anytime soon.

He picks up his phone and messages his best friend, Jeong Soorim.

Hooni: "Hope that Soorim can hang out with me today."

He receives no message as it shows it as unread.

Hooni: (Gasp) "Wait... Maybe he's busy."

He receives a message.

Soorim: "It's been a few weeks, Hooni. I know just the place to go to."

He smirks as he feels excited about the response.

Hooni: "You mean like usual?"

He smiles.

Soorim: "It'll be somewhere new! Meet me at Orwell Station."

Hooni remembers that Orwell Station was the site of the riot last night, but decides to go anyway.

Hooni: "I'm headed there now.

He puts down his phone and leaves the room, locking his door behind him.

Hooni: (Sigh) "This is gonna be a long day. It feels like everything has happened at once."

He makes his way towards the station. The roads are crowded with people in suits and gear heading to work. The train departs George station where Hooni's housing district is located and makes its way shortly to Orwell station, the site of the Synth riot incident the previous night. The train arrives at the station as Hooni gets out.

Hooni: (Sigh) "Guess this is it."

He gets on the platform.

Looks like normal. Almost as if nothing happened last night save for some news crews reporting where the brawling incident last night happened.

He walks along the platform until he hears a voice from behind.

???: "Hey!"

Hooni: "What the?"

He turns around and sees, Soorim behind him smiling warmly.

Soorim: "Oh sorry, didn't mean to startle you."

Soorim wears a brown T-shirt with a white vest on top with a light grey jacket with some dark grey shorts. His blonde hair is kept brushed a bit to his right with his eyes bright as they always are.

Soorim: "So... Ready?"

Hooni: "Yeah sure, it's been a long time since we've hung out. How have you been?"

Soorim: "Same old. Just slaving off in the factory thats all."

Hooni: "Oh yeah... Been delivering things. Just working too, I guess."

He follows Soorim to the other side of the station as they make their way through the crowd of people.

Soorim: "So... My sister, Harim has been strange as of late."

Hooni: "Harim? I haven't heard you mention her in a while. Whats up?"

Soorim: "You see, she came back from college recently... She's not the same. Harim is one of those Knight weirdos now."

Hooni: "Wha- You mean the Synth Knights?"

Soorim nods.

Hooni: "Yeah, I saw the station brawl personally last night coming home from work."

Soorim: "Whoa! Thats insane! Anyways... Well she came home saying something about this Master Stran guy who preaches that humanity's hope lies with the raptures."

Hooni: "That is the exact opposite of what they want."

Hooni shudders as he recalls Stran's speech and his attempt to reason with raptures through his little cult.

Hooni: "That guy is a cult leader."

Soorim: "That's what I told Harim! But she doesn't care. She keeps following this Stran guy around and going to his meetings. She even buys his strange books."

Soorim takes out one of Stran's books titled "Chouverse."

Soorim: "I just don't understand what she sees in them. She gave me this as a gift from college."

He puts the book back.

Soorim: "I wanted to know what was up with her and I found out that Stran's Knights have made her a bit hard to converse with."

Hooni: "That's rough buddy."

Soorim: "Yeah."

Hooni: "Anyways, whats the plan for today?"

Soorim: "Well... I figured we could hang at a cafe for some food and coffee? You seem stressed out from work so you deserve some break time."

Soorim takes out a wallet and counts up some cash.

Hooni: "Yeah, I need to eat and I haven't eaten anything good in a while."

Soorim: "I was hoping you'd say that."

They arrive at a small cafe named, "Yume."

Hooni looks around and finds some off duty military personnel eating lunch behind Soorim. He listens in to their conversation out of curiosity.

Inspector: "Me and the rest of the Authorities sure did break up that crowd last night."

Commander: "What a bunch of nuts! Why is the Central Government still tolerating them?"

Inspector: "I have no idea. But they're lucky the military didn't shoot 'em down!"

Sergeant: "Always on call, inspector."

Technician: "Hahahah! That would have been amusing."

Hooni turns his attention back to Soorim.

Soorim: "Well... I can order some steak if you want. You look like you haven't had a proper meal in a while."

Hooni: (Blinks) "That'd be nice."

20 minutes pass and they are enjoying the food but Hooni and Soorim still have thoughts at the back of their mind.

Hooni: "Soorim."

Soorim: "Yes?"

Hooni: "Do you think that the cults are a threat to public order?"

Soorim: "I mean... The Synth Knights aren't too dangerous. It's the other more terroristic groups that do exist within the Ark that worry me."

Hooni: "But, doesn't Stran have a point about the government being corrupt and the Big Three monopolizing all the production facilities our lives depend on?"

Soorim: "The government is less than stellar. I agree with you there. But they have to provide safety in order for the Ark to function. You know that, Hooni. Don't you remember all the stuff you went through during your early school years?"

Hooni nods.

Hooni: (Sigh) "Yeah, I know but... If we just have a proper government we could end all that suffering."

Hooni recalls some traumatic memories of his early school life as he is reminded of his mother who died early due in an industrial accident when she worked at a factory owned by TETRA LINE, one of the Big Three. His father turned to alcoholism after their loss and was emotionally distant from him. His drinking habits made him erratic but he did his best to provide for his son as a street sweeper because he had lost his previous job in the railway system for filing a negligence lawsuit against Tetra itself and attempting to create a petition to force the government to boycott Tetra's media subsidiaries.

Soorim: "We can only hope for the best, Hooni. Perhaps the upcoming elections will elect someone better as Central Government Secretary."

Hooni: "I guess we can only hope..."

He says while he remembers the night he recieved word of his father's death 10 months ago on the 6th anniversary of his mother's death. The police had told him that his father tried to commit arson on a fancy clothing shop at Royal Road; the most high class luxurious shopping street in the whole Ark frequented by Sovereigns during a drunken rage and was shot dead after a violent altercation which resulted from him resisting arrest with a steel pipe and an unlit molotov cocktail crafted from one of his empty beer bottles.

Hooni's expression faded to a depressive look as he knew that every year that passed after his mother's death, his bereaved father would often go berserk on the day of the accident. He would often take a few days off work to get drunk in the apartment and become violent when sober. He would often yell at his son when drunk about how the government had failed to provide proper safety measures when his mother died, despite the fact she worked for a private company. He would break cabinets and punch holes in walls and even at one point, eat his homework which was a source of embarrassment for him and what remained of his family... Even after his father had gone.

Soorim: "Hooni? Are you okay?"

Hooni: "Huh? Oh yeah, I'm fine."

He snaps out of it.

Soorim: "Okay, what do you want to do next?"

Hooni: "Whats your schedule like after this?"

Soorim: "Hmmm... Well, I gotta get back home to my place and help out around the house with Harim. She's a bit of a disaster, if you haven't noticed."

Hooni: "Okay. I guess I will see you next week."

Hooni: "I'll let you know when I get another day off from work so we can hang again."

Soorim puts the money for the meal on the table and gets up to leave.

Soorim: "Sounds good to me! See you soon!"

They wave goodbye as Soorim leaves. Hooni leaves the cafe to return home. He arrives back at George Station after exiting the train.

Hooni: "It's a shame Harim ended up as she did. She was so nice to me when I saw her a few years ago."

Hooni mutters aloud.

Hooni: "Oh well... I'm beat from the stress of my job. Maybe some rest is due."

He returns to his room as he hears a notification from a message board he follows on his phone.

Hooni: (Blinks) "A volcanic eruption?"

He opens up to see a thread alleging that a mysterious nuclear explosion was rumored to have occurred on the surface of Earth. And that speculations of what could have caused it and debates on if it had been a meteor or that humanity had somehow still survived on the surface.

Hooni: "What's all this banter about?"

He swipes down and sees with wide eyes; sections of leaked documents on the unnatural spike in radiation levels on the surface.

Hooni: "No way..."

He looks on as more social media posts are sharing images and captions saying that the government is lying to the Ark.

Several more news headlines pop up concerning some military personnel getting punished for various acts of misconduct like working with terrorists, spreading false information or drug abuse.

A headline below it also details a recent protest by conspiracy theorists alleging that the government is hiding the existence of potential human remnants on the surface in order to tighten their absolute control over the Ark and escape the fight against the raptures as they are watched closely by police.

So much conflicting information... Too much for Hooni to handle. He puts down his phone and sits himself onto his tattered sofa. Hooni stares at the ceiling and catches his breath.

Hooni: "There is only strife under the Dome of Eternity."

He says to himself aloud as he tiredly watches the blades of his fan spin around.

Chapter Text

***Ark Research District***

In one of various luxurious research buildings, there exists sectors for top secret projects, a slight distance from the private technology enterprises. Within these buildings, research groups that do not officially exist on paper, do the dirty work of the Sovereigns' development of technology within the Ark's Military Industrial Complex away from prying Quotidians.... Sometimes through illegal means.

Within one of those facilities, is a man hard at work. He has a lab coat on his tall body with an eyepatch over his left eye and adorned with blonde hair.

???: (Phone Rings) "This is Dr. Odenborg speaking..." (Muffled chatter on the phone)

He is suddenly called into a meeting with one of the Deputy Chiefs of Staff of the Military; General Andersen.

Odenborg: "I will be right over."

He hangs up and departs immediately after putting some tools down near a dissected rapture drone.

Odenborg walks into a conference room and sees General Andersen.

Andersen: "Ahh, Dr. Odenborg, it's good of you to arrive on such short notice. Please, take a seat."

Dr. Odenborg sits in on a chair, opposite General Andersen at the long conference table. All chairs are empty, save for the two ones at the front occupied by the two men.

Odenborg: "So what is this urgent matter?"

Andersen: "We received a report that the surface nuclear incident rumors have been widely circulated. But not only that... Somehow, classified documents relating to the incident were leaked on the internet."

Odenborg: "Disastrous! Is it possible to be the work of the Pilgrims?"

Andersen: "It doesn't seem so... Pilgrims have no access to the Ark's internet, nor do they want to embed themselves in our society. If there is a Pilgrim operating in the Ark, we would have found them by now."

Odenborg: (Sigh) "Then it could not have been a Pilgrim. The question is... How did it leak?"

Andersen: "Well, we know for certain that it wasn't the work of a hacker or someone on the internet. We did find a certain name, likely of a whistleblower by the codename; "Medusa".

Odenborg: "Then perhaps... We have someone on the inside."

Andersen: "This person has been very active on various platforms, posting information on the incident and debunking some of the rumors. The conspiracy theory circles only help to circulate this information to bypass cover ups. Pfft... Those damned tinfoil hatted morons."

Odenborg: "No worries, General Andersen. I will see to it personally that the whistleblowers are rooted out... RG-935 will use whatever resources it can to annihilate treason. But before we get to that, I have one request."

Andersen: "Yes, Doctor?"

Odenborg: "Research Group 935 is already a clandestine organization that doesn't officially exist. I would like some additional boosts to our black budget to track down Medusa. I will organize 935 Operatives myself with the help of the Central Government's aid. Is that a deal?"

Andersen: "I suppose... Just make sure you get the job done, Doctor. I have been concerned about the loyalty within the ACGI itself as of late. I'd rather put my trust in an old comrade, than a bunch of Quotidian rabble who chase promotions."

Odenborg: "Of course, sir! But one more thing... Keep your scientists close, your soldiers closer."

He salutes.

Odenborg leaves the room to carry out the tasks ahead of him. Andersen leaves the meeting room and goes back to work.

***

The next day, Odenborg is in a weapons testing facility with several armed men who don black tracksuits with some body armor and helmets without insignia. At the opposite corner of the room, is Shifty; an operative of the Central Government's intelligence agency, known as the 'ACGI'. A blue haired and short young lady with a white radio headset, with tiny cat ears sticking out of the top.

Shifty: "Dr. Odenborg, I am happy to be your acquaintance. General Andersen sent me."

She extends a hand to Odenborg.

Odenborg: "Well, pleased to make your acquaintance as well. That's a cute headset."

He takes her hand and shakes it.

Shifty: "Thank you."

She smiles.

Odenborg: "So, where's the aid for RG-935 that he promised?"

Shifty: "The shipment will be delivered to your facility in about 30 minutes. The delivery man will arrive via a tunnel. The shipment is to be transported through a passageway within the tunnel system.

Odenborg: "That is most welcome. ACGI… I wonder... Why is the ACGI being sent here when all we need is a few crates of money and equipment?"

Shifty: "There were reports of insurgents making contact with the criminal syndicates that live in the outer regions of the Ark. The Central Government is very worried about the increased activity of the extremists."

Odenborg: "I see. Any groups to look out for?"

Shifty: "Any groups who call themselves; the 'Agarthanorden' is something of particular concern. Unlike most other sketchy groups, they seem to be more extremist and violent than anything we have seen as of late."

Odenborg: "Agarthanorden? The Neo-Folkish extremists?"

Shifty: "Yes. I have seen it myself on several occasions that their symbols have been found in some of the hideouts and outposts that the criminals have used. And there were 3 bombings tied to them within the Ark in only the span of a week. There had been protests recently as you know due to the trust in the government slipping. The government is worried about the escalation in violence."

Odenborg: "Indeed..."

He pauses as he continues to examine Shifty's information.

Odenborg: "Your files mention Medusa I see."

Shifty: "Yes, it's believed the info leaks about the Surface Nuclear Incident are somehow connected to the Agarthans."

Odenborg: "The Agarthans, huh?"

He takes another look at the file.

Odenborg: "I heard from Andersen that the AGCI has been stretched in trying to quell and censor the leaks. Is it true that the protests are caused by people losing their jobs due to sharing the info?"

Shifty: "I think you already know the answer to that."

She looks up at the wall behind Odenborg, as if to stare into his soul. Wondering if the one eyed scientist even has one.

Odenborg: "Well, Andersen's deal with me stipulated that the ACGI have no part in RG-935's independent operations against the leakers."

Shifty: "I've read a secret document on the agreement with General Andersen. Although I do believe that RG-935 can use some extra help with the best counterterrorism units we have."

Odenborg: "There is no need... We have just formed a new Unit that isn't named or even known to the public."

She looks around at the armed men.

Shifty: "Is that them?"

Odenborg: "Why yes. Andersen was weary of potential infiltration within the ACGI. As such, the counterbalance to silence the leakers is what you look at right now. My men... I have a special name for them. 'The Abwehr.'

Shifty: "I hope you know what you're doing and who you're dealing with, Odenborg. The Agarthanorden, if you ever encounter them are projected to be brutal from what I have heard."

Odenborg smiles in a smug little expression and glares Shifty in the eyes with a hint of confidence.

Odenborg: "The Doctor always KNOWS what he's doing."

He says in a malevolent tone.

Maybe Odenborg really does know about who the Abwehr are dealing with... A bit more than he is admitting.

***

Later on, Odenborg is outside on a balcony. He sees a black raven circle above him.

Raven: Caw! Caw!

It perches up on the balcony railings, next to Odenborg.

Odenborg: "Good boy, Muginn."

He gently rubs his pet raven on the head before attaching a note to his foot.

Odenborg: "Take this with you, boy. Now go!"

Muginn: "Caw!"

The raven flies off with a flutter of his dark wings, away and out of sight.

***

Chapter Text

***Ark Public District***

Dr. Odenborg is in a fine library in the center of a serene park. The buildings nearby are visibly modeled off the former mythical land on the surface known to humanity as Versailles. A beautiful sunlit fountain lies in the middle of the square. It depicts a beautiful woman rising from the waters and her hair being carried by them. She is wearing a crown of laurels, indicating her status as a Goddess, a trait which all men and women who had seen her were certain that she signifies either the remnants of ancient human civilization or the Nikkes, often so labeled as Goddesses of Victory.

Odenborg peers out at the trees, strewn with pink neon lights hung from the branches that make the leaves glow a marvelous pink aura that extends from their green exterior.

Odenborg looks down to his book he picked up a few minutes ago. The title reads; "Ancestral myths of Hollow Earth."

He looks over the book, flipping through the pages as he reads. A hobby that he can often be seen frequenting when out of work.

Odenborg: "Interesting... A hollow earth seems to be a recurring concept throughout ancient humanity."

The Book is a documentation of how ancient human cultures believed in a hollow earth and what was under the crust of the planet. It also explains how their beliefs hold up to the contemporary history of humanity which is now living underground in the Ark under the earth's crust. He glares to his left.

Odenborg: "Nothing like a cup of coffee while I read in peace."

He smiles warmly as his eyes meet the rows of organized books and tables where he sits alone, quietly undisturbed by other patrons at the other corners of the library. He glances again to the book in his hand, and decides to spend an hour more of his free time on the book.

40 minutes later, after going through ancient perceptions of hollow earth, the one eyed Doctor is intrigued as he reads on a timeline section of how the Ark came to be.

Odenborg: "Subterranean Oceans were first confirmed to have been discovered in 2022. In 2036, improvements in technology made it possible to bore downwards into the crust of the planet. A process that was made easier by the Antarctic cavern expeditions which started in 2033, that mapped the subterranean landscape under the surface that went deeper and deeper until the oceans were finally found. Oceans that were not only deeper, but contained around three times the volume of the Oceans on the surface of the planet."

He reads in his inner monologue.

Odenborg: "Well, that would explain a lot wouldn't it?"

He mutters to himself aloud before continuing his inner monologue.

Odenborg: "In 2040, humans first started settling the underground. By 2050, the subterranean population reached 1 million people and massive infrastructure expansion followed. In 2064, the Raptures descended from outer space and the Devastation of the surface began which forced humanity the formation of a One World Government as the Ark was formally established. By 2077, humans were declared extinct on the surface."

He looks up from the book to the outside of the library's windows. The outside is about to darken as the Ark projects an orange evening sky above.

Odenborg: "To think humanity had not seen the real sky since 2077 is seriously mind blowing..."

He says as he is reminded that the year is 2115. He heads outside after returning the book, taking his coffee with him. He takes a sip and looks up at the sky. A crude imitation of nature by the Dome of Eternity, to shine light where subterranean darkness would have otherwise been.

Odenborg: "Maybe humanity should have spent more time in appreciation of what we had before it was all gone."

He walks off the library steps as he continues to look up at the Dome of Eternity.

Odenborg: "It's a shame that we are just picking up the bits and pieces of what we are."

Odenborg loves to analyze artifacts and often collects antiques with his hefty salary. He currently is in possession of various antiques that are from the 20th and 21st century. He has a large collection in his private residence in the Ark sector of New Aarhus situated on the coast of the subterranean ocean.

He decides to go home and boards a train before taking a seat. The fading light from the sky illuminates his blonde hair. He glances up at the windows that were on the side of the train car and looks down again as he opens up the lid on his cup and takes another sip of his coffee.

***New Aarhus District***

The next day, Odenborg wakes up in his house. He sits up and heads to the balcony.

Odenborg: "I have a tiring week ahead of me, tomorrow. I should prepare some coffee first."

He heads downstairs and prepares a cup of fresh coffee. He places his mug in front of him as he sits down on a chair. He glances out at the scenery from his house's living room balcony.

Odenborg: "What a lovely view... Away from the squalor of the industrial and research districts."

Muginn: "Caw!"

Odenborg: "Sure is nice to take a break eh?"

He glances at Muginn's leg, smiling as he sees the note he tied to it the day before is now gone. He takes a sip of his coffee and watches the world outside. The sunlight pierces through the clouds in the artificial sky. It makes the world seem brighter via optical and visual illusions only possible by the best engineering.

Odenborg: "I'm glad I became a scientist. At least, I have the salary and brains to actually make real coffee myself."

Suddenly he hears a notification chime from his phone accompanied by a vibration in his pocket. He takes it out and sees that he recieved a message on discord. He opens the app.

***

He reads the message from his friend, Charlie.

Charlie: "Have you slept well, my blonde beast?"

Odenborg: "Better than well. I slept like a baby."

Charlie: "Excellent! How about we meet at the docks?"

Odenborg: "Sure, but what for?"

Charlie: "A little birdie told me that a particular piece of history might interest you. Meet me at 9:00AM near the docks and I'll tell you more."

Odenborg: "Alright. See you there."

Charlie: "See you, my good doctor."

He puts his phone back into his pocket.

Odenborg: "Can't wait..."

***

The docks by the seaside, known by the locals as the homes for many workers and sailors. A collection of several waterports on the outskirts of the New Aarhus, overlooking the Persephonian sea.

Odenborg arrives there after a short walk. He sees Charlie waving him over.

Charlie is a blonde young lady wearing a brown coat. She has been friends with Odenborg since his teenage years.

Charlie: "Heeey! Alek! I've been waiting for you, my good Doctor."

Odenborg: "It's been 2 weeks. Sorry to keep a lady waiting."

She extends a hug to Odenborg, his golden hair illuminated as the light shines onto it. His smile, warm as the hug he recieves by Charlie, who is not at all put off by his eyepatch and tall stature.

Charlie: "You would make a lovely pirate."

Odenborg: "Oh, shut up."

He laughs.

Odenborg: "So, what have we got?"

Charlie: "Well, I hear that a merchant ship that just docked here is carrying an ancient idol that you may want to examine."

Odenborg: "You are talking about a piece of human history, right?"

Charlie: "Exactly."

Odenborg: "Alright, I'm in. I don't suppose we're robbing one of Elysion's vessels, are we?"

Charlie: "No, this is a smuggler ship from the Outer Rim of the Ark."

Odenborg: "Well... Well... Where else would such artifacts be hiding anyways?"

Charlie: "Here's a sketch one of my 'birdies' drew of the relic."

Odenborg examines the sketch. His eye widens with intrigue.

Odenborg: "A winged beast? With four wings?"

Charlie: "Indeed, and it's demonic face has had a few of the crew unsettled by it. Allegedly..."

Odenborg: "Well... We should see for ourselves, shall we?"

Charlie: "Of course!"

Odenborg smiles warmly moves closer to Charlie to tell her something quietly.

Odenborg: (Whispers) "By the way... In case the note was lost... They are after Medusa."

***

That night, a bunch of thugs on the docked ship are guarding the premises.

Thug 1: "Hey man, you gotta keep yo ass awake aight."

Thug 2: "Aight. How 'bout you? You good, bruh?"

Thug 1: "Yeah. Just be glad that you get paid for this kinda shit."

Thug 2: "Imma lil tired from all dat hassle... That other nigga went all cuckoo the other day and I just can't forget about it."

Thug 1: "Oh, the one who kept babblin about how that ugly demon statue kept talking to him on the ship?"

Thug 2: "Yeah, man."

Thug 1: "Yeah, crazy right? I woulda believed him if he didn't pull out that knife on us."

Thug 2: "Dang, bro. He wuz just nuts. He really schizo, man."

Thug 1: "Just so you know, the crazy motherfucka did a good number on the whole team and was pretty damn fast too. Like, he was damn near a blur."

Thug 2: "He would have really made for a useful crewman if only we ain't forced to throw him overboard."

Thug 1: "True."

The two thugs continue with a casual conversation as they are being stalked by a band of balaclava wearing, armed men with silenced pistols.

The thugs are not aware that they have been surrounded as they keep on chatting.

Terrorist 1: (whispers) "Any other aside from those two morons?"

Terrorist 2: (whispers) "I count a total of five. Two in the front, two at the sides and at least one inside the ship."

On the left side, a thug is on the deck, smoking. He leans toward the edge of the side and looks at the water beneath him. Suddenly, without a bang heard, he catches a bullet through his forehead and falls into the waters below with a loud splash.

The two thugs who were conversing with each other just before notice something wrong.

Thug 2: "Hey... You heard that?"

Thug 1: "Did you throw something into that water?"

The thug calls out to his colleague but recieves no reply.

Thug 1: "You, go check that dumbass out. I'll wait here."

Thug 2: "Ya sure?"

Thug 1: "I'm not going anywhere. Just do what I say, man."

Thug 2: "Alright..."

He walks away to find the body in the waters. Before he could make it fully out from the darkness, he too is shot dead and falls backwards onto the deck. He lands on his back, twitches for a bit and is finally still.

The thug at the front hears a commotion coming from the back of the ship.

He turns back and is cut down by 2 pistol rounds from behind. He collapses into a pile on the ground as several balaclava wearing militants armed with SMGs and pistols rush in and storm the cargo hold. They all fire their weapons into the room to clear it out. The remaining thugs are killed, leaving the militants to enter the ship's hold and see what they have come for.

They hoard a crate up and out of the ship onto the dock, where there is a pickup truck and a trolley waiting for them.

They put the crate onto the trolley and quickly push it to the pickup truck before swiftly securing it. The militants then board the truck and hide under a rain cover, concealing them and their weapons before they all disappear into the night.

Chapter Text

***Ark Military District***

Commander has been doing some target practice to clear his mind after a long day at work. He already has several holes shot through the target ahead of him and is about to be done with this week at work. He stops and looks at the clock, thinking about the past 4 days of administration duties, exercises and combat drills with the Nikkes.

Commander: "Man, I hope the streets don't blow up with any trouble this evening."

He resumes target practice after a 5 second break.

Commander: "That is unless I have to fight, that is."

His gun fires in quick succession, firing multiple rounds at a time. The casings drop to the floor with a 'click' sound as they bounce off the floor.

***

In the other room, the Technician is finishing up some maintainence on Mika. She is about to leave as she takes out her earpiece.

Technician: "That should do it, Mika. Your bruise is now gone."

Mika: "I wonder, Techie. Does Commander like blue haired girls?"

Technician: "Oh, I think he does. Why do you ask?"

Mika: "I... I think I just like the Commander a bit too much. Like, a lot!"

The Technician raises his eyebrow.

Technician: "I see that you have been in the field with him for quite a few weeks now."

He stares at Mika.

Mika: "Is he married? Does he find long hair like mine beautiful?"

She is panicking with her thoughts as she covers her face, embarrassed.

Technician: "Mika, relax. I have a feeling that he would like your long blue locks.

Mika: "I-I think theres only one way to find out... (Gulp) I must ask him myself. I must!"

Technician: "I hope you know what you're doing, Mika. I believe in you!"

The Technician gives Mika a thumbs up as she leaves the room.

In the hallway, she sees that time on the clock is 5:03 PM and that Commander's shift has ended 3 minutes ago.

Mika: "Ah! I have to find him fast!"

She starts looking around in a frantic state.

Mika: "Where's the commander?!?"

She is hyperventilating.

Mika: "Oh no... Commander, please be somewhere close."

She whispers to herself as she is overwhelmed by nervousness.

Suddenly she feels a hand on her left shoulder.

Mika: (Jumps) "Ahh!"

Commander: "Mika? Are you okay?"

She is shocked. She turns around and sees Commander looking at her with a puzzled expression.

Mika: (Inner monologue) "I have to do it now! I must! I must! I must!"

She feels a surge of adrenaline as she is pumped up.

Mika: "Oh... Uhm... (Deep breath) Commander, I-I need to ask you something important."

Commander: "Sure."

He leans on the wall with a calm posture, looking at her with curious eyes.

Mika: (Inner monologue) "Gaaah... How can I ask him without sounding too much like a weirdo? (Thinks of what to say) Oh! I have an idea!"

She straightens herself and puts a hand on her chest.

Mika: "Commander, I know this is going to sound crazy... But you're one of my favorite people on the Ark and I hope to spend some more time with you. Will you go out with me tonight?"

She is shaking like a leaf while holding in a yell, but manages to contain it. Commander is still calm and composed. He puts his hand to his chin and ponders, weighing the options of how he should react.

Commander: "Well, sure."

Mika: "H-Huh?!"

Commander: "I-I mean, yeah! Sure!"

He scratches his head.

Commander: "Is tonight okay?"

Mika: "I'm always ready for you, Commander."

She giggles.

Mika: "So, where shall we go? The park? The mall?"

She pauses, waiting for an answer.

Commander: "I was just about to get home. Would you like to have dinner at my place?"

Mika: "That would be great!"

She claps her hands and gives a 'Yay!'

They both walk out of the barracks and outside the military base perimeter checkpoint.

They talk as they make their way toward Commander's apartment.

Commander: "What's the first place that comes to mind when you think of me?"

Mika: "I was just thinking of the first time we met."

Commander: "That was an eventful day, for sure.

Mika: "And what about you?"

Commander: "I was thinking back to the first time I met you."

Mika: "Wasn't that when we were on the surface?"

Commander: "Yeah, at the place where children used to play."

***(Flashback)***

Mika remembers the day on the surface during the investigation of the Nuclear incident. Commander had ordered her Squad to regroup with others at LZ. She remembers him wearing a hazmat suit and gas mask. His hand holding a Geiger counter which slows down as the radiation levels dissipate in the rain.

Commander: "Huh?"

He stares at the counter and reads the meter.

Commander: "The radiation is gone!"

He stands there for a few seconds before letting out a sigh. He looks up to the sky and slowly removes his gas mask. A soft rain falls on him and his face, revealing that he is actually quite young with a young and handsome face. He closes his eyes and lets the rain wet his face. The rain feels good against his skin.

He doesn't realize it yet, but Mika is standing to his front left around 10 metres away in an abandoned playground with a small rapture drone wreck nearby.

Mika is shocked and unaware of the radiation having diffused to very safe levels.

Mika: "Commander! Don't do that, it's dangerous!"

She calls out to him and makes a motion with her hand in front of him.

Commander: "Huh?

He is surprised as he looks back to her. Her blue eyes stare deeply into his with a very deep concern for his wellbeing.

Mika: "Oh, Commander... Please don't take unnecessary risks with radiation."

Commander: "No worries, look at the counter."

He turns it around so that she can read it.

Mika: "O-oh! You're right. I'm so sorry, sir."

Commander: "Don't worry about it. I was just getting soaked."

They both stare at each other for a few seconds in silence.

Mika: "You seem to enjoy the rain."

Commander: "This is the first time I have ever seen the rain. I just wanted to feel it on my skin."

She looks up at the sky and feels the rain hitting her face. She closes her eyes as the drops run down her cheeks and hair, dampening her clothes and running down her exposed legs.

Mika: "I never knew it would feel this way when it is relatively peaceful and empty of raptures."

Commander: "I guess that's how I feel about it as well."

Mika: "The rain is so pretty."

She slowly opens her eyes and sees Commander's handsome features from within the rain.

Commander stares at Mika as she gazes at him. From his view, he sees a beautiful girl with a gun, wearing a cute Azure jacket with gray stripes and reddish-brown Burgundy skirt and knee high socks with matching shoes in the foreground of an abandoned playground of the old town of Okuma; a dead settlement in decay as the rain pours down lightly. He looks at her long blue hair that is dripping with the rainwater.

Commander: "Y-Yeah, it is."

As if time had stopped, they smiled at each other for a few more seconds that felt like forever, before they head back to their duties.

***(End of Flashback)***

Commander looks forward, lost in a daydream. He suddenly snaps out of his state when Mika calls for him.

Mika: "Commander, aren't you heading out?"

He sees that the elevator doors have already opened and Mika is already outside on the floor of his apartment room. He quickly bolts out of the elevator and catches up with Mika. Commander says nothing as Mika stares akwardly at him, silent as well. Only the sounds of the city in the background and the footsteps of both of them echo throughout the halls, fill their ears. They arrive at his door and he unlocks it, letting Mika inside.

Mika: "It's a nice place you got here."

She looks around at the walls of the apartment room.

Mika: "It's not very big, but it feels like a home."

She continues to look around at his things.

Mika: "Is that a photograph?

She sees a framed picture on a shelf with a photo of an old woman and a little girl holding hands. They are on a swing set at the playground. The picture appears to be old since the girl looks no older than 7 years old and the woman is probably in her late 60's. The girl has long brown hair and wears a yellow dress with a white apron over it and has a pair of white gloves with matching yellow bows. The old woman is wearing a pink dress with a red ribbon on her chest and has her grey hair tied into a bun. Her hair is tied with a yellow bow. She has a friendly smile on her face with her hands together on her lap and is wearing a pair of white gloves with matching pink bows.

Mika: "It's so beautiful."

Commander: "That's my great grandmother and her granddaughter."

He is behind her, looking at the photo too.

Mika: "Is that your grandma?"

Commander: "Yes. They are both gone now."

Mika: "I'm sorry."

Commander: "Honestly I hardly knew them. My great grandmother was born in 1996. This photo was taken in 2063. My grandmother, when she was still around, shared her happy memories. The last few things she kept of her life on the surface were these pictures. Now, not even the memories remain. She passed away when I was having an important exam in my teens. She wanted me to study hard so I could join the military and receive a high rank."

Mika: "You studied so hard, that you just had no time for your family?"

Commander: "Yeah, something like that. I should have done more though. I would have loved to spend more time with them, even just for a day."

Mika: "Do you ever wonder, Commander. What if you just followed your heart instead of grinding to the top at the behest of your family?"

Commander: "I did follow my heart, Mika. It was my own choice. There is nobody to blame for my own grief but myself."

Mika: "But it hurts not having anyone you could turn to. Even for a little while."

She puts a hand on his chest. Commander places a hand on her head. He starts to slowly rub her hair as if to soothe her.

Commander: "I wanted to go to the surface, Mika. I did it for her... I did it for humanity."

She places a hand on his face and gazes into his eyes with a tender gaze, letting her emotions pour out from her heart.

Mika: "I'm here for you, Commander. You seem to be very alone."

She takes his hand in hers.

Commander: "Mika..."

She closes her eyes and wraps her arms around his neck. They both sit down on a sofa nearby, her hands still embracing him.

Commander looks down onto Mika's face. Her eyes are closed but her melancholic face looks up towards him. Her wonderful blue hair flows freely downwards and her bangs drop towards their sides, away from her eyes.

She slowly opens her beautiful blue eyes as Commander notices tears forming in them.

Mika: "Commander... My heart can't take anymore of you being in pain."

He puts his right hand on her face while his left arm holds her body while her legs take up the sofa as she leans towards him.

A tear runs down her cheek and onto his hand. He wipes it off with his thumb.

Commander: "Your tears remind me of the beautiful raindrops on the day we met."

She closes her eyes, remembering the scene vividly. She feels his hand as it touches her cheek, gently rubbing the side of her face. He gives her a gentle smile as he looks down at her.

Mika: "I want this moment to last forever."

Commander: "Perhaps we could take a picture later."

Mika: "Yes, let's do that."

She stares into Commander's eyes. Her expression is tranquil, but her emotions are surging from within her heart.

Mika: "Commander, have you ever loved anyone?"

Commander: "Not until recently."

He pauses, trying to find the words.

Mika: "Recently?"

Commander: "It's you, Mika. It's always been you."

She gazes into his eyes, captivated by his words. She blushes as her face starts to warm up.

Mika: "Me? Of all the Nikkes you got naughty with, why me?"

She asks him with a puzzled expression and tone.

Commander: "There are only momentary pleasures that seem to be a perk of the job in high society. But someone who I want to see every day and be with forever seems to be something I never thought would feel much more precious than anything that came before."

Mika: "What do you mean?"

Commander: "I know that Nikkes may be manufactured, but inside them is a human consciousness. Something that can never be made with machines. That's what makes you truly capable of emotions and feelings, like me. However, I have always wondered if love between us is truly possible in this numb world."

Mika: "Why do you say that?"

Commander: "Because, if we truly love each other, what will the others think? Is there a future for us under the military which owns you? I want to be with you forever, but I can't be sure if the future is uncertain."

She is silent as she ponders his words.

Mika: "I understand what you're saying... But I believe that there is a future for us."

Commander: "I don't want the military to tear you away from me. Nikkes don't have many rights, nor can they reproduce."

She puts a finger to his lips.

Mika: "I am more than a mere Nikke. I'm a person with feelings as well. I know you too well, Commander. You want me to feel good and to love you, as I know that I feel the same way towards you."

Commander: "That's the thing, I want to be with you so bad, Mika. I'm just scared of the consequences of being under the authority of those who don't see you as a person."

Mika: "It's alright. The world may change when they realize how great a person like you is."

Commander: "I wish it would..."

They stare at each other for a few moments before embracing into a long kiss. It seems like hours pass as they savour each other's warmth. Their lips part slowly as they pull apart from each other's faces, smiling as they look deep into each other's eyes.

Mika: "It will, if you work towards changing it."

He is silent.

Mika: "You still think about your grandmother?"

He looks down at her, lost in thought.

Commander: "She's the reason I wanted to become a soldier, Mika. I did this for her."

Mika: "Now, do this for me. Do it for us... Change the world. Everything is going to work out in the end."

They kiss again, this time longer and more passionate. He pulls Mika close into his embrace.

Commander: "I won't let anything take you from me. I will find a way.

She smiles happily at him. She had given him hope and a reason to keep living. Commander has never felt more alive in his life. He takes out his phone and opens up his camera.

Commander: "Alright, you ready for the shot?"

She sits up.

Mika: "Sure."

They both face the camera and smile. The photo is taken, displaying their smiling faces.

Commander: "Looks good."

He taps the button to save it to the photo folder.

Commander: "How about we take another one?"

Mika: "Let's kiss this time!"

They both hold the phone and get themselves into frame. They kiss as a photo of the sweet moment is captured in the photo. They both laugh as they see themselves kissing on the camera's display.

Mika: "Now this moment will last forever, Commander!"

Commander: "It will."

Chapter Text

***Outer Space within Earth's Orbit***

Asmodeus and Valak are on board Admiral Jamsaram's ship, the Dirlewanger. They are both discussing some things about the planet they gaze upon.

Asmodeus: "What exactly do you think are those Kofuns, my fellow general?"

Valak: "My hypothesis is that those things are the leftover remnants of a previous civilization that is older than us and from ancient Earth."

Asmodeus: "How interesting...

He strokes his chin and looks up at the satellite photos of the object.

Asmodeus: "What's your guess on those?"

Valak: "I think they are relics of the human civilization that had once lived on the surface. Maybe even remnants of what was left after the Devastation."

Asmodeus: "I suppose that's a major reason for their strange frequencies."

Valak: "The Raptures seem to be within that area, infesting it... A long fight awaits us on the ground."

Asmodeus: "Whatever our Legion has, I hope it's at least enough to kill those metallic beasts."

Valak: "We have quite the force to put to use."

Asmodeus: "That we do..."

Their communicators come to life with a voice which emits from their speakers.

Noro: (On the Radio) "All Troops, Operation Descent has been executed! All units to battlestations immediately!"

Valak: "Seems like the ground battle begins."

Asmodeus: "We should get a move on."

They head to the ship's bridge.

Asmodeus: "Are the pilots ready?"

Jamsaram: "Yes, general. They are prepared for takeoff and ready for the descent."

Valak: "Good, let's begin."

Hundreds of crafts fly out of the hulls of the Asura ships. Their roundels bearing the Arrows of Chaos superimposed with the swastika.

Jamsaram: "The smaller Vimana ships are about to enter the atmosphere.

Kamakura: (On radio) "This is the Field Marshal speaking! Admiral Jamsaram will lay covering fire for the landing crafts to deny rapture access to disrupt our landings. I will be the tip of the spear! The Kofun has to be secured but not destroyed!! Orbital bombardments on the site are thereby prohibited on orders from the Dark Prince!"

Valak: "As the Prince says, it will be. Field Marshal, I will mark fire support with my reconnaissance. I'll have some of our fighter craft accompany you."

Kamakura: "Alright! Let's do this! Descent controls!

Kamakura orders the pilots to fire the thrusters as the landing fleet accelerates into the atmosphere to ensure a controlled descent.

Asmodeus: "May the light of Showa, shine on this godforsaken world."

The fleet of hundreds of vimanas arrive above the ruins of a desecrated city, now a battlefield as rapture forces are being bombed by Asura close air support which are effective due to the size of the hulking metal lifeforms.

Several drop pods are subsequently ejected from the bottom of the vimanas, into the old, ruined city, now overgrown with moss and devoid with human life.

The pods crash into the surface or into buildings as seconds later they unleash squads of Asura soldiers who disembark from the pods.

In a ruined office building, several squads of Asura troops emerge from drop pods on top of the roof and onto the balconies and floors of the building. Emerging from one of one of them is Kamakura. He and his soldiers are wearing battlesuits which resemble samurai armour with Stahlhelm-like helmets that obscure their front faces behind an inhumane looking front armoured alloy mask that protects against gasses and debris with a grotesque skeletal demonic face and fanged teeth, the haunting image of the frontal section complete with glowing, red eyes. Their armour and helmets are black, with some features having red lines on the body and various other parts.

They are armed with various pulse rifles and rocket launchers. Kamakura looks out into the distance and sees the raptures battling his forces on a rooftop in front of the city. His own battlesuit distinguished by several coat sections and markings indicating his seniority alongside the design of his helmet having wing like projections on their sides like a Samurai helmets of the old land they have landed on.

Kamakura: "Enemy ahead across the building!"

He orders his troops to set up their sniping positions as he himself takes a spot on a rooftop and loads a rocket into his launcher.

Kamakura: "Open fire, on my shot!"

He looks down and aims his weapon at the two-storey metal monstrosity. The rocket launches and hits its mark, hitting the rapture's back as it falls down.

The rapture writhes in pain and agony before it finally dies.

Kamakura: "Kill confirmed!... These rockets work perfectly!"

Small aerial rapture drones then try to strafe the Asuras. The riflemen open fire on the raptures.

Rifleman: "The little Raptures are turning to buzz us!"

Kamakura: "MGs engage!"

Two 7 foot tall and heavily armoured Chaos Space Marines carrying chain guns, move to position themselves in an exposed manner to divert the Rapture drones away from the riflemen and their lighter machinegunner counterparts.

He pulls out his own pulse rifle and shoots down a rapture, causing it to explode in mid air as the Machinegunners and Space Marines open fire.

Kamakura: "Good job, Legionaries! Now we advance in cover through these buildings to catch the bigger Raptures off guard.

***A few minutes later***

The snipers are silent as they continue to mark targets from their positions in a building ahead with a few riflemen as support. The riflemen move on to other parts of the building to cover other angles. The snipers move up to another floor and wait.

The rapture swarm tries desperately to land accurate shots on their targets. The Asuras are all behind cover or in prone position and keep firing out of windows or holes from within the ruined building a few blocks away which is pelted with hundreds of rounds from the rapture drones that explode or crash into the ground, one by one.

A sniper sees another large rapture making a pass by their rooftop. It resembles a robotic tank with a machine gun turret on top of four mechanical legs.

Sniper: "Let's take that big bitch out."

He looks down his sniper rifle's sight and fires on a big circular white glowing "eye" shaped appendage that glows in the shape of an "X" that is a certainly possible sensory organ which misses as the rapture suddenly turns it's "head". The hit makes a visible impact on the rapture's metal body, but doesn't affect it at all.

The rapture turns its attention to the sniper and fires its turrets at him.

Sniper: "No no no no no... (gets hit) FUUUCK!

The rifleman gets hit by the blast from the turrets.

Sniper: "Gah!"

The rest of the soldiers concentrate fire on the rapture's joints as nobody has any Anti-Tank weapons in it's line of fire.

Rifleman: "Keep shooting, we can take it!"

The rapture is struggling to stand, but it's a strong and resilient metal beast. It unleashes another round of turret fire.

Riflemen: "Gah! That's a little too close for comfort!"

Sniper: "Ahh!"

One of the Rapture's turret barrels are suddenly hit by one of the other Asura snipers, which cause the turret to jam and spark, as the internal firing mechanisms tear it apart from the inside out. The Asuras realize it's weakness and proceed to keep firing at it's known weak points. The rapture roars in pain as it continues to get hit by rounds. It collapses onto the ground, immobile as another one of it's legs are pelted with holes and gives in, which disable the rapture, alive.

It writhes around one the ground helplessly as it emits a slur of electronic growls and synthetic sounds.

Kamakura: "All squads, advance!"

Kamakura leads the advance as more Asura troops descend from the sky in drop pods. The snipers engage the Rapture anti-aircraft forces from a distance under good cover. Several more raptures get spooked or damaged as they stop shooting at the sky and try to fire back, only to be shot down by the Asuras rocket launchers that tear through their armour and set off their ammunition racks which send flames sky high from their hulls before they detonate in a violent explosion, one by one.

Kamakura: "Take out those AA raptures! We must make sure our boys in the air and landing forces are clear to operate as much as possible!"

He is surrounded by the rest of his elite unit and makes his way into the city streets, taking cover and returning fire. He moves up the side of a building with his men, fighting their way through the horde of raptures that now cover the streets.

Kamakura: "Men! Get into the buildings, I will mark some artillery locations for the Vimanas!"

Kamakura: (Radio) "Vimanas, Artillery Strike on those locations!"

He gives out coordinates for a few artillery locations as and a few seconds pass before the Artillery Vimanas open fire with their broadside cannons as the buildings are destroyed in a chain of deafening explosions, followed by a barrage of artillery shells which graze the streets and leave burning husks in their wake.

Kamakura: "Legionaries, move up! All Rockets on those bastard air defences!"

Asuras troops take positions at the end of a street corner as a squadron of Rapture drones pass by them.

Kamakura: "Light them up!"

Riflemen: "FIRE!"

The rifles pulsing, automatic fire fill the air with violent buzzing and bangs which take the rapture drones by surprise. Asura Space Marines start to fire as well. They rain hellfire down onto the raptures, who are quickly obliterated with ease as they are torn apart, piece by piece.

The Rockets fire, one by one at the Missile Raptures in the distance. The first rocket lands a direct hit, causing the rapture to explode, with shrapnel flying into the air and damaging a nearby rapture, causing it to flinch.

A few seconds later, the second rapture gets hit and explodes, as do the other ones in the line, one by one as the Asuras soldiers reload their weapons and fire at the rest of them. They manage to destroy the Missile Raptures before the Asuras push through towards the Kofun.

Kamakura: (Radio) "All Units, All units, advance to Kofun and secure it! Encircle any leftovers into artillery killzones!"

The Asura troops run as they encounter rapture forces blocking their path. They move up and down buildings and over rubble to fight the raptures as they come into view. They fight their way through, firing and taking cover as the raptures fire back at them, trying to overwhelm them with numbers.

3 Asuras are killed by machine gun fire from the raptures and another blown up by shrapnel from a missile. The others proceed, as their armour spares their wounds from being worse and their grenade launchers pepper their front view between the raptures and them with white smoke.

Kamakura: "Get the Plasma ready..."

The Asuras move up into close cover near to the raptures before the smoke clears.

Kamakura: "Open fire!"

They pull out their plasma weapons, and fire at the rapture's hulls as the pulse rifles gnaw at their joints with a few salvos of rocket fire, while the grenade launchers tear some of the armor off. The Asuras continue to shoot at the raptures' weak points.

A few more raptures die in massive fiery explosions and smoke as the other, smaller "Crab" shaped Raptures see the Asuras troops running past them and firing on them. They open fire with their turrets. The Asuras return fire with their rifles.

Kamakura: "Kill them! Kill them all!"

Riflemen: "For the Dark Prince!"

Several are killed by the group of 4 Crabs, laying down suppressive fire to slow down the advance, before one of the Raptures gets blown apart with a plasma blast.

The rest of the Asura troops advance and turn the corner before a group of them get hit by the turret fire as the Asura who threw an Anti-Tank grenade gets his torso torn open by the rapture fire, just as the grenade strikes the crab, causing it to explode. The remaining Asuras troops advance to secure the Kofun after several other squads help to clear the area of crabs as Kamakura extends his retractable double-clawed armblades from his battlesuit and jumps onto one of the raptures, impaling the head of the Crab with his left arm and slashing off one of it's turrets with his right arm as it panics.

Kamakura: "Die you spiteful machine! Let's see how long you last in a duel!"

He bashes it's massive X-shaped eye with his right armblade repeatedly as the crab, screeches in pure terror and pain while shooting blindly before falling to the ground.

Kamakura finishes the metal monstrosity, by tearing off a piece of armour on its head and using one of the shards to stab into the hole inside the rapture's head, which causes a minor, but harmless electrical explosion that sends sparks flying.

Kamakura: "For such a big guy, you can't seem to last a minute... Pathetic!"

He turns around to see a disabled rapture impaled by several Asuras soldiers with plasma swords. Victory has been achieved. He delivers the message via radio.

Kamakura: "This is Field Marshal Kamakura! All units, we have captured the Kofun! Hail to the Dark Prince!"

Asura troops: "Hail to the Dark Prince!"

Asuras troops: (on radio) "Hail to the Dark Prince!"

Valak: (On radio) "Great work, Marshal! My Alchemists will enter the chamber immediately for our vibration tunings."

Noro: (On radio) "Magnificent, my generals. Now how long do we estimate for the the Iron Gates to be ready?"

Asmodeus: (On Radio) We should have the gates up in about a day or two depending on how much, or how long the tuning needs."

Kamakura: "That should be enough time for us to construct a FOB, my liege."

Noro: (On Radio) "Excellent."

Kamakura takes a look at the scenery of the old city.

Kamakura: "Hm. I didn't know the planet was this beautiful, even after the raptures have ravaged it."

He sits down and gazes upon a sign bearing the name of the dead city; "Osaka."

Kamakura: "Oh, Dark Prince of the Void... We are finally here!

His eyes glow a monstrous red from his mask.

Chapter Text

***Old Kofun Site, Osaka***

Asmodeus walks towards the Kofun's entrance and enters the Kofun chamber with his alchemists. Asmodeus is in his Asura battlesuit. His helmet is a little different, in that it has red horns on the front, that curl at an upward angle and two red stripes from his horns that descend to his front faceplate and onto his, glowing eyes. His helmet also features two sharp fangs in the corners of his mouth. He is equipped with a dagger and a pulse pistol.

The Asura Alchemists beside Asmodeus are equipped with Hellspears, essentially spears, infused with the psychic powers of Chaos.

They stand on either side of him and place a little shrine, called a Kamidana onto the base of the chamber. It contains an incense burner, a photo of the Dark Prince and a bowl of rice wine.

Asmodeus: "Honor your Prince..."

They proceed to create a pattern with chalk on the ground. The Arms of Chaos, superimposed with a Swastika, known as the "Chaotika." It has been etched onto the floor in the Kofun's chamber.

Asmodeus: "Now, Alchemists, you know what to do."

Alchemists: "Yes, General!"

They stand around the Kamidana as they raise their Hellspears to the ceiling. Their energy forms a black disk that rotates in the air, above the Chaotika. They chant silently, murmuring to themselves in unison, fully concentrated on their ritual.

Outside the Kofun, 2 taller and intimidating, Asuras stand guard with bulkier, plated armour and handled Chainguns.

They look on as another formation of 7ft tall, Chaos Space Marines stands at Field Marshal Kamakura's attention.

The leader of the formation steps forward and raises his hand in a salute.

Wehrman Leader: "The Arashiwehr, stands to your attention, Field Marshal."

Kamakura: "Well then, at ease."

The Arashiwehr are the Elite Units of the Chaos Marine Corps of the Asura Legion. Most unit formations only have a few small companies of Chaos Marines attached to them. However, the Arashiwehr are in themselves, a unit composed entirely of the massed ranks of the Fanatical Chaos Marines to be used for specially dangerous missions.

He turns to see that his troops have completed clearing out the rapture pockets in Osaka and that several Asura dropships are now flying above, patrolling the skies above as in the distance, Vimana Gunships rain down suppressive artillery barrages onto the ground to deny raptures from attacking the city outskirts. Dozens of Asura and Rapture fighter craft engage in aerial combat in the distance, as a gigantic metallic tower-like structure stands in the distance. Kamakura knows that the "building" is not one at all, but a rapture hive. A sprawling colony, filled with those mechanical monstrosities.

Dozens of explosions in the distance shake the ground and the air is constantly filled with the sounds of the whistling shells and buzzes of aerial combat. The horizon lit up with missiles detonating and Laser beams from the Rapture colony. The flashes of explosions from the Asura shells that are intercepted by the protective force fields of the Rapture colony, failing to do any damage but sending electrical pulses high into the sky, above the skyscraper sized towers of machine, as large as the ruins of humanity around it.

Kamakura: "Now we wait for the Iron Gates to be opened. In the meantime, check your weapons. I have some intel reports on some rather peculiar discoveries... Potential human remains on the surface."

Wehrman Leader: "Yes, Marshal."

***

Elsewhere in Osaka...

The Pilgrim, Nikkes of the "Inherit" squad, look on as the battle rages on in the distance from the shattered windows of an abandoned, wartorn skyscraper. Although long separated from the Ark and operating independently from the Central Government, the Pilgrims are keen to seize any initiatives they can get from scavenging the masses of corpses and technology that litter the streets of the dead city.

Dorothy: "Oh my... So it seems another race has come to conquer our planet."

Harran: "But are they better than the raptures?"

Noah: "They haven't done anything to hurt us, so I think they are... They might be better than those bastards."

Harran: "I guess you may be right, Noah."

Isabel: "In any case, we should hurry and take anything we can get our hands on and take it back to Eden. The raptures are all distracted with those new aliens... We have a good chance to get out of here alive, without having to fight them!"

Harran: "True."

Johan: (On radio) "Inherit squad, this is Eden, come in."

Dorothy: "This is Inherit, we hear you."

Johan: (On radio) "It seems the raptures are under attack by something bigger. They have not shown up here so far."

Harran: "Yes, they are in Osaka. I wonder what they are... They have been fighting them for quite a while now. They seem to be... Humanoid, unlike the raptures.

Johan: (On radio) "What do you see, Inherit?"

Harran: "They're all over the place... The newcomers and raptures, fighting on the streets, over there. But there is something... They look human, but their bodies are very... Machine-like."

Johan: (On radio) "Harran, did they attack you or anything?"

Harran: "No. We haven't seen anything like it yet. It's strange, but... They haven't done anything to hurt us or anything... They don't look friendly, but... They are fighting the raptures just as much as we are."

Noah: "Yeah, and they have been fighting them for a while.

Dorothy: "Johan, are you getting any radar readings in the skies?"

Johan: (On radio) "Definitely, in the distance. The radar has been going absolutely mad as of late. It's a massive radar signature... Like nothing I've ever seen. Whatever it is, it's way too big to be a rapture."

Dorothy: "I think we see what you're talking about."

The Nikkes, silently look on, baffled at the sight of three 130m long, Asura frigates, hovering above Osaka as a salvo of airborne artillery bombardment, lights up the horizon, denying any advancing raptures further movement towards the Asuras positions. The ground shudders with the roar of explosions as the frigates open fire with their mass destruction broadsides, causing buildings to crumble and crack with the force of their artillery blasts. The Nikkes can hear the loud booms from their position in the distance as they continue to hold their ground on the top of the skyscraper.

Johan: (On radio) "What are those things? They're huge!"

Harran: "I don't think the raptures are making any progress at all... They seem to be doing an absolute number on the rapture swarm."

Johan: (On radio) "Keep your heads up, Inherit! We will make sure nothing comes your way from the skies."

Harran's Mechanical Crow drones, fly past the skyscraper to act as air support against any foe they come across. Primarily used against raptures, it is unknown how they will fare against the "newcomers" if they are to turn hostile.

Isabel engages her Goddess wings; a technologically advanced metallic structure attached to her back that allows her to fly. She jumps out of a broken window frame from the skyscraper and into flight, escorted by the purple crow drones.

Dorothy: "Let's get what we came for. Don't worry, Isabel, we will make it to you if anything happens."

The rest of Inherit, fly out of the skyscraper in pairs, splitting up.

Isabel: "Be careful. I think we're going to be here for a while... They aren't stopping for a second."

She descends, descending towards the street level. Harran is behind her, as a Rapture missile flies by and explodes in mid air, as it is intercepted by another missile from the Asuras.

Harran: "Ugh... (they land) We should hurry.

Isabel: "Yeah..."

They make their way down an abandoned street, littered with damaged and worn down cars consumed with green and mossy overgrowth.

Harran: "Look, those are corpses from the unidentified aliens."

She points to the corpses of several Asuras, their armour riddled with holes and one even with an arm that is twisted and barely hanging on to it's armoured body.

Isabel: "They were killed by raptures alright..."

She points towards a group of 3 other bodies. They all are in a prone position. Their weapons are dropped and they have been shot from an upward angle as indicated by their wounds on their backs and the bullet holes on the ground.

Harran: "Inherit, to Eden, we are recovering the unidentified weaponry."

Johan: (On radio) "Roger that."

Isabel picks up one of the dropped Asura pulse rifles. It is equipped with a bayonet attachment.

Isabel: "I don't suppose bayonets are useful against raptures."

Harran: "I don't think so either... Wait... Something isn't right."

She brings out her Scythe and projects a hologram which shows that several of her purple crows have been destroyed.

Isabel: "What the... I have no visual on them! Are they raptures? They can't have gotten that close to us!"

Harran: "We need to leave. Is that all you can carry?"

Isabel: "Yeah... I think so..."

Noah: (On Radio) Unidentified crafts headed your way, Isabel!"

Isabel: "Wha..."

Before she can react, the roar of an Asura dropship shocks them both. The dropship carrying the intimidating Arashiwehr Units suddenly appear in the air behind them, as they were about to turn, swerving into their direction. It opens fire with it's front rotary autocannon.

The sudden buzz of the weapon fills the air, as the Nikkes take cover behind several abandoned vehicles. Isabel ducks behind a car. The bullets strike the vehicle, and send bits of metal flying towards them, as the Arashiwehr make loud slams on the ground, as they jump out of the hovering dropship.

Isabel: "Harran! Are you okay?"

Harran: "Yeah... They just strafed us!"

Isabel: "Oh fuck, where did these guys come from?!"

Harran: "Noah!... Dorothy!... The newcomers are hostile! I repeat... The newcomers are hostile!"

Isabel: "We are engaging them now!"

Isabel takes out her Shotgun and Harran poises her Scythe and wings to strike the Asuras.

Dorothy: "We're on the way to your position! Sit tight!"

The towering Asuras assume a defensive formation, as one of them shouts at the Nikkes, in a deep and monstrous voice, slightly muffled by their helmets.

Wehrman: "You think you can just pick up our dead comrades as they rest!?"

Isabel: "Harran, what is this about?"

Harran: "They think we are stealing their dead, even though we have only picked up quite a number of their equipment."

Wehrman: "Surrender now, or we will make you!"

Harran: "Yeah yeah! I'll tell my superiors to send you a formal letter!"

She engages her wings and charges her scythe towards the lumbering giants. She tries to land a strike on one of them but he quickly tears off a car door and by sheer luck, barely manages to stop her scythe from piercing his head.

Harran: "Ugh!"

Isabel: "I'm taking them on!"

She unloads a shotgun blast onto the other Chaos Marine in front of her as it takes the blast full force but shakes it off, recoiling a bit but still on his feet.

2 other Wehrmen open fire on Isabel with their chainguns, her once beautiful Goddess wings spark as they tear off from the incoming fire. She is also hit in her pelvis and legs.

Isabel: "GAH!"

Harran: "Isabel!"

Harran looks on in total horror as Isabel falls to the ground, incapacitated with her wings clipped and bits and pieces of 'flesh' missing from her thighs, now dripping with blood and exposing the metallic Nikke endoskeleton in some places. Since she was carrying the recovered weapons, Harran knew at this moment, that the mission is lost and that they are unlikely to make it back to Eden with Isabel in this state. The Wehrman pushes the car door aside and lets go, lodging the scythe's tip into a nearby car, as he lands a hard uppercut on Harran's chest, causing her breasts to bounce as she is blown back. Another Wehrman attempts to slash her wings with a straightsword, from behind. She drops her scythe and reaches for her pistol. The Wehrman takes off her left wing, but they still allow her right hand to fly to her pistol. She grabs it and shoots the Wehrmen, but to her horror, the shots ricochet off their thick plated armour.

Before she can even think, she gets pulled by her hair by a Wehrman behind her, causing a painful whiplash that disorients her as she screams in pain.

Harran: "Aaahhh!"

Her head turns up to the sky and immediately is met by an Asura elbow, that knocks her to the ground. Her vision blurs and glitches as 8 seconds pass. As she comes to her senses, she is greeted by the sight of Isabel being restrained, and her legs, much like the ground, red from the Nikke blood that, despite looking very human. Is artificial.

Isabel: "Harran!! Aaaahh!"

She watches on, as her wingless Goddess friend, is tied up by the Wehrmen to be carried onto the dropship, as she is turned on her back to be tied up as well.

Wehrman Leader: "We told you, we will make you surrender."

Suddenly an explosion is heard, as the Asura dropship's engines are crippled by a shot from a Rocket Launcher on the ground.

Noah and Dorothy fly in to the rescue.

Noah: "Hiyahhh!!!! Take that you oversized toy knights!"

Dorothy: "Let go of my friends, you tin cans!"

She unloads onto the Asuras to little effect, the Arashiwehr attempt to fire back but their shots are blocked by Noah's force field shields.

Wehrman: "We can call another dropship in, charge them both!"

The Asuras charge and open fire as Noah continues to block their shots as Dorothy jumpthrusts back with her wings. Noah follows promptly and a considerable distance is formed between the captured Nikkes and the Asuras.

Noah: "Let em have it!"

Dorothy: "Let's light it up!"

Noah disengages her shield and fires her rocket launcher, which airbursts in the middle of the Chaos Marine team formation, sending them all to the ground as shrapnel is thrown everywhere.

Dorothy runs forward and throws a grenade bundle towards the Wehrmen taking cover. The grenades in the bundle separate, mid air and some fly forwards faster due to the angle of Dorothy's toss.

Before any of them go off, a lone and daring Wehrman jumps into the air and kicks one of the grenades in the opposite direction, and within a second, a massive chain explosion goes off which sends the Wehrman crashing into a nearby building, wounding him as he passes out.

The debris and dust obscure the view between Dorothy and the captured Nikkes at the dropship.

Dorothy: "Harran! Isabel!"

Noah too looks with a shocked expression behind Dorothy. Her pupils dilate...

Dorothy: "I hope both of them didn't get hurt more than they already are."

Noah: "Dor... -othy..."

She says with a garbled, and tensed voice with a heavy breath.

Dorothy turns around and is met by a shocking scene. Noah's body has been impaled by a normal sized Asura, standing behind her. Her small and short frame, makes the Asura imposing, despite him being nowhere as tall as an Arashiwehr Wehrman. Her torso has been impaled from behind by an armblade.

Noah: "H... Help me... Dorothy."

She says before coughing up blood from her mouth as another armblade impales her body at a downward angle.

Dorothy is shocked and and drops her assault rifle. She does not say a word as she looks into Noah's eyes, completely paralyzed in fear. The dust clears up and the Wehrmen rise from the debris and their cover. Isabel and Harran, still restrained, look on in silence with tears forming in their defeated eyes.

Noah's body is lifted above the Asura's head slightly to the front and turned to a horizontal angle, revealing the Asura to be Kamakura. His red eyes look back at Dorothy, through his helmet, no emotions can be made out. Blood continues to drip from Noah's mouth and impaled torso.

Kamakura swiftly tears Noah in half, by severing her spine, and throws her remains on the ground at his sides, as blood splashes all over him.

Dorothy's legs are shaky as she tries to fight back, tears streaming down her cheeks. She can't speak as her voice fails her.

Isabel and Harran see the mass of blood and mechanical organs of the bisected Nikke, the severed tubes and mangled machinery with exposed wires, contrasted by the loose tissue and skin hanging off the exterior of the pieces of her corpse.

Kamakura: "You are not human..."

Dorothy looks on, terrified, as his jaw with serrated and sharp metal teeth actually move as he speaks.

She stumbles back and falls to the ground, still in shock and still looking at Noah's corpse, but now in a fetal position. Her eyes widen in fear.

Dorothy: "G-ghhhhh! (sniff) N... N... NOOOOOO!"

She is taken towards another dropship with the others and tied.

The other Wehrmen grab the lifeless remains of Noah, carrying her away as her body starts to break apart, her bloodied insides leaking from her torso. They also carry away Harran's scythe.

The dropship takes off as they take the captured Nikkes into the air with them.

Chapter Text

***New Aarhus District***

Dr. Odenborg is in a warehouse, with Charlie. They look on at the crate that the Agarthanorden stole from the ship, the other night.

Charlie: "So there it is... It's not too big, but not exactly light either."

Odenborg: "By the way, you do remember the other half of the message that Muginn sent right?"

Charlie: "I almost forgot! Thanks for that Alek."

Odenborg: "They sent me to hunt Medusa."

Charlie: "It would be awkward if they discovered how close you are to her right now hehe."

Odenborg smiles at her warmly and lets out a tiny giggle.

Odenborg: "You're quite the sneaky one aren't you?"

Charlie: "Haha, it's part of my charm."

Muginn flies into the room and perches himself on Odenborg's shoulder.

Odenborg: "Whoa, how did you get in here boy?"

Muginn: "Caw."

Charlie gently strokes the raven's head as it's feather's ruffle from the affectionate gesture.

Muginn: "Caw."

Charlie: "So, let's get on with opening this crate."

Odenborg takes a crowbar and pries the crate open.

Muginn lets out a few ticking sounds with his tongue.

Odenborg: "Yes, Muginn... It's a crowbar."

Charlie: "Maybe he's confused why a strange tool would be named after a similar bird."

Odenborg: "I wonder if anyone has turned to stone just by looking at you, Charlie."

Charlie: "Hey I'm not that ugly!"

Odenborg: "Who said you were?"

Charlie: "Awww... Nevermind. (Blushes)"

They both look into the box to see an ancient statue of a four winged demon, the base of which is a small pedestal, with a dial on the front.

Odenborg: "Oh, an Ancient Altar..."

Charlie: "You know what this is?"

Odenborg: "Well, yes. I have read quite a bit on ancient humanity."

Charlie: "Interesting... Do you know what it does?"

Odenborg: "It's an Altar. A holy object of some kind that was used by humans a very long time ago... To pay tribute to their portrayed deity."

Charlie: "Like a Shrine?"

Odenborg: "Not exactly, Altars were built to be more accessible to all for offerings."

Charlie: "Wait... Did you hear that?"

Odenborg: "No?"

Charlie: "I feel something... What the?"

Muginn suddenly flies out of the room shrieking in a terrified manner.

Odenborg: "I don't know why... But I feel like I am getting déjà vu."

He hears a voice coming from the demon statue.

Statue: "Come here, Doctor."

Charlie: "Huh?"

Odenborg: "W-what is this voice...?"

Charlie: "You can hear it too?"

Odenborg: "I can..."

Charlie: "What does it want from us?"

The air in the room feels heavy and the feeling of nervous pressure engulfs the room.

Odenborg: "Who are you? What do you want from us?"

Statue: "Fear not, for I merely want to deliver a small message... It's for you, Doctor."

Odenborg: "What kind of message?"

Statue: "Less of a coherent message but more like knowledge of the universe itself! Just come here and touch the sundial."

Charlie: "Doctor..."

Odenborg: "It's gonna be okay..."

He walks forwards and nervously reaches his arm out at the dial. His mind and fingers tremble at the vibration of the air that he felt and the unrecognisable feeling that he had gotten in his mind. He gently touches the dial and immediately feels the intense information that is being given to his mind.

His eyes shoot wide open, as his pupils dilate in surprise as his vision goes all white.

His mind is flooded with the images of times unlike their own. Humanity rising, falling and rising again. Battles, wars, marvels, and mystical scenes go by in seconds. Marvelous heroes from myth and legend. The archetypes that shape humanity and give them hope. Their rise to power. The goddesses of creation, destruction and nature. All of their history and how they influence it. He can barely process anything happening or what is being vaguely conveyed in the millions of visions before him.

A pulse of purple light shoots through his vision and he sees a man in military uniform doing a ritual in a dark chamber surrounded by a black mass of similarly dressed men. The unknown man says to a sarcophagus underneath under metal grills in the floor:

???: "Oh, exalted King who have come before me. I bring your spirit forwards today and carry you forward towards Ragnarok and beyond to the Day of Judgement for many prophets will deliver word of what is to come. I will make sure to come forward to the one after me, so you may keep living evermore through time, to end the next cycle."

Odenborg's vision goes all dark and blurry after a purple pulse of energy. It clears and he sees the silhouette of a Four Winged figure sitting behind a cosmic eye, seemingly appearing like a nebula within a dark void.

Odenborg: "Is that you?... Whoever you are?"

He hears the voice from the statue again.

Statue voice: "The end is nigh."

Charlie: "Doctor, wake up!"

Odenborg: (groans) "..."

He wakes up lying on the floor unable to speak as he feels something on top of him pressing on his face. Air enters his lungs and he feels a sudden jolt of awareness which unblurs his vision.

Odenborg realizes as his vision clears up, Charlie is locking lips with him, trying desperately to resuscitate him. He feels her warm and soft lips, her long and blonde hair flowing down onto his neck. Her hands holding his head above the floor, as she is firmly locked onto him.

Odenborg: (Gasps) "Oh... Oh Charlie... I'm back... You..."

He touches her shoulder with a shaking hand.

Charlie: "Are you okay, Alek? What the hell just happened? You were out..."

He lifts himself up slowly and wipes the saliva from his mouth. He is in shock from the visions he saw.

Odenborg: "Charlie..."

Charlie: "What is it? Are you okay?"

Odenborg: "I am not sure... But it does not seem that that thing has any true malicious intents towards us."

Charlie: "But it almost killed you..."

Odenborg: "It felt more like it had to do with me in particular, but the rest of us were in the room..."

Charlie: "If you can't handle the raw power of that statue, than maybe you shouldn't try anything else with it alone."

Odenborg: "Hm... It was overwhelming. I could barely make sense of any of it... But what I know is that something big is about to happen..."

Charlie: "What do you mean?"

Odenborg: "I saw a lot of things, it was insane. I don't feel like the human mind was meant to know all of it... Or even capable."

Charlie: "Anyways, Alek. (Hugs) I'm glad you're okay."

Muginn flies into the room and lands on the floor beside them.

Muginn: "Caw!"

***

Meanwhile, in the Void, the four winged figure in Dr. Odenborg's vision can still be seen sitting with his wings spread out in a meditation position. It is Noro. He opens his red, glowing eyes and is surrounded by darkness.

Noro: "My Divine Creator, is that you?"

He turns back towards the Cosmic Eye. The eye has not moved from it's position.

???: "An instinctive feeling it seems, Noro.

I see you were made well to my liking."

The Eye's deep and slow voice echoes and reverbs across the Void.

Noro: "Who are you? I have always been meaning to ask. You led me here to this moment. I followed your cues and voices."

Linguistical characters start to form in blood red in the centre the Eye's cornea, made out of Eldritch energies. The form writing that Noro can understand. It reads; "天野呂."

Noro: "Amanoro?"

Amanoro: "Indeed my Marvelous Morning Star."

Noro: "Where did we come from?"

Amanoro: "Chaos itself... All is the Mind, the Mind is All...

I am your beginning and to me you shall return in the end... If you are defeated in the mission I sent you on."

Noro: "What mission?"

Amanoro: "I believe I have given you a hint already..."

Noro: "Ohh... That!"

Amanoro: "You can't live in denial, my son. The hints are all to strong. You have a world to conquer don't you?"

Noro: "Well, it's not exactly my world yet."

Amanoro: "Go forth and conquer, Prince of the Void! Make your Sovereign proud, as I made you. Do not fail."

Noro: "What awaits me in failure, My Lord?"

Amanoro: "This is your story, Noro. By failing your mission, you don't fail me... You fail yourself. I have give you domain over the world and an Army at your disposal. It is your mission to prove yourself worthy of ruling the world you have under your wings."

Noro: "Earth is abandoned by Heaven... It should be easy to become the God of this world."

Amanoro: "Earth abandoned Heaven. You will see for yourself in due time."

Noro opens his eyes and returns to his present reality aboard his Flagship, "The Iron Sun". He is within his personal bedchamber, on a mat on the floor, gazing towards a fountain on the wall opposite his bed, in his rather large room.

Suddenly his holographic display pops up in the middle of the room. A call from Admiral Jamsaram is answered by him.

Noro: "Greetings, Admiral."

Jamsaram: "My Prince, we have confirmed the existence of humanity on the surface, however it seems that the captured specimens brought in by Kamakura are not exactly humans at least in the flesh."

Noro: "Explain."

Jamsaram: "According to our biometrics and other samples taken, we believe them to be artificial, as they show no signs of being a human. And they keep on referring to themselves as "Nikkes" who are self styled protectors of humanity."

Noro: "It seems they have already failed before we got here... However, I would like to see them aboard the Iron Sun after assessments are done."

Jamsaram: "We will keep them well for you abroad the Dirlewanger, Your Malevolence."

***Asura Flagship Dirlewanger***

Jamsaram: "Marshal, make sure none of your experiments break the captives."

Kamakura looks down at several pieces of extracted tissue he put in a specimen tube. On the operating table, Noah's corpse is displayed in two pieces as the other Asura scientists study it. Her lifeless eyes stare wide open as her face is frozen in shock, unmoved since her death with her mouth, dripping with blood. Her bloody tuby insides spilled out onto the table for all to see alongside her occasional metal tips and edges of her severed steel spine.

Kamakura: "It will be complied with, General. You take care of the others."

Chapter Text

Within a secure holding cell, Isabel, Harran and Dorothy are imprisoned. They have no idea where they even are or what awaits them.

Dorothy: "Isabel... Are you able to walk?"

She can barely move due to her maimed legs and pelvis.

Isabel: "I can't walk Dorothy... I can't even feel my waist."

Harran: " What even are they? They tore Noah apart like nothing. "

Dorothy: "Yeah... (cries) It's all my fault."

Isabel: "It's okay, you couldn't have known."

Harran: " Hold on... Is that?"

Johan: "(Radio Static).... Inherit come in! In... do you re... me, over?"

Harran: "It's Johann... Eden, this is Harran of Inherit over."

Johan: (On Radio) "Glad you're back! What's your status? "

Harran: (On radio) "We are still alive, but... Noah is dead."

Johan: (On radio) " Those newcomers killed her?"

Dorothy: "Yes, (sob) they tore her apart... We have been taken prisoner."

Isabel: "They got my legs too. We aren't getting anywhere at this rate with my injuries, here's some damage assessment data."

Johan looks at a 3D model of the data which appears on the screen within a control centre in Eden.

Johan: (On Radio) "Yikes! You're paralyzed from the waist down."

Harran: "They even took my scythe too. I feel helpless without it..."

Johan: (On radio) " Do you have any clue wher e the y took you?"

Harran: "Negative. What do your sensors read about our whereabouts?"

Johan: (On radio) "Hell... You don't appear to be on the ground at all. You are really high up, way past any atmosphere. You're on one of their vessels, Inherit."

A screen displays pictures and videos of some of the other Pilgrim squads that monito r the skies of Osaka with the giant spaceships in view.

Dorothy: "We'll never get out of here!"

Johan: (On radio) "Don't lose hope! There's gotta be a way for us to get you down from there."

Isabel: "The newcomers appear to be male. Maybe we can rizz them up and negotiate a release! "

Harran: "Yeah, maybe... But there are dozens of them out there. We'll have no chance against them if they want to fight us."

Johan: " You are all of exceptional beauty! Use it, it's the last hope you all have! Find the leader, seduce him and hopefully he would let you go."

Isabel: "Yeah, I'll do anything at this point!"

Dorothy: "I hear footsteps, someone's coming!"

They all hush.

Admiral Jamsaram walks towards the cell room door. He is accompanied by a group of his guards with stunstick armed Arashiwehr Space Marines.

He approaches the cell door.

Jamsaram: "Marshal, you did say they are devoid of reproductive organs."

Kamakura: (On radio) "They shouldn't be able to reproduce."

Jamsaram: "We shall find out."

Kamakura: (On radio) "Make it quick, I'm getting disgusted."

Jam s aram opens the cell door.

Dorothy: "Ah... Hello?

Jamsaram: "What are you?"

Dorothy: "I am Dorothy... From the Nikke Pilgrims Inherit Squad."

Jamsaram: "Well Dorothy, tell me, why were you taking our dead?"

Dorothy: "Because we are a group of human survivors, trying to get to them before the raptures did!"

Jamsaram: "And do you have any evidence of being human?"

Dorothy: "I... "

There was an awkward silence.

Jamsaram: (Points to Isabel) " You, injured one you're coming with us."

Isabel picked up by a Wehrman who's steps thump across the room as he walks.

Isabel: "Don't worry they're probably only here to fix my wounds, hehe."

She laughs nervously and is taken out of the room as the Asuras leave and shut the door .

***

Isabel: "Wait... Aren't we gonna heal me up first?"

Jamsaram: " F irst we must run a little test..."

He looks at Isabel 's curvy figure as she had been laid down onto a medical bed. Her purple leggings are thigh high and her clothing consists of a tight one-piece latex suit with mechanical pads here and there on it. They expose her upper thighs completely, but so deep are her wounds that pieces of thigh flesh are missing and the cold reaches of space leaves her feeling frozen to her visibly exposed bones.

Her breathing becomes more rapid as the Asura begins to disrobe her from the outside, beginning with the boots and leggings.

Isabel: "W-wait... You don't need to take all that... Just my legs."

Jamsaram: "Shh... It is nothing personal, your anatomy is far too beautiful to be wasted."

She yelps as he feels her thighs with his fingers, exploring them.

Isabel: "N-no don't touch there! Not there!"

She wiggles but he presses her down with one of his hands as he uses his free hand to tug down her leggings, leaving them above her knees, so that her thighs are exposed. He notices how smooth her thighs feel and how wet her womanhood is.

Isabel: "Wait..."

Jamsaram: "I can see that you were designed well for a certain purpose as well..."

He rubs her thighs again as he then looks at her pubic area. He pushes back her suit , just enough to see the hairless vulva.

Isabel: "Please... I don't wanna do this..."

Jamsaram: "This is my ship, and I'm the Captain!"

He lifts up her legs, revealing her wet and flustered womanhood. Her anus is barely visible through the folds. The Asura then reaches to his belt and unbuckles it. Isabel suddenly moans as she feels a strange sensation coming from her cunt. It feels as if something is caressing it... No... something is entering into it.

Isabel: "Huh? What is this...?"

Jamsaram: "Don't worry, my dear. You will be fine."

The Asura looks at her surprised expression and laughs. He begins to disrobe, removing his shirt and exposing his rather muscly chest.

Isabel swoons as she also sees Jamsaram's sharp teeth .

Isabel: "Uh-oh..."

Jamsaram: "Do you like what you see? Don't worry, you will love what I am about to do."

He leans over and whispers in her ear.

Jamsaram: "I hope a bit more blood won't hurt, gehehehe."

He bites down on her neck abover her collar bone, his sharp teeth drawing out blood as Isabel's face turns pale, but the pleasure overwhelms her senses as she gasps in pain.

She feels the teeth leave her neck and the Asura slurps on the blood dripping from her neck. She then feels a wave of warmth deep within her pussy. Jamsaram had just spilled his seed inside her. He continues to lap up the blood.

Isabel: "Nnnggg."

Jamsaram: "It feels really good doesn't it? What you are feeling is my essence that has been locked away, now unleashed within you. But now, let's get you patched up."

*** Aboard The Iron Sun***

The Nikkes are escorted to the observatory, where Prince Noro awaits them with his Legion. Harran and Dorothy walk while Isabel is being pushed ahead on a wheelchair by Harran.

Isabel: "The Dark Prince... I'm afraid of what's to come. Why do I have to be the first in?"

Harran: "Because I'm pushing you dummy."

Dorothy: "Don't worry Isabel. We are gonna be okay. Let me handle it."

They arrive at the observatory and the Prince is there,  seated on his throne with a Katana in hand and his Dark Wings spread fully which makes him look larger amongst all the gathered soldiers as several Chaos Marines flank his sides.

Dorothy: "My... My... They look like Goddess Wings. (Smirks slightly) I have never even imagined them on a man before."

Harran: "Shhh... Don't screw up!"

Isabel: (Whispers) "Is he even a man? He looks so young... So youthful."

Her eyes veer off to the left as she sees amongst the Asura Legionnaires, Jamsaram who gives her a little smile and glare. She quickly looks away, blushing.

Dorothy: "Well... Well... Hello, you're a man after all aren't you?"

Harran: "Dorothy! What are you doing?"

She ignores Harran.

Noro: "What else do you think I would be, Mortal?"

Dorothy: "Well... It is an honour to meet you Prince. You are handsome too!"

Noro: " Why thank you... You are quite the offering from my men yourself."

He looks at Isabel and Harran.

Noro: "Is this your escort? They really won't last a day against what my Legion does in a minute with that amount of clothing on them."

Dorothy: "My... So you really are a prince. .. Taste of fancy clothing and all."

She makes a cheeky expression towards Noro as she approaches his throne slowly. She knows what she has to do if they want to get out alive.

Noro: " My tastes are certainly more refined than yours. "

He makes a mischievous smile at her and she almost squeaks with glee.

Dorothy: "Are you talking about yourself? Oh! I would love to talk about what you like."

Noro: "Is that so... Now tell me about where the Remnants of Humanity ar e. "

Dorothy: "I don't know where they are exactly, but they are on Earth, I guess?"

Noro: "Where on Earth?"

Dorothy: "Well... I don't know... "

She is obviously lying to protect Eden and the Ark. She is nervous but bottles up her uneasiness.

Noro: "Don't tell me your haven't heard of Eden."

Harran and Isabel look on in absolute terror as Noro somehow knows about something that they never told them. They both look at eachother in suspicion as they start to believe either one has sold Eden out to the Asuras.

Dorothy tries to make a cover on the spot.

Dorothy: "Well... You see... We have been pretty out of touch with the world ever since our fall..."

She laughs nervously.

Dorothy: "Ha... Ha... Ha..."

Noro: "You do claim to be goddesses right?"

Dorothy: "Y-Yes... Yes we are. We're Nikkes! The Goddesses of Victory! "

Noro: "Interesting. So what's this fall you mentioned? Tell me more."

Dorothy: (Panics) "W-what?"

She panics but keeps going.

Noro: "You said you have been out of touch since your fall. I'm not that dense you know... Now tell me. What happened?"

Isabel: (Whispers) "Dorothy... You have to tell him."

Dorothy: "But... But..."

She turns to look at Isabel, who nods and shakes her head in frustration.

Dorothy: "Okay! Okay! Fine... Fine!"

She proceeds to tell Noro the story of the Nikkes, the Ark and the evacuation of Earth 's surface to escape the raptures the Goddess Fall. The story is heard by all.

Harran : (Mutters) "Damn it! "

Isabel: (Whispers) "Calm down Harran, It's not like lying will help us now. He knows too much."

Harran: (Whispers assertively) "You were on our side..."

Noro: "So... What you're saying is that all of humanity left is within the Ark and Eden? "

Dorothy: "Yes. .. We'll do anything to get home, dear Prince! The Humans down there will really miss their Goddesses."

Noro looks on towards the backdrop view of the planet before them.

Noro: "I came to this world, I see this world, and I... Will conquer it. I have no interest in sharing my domain with a manufactured pantheon of glorified sex robots and a weak and pathetic humanity thats sends them to fight their wars for them !"

Dorothy desperately approaches the Dark Prince with the last resort option of seducing him in mind.

Dorothy: "Awww... But my Prince, don't you want to have a sexy Goddess like me fall in love with you at first sight?"

She hugs his leg, and slowly, begins to pull her hands up toward his groin, slowly just narrowly stopping a few inches away from it.

Noro looks down at her, into her eyes as Dorothy looks back into his blood red and glowing eyes.

Dorothy: "What do you say, my beautiful Prince?"

Noro lifts her chin up with two fingers of his left hand and their lips draw evermore closer.

Noro: "What a nice offer, but I feel like I see in you; love at first bite."

He suddenly sinks his teeth into Dorothy's neck , causing her to shriek and push him away. She stumbles back , blood gurgling and spurting as her throat is ripped out by Noro's teeth. But before she can react, she is decapitated by a swift cut by Noro's Katana that sends her head and body tumbling to the ground.

Isabel and Harran are petrified with their mouths agape at the horrible sight of Dorothy being murdered right before them. Isabel's body quivers, as Harran clenches her wheelchair's handles, her eyes widen in fear and the air between them and the Prince is filled with tension.

Noro: "Legionnaires, it is so generous of you to offer them to me. However I couldn't have done this without you all. Let us dedicate our feast to our success and their blood to the Dark Gods!"

The Asuras rabidly cheer and clap as they hear the Prince's words. Isabel closes her eyes in fear as Harran turns around to her back to see they are surrounded.

Noro: "Praise be to me and the archetypes of the Void!!! My throne now above the stars for I shine forever more!!! ASURAS DEVOUR THEM!!!"

The Observatory fills with inhuman roars, laughter and cheers as Isabel opens here eyes as Asuras dig their fangs and clawed hands into her flesh. She sees Harran being carried away by Admiral Khan and several other Asuras, her breasts are being dug into and squeezed of their blood by their claws as her hands and feet are torn off by the demonic mob ahead of her all while Harran screams in absolute pain and terror as she looks into Isabel's eyes amid the pure beastly howling of the demons around them, she lets out one final plea:

Harran: "I'M SO SORRY FOR EVERYTHING!!! PLEASE FORGIVE ME ISABELLLL!!!!"

Harran's throat is crushed by a bite from Khan as she is disemboweled by Asuras, pulling out her synthetic organs which do not resemble organic human entrails but are consumed by the ravaging Asuras anyway as blood runs across the floor. Isabel closes her eyes again and resigns herself to her fate. The Asuras are in a frenzy of tearing and slashing, biting, tearing and gnawing on the Goddesses flesh as they feel the delicious meat in their grasp, with their faces covered in blood. She finally breaks and is torn apart, limb from limb.

Chapter Text

***New Aarhus District***

Dr. Odenborg has returned from a late night shift at his research lab. Things have not been the same since the encounter with that void entity emanating from the ancient statue. He decided to leave it at the warehouse as he had deemed it too risky to keep in his own private residence.

He is greeted by Muginn, who greets him with a few caws.

Odenborg: "Good evening Muginn..."

He looks towards his dining table and sees that a bag of seeds has been spilled on it with a hole torn into it.

Odenborg: "Oh, I'm sorry I couldn't have come home to feed you earlier Muginn. Are you still hungry?"

Muginn vocalizes a few knocks and decides to test his human vocabulary:

Muginn: "No."

He says in a typical avian manner not dissimilar to a parrot.

Odenborg: "I guess you did clean a bit of it up. I'm a little tired, boy. I think I'll clean it up tomorrow."

He goes to his bedroom and takes off his coat before lying down flat on his bed. He closes his eyes and tells Muginn:

Odenborg: "Goodnight Boy."

And drifts off to sleep, his eyepatch still resting over his left eye.

His right eye shoots open and he is in the void again. He sees a hooded figure in the distance. He stands up, the ground is nothing but a dark, transparent glassy surface that reflects a little from the aetheric clouds that swirl around, giving the void a very cosmic look and feel to it with the Eldritch light sources and unforeseen entities lurking in the dark.

Odenborg: "Hello?"

He looks back at the figure, and he cannot make out who or what it is, only that it is a robed male that resembles a Druid of the Ancient Human Civilization.

Odenborg decides to walk after him and ask some questions:

Odenborg: "Hey... Who are you? And where am I?"

The robed figure doesn't even turn his head as he continues to walk on, as if Odenborg is just an invisible observer in the dream realm.

Odenborg: "Hey! I need some answers."

He dashes towards the cloaked figure and grabs his shoulder. The mysterious man finally stops.

???: "So you have come to seek out knowledge, young man."

He turns around to meet Odenborg, eye to eye. The mysterious man reveals himself to be elderly and gray eyed, with white hair.

???: "I applaud you for chasing after the knowledge you seek, rather than waiting for me to come to you."

Odenborg: "So who are you?"

???: "Address me as 'Meister'... You may call me, Meister Serrano."

Odenborg: "Meister Serrano? Never heard of you."

Serrano: "It is a pleasure to meet you, Dr. Odenborg"

He extends his right hand and shakes hands with Odenborg.

Serrano: "Now tell me... What do you think lies beyond death?"

Odenborg: "Honestly, I do believe that something comes after it. My rapture research has proven that they are powered by something... Some energy that animates them, something that makes them alive and conscious. I like to refer to this as a soul."

Serrano: "What if I were to tell you that this something, is not an external force of energy but a more internal matter?"

Odenborg: "How so?"

Serrano: "It's hard to put into words but it is indeed a part of one's self. One's consciousness and conscience."

Odenborg: "Sounds a bit like a soul, I guess."

Serrano: "A soul has the vibrance of passion, the animating essence of life itself. It's there, it's alive yet immaterial."

Odenborg: "Reminds me that Nikkes are not programmed to have emotions when they have their consciousness implanted upon manufacture. They somehow know they are alive and have no contempt for human lives. It's like looking into a strange mirror, to me."

Serrano: "But they do have the capacity to understand emotions, love, hate and jealousy. They can learn and develop feelings. Their souls have been there all along with their consciousness that went from one body to another."

Odenborg: "So that explains why 'Mind Donors' become catatonic vegetables after their consciousness are transferred to their new bodies."

Serrano: "Very smart of you, Dr. Odenborg."

Odenborg: "But mainstream science discourages us from believing in the existence of such immaterial things."

Serrano: "There is always a reason, Doctor. You are a scientist and you are to challenge old dogmas when you know them to be false right?"

Odenborg: "You're right... Humanity has limited itself too much. Or moreso our rulers... That's why I joined the Agarthanorden."

Serrano: "Now, Dr. Odenborg. Before we part ways, would you like to see an important bit of your past and a relevant vision of what is to come in the near future?"

Odenborg: "Yes! Yes! Please."

Serrano: "Very well, I will leave it with one final sentence... "Die Toten Erwachen."

***

Odenborg's vision goes all white and he sees flashes of what's going on the surface as the Asura bombardment rains down on rapture swarms in Osaka. A massive psychic shockwave shakes the earth as the sky turns blood red while a thick blue mist gathers on the wasteland between the Giant Rapture Hive in the distance. He is blinded by a blinding white light, which he cannot describe.

He hears a familiar voice calling him as the scenery becomes distorted before him.

Odenborg: (gasps) "What?"

Serrano: "Die Toten Erwachen." (Echoes)

His vision clears in his one eye as he is greeted by a scene of the blue mist, now clearing up to reveal a massive horde of skeletons clad in ancient Japanese military gear, uniform and armaments from the 1200s to around the 2020s which climb onto the raptures massive metallic field of structures and roots of the hive tower.

Many raptures are engulfed in fire from the undead bolt action rifles and bayonetted fiercely by the skeletons that climb up their very bodies themselves to little effect. But soon their joints fail as the undead skeletal warriors eat away at their joints and mount often suicidal attacks to fell the raptures. Many skeletons fall from the tower as the raptures are forced to keep firing at their own structure, tumbling to the ground. But their numbers are seemingly endless.

Some of the undead use the rapture bodies as leverage to jump onto smaller tower structures that house air defense laser cannons and the force shields that protect the hive from Asura bombardments. Their bayonets impale the sides of the walls of the shield towers. The undead Imperial soldiers pull out explosives and throw them into any exposed missile silos that begin to open and soon enough, a tower falls, engulfed by a massive explosion that shakes the entire hive field. Several raptures become severely damaged, with large explosions and parts of the tower structures breaking apart and collapsing as the skeletons overwhelm the raptures by disabling their weaponry and sometimes even jamming their own bodies into their mechanisms to render their machinery inoperable.

A massive screeching noise can be heard in the distance, followed by another one that reverberates from the distance as a 5 storey tall Tyrant Class Rapture, called a 'Blacksmith' by humans is bombarded by missiles and laser beams from nearby towers to kill the undead which crawl all over it.

The Blacksmith instinctively fires back with its massed beams at the towers by releasing its 'spore' drones that seek out targets from its top shell that resembles a giant crab.

The towers collapse one by one, as more undead pour into the open hive and climb up the metallic structure of the Blacksmith's base.

Another shriek can be heard as the undead jump into the opened hatches on the top of the Blacksmith into where the spores are stored and not too soon after, the undead skeleton soldiers within the Blacksmith detonate explosive charges within their ribcages in unison as they roar. A massive explosion blows the Blacksmith's hull apart from the inside out which sends some sections of it's armor and debris flying into nearby hive structures and wire roots that destroy more of their hive.

Another hive tower falls.

And another one.

And another.

And finally the force shields that protect the hive deactivate as rapture crafts in the air try desperately to strafe and bomb the undead horde, often killing or damaging their own fellow mechanical monstrosities as well.

Odenborg hears the voice of someone familiar...

Noro: "The Irongates have opened."

He recognized the voice from the winged demon statue. But his vision blurs and all goes dark.

***(Flashback)***

Everything feels different now... Odenborg feels his eyes burn as a white light fills his vision. Something isn't right... He isn't wearing his eyepatch anymore... Or not yet, it seems. He remembers this day. He feels the slight rumble of the Aerial's engines. He uses his left hand to cover his eyes until the sunbeam stops burning his eyes. Odenborg closes his eyes again for a few seconds to steady himself.

Ermen: "You're hoping the General is still alive, Lieutenant?"

Andersen: "I'm hoping... If he isn't, this campaign is surely fucked."

This scene isn't very new to Odenborg, he has seen it in nightmares a few times, even after the few years passed since this happened.

General Andersen was still a Lieutenant and his two other friends; Kein and Ermen are on a search-and-rescue mission on the surface to find any signs of a Division Forward Headquarters that lost contact with the Ark after a battle from a military expedition, sanctioned by the political leadership of the Ark had gone disastrously wrong.

Their Nikke, Marian is sitting beside Kein.

Marian: "Don't worry, I'm sure we'll find him and our division will be saved."

She says warmly to raise their morale, despite their Division being decimated by raptures the day prior. This isn't the first time they have been in combat, but they are still in shock over the General missing in action.

Kein: "Maybe we'll be decorated for this."

Ermen pulls out a Holographic map with some coordinates inputted.

Ermen: "So, all we need to do for now is gather at this position where a few other squads will be at right?"

Andersen: "The contingency plan hasn't been changed. That was where the General's fallback line was located. If he isn't there, there would at least be a few surviving squads present."

Odenborg: "May I ask a question, Andersen?"

Andersen: "Make it quick."

Odenborg: "How the hell did our Division HQ get ambushed like that? The Raptures are so big that we should have seen them coming."

Marian: "I know! That was so uncalled for."

Ermen: "Who asked?"

Kein: "Ermen, you should be more courteous to a lady."

Ermen: (Laughs) "She's not a lady, Kein! She's just a fucking bitch! A crazy one."

Kein: "Shut up Ermen."

Andersen: "If you two don't shut up, I'm gonna throw you out of this aerial!"

There was a silence in the aerial as only the rumbling of the engines are heard and sways of it's movement are felt for a minute.

It is rather stressful for everyone. Especially Andersen who is now defacto head of the Division, while the rest of the Army Group remains paralyzed in the shadow of the giant insectoid robots.

We should be arriving to the coordinates in a few-

[BANG!]

The entire aerial hull shakes as an explosion suddenly goes off. Alarms in the aerial begin to sound.

Pilot: "The Cargo area is fried! The engines are losing power, were going down!"

A static and garbled voice comes in from the comms.

Pilot: "Mayday! Mayday! Mayday! This is aircraft number 13, the aerial's hit and falling..."

[CRASHHH!!!!!]

Odenborg's vision goes black. He sees nothing but complete darkness. He is suddenly startled awake and sees Kein in front of him who woke him. He can hear some pained grunting nearby.

Kein: "Doctor! I'm glad you're awake. Come here, help Marian, she's trapped."

Odenborg looks around. He is on the ground and the aerial is lying on its right side, surrounded by a giant dust cloud and debris. His head was rested on the underbelly of the aerial is relieved that he made it out alive.

Marian is trapped under some rubble from an old building they crashed in while she tried to check on the Pilot. Needless to say, he didn't make it. Odenborg makes it over the top of the wreckage with Kein to help lift up the piece of rubble and free Marian.

Marian: "Are you hurt?"

Odenborg: "I-I'm fine... Just bruises here and there... You?"

Marian: (Coughs) "Yeah..."

Kein: "On three!"

They begin to lift the rubble.

Kein: "One! Two! Three!

Marian is freed from the rubble and they help her up, Odenborg extends his hand to Marian as she stands up.

Odenborg: "Where's Andersen and Ermen?"

Ermen: "Right here!"

He turns to see that Andersen and Ermen are at a corner of the building with Andersen lying against a fallen pillar. Ermen is the only one who still has his main weapon in hand.

Andersen: "Glad to see you're fine, Odenborg! If only I could say the same for my broken leg."

Odenborg: (Sighs) "Well I'm glad to see you're fine."

Andersen: "I can't move... I'm badly hurt."

Suddenly Marian has a seizure and screams. Odenborg and Kein rush to her side.

Marian: "Wh-wh-what's happening to me?"

She has another seizure as she stumbles back and forth, convulsing.

Kein: "Marian! Don't worry, it's just another seizure, just take deep breaths and hold my hands."

Marian: (Shouts) "Aaahhhhhh! It hurts..."

Without warning she takes a knife from Kein's tactical vest and slashes it in Odenborg's direction in which it hits his eye.

Odenborg screams as he falls into the open door of the Aerial wreck and falls to the concrete with a thump.

Kein: "Doctor! Help n..." (Stabbed by Marian)

He hears Kein's body fall onto the floor below and Marian jump down in quick succession.

The Doctor's face is a bloody mess and he can't see out of his left eye anymore. He is in agony but presses on by getting up and placing his feet on one of the seats in the cabin. He emerges his upper body out of the cabin and is greeted by a sight.

Ermen: "You crazy bitch! Take this!!" (Shoots at Marian with his human-grade assault rifle)

It doesn't slow her down too much as human-grade weapons are not powerful enough to combat Raptures but they can damage Nikkes significantly and even kill them if they are shot in the head.

Marian lunges at Ermen and throws him onto some exposed metal rods on a broken wall which impales him through his stomach and chest.

Ermen: "Uuuuuuurrgh... Why..."

She turns to Andersen.

Marian: (Distorted) "C-c-c... Over here, Liut-t-t-tenant-t-t..."

Odenborg grabs a Machinegun on the side of the aerial wreck and fires at Marian until it jams, 3 seconds later."

Sparks fly and she is knocked to the ground as she is hit by Odenborg's fire and has another seizure.

Odenborg: "Piece of dreadful shit! Grhhh!! Andersen!!!!"

He jumps out of the Aerial and runs for Andersen, his face is covered in blood from his eye socket.

Andersen: "She's been corrupted! Take this, it's in case Nikkes ever go rogue on us."

He hands Odenborg his Officer pistol.

Andersen: "End her before it's too late for us!"

He turns to see Marian convulsing on the dusty floor and the corpses of Ermen and Kein in his full view. He is absolutely enraged by the actions of the Irregular Nikke who went berserk and killed his friends. He can't hold it in any longer...

He puts the gun into his vest and runs over to Ermen's corpse and breaks off an exposed metal rod, covered in his blood. Full of adrenaline and pure anger and hate in his remaining eye, he dashes over to Marian and beats her head mercilessly again and again while screaming. The Doctor had turned into a Berserker. He then shoves the rod into Marian's shoulder with all his might, impaling her to the floor. The left side of her face has extensive injuries and bruising as her left eye's human exterior was chipped away in Odenborg's rage to reveal a robotic cornea and lens.

Odenborg aims the gun at the helpless Marian's head. It hovers over her chipped eye.

Marian: "I'm so... (Distorted) Sorry."

Odenborg: "An eye, for an eye." (Gunshot)

The round pierces through her eye and into her brain, killing her.

Anis and Rapi turn up and enter through what was once a doorway.

Rapi: "Lieutenant Andersen!"

Anis: "What happened here?"

The two Nikkes now look into the eye of the bloody Odenborg now standing over the corpse of Marian, holding a gun while he is flanked by Kein's corpse behind him and Ermen's corpse to the right of the Nikkes' view.

Odenborg stares back at them coldly, paying no attention to his bleeding eye socket.

***(End of Flashback)***

Chapter Text

***Eden settlement, Shikoku Island***

The trees of Eden have become full of colour as the seasons have changed in just a few months. A calm breeze sweeps through the air. The golden sun shines overhead. It is a perfect day for any day of the week.

On the streets, Nikkes and Humans coexist without animosity towards eachother. Vast Gardens line the streets, and are manicured by gardening robots. Some parks are filled with people picnicking, eating, and talking, while others have been repurposed into fields of grass.

The entire settlement was built in a Valley on the Island of Shikoku. It is the size of a small town at least on the surface. But within the cliffs of the valley itself is a small and vibrant subterranean city of sanctuary it's only indication of being there to the outside world being a Giant Fortress Tower built into a cliff face shaped like a mushroom with hovering and rotating rings at the top of it. Encased within the rings, is a star shaped holographic projection that is one of the manifestations of the optical holographic camouflage projected on the surroundings by Eden's tower to remain invisible to Rapture or Ark forces alike.

***Eden Command Centre***

Johan: "Inherit is gone..."

Cecil: "I can't believe it!"

Johan sighs with a depressed look on his face which he rubs his head to.

Cecil: "They were our main source of data to the Asuras! And now..."

Johan: "Well... We are not going to get anywhere at this rate. We lost any hopes of negotiations with them."

Johan turns to the side and looks up to a monitor screen.

Johan: "At least, we can assume that the Goddesses suffer no more in their captivity."

Cecil looks at Johan with an unimpressed and cold stare.

Johan: "What the hell am I even saying?"

Cecil: "What the hell did you even command them to do? Look you revealed the existence to the Asuras by getting Isabel to tell Dorothy about information such as the existence of the Ark and Eden, that they are better off not knowing!"

Johan: "You think I enjoy it? It was your idea!"

Cecil: "My idea was to get them to open up, not give away the information to the Asuras! Now they have no more reason to keep us alive, now they are going to kill us and drink our blood, do you understand the grave position we are now in?"

Johan: "Well, what do you want me to do?! You forced me into this position!"

Cecil: "You could have found some other way to get the information out of them!"

Johan: "How?"

Cecil: "We could have faked it. We could have lied."

Johan: "Lied? Do you have any idea how much this plan is worth? It was worth their lives if they saw past our act! And somehow they even knew the existence of Eden before Dorothy had a chance to seduce that Eldritch hellspawn of a Prince. I wanted to get Inherit out of there! Losing Noah was enough."

Cecil: "Wait... Noah..."

Johan: "We couldn't have saved her either way."

Cecil: "No! Noah is the key to all this... She was torn in half by the Asura's wasn't she?"

Johan: "Yes?"

Cecil: "They must have gotten hold of her NIMPH node."

Johan: "Oh no... Her knowledge and memories!"

Johan feels unwell as his face becomes pale.

Cecil: "We can't revive them! They're gone for good. Even if we have their memory backups available on our servers right now, who knows what they have done to the data. They could be corrupted into treason as the Raptures do."

Johan stumbles towards a table in his office, leaning on it for support and falls to the floor as the stress overwhelms him, breathing heavily with sweat dripping from his face.

Cecil: "Johan... Are you okay?"

He does not respond as he feels his heartbeat gallop like a horse and his breathing on parellel with an athlete. In pure shock he looks into Cecil's eyes as tears form before words can be made out in his mouth.

Johan: (Heavy Breathing) "I fucked up! I fucked up so bad! I... I just can't... I wanna see them again! Isabel, Harran, Dorothy, Noah!"

He starts to cry as he feels his heart about to burst, with his body becoming hot and cold at the same time.

Cecil looks on helpless as she calls for some other Nikkes to take Johan to a bed to calm his panic attack.

She whispers into his ear as the Nikkes help him into the room behind him, to rest:

Cecil: "Don't worry Johan... I'm here for you."

She then turns her attention towards a holographic monitor as another Nikke stands beside her.

Cecil: "It's inevitable... We can't escape."

She sees reports from forward scouts that the Rapture Hive near Osaka has fallen to the Asuras with accompanying footage of the massive Hive Tower smoking in the background as a White Flag bearing a Chaotika in the middle, within a red circle is planted at the upper floors of the tower.

Cecil: "We must mobilize all defenders of Eden. We must warn other Pilgrims away from us."

***

A few hours later, Johan is on his bed. He woke up to a Nurse Nikke beside him.

Nurse: "How are you feeling?"

Johan: "I-I feel a bit better."

Nurse: "Would you like some tea?"

Johan: "Yes. Yes I would... But..."

The Nurse notices him looking around.

Nurse: "What's the matter, Sir?"

Johan: "Can you tell Cecil that I have come through?"

She nods and exits his room to deliver the message to Cecil. He sighs as he feels more relaxed.

Nurse: "She'll be here soon. I will prepare you a nice cup."

She smiles and leaves.

Johan: "Thank you, Nurse..."

He leans back into his pillow and looks towards the ceiling.

Johan: (Whispers) "The plan is already set. I need to work on it..."

The Nurse arrives with the tea, and places it down on his bedside table before leaving to allow him privacy to drink.

Johan drinks his tea as he sees that Cecil has entered his room.

Cecil: "How are you Johan? Are you okay?"

He sets down the cup.

Johan: "Yes... I'm feeling better now."

She approaches Johan and sits beside him.

Cecil: "Other Pilgrim settlements have been warned. The Pioneers and White Knights, among other ragtag bands and communes."

Johan: "Let me guess... An Assembly of Pilgrims has been called."

Cecil: "That's right."

Johan: "What about the Council?"

Cecil: "It's being put into motion. They will need all the time they can get."

Johan knows the grave situation they are in and is thinking of something that will very likely offend the majority of delegates of the largely anarchic surface settlements.

Johan: "When it is my turn to speak. How do you think the Assembly will react to my proposal of contacting the Ark for refuge if Eden falls?"

Cecil: "They won't like it."

Johan: "But if it is the only way to survive the coming conflict, what will they do?"

Cecil: "It's hard to predict. We are classless and stateless society after all. Pure Anarchy like the wasteland this world is."

Johan: "And yet we still survive in the midst of chaos, somehow. How will they feel when they find out that the Asuras are of Chaos themselves?"

Cecil: "I don't think they believe in crazy stories of parellel universes or mad things beyond what science has proven to exist... And yet this is mostly hearsay from the Asuras themselves."

Johan: "Those giant hovering ships in the distance are just the tip of the iceberg to what others settlements know about them."

Cecil: "Whatever you have to say later on at the Assembly, I have no objections if you must put forward a motion that really must be discussed."

***An Hour Later***

Within a Futuristic Assembly hall, various mobile hologram robots project the images of the delegates of various pilgrim settlements at their council seats often sitting beside those delegates physically present.

Assembly Speaker: "We shall now hear a proposal from Eden's Military Commander, Johan."

Johan: "Good evening, Pilgrims. It's an honor for Eden to receive you all. Hope you all had a good welcome. But to the topic at hand... I propose that in the event of total defeat of our forces, we shall seek to contact the Ark, to seek asylum for all of us Pilgrims in case of an imminent annihilation of Eden."

A few Pilgrims mutter among themselves at this statement.

Snow White: "This is preposterous!"

Scarlet: "We don't need a government telling us what we should do!"

Crown: "Didn't the Central Government betray you and literally try to shoot you in the back?"

Johan: "Please! Bear with me... It's true that I left the Ark due to their treachery. But the deaths of the entirety of Inherit Squad at the hands of these 'Newcomers' who call themselves 'The Asura Legion' are of outmost concern to us in terms of their unparalleled capabilities to combat Raptures."

A screen plays some footage taken from a distance of an entire Rapture swarm being obliterated by Asura barrages and silhouettes of their troops.

The pilgrims look on, some in shock and awe at the Asura Flag being flown on top of the defeated Rapture Hive. Something that they were never able to achieve even once.

Johan: "How many more do you think they have, and how much longer until they come here as well? I understand the irony of us asking the Ark to help us given the events of the past. We even have have evidence to suggest they have nuclear capabilities."

Some statistics flash onscreen pertaining to the Surface Nuclear Incident earlier before the Battle of Osaka.

Chime: "But what if the Ark decides to simply turn us away and leave us to our fate. We could be used as a sacrifice to the Asuras by them!"

Johan: "That won't happen! Before Inherit was wiped out, there were some in the Ark that did have contact with us and a few interactions at times. Always with the same man... General Andersen."

A holographic image of the General appears with his side profile in the room, as the delegates mutter and murmur at his name and some begin jeering in outrage.

Snow White: "A collusion with the Leadership of the Ark?"

Speaker: "Order in the Hall! Silence!"

The Assembly calms down after a few seconds.

Johan: "Andersen is one of the Deputy Chiefs of the Ark. He's the key to actually bridging a fractured and fragmented Humanity! (Points to the Screen) He has put his life and career on the line against the rest of the Ark just to allow any form of communication between the Surface and the Underworld, even for little sentences and words!"

Speaker: "And now the vote begins on the motion."

Some Pilgrims raise their hands in support and others stay silent as they consider what is at stake.

***Tainohama Beach, Shikoku***

A squad of Pilgrim Nikkes and their Human comrades patrol the beach. They look to see various crafts flying overhead in formation, patrolling the skies. The sounds of the Asura Fighter engines roar with ferocity above their heads.

Nikke soldier 1: "They're over the island already! Let's hope they don't find out where Eden is through the optical camouflage."

Nikke Soldier 2: "There aren't too many ways they could have found us. Unless their foot patrols manage to stumble past the illusions."

Human Soldier: "We better get back to our outpost, we don't have a chance here."

They run as fast as possible away from the beach towards a small forested area. However a dropship flies ahead of them and opens its cargo door situated on its back.

Several Chaos Space Marines of the Arashiwehr drop out onto the sands, armed to the teeth.

Human Soldier: "Oh shi-"

The squad of 7 opens fire at the Asuras with their weapons with little effect on them.

The Chaos Marines return fire with their chainguns. The squad is soon overwhelmed and pinned down in mere seconds. All the Pilgrims drop to a prone position, not knowing who is already dead and who isn't as blood stains the sand.

Nikke Soldier 1: "Come in, Eden! The assault has begun! Repeat!"

***Assembly Hall***

In a corner, away from the main hall, Johan takes his communicator as he hears chatter from it.

Johan: "Come in, repeat what you said, you're breaking up."

Nikke Soldier 1: (Gunfire on Radio) "Invasion!! We're being murdered out here!" (Static)

Johan storms out onto a balcony. The motion has not even been decided on yet. He feels a deep wave of anger and frustration at the situation.

Johan: "FFFFUUUUUUUUUUCCCKKKK!!!!!"

His voice echoes throughout the valley, his cry of pure frustration is for all to hear.

Chapter Text

***Northeastern Shikoku***

A group of Chaos Marines and Asura Light Infantry set up camp within a forest. Led by General Valak, they act as Reconnaissance Units to determine the location of Eden, the Hidden Pilgrim City.

Valak: "Men, we know for sure that Eden is somewhere further inland from what Kamakura extracted from his specimen's brains."

A Chaos Space Marine looks at Valak.

Chaos Marine: "Is it a large settlement?"

Valak: "Very large."

He gestures his arms apart as to illustrate a massive size of a structure.

Chaos Marine: (Sighs) "And it's nowhere to be seen..."

Rifleman: (Looks down sights) "There are enemies everywhere on this Island. Their activities don't lie."

He spots a scattered group of Pilgrims trying to make their way through the forest from a cliff's edge.

Rifleman: "General, we have a group of enemies moving at the foot of the hill. Request permission to fire."

Valak: "Request denied. Tail them to their location. Do not be seen."

Rifleman: "Understood."

The Asura Riflemen squad proceed to follow their movements silently. They trail them until they reach an outpost within the forest.

The horizon glows bright with the light of laser beams shooting at the sky. Several roars of missile engines are heard as 3 Asura aircraft are shot at by concealed Pilgrim air defences on the ground, hidden throughout the forest.

Rifleman: "Those bastards... General Valak, we have located an outpost. The Pilgrims are holed up in concealed bunkers."

The sounds of hydraulics suddenly start up, as he finishes his sentence. A section of the ground ahead of their position moves to reveal a concealed Anti-aircraft beam and missile launcher, on an elevated platform which rises out of the ground as the Riflemen take aim, ready for anything. An Asura dropship flies overhead and is shot at and goes down in flames by the laser beam.

Rifleman: "Did you see that? That was a troop transport."

Valak: "Storm that outpost! Kamakura will handle that dropship."

***Underground Bunker***

The Laser Turret is unmanned and controlled by Pilgrims below the platform.

Pilgrim soldier 1: "Anything we can send out missiles on?"

Pilgrim soldier 2: "If it's just one aircraft, forget it. Johan ordered us to conserve our ammo."

Pilgrim soldier 1: "Man... I'm aching for that moment."

Pilgrim soldier 3: (On radio) "We've got company! Our bunker entrance camera has just been shot out. I can't see anything. The door is closed though. Retract the turret now!"

The Two Pilgrims look up as the platform descends, but notice that something isn't right.

Pilgrim soldier 1: "Wait, why-"

His sentence is cut off as something is dropped from the turret platform. It hits the floor with a thump and within a second, they are blinded and disoriented by a bright light and deafening bang.

The Asuras swiftly disbatch their enemies with a small burst of single and accurate shots fired by their squad that has hitched a ride on the platform, into the bunker.

Another squad storms into the bunker, as the bunker's main entrance door is blown off by explosives. The Pilgrims hear it all. The sounds of footsteps and gunshots are heard.

They rush into the back entrance and fire their guns at the Asuras, not realising it is their own men who are coming in from there.

Pilgrim soldier 3: (Shot) "Gahhh!"

Pilgrim soldier 4: "No! I'm sorry."

More Pilgrims in their confusion get eliminated as more screams and gunshots are heard within the bunker.

Pilgrim soldier 4: "Don't scream!"

She places her mouth over her male counterpart.

Her two other Nikke squadmates keep overwatch.

This is futile though, as the sounds of gunshots draw nearer and nearer, and she takes cover behind a crate with the Male Pilgrim as the 2 other Nikkes fire back at the Asuras.

Bullets fly over their heads and they hear their squadmates drop to the ground as the fire falls silent. The last Nikke attempts to point her gun around the crate but it is knocked out of position by an Asura's bayonet as she is shot to the ground by another advancing Asura soldier as sparks fly out of her chest.

The wounded Pilgrims are bayonetted in the chest and killed with one swift thrust. Their blood drenches the floor of the bunker.

***Assembly Hall***

Johan is overseeing a city in crisis, as the Assembly delegates are now trapped in a besieged city, within a war of whom nobody has decided any clear decision, strategy and leadership on.

Cecil is trying her best to calm the delegates of the Assembly as the Hall is in pure Anarchy. All delegates have been muted, but the shouting matches continue on as the screen shows the vote on the current motion to Seek help from the Ark.

"74/200: Yes"

"70/200: Abstained"

"54/200 No"

133/200 votes are required to pass a motion with a 2/3 majority. The heated motion has ended in a deadlock. The Assembly are too busy bickering at eachother to hear the sounds of battle outside.

Cecil tiredly steps away from the podium. She who founded Eden on principles of Freedom and Sanctuary from oppressive government has found that she herself has no control or sway over the Pilgrims who know no leaders.

She heads to the balcony to find Johan.

She arrives in a corridor and finds Johan there, smoking a cigarette. He seems calm. She has not seen him this way before, even when he had a panic attack.

She walks up to him with a serious expression on her face.

Cecil: "Johan..."

Johan: "Hmm?"

Cecil: "This is hopeless, they can't possibly break themselves out of this deadlock."

Johan: "Thats just great isn't it?"

He says in a half dead, sarcastic tone. He throws away his cigarette on the floor and stamps it out.

Johan: "I know the Pilgrims... They will never come to an agreement of leadership and not even a Founder like you or War hero like me can convince the lot of them."

Cecil: "We gotta do something... Please Johan. We can't have this nonsense go on in Eden any longer."

She says in a frantic tone as Johan looks back at her, stoic and expressionless.

Johan: "I can do something... But you may not like it."

He walks towards the balcony railings and leans his back.

Cecil: "What are you going to do Johan?"

He turns around. Unable to look her in the eye as he says:

Johan: "Declare Martial Law and Emergency Provisions."

Her eyes widen and mouth agape.

Cecil: "You can't possibly be serious!"

Johan: "It's the only way..."

Cecil: "What about our rule of law?"

Johan: "I know you founded Eden on Principles... Principles and Laws that the Asuras don't care about."

He walks a few steps closer and faces her.

Johan: "I know it's hard for you. But you know that you can't control the situation in the Assembly now. What do you say, Cecil?"

Cecil: (Sighs) "This is going to end badly."

Johan: "But we need to take this decision."

He sighs as he takes a cigarette out and lights it.

Cecil: "Wait. One for me too."

She reaches into Johan's pack and pulls out a cigarette and places it in her mouth. Johan helps her light it. The smell of nicotine fills the air of the balcony.

They both lean on the railing and look out towards the horizon, which is already drenched in the colour of twilight as the sun sets to the backdrop of Asura vessels in the distant sky while laser beams and explosions can be heard and seen from the mountains on the other side of the valley facing the sunset.

Johan: "After dark... The military takes control."

Cecil: (Nods) "Mhm."

Chapter Text

***Assembly Hall***

The Sun has set, the squabbles in the hall still insue. Useless debates drag on longer than necessary. The Pioneer Squad has been sitting at the assembly for hours and is getting fed up of the arguments. She talks to her squad as the latest round of disorderly rabble are being exchanged.

Snow White: "This is leading nowhere..."

Rapunzel: "This isn't good... I feel a disturbance. Something doesn't feel right. God forbid something goes wrong."

Scarlet: "This has gone on long enough!"

She stands up and raises her hand.

Scarlet: "May the Pioneer Squad be excused in the meantime please?"

Speaker: "You may all take a break."

They get up and exit the Hall, into the open air and walk towards the garden within the Assembly's courtyard to rest and take in the fresh air.

Snow White: "Man, I was tired of that stuff."

Rapunzel: "Same here."

Scarlet: "And I was getting hungry too."

They notice an increased presence of Eden's Armed Police in front of the Assembly Garden. They approach a few and ask.

Snow White: "Hey, what's going on? Are there going to be some new meetings soon?"

She speaks to a few Eden Military Police Nikkes who are speaking with eachother.

MP Nikke: "Are you Snow White of the Pioneer Squad?"

Snow White: "Yeah, that's me. What's the problem officer?"

MP Nikke: "Johan would like to see the Pioneer Squad privately right now."

The Pioneer Nikkes turn to eachother in surprise.

Snow White: "Really? Is it about the Asuras? Do we have news of them?"

MP Nikke: "He's just asked for you, and it's urgent."

Snow White turns nods and turns away. She notices that there are more Military Police Units around that are quietly surrounding and even entering the Assembly building.

Rapunzel: "What are you doing, Snow? This isn't the time to be goofing around!"

Scarlet: "Yeah! Let's go! Johan is waiting for us!"

They walk towards a room in another wing of the courtyard. The door is guarded by Military Police. The Nikkes let them in as one of them says;

MP Nikke: "Just wait here... There are refreshments inside, while you wait for Johan."

Scarlet: "Yay food!"

***Assembly Building***

Johan and Cecil are listening in on the situation of the Chaos Invasion in a room adjacent to the balcony. The sound of explosions can still be heard even through the walls. The war is getting closer.

Johan: "They have overrun another bunker."

Cecil: "Oh no..."

She mutters.

Cecil: "Johan..."

He looks up at her.

Cecil: "My speech is ready... There are some delegates that are still armed. But is there anything we can do to somehow stall the enemies for a bit longer?"

Johan: "I think we should act fast. This isn't just about stalling them any longer. Without a state of emergency, we can't even raise additional reserves. In the meantime, I have issued a directive to the remaining soldiers in the South to make their way to, and hold out at the abandoned old city of Muroto."

Cecil: "That's suicide..."

Johan: "It's not ideal, but it's the best we can do now to draw the Asuras away from the Iya Valley where Eden stands. Plus they'll have to clear out the Rapture pockets there."

He then turns on a tablet device on the table in the room to a map of the Valley and zooms into a spot on it with his finger.

Johan: "You should take a look at this."

Cecil: "The abandoned city of Muroto... It's been a while."

He presses a few buttons on a tablet computer on the table and a map of the city appears on the screen.

Johan: "They are probably expecting us to retreat into the mountains... But we won't. This is our only chance to throw them off to carry out our coup and contact the Ark."

Cecil: "You know how hard this is going to be... The Assembly won't let us go through with this. Especially when a few remain armed."

Johan: "We have at least managed to draw the heaviest armed Pilgrims away."

Cecil: "Whoever's left has no choice to surrender or be killed if they resist."

Johan: "Perhaps it would have been easier with Inherit by our side but that's not an option now... (Takes off his Officer Hat)

For Inherit... For Humanity..."

Cecil: "For Eden..."

The two of them pick up pistols and exit the room. Johan puts his hat on again as he reaches for his communicator.

Johan: "MP! Standby on my mark."

He walks ahead of Cecil toward a corner and he turns around it as Cecil stays behind.

The corner leads to the Speaker's podium of which Cecil had just been speaking from, to the Assembly before sunset.

He walks forward behind the speaker and pushes him aside to a bewildered crowd in the middle of a long debate. Some noticed him, some are asleep, some are too busy bickering. It doesn't matter to him now, there is no going back...

The speaker looks back at Johan as he tells him to-

Johan: "Get down!"

He takes his place on the podium and fires a shot into the air. It reverberates and echoes throughout the Hall.

Those few seconds felt like the longest fragment of time that he has felt in a while. Just as he fired his gun, several Military Police Units burst in through the main door, all Armed and taking position with their weapons aimed at the seats of the horrified Pilgrim delegates. Immediately their bickering stops and the building falls silent with words, only to be filled with the footsteps of more MPs that enter the Hall from other locations, blocking off all escape.

Johan: "Attention! All Pilgrims of Eden and throughout the Free Territories! In light of recent advances toward the city by our enemies, a State of Emergency and its relevant provisions to the organization of our society have been declared. 

Martial Law is now in effect and all articles pertaining to Democratic and Autonomous governance have been suspended indefinitely!"

Some in the crowd start to shout and yell at Johan as some holograms shut off as the virtually attending ones decide to leave the Assembly.

Delegate 1: "We knew you would return to your roots!"

Delegate 2: "Traitor!!"

Delegate 3: "You're a Fascist Ark Dog!"

The Third Pilgrim takes out her gun and is promptly shot dead a round of automatic fire from the Military Police as the other Delegates duck for cover as the screams of women and some men are heard.

Cecil makes an appearance behind Johan on the podium.

Cecil: "Enough! Everyone please listen. This isn't just for the safety of Eden, this is for the safety of Humanity as a whole. I don't want to hear any complaints. We need to act now. I know that I founded Eden, my life's work to offer sanctuary from an oppressive government and freedom to the betrayed who truly want to reclaim the surface, but we weren't prepared to face the Asuras who came out of nowhere and decimated the Raptures in Southern Honshu. We can't go against two massive threats divided! If we must sacrifice our freedom, we will do it for humanity as a whole. Now all who are armed, put down your weapons and all will be fine."

A few Pilgrims slowly raise their arms and drop their weapons as MP Nikkes pick up the weapons from the floor.

Johan: "The Assembly is dismissed! We are taking all foreign delegates into 'protective custody' within Eden to ensure their safety and collaboration throughout the Free Territories."

Cecil knows that what Johan meant by 'protective custody' is to put their fellow Pilgrims under arrest in all but name and to hold them hostage to ensure that no settlements rebel against Martial Law.

***Assembly Courtyard***

The Pioneer Squad have been waiting for Johan for quite a while. They start to wonder what took him so long.

Snow White: "What's going on out there?"

Scarlet: "I don't know..."

Rapunzel keeps praying silently.

A few minutes pass and the doors to the room open, revealing Johan, flanked by Military Police on both sides. Cecil follows shortly behind them.

Snow White: "Finally! What's been going on?"

Johan: "Everything's alright now, it's all under control."

Rapunzel: "Thank God! Erm... What's under control?"

Johan: "Eden's under Martial Law. Assembly dismissed. However since Inherit was lost, I have had no favorite squad of my own to command. Would any of you of the former Goddess Squad take kindly to avenging the loss of your old sisters in arms?"

They all turn to eachother.

Snow White: "Avenging Inherit Squad? It would be a great honour!"

Johan: "Well, I would hope you would come along under my command."

The squad steps forward in unison as he leads them out of the room.

The Military Police close the door behind them.

Scarlet: "Seems like we got a long battle ahead of us."

***Muroto City, Southern Shikoku***

The abandoned coastal city is lit up by gunfire as 1500 Pilgrims are fighting within the city against Raptures. They are trying their best to hold out as their retreat to the mountains has been forcefully canceled by orders from Johan.

Pilgrim soldier: "Why? Why come here? What's the point of being here? We're being killed by our other worst enemies."

She rants aloud to herself. Alone and separated from her squad that survived the Asuras attacks, only to make it to Muroto and for the rest of her squad to be ambushed by accidentally stumbling into a Rapture. She sees the carnage all around her and curses the fate of Eden and its people.

Pilgrim soldier: "Uuughhhh!! Fuck you, Johan! I never trusted you from the start. I don't know what you're trying to do but you're going to regret it when all this is over."

She then hears the screams of a few other squads in the distance and ensuing gunfire. It attracts a nearby rapture that is closing in on her location. She can hear the thump of its feet as they shake the ground. She takes cover behind a wall as the mechanical quadrupedal monster aims its turrets around as it tries to find the source of the gunfire.

The Rapture determines that the gunfire is coming from beyond the row of buildings down the street that the Nikke is hiding.

She stays quiet as the Rapture charges forward swiftly at the buildings and jumps on top of one of them, preferring to not turn either directions on the junction.

Her heart is racing, she hasn't been caught yet... The Rapture fires on some other Nikkes at the other side and takes fire from them too. She decides to take this ample opportunity. She gets out of her cover to take aim and fire her shotgun to damage its legs as much as possible.

Both of its hind legs were crippled by her shotgun. The Rapture rumbles and groans as it loses leverage on the side of the building and begins to tumble upside down onto the roadside below as it groans in agony, unable to get up and severely damaged.

She quickly runs to her right and takes an alternate path past the buildings to the street ahead after making another turn left.

Pilgrim soldier: "Hey there! I see that I was of help in that one!"

Pilgrim soldier 2: "Thank you so much! Come and join us!"

The Lone Nikke, the only survivor of her squad smiles as she now sees that despite their desperate situation and orders that may lead to their doom... There is still hope that perhaps... They will be relieved to withdraw and defend Eden itself where the Asuras will finally be routed.

Chapter Text

***Asura Ship Dirlewanger***

A few days have passed...

Prince Noro and Jamsaram look down on the devastated city of Muroto. The lights of gunfire in the distance can be seen from the other side of the city. 

The Dirlewanger hovers off the coast of Southern Shikoku.

Noro: "With Khan guarding our flank in orbit, I would love to see this world for myself."

Their attention turns to Rapture structures on the shoreline which resemble rocks that stick out of the ground which are even melded to the more organic rocks.

Jamsaram: "Those rocks even look metallic."

Noro: "Raptures infest the world with their steel 'biomass.' At least they make good scrap metal."

Jamsaram: "Now that the Irongates are opened, it appears that humanity, or what was them was strikingly similar to us."

Noro: (nods) "Only for the surface. There is still so much to learn about their culture... It would have been interesting to find out the missing link between us and them. Now they have been given a second chance to fight the Raptures as our Onryos."

The Onryo are the undead skeletons of deceased human warriors across the ages, reanimated by the powers of Chaos.

They are used to bolster the Asura Legion's numbers. As cannon fodder or manual labor, they are within a limbo of life and death, unable to move on from their primitive and simplistic servitude to the Asuras due to their resurrection entailing a duty to the Dark Prince before they can be reborn... As Asuras.

Several Space Marines are seen on the ship, alongside Alchemists who guide the Onryos around.

Noro: "I heard Asmodeus got a new weapon ready for us to test."

Jamsaram: "What did he call it again?"

***Muroto City, Southern Shikoku***

Several Nikke Pilgrims look out towards the direction of the Dirlewanger. It is noticeably larger than the other vessels.

Fighting in the background is still audible as the ambience of battle between the Raptures as the Pilgrims continue.

One of them looks at the immense size of the ship with her jaw dropped in pure awe at the sight of the ship that engulfs the horizon and blocks out the sunset. A few more of them transmit a message to Eden.

***Eden Command Centre***

Johan looks in pure horror at the size of the Asura Battleship hovering over the waves, a few kilometers off the shore.

Johan: "Cecil, it can't be... That thing has to be around 10 Kilometers in length."

Cecil: "Holy crap..."

She steps up beside Johan to show that the radar readings do not lie about it's size.

Cecil: "It's like the size of an entire mountain... It's hard to believe... Even harder to comprehend that they were even capable of building something like that."

Johan: "And we thought those smaller vessels were the worst they had."

Cecil: (Nods) "They really are on an entirely new scale in terms of technology and weaponry. There are more of them in orbit."

Johan: "This isn't good."

***Back in Muroto***

Asura riflemen and Pilgrims are currently engaged in a battle within the city.

The Nikkes fire from their positions behind cover. The Asuras fire back as they are shot at by Automated Turret emplacements. Their armour sparks as it is penetrated by the gunfire which is suppressing them. 2 Asuras are shot dead and more die to a missile that was shot from one of the Pilgrims.

Pilgrim soldier: "Go go go! Over there! We gotta get through those Asuras!"

She is the last to get up, having taken the least damage of the Nikke squads. They are trying to create a corridor up to the North of the city to hold open a strongpoint for a breakout attempt as the Asuras have completely surrounded Muroto.

The Nikke runs up towards the Asuras and attempts to storm their positions, she reaches for her hand grenade and pulls the pin, however she is shot by one of the Asura soldiers with a pulse rifle. The sudden shot pierces her body, the velocity of the round knocks her to the ground as her torso sparks where she was hit. She bleeds and is incapacitated with the live grenade, still in her hand. She can only think to herself that Asura rifles must exert an incredibly high amount of kinetic energy for them to be able to knock her down.

Her squadmates rush ahead of her towards the Asuras. She tries to throw the grenade and suddenly it explodes in her hand, killing her and several other Nikkes beside her.

Their bodies are knocked to the ground and some are seen with their skin shredded and one of them have their legs blown off by the explosion as corpses now litter the ground.

The other Pilgrims continue running through the smoke and gunfire, only to be cut down by more Asuras that rush in.

The Pilgrims' efforts are fruitless, their attempts to storm the Asuras positions only lead to the deaths of the Nikkes and themselves as their own Turrets get knocked out by Guided missiles from several Chaos Marines on top of tall buildings 200 meters away.

Discipline had broken down in their ranks a while ago. Even before they entered the city, they were a decimated force. The Pilgrims decide to keep the remaining turrets firing to cover their retreat to the North. They know full well that other squads left deeper in the city will be left to fend for themselves. Like it matters now... None of them felt that Muroto was worth the 4 days of blood and steel, death and destruction that the battle caused for no gain. All of the Pilgrims in the Muroto pocket know full well that they are disobeying orders from Eden's much hated Johan. But are too late to turn back.

A series of booms are heard in the distance.

Pilgrim soldier: "What the hell was that?"

She turns around, facing towards the giant Asura ship in the distance to see that a bombardment is underway as the ship fires it's guns at the city. She hears the sounds of the shells crashing into building and debris hitting the ground.

The Pilgrims turn around and run. She ducks into cover with her squadmates and looks down the street ahead. A multitude of shells land in front of them. And yet... They don't explode.

Pilgrim soldier: "Why aren't they exploding?"

They continue to look. And yet, they continue to be puzzled at the shells that have been fired at their position. The shells are emitting smoke and dust in the air around them, but they don't seem to explode. Something isn't right about the shells... The 'smoke' is overwhelming their vision and it starts to blanket the entire area around them with an unknown blue mist.

The Pilgrims remain on alert. She looks to her comrades and yells:

Pilgrim soldier: "Gas!"

Despite Nikkes not being affected by Gas attacks, they warn their human companions about it. But alas, they are unprepared for it and no Human Pilgrims have brought gas masks.

However no matter how thick, the gas doesn't appear to suffocate them... Human and Nikke alike. It doesn't affect them in anyway... As if they were completely immune to it.

The shells stop falling and everyone is left confused.

Pilgrim soldier: "It didn't work? What is this stuff?"

Suddenly, a few shapes start to form in the gas, which are humanoid and skeletal silhouettes. They keep emerging from the smoke like apparitions.

A few Nikkes start screaming as the shapes slowly emerge into the view of the Pilgrims. The Nikkes are suddenly surrounded by the dark forms of undead warriors from the past, wielding swords and spears, dressed in ancient battle gear.

The Onryo charge at the Nikkes, some with their swords and others with rifle bayonets and spears. The Nikkes look at them, terrified and in fear of the spectres before them. They all let out horrifying shrieks as they charge.

Pilgrim Soldier: "Ahhhhh!!! What the hell are those? (Shoots) KILL THEM ALL!"

The Nikke and Human Pilgrims fire their weapons at the Onryo and a few drop dead, shot to pieces but most continue to charge. The Pilgrims begin to retreat, but they are suddenly cut down by the advancing Onryo, who are now overwhelming the Nikkes and cutting them down as they show no fear in their bones shattering to pieces upon being shot at and no fear of death. Most of their offensive fire from their Human-grade weapons are ineffective against Nikkes, but make short work of the Humans in their company.

A Nikke throws her last grenade at a charging Onryo who leaps onto one of the Human Pilgrim's positions, knocking them to the ground as she is stabbed through the stomach by it's dagger.

The Onryo pulls the dagger out and slashes through her throat, and pulls the blade out again with an eerie scraping noise, splattering blood all over her neck and the Onryo's hands. The grenade goes off behind the Onryo, who is unperturbed and continues to strike the Human Nikke as another explosion goes off, this time killing quite a number of Onryo, who still charge through the dust and fire their weapons at them, uncaring and unflinching, dead set on destroying their enemies.

Another Pilgrim Soldier is hit by a spear, but she isn't dead as it's stab didn't reach their chest cavity. Instead, they have been struck in her arm and as she tried to parry the Onryo's attack. However an arrow strikes through her eye and kills her. She falls to the ground as many more bones pile up on the ground around them as more and more Onryo swarm.

More Nikke Soldiers are cut down as the Humans in their company are taken out one by one, all the while the Onryo hordes keep storming on in a frenzy, their retreat is met by more gunfire and another Onryo charge in front of them. They are surrounded as suddenly the gunfire begins to become more effective.

A group of Chaos Marines and Asura soldiers fire at the Pilgrims as they band together shoulder to shoulder. The gunfire as thick as rain and the explosions deafening and disorienting. Their fellow comrades cut down by swords and bullets of the forces of Chaos.

They are soon overwhelmed and massacred as they are drowned in Chaos from all directions. The last Nikke falls to her knees and screams, but it is drowned out by the booms of gunfire, explosions and cries of the Asuras. She is promptly executed with a burst of Chaingun fire by a Chaos Marine who steps on her corpse as he walks over it to the Asura's next objective...

To clear out Muroto and find Eden.

Chapter Text

***Osaka City***

Within the Old City, Ruins of leveled buildings of the once sprawling metropolis lay alongside the husks of empty and abandoned towers, offices an d factories.

Some Asura soldi ers patrol the streets, looking to settle the area. The factories are being renovated with the help of the Onryo, the bony servants of the Asuras that no doubt had once been inhabitants of the city itself. The city is much like them, a skeletal frame of it's former self. A few rivers run through the city , no doubt been there before the war . A few collapsed bridges and rusted boats can be seen still docked.

The infernal bombardments from the Asura ships above the city had left scars on the soil and ruins, so much so that you can actually tell which damage came from the Human-Rapture War, 50 years ago and the Chaos Invasion of t h e Asuras on account of the ' killing fields' that were left behind.

The Chaos bombardments are visible here and there in the city's architecture. Some buildings overgrown with floral life are marked with signs of blast and burn damage.

Asura soldiers and Chaos Marines are seen guarding the city's centre and perimeter. All across the city can be spotted, makeshift barricades, machine gun emplacements in ruins and trenches in the middle of the roads with Rapture husks twisted, mang le d and burnt out .

Within the centre of the city, lies an old Castle of an ancient land that once called itself 'Japan'. The Castle is surrounded by large moats, it's architecture significantly older than the rest of the city . The Castle looks to be in an abandoned state. It's old stone walls are partially damag ed and weather worn.

I n the sky, a dark figure with four wings can be seen flying to it. It touches down on the ground in the shadow of the C astle . It is Prince Noro .

Noro: (S alutes) "I have come for my castle."

He is greeted by Asmodeus and his Alchemists alongside the Wehrmen of the Arashiwehr Chaos Marine Chapter.

Asmodeus: (Bows) "Hail, my Lord. It is an honor to have refurbished your castle."

Noro: "Yes. Well I can tell that you have not been slacking at your job. This place looks quite nice, if I must say so myself."

Asmodeus: "It is good to know that you have noticed."

Noro: "I have noticed that the place is still a bit worn and damaged, but then again I am a patient Lord."

He smirks as he looks at Asmodeus who bows his head slightly in acknowledgement.

Noro walks into his castle , his four wings fold in against his back as he walks.

The interior of the castle is not as run down as its exterior. Asmodeus had clearly gone through great lengths to refurbish and rebuild much of the interior of the castle.

Several Onryo , still in their dishevelled and torn uniforms and kit at their times of death a re gathered in the Prince's presence and k neel down before bowing deeply as he moves along. The Asuras are exempt from having to bow to their Prince, as he deems his Legion to be the only ones he finds deserving of standing alongside him in his presence.

The banners of Chaos flutter about on the wind outside as the Prince looks around at the interior of his castle that Asmodeus has taken care of. The place had been decaying before the Asuras had taken over the Castle in their conquest of the land. He gazes upon some exhibits within Osaka castle which house many artefacts of ancient Japan and depict battles from long ago. He is amused to see that there is still much history left within the Castle, despite it's dilapidated state before.

Noro: "Very nice. These ancient human warriors look like... Us..."

His gazes on some miniature figures depicting a battle and he turns to a set of Samurai armour on a stand with an Onryo to it's left side, wearing the same type of armour for the Prince to compare.

The Forces of Chao s present at the moment are silent as the Prince observes the old artifacts within Osaka Castle.

Noro: " Asmodeus..."

Asmodeus: "Yes, my Prince?"

Noro: "Have you ever questioned even for a second about the connections between humanity and us?"

Asmodeus: "I don't think about it too deeply, my Prince. What good will come of thinking about such things? We are as different as we are similar."

Noro: "Yes, that much is true. We still have a world to rid of mechanical wasps. A whole world to conquer. But we can start with Eden... If only we knew where it is. "

Asmodeus: "Speaking of that, Muroto has fallen, and we now control the coasts of East Shikoku."

Noro: "And the city of Eden ?"

Asmodeus: "Well... (Coughs) We are unsure exactly where it was located. Those fools really did care to beef up their encryption."

Noro: "So I see that we haven't got anything by letting that live video link into the Iron Sun. My very throne room."

The only reason why Johan and Cecil were able to have info linked to them from Inherit squad within the Asura ships themselves in captivity is because Kamakura suggested to Noro, that the signal be deliberately let through in order to find out the location of Eden. And surely enough it did take them to Shikoku.

Asmodeus: "The exact location of Eden is uncertain for now. All Kamakura told me was that the info he extracted from the Nodes on the Nikke brains from our deceased captives have been scrambled before we could actually extract all of it. (Activates Hologram) We only know a few landmarks that are of relevant context. Mountains, a river and a valley. It could be anywhere!"

Noro: "I see... This is quite troubling."

He looks at the map in the hologram and a few seconds pass as he suddenly lights up with a realization.

Noro: "Hold on, did you mention a valley?"

He walks up to the map and points out a few locations of the information.

Noro: "There's the Valley of the River... And here... and here! They all look like they could be in the same location! "

Asmodeus: "Valak is in that part of Shikoku. No wonder why there are so many air defenses."

Noro: "There is the River, there is the Valley and here are the mountains."

Asmodeus: "Yes, there are many mountains."

Noro: " You know what? I'm tired of sitting around. I'm going to spend one night in this magnificent Castle! The next day, I'm departing for Shikoku."

Asmodeus: "Oh so you're gonna find Eden yourself?"

Noro: "At this rate I might as well. It's better than just sitting up there or down here."

The Asuras Cheer as they laud the Prince's decision.

Asmodeus: "Just a moment, my Lord... There is a very special somebody, waiting to be decorated."

Noro: "Oh yes. Send him in!"

Asmodeus signals to the Chaos Marines.

One of the Wehrmen of the Arashiwehr step forwards and makes a straight arm salute as the Prince salutes him back and looks up to his towering figure .

Noro: "I have heard about your exploits, Wehrman Lead er Ashikaga."

Ashikaga: " Thank you, my Lord! I have been honored to fight in your name."

Noro: " Although the Arashiwehr are my personal guards and I command them personally up to this point, I have decided to give my Elite Unit's comman d to someone truly proven in battlefield prowess who is a Wehrman themselves. How would you like to be promoted to Stormleader of the Arashiwehr?"

Ashikaga: "My Lord! I have never heard of such an honour..."

He looks back to his fellow Wehrmen and bows his head slightly.

Ashikaga: "It would be an honor, my Lord!"

Ashikaga who had been the Wehrman who kicked away the bundled grenade from Dorothy when they captured the Inherit squad had suffered injuries and was out of action for a few days and was later redeployed to hunt down Raptures within Osaka. He accumulated 5 personal rapture kills and later slugged it out with their hordes in the urban trenches and ruins. 3 of those kills being with his Heavy Plasma Gun , 1 with his Plasma-Edged Katana and another by detonating an explosive trap under a Rapture, overturning it and demolishing a nearby building.

He receives a new helmet . One that bears the Star of Chaos with an single glowing eye in between it's arms with a red aura around it.

***Eden Command Centre***

Back on Shikoku, Johan is overseeing the progress of fortifications around Eden.

Johan: " The Tower will surely be able to shield our main structure from harm, judging by how Rapture shields can hold back Asura bombardments."

Cecil: "What do you think the Asuras will do to Eden if they get in?"

Johan: " I don't w ant to know."

He is very nervous about the situation as he stands up to look at the map.

Johan: "If we are to counter the Asuras, we will need more people . I hope the Pioneer Squad will do well with the recently mobilized."

Cecil: "What of the White Knights? They are mercenaries."

Johan: " They will get their pay. If they survive... "

Cecil: "Oh look! The Ark got our message, it's Andersen!"

Johan: "Let's hope he will cooperate."

Cecil: " Nice to meet you again , Andersen!"

Cecil says to a hologram of Andersen.

Andersen: "Nice to see you. Eden doesn't reach out so often especially voluntarily."

Johan: "We're in a dire situation..."

Cecil and Johan give a brief recap on what happen d to Inherit Squad and the Surface Nuclear Incident.

Andersen: "I have been monitoring the situation myself. I had been wondering if you were the ones who detonated a nuclear device. The information leaked to the press and now people have been speculating that the Central Government had been hiding the existence of Humanity on the sur face to protect elite interests."

Johan: " Thats because they are.. . But now we must secure Humanity's future . I believe that the Ark is willing to collaborate with us?"

Andersen: "It's complicated..."

Cecil: (Sighs) "No it isn't. Either we agree to cooperate with the Ark to repel the Chaos Invasion, or all of humanity perishes!"

Andersen: "Making this move will create such unrest in the Ark, that it will only lead to the political crisis's breaking point. The government is at risk of falling, but you know what? Fuck that shit!! They sent us to die for nothing again and again for 50 years! Every victory a hollow one! Eden has my support regardless of if they like it or not."

Johan: (Nods) "Alright, now the hard part... We need to convince the Central Government to help us. I'll do it."

Cecil: "The government are all gun-shy about it... "

Andersen: "We don't need their approval. All it takes are my orders to send help. We will deal with the fallout later. We will try our best to relieve the Siege."

Chapter Text

***Ark Military District***

Commander is currently with Rapi, Anis and Mika. He is telling them a little story that his grandmother once told him.

Commander: "-and after that, the Templars escaped to Québec. For the next few centuries, the Templars kept up their activities in secret within the city and soon the government of the time joined in and had a new nation founded."

Mika: "What was it called? Quebec, right? Are there other hidden nations?"

Anis: "What other nations are there?"

Commander: "Well it's complicated, but you see..."

His communicator suddenly comes to life with the voice of a superior on the other end of the line:

Andersen: "All callsigns of the 3rd Corps, scramble to surface sector Pyongyang immediately. Standby for further orders."

Commander: "All Units, Fall into formation! This isn't a drill!"

He then turns off the device and his eyes narrow in thought.

Commander: "We have to go. Now."

Anis: "What? I have been cooped up in this room for hours!"

Rapi drags Anis out with her.

Mika: "What's happening, Commander?"

Commander glares at her briefly, before swallowing his gentleness.

Commander: "We've been ordered to the surface!"

More Nikkes fall into formation neatly before being issued their weapons, by human personnel.

Anis: "Surface!? We're going to the surface? Finally! This is my big chance."

Anis is beaming with excitement.

Rapi: "Big chance for what?"

Anis: "For adventure and killing Raptures of course!"

Neon: "Glad to see my shotgun again! Hehehe! I feel alive again!"

The Nikkes line up in their dozens to board a military transport train to the district elevator.

Neon: "Hey Commander! Does this mean that we are gonna meet up with our sisters, the Pioneer Squad?"

Commander: "Not exactly..."

Neon: "Oh."

Commander: "They'll be way ahead of our position."

***40 Minutes later, Pyongyang***

Commander: "So this is Pyongyang."

He looks out the bunker and gazes upon a city that had once been a bustling metropolis in the Administrative Region of Korea, before the Rapture invasion. Although Humanity survived in it's complex bunker complex, built by a long deposed regime of whom, chipped off coats of arms of the old regime still stand alongside graffiti on the walls. The walls now adorned with the Ark's insignia of the Central Government's Official Name, 'The United Forces of Humanity'.

Despite the city never falling totally to the Raptures, it's citizens vacated the surface, and left the infrastructure for military use.

The Nikke Platoons exit their elevator to find themselves in the same bunker as their Commander. They are still clueless to the urgency of the mission and why they were called up on such short notice. They question amongst themselves various things... And things alluding to do with the Surface Nuclear Incident pop up in the rabble of the human personnel from time to time.

Commander: "Andersen... We're ready. When shall I tell them?"

Andersen: "When airborne, Commander."

Commander: "Understood."

He looks at his Nikkes and signals to them to get onto the aerials.

They all march out of the bunker and see a militarized city brimming with brutalist architecture and grand buildings that are relatively well maintained. The buildings look to have been built within the last 100 or so, years and are mostly made of glass and steel, reflecting light and almost seem to glow.

There are some shorter, older buildings in the city which have been renovated. Pyongyang is overlooked by a massive pyramid shaped structure in the distance, dwarfing it's tall apartment complexes. A few distant buildings range from being in disrepair to being damaged to various degrees. It does seem that the city center is well maintained by the Ark's military who use it as a base.

Neon: "The air is so fresh up here!"

Rapi: "You sure about that?"

Anis: "I guess we're gonna get used to it."

A few Nikke soldiers talk amongst each other about their previous time in the Ark Military District, which was uneventful until then.

Nikke soldier: "It's weird... We were given leave for weeks and were told to stay within the Ark Military District. But I've never been to this Peninsula."

Nikke soldier: "I've never been here before either."

They march onto a massive square next to the Taedong river, enough to hold an entire army. Their aerials waiting for them in their masses. The area is guarded by artillery and missile batteries with soldiers armed to the teeth.

The Nikkes get onto their aerials in view of General Andersen who greets Commander in view of the tower monument on the opposite side of the river.

Andersen: "Welcome to Unity Square."

Commander salutes before shaking the hand of his superior. He looks upon the Tower, 170m tall in the Architecture of the Old Northern Regime of Korea, crowned with a big metal globe on the top. On it's body is engraved the insignia of United Humanity, a symbol that peace had come and all borders were abolished that divided Mankind... The symbol on his sleeve.

Commander can still hear the surroundings filled with the engines of the noisy makeshift airfield that the square had become. He turns towards the opposite end of the river.

Commander: "Some stuff we built up here..."

Andersen: "Eh, we didn't build that... We merely defaced it. Anyways, I must stay here. I trust that you will work with the Pilgrims to the best of your ability."

Commander: "Yes, sir."

Andersen: "This isn't just about us anymore, is it? It's about the truth."

Andersen knows full well that there will be a massive shift in the Ark's politics as a result of his unauthorized aid to the Pilgrims.

He turns to Commander one last time.

Commander: "I understand that everything that may happen. Nothing can prepare us for this... We are beyond the point of return... We must head into the unknown."

Andersen: "Can you promise me that whatever happens next, you will always uphold the ideals we share? Even if it means getting punished for it?"

Commander: (Salutes) "For Truth, For Humanity, Against Ignorance and Evil, Above and Below! For the Reclamation of our world from the Raptures and Tyranny... Or Death!"

Andersen can almost feel a tear in his eye. He hold himself steady and salutes back. His composure still solid and firm.

Andersen: "...You will change the world, like you have always wanted to... My brave Commander, Ciel de Autarch... Reach for the sky."

Commander turns 180 degrees and rushes aboard an Aerial that takes off a few seconds later, followed by many more.

***Above the Sea of Japan***

Commander Briefs the Nikkes on the context behind the nature of their mission. The Chaos Invasion and the true cause of the Surface Nuclear Incident.

Commander: "I must inform you that our mission is not just to reinforce Eden in the face of the Central Government's Official Policy... This is a new threat beyond what we can imagine."

His tone has become solemn.

Commander: "According to the Pilgrims, the Asuras are way smaller than Raptures but don't let that fool you."

Commander anxiously tries to avoid words that will affect his troop morale, or scare them into desertion... Maybe if he made them look small, all will be fine, at least for the moment.

In the same aerial, Mika looks into his eyes, as he gazes out the window, watching the Ark's Hypersonic Jet escorts guarding their flanks in formation against any Rapture crafts that may try to harass them on their way to Japan. Commander tries to obscure his anxious expression from his Nikkes, especially his secret girlfriend who is seated, facing him.

She can feel it... He is insecure once more. Mika smiles at Commander warmly. He responds with a brief smile in return and turns his attention back to the flight.

Mika: "What's our objective?"

Commander: "We gather our forces on the West of Shikoku, in range of our bases on Japan who will reinforce us as we link up with the Pilgrims. If anything drastic happens, make sure that LZs are the last to fall as we fall back to all the other bases... By boat if needed!"

Neon: "Ahhh! The Sea?"

Commander: "We don't rule the air all the time you know. We must reinforce Eden's air defences. Keep them online and we shall rule the skies."

Rapi: "Hope I don't get too wet."

Anis: "Wet?"

Rapi: "Ya know, being submerged in water?"

Anis: (Sigh) "Oh I see... How am I going to kill Raptures underwater?"

Neon: "You can't, Nikkes aren't exactly meant for the depths."

***Western Shikoku***

In the cover of night, the Ark's forces gather and link up with the Pilgrim forces. Their air defenses keep engaging the Asura aircrafts above, as they pour into the Iya valley. Not a Rapture in sight... Just the constant howls of artillery shells and rocket motors.

Rapi is talking with Snow White about the reports of Asura activity in the valley.

Rapi: "So they already control the South?"

Snow White: "Looks like it. I just heard that the Pilgrims are losing the war. In the West of the Iya valley.

Anis: (Sighs) "That bad?"

Snow White: "I'm just speculating, but a few thousand have already perished in 2 weeks of fighting."

Neon: "What a shame. What will become of their souls?"

Rapi: "Well we don't have much time to dwell on that... The Asuras will surely take over this area and invade Eden in no time..."

Snow White: "We can't let them encircle the Iya Valley from supplies."

Anis: (Whistles) "I never thought the day would come when the Pilgrims would need our help..."

Rapi: "This is war, not a game."

Mika: "We should do our part to make sure they don't."

Snow White: "The Absolute Squad is in the Western part of the Valley. Let's check on them."

***Western Iya Valley***

The Absolute Squad are embedded with a few dozen Pilgrims in a moderately flat area adjacent to the valley. It's mostly covered by grass and trees with the occasional building to the side. They are laying in wait for any attacks against the nearby Air Defense turrets.

Rapi: (On Radio) "Absolute, come in, what's happening?"

Emma: "Seems that the Asuras are trying to sweep the valley. We were pushed back and retreated intact."

Rapi: "Can you tell me more?"

Emma: "They really aren't blindly coming in... They saw us before we saw them, the last time."

Vesti: "Wait... Do you hear that?"

A faint rumbling can be heard.

Eunhwa: "Affirmative."

She looks around with her sniper rifle to try and pin down the source of the noise.

Suddenly on the hill nearby, a Laser Turret platform rises to fire at an Asura Aircraft in the distance. As soon as its guns rise into the air, it is hit by a single round from the Asuras, coming from the forests, dead ahead which annihilate it, cooking off the missiles on the turret that engulf the surroundings with a stories tall explosion.

Vesti: "No! It's down!"

Emma: "It's getting louder..."

The revving sounds are unmistakable as heavy vehicles. The sounds of clicks of the tracks give off a clue as to what they are.

Emma, Vesti and Eunhwa remain in their trenchline as the Pilgrims around them too remain in their foxholes and behind cover.

Eunhwa: "I see multiple Asuras... And that's a Tank!"

Vesti: "Tank!?"

Emma: "It's in the treeline. The Asuras are around and behind them."

The Tank is about the size of a 21st Century MBT but resembles an amalgamation of the designs of both modern and archaic human tanks of the Panther Chasis and a 21st Century Japanese Type 90.

Due to the shifting of warfare towards cybernetic infantry, Tanks are not a common sight in the 22nd Century. Their use very limited and mostly within the Ark itself under the surface, or in defense of bases.

Vesti points a laser pointer to lock her Rocket Launcher onto the tank.

Eunhwa: "Ready."

Vesti: "Aimed!"

Suddenly the tank's turret sharply turns accurately in the direction of where Vesti's beam emitted from.

Asura Crewman: "Fire!"

The tank opens up as Vesti is pulled down into the trench by Emma as the round flies above them and hits the ground nearby causing a massive deafening explosion that decimates the second trenchline and wounds several others behind cover.

The Pilgrims around the Absolutes fire at the Tank from behind their cover with their weapons as the tank starts to accelerate, trying to clear the trees, as Asura gunfire erupts from behind them while 2 more tanks follow.

Emma: "Pull back!"

The Pilgrims around the Absolutes fire from the trench. Vesti jumps up from the trench and takes aim.

Vesti: "Backblast!"

The rocket shoots forward and explodes on the Tank's frontal armor and damages it. The tank's armor is strong enough to withstand the Nikke Launcher punches that would kill average Raptures. The armoured beast shoots another 150mm HEAT shell at the Pilgrims, sending them flying out of a foxhole as their cover is physically blown apart, killing the unfortunates within.

Eunhwa: "Whoa! That one got real close."

Vesti: "It's about to fire!"

Emma shoots at several advancing Asura soldiers who storm other foxholes and attempt to flank them with her minigun.

The Tanks fire destroys more emplacements and leaves 2 story tall mushroom clouds behind in their wake. The tanks keep charging and the Pilgrims are overwhelmed.

Pilgrim soldier: (Heavy Breathing) "They're trying to break through!"

Emma: "Fall back!"

Their retreat is Chaotic as the Pilgrims get shot at by the Asura rifle and machinegun fire that they start to engage.

Another Pilgrim squad try to pin down the Asuras, but they are all blown to ashes as a Tank opens up on their trenchline.

Rapi: (On radio) "Absolute, get out of there now!"

Johan: (On radio) "The Asuras... They're combing the valley. We won't last in this cover. I'm glad help is here... Absolute, get to Eden immediately! We need all we can."

Emma: "We'll be there!"

The Asura gunfire gets thicker as the tanks clear more of the treeline, moving like a behemoth through the thick forest.

In the midst of it all, the Absolute Squad and other formations manage to disengage and withdraw from battle.

Remaining Pilgrims within the trenches are now left to deal with the Asuras storming their positions with grenades, swords and bayonets. They try to make a last stand, but they are unable to hold for long as the Tanks move out of cover where they had been hiding in the forest, and charge straight for them, driving over the trenches and crushing corpses of men and Nikkes alike.

It is then that brutal trench warfare is fought in the valley with both sides fighting tooth and nail in a close quarter's brawl, firing their guns from close range and throwing grenades.

The speed and surprise of the assault, leaves no time for the Pilgrims to recover, as they desperately fire and throw whatever they have at the Asuras, so the others can get away.

They are overwhelmed as the Pilgrims are overrun by blades and bullets, in a gory slaughter in which of screams of pain, anger and fear are heard, one by one until they all fall silent.

Chapter Text

***Iya Valley, Shikoku***

2 days have passed and the Asura advance has taken General Valak's forces to the Centre of the Valley. With weakening Pilgrim air defenses, it is only a matter of time before the Asuras find the location of Eden.

The Chaotika banner proudly flutters above trenches taken from the Forces of Humanity.

Man and Nikke alike, all dread the sight of the Swastika. It's presence ominous and foreboding, like a herald of death and destruction to all it's foes.

Prince Noro arrives in an encampment with Field Marshal Kamakura and General Valak, now linked up with the west of the island fully under the Reign of Chaos.

Noro: "Valak! Kamakura! It is great to see you both once more."

Valak: "It is great to see you as well, my Prince."

Kamakura: (Bows) "Greetings, my Lord. We have quite the spoils for our Legion. We have even captured pure blooded humans!"

A hundred prisoners of the Pilgrim-Ark Coalition, Nikkes and Human are brought forward in a line in chains. Male and Female, Men in uniform and Nikkes in their typically fetishized skimpy outfits. Some of them with injuries sustained in battle, recently treated.

Kamakura: "The Humans bruise and break more easily... The Nikkes are more resilient albeit nothing we can't handle. They are as strong as one of our Legionnaires, a worthy opponent."

Noro: "Good work! Has there been any of them that divulged their secrets?"

Valak: (Chuckles) "Well... Their captors... Have had a few moments with them."

Kamakura: "They were quite eager to please..."

Noro: "So they chose to bow to us, rather than face death."

Valak brings a Human prisoner forward who bows at the Prince's feet. He is young and fearful, he seems to have given up without a fight.

Prisoner: "I beg of you... Show us mercy..."

Noro: "Of course... I am quite sure that you know the price for our mercy."

He nods to Valak who unchains the prisoner and has him lead the other prisoners to be chained to posts on the ground in a clearing.

Noro looks down at the Prisoner with his piercing blood red eyes... His Katana on his waist, still sheathed. The Prisoner kneels in his presence.

Noro: "Speak, mortal."

Prisoner: "My lord, Eden is not far from here... They are protected by optical camouflage which cloaks their presence from sight..."

Noro activates a hologram which displays a map in mid-air.

The Prisoner points to a location on the holographic map of the Iya valley.

Noro: "It's there?"

The Prisoner nods as Kamakura stares at him.

Prisoner: "Yes. That is why everyone who fled in that direction disappeared... I stayed behind in the trenches. I couldn't return to such a dysfunctional place... I was forced to fight against my own will by the Eden Junta. But I've come to see the errors of human ways... I would like to join your forces, Milord..."

Noro: "Hmm... I thought Eden was governed by Anarchists... What's your name, mortal?"

Prisoner: "Sol... My name is Sol, Milord."

Noro: "Now Sol, what's going on in Eden?"

Sol: "The Pilgrims and the Ark have joined together in order to combat the Asuras. We are planning to defend Eden's LZ from you in the coming days... The Anarchists didn't last, their weak government or what little there was had shattered even before you cleared out Muroto. The Anarchist rule of the Pilgrims were ended by a coup conducted by Defacto Military Leader Johan, who is in effect a Generalissimo... I myself am a Scion from a fallen noble family of the Sovereign class of the Ark that found itself in Eden. I'm the last of my kind... Humanity is a lost cause. You Asuras are the closest thing to humanity that we'll see in this Age... And yet you are Gods compared to us... In the flesh and blood, unlike the Nikkes and Raptures... Those spiteful machines."

Noro: "I can feel the intent in you. Just so you know, we are not here to destroy humanity but to rule over it... Humanity must ascend with us and we are all too happy to share the powers of Chaos with you."

Sol turns his head to the sight of 2 Onryos in Imperial Japanese uniforms, armed with swords and guns, just staring at him. He feels a shiver run down his spine as Kamakura is silent and unmoving, his eyes still fixed on Sol, like a predator sizing up his next prey.

Sol: (Nervously) "Ahh... Milord?"

He turns his body towards them and sits up in fear. One of the Onryos reach his skeletal hands towards Sol. He says in a raspy voice:

Onryo: "The Dark Prince gave us another chance... Humanity is now fighting under the banners of Chaos. We are like you... We fell, but he gave us new life so we may redeem our defeats and failures."

The other Onryo looks down at him.

Onryo: "Let this be our second chance at victory... Our glory is to be reborn in the glory of Chaos."

Sol feels more calm, he grabs the hand of the Onryo and he is helped up on his feet.

Noro: "Humanity is now free to live under us, to serve us."

Sol: "Y-yes Milord. I will be most honored..."

He has a glimmer of hope in his eyes.

Kamakura: "Sol may prove to be useful. He knows much about Eden, what it contains and its defense structures... Maybe he could be of some use right now."

Noro: "Hmmm... Take him and the others..."

Sol is brought with Kamakura to help map out what is beyond Eden's cloak and plan the assault on the hidden city.

***Eden Command Centre***

Looking out from the massive Tower of Eden, overlooking the bridge platform and valley settlements below, is Cecil.

Johan: "Our trenches will hold them... They are not far outside the veil."

Cecil: (Frowns) "Johan, you should rest... You haven't slept in a while. I can take over if you need me to."

Johan: "I'm not going to sleep. It's not like I can rest when this battle is happening and the Asuras are closing in."

Crown: "That's one hefty price I hope to get out of this. A lot of Eden will have to make up for our payments."

Johan: (Nods) "Let's see where this all leads... I can't believe I'm saying this... I want to see what is beyond the veil."

He sits at a nearby desk and puts his head in his hands, then lays his head down on the desk. He closes his eyes and gets a brief respite from his current concerns.

Cecil looks down to the valley, wondering when the Asuras will arrive and when she'll have to fire the city's artillery guns.

Chime: "Would there be anything left for Eden to give the White Knights after this?"

Cecil: (Frowns) "...That's what we're here to find out."

Johan: "Just... keep your finger on that trigger and be ready to fire..."

Emma: "Oh Johan, I thought you dozed off!"

Johan: "I'm just resting my eyes... I've seen everything."

Emma: "Okay, Johan..."

The room is bathed in the light of a red sunset. Cecil sits at her terminal and gets to work on something that is still being updated.

More Ark Aerials land on the skybridge platform, a hundred metres below the tower, ready to join the battle.

Vesti: "Commander has arrived."

Around 5 minutes later, Commander arrives in the room with the Counters and Pioneer squads escorting him. He greets Johan, Cecil, Vesti and Snow White as he approaches.

Snow White: "Hey there!"

Vesti: "Hello!"

Emma: "Good evening, everyone!"

Rapi: "Good to see you made it out of the Valley alive, Absolute."

Emma: (Looks at Commander) "Nice to meet you... It's been soooo long!"

Commander: "...Yes."

Emma tries to get closer to Commander but is blocked by Mika, who stares at her with a jealous look, seething with resentment. She quickly backs off and takes a seat with Eunhwa who pats her back to try and comfort her.

Snow White: "Our positions are ready and fortified. Our Air Defense turrets are up and running and all we need is some back up."

Commander: "They keep coming from air and by the tunnel routes. However the catch is that you can't enable the force shields, or our sky traffic will come to a halt which would be disasterous."

Rapunzel: "But how will we keep them out?"

Snow White: "The way we were before, with the Air defense turrets. There's only so many places they can attack from..."

Rapunzel: "I feel a disturbance with the spirits. They are in great anger. Overwhelming... There is a darkness that has awoken them. An old enemy that threatens to consume everything... The spirits of our ancestors... They want us to be free of this new darkness... A dark enemy..."

Commander: "...Tell us what you see."

Rapunzel: "The old spirits are angry. They see something they deem a threat to everything they hold dear, like a poison to the very fabric of nature. It threatens to tear apart this world and make a mockery of all life on it... That's all I gather."

Rapi: "It must be the Asuras."

Anis: "Or Raptures!"

Eunhwa: "No it's the Asuras. There can be no mistake in this. Their presence is tangible and strong. It feels like they've awoken from the Dark."

She turns her gaze outside to see the setting sun, casting a red hue across the horizon.

Johan: "Nevermind about all that bunk, let's focus on the battle for now."

Commander: "The agreed upon plan with Andersen is now ready, Johan."

Johan: (Nods) "Good..."

Snow White: "What are your orders?"

Johan: "...We wait."

***

Below the Tower, within the settlements on the surface within Eden's lower ground section within the valley, trenches and pillboxes are being constructed overseen by the Infinity Rail Squad. Ark and Pilgrim troops work together to fortify the city for the impending attack. The White Knights man their defenses alongside Pilgrim soldiers and Ark Militias, all on high alert.

The Knights on guard look into their outpost, having a full view of the valley. Suddenly they see a strange object flying overhead from the horizon... Others too see the night sky illuminated by such glowy sights.

Soline: "Girls... What is that?"

Diesel: "It's..."

Air Raid sirens start to blare throughout Eden.

The sound of the alarm rings in their ears. They huddle and hold their breath as the glow gets brighter, and hundreds more appear. The clouds start to glow like the morning sun.

Diesel: "What is happening!?"

Brid: "Get down!"

The glowing projectiles hit the ground and cause massive explosions, the Asura bombardments have commenced, the bombs are set off in an unorganized pattern, making it hard to pinpoint their positions. The entire valley is shaken by the thunderous booming of the explosions and the tower quakes and rumbles, with dust and rubble falling to the streets below. The skybridge is hit, which destroys several aerials as well.

The walls of the Pillboxes are destroyed by the explosive ordnance that lands nearby. A few Turrets are knocked out and destroyed with them.

Soline: "No no no! We're getting hit!"

Brid: "I've never seen such weapons... What is happening?"

The Knights looks through their periscope.

Chime: "The valley is covered in explosions! How is anyone going to get through this?"

Diesel: "...What are we going to do!?"

Brid: "We can't step out of this bunker now."

Soline: "There are so many explosions."

The tower shakes as it continues to be bombarded by the Asura artillery. The view of the valley outside becomes unrecognizable as dust and rubble is kicked up and destroyed by the blasts.

It becomes a symphony of terror and death for the people within Eden's valley. Pilgrim and Ark troops alike try to find shelter and hide in bunkers and pillboxes, the latter protected by concrete walls or forcefields.

The buildings of the surface, are heavily damaged and destroyed, as their upper floors collapse, and some fall, crumbling into the depths of the valley below. Pieces of corpses and body parts are seen falling like leaves.

The ground is scorched, blackened by the impacts of the explosions and fires start to take place. The people are not all evacuated in time as a few are seen running for their lives from their homes, and being hit by stray artillery, and then some caught in the blasts of nearby explosions. The Beautiful Gardens of Eden are torn to shreds, the beauty of the nature being consumed by the flames and the shrapnel and bodies flying everywhere, like meteors.

Glass on the buildings and the streets are blown out by the shockwaves. The Air Defense turrets that dot the valley, try to fire at the incoming missiles and artillery shells, but the sheer intensity overwhelms their efforts, resulting in some of them being destroyed or crippled by explosions.

The gunners in the bunkers of Eden try their best to man their weapons and provide support to the city's defense but it is impossible to do so in such a chaotic scenario.

Soline who is usually overconfident is overwhelmed by the sight of destruction. The scale of it, too great to fathom and too much to bear. Her friends around her can't speak, too terrified to form words.

The White haired Nikke now tries to cover her ears in vain, her head starting to feel like it is about to burst.

Brid: (Breathing Heavy) "What is this!?"

Diesel: "I've never seen this! I've never seen anything like it!"

Chime: "This is madness!"

Crown: "What will become of our Kingdom?"

Diesel looks out the periscope.

So much smoke and blinding bursts of light from the explosions, all she can see are explosions that shake Eden's very foundations, she is almost blinded by the sight of it all.

She keeps her head down. She cannot bear to look up any longer as some explosions bring closer, the mutilated and torn body of a Human Pilgrim Soldier... Their gender undetermined, the head, and right arm missing, their body missing below the pelvis with some sections of the spine's vertebrae visible. Only their shoulder insignia of the Pilgrims shows who they were.

She feels sick to her stomach and her head feels heavy. She starts to vomit as the sight of the horror and the sounds of explosions in the distance mixes with the noise of the sirens, leaving her dizzy and confused.

Her vomit is of a bubbly orange substance that dribbles from her mouth to the floor of the bunker. The substance is clear and viscous like liquid but solid, like the consistency of jelly and yet reminiscent of soapy water.

Diesel remembered a scene from a comedy movie once where a human character vomited in a humorous scene. She looks down at her own stomach contents and is reminded how unnatural it looks. Diesel can't help but be reminded of her artificial nature as a Nikke.

She looks up again, hoping to see something that she can recognize amidst the chaos of war, but there is nothing to see. She desperately wishes for the Asuras to show up so the bombardment gets lifted. She would rather face the Forces of Chaos in battle than withstand another minute of their bombardment.

Soline: "My head... My ears..."

The shellshocked Soline starts to cry in fear, feeling like a child.

Brid looks on at Diesel on the periscope. She is helpless as she slowly watches her squadmates go insane with fear and confusion. She wonders why she isn't feeling anything. She feels numb... Her brain is going blank and her heart beats slow, almost to a stop.

She can hear the White Knights starting to lose it too. Crown and Chime huddle together as the smaller one of them, Chime starts to hyperventilate and whimper.

Crown: (Softly) "It's okay..."

Chime: "What do we do?"

Crown: "I... I don't know... There's no way we can survive this."

Chime: "Where is everyone?"

Crown: "...I don't know. Maybe they ran."

For the first time in a while, the Mercenary duo think not of riches or treasures, but of their own lives and safety. They do not care anymore for how much money they may be able to make or the status they can get in the new Kingdom they want to build. They only wish to escape it all alive.

Crown: "It's so hot..."

Chime: "And so loud!"

The bombardment goes on for another hour and a half before it suddenly stops as abruptly as it started.

Chapter Text

***Gardens of Eden***

As the White Knights and Infinity Rail squad know that it is safe to exit, Brid opens the bunker door. Outside, the smell of smoke hits them as they step out of the bunker into the smokey haze, under the night sky. The fires that took root in the Gardens and buildings of Eden have lit up the battlefield and reduced the once beautiful Gardens of Eden to ash. The ground scorched and blackened.

The heat of the fires that smoldered in the gardens, still lingered in the air, adding to the already oppressive heat, along with the smoke that rose to the sky.

A few buildings within the Outer City still stood and are covered in a layer of dust from the bombing. The valley is in utter ruins, the destruction of the air defense turrets can be seen everywhere. The dead are seen laying everywhere, Human, Nikke and Livestock alike, they were all victims of the bombardment.

In truth, they didn't want to fight here... In the beautiful Gardens within the valley of Outer Eden. Johan had commanded the area fortified and trenches be dug to accompany the existing bunkers and defense turrets as part of the emergency defense protocols in the event the Raptures discover Eden.

But that was when they still thought that it was a war with the Raptures...

They never thought they would face an enemy capable of inflicting such havoc and destruction that puts the Raptures to shame.

Brid: "It's so quiet now..."

Crown and Chime emerge from the bunker, shaken up. Soline is being pulled by Diesel by her hand as she distressfully holds her Submachine gun as she trembles and sobs, unwilling to go outside.

Brid: "Let's move... We have to do something."

Diesel: "What are we gonna do, Brid? We don't know anything about Asura weaponry..."

Soline: (Sobbing) "No! I don't want to go..."

Chime: "Brid, what's the point? They are gone. They must be dead... They are all dead. We all must be dead by now."

Crown hears some distant chatter in a trench nearby.

Crown: "Hey, I hear voices."

They move towards the voices, and come across some Eden Militiamen still alive but hurt from the bombardment with a few White Knights on lookout who have just emerged from a nearby bunker in the trench.

White Knight: "Crown! Chime! I'm sure glad to see you are both still alive."

They look down into the trench and find it filled with over a dozen extremely burnt Nikke bodies, Chime gazes upon the corpse of a fellow Knight in the trench. She has lost an arm and a leg to shrapnel, and are missing a part of her skin on her back due to burns as she lies face down, exposing her endoskeleton as her clothes have partially burnt off.

Chime: (Whispers) "Wha... Why?"

Crown: "Anymore survivors?"

The Knight looks down at the pile of burnt corpses.

White Knight: "The bombardment just got us when we tried to run into cover... It didn't matter how well trained or experienced we are... We couldn't react fast enough and they just blasted us apart..."

The Knight looks around at the blackened ground, seeing the damage to the surface in the valley, now reduced to smoldering piles of rubble and charred trees, some still aflame.

Soline: (Shivering) "We're all going to die here."

Brid: "We have to hold this line... Johan and Commander ordered it."

The Militiamen are still shaken from the sight and smell of their dead comrades in the trench. Far from professional soldiers, they are last ditch conscripts organized into a militia by the Eden Junta to replace the staggering losses of the Pilgrim Military Forces since the invasion of Shikoku started just 16 days ago. The Eden Militia are mostly conscripted from the civilian population of the Lower Valley of the Outer City where the Gardens are.

A few of them start to cry as they notice that they had just seen their homes and crops reduced to rubble and ashes, if they can see them at all through the darkness, only lit up by the burning floral life of Eden.

Commander: (On radio) "Infinity Rail, this is Eden Command, do you copy? Over..."

Diesel: "I hear you."

Commander: "How are you holding up down there? Any casualties?"

Diesel: "...Our squad is intact. No physical injuries."

Soline stares aimlessly into the view of Eden's tower above them, atop the valley. Her eyes are red from crying as her tears still drip onto her body.

Commander: (On radio) "How are the Knights holding up?"

Diesel: "They are shaken. They haven't been in a war like this before."

Commander: (On radio) "Well so are the rest of us... There were 7000 troops in the outer city before the bombardment commenced... The opposite side of the valley to the Tower, beyond the river is mostly unscathed due to the elevation. We can't spare any reserves at this time and our gunners and medics are stretched to the limit."

Diesel: (Whispers) "Damn..."

Brid: "There's nothing we can do for the wounded."

Commander: (On radio) "Gather your survivors and bring the wounded into the tunnels to the underground... For all those units who can still fight, count your losses and evacuate your wounded. If you find your numbers too thin to properly defend a trench, abandon it immediately and fall back to consolidate your numbers! I repeat! Fall back and consolidate your remaining numbers!"

Brid and Diesel try to console Soline.

Soline: (Whispers) "I... I can't believe this is happening..."

Diesel: "You've been in the thick of it before, Soline. You'll make it!"

Brid: "Come, we don't have all night."

They make their way down the valley with the others towards the river. Diesel looks back as they are walking and notices the White Knights gathering into a group.

Diesel: "Hey, you guys coming? Or not?"

They stare at the smoking ruins of Eden's Gardens. The Militia has just about completed moving the wounded to the nearest bunker, but some have decided to stay behind to guard the injured as they all are in a state of shock from the shock of seeing their comrades so mutilated and seeing their own home destroyed by an enemy that they have never seen before.

On the ground are pieces of clothing fabric fused with charred flesh due to the heat of the Infernal Bombardment.

Robotic limbs missing skin and flesh, stick out of the scorched ground, in an unmoving heap. Corpses of both Human and Nikke alike, are spread out in a jumbled mess, limbs and bodies of those who died, are fused together, having burnt to death in piles atop one another.

Rifles and broken equipment with burnt, melted and scorched remains, littered everywhere, having been carried by the nearly endless explosions that generated such heat that seemed to have combined with ammo depots cooking off to grow so hot as to even melt and twist the alloys that Nikkes are made of.

Infinity Rail proceed forwards with what remained of the Knights to finally arrive at the river.

They are met by other Militiamen and some Ark soldiers who had to flee the bombardment, including those who had been watching the bombardment from the other side of the river, the outermost city.

Soline: "We made it!!!! Brid! Diesel! I'm... We're alive!"

Diesel: "Yeah, Soline, but there are more people who aren't..."

Brid: "I know it's a lot... But we still need some rest... We all need it."

Diesel sits on a bench and looks back at the hellscape they just walked out of. She thinks about the future, if there is one for Eden after this... She had never felt more powerless and vulnerable, and yet she had never seen an Asura in person before. They have not even set foot into Eden yet... Still behind the veil of Eden's optical camouflage. It was as if they knew they Eden was there... Just ready to strike down their side of the hill any moment.

***Eden Command Centre***

Cecil is looking at the casualty readings as the number of dead start to soar. Things are not looking pretty.

Cecil: "1500 dead, in 1 hour and 35 minutes..."

Johan: "We need a solution, fast..."

Rapi: "I can't believe this is happening... So many dead..."

Snow White: "I hope the shields hold this tower."

The Force shields are engaged to a marginal capacity as to only protect the Tower. Air support is still strong. The number of dead continues to rise, especially within the Outer city where the first line of defences feel defeated and unprepared to face an attack by such a powerful force.

Civilians have largely fled to the Inner city within Eden's walls or the Underground city under the Western hillside under the Inner city. The Outer city is full of bunkers and tunnels that connect both sides of the valley underground.

Commander: "About the Optical Camouflage... It's impossible for air support to find us when we need them. We still have air superiority."

Cecil: "For now, Commander."

Johan makes contact with Andersen on a monitor screen.

Johan: "Andersen?"

Andersen: (Onscreen) "Yes, Eden. How may I be of help?"

Johan: "When we lift the veil... Eden will be visible even to the Asuras. Have bombers on standby for heavy bombing runs."

Andersen: (Onscreen) "Alright, Eden."

Commander: "Andersen."

Andersen: (Onscreen) "Yes, Commander?"

Commander: "Make sure you keep us alive."

***Asura Encampment***

Kamakura has been observing the smoke and debris in the Iya Valley from the Asura bombardment, from atop a cliff. Eden's optical camouflage is still active but all the troops now know where it is due to the shells disappearing into the veil, only for the horrid plumes of smoke to ruin Eden's cloaking effect by rising out of seemingly nowhere.

Kamakura: "You are right, Sol... Noro's judgement prevails."

Sol: "Yes, Kamakura."

Kamakura looks up at the smoke that is visible in the distance, blocking out the moonlight in the starry sky.

Sol: "It's rising high, Marshal... It'll be seen by everyone on the other side of the valley... The City will be visible even with the camouflage."

The Field Marshal opens up his communicator.

Kamakura: "My Lord, the city has been found. I'm relaying a very rough layout of the city to your holomap. Courtesy of Sol of course..."

Prince Noro looks at the information. The holomap shows a rough 3D model of the city. He is currently aboard the Dirlewanger, overseeing the pacification of Raptures by Valak's forces that have moved to the farther West side of Shikoku.

Noro: (On radio) "Excellent!... Jamsaram! Bring the Dirlewanger to Iya, keep these escorts supporting Valak."

Jamsaram: (On radio) "Yes, my Lord!"

Valak: (On radio) "My Prince, you may have our extra Vimanas... We're good with the starships Jamsaram already assigned us."

Noro: (On radio) "Thank you, General... Now, Ashikaga?"

Ashikaga: (On radio) "We have you, loud and clear!"

Noro: (On radio) "Prepare the Arashiwehr and drop pods... I will be following the Chaos Marines on descent!"

Ashikaga: (On radio) "Copy that."

Noro: (On radio) "The Assault on Eden will begin at 600hrs."

Sol sits down on the ground under the night sky and prays to the Gods of Chaos, pleading for victory as his life has led up to this point... The point of no return.

Chapter Text

***Asura Flagship Dirlewanger***

Admiral Jamsaram looks upon Admiral Khan's Hologram camera feed who is in a call with him.

Khan: "Hahahahah! Look at all these warbrides around me!"

He is surrounded by a harem of chained Nikkes, the petty Princesses and Queens of Shikoku, many of them look young and beautiful.

Jamsaram: "It seems the Dirlewanger's shells were too much even for the femoids of their kind... I've not yet seen the destruction we caused on Eden, but their cloak is useless now!"

Khan: "You better hurry up, Jamsaram because by the time Noro is done with Eden, you're probably still gonna have less Nikkes in your harem than me!"

Jamsaram: "Hahahaha! We'll see how many waifus will bear my seed at the end, for you get the infertile ones!"

Khan: "Ooooh, I'm sure I can outperform you..."

Jamsaram: "Man... If only we can impregnate Nikkes!"

Khan: "Maybe we can..."

Khan smiles as Jamsaram sadistically grins back.

Jamsaram: "Are you thinking what I'm thinking, Admiral?"

Khan: "We'll ask Noro about it later... It's about time we move into position."

A Nikke brings some fresh blood in a teacup for Khan to drink, sourced from some of the captives.

Jamsaram: "Your pet has brought you something I see..."

Khan: (Drinks) "Submission does have it's perks..."

Jamsaram: "We should really get going now!"

Khan: "May Hitler bless your conquest."

He ends the call. Jamsaram makes his way to his personal armour stand. He puts on his suit which is adorned with Chainmail on top of the standard Asura plating along with his gauntlets and his black helmet which has an elongated headpiece that is narrow at the top, adorned with shiny silver metal crown shaped spikes jutting outward on his forehead region above his eyes. His helmet having a steel mouthpiece which syncs with his mouth movements, bearing serrated sharp metal teeth.

***Eden Command Centre***

The room is dimly lit and yet still bright enough that the contrast of the black smokey atmosphere outside, is easily noticeable amongst the burning gardens. Within the inner city itself, citizens of Eden work to put out fires that were started by the bombardment and take care of the wounded in the hospital.

Many were injured from being caught outside when they tried to flee to cover, many more were lost due to the collapses of buildings and debris from above. A lot of civilians are found dead from the fire and shrapnel, in the rubble of what was once their sanctuary.

Rapi, Anis and Neon have some breakfast together. The sun hasn't went up yet... Commander and Mika are huddled together in a blanket talking to each other and whispering as they sleep.

Rapi: (Eats) "That's a hell of a lot of firepower for just over an hours' worth..."

Neon: "I'm just glad I got to live to see another day..."

Anis: (Sighs) "I hope Infinity Rail are fine."

Neon: "I can't believe they survived all that."

Rapi: (Eats) "Well... They are hardened soldiers. They were trained for this."

They take a look at Mika and Commander sleeping together on the nearby sofa. Mika snores while Commander sleeps with his arms wrapped around her.

Anis: "Ahh... Commander, you're such a romantic..."

Rapi: (Nods) "Yeah... Perhaps Mika is the one for him after all..."

Neon: "Commander was rather cold with Emma after finding out she wasn't who he thought she was... I think she hurt him by being so close, so open and honest... He didn't think she'd lie about caring about him while we all know she seeks out young officers and cadets.

Rapi: "Maybe you can tell him when the dust settles?"

Neon: "About what precisely?"

Rapi: (Chuckles) "I don't know, maybe that Emma slept with Techie the day after she came back from his apartment?"

Anis: (Chuckles) "That's rich!"

Rapi: "He was such a gentleman. Techie made the move on her first!"

Anis: (Chuckles) "He is a handsome one after all."

Scarlet walks into the room with her sword with Rapunzel following behind.

Scarlet: "Good morning! Look who has joined the living!"

Anis: "Hey there!"

Scarlet: "We've just been helping out on some things on the ground. Absolute took over... Oop! I see that Commander is fast asleep. That was a hell of a bombardment they gave us. It's scary how they know exactly where to hit. It's like they had mapped it all beforehand. Like, I think they must have a whole lot of surveillance on us."

Cecil overhears them from the other corner of the Control Room.

Cecil: "Honestly I'm not sure of the true capabilities of the Asuras, but regardless I'm happy you helped evacuate the wounded in the Garden Trenches."

Rapunzel: "I've not seen such devastation in decades. I wish their souls find peace but... I feel something just so off about this."

Cecil: (Nods) "I'm not so sure, myself... I never knew it was possible for Asura weaponry to be this powerful and that they are capable of such precision bombing."

Rapunzel: "Those Interdimensional Space Nazis really know how to keep us on edge. I'm glad the shields are still authorized to protect the tower. How did we not see all those shells they fired at us on radar?"

Johan: "We did detect them, they fired from hundreds of kilometers away... They travelled so fast... Faster than any of our own artillery is capable of. We couldn't react to them on time."

He sits down and puts his head in his hands again.

Cecil lifts off Johan's officer hat and starts comforting him by giving him headpats.

Johan: "Let me guess... You're gonna tell me; 'It's going to be okay,' aren't you?"

Cecil: (Nods) "Just trying to calm you down... How about we try to get some rest, hmmm? The bunker is fully stocked with food, water, ammo and first aid kits."

Johan: "Fine... I can't stay awake forever. I must defend Eden... Get me a bed up here."

He falls asleep on Cecil who helps him to a mattress and covers him up in a blanket.

Cecil: "He's very tired, Snow. I think he's just taking the first rest that's been given to him.

Snow White: "You think he'll be okay?"

Cecil: "Yeah... He's just very stressed... I'll take care of him."

Snow White: (Sighs) "I sure hope things turn around. He's had this burden on his shoulders for a long time. I hope he takes it off soon... He needs a break, we all need a break."

She yawns as she starts to get tired too, despite having only slept for a few hours in the last 24. The digital clock displays the time '3:33am'.

Anis: (Nods) "I know what you mean. I've been through so much already... I just want this all to end, Snow."

Cecil: "And we will... Uh... We'll get through this alright."

Anis: (Eats) "Yeah, we'll get through this, yeah! I'm also curious, about this Dark Prince I've heard about... What's his name again?"

Rapi: "Noro..."

Anis: (Nods) "Right, Noro. I'm sure we can take him."

Neon: "Emma would sure love to take him heheheh."

Rapi: "Oh, we know... She wants to meet this Prince of the Dark and seduce him, to bed him."

Anis: (Laughs) "Hahaha! We better tell her that she needs to make her move before he's married off to someone!"

Commander is awoken by their laughter.

Commander: "Emma... And the Dark Prince... M-marriage?"

He's still groggy from the nap. He hears them still laughing in the room.

Neon: (Laughs) "They are going to have such a good time together, Commander!"

Mika wakes up with Commander, her eyes slowly open.

Commander: "Wha? Noro's marrying Emma? The war is over?"

Mika: (Yawns) "It's over already?"

Scarlet: (Chuckles) "No... You just had a dream, that's all..."

Commander: "Huh... You mean we still have to fight them!?"

Scarlet: (Nods) "Sorry..."

He covers his face with the blanket.

Commander: "This is such a waste of time, damn it... Why can't that bitch Emma be turned into that Demonic hellspawn's body pillow in exchange for peace already?... We could rid the world of Raptures."

Snow White: "I'm not sacrificing another Nikke to those Chaos Nazi Vampire freaks! I've already lost Inherit. Dorothy, Isabel, Harran and Noah... All killed in Cold Blood. They were already hostages. They tore them apart alive and drank their blood as they ate their flesh, alive! They want our planet for themselves. They won't stop until they have it..."

Commander: "Alright. I'm sorry... I wasn't informed of them being like that. At the same time, I want to find out more."

Mika: (Gasp) "What!? They eat us?"

Rapi: "It's a nightmare..."

***6am***

As the sun is about to rise, Commander and the Ark Nikkes have been moved to the Inner City's ground level to support the Eden Militia as well as the remnants of the rest of the Pilgrim Military, bolstered by newly arrived Ark Forces who have reinforced their positions from the underground levels.

The Pioneer Squad are within the Command Centre, to defend Johan and Cecil, alongside other armed Pilgrims who can't risk their leadership being decapitated figuratively and literally, knowing the Asuras appetite for headhunting.

Cecil: "There it is... On our radar."

Johan: "The Asura ship, Dirlewanger. It's getting closer."

Andersen: (On radio) "I'll keep the skies as clear as I can. I've been saving up my planes for this..."

Commander: "Thank you, Andersen."

Snow White: (Lets out a deep breath) "Well, here we go... What we trained for."

Cecil: (Nods) "Remember that it's not over until we say it is, everyone. It's going to be a battle of endurance and resilience. We are fighting against a powerful and devious foe. The Asuras are evil to the core and their leaders are without any morality whatsoever."

Scarlet: (Draws sword) "We're the last of the Goddess Squad... Never had I ever envisioned what could be our last battle be fought alongside the Ark."

Rapunzel: "I do sense a kind of impending doom... It's hard to explain."

Scarlet: "I want to see those Chaos Nazi freaks wiped out!"

Johan: "Keep us safe, Snow. Even at the cost of your own lives. Andersen's aircraft will attempt to level the fire support against us and attack them when they least expect it."

Cecil: "That thing is the size of a mountain."

Johan: "Doesn't matter... It's got to have a weakness somewhere."

Scarlet: (Points to the sky) "Look!"

The sky lights up once more with fireballs descending from the Dirlewanger's hull from high up in the atmosphere with the sound of distant booming cracking through the sky like rolling thunder.

Cecil: "Bombardment inbound!"

Sirens begin to sound throughout Eden as they prepare for the incoming fire.

Johan sees that unlike the last time, sky traffic has been pulled back due to the devastation of the Skybridge. He activates the shields at full capacity and deactivates the cloak, knowing it is useless to keep it on. The city is bathed in the blinding light of the Shields, as they form a forcefield which absorbs all the blows of the Asura bombardment, with the citizens and soldiers looking up to the sky in cheers as the lights in the sky prove that they are safe for now... But for how long?

They can't help but smile as the shield's light to the backdrop of the sunrise continues to fill the morning skies of Eden with hope.

A few moments later, Johan remembers that the energy grid is in ruins due to the previous bombardment and that the shields consume energy to an unsustainable amount if they are put under significant stress.

Johan: "Cecil, redirect power from the Cloak to the Shields!"

Cecil: (Nods) "Roger that, Johan."

The city goes dark and the shield starts to become more unstable, with small tremors running throughout the city and buildings beginning to shake as the shockwaves start to break through.

Cecil manages to route all power from the cloak to the shields as the tower begins to vibrate more violently, creating a tremulous buzz in the room. The shaking of the tower ceases as the shields are operating once more at full capacity. The ground stops shaking for now but the noise of the shield humming remains audible and it continues to radiate through the tower.

Cecil: "I think we have stabilized them, Johan."

Rapunzel: "Thank the maker!"

Snow White: "You both make such a good team!"

A few minutes later, Asura Starfighters start to fly into the airspace above Eden, as they are engaged by Ark Hypersonic Jets, with the sounds of explosions, and their engines roaring, as the battle is joined above them.

Andersen: (On radio) "Ground Support! We're here attack now!"

The Ark forces enter the airspace and engage the Starfighters, engaging them in dogfights. Johan disables the shields so that Missiles and Laser beams can fire into the air to help Andersen's Airborne forces.

The Morning Skies are now filled with explosions and laser blasts while being dyed red by the rising sun in the horizon, as it shines through the light of explosions and beams of light. The sounds of engines roar as fighters are launched into the air and enter the fray of combat.

***Above Eden's Airspace***

Many drop pods full of the Forces of Chaos are now on their way to their rough landings within the Inner city.

Prince Noro and Ashikaga are in one of them, filled with Chaos Marines and Asura Soldiers.

Noro: "Wehrmen! You secure the bottom of the tower, and I'll slaughter my way down from the top!"

Ashikaga: (Nods) "Understood, My Prince."

Red Lights and beeping alarms within the pod go off as the pod has almost reached the ground... And a big bang is heard as a rough touchdown shakes the entire pod.

The doors of the pod open on all sides like petals of a blooming flower and they leap out to start fighting. They have landed a short distance nearby the Tower of Eden.

Some Pilgrim Nikkes with Goddess wings fire their weapons at the Chaos Marines in mid air as they disembark, which is met by swift retaliation, the Wehrmen having their heavy weaponry ready, are able to shoot back at the Nikke forces, tearing some apart in the air, or shredding their wings and sending them crashing towards the ground.

In the midst of this, Noro has took to the skies with his own dark wings, flying up with the Tower in mind, leaving a trail of black mist behind him.

***Eden Control Centre***

Rapunzel: "No... I feel a darkness encroaching on us. It's terrifying."

Snow White: "I see the darkness..."

Johan looks out of the windows to see a vague silhouette pass by.

Johan: "I know that aura, Cecil we have to go now! The Dark Prince is upon us!"

He grabs Cecil's hand as he dashes towards the elevator.

The Pioneer Squad take up defensive positions alongside the other Pilgrims. A Nikke looks outside a window to check for this airborne threat, seeing the Chaos Invasion going on, but no winged beast yet. She lets out a deep breath before the window breaks, and she is stabbed through her torso and pulled out of the tower by Noro's blade and falls to her death.

Rapunzel: "He's here! Kill him!!"

Noro flies upwards to the top of the tower, skimming it's beacon with his 4 wings visible for all to see as glass is shot out by the panicked pilgrims trying to shoot him down. The Inside of the Command Centre is riddled with bullets from their automatic fire, as the elevator arrives.

Snow White: "Get in the elevator!"

Johan and Cecil hop in and close the door behind them.

Rapunzel takes aim at Noro with her rocket launching staff as he breaks through the glass above them. Noro swiftly responds by moving his agile body to dodge the rocket with his wings as the rocket detonates after hitting a steel beam above him, which throws him down to the floor, landing on his feet and sending debris falling down.

Snow White: "You're surrounded, Demon Prince! There's no place for you to hide now!"

Noro: "Did I keep you waiting, ladies?"

Noro is surrounded by Pilgrim soldiers on all sides as the Pioneer Squad stare him down. His eyes glow a fierce red and a malicious smile spreads across his face, showing his sharp fangs. His Katana still drawn, unfazed at the gun barrels pointed at him as he keeps his Shockpistol comfortably in his left hand.

Rapunzel: "His aura... I've never felt such hostility before."

Scarlet takes a step back and holds her sword in a defensive position.

Scarlet: "You won't get the better of us this time!"

Snow White: "Surrender now, or you're a dead Prince, Noro!"

Noro: "Oh, please do shoot me down! I can't wait to die! It would be such an honour to be shot by the hands of such beautiful women!"

Scarlet: "Damn, he's cocky..."

Noro: "Are you the remnants of the Goddess Squad, a certain Dorothy told me about?"

Scarlet: "We are."

Noro: "Oh how delicious she was... Oh how her pretty little head still gazes upon those who visit my throne room. Hahahhah!"

Snow White: "You have a death wish, Prince of the Void..."

Noro: "Hahaha! I can't wait to hear your screams... When I drink your blood, while my Demonic troops ravish your beautiful bodies!"

His wings flap as he quickly spins to his left and decapitates a nearby Nikke while his wings violently knock away another Nikke, sending her flying across the floor as the others open fire on him... It takes just a second to die, but Noro wasn't dying as he uses his wings as shields against oncoming fire from the Pilgrims. He fires his Shockpistol which blasts open the torso of another Nikke to his right, before he jumps back and whacks another Nikke with a pistol behind him with his wings.

She screams as she is pulled off the ground and used as a shield by Noro who advances forward as he stabs her her back, the blade emerging out her gut and skewering her.

Rapunzel: "Nooo!"

Scarlet: "Keep shooting!"

Snow White: "We must hold the line!"

The helpless Nikke is shot to shreds by their fire, as Noro blows off another Nikke's head who flanks the Pioneers to their left as Rapunzel readies another shot from her staff.

Noro: "Now it's only Divinity left!"

Noro leaps up to the ceiling, with his wings to dodge the second rocket as he glides towards the Pioneers. He slashes at the closest one, Rapunzel who tries to dodge by moving out the way of his blade, and quickly retaliates by hitting him in the gut with her staff. 

Noro is knocked back but fires at her thigh, wounding her before going for a follow-up strike, only to get his blade deflected by Scarlet's sword.

Scarlet: "Not on my watch!"

Snow White fires her assault rifle at Noro's back, in between his wings, as she aims at his heart.

Noro: "Agh! You clever whores!" 

He leaps upwards towards a wall and kicks away from it, his kick landing on Snow White's chest, knocking her back with a loud thump and causing her to drop her rifle.

Scarlet: "Get away from her, you Demon!"

Snow White: "He's mine!"

Noro attempts to stab Snow in her heart to end it all but Scarlet manages to knock him to the side, just in time. She slashes at Noro's right wing, cutting half of it off as it falls to the ground.

Noro: "Aaaaghh!!!"

Scarlet: "Haha! This is the first wing of a Devil, I take it!?"

Noro: "Wings or no wings, the Twilight of the Goddesses has already begun!!!"

The blood in the Control Centre begins to hover into the air in little droplets which start to circle Noro's feet, and soon the pools of blood are drawn to him, inching across the floor to the Dark Prince as his dark aura condenses into mist and soon... Black flames erupt from his body, engulfing his wings and his sword as he roars in anger and charges towards the Pioneers, his eyes burning red and glowing.

Snow White: "That power! What is this?"

Scarlet: "Get down!"

Noro's sword turns into black flame as he slashes at Snow White and Scarlet who are deflected by Rapunzel who's staff breaks in half upon contact.

She defiantly tries to hit Noro in the face with a punch, but he dodges and catches her wrist with his teeth, biting down and sinking them in her.

Rapunzel: "Gaaaaaghh!"

Noro grabs her long blonde braided hair, her arm still firmly gripped by his mouth and spins in the other direction, hurling Rapunzel through the Tower's window, shattering more glass and sending her to the depths below.

Noro: "Now that's what I call... Goddess Fall."

He smiles as is rudely interrupted by a powerful shot to his chest, the shockwave knocking him back and throwing him into a nearby wall as Snow White was able to recover her rifle.

Snow White: "You don't mock us like that and get away with it!"

Scarlet: "It's time for payback!"

Scarlet attempts to strike the Prince as he recovers, the black flame still burning... She aims for his heart but he dodges. His feet managing to trip her, opening up her back to his blade, as she falls to the floor on her face.

Noro's flaming blade of darkness goes through her body and into the floor, he swipes it to the right, cutting the right half of her metallic torso open with torrents of blood now bursting out into droplets, circling the black flames of Noro's body and sword.

Snow White: "Scarlet! Noooo!!"

Snow White's screams echo throughout the tower, as Noro walks towards her and asks:

Noro: "Any last words, Snow White?"

He approaches her with his blade still ablaze, as he smirks in satisfaction at her quivering form, fear in her eyes as she falls on her knees.

Snow White: "Kill me..."

She clutches her rifle and fires a round at his face, only for him to move out the way with ease, the bullet going straight through the damaged wall behind him and continuing outside, with some of the tower glass following it out.

Noro kicks the rifle out of her hands and slices off her feet with a swift slash.

Noro: "Trickery... How predictable. I know better when I see an opponent still armed."

Snow White: "I'm sorry... I just couldn't save my friends... My beloved... My World..."

Noro: "It's My World Now!"

He severs her head and lifts the fallen Goddess's beautiful severed head by the hair, above his head where he opens up his mouth to drink the dripping blood from her neck as it falls across his face and hair.

***Inner City of Eden***

Commander looks out his binoculars towards the Assembly building, from another courtyard. In his view is the Tower of Eden with smoke emitting from it.

Johan: (On radio) "Commander, I haven't heard from the Pioneer squad. Can you get a visual on them?"

Commander sees that the Asuras have climbed the top of the Assembly building and have planted their Chaotic Swastika above it.

On a balcony, a cross is being lowered by ropes and suspended in mid air above the main entrance as the Arashiwehr's Chaos Marines led by Ashikaga seem to have gotten hold of a Nikke.

Nailed on the cross upside down is the naked corpse of Rapunzel with her hair untied and her body bloodied and bitten with her wounds from the battle with Noro still visible.

Rapi: "Commander?... Is there something wrong?"

Commander: "Johan, I have a visual on Rapunzel... They fucking crucified her. I don't think the rest survived."

He puts down his binoculars, a depressed look on his face.

Commander: (Turns to his Nikkes) "We have to go…”

Chapter Text

***Inner City of Eden***

Heavy Ark Bombers are sighted above Eden's skies amidst the heavy combat in the skies.

The Ark and Asura fighters battle in the air as Andersen's bombers make their way above Eden to start dropping bombs upon the city and the Asura soldiers who have landed.

The Asura bombardments are only sparse as infantry support to avoid killing their own troops, all while the Ark bombers must make risky low pass bombings to avoid the Dirlewanger's air defences.

The Arashiwehr carry on through the ruins, shooting at Pilgrim and Ark troops as Artillery batteries fire at their positions. The buildings are former art galleries, now emptied as much as they can be by the forces they fight.

The Chaos Marines are greeted by the sight of some signs from an exhibition. A Wehrman reads aloud to his fellow Marines:

Wehrman: "Commissions open; 25 Credits per piece. NSFW accepted for 18 years old and above only.

The poster is decorated by illustrations of half naked Nikkes with hearts and flowers around them.

Another Wehrman notices the "Credits" in the poster.

Wehrman: "Must be the currency they use."

There are other sculptures in the gallery that remain standing. One that hasn't been evacuated yet is a giant marble statue of Dorothy and some incomplete statues beside her which bear the inscriptions 'Noah', 'Harran' and one other missing inscription on a very incomplete statue presumably that of Isabel. The statues are in various states of completion, all within that order with Dorothy being finished while Isabel hasn't even had her name engraved yet.

Underneath the statues are scattered credit bills ranging from x25, x50, to x100 in their amount. Apparently left by the residents of Eden who grieved their Goddesses as donations or offerings to complete these statues dedicated in their memory.

Wehrman 1: "Look at all these credits! You think they're worth anything?"

Wehrman 2: "Who knows?"

The Asuras start to gather some of the credits to take back with them to their ships.

Suddenly the roar of Jet engines fill the sky above them and explosions in their masses strike the gallery they are in.

The Ark Bombers drop hundreds of bombs above the Inner City to slow the Asura advance, killing potentially hundreds of them.

Commander looks out his binoculars to see the gallery rocked by explosions, but still standing as it's upper floor roof collapses into the interior and parts of the upper walls crumble downwards.

Commander: "On target, Andersen!"

Andersen: (On radio) "Good to hear, Commander."

Anis: "Enemy aircraft spotted!"

A Vimana flies near the bombers and starts to fire missiles and rotary cannons at the bombers as they pass, shooting down 3 of them as more Ark fighters engage it in hopes of destroying it.

The Infinity rail squad fire at the Vimana with a Self Propelled Anti-Rapture gun platform. It hits the Vimana, causing a major explosion as it starts to spiral down, falling into the city below.

Johan: (On radio) "It's going down!"

Rapi and Neon cheer as Emma and Eunhwa watch from a trench below them. The Anti-Rapture guns that were originally developed by the Ark to destroy Rapture Vessels are effective against Asuras crafts too.

Brid: "You did it! Soline! You killed them!"

Soline couldn't believe her eyes as she watches the explosion from the top of a building with her eyes wide open. She couldn't believe they were actually able to be fell in battle by her own hands.

Diesel: (Hugs) "See... We told you we will make it!"

Diesel is joined by Crown and Chime in giving Soline her well deserved hug. She starts to burst into tears as she has never felt so relieved before. She starts to wail uncontrollably as emotions grip her once more.

Crown: "Look the aerials!"

Brid: "They're gonna bring us away!"

Diesel waves to them as more and more approach the battlefield to pick up troops.

Rapi: "You got a ride, Soline!?"

Neon: "Looks like you will be in for a fun trip!"

Emma and Eunhwa wave to them from the bottom of the hill.

Commander ignores them and radios Johan:

Commander: "Keep the fire support up! The bombers will go for another pass!"

***Underground Bunker***

Johan: "Roger that!" (Turns to Militiaman) "Keep the fire up! It doesn't seem all of us are getting out of here, we need to keep the artillery and AA firing until the bitter end to cover the evacuation! Who volunteers to stay behind and die so the rest of humanity can live another day?"

Militiaman 1: (Nods) "I will, Sir!"

Militiaman 2: "So will I."

Militia Leader: "My entire battalion are ready to die, Sir."

Ark Lieutenant: "I've been waiting for this my entire life... (Turns) Men! If you choose to go home, go with Johan! If you choose to stay, keep firing! It's your choice and I'm here with you to the end."

2/3rds of the Ark soldiers im the bunker decide to stay behind. The ones who want to join the evacuation hand over their extra equipment, most of their supplies and heavy weapons to the defenders.

Cecil: (Salutes) "Thank you for your sacrifice."

She tenses up as she is moved by the true unity that grew out of this battle... No matter Nikke or Human, Man or Woman, Ark or Pilgrim, they stood together despite the battle approaching it's bitter end. The thousands that died here will now bridge humanity together and open up a wave of new possibilities in the face of Chaos.

They emerge from the bunkers and dash to the Ark's aerials as another wave of bombers cover their retreat with carpet bombings as Johan looks back as they get closer.

Johan: (Shouts) "Take my hand, Cecil!"

Cecil: "I got you! I got you!"

He grabs onto her hand and pulls her on board, her white coat now dirty from the debris and dirt on it.

Cecil: (Laughs) "I'm so happy!"

The Ark soldiers look to each other and smile as the aerials take off and make their way out of Eden to their Base on Kyushu.

***Above the Seto Inland Sea***

Johan has been looking back at Shikoku throughout the flight in silence as the island's silhouette starts to disappear beyond the evening sky. He looks upon the coastline, the watery plains, the beaches and the mountain range of Shikoku.

He can no longer see it. The light from the setting sun illuminating it has disappeared into the horizon. Johan's heart feels heavy, he is leaving the place he found refuge in for the place that betrayed him, the place he was born, the Ark... 'Why did he make this deal?' He thought to himself... He remembers his betrayal by the treacherous leadership of the Ark. He had hoped that he could help the Ark become a better place... But that was a lie and he had been lied to all this time. He remembers how the Goddess Squad had fallen from grace due to the Central Government's actions long ago... Their legacy now burnt away and mutilated by the Asuras.

He questions to himself after Eden has fallen; What comes next for the Pilgrim refugees.

Johan: "Andersen, Come in."

Andersen: (On radio) "Ark to Eden, loud and clear."

Cecil watches on in her seat nearby. Her communicator had been left tuned in to the same frequency.

Johan: "How will we be treated in the Ark, moving forwards?"

Andersen: (On radio) "After seeing what you have done for Eden, you will be pardoned. You will be treated well to the best of my abilities... And to the best of my abilities and all the power I have now as a Deputy Chief and General. You will be protected and I will make sure of it."

Commander: (On radio) "We risked everything by going rogue in order to unite humanity. We made an oath that we stand together... If the Central Government opposes our actions, whatever happens next, we shall all face them together... No matter what happens."

A single tear falls from Johan's eye as he laments how he has lost everything he has ever had for the second time.

Cecil moves over to him and pats his head, giving him a sympathetic smile and telling him:

Cecil: "You're so tired, Johan... You fought to the best of your abilities. Have some rest now... By doing this, you bought enough time for humanity to start it's reconciliation... Even if we had to give away Eden. It wasn't easy, but you carried out the hardest decision that nobody dared to take. You are and will forever be my greatest hero."

He hugs her, feeling that she has grown to become much closer to him... He decides to lean his head against her shoulder as he starts to drift off to sleep.

The battle ends as they keep flying above the sea as the moon rises above them. Eden has fallen after 17 days.

***Kyushu FOB Elevator***

Commander and his squads escort the Pilgrim refugees within the elevator as it descends into the Ark. After being welcomed by the soldiers at Kyushu, Johan and Cecil are expecting a warm reception by General Andersen in the depths below.

Johan: "I've not been here for a long time..."

Commander: "Before Andersen told me, I haven't even heard of you. Only the ACGI knew you we're alive. To the rest of the population that remembered you as a hero, you we're long dead."

Johan: "I've once been dubbed Humanity's New Hope..."

Cecil: "And here you are, Johan. This reconciliation has been brought upon humanity because of your decisions!"

Rapi: "Way to go!"

The rest of the Ark and Pilgrim Nikkes cheer for Johan as the elevator grinds to a halt as the doors open.

Commander: "I understand what the Central Government did to you, Johan... But here's where we make things right."

They step off the gigantic elevator and walk into a Military district of the Ark. A wide open corridor, filled with all sorts of aircraft and weaponry. The air is cold and filled with the sounds of military chatter and footsteps as faint whirring of generators and ventilation can be heard.

Johan feels nostalgic for his childhood days and his time at the military academy, he could never imagine coming back to a place he deemed as Humanity's prison. The group marches forwards as the personnel under Andersen's command salute them all.

Suddenly a squad of Nikkes approach them and draw their weapons.

Privaty: "Drop your weapons Commander Autarch!"

Yulha: "Hand the Pilgrims over!"

Commander: "We can't do that! I'm ordered to protect all of them!"

Admi: "You're under arrest for mutiny!"

The Counters step forward and point their guns to the front as more Nikkes move in to surround Commander's units.

Rapi and Privaty stare down eachother with visible hatred in their eyes.

Privaty: "Oh Rapi, so you've decided to join the mutiny?"

Anis: "Not one step closer, you government lapdog!"

Sergeant: "Commander, it seems they're one of Burningum's favourite bitches."

Johan: (Points Handgun) "Hang tight Cecil..."

Commander: "Triangle Squad, I am under orders from Deputy Chief, General Andersen to protect them! Now you all better lower your weapons and let us through or you will start a Civil War right now by opening fire!"

A hologram pops up as a ceiling projector comes to life with a video call, high above them. The PA announces:

Shifty: "This is callsign Shifty of the ACGI! All troops, stand down immediately. Ceasefire! Ceasefire! By decree of General Andersen, lower your weapons!"

The Nikkes on both sides obey and lower their weapons and take a few steps back.

***Military District Headquarters***

General Burningum is at his desk, watching the standoff as it happens via live video feed.

Burningum: "What is this insolence?"

He is rudely startled as Andersen barges into the office through his door.

Andersen: "General, we must have a talk!"

Burningum: "Andersen?! What is the meaning of this? You go on a 3 day unauthorized surface expedition, sending thousands to their deaths or to the infirmary and bring back traitors like Johan?"

Andersen: "Listen! The whole planet is facing a new threat more sophisticated than the Raptures. We know the truth behind the Surface Nuclear Incident now! I'm tired of your meddling in the ACGI's affairs as well. We are the ones who must act as Humanity's true protectors... The Ark is the only ones left with the means to keep everyone safe! It is only by standing together that humanity will survive!"

Burningum: "And you were supposed to be hunting Agarthan Terrorists! What is the ACGI doing up there?"

Andersen: "Look... At me. LISTEN to me... The army is hemorrhaging personnel by your constant coverups, so many soldiers now unemployed and even protesting. I got to the root of the problem. Everyone knows what happened up there. I'm closer to catching Medusa, but you keep meddling in my job!"

Burningum: "Your actions could cost us everything, Andersen. You know we're dealing with an upcoming election! It's not safe to vote out there with some Terrorists setting off bombs and killing police every week. And now the Central Government gets accused of hiding the existence of Humanity on the surface, a thing that is correct! But..."

Andersen: (Drops file) "Eden has been conquered by them... The Asuras. We are already at war with another species that seek to conquer us. They had already declared war on us before we became fully aware of their existence."

Burningum looks through the files to see various pictures and sketches of Asura equipment and troops as well as a large amount of reports detailing all the information he had gathered by the Pilgrims and combat reports.

Burningum: "So that's why Rapture husks have been so badly mangled and smoked out as of late... And the unexplained meteor showers of Rapture debris too."

Andersen: "It is true that they had used nuclear weapons and are now poised to strike at us. The Asuras are a highly unpredictable foe... We don't know the true extent of their capabilities and they have been known to keep their more powerful, unknown weaponry hidden, only to be used at the most unexpected times, catching us off guard without any clue how to react to, let alone counter them."

Burningum: "That's what the Central Government fears the most..."

He looks at the sketches of the Asuras from the file and takes notice of the creature known as the Dark Prince.

Burningum: (Closes Files) "I suppose we will work on a settlement to end your little rebellion and let bygones be bygones. We can't have a Civil War now, not at all... We must meet with Civilian leaders of the Central Government about this."

Andersen: (Nods) "Good..."

***

Hooni watches on at the TV in his apartment which has become less habitable by the day, as he has less time to clean up as he had been scrapping by for a living for quite some time.

Hooni: "I can't believe that I got fired from my job! I can't have possibly had them on time with all that madness happening out there!"

His apartment has started to become dirty and cluttered as he tries to fix his job situation. He's sitting in front of the TV which he turned on to watch the news to think about something else that isn't his depressing job situation.

Presenter: "Negotiations have begun, to end the ongoing Military Standoff between factions of the Armed Forces as the largest Military Mutiny in decades enters it's 5th day."

Hooni: "No way... The Mutiny?"

Presenter: "Commander Ciel de Autarch has issued a press statement from the Occupied Military District affirming that 'the public's grievances have the support of the Mutineers and that the Central Government must accept [their] social reforms in order for Civil War to be averted and for peace to return.' as they allege groundbreaking claims echoed by conspiracy theorists that the existence of Humanity on the surface, referred to as the Pilgrim movement had been covered up by the Central Government to avoid having to fight the emergence of an even larger threat than the Raptures they refer to as 'Chaos'. Most alarmingly of all, footage has surfaced alleging that former War Hero turned traitor; Commander Johan who had been executed in 2106 is not only alive and well, but went on to lead the Pilgrims as the Mutineers fought side by side with them on a deployment on the surface."

Hooni: (Stunned) "No way..."

A video is shown of Johan and Commander standing side by side and waving at the crowds of Anti-Government protesters from a barricaded Military Checkpoint that leads into the district as they are cheered on.

Hooni: (Whispers) "It's true... It's all true."

The screen displays the logo of the Agarthanorden, an Odal Rune penetrated by a sword pointing downwards to the ground.

Presenter: "The Terrorists of the Agarthanorden have broken their silence about the situation as they admitted responsibility for the bombings that struck Liberio Rehabilitation Centre which orchestrated last night's prison break. Ecclesiarch Hadrian, leader of the Terrorist group has confirmed that they acted alone without involvement from the Mutineers. Hadrian has however praised the Army Mutiny for bringing to light the 'evils' of the Central Government which he claims to have been using the war as a business for the Sovereigns to profit off the exploitation and misery of Ark citizens. The situation has only been made worse as the Surface Nuclear Incident, known as the 'Nuclear Revelation' has been acknowledged by Secretary of the Central Government, Paul Pot to be true."

Hooni: "Liberio is rather close to my apartment block. Imma just stay in here for the next few days."

Hooni snuggles up as he gets lost in the news. His eyes glued at the screen.

Chapter Text

***Occupied Zone, Ark Military District***

In as the standoff continues, preparation for the absolute worst has begun. The Pilgrims are helping the Mutineers to remove the limiters within the brains of the Nikkes in preparation of any possible breakdown in ending the mutiny peacefully.

Rapi lays down on a bed where a wire extending from a maintainence machine is about to be connected to her arm in order to put her to sleep for a procedure to be carried out by the Technician.

Rapi: "So... You're going to remove my limiter? What even is that?"

Technician: "Yes... I'm afraid that Commander is preparing you all for the possibility of having to engage humans in combat."

Rapi: "What? Why?"

Technician: "I'm sorry, Rapi, but it will make more sense once it's done. I will now begin, so rest your head, you're tired. Go to sleep."

He connects the wire to Rapi's arm and she feels her vision become blurry as she slowly falls asleep.

He goes on to download a copy of Rapi's memories onto the computer servers. The Nikke's memories and personality are extracted from the information in her brain via the machine.

The Technician waits a few minutes for the data to be processed into a file format. He opens another tab of code on his dashboard on the holographic computer display. Techie notices an anomaly of which 2 backup files are made instead of 1. The file to the right reads 'Rapi.zip' and the left; 'red-hood.zip'. Techie thinks not much of it and decides to focus on the now. He opens Rapi's memory file, then places the data into the code to override her software permissions to manually disable the limiter and triggers the update to be executed to the Nikke's NIMPH Network.

A few seconds pass, and Rapi suddenly wakes up, as if nothing happened at all.

Rapi: "What just happened?"

Technician: "Congratulations, Rapi! You've gained a new ability. Permission to shoot and kill humans at will."

Rapi still can't believe the words that Techie just uttered.

Rapi: "What did you just do to me?... Kill humans?... Why is Commander doing this? I thought he was negotiating for peace."

Techie: "Commander ordered that all Nikkes we have be able to fire on Burningum's forces if they double cross us. I'm sorry Rapi, but Commander knows best, he is our superior and I shall obey him. If Civil War breaks out you will be totally useless when Human troops are sent in, because you are all wired not to lay a hand intentionally on any human life, good or bad through the limiters which act as a lock to dictate your actions. The Triangle Squad are no different to you now as they are specially built without limiters."

Rapi: "What?... It's impossible. We all came together in order to end the schism between humanity, and now Commander is pondering on killing his fellow man?"

Techie: "Humans have been killing eachother for aeons throughout history. Even in the Ark, it's just that they take place away from you all. Oh you naive Nikke, It will make sense soon enough."

***Central Government Headquarters***

Within a major secure section of a governmental complex, the Ark's leadership convenes a conference to end the military mutiny. It is within this complex that the loyalist military forces have shifted their base of operations as Burningum evacuated the Ark Military District as Andersen's mutiny occupied it. General Doban had just arrived from the Ark's Outer Rim.

The Big Three are present too.

Ingrid, Mustang and Syuen.

The heads of Elyson, Tetra and Missilis Industry, respectively.

And there is the Secretary of the Central Government, Paul Pot in attendance.

Secretary: "It has been quite a show you've put on here."

Burningum: "It's an act of mutiny, Mr. Secretary."

Secretary: (Nods) "Ahem... The situation is dire now with the presence of the Asuras, and even more dire with the ACGI's recent statements on the Nuclear Revelation and that Johan is alive and well. Apparently the Agarthanorden's legitimacy has risen as of late too, due to the inability to silence the leaks and find the people behind the alleged Agarthan leaker; Medusa."

Andersen: "Sir! If we continue to hide it, they will do to us what they did to Eden..."

Burningum: "I understand your position, Andersen. But the ACGI must stay in check, and your actions may have compromised it."

Andersen: "My position?! I've done what is best for Ark's safety! It was for everyone's benefit!"

Andersen smacks his fist on the table in frustration, and shouts out.

Andersen: "The Central Government should have dealt with the situation when we became aware, but instead it continued to ignore the signs of the Asura invasion!"

Mustang: "Sir, General, what about the people? They have been voicing out their anger at Tetra's media subsidiaries, looted our supermarkets for food in riots and cheered on as Agarthans bombed a film studio and murdered around 5 of our journalists within the span of 2 weeks!"

Andersen: "The public had been growing discontent with the Central Government for a long time, due to the excessive amount of poverty and coverups."

Syuen: "Our production was suffering from the lack of labour. We needed the Nikke production for the war effort, but not in that state. A lot of them are unemployed now due to the coverup operation. Missilis has been hit a little hard by it."

Ingrid: "Elysion has been worried by the Asuras, considering the fact that quite an amount of our Nikkes returned with horrible cases of PTSD after their deployment. Even though the Pilgrim troops that served in Eden's Army, suffered greatly more due to them being longer under siege before Andersen intervened."

Secretary: "Then let's just talk this out. It will all be sorted out... Now General Doban, has anything changed for you?"

Doban: (Nods) "It seems that we are getting reports from the Outer Rim, saying that some of our patrols have started to engage more often, the Heavenly Ascension terrorist group and other criminal enterprises."

He projects a few pictures of the graffiti of the Heavenly Ascension group alongside slogans pushing for Nikke civil rights. Although formally a progressive movement accepting a wide range of left leaning reformist views, their dominant factions identify as Communists.

Andersen: "Communists and criminals cooperating?"

Burningum: "I see that even those hypocritical Ascender Communists are on the cusp of revival."

Secretary: "So, as you can see the situation is very much dire. We must act fast to resolve the issue before things get worse. If there will be a Civil War in the Ark while there is already a war against the Asuras, there will be no one to stand between us and them, and humanity will be doomed... I have decided that the Central Government shall now grant concessions to the mutineers."

***Occupied Zone, Ark Military District***

3 hours later... Rapi and Anis overlook the situation on the streets from a watchtower. The protesting crowd still forming barriers and makeshift fortifications to block Burningum's troops from entering the district, now held by the troops of the 'Andersen Mutiny'.

Commander has barricaded himself within a room in the headquarters building with Mika.

Mika: "Commander, it's gonna be okay."

Commander: "No it won't... It's never gonna be okay!... We've lost, Mika. It's over... It's all over."

She comforts the commander and strokes his head while looking at him with a worried look on her face.

Mika: "Don't say that... Don't give up now! There's so much hope!... Even if there are hardships, it's all worth it. You did try to change things didn't you?"

She looks at the window, her eyes set on the mass of protestors outside, forming a circle around the barricades they've put up to block the government troops from entering the district.

Commander: "I don't feel in control anymore... One wrong move and we may get shot at, forcing us to fire back. One decision from the higher ups and Andersen could be arrested while making peace... What if the Government decides to start a Civil War anyway at the behest of the Big Three?"

Mika: "There has to be a way for the rest of us to escape this situation."

Commander: "It's hopeless... We will be trapped within these walls... Maybe, just maybe our intentions are all that mattered."

Mika: "What do you mean?"

Commander: "I vowed to make the world a better place for us, Mika. One where we can be happy together... Also because I care for others. Those people out there sticking out for us. Giving our soldiers free food when we have just stopped receiving supplies since we returned."

Mika: "And the Nikkes we have?"

Commander: "It's true that I fight for us all, sweetie. I want a future for us... I want you to rediscover your humanity so we may be together."

Mika: "And if it's all in vain, I want to spend my last moments with you, Ciel."

Commander's eyes widen and his heart skips a beat as he hears his first name being called by Mika.

Mika: (Leans on his chest) "I have to acknowledge you for who you really are. Ciel, you are not just a superior or a rank to me, but you are a person who has a sore heart... Betrayed by those who you thought would make you whole. Those who dash your dreams with their lies. Even the sky above us is a lie... I now know the only beautiful sky down here is you, Ciel."

Mika leans forward and kisses him. The two embrace as they melt into each other's arms, while looking out the window together, watching over the protesting crowd.

Commander carries her in her arms and seats Mika upon a wooden desk, her legs curled up around his waist and her lips nearly touching his as he feels his lover's breath on his chin while they look into eachother's eyes while they both blush heavily.

Commander: "Shall we do this alone just once?"

His down and dirty proposal is interrupted by his communicator coming to life.

Andersen: (On radio) "Autarch! Our demands have been met. The mutiny is over! We won!"

Commander: (Smiles) "It's over..."

Commander and Mika smile at eachother in their warm embrace as both look out the window together to see the Triangle Squad and other government soldiers begin to withdraw and return to their bases as the crowd celebrates with cheers and songs echoing throughout the streets.

Mika: "See... There is hope. You just need some more faith in yourself."

Chapter Text

***

[This scene takes place after Fall of Eden in parallel with Andersen's Mutiny within the timeframe of Chapters 24-25]

***Eden, Shikoku***

Within the ruined inner city, the footsteps of the Asuras, marching in formation at a town square are heard by civilians standing on rubble and the buildings that still stand.

The inhabitants silently look on with fear and awe, the ranks of the Asura Legionaries, fresh out of battle. The soldiers with their black uniform armour with red striped highlights on their collars and sleeves. Their rifles on their shoulders and bayonets pointed at the sky, the rattle of swords and equipment audible as the footsteps of the Infantry and Chaos Marines thump the ground in unison.

The Citizens of the Fallen City had believed that their end will be to be served on a platter by the Asuras. A fate worse than death... Now, they witness a different outcome.

Some Asuras have already entered the town to explore the area, searching for anything of value.

Offers to surrender have been received and accepted by a generous amount of the pockets of Pilgrim and Ark troops. Those that didn't had been largely eliminated by the coming of dawn.

To the surprise of the civilians, the Onryos of whom they were bewildered by, struggling to comprehend how they even exist were actually helping survivors out of the rubble and tending to their wounds as they are guided to makeshift shelters built by the Chaotic Regime , now flying their Swastika banners all over the city, replacing those of the Pilgrims which were taken down by the Chaotic troops.

In the shadows, some civilians watch from a distance as an Onryo squad with ancient Arisaka rifles approaches a wounded soldier with his wounds bandaged up and a fresh scar on his arm.

Ark soldier: "What even are you all? Why save me? "

Onryo: "You are a Human... We are all Human... All soldiers. You have been misguided by the powers that be. I know of your struggles. The war against us is misguided... You have fought the wrong enemy."

Ark soldier: "You all look like Nazis!"

Onryo: "Yes, but not in a way you think. Our goals are not as you think... If you ask any one of the fleshed Asuras what a 'Nazi' is, he would be confused. But we are from that era, we remember fighting alongside those who you describe as 'Nazis'."

Ark soldier: "But how? The Asuras have no clue about that banner they're carrying?"

Onryo: "We all have a connection to the past. We are connected to this land that we call our own. We have fought for this land for years now... Ever since it's creation... The ideological wars of your ancient myths are things we remember like it was yesterday. There were no Raptures when we were around."

As they walk towards an infirmary , more civilians , wounded or just displaced, gather around them to hear the Onryos stories.

Civilian: "Is it true that there was once a Kingdom on these islands ruled by an Emperor?"

Onryo: "We fought for him once. Now we fight for the grave of our homeland... The Prince gave us another chance to start anew. We are not blind to humanity being beyond salvation in it's present form, we a re aware that our enemies in the last wars no longer exist."

Ark soldier: "So why are you still fighting?"

Onryo: " Because the way of the warrior is necessary to bring about the New Order we fought for in our day. In order to rid the Tyranny of the Old, Chaos was needed because Order can only be brought out of Chaos... And today, the Raptures are the evil Tyrants controlling our land, and the Asura Legion is that Chaos that will bring an end to their Rule, so a New Age can begin for humanity to be reborn as Asuras."

The Humans are all hit with a surreal feeling of comfort and the feeling of fear and intimidation starts to wither away as they open up to the views of their ancient relics... Ancestors now trying to reassure them from the grave.

Civilian : "Do you truly believe you are bringing an end to their Tyranny or just replacing it with your own?"

Onryo: "There is no space for weakness as that is the reason why Humanity perished in the first place. There is no reasoning with the Raptures, those alien species must be wiped off our planet. We must be harsh as no weakling will get anywhere in the world with your set of values. The more things change for us, the more they stay the same in a way."

Ark soldier: "Where is this Emperor now then? If he is as powerful as you say he is?"

Onryo: " Gone but not forgotten. His spirit still lingers somewhere... We have a feeling of it."

***

Within an alley between 2 buildings filled with bullet holes, a Delegate of the Pilgrim Assembly who managed to escape the building during the fighting , emerges from a dumpster where she hid herself for the past day.

She is a Nikke with brown hair, a black latex suit. Her hair is in a bun and she is wearing glasses as well . She is rather dirty as she had lived in filth for what felt like forever as she finally sets foot on the ground in the alley.

The Delegate walks onto a street corner and sees a bunch of Eden Militiamen who are guarding a supply cache full of rations.

Delegate: "What's going on here? Why are you just standing around while those freaks roam the city?"

Auxiliary: "We don't wanna fight anymore. It's pointless. We've lost."

Delegate: "What's all that food for?"

Auxiliary: "For eating, that's what."

Delegate: "You're just gonna stand there and let the Asuras impose their tyranny above you?"

Auxiliary: "At least we're being fed and it's way better than fighting them. Get lost!"

Delegate: (Glares) "Get off my sight you collaborator pigs! Go and get eaten by them!"

Delegate leaves with her anger still fresh as the Auxiliary just shrugs it off. She picks up a stone as she sees an Asura formation led by Jamsaram come around the corner. She runs toward them and throws the stone at Jamsaram which clinks as it bounces off his chainmail armour as he barely flinches.

Delegate: "Take that you Nazi pig! Go to hell together with Johan and his Junta you devils!"

Jamsaram turns around at her and the other Asura soldiers surprisingly haven't pointed their SMGs at her direction as they look on at the Pilgrim's tantrum.

Delegate: "Didn't you hear me?! You son of a bitch! What is the matter with you?"

He turns to his troops and tells them while she continues her outburst in the background:

Jamsaram: "You know I'm tired of all these talks about Nazis and how we are supposedly similar to whatever they are."

Asura Stormtrooper 1 : "The Onryos seem to know a lot about National Socialism."

Jamsaram: "Hm?"

Asura Stormtrooper 2: "Yeah Nazism is short for it!"

Jamsaram: "I'm just going to tear this whore apart and be done with it."

He activates his forked armblades and slices her left arm off. The Delegate screams in pain, her face now dripping with tears as the stump where her arm once was spurts out blood which she shuts off circulation to in order to minimize the loss of blood and stay alive. The Militiamen, now Auxiliaries in service of the Asuras look on and try their best to ignore the scene unfolding.

Delegate: "You monsters! You repulsive mon-"

Jamsaram's right armblade plunges into her stomach, rupturing her energy generation systems which process nutrients into energy, mimicking the human body. Her organs start to fail as she feels her insides being torn as Jamsaram pulls out all 3 ends of his armblade in a swift motion, now tangled with mangled tubing and wiring which is now soaked in blood and hanging off torn flesh from her stomach.

Laughing is heard as a Stormtrooper slices her other arm off with his Katana as Jamsaram signals him to do so as she is still concious.

Jamsaram: "What's the matter, lady? Need a hand?"

The Asuras laugh harder at the injured and helpless mutilated Delegate as she is slowly succumbing to her wounds.

Asura Stormtrooper 3: "You're coming with us. Now who wants big juicy thighs for dinner?"

The Stormtroopers cheer in delight as their metal faceplates complementing their helmets obscure their expressions. All that can be seen is their jaw movements under their intimidating red eyes as they happily laugh sadistically.

The Stormtrooper takes out and spins a lasso which is made out of leftover rope used to tear down some monuments of Eden. The lasso is thrown around the Delegate's neck as she is pulled towards the ranks of the laughing soldiers when it tightens around her neck and chokes the life out of her. The Delegate loses consciousness a few seconds later, her neck presumably broken from the whiplash as she is dragged along the ground to whatever fate awaits her as the Stormtroopers and Jamsaram walk out of sight, dragging her body out of view of the Auxiliaries on guard.

Auxiliary 1: "I told her it was pointless to fight! "

Auxiliary 2: "Some fools never learn..."

Auxiliary 1: "You know at least those vampires were nice enough not to force their diet on us. Seeing their brutality, it's no question why we haven't seen a looter since we started our duties."

Auxiliary 2 : "Let it stay that way."

***

Prince Noro and Sol are within the tower of Eden. Sol looks around at the Pilgrims' former Command Centre as Noro finds a chair to sit on, formerly occupied by Johan. Ashikaga walks behind them.

Noro: "Well Sol, our next step is the Ark. It does seem rather hard to assault judging by what I have heard."

Sol: "Milord, I hope not to disappoint but unless you have the capability to go hundreds of kilometers into down into the surface, it's an impossible task."

Noro: "My faithful subject, how do you suggest we proceed?"

Sol: "To understand, you must first know some important context."

Noro: "I'm all ears."

Ashikaga: "You have my attention."

Sol: "The Dark Gods that you worship were formerly mortals on this world. They emerged from the Chaos of the First Great War and fell by the end of the Second. Only Showa remained and his Empire crumbled until it ceased to exist at the end of the Third Great War, where Humanity unified under a One World Government. The land you call home is built on the grave of the Empire of Japan."

Some Onryos walk into the room and make their presence known.

Onryo: "My Lord, I'm sorry for interruptions but it seems we came in to a relevant discussion... Oh and Asmodeus sent us."

Noro: "Let Sol continue and you may have your say."

Sol: "As I was saying, Hitler was an Avatar of the vanished Gods of Old, he led an Empire in parallel with Showa's as they fought the forces in an ideological war which they lost. Himmler was a mystic and himself head of a New Warrior Aristocracy that guarded Hitler, the Master of Europe. He sent his warriors forth across the world in search of lost ancient artefacts . One of the most prominent being; The Holy Grail.

The Grail is said by ancient humanity to be an archaic chalice that can grant eternal youth, provide unlimited nourishment and even impart knowledge on whosoever drinks from it.

My full name is Sol Sygnus, descendant of the first expedition s into the Antarctic Caverns in the year 2033. The caverns are now known as 'The Agarthan Gate' and what my forefathers saw within their descent was not all made public. However, they still exist as myths within the Ark itself."

Ashikaga: "I feel something in here with us."

Noro turns around to see a cloaked figure, it is an unexpected sight as he has no clue how they got behind them.

Sol: "Milord, that man... He comes in peace."

Serrano: "So, we meet once more my boy..."

Sol: "I'm happy at least others can see you too, Serrano."

Serrano: "There is something very important I want you all to see... Especially you, Prince Noro of The Void."

Noro: "How do you know me?"

Serrano: "I've been following your rise to power, Oh Morning Star! And I know your purpose here. You just need to open your eyes to what's to come."

The Tower's dome suddenly turns into an immersive illusion as it engulfs all within the scene about to play out as observers.

***Flashback, Antarctica 2033***

Deep within a massive cavern underneath the surface of the frozen polar continent, a bunch of scientists have found something rather anomalous... A submarine, long abandoned from the era of the 2nd Great War nearly a century before their discovery.

On the submarine's sail, the tower structure on the upper part of it's body is written the numbers '209' relatively well preserved in the frozen ground as it stands out in contrast to the other unweathered areas of the vessel's hull.

The scientists examine the writing as the craft itself is fully encased in a thick layer of ice that has hardened and consolidated around the submarine itself.

From Inside they find only ammunition for it's aircraft guns, torpedoes, some documents left behind and no remains of the crew.

One of the scientists have found a very bizzare handwritten letter within those documents. It is written in an old language that had since fallen largely out of use by the 22nd Century, called 'German.' He reads it to his crew aloud as he can understand it fluently.

Dr. Sygnus: "Dear old comrade,

This news will come as a surprise to you. The submarine U-209 made it, the earth is HOLLOW! Dr. Haushofer and Hess were right. The whole team is fine but cannot return. We are not prisoners. I am sure that this message will reach you, it will be the last connection with U-209. We will meet again, comrade. I am concerned for those who have lived their lives on the surface of the earth since the Führer left.

God always bless our Germany.

With kind regards,

-Karl Unger''

Scientist 2: " What is it supposed to mean?"

Dr. Sygnus: "I don't know... But it seems that we are not the first ones here."

He takes out another piece of paper displaying a diagram of some kind of strange device shaped like a bell and adorned with a Swastika in the middle of it.

Dr. Sygnus: " The Bell?"

He traces his finger around the design of the bell while staring at the drawing with his glasses, his eyes wide open.

Dr. Sygnus: "Th is has the Reich written all over it."

Scientist 2: "Doctor look!"

The rest of the expedition spots a cloaked figure in the distance near an ice wall.

Explorer: (Waves) "Hello over there!"

They receive no reply.

Dr. Sygnus: "That could be one of the crew!"

Sygnus is absolutely baffled and in awe at the same time. He couldn't believe that humans could have survived down here for a month, let alone 88 years.

The figure walks away slowly towards the ice wall as the explorers give chase as they try to approach the mysterious person. They yell at him, trying to talk to him and show him that they mean him no harm. He approaches the ice wall and turns to face them as he is cornered.

Explorer: "We mean you no harm !"

The figure reaches for his cloak, revealing himself to be Serrano with his white hair and elderly appearance. He stares back at the expedition with his gray eyes.

Serrano: "Come on in, it is time for you all to meet our Führer once again. Welcome to Agartha."

A psychic shockwave shakes the cavern as ice cracks around the ground where Serrano is standing on. The explorers are all knocked off their feet as they suddenly find themselves paralyzed and unable to move on the ground, some freeze in place as they try to get up. The psychic field cracks the ice wall as energy lights up the opening ice as it pulsates around the cavern. The energy forms fissures in the ice wall and Serrano disappears into a bright fireball which pulses fo r a few seconds a s the cavern rumbles and shakes as if an earthquake is occurring. And then, the fireball explodes with psychic energy and the expedition finds themselves enveloped by an icy cloud.

As the cloud disperses, the 3 explorers that ventured after Serrano have been killed by the psychic blast which collapsed the ice wall and buried them under layers of solid ice as the rest of the expedition are absolutely horrified by what they had witnessed.

Dr. Sygnus: "My God... There's more."

He points forwards toward the collapsed ice wall to reveal that another larger section of the already huge cavern has opened up. The larger chamber visibly holding a field of submarines frozen in the ice just like U-209.

Scientist 2: " So much more..."

Dr. Sygnus: "There's an entrance to some thing on the left side of the field."

A larger cave on the left side of the chamber is visible with a strange light source emitting from it.  Dr. Sygnus decides to gather volunteers to press on into the cave, leaving behind those who do not dare to venture furt her into the caverns at U-209.

They venture past the other submarines, and into the cave which reveals another chamber leading to a large temple structure, resembling that of the ancient Borobudur temple among various ancient step pyramid shaped temples in Asia. The temple is illuminated by cauldrons bearing white eldritch flames that appear to burn eternally without emitting smoke. As they venture onto the massive structure, they are met with statues of Gods and mythical figures alongside the stone armies of the Axis Powers in the 2nd Great War and their leaders, now turned into Gods themselves.

The expedition ventures into a chamber within the Temple and within it is a map showing the layout of the interior which is apparently a Necropolis adorned with various idols, symbols, and strange runic writings. Along the walls are countless lines of Sarcophaguses reminiscent of the Ancient Egyptians but with every Sarcophagi in the image of a Schutzstaffel soldier, helmet on, dagger and pistol in their crossed arms and SS runes on their collar tabs with their cuff bands bearing the words:

"Meine Ehre heißt Treue."

Dr. Sygnus makes his way forwards towards the end of the halls of the Necropolis and into a room where he is met by a Sarcophagus facing the team , bearing the image of the deified Hitler.

In between Sygnus and the Führer lies on the floor, a Golden chest with staves on it's sides. It is decorated with the image of the Black Sun in the middle and 3 smaller S wastikas flanking it on the left and right side , totalling 6 with 4 Iron Crosses on each end of the rectangular cuboid shaped chest.

Dr. Sygnus: "Is that the Ark of the Covenant?"

Scientist 2: " Looks like it."

Dr. Sygnus: "Those are Eagles on the Mercy Seat, not Cherubims."

Explorer: "It can't be true... The Nazis actually did find the Ark..."

Dr. Sygnus: "This is truly a discovery that the world has never seen since King Tut's tomb!"

They turn their attention to the Führer's sarcophagus.

Explorer: "How can someone so vile be on the course to live forever? How can he be allowed to ascend to legend? It's as if this entire complex was meant to keep him alive as the Pharaohs did."

At the mention of Hitler's vileness, the Ark's lid suddenly flies open and levitates 2 metres above ground. An object emerges from the Ark, levitating in between the chest and the lid. It is the strange Bell device that Sygnus had seen on the documents earlier. It starts to emit a strange vibrating sound as a psychic field is created which envelop s the ro om . The device's sound becomes more intense as it pulsates and distorts the space around it before a powerful psychic shockwave blinds Sygnus.

Imparted within Dr. Sygnus was knowledge, knowledge of a past that he could not possibly be privy to, the knowledge of an ancient world he knew nothing about... Knowledge of a race that has yet to be known. The knowledge of a future catastrophe and the nature of the Gods.

He gets up and looks around to check on all his teammates one by one. They are all dead but him.

***

The vision draws to a close as the Tower of Eden returns to sight and all, into their present reality. Noro's eyes land on Sol's as he is about to speak...

Sol: "My Lord, Dr. Sygnus was tormented by his discoveries to the end of his days. His "Curse" passed down to descendants... I have known these visions my entire life, and I have lived to see the Truth of them. And the Ark you aim to conquer, derives it's name from the discovery, now covered up and sealed off by their Central Government, but that didn't stop the legend from spreading."

Noro: "It appears that the Grail and the Bell, are one in the same... So above, so below ."

Chapter Text

***Ark Military District***

As the situation cools down after the mutiny ended, Anis checks on some of her fellow Nikkes who have suffered mental trauma during the Siege of Eden.

She walks into a living quarters and greets the Infinity Rail squad.

Anis: "Hewwo!"

Looking back at her is Soline who is still rather shaken up by the absolute scale of death she witnessed.

Diesel: "Hey."

Anis: "So how's everyone?"

Diesel: "I can't believe it's over. We're all lucky to make it out largely unscathed."

Brid: "Not like our allies did..."

Anis: "Are you okay, Soline?"

Soline: (Nods) "Yeah. I just feel tired... Like really, really tired. It's nothing serious. I just need some sleep."

Anis: " Sleep is important, you should sleep w el l ."

She leaves a chocolate bar in t he ha n d o f the exhausted Nikke, clearly fresh out of the worst days of her life.

Brid: "Thank you, Anis."

Anis: "Don't mention it! See you all later!"

Anis is followed out of the room by Rapi who wants to talk to her in private.

Rapi: " Hey Anis. Can we talk confidentially? "

Anis: "What about?"

Rapi: "I have a few questions to ask you, if you don't mind."

Anis: "Not at all. "

Both of them walk outside, onto a corner behind some storage containers.

Rapi: "I've been having some disturbing dreams as of late."

Anis: "I know it must be hard after all that's happened. I know how you feel. I had a few of my own before all this too."

Rapi: "I feel like I'm not alone in my feelings. I've been having intrusive thoughts that don't feel like my own."

Anis: "What do you mean?"

Rapi: "I have been seeing visions of a person I don't even know. I have met him before and I know him but at the same time, I don't. "

Anis: "Do you mean like... You are not the real you?"

Rapi: " Ever since my limiter was disabled, I just kept seeing these dreams. Visions of the Goddess Squad, their Legendary Commander and... Raptures just whispering to me ."

Anis: "Woah, wait... Hold on! What did you say?"

Rapi: "I heard Rapture talk. T he y kept whispering to me about destroying the Ark. I resisted their speech but I... I do remember someone else. This certain Nikke called 'Red Hood.' She was a member of the Goddess Squad and they call her a 'Key Player.' I saw fragments of her memories."

Anis: (Gasps) "Do you remember anything else?"

Rapi: "Not really... I do remember that Red Hood voluntarily left her squad."

Anis: "Why?"

Rapi: "She was corrupted. Do you remember when we rescued Andersen during t he l as t surface reclamation campaign?"

Anis: " Rapi... No... It can't be."

Both of them recall the day when Marian was found dead under Dr. Odenborg's shadow after turning on her squad and killing all except Andersen and Odenborg.

They remembered the bleeding doctor staring back at the m with his left eye missing and a fresh scar. Visible anger and hate in his face, his teeth clenched and blonde hair stained with blood with a pistol in his hand just after executing the corrupted Marian.

Rapi: " I don't wanna end up like Marian. What do I do ?"

Anis: "Calm down. Just calm down. It's gonna be alright, I'll take care of this... For you."

***

Back at the headquarters, Mika walks through a corridor and bumps into Anis who is going to meet with Commander and Techie .

Mika: "Hm, I wonder what's the deal with them."

She ignores them and goes her own way.

Meanwhile Rapi and Anis are explaining the potential corruption to Techie and Commander.

Rapi : "Please, is there something you can do?"

Tech nician : "Well, I'm sorry I didn't disclose it but, there was an anomaly in your memory file s when overriding your limiter. Perhaps I should look into it."

Techie opens up the file labeled ' r ed-hood.zip' and analyzes the information. Commander looks on with Anis by his side.

Technician: "Anis, I do have something to say about Rapi... You were right to bring her in for me to look into. This is bizzare indeed and I wish I looked into it sooner."

Commander: "What is it?"

Technician: " This data doesn't add up with Rapi's personality. This is the m emo ry file of another Nikke."

***

A short while later...

Cecil: "Red hood?"

Johan: "How?..."

Commander: "You know who this is?"

Cecil: "Yeah I do. It's Red Hood , a member of the Goddess Squad. Inherit used to talk about them and reminisce on their days before the Goddess Fall."

Rapi: "Red Hood was always nice to me. She never tried to shoot me down or even treat me like a traitor. She kept trying to keep those voices at bay. "

Cecil: "We can only speculate as to how you m er ged with her ."

Techie: "And what I found is even more concerning."

Commander: "What is it?"

Technician: " ... The data trail... It's..."

Commander: " Spit it out!"

Tech nician : "The trail of this Nikke, leads into the Ark's servers itself!"

Johan: "Oh this is bad ."

***Ark Commercial District***

As the situation unfolds, Dr. Odenborg has been dispatched by Andersen to the military district in order to study the anomaly. He is making his way through some streets.

Muginn flies overhead as he watches over Odenborg as he inconspicuously blends in to his surroundings, trying not to draw attention to himself.

He stops by a ventilation shaft attached to the building on his right side.

Odenborg: "Hm... (Looks up) Perhaps this isn't the most of my worries today."

Muginn ha s perched himself on a flowerbed next to a window on the building and looks down at Odenborg.

Stalking him from nearby is the Heavenly Ascension Group of whom would love a prized scientist dead or captured for their cause. Their leader ; E. H. conducts her follower's actions from a block away.

Ascensionist: (On radio) "ID positive, your call. "

E.H. dons her Nikke-like attire, a black bodysuit with tactical shoulder and leg armour and a cape on her back. She carries with her an electrical prod baton and has black straight hair with dark bags under her eyes. She is no doubt trying to pass herself off as a Nikke to sneak into the Ark's Central Regions from the Outer Rim.

E.H: "Take him alive if you can spare it."

Odenborg has stopped by the vent completely. He knows something isn't right... He hears a motorcycle approaching, the biker is about to gun him down in a driveby shooting, but a shot rings out and his would be killer falls off their seat, crashing the bike on the opposite side of the road as sparks fly and it comes to a halt.

The Doctor ducks for cover behind a mailbox as he signals to his secret operations unit; The Abwehr who are conducting overwatch.

Odenborg: "All eyes, I'm being assaulted! Relay to Agartha!"

A hail of Ascensionist gunfire begins to let loose on Odenborg's street corner from the opposite end as Abwehr units return fire to suppress the Communist terrorists.

An Ascensionist runs out of the corner with a grenade to neutralize Odenborg under suppressive fire but the blonde beast of a scientist quickly pulls out an automatic pistol from his white lab coat and kills him with a burst of automatic fire dropping him dead in the middle of the road before retreating back to cover and throwing a smoke grenade.

The remaining Ascensionists try to flee but the Abwehr units shoot them down, turning the street corner into a slaughterhouse.

The smoke grenade deploys smoke which obscures the street corner from sight as Muginn flies above .

After a little while the street becomes silent as the smoke clears, revealing the dead bodies of the terrorists, with Odenborg nowhere to be seen.

Muginn descends onto the street corner where he lands next to the grenade and picks it up by the body with his feet before flying off once more .

***

Within the ventilation shaft are a network of tunnels across the subterranean landscape of the Ark. Odenborg navigates his way through them as he comes across a console in one of the passages blocked by a door. A peephole slides open and he hears a soothing female voice of none other than Charlie.

Medusa: "We've been waiting, doctor."

The door slides open and she welcomes him inside.

Odenborg: " Thanks, Medusa."

Medusa: " Are you hur t?"

Odenborg: "No, I'm fine... I'm sure the Abwehr took care of the terrorists that had me pinned down."

Medusa: " The Ecclesiarch is here by the way."

Odenborg: "What? "

Behind a wall, a bunch of Agarthanorden militants emerge, escorting their leader, Hadrian.

He is blonde, mature with curly hair resembling a Greco-Roman statue come to life and of average height, shorter than Odenborg's towering figure.

Hadrian: "Dr. Odenborg... You have never failed to impress me."

Odenborg: "Good day, Ecclesiarch Hadrian... It is an honour to work with you."

Hadrian: " I've taken interest in this recent study of Asuras you have been assigned to."

Odenborg: "I don't know what you've heard, but I assure you my work has been very unproductive for now."

Hadrian: "So I've been told... However, I find it hard to believe. There have been reports that you have been busy working on a new study... And I am intrigued by what you might have found."

Odenborg: "The anomaly in the Ark's server systems?"

Hadrian: "Yes, the anomaly you have found."

Odenborg: " I was actually on the way to investigate when I was ambushed by those HA retards. Also how did you know about all th is ?"

Hadrian: " Dur in g the standoff, Andersen and I established an in for m al line of communication . I found it rather convenient. We have similar goals. Both of us seek change in society and he knows we are already at war w it h th e Central Government. He may not share our views but he needed more friends than enemies. "

Odenborg: "I remembered seeing the Dark Prince in a dream after the interactions with that cursed statue."

Hadrian: "That is to be expected. That thing is a living embodiment of Chaos itself. What has it said to you?"

Odenborg: "It foreshadowed the Siege of Eden. The Asuras already controlled some land before they took Eden over... So many eldritch monstrosities and things just impossible to fathom."

Hadrian: " Andersen insists on War wi th th e Asuras... I see there to be a better option. You see, the whispers of Chaos came to me as well. We have nothing that can win against the Raptures ourselves. The Asuras are the key to liberating Agartha so we may ascend from this inner earth to reclaim the surface! Our ancestors predicted this! This was all foreseen..."

Odenborg: "The Gods are out there and they have returned to us."

Hadrian: " Yes, the Asuras are our Gods. The Nikkes are machines built to satisfy the cravings of the flesh whereas the Asuras are Gods in the flesh and blood, sent to en ac t t heir brutal and terrible vengeance on our insolent kind who have abandoned and perverted their worship."

Odenborg: "It appears that the only way we will survive is to embrace Chaos. Anyway, I should be headed off to investigate the a nomaly. "

Hadrian: "Agartha awaits your victory."

***Ark Military District***

Commander: "Terrorists? Odenborg nowhere to be seen?"

He paces around the room after receiving news on the recent terrorist attack by Heavenly Ascension.

Anis: "Do you think they have Dr. Odenborg?"

Technician: "I wouldn't doubt it."

Suddenly, the door opens.

Odenborg: "Sorry for my absence, Commander. I am Dr. Odenborg! Now what seems to be the problem?"

Rapi and Anis look in awe as they remembered him from that fateful day a few years ago. He truly is blinded in his left eye. His demeanor has changed somewhat... He appears more jolly than the others in the room.

Commander: "Doctor Odenborg..."

The Doctor turns his attention to Rapi and Anis.

Odenborg: " What a pleasant surprise, I have seen those two beautiful ladies before! I never got to know their names though. "

Rapi: "This is the first time I've seen you like this, doctor. You're looking well."

Odenborg: " I see the Pilgrims ar e h ere too!"

Cecil: " Doctor..."

Odenborg: "What brings you here?"

Commander: "We need to know if you had any information about an anomaly in the Ark's network servers. A nother Nikke 's memories somehow merged into Rapi through the Ark's Network . "

They Analyze the information and data trail. Some time passes as Johan and Cecil explain to Goddess Squad's context to the One Eyed Doctor.

Technician: "I can't believe it! This is unbelievable!"

Odenborg: " I must warn Andersen."

***Supreme Court Building***

Within the building lies Enikk, the Ark's overarching supervisory AI . Usually presiding over courtroom cases and leadership matters, she is an important part of the Ark's administration as it's Sovereigns often consult her like an Oracle.

The Enikk's room is a large chamber that emits a green hue from the dim lighting and holographic projections of her own being, entirely nonphysical but life-like and mysterious.

The Ark's leadership is once again gathered, this time in her presence. But an unexpected guest has arrived...

Syuen: "Is that?"

Doban: "It can't be..."

Ingrid: "Master Stran?"

Stran: "Why yes it is I... Master of the Synth Knighthood!"

Syuen: "Why is that nutcase here? Who let him in?"

Enikk: "By my request, he was invited here. It is a pleasure to receive you, Master."

Stran: "How have you been?"

Enikk: "I have been fine, Master."

Syuen: "Is this guy for real?"

Doban: " Silence..."

Enikk: "Take your seat, Stran."

An awkward silence falls as the cult leader sympathetic to Raptures takes his seat. While the others regard him with suspicion, The rival generals; Andersen and Burningum glare at eachother, still bitter about their standoff, keeping a lid on their hatred for eachother, hidden behind poker faces.

Enikk: "Let us begin. Andersen... Present your case."

Andersen: "One of my Nikkes memories was found to have contained the file of a Pilgrim Nikke called, Red Hood, which according to Cecil and Johan who knew the remnants of the Goddess Squad, was likely corrupted by Raptures. And yet the data trail led to the Ark's servers which also contained a unique trace of Rapture code unlike any we have seen. That thing talking to my Nikke, Rapi called itself... ' Chatterbox. ' Verified as positively Rapture in origin by my longtime colleague, Dr. Odenborg of Research Group 935."

The rest of the gathering are unsettled by what has been described. All except Stran are aware of who Odenborg is... The hero who saved Andersen from corrupted Nikke, Marian... The Heretic who took the Doctor's eye. Due to the nature of his work, he can't flaunt his triumph or be spun as a war hero. Albeit Dr. Odenborg had always been fine with his low profile.

Doban: "If anyone knows the danger of Heretics better than anyone , it's Andersen and Odenborg."

Enikk: " Burningum?"

Burningum: "I would not dismiss the possibility that Rapi uploaded the virus to the systems herself."

Enikk: "I'm afraid this doesn't add up with the logs, General."

Burningum: "What?"

Andersen: "Then how did this happen?"

Doban: "Who is this Chatterbox speaking to Nikkes?"

Enikk: "It is time for a moment of truth... I shall answer all these questions in order."

The gathering falls silent once more...

Enikk: "The Raptures knew about the Ark's location for a long time... This sense of security that you have about being undiscovered was a lie... 'Chatterbox' is a Rapture that evolved to communicate in our language, directly to us. He and I made a deal in 2077 that the Raptures will spare humanity in exchange for Nikkes to be offered to the Raptures. As such, I deliberately implanted corruption codes he provided to me into Nikkes because if we are to bear their full brunt, there will be an absolute zero percent chance of mankind surviving..."

Andersen tenses up, he makes an effort to conceal his anger at the revelation of Marian's corruption, his dead comrades and Odenborg's lost eye was all Enikk's doing all along.

Stran: "So Enikk, does this mean that the Raptures have their own goals we have yet to discover?"

Enikk: "Yes and no, Stran. I have never been able to decrypt the full depth of what their motives are. But I suspect they are trying to achieve a form of sentience."

Stran: "And that's why they need Nikkes! See I was right! Humanity must j oin up in their synthesis with machine to finally... Finally!! Achieve the perfect ascended being!"

To the absolute shock of the gathering, Stran gets up and clasps his hands together as he loudly declares:

Stran: "Humankind's path to Salvation has always been through the Raptures! We can finally escape the confines of our subterranean prison and reach towards the stars! There will be no more petty squabbling because we will all be One... Synthesized with Machine against the Asura menace!"

Everyone in the gathering is just as disturbed as they are intrigued by this. The only ones that didn't even bat an eye were Stran and Burni ngum, on the contrary, the fat old general was in awe, as if he was moved.

Andersen stands up from the circle of chairs around Enikk and attempts to charge Stran out of anger, passing right through Enikk's holographic body, but he is stopped by Burningum who blocks his path.

Andersen: "Enough!!!"

Burningum: (Struggling) "Do you want to start this again, Andersen?"

He lands a punch straight on Burningum's nose, sending him to the ground as the others rush to separate the feuding generals. Guards are called in and the Secretary backs off from the scene.

Andersen: (Struggling) "You fat piece of shit! How can you hold me back from killing this traitor!!!?"

He yells at the top of his lungs as his voice echoes throughout the chamber. Burningum gets up and wipes his bloody nose as Stran smirks at Andersen as he is pulled out of the room.

Andersen: "This entire system is fucked!!!"

The door closes behind him.

Enikk: "I will judge if he is still fit to be a Deputy Chief, but I need the Secretary's decision first."

Secretary: (Steps forward) "What do you ask of me, Enikk?"

Enikk: "With the uncalled emergence of the Asuras, you have a choice to either maintain the status quo, or go with Stran's approach. Which will it be, Secretary Pot?"

Tension fills the air as Paul Pot tries to decide on proceeding with the upcoming elections and maintaining the system, falling apart by the moment, pardoning Andersen or condemning him to death so that mankind can be synthesized with Raptures... The illusion now broken, the peace now hanging on for dear life... A choice to play along with the machines or betray humanity has come to him...

He decides that....

Secretary: "I need more time to think this through. We will convene again tomorrow. All dismissed..."

The gathering dissipates and all leave the green room for the next day.

Chapter Text

***Ark Secretariat Residence***

Within a luxurious compound of tall buildings and tight security is the Secretariat Residency. The home of the Secretary of the United Forces of Humanity. Leader of the Central Government.

With Andersen's assault against Burningum, he had landed himself in a jail cell as he awaits his trial. Enikk is ready to proceed with the judicial process but cannot begin without the approval of the Secretary. This trial is special and must involve the decisions of the human leadership... No doubt a law that was created to keep humans in power over the AI that they grew so reliant on in governmental matters.

The Secretary is late, the rest of the council already convened with Andersen's absence. But however... The Secretary is silent in his bedroom. From outside his door, a reminder is to be delivered to him that he's running late. Ade, a maid Nikke is dispatched for Mr. Secretary.

Ade: (Knocks) "Mr. Secretary! You're running late for your council meeting!"

There is no answer...

Ade: (Knocks) "Mr. Secretary?"

It's not unusual for the Sovereigns to run late to meetings or work but this is unprecedented, given the gravity of the current situation.

Ade: "It's too long, this can't be good..."

She grabs her cleaning key card to access his room and types a code on the numpad on the door; a distress code. The door unlocks automatically after 15 seconds as the hologram on the numpad projects a green light. Ade enters the room and reports her status to the Residence staff.

Ade: "Emergency code used, checking on his current status."

Cocoa: (On radio) "Loud and clear, I hope he's alright."

Ade looks around and finds a note on the floor held down by one of his shoes. It has an arrow pointing towards a desk in front of it. It reads; "let's have a talk on my desk." All in small letters.

Ade makes her way to the desk and finds a note. It is addressed to Cocoa, Maid Leader of his staff... It reads:

"Oh my precious cherry lollipop, Cocoa. Your red lipstick like a can of cola, marks me under the Dome of Eternity we sleep under. Together we enjoyed our secrets together... Secrets you worked hard to clean up, like the maid you are. Your small and youthful stature always resonated in my narrow eyes, your childish face still pure and unblemished... I would not allow glasses that can be stained to view your pure Goddess form tainted... Naked as my naked eye. But alas, we can't see eachother no more, for you will find me in the closet you clean every day. I will miss your delicate pink hair on my chest and my dirty and demented hands on yours... Flat as I lie in death. I can't rule... I can't govern... I don't know what to do! With all this power, yet I can't feel in control... Not even of my deepest and darkest lust for your young body, My little Nikke, Cocoa... I can't do this anymore, but this is what you can do for me... Send my regards to my brother, Harry Pot. He doesn't like me, but do it anyways.

Adieu mon amour ♡

- Paul Pot”

The maid looks up, shocked and appalled at what she had read...

Ade: "I can't believe it!"

She calls for backup immediately as the news of the Secretary's suicide spreads around the Residence. Ade turns to her left and walks by the bed, towards the closet. And there it is, Secretary Pot's body hanging from a hanger rail. To his right is a small sized lingerie fit for a loli, amid his formal suits and ties. On his dresser nearby are pill bottles, still opened.

Cocoa rushes in with more guards and is handed the note by Ade. She is the most shaken of the group as they take in the scene.

Cocoa: "Mr. Secretary..."

Ade: "It appears he had a dark secret too..."

Cocoa awkwardly stares at Ade and ignores the question.

Cocoa: "He appears to have numbed himself with those pills to make the hanging less painful."

The guards lift up his body as they head outside the room.

Ade: "So that's why you were so special to him. He groomed you to be his toy."

Cocoa: "But! I'm a Nikke!! I'm ageless, even if I look like a child doesn't mean I am one!"

Ade: "Please stop this at once! This is utmost deplorable. I can't believe I served a leader like this.”

***Supreme Court Building***

The council has been waiting for the Secretary for hours now. They talk about things amongst eachother to pass the time. As they were about to lose track of it suddenly Enikk delivers some news...

Enikk: "The Secretary is dead..."

The room is suddenly filled with silence...

Stran: "This is the worst timing! We were close!"

Burningum's face turns pale as he had been pushing for the Secretary to execute Andersen for the better part of last night. Not all his messages were read or responded to and now he knows why. The choice that can finally get rid of his hated rival now hangs in limbo.

Ingrid: "No... How?"

Enikk: "He took his own life... Pressured over a long period of time, according to the investigation notes."

Doban: "So the Secretary is now dead... What will become of Andersen?"

Burningum: "The Secretary was supposed to decide if he would be pardoned or not... Now we have no one left to make this decision."

Enikk: "We currently face a dire situation... But as supreme judge of the Ark, seeing treaties honored in order to preserve humanity to it's full awakening, I have decided that Andersen be given a pardon."

Burningum's eyes widen to disbelief. Stran also looks down to his feet away from eye contact with everyone else. Ingrid glares in frustration as Syuen and Mustang smile. Doban is indifferent.

Burningum: "How can you say that, Enikk?"

Enikk: "Forgive me, General. You can't deny the need to maintain order within the Ark. I have decided that he is our best shot at learning about the Asuras. For now, we shall focus on stability and compromise."

***Ark Military District***

Later that day... Andersen returns to his desk, awkwardly after being saluted by 2 guards outside his door. His phone rings and he picks up.

Odenborg: (On call) "My friend... I see you weren't killed."

Andersen: (Gets up from his chair) "You been up to some research?"

Odenborg: "As usual... I've got something rather special. Exactly what you've been waiting for! But shhh... Don't tell the Pilgrims!"

The Mad Scientist puts his phone to the ear of a busty red haired Nikke, wearing a black bra, red scarf above it and black leggings. Her shapely figure is exposed as her leather jacket doesn't fit her, seemingly by design which shows off her bare stomach and large breasts. It is Red Hood... She is on a restraining chair, her arms and feet strapped and reinforced with chains which are connected to an electroshock switch.

Red Hood: "He... Whoever you are... Leave me alone! You can't resurrect me just to torture me!"

Odenborg: "Oh, calm down, Red Riding Hood. I'm just gonna poke and prod you a little bit... That is, if you're unwilling to answer a few questions of mine."

Red Hood: "You absolute psycho! You have been shocking me for the past 10 minutes!"

Odenborg: "You see, my friend needs an answer to a few questions. We have uncovered you in the memories of another Nikke. It seems that based on our research, you have been inserted as part of a Rapture Code that lay dormant in the Ark... Now tell me, you sentient sex robot, what do the Raptures want from us?"

Red Hood: "You sick bastard!!! Let me go!!! I don't know what the Rapture wants! I don't know anything!!!"

Odenborg: "You were corrupted... Why do you kill humans?" (Shocks her with the electrodes)

Red Hood: "Ahhh!!! (Heavy breathing) I didn't kill any hu-" (Gets her face slapped by Odenborg)

Odenborg: "Don't lie to me!"

Red Hood: "I-I wasn't... (Struggling) I was... corrupted."

Odenborg: "Do you mean to say, that you willingly allowed yourself to be corrupted for the Rapture?"

Red Hood: "What? No! It was forced upon me... I didn't ask for it! It felt like my soul was being ripped out of me! The only reason I didn't fight it... Is because I couldn't! My squad tried to help but they couldn't! So I went back to my hometown to die alone, far away from any humans on the surface."

Odenborg: "Now that's interesting... But unfortunately for you, your host, Rapi said you we're telling her to destroy the Ark."

Red Hood: "What? No! She can't do that!"

Odenborg: "Now you're just lying... I've had enough of your bullshit! Why do you want to destroy the Ark?"

Red Hood: "I don't want to destroy it! I just want to be free from my torment."

Odenborg raises his hand to strike her breasts but relents before he could hit her... His restraint suddenly brought upon him by a simple thought... 'Medusa.'

Even though he and Charlie are not formally hooked up together, the mere thought of her is enough to stop him from taking liberties on a woman's body, at least in the sexual way.

He instead presses a button on a speaker which plays an audio recording of a transcribed Rapture code. It blares out a sequence of incoherent electronic noises and static, some sounding like Rapture sounds, their grunts and hums and eventually... Human speech.

"Destroy the Ark."

Says a deep raspy voice in a sinister tone.

Red Hood: "Chatterbox?"

Andersen: (On call) "Odenborg, this is it! Chatterbox!"

Odenborg: "So that's the name of your talking friend?"

Red Hood: "He is not my friend! He is a Rapture that evolved the ability to speak like a human! He's been torturing me all this time!"

Odenborg: "Well then, Red Hood... We already know very well how you ended up here and who put you here. But perhaps a little refresh for the next session will make you speak more!"

He shocks her once more, this time for 5 seconds as her screams are heard throughout the room.

Red Hood: "Ahhh!!!"

Odenborg: (Laughing) "Don't worry, when I'm through with you, you won't know the difference."

He plugs in a wire into her arm and Red Hood's vision goes dark.

***Osaka Castle***

Meanwhile on the surface, Prince Noro is having a dialogue with his Onryos.

They are dressed in different uniforms ranging from the 9th to 21st century.

JSDF Onryo: "The Voice of our Emperor calls."

Noro: "And where is your Emperor?"

Samurai Onryo: "He calls from beyond... From his home city."

IJA Onryo: "A place where there is no light. Where only darkness is eternal."

Noro: "His home city? Does he not live in Kyoto or Tokyo as I was told?

IJA Onryo: "Tokyo is still held by the Raptures... Although their largest manufactory of vessels was destroyed in Fukushima by your forces, the Robotic scum still block out hope from the heart of our ruined land."

Asmodeus: "Something is trying to penetrate our psychic barrier."

Samurai Onryo: "General Asmodeus, it's the Emperor! He wishes to see the Dark Prince."

Noro: "Let him in."

The psychic barrier is weakened enough to allow for a telepathic link to form between Osaka and Tokyo. The image of a neatly dressed Japanese man appears. His hair is neatly combed and wearing glasses, he wears imperial regalia.

Showa: "I have been waiting for this day, Kuraioji... (Dark Prince)"

Noro bows down to him, realizing that one of the Dark Gods of his pantheon are before him in his Castle. The Onryos bow and so do the other Asuras.

Noro: "Your Majesty, it is a pleasure to be on your land."

Showa: "Dark Prince... My home is desecrated, those Kofuns your Irongates were opened in were my ancestors tombs... However I forgive you. These Onryos under your service are my blessing for your liberation from the Raptures. I will keep sending them from Yomi to you as you need them from Takamagahara for so long as I favour you."

Noro: "Your Majesty, I cannot thank you enough for your blessings."

Showa: "Now here is a command you must obey, Kuraioji... This land is my holy land, we now share it. I watch from realms above and your affairs are here, below. You must preserve my Empire. You must destroy the Raptures rule over it. The Empire of Japan shall shine it's light above all eight corners of the world. And every Arrow of Chaos in your insignia, shall become one of the Eight Crown Cords of my worldly crown. I am not one Emperor, I am many, I am all. I have become one with Hachiman embodiment of my family, protector of my land and patron of warriors."

Noro: "And the Asuras shall do it."

Showa: "I am waiting for you, in my Palace."

The Ethereal Emperor disappears from the room into nothing.

Asmodeus: (Claps his hand together once) "Farewell for now Kami-sama."

Noro: "The Ark can wait... Tokyo will be our next destination!"

The Dark Prince raises his Katana above his head as his loyal soldiers cheer.

They are ready for the battle that awaits...

Meanwhile, orders are transmitted across all Asura held territory on the Japanese isles.

***Narakushi, Shikoku (formerly Eden)***

Within the city formerly known as Eden, renamed 'Narakushi' by the Asuras after it's conquest, a proclamation is about to be delivered to the inhabitants and broadcasted on screens and social media. It is read out by Sol who is flanked by Jamsaram by his side.

The Heavenly Proclamation is a document that entails that the Asuras shall assume a newly revived identity of the dead nation of Japan. And that the fallen empire is now under a formalized Asura Shogunate with Prince Noro of The Void as it's helm.

It is not long before the Shogunate contacts the Ark in order to inform them of the proclamation. And soon within the underground, the Prince's voice is to be heard for the first time as millions of humans wait for the live broadcast to begin.

***

Within the Ark, Dr. Odenborg is with Commander, Andersen the Pilgrims and Nikkes. Red Hood's memories of torture were erased, as to not cause a disturbance amongst the ranks as she listens in with the others.

Noro: (On TV) "By the blessing of the Gods, The Asura Shogunate now governs the Empire of Japan. However not all of our lands are liberated. I have been sent by the Gods to end this cycle of Tyranny of the Raptures and annihilate the foolish mortal administration! For the mandate of Heaven doesn't favour those who create artificial gods for themselves!

Our might is right and our expedition to purify our lands is underway on short notice... We came from Primordial Chaos, practically nothing! And now our rule of life is and always has been, Conquer or Die... And that applies to humanity too, for it is not too late to embrace Chaos."

Red Hood: "So... That was the demon who killed the Goddess Squad."

Johan: "Yes, we couldn't stop him... I bear this guilt to this day."

Rapi: "At least they're killing the Raptures."

Odenborg: "It's strangely fascinating that the only thing that can kill off the Raptures resembles humans but at the same time are not humans."

The Nikkes look at eachother in silence, some visibly saddened and some puzzled or nervous.

Neon: "So... That's just... Kinda what we are."

Vesti: "We resemble humans but are not humans."

Eunhwa: "So... That's one thing that we have in common."

Diesel: "But we aren't of flesh and blood... How? How can we end up resembling those who we sought to fight against?"

Commander: "Let's not dwell on it too much."

Mika looks at him and he looks back at her, his gaze an attempt to reassure his lover's existential crisis. However, the others don't notice... They are still lost in their deep thoughts, still trying to process their collective identity crisis.

The broadcast on TV screen ends with marvelous and cinematic displays of the Asura Army gathered in front of a heavily fortified Osaka Castle with dozens of starships, armed to the teeth, each at least 300m long, hovering above the thousands of saluting soldiers as the sun shines above them at noon, above the Chaotic Swastikas of which the Asura Shogunate has conquered under. A true beginning of a new age has dawned upon the world as a rendition of the Japanese National Anthem is played.

On the nearby buildings and shrines, banners are hung with the inscriptions '昭和と八幡大神' invoking the now fused Kami of the Showa Emperor and their God of War, Hachiman into a consecrated identity of glorious imperial legacy.

The Ark remains in awe at the sight of the Asura Shogunate's rule of the Japanese Isles... A sight that many had never imagined in their wildest dreams, now displayed all across the news and holographic billboards and on every electronic device.

A map of the Shogunate is displayed, showing that Southern Honshu from Kyoto to Hiroshima as well as all of Shikoku is under Asura rule, with Kyoto being declared the temporary Imperial Capital and Osaka being declared the Administrative Capital and finally Tokyo as the Occupied Capital to be reclaimed in due time with the blessing of the gods before the screen fades to black.

Chapter Text

***Lake Biwa, Honshu***

Prince Noro looks upon a serene view from the Western shore of the ancient Lake Biwa. Behind him is Admiral Khan, dressed in Space Marine Terminator armour, the 9 foot tall and heavily built Admiral still has his peaked cap on. He dwarves Noro and stands 2 feet taller than an average Chaos Marine.

Around the lake are overgrown buildings, collapsed ruins of temples seemingly destroyed long before the Asuras set foot on the planet and cherry blossoms trees, blooming with their falling pink sakura flowers that scatter the ground below.

Also on the ground nearby and in the water are pieces of metal wreckage from the Asuras recent conquest of Kyoto. A massive battle had taken place in the skies above the city and lake.

Beyond the blue shallow shoals of which Noro's feet are soaked in as he calmly feels the waters of the lake, he looks upon an ancient Torii gate of which in the background is a burning, half sunken Rapture vessel, roughly a kilometre away. It had plunged into the lake, alongside many more Rapture crafts during the last battle.

Noro: "Khan, I'm glad you've come down here. I was afraid you would miss all the fun."

Khan: "It's been rather quiet in orbit recently. The Rapture colonies in the star system are doing their own things. Those things are barely sentient... Not even on this planet do their hives work in unison."

Noro: "I'm glad they are just animals at the end of the day. Their aetheric essence does make a decent elixir after distillation."

Khan: "We are feeding off their very life energies themselves. And as for the humans, they are not starving anytime soon due to the elixir being something they don't find disgusting like our taste of blood."

Noro: "Blood, Rapture Juice it's all the same in principle. Just the latter juices are immaterial until distilled into physical form."

Khan: "I do wonder why exactly you called me down here."

Noro: "It's simple... (Points to the horizon) I need all my leadership staff to prove themselves on the frontline. Being in the secure hulls of the Khagan is something, the rush and bloodlust of being exposed to danger is something else. As such, garrison duties are to be rotated and High Command isn't an exception to my rules of keeping your skills sharp and bodies battle worthy."

Khan: "What? I only have 16 concubines, 8 Humans and 8 Nikkes! Both willing and unwilling participants."

Noro: "I think you have been spending too much time with concubines aboard the Khagan. It's time for war!”

***Kyoto, Asura Shogunate***

Abandoned factories restart as machines on an industrial level are retrofitted or replaced by more sophisticated manufacturing. Asura forges, operated by Alchemists work tirelessly to kick up the Shogunate's war machine.

Despite the larger ships of the Dark Fleet having manufactories where production was originally solely located on, they are aware that the needs of the growing population require an expansion of industrial capacity already stressed by total war.

An automated manufacturing facility built within one of the factories begins to take shape and as such the process moves at a faster pace than any human would have managed. A couple of Nikke slaves marvel at the sight of a newly assembled tank rolling out of the factory into the streets.

They carry on pushing their cart of salvaged Rapture metals into the factory and onto the production line to be processed further by a machine of unknown origin.

***

Elsewhere in Kyoto, Onryos and Asura soldiers are marching towards the coast of Lake Biwa where they are ordered on short notice to march Westwards into the forests beyond the lake... A long march.

It is unknown what lies ahead beyond the lake. The maps point to an important area that has been marked as of strategic importance.

The Onryos know the place all too well... A place called Sekigahara, where a previous battle that changed the ancient world forever took place 515 years ago.

***Outskirts of Sekigahara***

After an uneventful march, Prince Noro and his army stumble upon the town of Sekigahara, or what is left of it. There are rusted wrecks of armoured vehicles aside overgrown trenches, no doubt from the time of the Rapture invasion.

Ashikaga: "This does not feel right... It's too quiet."

There was rarely any resistance at all encountered in their march and yet Ashikaga, was still able to sense an alarming concentration of energies nearby, Rapture in origin. He feels them but does not know what they are... The Onryos also sensed something familiar. They remember it all too well, but they are hesitant to speak up.

Onryo: "Dark Prince, the enemy is near."

Noro: "So you fought here before?"

The Onryo dressed in Samurai armour on his Hellsteed, a skeleton horse wearing armoured plating salvaged from Rapture wrecks nods his head.

Onryo: "I was here under the forces of the previous Shogunate or what was to become of it."

Several Chaos Marines take up position on a hill and look out for hostiles. There are no signs of life other than the occasional bird in the sky.

Noro: "What are you saying?"

Ashikaga: "It's as if something is waiting for us here."

Suddenly a barrage of booms are heard from the distant hills and forests ahead... Swarms of Rapture drones begin to rise from the treeline with alarming speed as artillery shells trail into the sky towards the Asuras.

Onryo: "The Rapture Scum are here!"

The 9 foot tall Chaos Marines are all too familiar with the feeling of a full on barrage... They brace for impact as the rest of the army gets behind any cover they can find.

Ashikaga: "Incoming!!"

The shells explode in rapid succession, sending the Chaos Marines and Asura soldiers into the air as the unlucky ones are hurt or killed and can't get up.

Noro: "Keep pushing forwards to the trenches!"

He turns around to the rest of his forces and looks out into the distance for the enemy.

Khan: "Our numbers are few but that is a reason to use them effectively. These machines are merely toys and we can easily swat them down with the right tactics!"

He tells to his Chaos Marine Raptors who promptly engage their Jump packs in order follow him into the sky in order to meet the Rapture drones who aim to bring death from above.

As Ashikaga's Wehrmen on the ground fire bursts of fire into the air, Onryo and Asura troops fire back from their Self Propelled Anti-Air vehicles, known as Flaktanks that spray the air with heavy streams of fire that mow down incoming drones with deadly efficiency.

Dozens of explosions in the air happen every second as the Chaos Raptors shoot down or slice up the drones. Carefully determining if each one is an armed swarm drone or an explosive spore which can blow them out of the sky and are intended to be used as flying bombs.

Meanwhile, the ground formations scatter into smaller groups around the area as to become less vulnerable to the falling Rapture shells. Some groups of infantry quickly disperse into the forest and as such they are soon out of sight to the drone swarms.

Meanwhile in the hill trenches...

Ashikaga: "These are not like the ones we've seen so far..."

Noro: "They're actually coordinated! It's unprecedented."

Jamsaram: (On radio) "Vimanas and supporting vessels are taking fire, we're returning it shortly!"

Noro: "Khan! What's your status?"

On another hill ahead, Khan is on top of a tall quadrupedal Rapture with two tendril-like arms carrying heavy weaponry on each of them.

He shoots out it's single red glowing eye with his Plasma pistol as it shrieks in pain.

Khan: "They keep rising out of the forest! Our entire position on these 3 peaks are surrounded! They're attempting to encircle us!"

He cuts off one of the Rapture's arms with his lightning claw. It sparks and the open wound starts to let off unstable lighting bolts as it overheats due to the heavy laser blaster on the severed limb.

Khan jumps off before an explosion destroys the Rapture's arm and tears through half it's torso. The armless and half bisected creature falls to the ground as more Chaos Raptors fire rockets in mid air against other Raptures of similar design and size.

Meanwhile, smaller Spider and Crab Raptures emerge, apparently hidden by the trees of the forest.

They are shot at by Onryo and Regular Asura troops as their positions start to get overrun by the waves of incoming smaller Raptures.

Fire is concentrated against the forces that are orderly falling back to the trenches. The Raptures fire their beams back, killing quite a number of Asuras while taking losses from their Rocket and Grenade Launchers.

The spiders scuttle back into the trees, hiding out of sight while the crab Raptures reveal themselves from behind, letting loose another barrage of heavy blaster fire as their muzzle flashes are targeted by the Wehrmen.

Noro himself decides to fly out of trench for a cheap shot at one of the Raptures with his launcher which accurately lands a killing blow on a Spider's 'head' instantly killing it as it's body disappears into an explosion.

He takes cover behind an old tank wreck as Asura Starfighters drop a payload of bombs in an airstrike which destroys the Raptures advances towards the hill trenches.

Vimanas and Gunships arrive above Sekigahara, deployed from the Asura Starships in their hundreds as orbital bombardments from the Dark Fleet in orbit drop ordinances on the unseen artillery beyond the horizon.

Noro watches as bright flashes of light like meteors descend to the Earth before hitting the ground with thunderous booms and even brighter bursts of light than the Sun from kilometers away. He recognizes this as the cannons of his mighty flagship, The Iron Sun.

In the heat of battle, he sees Khan returning from the hills ahead. But in the background... He notices to his absolute surprise that even the Raptures are turning back to face the explosions, for it seems that not even they have seen such powerful weapons in action.

Noro: "Annihilate them! They're distracted!"

As a smile widens on Noro's face, the trenches erupt in an enormous volley of firepower... A massive orchestra of every weapon firing simultaneously at the distracted Rapture hordes in front of them, backed up by air support and their armoured vehicles.

Due to their size the Raptures are easy prey and the beasts are soon blown to pieces, filled with holes or have entire limbs shredded off by the extremely thick gunfire which deforms their metal plating no matter how thick or thin... The overwhelming firepower comes from all directions, as the Raptures fall simultaneously as they attempt to flee, only to catch a missile to their bodies or have their joints give in to the damage, collapsing on the ground as some suffer more horrible fates in having their ammunition and energy components cook off before they explode from the inside out.

Ashikaga: (Sighs) "So many..."

Noro: "They were foolish to underestimate our power..."

Khan: "I'm receiving a signal from Tokyo!"

A hologram of the Rapture, Chatterbox pops up.

Chatterbox: "So it is you who had taken Eden before us!"

Noro: "We've got you on the ropes! Your forces here are scattered! Sekigahara is our Victory, and so was Eden! Who are you?! Why of all ugly and stupid machines are you able to speak?"

Chatterbox: "I am Chatterbox. The Rapture Queen's head of diplomacy."

Noro: "We don't need your pathetic attempts at negotiations! We will exterminate you!"

Chatterbox: "I see this was not what we had in mind... But we offer you a bride, and Lordship of the Universe if you give up your struggle."

Noro: "A bride? What kind of joke are you playing on me, Chatterbox?"

Khan chuckles in the background, finding the exchange too funny to contain.

Chatterbox: "Have a talk with her..."

On the holographic feed, Chatterbox is replaced by a Heretic Nikke, long silver haired, red eyes... She looks like the now deceased Marian if she was brought back from the dead.

Her skimpy armour resembles turtle shells on her shoulders and her breastplates, both ill-fitting and showing off her big jiggly boobs underneath a layer of translucent latex extending from her choker keeping her breats from falling out.

Modernia: "Nice to meet you, Dark Prince!"

She smiles mischievously towards Noro as his soldiers watch on, reacting as if they were the audience reacting to a sitcom, forming it's laughing and cheering tracks.

Noro: "I didn't expect you to look..."

Modernia: "Sexy?"

Noro: "Ridiculous."

Modernia: "That's so sweet of you! My name is Modernia, and my friend um... Uh..."

Chatterbox: (Whispers) "It's Chatterbox!"

Modernia: "Aww sowwy, I don't remember names weel ya know."

Chatterbox sighs audibly offscreen.

Modernia: "So Chatterbox would like to offer me as your waifu if you don't take over Tokyo, UwU."

Noro: "A waifu? You are the dumbest one I've ever seen amongst all the simple women I've seen on the planet."

Modernia: "Ouch, I thought you were gonna be a gentleman... I guess you are just as evil as the rest of your race! But you're really pretty, though... I mean you're the Dark Prince! Uh... What's your name again? Pwincy wincy."

Noro: "How dare you insult me with your lack of intelligence, woman! Practically everyone on this Gods forsaken planet practically knows me! You can't possibly be a worthy mate if you don't know who I am!"

Modernia: (Whispers) "He's kind of hot."

Noro: "Can't you see that I am a Prince?! Act like you're speaking to royalty at least."

She points to the Chaotika insignia on Noro's armour.

Modernia: "Aww but, Nyoro... Chu act like an angwy moustacheman when you speak instead of a charming prince. Isn't that a bit hypocritical of chu?"

She laughs as if she had just said a joke.

Noro: "I will march on Tokyo and no promises of power and noble marriages from the vile creatures you have merged with will deter me, Modernia!"

Modernia: "You sure are brave... I'm gonna cry... I've been rejected by such a hottie like chu! UwU..."

Noro: "UwU? Is that what your kind say?"

Modernia: (Sighs) "You know what, I can tell chu won't take me seriously, UwU."

Noro: "Can't you see that I have better things to do than talk to you?"

Modernia: "Fine! Have it your way, Prince Pwincey! UwU... Meet chu in Tokyo!"

She winks at Noro before the screen turns black.

Noro sighs as he takes out his Katana and sticks it into the ground so he can lean his elbow on it.

Jamsaram: (On radio) "Now that was quite the conversation, my Lord."

Noro: "If we capture her alive, you can rape her until she dies."

Jamsaram: "I'll make sure of it, my Lord."

Noro: "Khan, you know it's as if I have the largest dick on the planet... All the Nikkes want to have me as if I am some popsicle."

Khan: (Laughs) "Oh, Noro you obviously haven't seen mine!"

Noro: "Keep it to yourself, Khan... And your concubines."

Khan: "My Prince, I am curious why you have not gotten a single femoid just yet."

Noro: "I have a planet to conquer."

Khan: "It's not like you don't have enough slaves to service your needs in bed, Prince."

Noro: "I'll keep away from it now... Admittedly, Dorothy was rather delicious. I'm glad to have had her all to myself."

He recalls savouring Dorothy's flesh and blood from the moment he bit her neck and tore her throat out, to licking her blood off his blade and consuming the rest of her body, avoiding the metal parts and plastic tubes of which he sucked out the Iron-rich rust coloured 'jelly' after puncturing them. He enjoyed draining the decapitated Goddess of her blood."

Khan: "It's your choice, Noro. But we all know you need an heir eventually."

Noro: "We'll cross the bridge when we get there."

The Asura troops march forwards to finish off any knocked out Raptures still writhing in pain on the ground.

Noro: (To himself) "It's as if I'm being tested by some force that guides all of humanity..."

As he mumbles, the soldiers around him look to their left and right, hearing him speak to himself as if he was expecting an answer.

The troops do not question him, not daring to cross their Dark Prince the wrong way and keep to their orders and duties.

Chapter Text

***Free City of Nagoya***

Within the Metro system of the ruined city, lies a labyrinth of tunnels where the Kingdom of Crown and Chime is situated. Officially called the Free City of Nagoya, it is run by the White Knights, a Pilgrim Mercenary group that has cleared out a large portions of the city from the Raptures to habitable levels.

Despite being called a Kingdom, it is anything but, as it is a fiefdom of two Nikkes with no Kings in sight, their community bonded by salvaging and selling their mercenary services.

They have a small fortress to protect their interests as well as their business. The Kingdom of Crown and Chime's main asset is a refinery for scrap metals and processing the remains of the Rapture vessels.

Some buildings on the surface were reclaimed by the Pilgrims and are inhabited by surface dwellers.

Within a radio tower, an operator scans the frequencies to find something worth listening in. He picks up a frequency which sounds like an attempt to contact them.

The broadcast is loud and clear as she presses on the radio button to answer.

Operator: "Hello, this is Nagoya, Free Territory of the White Knights."

???: (Static) "...read...over...."

Operator: "You're cutting out, ma'am!"

???: (Static) "...with us...is..."

Operator: "Hello? Can you read me? Over!"

???: (Static) "...This is Crown speaking! Nagoya do you copy?"

Operator: "Yes! We can hear you! We thought you were dead!"

Crown: (Laughs) "No no! We're just fine! I hope you're holding up well too!"

Operator: "Yeah, we are! We thought you died in Eden."

Chime: "We've been paid well by the Ark for Eden. They've contracted us for more war."

Operator: "So the Ark is still in business?"

Chime: "Clear landing strips for our aerials, Ark troops will be stationed to defend the Kingdom!"

Operator: "Wait... The Ark is coming here?"

Chime: "Don't worry, they've paid us well. Our resources are stable and our coffers filled!"

***

Later that day, Johan and Cecil have arrived in Eden with Red Hood. As soon as they landed and stepped out of their aerial, they were greeted by Chime who had come to greet them.

Chime: "Hey all! Look at this Heretic I caught."

She shows the group a captured Heretic Nikke caught in a net.

Liberalio: "Red Hood?! But how?"

Red Hood: "It's been a long time. I'm glad you have gotten a taste of justice!"

Liberalio looks up to Red Hood, her Jellyfish-like Rapture organ that enabled her to hover, still paralyzed by an electronic net she is trapped in, on the cold and snowy ground as winter has just arrived.

Liberalio's white clothes and metal colour scheme blend into the snowy surroundings as her wire-laden tentacles from her 'Jellyfish appendage' wriggle in vain to escape the net.

Red Hood: "I really want to put you down like I did with Anarchio... You can't escape justice forever!" (Points rifle)

Cecil: (Blocks her line of fire) "Wait! We haven't got a chance to ask her how she fell into our hands."

Liberalio: "Spare me, and I'll talk."

Red Hood looks down upon her angrily and reluctantly lowers her Sniper rifle.

Liberalio: "The Asuras... They defeated my forces at Sekigahara. I was commanded by the Queen through chatterbox to break their advance through the wasteland... But they shattered my forces! I couldn't do much but retreat North. I didn't put up a fight because I thought we would be undetected near Nagoya. I'm sorry I didn't stop the invasion."

Johan: "What about Eden?"

Liberalio: "I know it was my mission to originally besiege and raze Eden to the ground, to destroy humanity! But I failed, time and time again. I'm so worthless... I was so cornered. I didn't even put up a fight against the White Knights. Even if I made it back to Tokyo, Chatterbox wouldn't have went easy on me for being responsible for the destruction of an entire horde at Sekigahara. I am beyond redemption."

Red Hood: (Scoffs) "So what you're saying is that you're just as worthless as I thought you were?"

Liberalio: "Maybe I should have died with Anarchio at the hands of you and the Goddess Squad... But whatever you do with me, please don't take too long."

Red Hood: (Raises rifle) "There's no use beating the dead horse. Goodbye, Liberalio."

She fires a single shot straight into the Heretic Nikke's forehead and the sound of the blast echoes across the city. She then turns to the others.

Red Hood: "Let's get going."

The cold winter air blows as the group walk past Liberalio's corpse which lays on the ground, covered in the netting, as snow falls on her lifeless, sparking forehead."

Cecil: "There is a sense of foreboding in the air... Can you feel it Johan?"

***Mikawa Bay, Coast of Nagoya***

2 days later...

The Sun is rising in the winter sky above the City-state of Nagoya, It is an ordinary morning, cold and white. The Sun beams over the horizon's waters of the North Pacific Ocean. The City is quiet and the White Knights are on guard as they are aware of the Asuras intentions of their Northern Expedition. Sekigahara, the site of the last major battle on the Japanese Isles is only a short distance West of Nagoya. The Pilgrims and the Ark know that the city is next.

***

Aboard a Dropship, Asura Paratroopers of the Rajankawa Regiment, an Elite Special Forces Unit newly formed by General Valak are receiving their orders aboard their flight.

Valak: "This is Valak to Rajankawa, your orders are to infiltrate the underground metro network behind enemy lines."

A holomap of the city pops up in mid-air. The Asuras listen to their General's instructions.

Valak: "As you can see, Nagoya is surrounded by a formidable defence network of trenches, walls and a Coastal Fortress with an Air Base at Tokoname, overlooking Ise Bay, where our sea landings will be primarily pushing into the heart of Nagoya. Tokoname Fortress is predicted to be an absolute nuisance for our operation and as such it must be harassed and tied down as much as possible! Our Onryos know the underground railways well and it's best to keep them with you at all times."

Para Officer: "Understood General."

Valak: "Keep your heads low and don't engage too long in combat, it is up to you to silently infiltrate the enemy. There are reports of surface dwellers there but keep your distance and don't engage them... Unless they engage you. Then Smash your way into the underground! General Valak out!" (Transmission closes)

A Paratrooper looks out the dropship's window to see the aircraft flying low above the waters to not avoid detection and be less prone to missiles. The rumble of the dropship's engines are felt throughout the cockpit and cabin as it slowly makes it's descent towards Nagoya.

They feel the dropship jostling from the turbulence and soon the rumbles of the engines die down as the aircraft begins to slow down as it approaches the drop zone.

Paratrooper: "It's been a while since I've been in combat..."

Onryo: "Easy for you to say, I was last in action at Okinawa before my resurrection."

Asura Paratrooper: "You mean the last war?"

Onryo: "There's no point talking about it."

The aircraft rumbles once more as it approaches the drop zone. The walls nearby the seas on the unreclaimed areas are visible. The Frontier of the White Knights is dead ahead.

The Asuras put on their parachute packs and open the bay doors. The sudden rush of wind blows through the cabin and the Asuras get a good look of the city's industrial ruins as the sunlight reflects off the ice and snow.

Bursts of flakfire erupt nearby as several dozen dropships in formation are visible from the bay doors. Laser beams light up the sky however the AA fire isn't that thick as they were late to detect the dropships.

Onryo: (Crying) "It's so beautiful from this height! Oh wait, the land is below me!"

A green light signals the jump.

He jumps off the aircraft and is propelled downwards at great speed before deploying his parachute. The Paratroopers land safely in the snow.

Each dropship carries a single Chaos Marine squad of 4 alongside several Onryo and Asura Paratroopers. The Onryos are augmented with modified Asura weaponry and improvised armour to increase their survivability as bare bones are weak against Nikke weaponry.

The paratroopers unpack their gear as their heavy armour falls from the skies and lands nearby, hitting the snowy ground with an enormous boom and throwing up a cloud of white snow. The Chaos Marines emerge from those clouds with their glowing red eyes piercing through the frosted wind.

Onryo: "Officer, there's a nearby tunnel around here."

Para Officer: "Do you know what is at the end of the tunnel?"

Onryo: (nods) "A station or something."

The officer nods as he follows the Onryos towards the purported entrance.

Para Officer: "The Eagle has landed. Repeat, the Eagle has landed."

Valak: "Loud and clear, may the Gods grant you their favour, out."

The Rajankawa Regiment cut off communications after giving their pre-arranged codeword to command signalling their touchdown and descent into the metro.

The light grows dimmer as the tunnels go deeper underground, leading to a large train platform. Asuras are capable of seeing well in the dark better than humans as their eyes reflect light much like cats, giving them incredible night vision. Onryos sense the world around them with psychic senses as they don't need eyes to see or ears to hear and are thus unaffected by lighting conditions as their astral vision allows them to render images as a human would normally see.

The train station is filled with benches which are rusty from age and dust. A metal plaque is embedded on the wall next to the tracks with a map of the metro tunnel.

Para Officer: "Good... Update your maps."

Paratrooper 1: "We should go to the left."

Paratrooper 2: "Still no signs of light, let's move."

The group makes their way West, keeping an eye on their updated maps. However... As they proceed deeper, more unmarked tunnel paths are discovered.

Onryo: "This is not a route."

Paratrooper: "What?!"

Onryo: "The maps don't have these passages. It seems that these are potentially Knight tunnels."

The Officer radios the other groups within the metro.

Para Officer: "Attention all Elements, there are potential Pilgrim tunnels we have discovered that are not marked on the current maps. Please update them as you go on."

Para Officer 2: (On radio) "Copy that."

A few scouts are sent into the tunnels to map them out. They report back with information as to where they are going.

Para Officer: "Keep on your toes. We need to move quickly, if this is a Knight tunnel then we must make sure to ambush them quickly and quietly."

Paratrooper: "There's an exit up ahead. Stay sharp."

The scouts point their silenced SMGs forwards as they slowly advance cautiously. They get to the exit and peek outside... They are met with the sight of a metal wall and the sound of snow crunching underfoot... Footsteps... The footsteps get louder as if something is walking closer and closer to the exit...

They suddenly see lights shine on the wall to their right and the sound of female voices getting louder from the left.

Knight 1: "They must be trying to take down Tokoname Fortress..."

Knight 2: "They must think that they can take it with numbers."

Knight 3: "You know how hard it was to build that fortress... I doubt that those guys could take it out with just numbers. It doesn't appear that they can actually get that much troops landed in Mikawa Bay."

Hidden behind a crate, blocking the flashlights are the Asuras.

A swift clinking sound is heard bouncing off the wall and the lights turn to find the object that fell on the floor.

Knight 1: "Wha..."

BANG! Their vision goes a blind white as their ears ring.

The Asuras with their silenced SMGs jump out of the corner and shoot at the Nikkes dressed like scantily clad crusaders.

Accurate semi automatic fire hits one in the head, the other goes down with two shots in the chest and another one is shot in the leg and falls to the floor before being finished off with an Onryo's bayonet to the throat.

Onryo: "Don't scream now..."

The poor Nikke gurgles for air as blood comes out of her mouth as she falls dead with a small spark from her wound. Her other fellow Knight is similarly bayonetted through the eye as she is dead checked despite being shot twice in the chest. The entire action lasted 7 seconds from the flashbang to the dead checks.

The Asuras proceed forwards.

Paratrooper: "3 Hostiles neutralized in the tunnel, over."

Para Officer: "Good work. Do you see where the enemy is headed?"

Onryo: "Ahead, we think that they are looking to intercept our landings at Mikawa."

Para Officer: "Copy that, I'll make sure to let command know. Move out!"

The Asuras make their way further North through the tunnels. As they proceed, they find more Knights underneath a metal grill, leading to a sewer system below.

A distinct shot is heard from below as they hear screaming Nikkes.

Knight 1: "Help! They have a Chaos Marine!!"

She is struck down as a round goes right through her body, sparking the scene around her as the round ricochets off a pipe causing water to gush out of the pipes. The Chaos Marine fires more shots as the Knights below return fire.

Paratrooper: "Element 2, we're right above you!"

The overhead Asuras fire their weapons from behind the grill. They hit some of the Knights, killing some while incapacitating others as the wounded Knights retreat into the sewer system.

The Chaos Marine then moves closer.

Chaos Marine: "Good shooting! Element 2 has just sabotaged a rail line and demolished an outpost. I'm on my way to rendezvous, we should meet at the section up ahead. There's a way down from your right."

Paratrooper: "Copy that, we're making our way up there now."

The Chaos Marine grabs a wounded Nikke and gouges her eyes out as she screams before biting her neck from behind and drinking her blood.

***

Later at the rendezvous point...

Paratrooper 1: "Seems like the main lines beyond this point are teeming with Knights."

Para Officer: "No doubt to protect some supply lines."

Onryo: "We need to head further North East... I believe that is where we can easily ambush a supply train."

They then hear a heavy set of boots approach them. A squad of Chaos Marines approach.

Chaos Marine 1: "We can't go too long. They know we're down here."

Paratrooper 2: "We'll make it quick."

They proceed into the next tunnel as the Onryos lead the way with their enhanced senses.

They see a train in the distance.

Paratrooper: "Is that a train?"

He steps back from the side of the lit platform, back into the shadows as it passes.

Onryo: "That was a close shave."

They hear more sets of boots from the North East.

Paratrooper: (Whispers) "Hostiles."

The Asuras open fire on the Knights, who respond by returning fire from their own rifles and light machine guns, firing through the darkness. The Asuras return fire back, hitting the Knights with suppressing fire before rushing them as a Onryo sacrifices himself to cover a grenade thrown by the Knights with his body in order to prevent it from killing anymore of his comrades.

An explosion goes off in the Darkness as the Asuras see several pieces of shattered bones and armour which remain of the dead Onryo. A Chaos Marine surges forward and kills the rest of the Knights behind the opposite corner.

Another train is heard approaching as the rumbling of the tracks begins to pick up pace.

Chaos Marine: "Put a mine down there, quick!"

The team pulls back into the darkness save for two Asuras. One who jumps down to the tracks to lay a mine and another to pull him up as the ladder is too far away.

Sapper: "Come on... Come on!"

The mine is activated and he places it on the tracks in a way that a wheel will collide with it. He then jumps toward his buddy who catches his hand as the train rumbles closer.

Sapper 2: (Pulls him up) "I got you! Hang on!"

They run away as the train rushes closer, running over the mine and triggering it.

The explosion shakes the platform as a flash of light followed by a dust cloud covers the tunnels.

The cloud clears as the Sappers make it out alive after being knocked down by the explosion. They turn to see that the train has derailed but a fire broke out and is starting to cook off some artillery shells the train was transporting. Another large explosion blows them back.

Paratrooper: "Damn!"

The Sappers are pulled back by their regiment into safety as the fire continues to spread, causing a chain reaction as other nearby cars blow up one by one... A loud screeching sound of metal bending and tearing off can be heard in the background as some structures collapse in the distance.

Para Officer: "Let's move! This whole shithole is coming apart!"

They run for safety as the tunnel begins to cave in.

Onryo: "We can't stay here!"

Para Officer: "The only thing we can do is to move upwards! Run!"

The group rushes through the collapsing tunnels, not looking back. They get to an upper level as the ground shakes beneath them.

They get to safety and begin to treat the wounded sappers.

Paratrooper: "The one Marine, he's still down there!"

Para Officer 2: "Damn it!"

***

The lone Chaos Marine still in the level below gets on his feet and picks up his Chaingun. He had survived the explosion and escaped a cave in.

Para Officer: (On radio) "Hei! This is Element 2, do you copy?"

Hei: "Affirmative, Element 2. I'm alright but just barely escaped. What's the plan now?"

Para Officer 2: "Regroup. We're right above one of the main lines that are used for supply lines that we just blew up. Try and find a way up."

Hei: "I see a door in front of me I'm going through."

Hei tries to open the door, but it's locked. He decides to kick it down, causing the door to be kicked off it's hinges.

Hei: "Now we're going somewhere!"

Chapter Text

***Nagoya Underground***

After escaping the cave in, Chaos Marine; Hei of the Rajankawa Regiment ventures beyond the door he kicked down, hoping to make it back to the rest of the Asura Special Forces Unit he belongs to.

He sees that the section ahead leads to a metro train platform with a ceiling above. There is no sign of the Asuras above, but there is a door on his right. He proceeds into the door, hoping it isn't trapped. He sees a light ahead coming from a collapsed wall to his front left and walks towards it.

The metro line ahead is in flames and the ceiling has caved in, leaving a massive pile of debris which proves to be an obstacle. He pushes a loose door to a ruined train car open and goes inside.

The compartment is completely trashed but he reaches for his straight sword, resembling a Chinese 'Jian' to smash up some crates blocking the other door.

Hei: "I've found a way to your section, Officer!"

Para Officer 2: (On radio) "You still have to find a way up. We have wounded and dead amongst us... Unfortunately those Nikke LMGs did quite a bit on some of us. We can't give them too much treatment, we'll need medevac."

Hei: "Down here?"

Para Officer 1: (On radio) "I'll see if any support is available."

Valak: (On radio) "Attention Rajankawa, support is unavailable on account of Pilgrim high altitude force shields. Our orbital bombardments are having no effect on ground support. Drop pod reinforcements and supply drops are unavailable until the shields are down."

Para Officer 1: (On radio) "Copy that General, we'll have to do it ourselves then."

Hei: "This is going to be a tight squeeze..."

He stabs his sword through the train's doors to pry them open, and with the strength of a Chaos Marine, they burst open with a loud boom. Hei immediately jumps from the train car to the tunnel platform ahead.

Hei: "I've made it."

Para Officer 2: (On radio) "Good, find a way up."

Hei: "On my way."

The Chaos Marine spots a collapsed section of the ceiling with a hole in front of him leading to the next floor. He decides to jump up and grab the edge.

He pulls himself up, using all his strength before getting up on his feet.

Hei: "Great... More pathways."

He moves forwards towards another tunnel intersection.

Hei: "Where the hell am I..."

Before he could react, gunfire erupts and peppers Hei's armour with shots to his right. The clanking of his shoulder pads and torso break the silence.

Emma: (Shooting) "Take this you demon!"

Vesti fires a rocket at Hei into the darkness, but he rolls back into the corner, causing the shot to miss and explode on the walls to his left.

Hei: "These filthy scum..."

He grabs his Chaingun from it's harness as he fires a burst into the darkness. The burst hits Emma in the shoulder as she's sent back against the wall with the impact of the shot and drops her minigun.

Emma: "Ahhhh!"

Eunhwa: "Noo!! Vesti, We need to get her out of here!"

Eunhwa aims for Hei's head as he tries to aim for Vesti and takes a shot which narrowly kills Hei, but luckily grazes off his helmet, causing a side dent which sends him back to his corner with a headache.

Emma: (Panting) "Eunhwa... I'm okay! (Grabs minigun with her right hand) Let's go now!"

Eunhwa runs out the exit door behind them beside Emma as Vesti has reloaded her rocket launcher and fires a smoke round into the tunnel, blinding Hei.

Hei: "You cowards..."

The Chaos Marine can't see through the smoke but manages to take aim and fire his Chaingun in the direction he believes they went.

He runs forward and finds the Nikke position abandoned but he hears something from below his feet, a faint beeping sound.

Hei: (Looks down) "Ah shit..." (Dashes forward as the explosive charge detonates)

The explosion throws Hei forward and he rolls to his side and safely hits his back against the wall beyond the doorway, his armour absorbing the shock and shrapnel, visibly deforming in damaged areas.

Hei: (Coughs) "Ugh... Element 2, do you copy?"

He sits up and leans on the wall as the smoke clears around him, and the pain in his head is now gone.

Para Officer 2: (On radio) "Hei, what's your status?"

Hei: "I've taken a beating but I'm still good to go. The enemies are close, they're rapidly approaching the rally point."

***

Within the rally point...

Para Officer 2: "How close?"

Hei: (On radio) "They're right under you. They have heavy weapons and explosives."

Para Officer 1: "We can't stay here... We'll be annihilated."

The 1st Para Officer looks around as there are only a handful of wounded left who are unable to fight or be evacuated.

Para Officer 2: "But our men..."

Para Officer 1: "They're dead weights. We still have to move ahead to target the shield generators at Fort Tokoname. General's Orders..."

Injured Paratrooper: "Sir... We're gonna die anyways we volunteer to stay and distract the Nikkes from your advance."

Injured Paratrooper 2: "We can't fight as well, but we can still take out the entire intersection with our remaining explosives."

The Para Officers nod and salute them with their straight right arms in the air as their last respects for the 5 injured paratroopers who have entered into a suicide pact.

Onryo: "Let's move, I'll lead the way."

Para Officer 2: "I'll inform Hei."

***

Around 7 minutes later, the Infinity Rail squad and at least a dozen other White Knights move in from all sections of the intersection where the rally point is projected to be.

Soline, still shaken up by the Siege of Eden shivers but reassures herself...

Soline: (Whispers) "It's ok... Artillery can't kill me, I'm safe with everyone down here."

Brid: "Your shivers are going to give us away!"

Brid doesn't take her eyes off the darkness that she's keeping an eye out for any enemies coming, her mounted flashlight pointed ahead.

Brid: (Whispers) "Courage Soline, Courage."

Knight: "Put your hands up!"

She says to the Asuras lying on the floor or against the wall. The Nikkes swiftly surround the injured Asuras from all sides.

Diesel: "They're trapped. Get their guns and disarm them!"

The Asuras raise their arms in front of them.

Diesel: "Commander, we have 3 injured Asura POWs within the-"

Paratrooper: "Tennoheika Banzai!"

2 other Asura paratroopers jump out from the shadows, one brandishing a katana with a crooked and bleeding leg who stabs a Knight through her chest with the blade, killing her instantly.

The second Asura is missing an arm and leaps toward the Knights within the tunnel entrance with a grenade in his remaining hand which detonates, killing him and 4 other Knights as the Katana Paratrooper is shot dead by Brid and Soline who warn Diesel: 

Brid: "Diesel, look out!!!"

She turns to see the 3 wounded Asuras have pulled their grenade pins, throwing 2 at them as one crawls above his teammates, saving the last one for them.

Diesel runs away as Soline tries to kick the grenades away as Brid swiftly grabs Diesel and falls to the ground to shield her from the blasts.

There are deafening explosions throughout the tunnel, which disorient everyone in the vicinity.

Diesel is sent flying to the side, dazed and injured, but still alive as Brid gets back up.

Brid: "Oh fuck... Are you alright?"

Diesel: "Agh!!! My fingers... Where are my fingers?"

She pulls her right hand up to find it missing, she looks around for it on the ground, but it's too dark for her to see.

Brid: (Coughs) "Ugh... Oh my... I..."

She feels bits of her flesh, pieces of her skin and muscle hanging loosely on her right side where she took the explosion.

Brid: "There's something stuck in my thigh!"

Diesel: "Soline? Where are you?"

Her words receive no reply as they echo through the darkness. She stumbles forward, unable to see clearly through the cloud of smoke and blood in her eyes.

Brid: (Grunts) "Argh..."

Diesel: "Soline!!!"

Finally after the Knights from behind shine their lights on the wall, Diesel stares face to face with Soline's corpse, torn in half at the hip, lying upside down, her stomach leaning towards the wall and her neck broken, causing it to unnaturally arch her head looking upwards, her chin on the floor, resting vertically as if her head was severed.

Diesel: "Why??? Noooo!!! Solineeeee!!! Gahhhhh!!!!!"

In disbelief, Diesel's cries and sobs of grief echo throughout the tunnel as Brid reminiscences on both girls caring for the poor, shellshocked Nikke after she developed PTSD.

Brid: (Sobbing) "How will we explain this to Anis and Rapi?"

She gets no reply as Diesel's mind had finally broken, her sobbing is now uncontrollable, paying no attention to her missing hand and fingers.

***Fort Tokoname***

Within a control room, overseeing the Bay of Ise...

Commander: "Infinity Rail, what's your status?"

There is only silence on the other end.

Commander: "Diesel, are you there? Is anyone there?"

He hears some sounds from the other end that sound like muffled sobbing and sniffing as if Diesel had put her remaining hand on her mouth.

Brid: (On radio) "POWs are dead... We've been decimated."

Commander: "What? How!?"

Chapter Text

***Fort Tokoname***

On the airfield, body bags carrying the remains of Nikkes are being counted by a pair of medics.

Commander approaches Brid and Diesel who look over the remains of Soline.

Diesel is on her knees, looking down at Soline's remains as Brid keeps a hand on her shoulder to keep her calm.

Diesel: " How could those demons be so cruel?"

Commander lifts Soline's lifeless head up and inspects it briefly.

Commander: "Her head is intact! Don't worry, we can rebuild her; we have the technology."

Brid: "See, Diesel?"

Diesel: " Oh thank the maker!"

She turns to her Commander, who smiles at her, happy that she was going to get a second chance at life.

Diesel: (Whispers) "You'll fix her, won't you, Commander?"

Commander: "I'll make sure she's good as new."

Diesel: "Thank you, Commander..."

Diesel smiles and looks down at Soline's remains. The Commander pats Brid on the shoulder, comforting her.

Brid: "Thank you, sir. "

In the background, a dozen missiles from kilometers away are intercepted by air defense rockets fired from the fort.

Brid limps as she turns her body to meet the sight of the annihilated missiles as lasers also engage enemy aircraft above and destroy them.

Brid: (Whispers) "It's beautiful..."

Commander has learned from the Siege of Eden, that force shields are incredibly effective against orbital bombardments, but for now, they are unable to generate a dome shape to protect fully against all directions, owing to the fact that more energy is required to sustain the shields, the more square kilometers of protection are generated. Johan has learned of this fact too.

Prior to the battle, Commander and Johan had agreed that protecting against the orbital bombardment was a necessary sacrifice to keep the shields running. As such, a triangle shaped shield, high in the sky, covering Nagoya City and it's two bays is now in place. However, the city remains assailable horizontally from all sides.

Commander: "Red Hood, how's the situation on the Southern Walls?"

Red Hood: (On radio) "Everything is under control, Commander. The Asuras are bogged down in Mikawa."

Commander: "Crown and Chime, what are your positions?"

Chime: (On radio) "We have secured the East side and are under siege in Nagoya City, but we are holding on for dear life to avoid encirclement."

Crown: (On radio) "Asuras have pushed through Rapture infested wastelands to the North but haven't reached our walls. The West wall has been breached and we're getting reports of new and bizzare weapons used."

Commander: "How so?"

Crown: (On radio) "It's unclear and unconfirmed as of now."

***Nagoya Port***

Johan looks out from an abandoned office building, over the brutalist architecture of the fortified port. The snowy wasteland below him is a bleak reminder of the hardships the world has endured and continues to endure as despite some semblance of order being established, the Nikkes in Nagoya still live in white ruins, reminiscent of the beauty of Dorothy's dress, Noah's armour and Snow White herself, who embodied fairness in appearance and personality... All gone; sacrificed to save his life.

He wonders if it's possible to recover some semblance of beauty for the world if the Chaos Invasion was stopped... But then, he shakes his head. Raptures still exist, and what remains of humanity has not been spared from their tyranny.

Johan: "That heretic, Sol really had to give away Eden, did he?"

He says as the snow falls in silence. Depressingly he looks into the horizon as the waters gleam with the sunlight of the winter day. The skies are a dark blue and clear... He feels his heart sink, seeing the clouds drift across the sky above him, like a vast sea, one which he cannot even dream of crossing...

Johan: "Snow? Dorothy? Harran? Noah... Isa... bel? Are you up there?"

Tears form in his eyes as he closes them, trying to keep the tears from falling down his cheeks. He wants to feel the cold of the snow on his skin, the air, the ground beneath him... He wants to feel it, the embrace of the pure and departed Goddesses. But suddenly he feels an embrace from behind him, and a warm breath on his neck, flowing through his white hair.

Johan: (Whispers) "Hello, beautiful..."

Cecil: (Whispers) "Are you alright? I saw you crying..."

Johan: "I'm fine... It's just that..."

Cecil: "I know you miss them. It's ok to miss them."

Johan: "No... It's not that. I just..."

Cecil: "They would be proud of you if they were here."

Johan: "How could you know that?"

Cecil: "If it weren't for you, humanity would have sleepwalked into oblivion."

They are interrupted by a communication...

Commander: (On radio) "Johan, any sign of enemy activity?"

Johan: "Nothing yet... The Asura starships in the horizon are still low over the waters, nothing new there. No attempts to land troops in the port for now..."

Commander: (On radio) "Understood, Autarch out."

Johan sighs and looks at Cecil.

Johan: "When they come, I won't run again... Not this time."

His hand shakes from the cold as he touches the metal handrail of the broken office window.

Cecil: (Whispers) "Johan, you know that you don't have to do it all alone, right?"

Johan: (Whispers) "I know but... You deserve a good life away from this war."

Cecil: "There's nowhere else I'd rather be than with you."

Johan: "If that makes you happy, so be it."

He holds Cecil's hand and they smile at each other, as the wind blows around them, their white hair blowing in the air.

Odenborg: (Walks in) "Oh my... Sorry to interrupt the lovebirds."

Muginn flies onto the handrail beside the two from outside the window and caws.

Johan: "What's it now, doctor?"

Odenborg: "There's an update to your personal escort, Commander Johan. It appears that the Matis and Extrinsic squads will be added to your security detail."

Johan: "Very well. Who else do we have?"

Odenborg: "That's all the reinforcements we have. Andersen has made sure that Burningum's Nikkes will be kept away from you."

***Mikawa Bay***

A fierce battle rages on the beaches between the Nikkes and Asuras. The coastal walls around Nagoya city have been barricaded and are being protected by Nikkes of both the Knights and the Ark, who man the barricades with improvised fortifications such as sandbags and defences made from whatever they could find in the wastelands.

Red Hood fires a round from her sniper rifle which hits one Asura soldier in the head, causing him to fall to the ground dead as his comrades remain behind cover from the heavy fire they're receiving from the walls.

Anis: "Aha! Gotcha!!"

She fires her grenade launcher, the single round hitting the cover that the Asura soldiers are behind which blow up, killing the Asuras behind it.

Rapi: "There's more behind that debris!"

Rapi opens fire with her assault rifle as other Knights beside her also fire upon the Asuras on the beach in order to suppress them and kill those who come close.

Knight: "They're charging from the left! Focus you fire on the-" (Shot through the jaw) "Gggrr Gaaaaaahhh!!!!"

The Knight is alive, but her lower jaw has been blown off her left hinge as concentrated hails of Asura gunfire pepper the walls and damage fortifications as well as injure or kill unlucky Nikkes. The unlucky Knight writhes in pain as she crawls backwards and screams as she desperately tries to keep her jaw in place.

Automated Defense Turrets immediately fire missiles at several strange vehicles manned by Onryos on the beach that appear to be amphibious APCs.

The strange vehicles approach the walls, deploying blue smoke, attempting to dodge the missiles while shooting back at the defenses.

A Turret is knocked out by one of the APCs recoilless guns but the victory is short lived as it is struck by a missile and explodes, causing the APC to stop, dead in it's tracks.

Mortar fire from behind the walls cease bombarding the Asura positions to the shock of the defenders as they continue to fire back, killing one skeletal fiend after the other.

Red Hood: "Commander! What's going on? Why has the barrage stopped?"

Commander: (On radio) "The underground railway has been sabotaged by Asuras. Ammo and reinforcements are unable to make it from there. The mortars have run out of ammunition!"

The Turrets fire their missiles and machine guns, decimating the first wave of Onryos and vehicles emerging from the smoke as from the right, more Asuras carefully move from cover to cover under suppressive fire, ever closer to the walls.

Anis could hear the cracking and whizzing of the air as the rounds from the Asura pulse rifles fly above their heads and around them, occasionally ricocheting off the walls with loud bangs.

Rapi: "Dead close!" (Rapidly fires her rifle) "Anis, take them out now!"

Anis crawls into position next to Rapi to avoid the intense fire as some other Nikkes drop dead behind her. She aims her grenade launcher at the Asuras from behind a sandbag hole and fires the grenade. The explosion from the grenade sends 3 of the Asuras to their graves. She keeps firing as their charge is unrelenting as they don't appear to fear death. 

Red Hood, Rapi and Neon help in gunning down the Asura machinegunners and riflemen near the wall.

Anis: "No way, we're actually piling up their corpses."

Rapi: (Pants) "I'm running out of ammo..."

Neon: (Points) "So are the turrets! There are more vehicles! Smaller ones."

In the distance, they see ancient Ha-Go light tanks emerge from the blue smoke as Asuras keep the Nikkes suppressed with rifle grenades that land on the wall or on top of it, causing more casualties as explosions mar the walls, shattering stone and making fortifications collapse as they also begin shooting rockets to destroy the turrets and Nikke machinegunners.

Anis: "Oh shit, what the hell are those?"

The Nikke turrets fire their last rounds against the tanks, having run out of missiles already. The tanks are bizzare, they have strange metal grills welded to the front which acts as improvised armour. 

Red Hood watches as a Nikke soldier from another section of the wall farther left fires an RPG at a tank, the rocket ricochets off the grills, sending sparks flying into the air as Red Hood opens fire with armoured piercing rounds.

To her absolute horror, as the rounds pierce the tank, they just keep going through the other side of it's body instead of stopping it. Like nothing happened at all, the tank speeds against the wall and collides with it after smashing through some wooden barriers.

Red Hood: "It's not sto-"

(BOOM!!!)

A catastrophic explosion rocks the walls, throwing the Nikkes off their feet and scattering the sandbags and corpses over the area.

Anis: (Panting) "What happened!?"

Red Hood sees a massive mushroom cloud where the tank was last seen before it blew up. That section of wall has collapsed, leaving a gaping hole in it's wake, allowing the Asuras to continue their charge, through the sandbags and into the wall itself as the turrets continue to fire but at a reduced rate as they have run out of ammo, the remaining Asuras push forwards, overwhelming the Nikkes with sheer numbers as they are all stormed. They hear Onryos shouting a battlecry... One that sent chills down the spines of every enemy facing them.

Onryos: "TENNOHEIKA BANZAI!"

Asuras: "BANZAIIIIII!!!!!!!!"

As the Asuras storm the walls through the holes, more deafening explosions are heard as more Kamikaze tanks explode to create more breaches.

Rapi: "Let's get out of here!!"

She picks herself up and helps Neon as they both run for safety.

Red Hood: "We're retreating! Head to the fort!"

Anis: (Gasps) "What about the wounded?!"

Red Hood: "We can't spare them, there's too many!"

Anis: "But..."

The wall shudders from the explosions as another tank goes off, throwing bodies in all directions as the Nikkes try to escape.

Red Hood: (Helps Anis up) "We can't hold the wall anymore!"

Anis: "Understood! Commander needs us!"

Red Hood: "You have the right idea, let's move!"

They jump off the walls and make a rush for Nagoya's ruins. Their destination is now Fort Tokoname.

Although more Asuras died than Nikkes that day, Humanity had to give ground as the Chaotic Tsunami has swept the shores, forcing the Nikkes back. A temporary respite for the Asuras. However both sides are not anywhere close to defeat as the Forces of Chaos may have won a costly victory. Their leadership knows that if anymore delays occur, the Rajankawa Regiment is doomed to annihilation beneath Nagoya.

Chapter Text

***2 days ago, Ark Supreme Court***

As the Battle of Nagoya rages on above, another gathering of the Ark Security Council has concluded. Fresh out of the green room where Enikk resides, Elections have been suspended indefinitely as a state of emergency was declared after the Secretary's suicide.

Ingrid overhears some chatter in a nearby room between Burningum and the wacky cult leader Stran, recently appointed to the council permanently in place of Andersen, now garrisoned at an elevator.

The stoic CEO of Elysion curiosly listens in.

Burningum: "We need to get rid of Andersen somehow or he'll keep biting us in the back."

Stran: "Not to mention, Johan also is covered by the restraining order. Our Nikkes won't be let anywhere near."

Burningum: "Too bad that we don't have the authority to corrupt Nikkes at will, only Enikk has the codes, we can't ask her to do our dirty work so bluntly."

Stran: "You're right. We need someone who operates largely outside the chain of command to be issued orders to assassinate Johan. However seems that the Matis Squad will be assigned to Johan's security detail in 2 days."

Burningum: "What we need is a Nikke with a Kotodama... And I know just who's the right fit."

Ingrid: "Stop it right there! I won't send Maiden on one of your schemes, General."

Burningum: "Ingrid... You're here, just where I need you to be."

The fat general says in a snobbish manner.

Ingrid: "So this is how she is to you? A tool for your political games? It was your idea to make her, and now she's a scapegoat for your follies with that madman?"

She points to Stran in anger who backs away slightly.

Burningum: "Ultimately she is in your custody, dear, but I now offer you something you can't refuse."

He drops some blackmail on Ingrid in relation to Elysion's use of the Extrinsic squad to secretly kill critics of TETRA LINE who alleged malpractice in their clothing industry.

Ingrid: "What?"

Burningum: "6 years ago, you were offered bribes by Mustang to take care of some nuisances. But of all of them, one was murdered as a result of mistaken identity."

Ingrid: "The police found no evidence to support this..."

Burningum: (Points to Ingrid) "Well, I can't say that you're in the clear. If it wasn't for the fact I helped overlook the fact you used a Black Ops squad primarily used to kill Irregular Nikkes on illegal missions to murder industry workers. If you don't comply, this information will reach Lee Hoon, the son of that woman who Guillotine set up an accident for, UNDER YOUR ORDERS!; Even if accidentally."

Ingrid: (Sighs) "I guess that for so long as you don't call me your dear again, I haven't got a choice but to lend Maiden to your plot."

Stran: "Good..."

Burningum: (Gives Ingrid a small piece of paper) "Take these orders, execute them in 2 days."

***Present Day, Nagoya Port***

It is snowing, and it is cold. Asura ships can be seen on the horizon, hovering along the bay, but not above the city to avoid getting shot at from the Anti-Air defenses of which retuning fire is futile due to the shields above Nagoya.

Maiden, a tall mature-looking Nikke wearing a black face mask with long black hair and eyes red as her rose coloured outfit resembling the eyes of the Asuras, gazes upon the might of the Shogunate's fleet from a white and ruined street.

Maiden: "Do you think the Dark Prince is on one of those ships?"

Guillotine: "No doubt, those are warships."

A large fleet flies above and past them as missiles, laser beams and cannons on the ground fire through their shield at them, some even going through and exploding on their ships.

Maiden: "It's true what they say about the enemy being armed to the teeth."

Guillotine: "They are absolute demons, Maiden. Hehe never had I envisioned them to look so similar to us though..."

They look at the light show, above them in awe as the ship which is spewing out missiles to destroy the shields fires another salvo and the shield remains intact.

Maiden: "Heh... There are some things that even they can't overcome. Though I'd hate to say it, but there's something oddly beautiful about the Asura Shogunate."

Guillotine: "How so?"

Maiden: "Their craftsmanship and weapons are gorgeous and elegant in design. Even when compared to that of the Ark or Raptures... And the Dark Prince himself just screams 40k."

Guillotine: "Oh that tabletop game? You're some nerd aren't you?"

Maiden: (Glares) "You are no better yourself, with your schizo rants about some demon being sealed under your eyepatch and constant fedposting on the internet."

Guillotine: "The One-Winged Dark Lord has been asleep for so long... It is time that he is awakened..."

Maiden: (Sighs) "You silly little cunny, don't you know any better ways to act when we're actually being attacked by... Demons?"

She reminisces watching a recording of the video feed from Dorothy's first person perspective that they had been screened privately prior to the mission as a briefing on understanding the known nature of the Asuras.

Lost in thought while gazing at the passing starships above, the explosions and buzzes in the sky fade slowly as her daydream enters her focus as her dark hair is lightened ever so slightly by white snow falling on her hair as snowflakes enter her field of view.

Maiden thinks about the first time she saw the Prince in the observatory through Dorothy's eyes. The majestic view of the stars, the planet below them and the beauty of the man whom she came to know as the Prince Noro of the Void.

He had not one wing, but four but he is a Dark Lord, just not the one Guillotine talks about. It is obvious that Prince Noro is a warrior with a huge ambition and brutal nature. Despite that, his dark hair and aesthetically pleasing features are far from being what the Asuras would be known for.

Dorothy was enamoured by his charismatic charm, and for a time he gave her hope. That hope has faded after what infamously occurred next.

A Flashback of the video resonates through her mind, recalling the Prince through his victim's eyes...

[Dorothy: "Awww... But my Prince, don't you want to have a sexy Goddess like me fall in love with you at first sight?"]

[She hugs his leg, and slowly, begins to pull her hands up toward his groin, slowly just narrowly stopping a few inches away from it.]

[Noro looks down at her, into her eyes as Dorothy looks back into his blood red and glowing eyes.]

[Dorothy: "What do you say, my beautiful Prince?"]

[Noro lifts her chin up with two fingers of his left hand and their lips draw evermore closer.]

Guillotine: "Hey! We have to get moving!"

The daydream is broken by the urgent reminder.

Maiden: (Grunts) "Ack, you're right. Let's move."

She says, shaking her head as they both make their way to where Johan has set up his command post.

As Maiden runs behind Guillotine, she receives an order...

Ingrid: (On radio) "Maiden, when you reach the post, talk to Dr. Odenborg he has something important to say. You should know him as the scientist who screened the little horror show you witnessed yesterday."

Maiden: "Understood, Ma'am."

She remains silent but at the back of her mind, throughout her journey through the pristine and militarized newly built buildings of the Last Kingdom, after the field of ruins; she could still imagine being at the mercy of Prince Noro's charm, his red glowing eyes and the sharp fangs in his mouth.

***

As they approach the building where Johan has set up his command post, they catch a glimpse of him peering out towards them with binoculars.

They also see outside the building that the Matis squad awaits their arrival.

Maxwell: (Lowers sniper rifle) "It's Extrinsic."

Drake waves at them with a wicked smile, typical of her.

Laplace: "Greetings, my ladies. I must say, I am absolutely enamoured by your choice of combat apparel."

Guillotine: "Very Victorian of me hehe isn't that right, Maiden?"

She looks over her shoulder as Maiden responds with a nod as her eyes turn to the ground.

They enter the building to meet with Johan who observes the air battle above as he spots several Ark Hypersonic Jets get shot down, and others firing missiles towards the Shogunate's starships in formation; striking a few successful hits.

Maiden: "Dr. Odenborg?"

Odenborg: "Ah, so glad to see you finally. Maiden, come in, we need to talk."

As Guillotine prepares to follow them, the One-eyed doctor lifts his hand up indicating to halt.

Odenborg: "No, not you... These orders from Ingrid are only for Maiden."

He hands Maiden a sealed envelope.

Odenborg: "For your eyes only."

Maiden: (Nods) "I understand, doctor."

Odenborg: "Head to the corner there and read it before giving it back to me."

The masked Nikke nods and silently obeys.

Guillotine: "What's this about, doc? It better be good news!"

Odenborg: "I'm only a messanger... I see that you lost an eye too."

Guillotine: "Oh this? It's no big deal really. If I open it, the Dark Lord shall wreak his bloodlust on the world!"

Johan: "As far as I'm concerned he already is."

Maiden: "Excuse the little brat's behavior, she's autistic."

Guillotine: "Hey!!"

Drake: "Oh a fellow schizo!"

Maxwell: "Quiet, you two, don't go on with more rants now."

Done reading the letter, Maiden hands the letter back to Odenborg as ordered and he promptly takes out a lighter to burn it.

Odenborg: "You know that Johan is a highly skilled and capable individual. Even though we are all risking our necks here, it is time to put a pin in your wild fantasies."

Guillotine: "Fine...."

Drake: "Righty-O."

***Fort Tokoname***

Commander and Mika are together as they watch the counters restock on ammunition.

Mika: "Is there any possibility of a counterattack?"

Commander: (Sighs) "It is a possibility but not one that we can hope for."

She notices that he is unusually silent and he has been looking outside at the snow and the sky for the past few days. She wonders what's on his mind but before she could ask, she feels his arms around her, with his forehead resting against hers, his breath warm on her face.

She doesn't move and only smiles as he holds her close, relishing in their shared moment of intimacy.

Commander: "We'll have to take chances with the fort. If they lose here, we can push them away. After all it appears the Shogunate's forces are resulting to increasingly suicidal attacks."

He looks up to see several drone patrols sent out to spy on Asura positions.

Mika: "Ciel, wounded and dead just keep coming out of the tunnels."

Commander: (Whispers) "They are attempting to exhaust us... They know they cannot break through. All we can do is make our defenses last and hold the line."

She touches his face, gently caressing his cheek as she feels his soft skin against the winter air.

Mika's attention is drawn to something behind him. She points and exclaims:

Mika: "Whoa..."

Commander: "And that is what we have that could turn the tide of the war."

He turns to see a giant humanoid mecha robot, 5 metres tall. It is TALOS, a marvel of Misslis Industry's engineering. Her pilot, a Nikke named Kilo brings the heavy mech towards Commander's direction. Every footstep is met with a thump and the clicks of the hydraulics with some gas pistons giving of hisses make up the sound of the cocking of the massive 40mm autocannon on TALOS's right arm.

Kilo: "All systems online, at your service Commander."

Commander: "Acknowledged."

***Asura Flagship Khagan***

Noro: "Do you think we can still press forwards towards the fort?"

Jamsaram: (Nods) "It is not impossible if we gather enough vehicles to encircle their fort with a Kamikaze Blitzkrieg. The real issue is that if we can't make a dent in those shields, they will force us to methodically besiege Tokoname alone in a long and drawn out effort, costing us too much time and manpower for just a small section of the city if fire support isn't possible."

Noro: "The enemy is clever... They set up the shield at an altitude where our artillery even when fired from the beach gets blocked due to the elevation of the guns. And they can still fire through their shields, making our arty useless."

Khan: "What if though... We punch through the shields with something too big to counter that would overload them?"

Jamsaram: "Prince Noro already ordered no nukes to be used even tactically just yet."

Khan: "I didn't say to use nuclear weapons. I'm suggesting that the immense size of the Khagan and the various demonic energies binded to it's construction would be enough to punch through the shields if we are willing to conduct such a high risk assault."

Jamsaram: "Sounds fun."

Noro: (Smiles maliciously) "Very clever, Admiral... We have momentum to preserve until we take Tokyo and free our Immaterial Emperor. I'm willing to try anything."

Noro seems excited for the plan.

Khan: "And I shall do my part as well. I will come down personally to fight on the ground if you request."

Noro: "No time to waste... Get ready for war!"

***

Back in Johan's command post, the Matis squad are still taking up positions on the office building's windows that have been partially barricaded.

Drake: "I wonder why Johan chose this dump instead of Crown's Palace."

Maxwell: "To not draw attention to his position maybe?"

Laplace: "Whatever the case may be, the view from up here is great, and when the Chaos forces land, we'll have our backs to the building for cover."

They hear a commotion in a nearby wall, a thump against the wall followed by a yell:

Johan: "Help! Anyone!? Matis?"

Maxwell: "It's Johan!"

They enter the room to see Johan pushing Guillotine against the wall in a struggle for her machinegun as the Nikke attempts to aim her weapon towards the cybernetically augmented Pilgrim as he uses the gun's leverage against her.

Laplace: "What's going on here?"

The Matis squad aims their guns towards them but are unable to shoot Guillotine without hurting Johan, resulting in a standoff.

Cecil: "Guillotine, stand down!"

Guillotine: "This is nothing personal towards Johan, I'm only following orders."

She grunts as she tries to stab Johan with a hidden dagger which he catches with his left hand but his grip is loosened as a result.

Guillotine: "Maiden!!"

Maiden appears from behind them with her mask pulled down as she yells:

Maiden: "Everyone, stop!"

All the Nikkes are frozen in place by the Kotodama chip on Maiden's tongue, even Guillotine, freeing Johan for a second who stares down Maiden with her weapon aimed in his direction.

Maiden: "Johan, move aside!"

He jumps aside as Maiden fires a shotgun blast into Guillotine's chest unexpectedly, causing her core to spark and smoke as she falls to the floor.

Guillotine: "Gahhh!!!!"

Maiden: "Nothing personal, just following orders. It was nice knowing you Guillotine."

She steps on her squadmate's head, killing her as a metal crunch is heard.

Maiden: "Are you alright?"

Johan: "Yes, thanks for the save."

Maiden: "The letter given to me stated that Ingrid was blackmailed into forcing us unknowingly to participate in an assassination attempt against you by Burningum. She was betrayed by him before, so she sabotaged the plot against you..."

Odenborg: "That's right, with my help."

Johan: (Turns) "Doctor... So it was your idea?"

Odenborg: "It was Hadrian's idea. The Ark has no intention of winning at Nagoya. Ever noticed how the Raptures haven't attacked us once on our way here? That's because the Security Council wants to hold negotiations through Enikk with the Raptures for some vague deal..."

Johan: "You are an Agarthan?"

Odenborg: "Always have been... Ingrid corresponded with Medusa for this."

Johan: "They plan to betray us, then? And so we were just cannon fodder all along..."

Cecil hugs Johan from behind in a hug as her forehead rests on his shoulder.

Cecil: "What will you do?"

Johan: "If the Ark surrenders, what will happen to humanity and if we are defeated here, what will become of us?"

Odenborg: "There's only one way to find out. What's the plan now, Johan?"

Johan: "I say we continue this fight."

Maiden: "You all can move now."

The Matis squad unfreezes to their relief.

Odenborg: "I say our best chances are to surrender to the Asuras and join their human collaborators."

Johan: "I will not... I WILL NOT FOLLOW IN SOL'S FOOTSTEPS!!!!"

Odenborg: "The Ark has abandoned us all. The Raptures will be given free reign over them soon... It's either the humanoids or the machines."

Johan: "I won't shoot a fellow man for this... I don't agree with the Agarthanorden, but if you have your own way, then go..."

Odenborg: "Alright then."

The scientist turns around and is joined by Muginn the raven on his shoulder. Matis watches as he exits the building into the snowy outdoors, eventually disappearing out of view as a deserter.

Chapter Text

***Free City of Nagoya***

Snow keeps falling as Odenborg walks away from the Renovated and fortified areas of Crown's little Kingdom. He looks back to see the towers and spires behind the Palace Walls built in a Neo-Romanesque architecture style, resembling mythical castles of Old Europe.

Muginn flies above him and caws before landing on his shoulder.

Another figure emerges from the misty ruins in Nagoya's wasteland wearing a lab coat like him.

Medusa: "Doctor!" 

He runs towards her as she stands near an abandoned street, marred with withered and bombed out shophouses.

Odenborg: "I'm glad you got out of the Ark in one piece. We're you followed?"

Medusa: "No... I was able to escape via an emergency elevator shaft. The one thing I am grateful for is the fact that Andersen gave me a crate to stow myself away on an aerial."

Odenborg: "I can't return to the Ark, I've deserted my post and Johan refused to give himself to Chaos."

Medusa: (Nods) "I understand."

Suddenly the doctor hears an unexpected voice behind them.

???: "God ettermiddag, Doktor!"

He's surprised to hear a greeting in Norwegian, an old surface language he is able to understand due to it's linguistic similarities with his native Danish. He turns to see a middle aged dark blonde man in a trench coat.

Odenborg: "And you told me you weren't followed..."

Medusa looks at the man awkwardly.

???: "I mean no harm, doctor."

The man walks behind a lamp post and vanishes into thin air, confusing them both.

???: "I'm an ethereal and a friend of Meister Serrano."

Odenborg and Medusa turn around as they hear the man's distinct Norwegian accent behind them. They see that he has extended a hand towards the one-eyed doctor.

Odenborg: (Shakes hand) "Afternoon! I've never seen you before."

???: "You may have heard of me... Johan back at his command post actually used a word to describe you for attempting to defect... A word synonymous with treason."

Odenborg: "Oh, really?"

He releases his grip from the man's hand.

???: "The word he used is 'Quisling'..."

The Odenborg's eye widens in shock as he starts to get goosebumps upon hearing that name; he has just started to catch on to the situation...

Odenborg: "Y- You're..."

Quisling: "Yes, you're right doctor. I am Vidkun Quisling. Not many people of your generation even remember how my name came to be or who I even was; but they remember my name all too well as it is just a word used to describe treason to them."

Odenborg: "But, why? Why would you be here? With me!?"

Medusa: "Wait, he's Vidkun Quisling... But how?"

Quisling: "I've come to offer some advice, for the greater good doctor."

Odenborg: "For the greater good...?"

Quisling: "I was in a similar position before as you may know. There will be plenty of hate towards you for this. You can't turn back, doctor. When your mission is complete, don't take my name as an insult, but rather wear it with pride. Redeem my name, Odenborg... May your new government to be, win for Chaos!"

Odenborg: (Nods) "Understood, I'll do it, Herr Quisling."

He looks up to the snowy skies above, a massive 7km Asura Flagship, the Khagan is in view, just visible behind the clouds.

Odenborg: "What's the plan?"

Quisling: "Same as always, doctor... Make it to the Asura lines."

With that being said, Quisling vanishes into thin air.

Odenborg: "He's gone..."

Medusa: "So that was the famous Vidkun Quisling... I never knew what he was like."

Odenborg: "Nor did I... He was surprisingly nice."

The two then proceed to embark on their journey towards defection without further delay.

***Nagoya Underground***

Hei had just recently linked up with his unit. However things are not all smooth with the Rajankawa Regiment...

Para Officer 1: "Men, we've got new orders. It seems General Valak has called off the hunt for the shield generators. We have taken 40% casualties, but our sabotage efforts have led to the fall of the Southern walls of the coast. We are now to surface and hold out until reinforcements arrive."

The Officers commend Valak's plan as a brilliant one to send the Nikke forces on a suicide mission in an attempt to get them killed in pursuit of the regiment as they are predicted to inevitably run into Asura reinforcements.

Para Officer 1: "Men, move out."

The regiment abandon their makeshift fortifications and start to orderly move through the tunnels.

Hei: "The nearest exit may be near, but we're still far from our frontlines."

Para Officer 2: "It's been a fine game of cat and mouse, but we're still tunnel rats as of now."

Several minutes pass as they see the light from the end of the tunnel atop a flight of stairs and a disused escalator.

Paratrooper: "It's bright... It looks like dawn."

Suddenly the hear a voice coming from hidden loudspeakers...

Elegg: (Echoes) "I'm Elegg, and I'm a 12 out of 10!~ My favorite game is... BOOM!"

A massive explosion occurs in the tunnel, slightly behind the Asuras. Hei falls to the ground, blinded by the dust from the explosion. The Chaos Marine can barely hear the voices around him from the ringing in his ears and can barely see from his helmet which protects his glowing eyes.

Eventually the dust clears as Nikke machineguns open fire on any red glowing eyes they can see. Dead and wounded are scattered on the floor, the survivors pinned down by the machineguns. Hei dashes for cover.

Para Officer 2: "We've walked right into an ambush!"

Para Officer 1: "We have no choice, we can't turn back we'll be encircled and destroyed."

Para Officer 2: "Element 1, we have to break out now! With all our strength!"

Para Officer 1: "Marines! Lay down suppressive fire!"

All the Chaos Marines organize themselves to shoot back at their assailants above ground. The Paratroopers run and gun with their pule rifles and SMGs, overwhelming the Nikkes on the top as the machinegunners are silenced, dropping for cover or dropping dead in the process.

Some more smaller explosives are detonated on the walls nearby the stairs and escalators which cause more death and injuries towards the advancing Asuras.

Para Officer 2: "Agh!!! My leg is fucked!"

The Officer clutches his leg, injured by a piece of shrapnel which he pulls out. He's done for... His leg is broken and he is bleeding out.

Para Officer 2: "Charge them now!!! Leave me here... For the Dark Prince!!! For Chaos!!!"

Onryos: "BANZAIIII!!!!!!"

***

On the surface, Elegg hears their war cry... Her 'blood' runs cold.

Elegg: "Wha? Not all of them went BOOM?"

Trony: "Here they come..."

The Nikkes of both Ark and Pilgrim origin ready their weapons anxiously as their dead and wounded in front of them beg to be rescued before the Asuras reach the surface... Screaming and crying louder and louder, their sisters in arms behind them are too frozen in fear to do anything.

Countless red, glowing eyes emerge from the tunnel at shocking speed, throwing grenades and firing rockets.

Elegg: "Return fire!!" (Shoots Machinegun)

They can hear the sound of flesh being cut by sharp swords, the cries of the wounded and the thumps of bodies falling to the ground in heavy red blood... The explosions of the Asura grenades, lobbed in their dozens do nothing to stop the screams of pure terror, nor do the firing of their weapons as the Rajankawa Regiment banzai charge ahead, ignoring their dead and dying as their Chainguns and Pulse rifles tear the Nikke ranks apart, sometimes literally.

Some fall from a rocket impact, others are killed by swords, bayonets and even mauled by their brutal jaws, bolstered by the serrated teeth on Asura helmets.

Elegg stops firing and grabs Trony's hand...

Elegg: "Run!!!"

They both run for their lives with some Nikkes following them, screaming for their lives as the bloodlust of the oncoming Asuras overwhelm the terrified Nikkes.

Trony: "This way! Follow me!!"

The two make it to a corner of an old road where they turn into a nearby building, away from the slaughter.

Trony: (Panting) "Here!! Are we fighting demons or the Helldivers?"

Elegg: "I don't know but I'm starting to feel like an automaton."

Trony laughs at the joke, the irony not lost on her.

Elegg: "We've seen enough... Let them escape; we drove them out of the tunnels. We still have a fort to defend."

***

An hour later, the Rajankawa Regiment are airlifted out of the battle after fending off multiple harassing attacks by the White Knights.

Aboard the dropship, they reflect on those who they lost, including the Officer of Element 2.

Hei: "He was a great man who sacrificed himself, so we didn't have to carry a dead weight."

The Paratrooper he is talking to has a scar on his face and has a few shards of a grenade lodged in his leg.

Paratrooper: "He may have fallen, but he made sure we moved forwards even without him... Perhaps maybe you should replace him."

Hei: "It is too early for that, it was just one mistake. I'm lucky to be alive after a near miss with a rocket. I am no hero... I am just one of many."

Paratrooper: "That's true."

Onryo: "Don't forget to clean your sword of blood, Hei. You know they rust easily."

Hei: (Pats sword) "Yes, yes, I know."

The Rajankawa Regiment took 70% casualties with 50% killed after 4 days in the underground... Running out of food and water, they were often forced to hunt Nikkes just to eat them. It's a miracle that Nikkes were designed by humans to be edible in cases where human soldiers get stranded and forced to 'cannibalize' their Nikkes... Something that worked in the favour of the demonic bloodlust of Chaos.

Only 150 of the 300, made it out of Nagoya alive.

***Crown's Palace***

Within Nagoya, beyond the Port; Johan had relocated his command post to the more fortified Palace as he suspects Odenborg will now give away his position to the Asuras after his defection. He has given his Nikkes time to rest until the inevitable arrival of the Shogunate's forces.

In a private room, Maiden listens to her communicator for Ingrid confessing what truly happened with her orders to kill Guillotine.

Ingrid: "I'm sorry, Maiden... I have always treated you special. You see... Burningum and I we're once married for 19 years. That's how he knows me well."

Maiden: "It's okay... I forgive you... I mean, killing irregulars and following orders is my job."

Ingrid: "No... You've lost your humanity. You weren't always like this. Burningum and I had a daughter together and when she was 18, her father forced her to become a Nikke. Or should I say, your father?"

Maiden: "My father?"

Ingrid: "You we're my daughter once, Maiden... You still act like her. I opposed turning you into a Nikke and our marriage fell apart... It just wasn't the same after you became who you are now... Burningum turned you into a dehumanized killer. I wanted to stop you from becoming a machine but I was just as scared of what he might do if I didn't obey."

Maiden: "Mom?"

Ingrid: "Yes, my little one. No matter what happens to me now, your mother will always love you."

Maiden feels something inside of her. A tear streams down her cheek.

Ingrid: (Whispers) "You are what remains of my only daughter... (Sobs) a-and you will always be my only child. Mother, dear will always... (Sniff) watch over- (Sobs) you..."

Maiden: "Thank you, mom..."

Ingrid moves to terminate the transmission in tears, unable to hold back anymore, but she relents and tells her some last words before she goes:

Ingrid: "You're now free, dear... Do as you please. You're no longer bound by my orders. If something happens to me, it is your father's doing."

Maiden: "Don't worry about it, I'll be alright. Goodbye, mom. I love you."

She hangs up, and the tears continue to flow...

Maiden: (Whispers) "I can't cry..."

She looks at the ground for some time as she slowly lets the tears dry, eventually wiping them from her face.

Maiden: "I was made to be a machine... Made to serve. To obey orders... But I'm not human, am I? I don't remember what it is to cry. I've forgotten..."

***

In Crown's throne room, through some massive beautiful semicircular windows on the walls, Johan looks upon the bizzare movement pattern of the Asura flagship in the horizon.

Crown: "Uhm... Johan..."

Johan: "There's something up with the trajectory of that ship..."

Crown: "And the fact that it's gigantic... That ship keeps getting closer."

Chime: "This isn't very comfy."

A nearby monitor in the throne room, displays footage of the Khagan which is approaching. It is even bigger than Crown's Palace as Johan can see.

Johan: "So you have finally come to face me."

They witness an incredibly unbelievable sight as the shield above, ripples and an aurora of light can be seen forming around the Khagan as it crashes through the shield and attempts to break through further. Shapes swirl around as some swear they can see distorted faces and skeletons in the aurora.

Crown: "Fire at the ship! Prepare to defend the Last Kingdom!"

Air raid sirens sound across Nagoya as the Knights fire upon the incoming colossal ship, 7km long.

Missiles fly, and ground fire lights up the winter sky as broad daylight has never been brighter, for the Last Kingdom shines in it's greatest hour where it's fate will be firmly decided.

Chapter Text

***Skies above Nagoya***

Within the Khagan, one of the largest ships of the Asura Shogunate's fleet, the soldiers look out of the window.

An Asura soldier sees it, an entire section of the city's shield being grazed by the lower decks below him. The Khagan keeps plowing through the shield as the sky around it pulsates and ripples unnatural lights and shapes that begin to engulf the area around it in a red hue. Everyone around the soldier could hear it, the humming of the ship's engines and the explosions in the air from the ground fire directed at them by their enemies below.

The sound of their engines start to sound as if they were moaning in agony, the ship's hull begins to moan as if it is alive. The entire ship seems to shudder and it starts to slowly gain speed. The sound of faint roaring and growling is heard in the background. The men, all aboard the Khagan are unfazed as they are aware that these are the demons bound to the hull of their ship they call home.

One of them watches in awe at the sight of the aurora and the distorted figures they can see looking back at them, some knocking on the windows as a magnetic fog engulfs the sky around their deck.

Asura Rifleman: "The spirits of the dead... I can feel them. Their voices call out to me..."

They hear a sound of screaming and screaming in the distance as it becomes louder and louder. The aurora grows in intensity around the ship as it starts to make its way down to the city, seemingly drowning out the missiles and laser blasts that pelt the ship's hull.

Within the Helm deck, Admiral Khan reports the situation to his brothers in arms.

Khan: "We're almost through! Prepare yourselves for battle!"

They see the clouds of fog and the magnetic storm above the deck as they continue their path through the shield as the screaming of thousands of souls are heard before a reaching a crescendo, sending a psychic shockwave off the Khagan's hull that cripples the shield.

Noro: "It's done! All hands to battle!"

The Helmsdeck erupts in a collective...

Crewmen: "YES MY LORD!!!"

Alarms sound throughout the halls and sections of the Khagan, all 7 kilometers of flying demonic steel, notifying the troops to execute their planned assault.

***Crown's Palace***

Within the throne room, the windows have been covered with holographic projections of Crown depicted as a self styled "King" of her Kingdom in a tinted glass style to prevent those within the Palace-Castle hybrid building from gazing upon the unnatural winter sky.

Chime: "Your Highness, I'm receiving more reports of Knights who have lost their minds upon hearing that foul sky scream having jumped to their deaths from the towers above."

Crown: "More suicides? Is there anything we can do to save them?"

Johan: "These are Asuras we're talking about... Their eldritch weaponry barely has any understanding behind it... Everytime, they deploy something that defies the laws of reality, we can barely adapt to how unpredictable the effects are. Our chances are slim."

Crown: "This is absolutely horrendous! Some of our good knights are now in shambles due to merely looking at the sky."

Johan: "We can only push aside the ill, manning the air defenses for now and replace them with the unaffected... Our shield is now down and the Dark Prince is in our grasp shortly."

Chime: "But you mustn't underestimate him... He is the man who bested you before."

Johan: "And I intend to take him head-on. There is no other choice. I will have my revenge against Noro or die trying. We cannot continue to hide under the protection of a shield... Not while we're already down here."

Cecil: "Andersen! The shield has fallen... All aircraft are on standby for liftoff though."

Andersen: (On radio) "The ship is the size of a small city... My bombers can attack it from above as it's rather low above the Kingdom now... I'm sorry for what happened with Odenborg."

Johan: "That's quite alright, Andersen. I am no tyrant... I understand that many must suffer to win... We must give our all against the Asuras in order to win. We will bring the battle to Noro's doorstep as our final counterattack against the Shogunate's Chaos Invasion."

Crown: "The Last Kingdom; if it falls, shall go down fighting like the great heroes of old!"

Johan: "So, as you know Burningum tried to shoot me in the back again..."

Andersen: "I have your back, Johan... We must fight like there's no tomorrow. Our fates have been sealed."

Johan: "Commander... You heard this right?"

Commander: (On radio) "I'm already dug in at the fort... They're making weird moves."

Crown: "What do you mean by 'Weird moves'? What's the status?"

Commander: "The Flagship isn't moving towards Tokoname... It's headed in your direction."

Several booms are heard on the radio transmission indicating that the Asura artillery has started firing on their positions.

Explosions and the rush of shells through the air are heard from outside the Palace only 2 seconds later.

Crown: "The artillery... They're attacking the Palace!?"

Commander: (On radio) "It's another salvo, take cover!"

The Throne room is rocked by several simultaneous impacts, as they hear the sound of the Palace's glass windows breaking, showering the Nikkes in the throne room with shattered glass.

Johan: "Commander! Launch all your aircraft now!"

Commander: (On radio) "Understood. Acknowledged."

Crown: "Is the Palace still intact?"

Chime: "Pretty much."

The Matis squad follows Johan and Cecil towards a nearby aerial.

Drake: "Maiden, we're getting out of here, right?"

Maiden: "We have our orders."

Johan: "Yes, we shall win today, or die trying!"

The aerial takes off and turns towards the Khagan. They can see the top of the demonic Flagship's hull emerge from the clearing fog around it as it takes a slight turn towards the Royal Palace of the Last Kingdom. The skies around the Khagan have returned largely to normal, however they see Asura fighters and Vimanas pour out of the ship's side. They witness dozens of drones and missiles deploying from the side of the ship as well, as all of Humanity's own aircraft charge though the air, full speed ahead as ground fire tries to support humanity's advance.

Andersen: (On radio) "Bombers are now above!"

The sky is in total Chaos as hundreds of aircraft are now engaging in dogfights, and escorting the bombers.

Maiden covers her eyes as a dozen missiles explode around their aircraft, downing many aerials in their squadron and a few Ark jets, leaving them totally unharmed.

Laplace: "That was too close!"

Maxwell: "The Vimanas have the advantage here, our own aircraft are more suited for ground attacks and air assault."

Cecil who is flying the aerial replies:

Cecil: "We're still faster! Full speed ahead!"

Drake: "Woohoo!!!! Yeah!"

The Matis squad gets a great deal of excitement from the afterburners.

They see the Khagan growing ever larger in front of them.

Maiden witnesses in awe, the carpet bombings of the Khagan's hull, by the bomber's payloads, being detonated over the area, producing large mushroom clouds.

She opens her eyes to see the Khagan's side slowly get closer as it approaches them.

Some bombers, shot down and jets too; crash into the ship, some breaking through the hull and falling out, others leaving behind a trail of smoke as they plummet to the ground, impacting the ground below.

Cecil: "I see it, there!"

The aerial's doors open for the Nikkes to shoot at air defenses, as many other aerials join in the fray, firing rockets and shooting their guns in a frenzy.

The defenses are overwhelmed, several turrets are knocked out by cannonfire.

The Matis squad sees that the hull of the Khagan is full of holes, not just small ones but large holes, and craters.

***

On the Helmsdeck, Prince Noro and his admirals are armed to the teeth, but surprised by the direct assault carried out on the Khagan.

Noro: "Admiral, we need to act fast before they destroy anymore aircraft in our hangars."

Khan: "This would mean canceling our planned assault."

Noro: "Today the battle has came for us. Now go, Admiral. Smite them from the skies."

Khan: "As you wish, my liege."

Khan departs the room to defend the hangars with his Chaos Raptors.

Jamsaram: "We're being boarded... Several decks have been infiltrated via the holes and craters of our ship... Crown herself has arrived at our front door!"

Noro: "Can this get any worse?"

An Ark bomber is shot down in front of them, it's wings on fire as it tumbles towards the hull in front of them at full speed, resulting in an explosion, as the wreck skids and smashes into the helm.

Noro braces for impact as the room is rocked by the crash.

The Prince gets up, as several crewmen lay dead and others extinguish the fire burning around the wreckage.

Noro: "Jamsaram?"

Jamsaram: "I'm fine."

He turns to see hear distress...

Asura Officer: (On radio) "My Lord, we are requesting assistance in the middle upper deck, the Nikkes have some sort of... Mech?"

Noro: "Affirmative... Jamsaram, you go help them. I can manage on my own."

Jamsaram: "Aye, Prince."

Noro: "I'll be in contact with you shortly..."

Jamsaram leaves the room.

Noro: (Whispers) "The Prince shall be alone with his prey."

He engages his metallic dark wings and flies out of the hole in the helm to assess the situation.

He notices an Ark fighter being shot down by a rocket, as he glides to avoid debris from the craft.

Noro: "There's still a lot of our men left."

He sees a Nikke combat drone nearby which attempts to shoot him out of the sky.

Noro jinks around and draws his Katana, turning his back towards the drone's gunfire; his wings deflecting the shots before he lands a mid air kick onto the drone, destroying a propeller, sending it to the ground.

Noro: "These drones are a pest but are nothing like Rapture drones."

An aerial hones onto him as he hovers, he glimpses it as it attempts to tear him apart with it's autocannon. He evades the speeding aircraft before it turns again, it's door gunner shooting at him as he speeds up towards it.

He rushes towards it, his Katana drawn and glowing with demonic energy. He plunges his blade into the aerial's side to anchor himself to it and reaches in to pull the gunner out.

As the Nikke screams as she falls into oblivion, Noro pulls out an SMG and starts firing into the cabin, killing everyone inside. He then moves himself to the front and cuts a hole in the cockpit, sending the now dead pilot out, before hijacking the aerial.

He laughs as he flies through the air.

Noro: "Let's see what this thing can do."

He accelerates towards the nearest point where Nikkes have boarded the ship. He notices that a section of the hull was captured by the counters, Rapi having raised the flag of the United Forces of Humanity atop it, the Nikkes cerebrating with their Commander.

Noro: "Ah... Target acquired!"

He accelerates towards them, hoping to strafe them but is cut short by a sudden blast behind him which rocks the aerial.

Noro: "Damnit! I'm losing control..."

Several White Knights with Goddess Wings fly out of an aerial behind him and attempt to kill him as they latch on to the side of his captured aerial.

Knight: "For the Last Kingdom!! You will die you demonic filth!"

He tries to keep control of the aircraft momentarily before rolling it suddenly to his left, causing his aerial to collide with the aerial in pursuit of him; causing the Knights on the two aircraft to crash and fall towards the ground below as some are instantly crushed by the mid air collision. Noro bails out and spreads his wings before flying away from the burning wrecks.

Noro: "You won't get me so easily!"

Soon he touches down on a scaffold on the side of the Khagan. Although usually meant for maintainence purposes and tethering in Zero-G environments, they appear to be helpful towards Nikke flyers who use them to board the Khagan via the various holes.

Noro: "Johan's plan is to board us from the outside and create more entrances by blowing holes in our ship... A well thought out plan, but it's too late now."

Noro is interrupted by his communicator.

Sol: (On radio) "Milord, the Nikkes have breached the collaborator section of our deck. We're trying to hold them off with whatever we can!"

Noro: "You need reinforcements, Sol?"

Sol: (On radio) "Yes. Hurry. We can't hold them off much longer. The rest of the deck is already surrounded by the White Knights. They're out for bloody revenge."

Noro: "I'll be there soon..."

Looking towards the sky, Noro sees hundreds of suicide drones launched by the Last Kingdom, towards the Khagan, escorted by Ark fighters and bombers being intercepted by Asura fighters... Many explosions, light up the sky, but the wave makes it through and engulfs the hull of the Khagan to his right in rows of explosions, which rattle the ship and heat the air.

He enters the Khagan through a hole and takes a sharp turn towards the collaborator section of the deck, nearby. He hears gunfire and sees several White Knights fighting Asuras, Onryos and Human collaborators who man machineguns, and fire back with pistols... Anything they can carry reliably that will actually put a dent or a wound in a Nikke.

Knight: "Give it up, traitor. You will die with the rest of your scum!"

They taunt the Renegades, led by Sol from the distance.

Sol: (Firing Machinegun) "Milord! I'm glad to see you. I've managed to take out a few RPGs. They absolutely decimated our section with drones and another explosives. All your human auxiliaries have taken up arms, Milord."

He talks as he fires his machinegun to prevent the Nikkes from picking up RPGs from their corpses. The room ahead of them is full of corpses of Asuras and Humans, bones of Onryos and the downed bodies of Nikkes with blood on the walls and floors pelted with bullet holes.

Noro: "There are a lot of them... You actually did choke that doorway with bodies. I'm thoroughly impressed."

Nikke: (In the distance) "It's the Prince!! Kill him."

Nikkes on the other side of the hall call for Elite reinforcements as the gunfire exchange continues with Noro firing his SMG towards them.

Noro: "Sol, fall back! Save your strength for the occupation plans."

Sol: "Not a chance. I'm staying with you."

Noro: "How brave... I suppose that bringing you on campaign for administrative duties armed really did pay off after all."

Onryo: "My Lord, the Wehrmen will reinforce our position."

Sol: "Haha! Space Marines!"

Noro: "Sol, watch your back."

Noro fires at a Nikke that managed to flank their position from behind them.

Neon: "Agh!!! Damnit!"

The Nikke yells in agony as she clutches her arm where the bullet has hit her.

Sol: (Shoots Neon with a Revolver) "Don't underestimate a Renegade."

Neon falls back, clutching her throat onto the floor above, her gurgling voice fading as the blood from the gunshot on her neck reaches her mouth.

Rapi: "No!"

Rapi throws a grenade into the hole which has been opened in the floor as she hears the Asuras below yell.

Asura Rifleman: "GRENADE!!!!"

An explosion from the deck below throws a dust cloud through the hole.

Anis: "Well done, Rapi!"

They run over to Neon. Red Hood watches the situation from behind in cover through her advanced sniper scope.

Red Hood: (On radio) "I saw what happened. Is she okay?"

Rapi: (Drags Neon) "Neon!!"

Rapi checks to see that she is still alive.

Neon: "I... (Coughing and gurgling) H-hel..."

She coughs out blood as she tries to turn herself over to get back on her feet.

Anis: "Keep moving, we're not gonna leave you here."

Mika: "Help will be on the way!"

They see her right arm is bloody as well as she is helped onto her feet by Rapi.

Mika: "Commander, what do we do now?"

Commander: "Tactical retreat, get Neon to safety... I've been told the Asura position below was neutralized."

Mika: "Yes sir."

She takes Neon with her towards the captured sections of the deck roofs of the Khagan as Rapi and Anis provide support.

***

Commander: (On radio) "Johan, is Noro dead?"

Johan: "We've taken their position. Lot's of corpses here... Blood, guts. But... No Noro."

Crown: "You can't let these losses stop you."

Chime: "How did he slip away?"

Johan: "We'll go ahead and try to take the main command centre of the ship next. The place where the Prince is most likely to be."

Commander: (On radio) "Affirmative, we'll try and get Talos, to cause as much of a distraction as possible."

As they wait for reinforcements, Johan listens with Cecil to the sounds of flak and buzzing of autocannons as explosions go off a few times every minute.

Andersen: (On radio) "Be advised, our numbers in the sky are thinning... Medevac upon request is currently unavailable. Stress levels on logistics are critical."

Cecil: "Not a good sign."

Andersen: (On radio) "Johan, I hope your ladies can hold on long enough to kill the Prince. We don't know how many reinforcements will even make it through to that hellhole with how many transports we're losing by the hour."

Johan: "So do we."

Crown addresses her Knights as they gather to form a perimeter for reinforcements and for the battle ahead.

Crown: "My loyal subjects, behind that door is our final battleground against our greatest enemy; Prince Noro himself. This is not going to be a walk in the park, we will be facing all of our nightmares in battle, so expect to see things that defy any form of understanding. We have seen their necromantic skeletons, their strange magic but knowing our enemies, we haven't seen everything just yet!"

She pauses to allow her Knights to hear her next words, as they cheer and shout.

Crown: "I'm sure you've heard the stories... Do you remember how our old friend of the Goddess Squad; Rapunzel ended up?"

Chime: "She was crucified!"

Knights: "YEAH!!"

Crown takes out a book and opens it to a bookmarked and highlighted text.

Crown: "Rapunzel gave me this gift a long time ago. A book of prophecies and myths of the past. Let me read some verses that she had been fixated on before her martyrdom in Eden."

They all listen in silence as the battle rages on in the background, despite the sounds of missiles exploding and fighters dogfighting in the distance.

Crown: "They marched across the breadth of the earth and surrounded the camp of God's people, the city he loves. But fire came down from heaven and devoured them.

And the devil, who deceived them, was thrown into the lake of burning sulfur, where the beast and the false prophet had been thrown. They will be tormented day and night for ever and ever.

Then I saw a great white throne and him who was seated on it. Earth and sky fled from his presence, and there was no place for them.

And I saw the dead, great and small, standing before the throne, and books were opened. Another book was opened, which is the book of life. The dead were judged according to what they had done as recorded in the books."

She closes the book with a determined look on her face.

Crown: "We live in the end times, and we truly are the Last Kingdom! And I... Your King!"

Knights: "HURRAH!!!"

Chapter Text

***Asura Flagship Khagan***

Jamsaram in his chainmail armour looks at security cameras to determine where the Nikkes are advancing with this purported Mech. He sees that they've spread out throughout the entire deck, while the Wehrmen try to make their way towards the command center to reinforce Noro's position.

Khan: (On radio) "Enemy reinforcements are cut off! Our vessels have been repositioned into defensive formations. Air supremacy is now established!"

Jamsaram: "Time to counterattack the boarders, Khan. It's your ship...."

He opens a radio channel to Noro.

Jamsaram: "Noro, I've found our Mech... It's very close. It's in the lower section of the deck, trying to find vital arteries in the Khagan. According to our collaborators, they call it TALOS."

Noro: (On radio) "Do what must be done, Admiral... Out."

***

Scores of gunfire are exchanged in an atrium within the lower deck of the Khagan as Nikke forces, spearheaded by TALOS punch through Asura defenses. The sound of gunfire and explosions can be heard throughout the entire deck.

Kilo: "Hahah!!! TALOS, engage missiles."

TALOS: "Launching..."

The missiles leave its shoulder rack and fly towards their target, some Wehrmen in front of them who are obliterated in an instant in a series of explosions.

TALOS deploys a shield that guards the Nikke advance as the giant robot fires it's autocannon through the shield which glows red like a hologram.

Jamsaram enters the atrium and runs into battle, transitioning cover to cover, ever closer to the Nikkes as bullet, blast and spark fly through the air in a whirlwind of destruction. He realizes the movement of the enemy forces are to encircle the command centre in order to kill their Dark Prince.

Jamsaram: "Legionnaires! Covering fire!!!"

The Asura infantry keeps firing and moving forwards, slowly advancing on their positions as the Nikke forces continue their assault.

Jamsaram: "Khan! You're right above us. Do you think you can take that Titan from up there?"

Khan: (On radio) "Definitely! We'll isolate the Titan and take it out together. (Descends) Death from above you hoes!"

The ranks of Nikkes escorting TALOS are decimated from the mass rocket launches of Khan and his Chaos Raptors which rain down upon them. The ground shakes from the impacts. TALOS absorbes the explosions but is still on it's feet as Khan and his forces touchdown onto the corpses of their annihilated Nikkes.

Kilo: "Agh... Are you hurt TALOS?"

TALOS: "Running damage report... Shields at 50%, Outer reactive armour now redundant... Hours to complete self repair: 10."

Jamsaram leaps from atop a pile of burnt debris and collapsed metal plates. His fist clenched, his gauntlet engraved in arcane symbols resembling Sanskrit writing that glows a menacing saffron flying through the air, towards TALOS's shield as Kilo positions her mech buddy to meet the impact.

TALOS's shield gets disabled by the arcane magick of Jamsaram's gauntlet as it passes through and hits the autocannon on TALOS's right arm. The gauntlet punches the cannon out of place, as it's not fast enough to fire at Jamsaram as the Admiral fires a flurry of punches into TALOS's side, as Kilo is thrashed around inside, as it stumbles back.

Kilo: "Ow! That was not expected..."

She makes TALOS use it's other arm to smack Jamsaram away as the Admiral falls onto the ground, spinning to the side, quickly regaining his composure to charge at TALOS like nothing happened.

Meeting his fist with their own, Jamsaram somehow manages to neutralize the Titan's gigantic fist with his own, despite the size difference.

Jamsaram: "I've felled larger Raptures than you!"

Kilo: "TALOS IS NOT A RAPTURE YOU DEMON!!!"

She tries to crush Jamsaram with a right hand, but Jamsaram uppercuts it with his armblades engaged, impaling TALOS's palm.

Kilo: "Grrrr...! (Grunts) Get off!"

She lifts up Jamsaram and pullls him off before throwing him into the wall, causing him to shatter some glass on the windows nearby.

Khan's forces are holding off the Nikke reinforcements and making sure TALOS is isolated from support. Seeing his best friend thrown like a toy, he leaps into action with his lightning claws and proceeds to slash at TALOS's back, attempting to ignite ammunition storages inside of the mech.

TALOS: "Warning, ignition source detected... Ejecting ordinance rack to prevent potential explosions."

The back of TALOS shoots open as ejector thrusters for the ammo racks deploy, shooting Khan with it, as the munitions start to cook off as Khan tries to leap away from the explosions, he disappears into the flames.

TALOS fires upon some Asura soldiers and Raptors with their autocannon, shooting some of them out of the sky and shredding their armour but is taken by surprise as Jamsaram hurls a steel beam at the autocannon, causing it to jam.

Jamsaram: (Laughs) "I've survived worse! Do you know who I am? I am the Fist of Terror... (Charges) RAAAAHHH!!!"

He leaps upon the mech's back and stabs his armblade into the metal near the purported backbone of TALOS as it tries to shake him off but to no avail as Jamsaram starts trying to smash up the head of the suffering machine.

Kilo: "NOOO!!!! Get off!!!!"

She hears the thumping and impacts of Jamsaram's fists and can feel the massive bumps and impacts as she holds on for dear life inside the pilot compartment.

Fist after fist, blade after blade smashes and tears violently at TALOS, the mech's armour thinning...

TALOS: "I must protect Kilo..."

Kilo: "You'll make it! You can't lose here TALOS!!!"

She says increasingly distressed and fearful of losing her guardian robot.

Khan reveals himself by walking out of the flames and dust, rocked and still disoriented with some armour sections missing, the 9 footer takes off his mashed helmet that took a beating, revealing his manly and Mongolic face.

Jamsaram: (Hanging on to TALOS) "Khan, trip it's legs."

Khan quickly finds a nearby steel beam lodged in a pile of fallen debris from the upper floors of his own ship. He pulls on it, freeing the beam as he begins to aim it forwards towards the struggling Titan's leg. He awaits a good opportunity for an accurate strike before throwing it like a javelin.

He makes the shot with ease as he lets it fly towards the weakest spot of TALOS's armour on the left leg, just behind the knee joint. The beam hits the joint of the knee, throwing TALOS off balance as it falls to the ground with a loud thud.

***

TALOS: "Warning, cockpit breach detected... Upper armour now compromised. I'm sorry Kilo."

Kilo: "No! TALOS, get up!"

She shifts around the controls, trying to get TALOS on their feet again.

TALOS: "Movement coordination systems disrupted... Several system links offline. Manual repairs required."

Kilo: "I'm trapped, Oh dear..."

She winces in a panic. But tries to regain her breath. She breathes heavily as she hears from outside...

Khan: "Good job Jamsaram! Now, let's take this mech apart!"

A blade plunges into the cockpit from above with the vile metal screeching that accompanied a loud pop, nearly impaling Kilo. She screams in shock.

She realizes she can't get away from the attackers as her seat is mounted into the cockpit, within TALOS's body. She looks up the cockpit breach to see the Asura Admiral; Jamsaram's red glowing eye through the hole. She clutches the cockpit seat in fear.

Jamsaram: "The pilot still lives. Perhaps the Prince would like to study this Titan."

Khan: "Take her alive."

She hears the cockpit being pried open by the Admirals as TALOS tries to reassure her.

TALOS: "Stay safe Kilo. You are being taken alive. I have failed you."

She hears TALOS's voice crackle, as she feels it's presence slowly fade.

Khan: (Lifts TALOS's cockpit open) "I will not be outdone by a Titan."

Jamsaram: "Ahhh you're a flat one aren't you..."

The small, green haired Nikke looks back at the demonic eyes behind the skeletal mask of metal worn by Jamsaram in absolute terror. Frozen in place she doesn't say anything back. She remains silent as Jamsaram rips her out of the cockpit seat by the collar and holds her in the air as her feet dangle above the floor.

Jamsaram: "I would like to have a word with you, little girl."

He begins to bring her closer to him, as he peers into her eyes. Kilo tries to stay still but her legs won't stop shaking.

Khan: "Be gentle with the merchandise, Admiral."

Jamsaram: "Don't worry, you won't be eaten. You're too breedable for that."

Kilo thinks to herself; 'Breedable? What's he going on about?' She meticulously tries to process the shock of the situation silently as she is carried off the wrecked mech off the battlefield into another room as the battle rages on.

***

Meanwhile, in another part of the deck, Commander and his Nikkes have recieved word about how TALOS was taken down. Night has fallen and the sun is down.

Commander: "Keep trying to keep up the pressure, we need to soften up the Asura lines so that Crown can push through into the Command Centre.

They continue to advance through the dark corridors as Rapi leads them, Commander follows as he tries to get a good breach into the Command Centre.

Anis: "The amount of swastikas in here is unsettling."

Rapi: "Not surprising since the Asuras are fanatics."

They come across a hallway which is pitch black, with no Nikkes around. They switch on their flashlight attachments on their weapons as Red Hood turns on Night Vision on her sights.

Rapi: "This is weird."

Anis: "Let's be careful, I smell something weird."

Mika: "Weird how?"

Anis: "It's like... Something is wrong here..."

They all become on guard.

Mika: "I don't feel it... You guys feel something?"

They feel a chill as they walk through the hall.

Anis: "What's wrong with me?"

Rapi: "I don't know... My gut feeling is telling me we shouldn't be here..."

Anis: "The lights aren't working right, we need to be extra vigilant."

Mika: "The only things I see are these creepy skulls in the walls and ceiling."

Commander: "Wait... These are mechanical, these are... Nikkes."

Rapi: "Decapitated Nikke skulls hanging from ceilings? No wonder the smell of fluids is strong here."

Red Hood: "It's quiet... (Fires a shot at a camera) Alright, they're blinded."

Commander: "Okay lets stand back for the breach... On my mark, Anis."

Anis positions her grenade launcher to fire a round to blow the door open.

Commander: "3... 2..."

An angry scream is heard and Commander's count stops abruptly as he is knocked to the ground by something behind him.

Mika: "What just happened!?"

Anis: "Get him off of you!!!"

Commander is on the ground, with something on top of him, the unknown assailant is kicked off by Mika as it screams in anger. It is an Onryo but something is different about it, as it has metal parts fused to it's bones and joints.

Rapi shoots at it with her assault rifle, but it subsequently lunges at Red Hood, ignoring it's shattered ribcage and jaw.

Red Hood: "Ugh!"

Red Hood is flung against a wall as the Onryo punches her with it's metal arms, repeatedly. She groans in pain as Mika delivers a blow to the Onryo's skull, cracking a fragment off it. She follows up with a shotgun blast which sparks the metal and severs the Onryo's torso from it's spine as it falls to the ground.

Mika: (Shines light) "Commander, are you okay?"

Commander groans as he pulls out a knife from his arm slowly. He lets out a sigh followed by heavy breaths as he clutches is bleeding left arm.

Commander: "I need a tourniquet, I can't bleed out."

Red Hood: "Don't move, you might lose more blood."

She applies the field dressing to his arm. It is a very tight and constricting pain on top of a stab would and several bruises from the fall and fight.

Commander: "Ow!"

He winces in pain, but knows what Red Hood is doing is right. Mika helps hold him still and gives him a reassuring look.

Commander: "WHAT THE HELL?!!!"

He takes out his pistol and shoots at something in front of him. It is the Onryo from earlier, his skull now blasted into shards. His torso apparently having gotten back up to crawl towards him; indicating that being bisected wasn't enough to kill him. His bones and metal remain still...

Commander: "YOU TWO!! WHY WERE YOU LOOKING THE OTHER WAY!!?"

He snaps at Rapi and Anis as they stare at him in a look of disbelief.

Anis: "Commander, we're sorry."

Commander: "That thing... It just got up again. Why is this happening to us?"

The Nikkes look on as Commander is visibly shaken from that close call and is in pain from his wounds. They don't utter a word in fear of provoking his disress as he breathes in and out heavily, sweating all over while their lights shine at him. His stare is unlike any look he has given them before, his eyes stare a thousand yards into the darkness beyond the corpse of the Onryo as he crawls backward from it a few paces.

He then rises to his feet, still looking at the Onryo and Red Hood checks his tourniquet for him. He looks at them again and sees the Onryo.

Commander: "I hope that bastard stays dead... (Turns to face Anis and Rapi) If I die, you're all leaderless."

His communicator buzzes off with a transmission...

Johan: (On radio) "Commander Autarch, what's holding you up? Autarch?... Autarch, do you read me?... Answer me!"

Commander doesn't reply and just stares at the skeleton.

Rapi: "Johan, this is Rapi. Commander is WIA... He's dazed."

Johan: (On radio) "What happened? Are you alright?"

Rapi: "No, he's not alright. He's losing blood."

Mika: "Are you okay Commander?"

The Nikkes try to get a response out of him but he doesn't give one. He just stares at the Onryo with his pistol drawn.

Anis: "We can't just leave him like this."

Red Hood: "What are your orders now, Johan?"

Johan: (On radio) "Keep him alive and keep him stable."

Rapi: "Commander, we can't leave you here."

Commander: "I've seen enough... Whatever is behind that door is better off not seen."

He walks forward into the darkness, retracing his squad's steps, intending to make it to a rally point for treatment.

Chapter Text

***Asura Flagship Khagan***

Commander makes his way to the Rally point, escorted by the Counters squad. Emerging out of the darkness of the corridors with shining lights into an occupied medbay for the wounded, he is spotted by Neon as he limped to a nearby bed.

Neon: "My goodness Commander, what happened to you?"

Commander: (Sits down on a hospital bed) "I see your voice has been fixed."

Red Hood: "We'll keep you guarded, Commander."

Mika: "I'm staying with you too, Commander."

She then looks to Rapi.

Rapi: "Mika, Johan has uploaded new orders. (Checks Holomap) We're on the rearguard now."

Anis: "I hope the others make it... We already lost Kilo. Without TALOS, our firepower to pin down the forces of Chaos is diminished."

Commander: "At least we managed to seemingly injure those two admirals. And yet we still don't know how critically..."

Two medical personnel tend to his stab wound. He grits his teeth in pain and holds his head as they apply anesthesia and prepare to cauterize the wound with a pen shaped medical instrument called a cauterizer.

Mika: "You were limping all the way here. Are your legs okay?"

Commander: "Few bruises, but I think I sprained my ankle when that skeleton thing attacked me. I'm honestly a liability in an assault as I can't catch up with anything."

Medic: "This will be hot, but you won't feel painful. Just keep still now, we'll have a look at your leg soon."

***

Meanwhile, Crown and her loyal Knights have moved forwards towards the second breach point without Commander. With more reinforcements and their rear guard largely guarded by Commander, they push through the darkness, killing any abnormal Onryo they can find until the control centre door is found.

Despite the shootouts in the dark, not one actual Asura soldier was encountered, nor Chaos Marine. Their enemies' presence is underwhelming. And they have only secured a few hundred metres of a 7km long ship that they barely understand and know the layouts of despite their drone recon support.

Crown: "Maybe whatever behind this door is where the real fight is...."

Maxwell: "Maybe it's a trick to lure you in."

Laplace: "If so, it has succeeded. It's an odd feeling to be afraid of something, but the enemy has me spooked."

The Knights form a perimeter and shine their lights around the empty corridors and hallways. Shattered bones on the floor, the smell of burnt flesh, some holes in walls, made by gunfights are illuminated by the lights.

Maiden shines her flashlight on her Shotgun towards the wall to reveal carved murals. These murals appear to depict various scenes of people; some who are riding on horseback with bows, arrows with swords and shields on a flat land facing left in contrast to the organized march of a uniformed army and tanks moving to the right. Both armies are marked with the symbol of the Mongol Empire and the Swastika respectively; in between is a larger star of Chaos. As she moves her light up, she sees a depiction of the Sun and it's glowing rays.

Maiden: "This is so sinister, yet so... Beautiful."

Drake: "What is?"

Maiden: "These images on the walls. It's like they've been put there to convey a message."

Laplace: "Are you sure you're not imagining things?"

Maiden: (Shines her light back at the walls) "What does this mean?"

Maxwell: "I think I have an idea... But I don't want to say it out loud."

Maiden: "What could these swastikas and soldiers mean, Chime?"

Chime: "A Nazi invasion force in the days of old. Likened to the Mongol conquests. Maybe Noro wants to rewrite the past here to his advantage?"

Maxwell: "Chaos doesn't win."

Crown: "We are winning! We got this right, Johan?"

Johan: "The enemy will still fight... They're as stubborn as you are."

Crown: "Well, we can't stop now... (Pulls out her own lance) We can't let these things win."

Maiden: "As someone from the Ark, it feels difficult believing something like this actually happened. I've only been made aware of the authenticity of the events due to my work as a Black Ops operative."

Cecil: "Set this chatter aside, is everyone ready for the breach?"

Crown: "Make ready, my loyal subjects!"

Crown orders her Knights to focus their lights towards the door. The door is blasted by the White Knights with explosives, kicking up a cloud of dust that obscures their vision.

***Medbay Rally Point***

Simultaneously, as the breach is in progress, Commander recieves a notification via his hologram HUD from Johan informing him they are going in. As he recuperates, he is interrupted by a call from Andersen. His hologram rings and he swipes at the display with his fingers to accept the call.

Andersen: "Hello, Commander. You have incoming sealed orders that are only to be opened in the event of the death of the Kingdom's political leadership."

Commander: "Letter of last resort?"

He reads aloud the name of the file containing the orders.

Andersen: "Yes. In the event of the destruction or incapacitation of Her Majesty's government, you will know what to do."

Commander is mildly taken aback by the issuing of these orders. He finds it hard to think of defeat when he himself had just contributed to bringing humanity the closest they have ever been to defeating the Chaos Invasion and gaining the furthest advance against the Asuras ever managed.

As he is about to say something, Andersen speaks...

Andersen: "And one thing, Commander. I'm deeply sorry to tell you, that Burningum is up to no good again. Your parents have disappeared under mysterious circumstances. Maybe it isn't so-"

Commander: "My parents? Gone?!"

Andersen: "We don't have any leads to their whereabouts. They may be in hiding, but there are no confirmed sightings. I can't promise you that they are still alive."

Commander: "It's because we rebelled isn't it?"

Andersen: "This is the price of trying to fight for a greater world, Autarch. Our actions have consequences. Do you remember your oath back in Pyongyang?"

Commander: "For Truth, For Humanity, Against Ignorance and Evil, Above and Below! For the Reclamation of our world from the Raptures and Tyranny... Or Death."

Andersen: "It may seem like we're all being drowned right now. But I promise you, Commander Autarch, I will find a way for us in this world."

Commander: "I trust you, Andersen... Loyal to the end."

Andersen: "Get well soon, Commander. Sorry about your family."

He hangs up the call and Commander looks to Mika.

Mika: "You're such a golden hearted person, Commander."

Rapi: "She's right. You are the best Commander ever!"

Anis: "Well, I can't argue with that."

Red Hood: "Autarch is a good surname. I like it."

All the Nikkes come up to him to give him a massive hug.

Mika: "Oh, be careful of his Ankle!"

The girls keep piling up as they all embrace his body. He feels Red Hood's breasts cushioning the back of his head, Mika's head on his right shoulder. His hands and feet being caressed by Neon, Anis and Rapi.

Emma suddenly walks in, followed by her squad.

Emma: "Ooh! Are we having some kind of cuddle party? I'm coming, Commander!"

She runs towards him as he watches her big boobs jiggle as she runs for him. Unable to do anything on account of his injuries and being in a massive cuddle, he exclaims:

Commander: "No Emma, wait! Wai-"

He gets cut off as Emma's breasts smother his face and muffle his voice as she wraps her arms around his helpless body.

Emma: "Aww, you know we all love you, Commander."

Rapi: "Ara ara~"

They both say in a suggestive tone.

***Control Centre***

The Knights and Matis squad move forwards into the large control room as the smoke clears. However, they find the place silent. The Knights begin to search the area but find nothing but empty workspaces, a giant hologram displaying the Earth. All other monitors are shut off.

Laplace: "The place is empty."

Chime: "It feels like it was recently abandoned. Someone was here recently, I can smell a residue in the air."

The Winged Knights jump and fly upwards to check the other levels of the control room. It's all deserted, save for the presence of a lady kneeling in front of a shrine on the second floor.

The Knights point their weapons at her from a distance. Crown flies up, her wings shaped like sword blades extended.

Crown: "I am Crown, King of Nagoya, the Last Kingdom. Speak, ma'am. Are you a prisoner?"

The woman doesn't move but she turns around and stands up, turning her gaze to meet Crown's. She has a middle aged appearance, dark hair and is wearing an Indian saree with a veil on her head with a bindi on her forehead. The lady's short dark hair is tied neatly behind her head, underneath her veil.

???: "We are all prisoners of the world we made for ourselves. We have imprisoned ourselves and are unable to escape."

Crown: "What is your name?"

She steps aside, revealing a shrine with a portrait of Adolf Hitler in between rows of scented candles burning... Filling the air with a delightful smell of jasmine.

???: "My name is Savitri. I am not an Asura."

The Knights look at the portrait of the Hitler shrine in confusion and horror. Under the portrait, there is a paper with a Chaos symbol drawn on it.

Crown: "What is the meaning of this?"

Savitri: "The Asuras worship him as a Dark God. He is the final avatar of the Aeon. Kalki..."

Crown: "Who?"

Savitri: "Kalki, the one to bring the end of this calamitous Aeon known as the Kali Yuga. He descended from the higher realms as the Führer himself over 2 centuries ago. He was the God, the unconscious spirit, and the man who your Central Government defeated and demonized into your consciousness forever."

Crown: "I do not answer to the Ark! They are below me. You're delusional."

Savitri: "All things are relative and you cannot see beyond what your eyes can perceive."

She walks behind the portrait of Hitler and picks it up to hang it on a nearby wall.

Crown: "I did not come here to be lectured by the ignorant!"

She looks at her knights who have already holstered their weapons in confusion.

Chime: "That's a portrait of the Nazi leader?"

Crown: "You are not worth staining my lance with your blood. I will let you live if you tell us where that cowardly Prince Noro ran off to."

Savitri: "Ah... Prince Noro. The one who was sent forth by the Gods into the mortal realm in flesh and blood. Willed into existence as the Wrathful manifestation of the fear of the Central Government's historical adversary, to take the form of demons."

Crown: "I do not have time for riddles. Tell me!"

Savitri: "So you want, Noro... Follow me."

She moves towards a door on the other end of the room which leads to an elevator. The Knights all turn to each other.

The Matis squad and other Nikkes of Ark and Pilgrim origin on the first floor, remain there on guard in order to support their advance.

Chime: "I don't know what this is about, but I trust Crown."

Maiden: (On radio) "The lady seems harmless."

The Knights follow Savitri into the elevator.

Crown steps in first as they respectfully bow before their sovereign who enters the elevator with a charming walk. But before anyone else could board, the door swiftly slams shut unexpectedly. Crown is now trapped in as the elevator moves up. She tries to press the buttons to no avail.

Crown: "You scheming scoundrel! What trap did you just ensnare me in?"

Savitri: "I am merely taking you to see your desired Noro as requested."

Crown: "Open the doors! Now!"

Enraged, she tries to grab Savitri only for her hand to pass right through her body as if she was a ghost.

Crown: "What? How is this possible?!?!"

She stumbles back as Savitri turns back around to face her with her hands clasped together.

Savitri: "You now question your very senses. Maybe you are yourself suffering from delusions that you projected onto me. Fear not, for the Prince is waiting for you, just beyond this door."

Savitri claps her hands together in a praying pose before fading into thin air, as if she was never there.

Crown: "This is an illusion..."

She tries to think rationally.

Crown: "Johan, you won't believe what happened."

Johan: (On radio) "I'm listening. What is it now?"

Crown: "The woman... Savitri. She's vanished into thin air."

Johan: "Vanished? Into what?"

Crown: "Into... Nothing. (Elevator bell dings!) There's no time. The Demon Prince is waiting for me."

The doors open to a hallway with the same décor of the earlier areas they had passed through on the lower decks. She walks into the corridor, noticing an entire skyroof ceiling made of glass revealing the battle in the sky.

The sight is beautiful as light from the Moon and stars mix in with the light of explosions and thousands of tracers dancing in the skies with the afterburners of aircraft streaking by in battle.

Crown looks down to see at the edge of the hallway, Noro was patiently waiting for her, sitting on a chair. Her eyes meet his own... Unmistakable, glowing blood red in the Darkness. Moving forwards, the White haired and clothed Sovereign stands in contrast to Noro's darkness. She stands there, staring him down, ready to speak first.

Crown: "So, you are the Demon Prince. The Resurrection of Evil and Corruptor of Humanity."

Noro: "I do not adhere to your conventional morality, Crown."

Crown: "I won't let you get away with it. Your crimes against humanity, I've been told about them. You think you've won?"

Noro: "Against your little Kingdom at least. But I will be victorious in the end. That is a certainty. What is victory to me? Who would I be if I don't fight? What is life if there is no war?"

Noro stands up, his wings still folded and his Katana still sheathed.

Crown: "You're a lot smaller without your wings."

She gives a smug grin as Noro stares back with an icy glare.

Noro: "I'm still larger than the odds of you winning."

He cracks a sinister smile in return.

Crown: "I'll drive you back to the void where you came from."

Noro: "There's nowhere for me to return... It's Conquer or Die. Now face me like the man you will never be!"

He unsheathes his Katana. She raises her lance in return.

Crown: "Our battle will be truly one for the ages!"

She readies herself for the Dark Prince to strike first...

Chime: (On radio) "We're under attack by Chaos Marines!"

She maintains her composure as Noro spreads his Dark metallic wings, poised to strike.

Chapter Text

***Asura Flagship Khagan***

Under the moonlight of a battle stricken sky, the Dark Prince and the Last 'King' face eachother down in a dark corridor under a glass skyroof.

Crown focuses on the Prince, her Goddess wings, shaped like swords extend in anticipation of the Asura's blade.

Noro thrusts himself forwards at great speed in the blink of an eye but his sword is parried to his right by Crown's lance. Sparks fly and Crown leaps backwards with the aid of her wings and opens fire with her lance that doubles as a Machine gun. A burst of rounds hit Noro's side, hitting his right shoulder and torso as he staggers back a few feet. Before turning his wings to block the rest of the gunfire.

Noro: "You're no match for me."

He dashes towards Crown who tries to skewer his wing with her lance, only for him to turn his body at the last second to land another strike at her lance with his Katana. She quickly pulls her lance back in response, hissing as she parries another strike by Noro. His Katana pushing up against her lance, trying to throw her off balance. She leverages her hovering ability to push her heavier weapon back towards the Prince as the screeches of metal echo through the hall.

Crown: "My Kingdom shall stand before the forces of your Shogunate!"

Noro's katana starts to glow a demonic red like his eyes and begins to burn into the lance, to Crown's shock. She quickly leaps back to break contact between her and Noro as she can't afford render her weapon inoperable.

Noro: "And that's why you're called the Last Kingdom!"

He says in a demeaning tone, striking an aggressive pose with his blade. He then flies forward with his wings in an attempt to land a killing strike on the angelic monarch.

She activates a force shield which materializes in mid air, stopping Noro who smashes into it as if it was a hard surface as a grunt of pain is heard from him.

She then swings her lance down, striking him in the head with it before kicking him away with a boot to the head.

Crown had already had her location constantly tracked and monitored by her Knights even before the assault of on the Khagan began.

She utters the words;

Crown: "Chime, I'm here!!"

And the glassy skyroof is blown up by an explosion from above as 5 support drones sent by Chime descend into the corridor and target Noro with automatic fire as he tries to get on his feet. Now crouching on one knee, he is forced to use his wings to shield him from the drone fire.

Crown throws a grenade at Noro, forcing him to roll out of the way to the side as it explodes near his position. The explosion clears as Noro gets up and is now in the middle of the corridor between Crown as the drones reposition themselves to fire at him again. He sprints at an inhuman speed to close the gap as he dashes towards the drones. Crown shoots at him with her lance again, but the Prince uses his wings to spin around and mitigate damage to his armour and manages to swat a drone out of the air, sending it crashing to the ground in pieces as Crown throws another grenade at him. He kicks it away and leaps onto the wall nearby, stabilizing himself with his wings before taking out a shockpistol and blasting another buzzing drone into pieces.

Crown: "You'll pay for every life you took from our world!!"

She flies forwards, ready to deliver a fatal strike to Noro but is stopped in her tracks as he fires a shockpistol bullet that pierces through her abdomen, causing her to spiral out of control, a piece of her own wings chipped off by the shot as sparks light up the air. The force of her trajectory causes her to crash into Noro, bringing him down with her to the floor below with a violent impact.

The 3 remaining drones reposition to shoot Noro again, chipping away at his dented armour. Forced to roll away from Crown, he decides to deal with the drones first, sending another to the ground with another well placed shot while protecting his own head. The drones break contact and start flying around like mad to avoid his shots.

Catching on to an attempted flank from behind, Noro thrusts into the drone's direction and slashes it in half. This however is met with an unpleasant surprise as he turns to see Crown flying towards him at full speed, unable to react on time he is pierced through his own chest.

Noro: "Aghhhh!!!!"

The tip of the lance has pierced through his lower right wing and through his body, emerging slightly on the other side.

Crown: "You were strong... But you lost."

He grunts as she pulls her lance out of his body. Both gallant warriors now bleeding as Noro stares at her with malice. He gets up to stand again, despite his injuries.

Noro: "I'm not finished and neither are my conquests! I shall make a better world free from the Raptures."

He brandishes his katana, ready to fight again. Crown however deliberates on attacking him immediately. A grand duel is made more memorable when the world's tyrant has time for his final words after all.

Crown: "You have brought only Chaos and ruin to our world. The Book of Prophecies say that a Heavenly Kingdom will reign at the end of time, when evil is finally defeated."

Noro: "Your Kingdom of false divinity will succumb to entropy and decay to fall to it's eventual end time prophecies. It won't survive my ascension to Godhood, far beyond the end of your Aeon!"

Crown steadies her lance and charges at Noro as she yells at the top of her lungs for the hated Prince to finally die, he however deflects her lance once more as he puts his left hand to his glowing sword's blunt end to block it and throw her lance to his left. Crown follows up with more swings and strikes; Noro stepping back towards the direction of the elevator each time. An impressive display of flying sparks amongst the eldritch glow as her lance lets off steam, getting more damaged everytime Noro blocks an attack, until eventually it fizzes and zaps as an electronic crackling is heard. Her lance has now became unable to fire.

Angered, she makes one massive swing, turning 360 degrees, throwing all her bodyweight forwards towards Noro who blocks it with his wings, but is knocked backwards harshly into the elevator.

Crown throws her lance at Noro, impaling his upper right wing into the elevator wall.

Crown: "You're cornered now!"

She leaps forward, planting one of her feet on Noro's chest to attempt to pull out her lance before jumping out of the elevator at the last second as the last support drone comes up behind her, carrying an explosive warhead, intending to slay the Prince with a drone strike.

The drone accelerates rapidly, facing death and thinking quickly, Noro pulls out his shockpistol and fires a single shot not at Crown, but at the drone.

A massive explosion occurs in front of them and the blast knocks Crown into the elevator with a gush of smoke, sending the elevator tumbling down into the darkness.

A loud crash is heard from within the shaft.

Around 30 seconds later, A disoriented Noro opens his eyes, slumped against the elevator wall. He sees blood coming from his wound on his lower chest and he presses his hand against it, wincing in pain and letting go a little groan.

He blinks a few times, still looking to his injuries and his grabbed by his collar by a crouching Crown, forcing him to look up towards her as he is pulled suddenly and hit in his face, square in the nose by her fist.

Noro is knocked back towards the wall with a thump as he hits it.

Crown: (Pulls out a dagger) "LONG LIVE THE KING!!! DIE YOU HELLISH FIEND!!!"

She screams in a desperate and berserked tone as she tries to stab Noro with the dagger but he managed to catch it before it digs into his skull.

A struggle for the dagger insues as Noro holds it back for dear life as his assailant pushes hard towards him. 

He manages to rotate the dagger's edge a little towards his left, away from his face before delivering a swift bite to Crown's upper arm which pains her hand to let go of the dagger as she screams due to the Asura's teeth sinking into her arm.

Black flames burst from Noro's body and he forcefully kicks Crown off his body, sending her crashing against the elevator doors before she falls on her face onto the floor.

Now with possession of the dagger, Noro makes a beeline to Crown's hand which faces towards him as she is still down and stabs it, nailing the weak Crown to the floor, unable to get up. He knocks the self proclaimed King out by slamming her head against the elevator floor.

***Control Centre***

Within the Control Centre below, a blood bath has occurred with Chaos Marines of the Arashiwehr and other Knights battling it out. Heavy casualties have occurred and Chime is now injured in the leg from a Chaingun round which renders it inoperable she had been controlling the drones and relaying the live video feed to Commander and Andersen. The Matis squad remains in cover. Johan and Cecil hold tight to stem the tide. Maiden tries to fire back at them. The Counters and other units arrive on the scene to reinforce them.

Anis: "We need to get off this deck! We're pinned down!"

Johan: "The Prince could be dead after that last strike."

Cecil: "Is he?"

Chime: "Poor Crown... I hope she made it... Crown? (Static) Crown? Do you read me? Over."

There is no reply. Red Hood positions herself to shoot at a Chaos Marine, striking him in the chest. He proceeds to move to cover, hurt but still fighting.

Red Hood: "Man these tin cans are tough!"

The battle descends into a ferocious melee with the Chaos Marines, deceptively quick and agile gaining the upper hand over the White Knights. Bodies are broken, maimed and even torn apart.

Blood on the second floor starts to behave strangely near the elevator doors. The puddles near the corpses start to inch their flows towards the doors and seep into them. The blood starts to condense into mist that gathers near the door. The blade of a katana emerges from between the doors a few seconds later, and Noro pries open the door with his hands. The black flames erupting from his body, engulf his wounds in their dark embrace. He emerges with a bloody nose and bleeding from the mouth and drags out Crown by her collar with his left hand to a view where everyone can from below can see.

Maiden: (Points) "That's the Prince! And Crown!"

Everyone looks on in disbelief and dread.

Chime's heart has skipped a beat.

Red Hood sours her expression, still bitter at the demise of her old friends at his bloody hands.

Johan: "How is he still alive?"

Rapi: "This isn't real..."

Laplace: "How...?"

Noro brings Crown into the plain view of everyone. Even his own troops are surprised to see him in such a shape. He raises the King's limp body, as she seems to be alive, but only barely. He glares back at Johan and the rest.

The Dark Prince connects his communicator's microphone to the ship's PA system.

He delivers a speech which is broadcast to the entire ship and to the Palace of the Last Kingdom.

Noro: "White Knights of Nagoya... Do you really think a ship of 7 kilometers would have only one Command Centre? I knew you were bound to come here in search of me. I got you exactly where I wanted... Your assault on my Admiral's ship is futile. Admittedly we never expected you to come aboard. For that you have my respect."

He pauses to lift his black flamed katana in the air while he hold's Crown's body upright. The bloodstained monarch, draped in all white looks back at Chime, making eye contact for one last time. She uses all her strength to activate a hologram to record a voice message for Chime. As she closes her eyes and smiles. Her last words are recorded...

Crown: "Chime, I love you."

The admission of same sex love is tragically ended with a decapitation as Chime receives the voice message.

She doesn't play it immediately as the sight of her decapitated head is too much to ignore.

Noro: "I now have the Crown of your ...Kingdom... in my hands. Your struggle is futile. However, to the United Forces of Humanity... I will offer you clemency. Surrender and be spared or follow Crown in a similar fate, for many have died to our blades and blood only nourishes us, Asuras."

Chime plays back the voice message. Depressed and despondent, she hears Crown's voice one last time...

Crown: "Chime, I love you."

Chime: "Wait for me, your Highness. I'm coming with you to the other side."

She whispers with a weak and exhausted tone, before taking off her Knight helmet and lowering her forehead towards the barrel of her pistol. She pulls the trigger and her life ends with a bang. Her body now slumped over towards the wall.

The gunfire ends as more Knights fall dead or to their knees with their hands up. Matis squad seems to have lost the will to keep shooting back and stay in cover. Maiden too stopped firing and as the guns go silent. The counters are too unsure of what to do.

They are not surrendering yet, nor are they fighting back. As the Chaos Marines steadily walk towards them. An eerie and uneasy staredown commences as the Wehrmen point their weapons at the Nikkes. Noro flies in, his injuries partially healed by the black flame.

***Medbay Rally Point***

At the rally point, Commander still recuperating from his injuries, remembers his protocol.

Commander: (Sigh) "Here goes nothing..."

Andersen: (On radio) "You know what to do, Commander."

Quietly still angry about the Central Government disappearing his parents, he opens up the sealed orders from Andersen and lets all troops under his Command know via radio.

***Command Centre***

Wehrman: "Make up your mind. Surrender or be forcefully disarmed by order of the Dark Prince."

Rapi: "What should we do?"

Johan: "I'd say we-"

He is interrupted by Commander's broadcast.

Commander: (On radio) "Attention all Units! Ceasefire! I repeat, Ceasefire! By orders from General Andersen an Armistice has been declared with the Asura Shogunate. All resistance will risk prolonging the suffering of humanity. We are in the fight of our lives and I hope it is the beginning of a peaceful end to focus on the Raptures. The Armistice will be maintained until a formal peace agreement is signed with the Ark."

Anis: "It's over?" (Drops weapon)

Rapi: "I never thought it would end so soon... The last battle?"

Johan: "No! Noooo!"

Red Hood continues to stare at Noro. She makes a few steps forwards and tries to lunge at him for a point blank shot, but is intercepted by a Wehrman who plunges a straight sword into her chest.

Red Hood: "Gaaah!"

She is lifted off her feet by the tall, hulking Chaos Marine's sword as Johan pulls out his pistol for a shot and fires, hitting not the Prince, but a Wehrman.

Cecil: "Johan! Don't-"

She jumps in between Johan and a Wehrman and tries to stop the Asura in front of them from reacting to the provocation by trying to wrestle the gun away. A single chaingun shot rings out and tears through Cecil's weak body and passes through, ripping through Johan's chest, before exiting the other side.

Both Pilgrims fall to the ground. Cecil lands on top of Johan's body. They both make eye contact as they bleed out.

Cecil: "There is no place... I would rather be... Than with you..."

Johan: "There will never be another like you..."

She smiles before her eyes go blank. Her body convulses and twitches, as the last of her life drains away from her.

Johan: "We were so close..."

Johan places a hand on her head and embraces her, still looking into her eyes as his own life fades away. He utters one final sentence before succumbing to death...

Johan: "At least we die looking into eachother's beautiful eyes."

The other Nikkes are on the verge of reaching for their weapons or aiming at the Asuras in the confusion. Maiden thinks quickly and pulls down her mask to use her Kotodama.

Maiden: "Stop! Stand down!!"

All Nikkes in the vicinity who are still armed, drop their weapons. Noro notices Maiden's powers in action and stares at her in awe.

Maiden: "We don't want to fight anymore, we're tired of this war. The Central Government planned to get rid of us anyway. This entire war is just a lie. I plead to you, my Prince... (Bows down) Please have mercy upon humanity."

Noro: "By my orders, men. Do not see any Nikkes who peacefully surrender on the Khagan harmed."

Wehrmen: "Yes, my Lord."

He sheathes his Katana as the Wehrmen stop pointing their weapons at the Nikkes.

Noro: "You may stand, lady."

Maiden gets up onto her feet as Noro extends a hand to her to help her up. She takes the offer and is brought to his level.

He looks into Maiden's red eyes. She looks back into his red eyes. Noro feels a tingling sensation in his chest from their eye contact as he stares into hers. He feels something inside her as she feels the same inexplicable connection to him. A connection of two people who are not human... Identical and yet... Beyond humanity.

Maiden: "Did you come here to our world to escape the Imperium of Man?"

Noro: "The Imperium of Man?"

Maiden: "You don't know? We hail from a parallel Earth... Or Terra, you know the planet that is home of the Imperium of Man... It's a force that protects our world from other hostile alien powers, preventing the spread of Chaos in your universe."

Noro: "What is your name?"

Maiden: "I am... Maiden. Head of the former Extrinsic Squad. A Black Ops Unit of the UFH."

Noro: "Come with me, I'm sure we have a lot to discuss."

***

In a private lounge for higher officers. They sit in a beautiful room decked with idols to their Gods and a painted portrait of the Prince himself hanging on the wall with his wings spread raising the Chaotika Banner in front of a Shinto shrine bearing the Chrysanthemum of the Yamato Dynasty.

They are beside eachother on a sofa. Maiden has been served a glass of soda while Noro casually keeps a glass of blood wine on the table next to him.

Maiden: "You have such a beautiful culture, Prince Noro. A very powerful one too."

Noro: "I'm happy that you admire it."

Maiden: "Where did you come from? And what brought you here?"

Noro: "In truth, we have no homeworld. We were just thrust into existence with some knowledge in our heads with a very vague idea of where to go. We're... Lost, in the sense that we don't know who we are or where we come from. We were just there one moment and the next... We were here."

Maiden: "Do you have a wife or children?"

Noro: "No... Asuras are a male only species. We have an issue with reproducing ourselves. If we don't conquer and win here, we're as doomed as humanity. No matter how I see in your kind as a failing race, I need you. My kind needs humanity intact."

Maiden: "So what happens next? Is this peace agreement signed between our peoples going to hold?"

Noro: "Embrace Chaos. Embrace me as your new master of your world, and even Nikkes shall be granted naturalization."

Maiden couldn't believe what she was hearing.

Maiden: "Bu- but... I thought you hated Nikkes. I thought you wanted to exterminate us?"

Noro: "Although I'm not a fan of producing Nikkes. Many of them are now married to my Legionnaires. Many of them now toil to sustain the war effort... And in due time, you too could finally bear Asura children for the Shogunate."

Maiden: "Nikkes? Bearing children? Pregnancy!?"

Noro: "Is something the matter?"

Maiden: "My Prince, I'm sorry... But It is a bit awkward talking about artificial womb modifications into Nikkes so soon isn't it?"

She begins to feel flustered.

Noro: "You can have whatever you want in my princely court. As long as you bend the knee to me. I have the power to do as I please. It is a good way to live a life of luxury and freedom, for as long as you follow my will. Maiden, you don't have to fight a day in your life ever again."

Maiden reminisces on her mother, Ingrid's words, telling her that she has the freedom to do as she pleases and follow her heart... That's what she had always wanted, ever since she was treated like a person for the first time by Ingrid. And now here she is... Sitting beside a Prince that she had developed a Hybristophilic crush on for some time. She didn't know that a lady killer and swastika clad warrior from beyond the fringes of the cosmos would be... So nice to her. He was gentle, soft, kind. As if he had just come out of a fairy tale.

She thought to herself.

Maiden: [Why do I feel this way?]

She looked at Noro and back into her drink. Her face reddened as she tried to hide her emotions.

Maiden: "My Prince... I'm afraid I have something I must confess."

Noro: "What is it?"

Maiden: "It's true that I admire the Asura way of life, the Shogunate and your charismatic nature, Prince Noro. And I respect your ideals to create a new world in your image. Please... I want to be closer to you within your court. How may I be of service?"

Noro: "You can start by enlightening me on this thing that humans call Warhammer 40k... And human culture in general."

Maiden smiles warmly at him in excitement, like an innocent school girl.

Maiden: "Certainly, my Prince. It would be an honour!"

They begin to have an enjoyable conversation about human culture as Noro learns about human art, literature and music and in turn, Maiden learns about the Asura way of life and their conception of Chaos until the sun rises.

Chapter Text

***Crown's Palace***

A cold, winter sky with mild snow serenely blankets Nagoya below. Within the heart of the Last Kingdom, word of their King's death had spread like wildfire. It is the 26th of December, 2115. The Armistice with the Asura Shogunate had just been declared only a few hours ago at 3am. It is now 7 o'clock. The beams of the rising sun greet warmly the defenders of the Palace.

The air is crisp and refreshing as Elegg makes her way into the central palace hall. She passes through the double doors, where the remains of a several deceased Nikkes are laid. She looks down upon them with sorrow in her eyes.

Trony: "Morning Elegg."

She hears her squadmate call out from behind her. She turns to see Trony and some of the other Knights in the courtyard.

Elegg: "Good morning Trony."

She continues walking through the Palace halls and comes across a massive double door as some other Knights stop them to talk to her.

Knight: "Halt, this is the throne room. Who goes there?"

Elegg: "Oh~ I'm Elegg! UFH. And this is Trony, also UFH."

Trony half heartedly bows. Before yawning.

Knight: "And the reason why you're here, if I may ask?"

Elegg: "It's to pay our respects to the Queen."

Knight: "Please refer to her late Majesty by her preferred title; as King."

She says sternly.

Elegg: "Oh, I'm sooo sorry. Will you please let us in now?"

The Knight sighs as she knows full well how the throne room is now vacant and that ever since Crown's demise the night before, discipline and authority have broken down rapidly within the Knightly ranks as the Kingdom is now in limbo.

Crown's body remains onboard the Khagan. There is no royal coffin to even guard anymore. There is nothing left for them to do but cling onto their Royal duties in vain until relieved by orders they know will never come.

After a few seconds of deliberation, she opens the door for the two Ark Nikkes. There are 2 other Knights on guard with her who merely stand and watch. They do not stop her, but stand there defeated as hollow shells.

Elegg and Trony enter the throne room. The place is still and quiet. They proceed up the stairs to the empty throne, where there is no one to receive them or welcome them. Elegg sees through the giant window behind the throne; The Khagan hovering above the city's bay.

Trony: "Whoa... This is insane. I'm getting chills from this scenery."

Elegg: "It's so empty... It's almost like... It's a dream."

Trony: "The Last King met her end on that monster of a spaceship. It's unbelievable that we now see where she died just right above the seat she used to rule from eh, Elegg?"

Elegg: "I don't know what to say. Noro said it himself, that the last King has fallen. And this is her legacy. Now poof! Suddenly there's no more fighting."

Trony: "What do you think happens next?"

Elegg: "What happens next? Well... (Points) Help me loot this jewelry and I think we can start making out of here."

Trony: "I'd like some jewels around my neck for once."

Elegg: (Grabs a red ruby) "Maiden would sure love this!"

Trony: "Shes on that ship, you know that right? Oh poor old Maiden. I wonder what they did to her. What a shame..."

Elegg: "I wonder if the Armistice will stick."

Trony: "For how long?"

Elegg: "We'll just have to wait and see. Hopefully we get to play Boom with Maiden again. And hopefully this little uhm... Stop fighting blablabla agreement stays long enough for us to get home with all our treasure."

Trony: "And live like kings. Hahaha!"

They both share a high five before returning to their theft of Crown's jewels.

***Asura Flagship Khagan***

It is now 10am. The snow had gotten a bit more heavier but the battle had all but died down. Prince Noro had fallen asleep in the private lounge room at around 5am. On the sofa, he is still lying on with a blanket draped over him. He is now asleep in the seat with Maiden on the couch opposite him, both resting their heads. She had been watching over him and admiring the Asura Prince ever since he fell asleep after a long and fruitful conversation.

It has gotten a bit colder and Maiden is woken up by the slight discomfort as she had let Noro use the blanket on account of his injuries during his battle with Crown.

She whispers to herself;

Maiden: "Ach... Why did I dress up like this?"

Remarking at her thin black thigh high leggings and her lace bodysuit under her coat which is seemingly designed deliberately to expose her big breasts, fastened by a lock on her choker. She has not pulled back up her mask ever since her surrender.

She looks over to Noro, who is still sound asleep. A bit envious of his blanket and too afraid to actually ask for another one from the guards outside, she goes over to him, gently pulling the blanket down from his shoulders.

Noro is still shirtless as he had been treated for his injuries last night as he talked to Maiden. She stares at his naked, broad chest and looks into his face. Her eyes trace down his neck, along the contour of his collarbone, then down the chiseled shape of his chest and torso. It resembles a modestly shaped sculpture, akin to Napoleon as Mars the Peacemaker... Not too exaggerated but still a physique worthy of a God.

She sees the mark where Crown's lance impaled his chest. It is a small mark on his body that seems to be healing fast. She couldn't help but feel the warmth and tenderness of the Asura's skin. His body felt so nice to touch, so soft, yet so hard at the same time. Her fingers gingerly trace the scar on his chest. He stirs a little in his sleep. Maiden doesn't take her hands off him as she sees his face. Her face reddened. She could smell the bloody scent of his hair from up close.

She knows that the Prince had enjoyed talking to her so much, that it's very clear to her that he trusts her enough to have her not removed from the room as he slept.

She decides to test the waters a bit more by trying to climb onto his body, hoping that Noro is still asleep and wouldn't mind.

Maiden: "Sooo comfy."

She gently puts one of her legs over him and lies down on top of Noro, facing towards him with her face on his shoulder as she gets cozy on top of the Prince. He lets out a small groan in his sleep.

Maiden: "You've been through so much, my Prince..."

She feels his long hair that goes past his ears and the long bangs above his eyes. Her fingers comb through his silky hair. His eyes are closed as he makes a quiet noise as she begins to caress his head, giving his scalp a soft massage. Noro has begun to stir a bit and move around so she decides to stop. She pulls away her hand from his head and sees him open his eyes slowly, still groggy from sleep. He is taken aback by the sight of the beautiful Maiden on top of him.

Noro: "Huh? Ah... Maiden, you're here..."

Maiden: "I'm sorry to wake you. I got cold. I hope I didn't cause you any pain."

She puts on a charming smile and tries to keep a poker face as the Dark Prince stares at her with a dreamy smile.

Noro: "It's fine. It's still warm with you on top of me."

She was taken aback by the way he said that and couldn't believe it, but felt giddy. She knew full well what he was trying to hint at.

Maiden: "I'll move if you wish."

She laughs as Noro smiles. 

Noro: "No... Stay where you are."

He places his hands around her waist to keep her in place on top of him. She then takes the blanket from under them and drapes it over herself and the Asura Prince.

Maiden: "The blanket feels nice."

She lies down onto his warm body and closes her eyes as she wraps the blanket around them. She lets out a little sigh of relief. Noro lies there with his eyes closed and he pulls Maiden's body close towards him as she curls up to him.

Maiden: "May I ask a question, my Prince?"

Noro: "Hm?"

Maiden: "Why are you treating me like this? I've never felt so important to someone before..."

Noro: "You are more than an important piece on my chessboard. You have earned my respect as a woman. And now you're going to earn your keep."

She didn't expect that answer, but she didn't dislike it.

Maiden: "What is so special about me?"

Noro: "When we spoke last night, I felt an innate connection between us. Like two souls resonating with each other. And I could feel a strong desire from you to serve me. Your very words triggered a mass surrender in my favour... What is this ability that you have that other Nikkes don't?"

Maiden: "You must be talking about my Kotodama."

Noro: "Kotodama?"

Maiden: "I'm a kind of... Special model outfitted with an experimental electronic warfare chip."

She lifts herself up above Noro's body, facing him, she puts her hands between his arms and sticks out her tongue in a rather lewd manner for the Prince to examine.

Maiden: "You see the thing behind my tongue? It is my Kotodama. This is what allows me to bend other Nikkes to my will with my words."

She smiles, returning back to placing her head on top of his shoulder.

Noro: "I could sense the frequencies coming from every word that comes off your tongue. They feel reassuring... You still have a lot to tell me. And I'd like to hear more."

Maiden: "I would love to tell you."

Noro: "You don't know how valuable you are to me right now. How precious you are and how close you are to the top brass in the Ark."

Maiden: "Wha...? You mean... Ingrid and Burningum? H-how did you know?"

Noro: "A certain Dr. Odenborg told me about your parents."

Maiden: "I knew they had a lot of influence on the Ark's affairs. But I didn't know that they were my parents until recently."

Noro: "Okay... Okay... Let's save it for later. Let's stay in bed for another hour."

He puts a hand behind her head and pulls her in for a hug. She feels her body warm up and melt at his touch. Maiden closes her eyes and feels his embrace, and the warmth of his pale skin on hers.

***

It has been a while and Commander sits in his cell alone. He had not been harmed and had not been humiliated by the Asuras after his surrender and had even been allowed to keep his uniform on.

He remembers the last time he and Mika talked in the Ark on a date. He remembers how he had confided in her; how he pondered off duty often on how he was going to explain to his parents that he was in love with a Nikke despite his pressures to have a child and marry an actual woman.

He recalls memories of his parents from before he joined the army. His father who had worked as a janitor in the military district to support the family while his mother was an office worker. They both wanted the best for him.

His grandmother especially was keen on his youthful idealism which drove him to the military to work for a brighter future.

Being an only child from the middle class, he wasn't blind to the unjust society of the Ark. But now... In pursuit of his ideals, he had ended up here... And it had all come crashing down. He felt that he failed in his quest to prove his ideals to his parents who insisted he not oppose the system. His grandmother who supported his ambitions regardless had died before his enrollment in the military academy.

His parents disappeared because of his participation in the mutiny against the Central Government. He's powerless to do anything as he is now a prisoner of war.

Going mad from the loneliness, he speaks to himself, facing the wall.

Commander: "All this... For what? Was it for nothing?"

He closes his eyes as if in deep meditation. He then opens them, with a renewed sense of purpose, a determination that had not been seen by anyone since the mutiny.

Commander: "I'm sorry mom, I'm sorry dad. If only you could have known how close I got... Grandmother, I went farther than anyone against all odds. At least I moved forwards when everyone moved back."

There is nothing but silence as he feels a mix of anger and sadness which brings him on the edge of crying.

He lies down on the bed and closes his eyes again. This time, he focuses his hatred into Burningum and the Central Government.

Commander: "I won't escape. You won't escape... Your system must fall. The Central Government cannot be allowed to stand! Burningum must die!! (Sits up angrily) It doesn't matter who strangles that pig! Only that he dies painfully!"

2 minutes pass before a knock on his cell door is heard. A voice calls to him from outside.

Asura Guard: "Commander Autarch? You have visitors."

The door is unlocked and it opens. To his shock he sees...

Commander: "Doctor... Odenborg?"

Odenborg: "Ciel de Autarch... It's good to see you Commander."

The One eyed doctor, walks in with a new peaked cap, matching his White labcoat. He now wears a black armband with a white circle in the middle of it with a Star of Chaos drawn in black within the white circle. His peaked cap, fascistic in style like the Asuras. On the cap is a pin in the shape of 'ᛣ' the Nordic rune symbolizing death.

Commander: "Where were you this whole time? Johan was fucking pissed when you left us."

Odenborg: "Is it true he called me a Quisling?"

Commander: "Why yes, doctor. On occasion. He told me he wanted to strangle you and choke the shit out of you with your own tongue."

Odenborg: "Hmph... Well he can't exactly do that now he's dead can he?"

Commander: "Why are you here?"

Odenborg: "In truth, Andersen knew full well that the Ark would turn on us. It was only a matter of time. You only heard about my defection from Johan and that was deliberate as he didn't want to break your spirits. I heard you lost your parents recently from him."

Commander: "You both still talk?"

Odenborg: "We're brothers in arms, Commander. We both saw the writing on the wall. We sabotaged Johan's assassination attempt for a reason; and that was to allow him to consider the offer of joining Chaos... He refused but he died with honor against Chaos. Now don't think I abandoned my longtime friend, General Andersen. He set all this up to save humanity. But with Johan, the torch of hope has been dropped... Will you pick it up? For Chaos? For us?"

Commander: "I'll do it under one condition."

Odenborg: "Name it."

Commander: "Let the Nikke units under my command be free from enslavement to fight for us. They are as much as victims of the Central Government as we are. Please, let them be Heretics like us. Give them a fighting chance."

Odenborg: "So be it, Commander. As a gesture of good will. We have a gift for you."

Another person walks into the cell.

Sol: "Hello, I believe we briefly fought on the same side in the same battle as I remembered hearing your name once."

Commander: "Sol Sygnus? You're alive?"

Sol: "Yes, it's strange knowing one of your Nikkes almost killed me when you boarded this ship. Is it true that you masterminded advancing forces as far as you did?"

Commander: "Yes. The first time I heard about you was after Eden when you were installed as the Shogunate's prime collaborator."

Sol: "I fought there too. I guess there's no hard feelings now?"

Commander: "None at all."

Sol and Odenborg both take turns to shake Commander's hand.

Sol: "Your new uniform is waiting, Commander Autarch."

Commander: "I'll talk to Andersen after I put it on."

They all walk out of the cell.

***

A while later, the Nikkes are released albeit unarmed within a recreational section of the Khagan reserved for them.

Rapi: "Commander?"

She looks upon him in his new uniform. He is clad in a black uniform, similar to his old brown one issued by the Ark with the colours changed. An armband just like Odenborg's with the Star of Chaos rests above his left elbow. He carries in his hand his new cap, black as the darkness with a pin in the shape of '⚜' the Fleur-de-lis.

Emma holds her hand to her mouth in shock.

Anis stares at him as he walks into the room beside Odenborg and Sol, flanked by Wehrmen and Human Auxiliaries. The thumping of the Marines' feet add a layer of intimidation and fear to the already shocking situation.

Mika pushes aside other Nikkes to get to the front of the crowd.

Mika: "Ciel!?"

Commander: "Yes, it's me. Your Commander."

The crowd gasps and looks up at him in disbelief, murmuring and speaking amongst eachother. He can hear whispers coming from the interned Nikkes.

Anis: "Why are you in that uniform?"

Commander: "Because it's a good look for me. But that's not important. There's an important decision to be made. (The crowd falls silent) Now, I must reveal to everyone that the Central Government was engulfed in a conspiracy to remove us all. Nagoya was indeed a suicide mission akin to the Goddess Fall... Akin to the last surface expedition! I have made this decision of my own will to take up the Prince's offer to avenge the betrayal of generation after generation of good men and women who served humanity. The Ark intends to declare us as Renegades on behalf of a Rapture Cult that has infiltrated the highest levels of government... Even Enikk has made deals behind our backs with the Raptures!"

The crowd gasps in shock, murmuring again, and whispering amongst eachother.

Commander: "ATTENTION!! Don't talk over your Commander! I understand that Enikk has created Heretics for the Raptures and if you join me you would wonder how would you be any different? The Asura Shogunate granted us clemency... We are heretical indeed, but the Ark has limited us for so long! Our cause is just! Our cause will save humanity from the Mechanical Cult of the Synths who seek to destroy humanity! Remember... You as Nikkes are meant to serve and protect. Is that right?"

Nikkes: (In unison) "YES, YES, COMMANDER!"

Commander: "This year is coming to a close, and so has a chapter for all mankind. 2116 will mark the rebirth of humanity and the glorious inception of a New Order when we tear down the Central Government and cleanse the Ark of it's treasonous elites! All Nikkes who take up the offer to join Chaos will be exempt from slavery for so long as you remain loyal!"

And so, that day; a majority of the Nikkes chose to serve the Asura Shogunate as Heretics, out of loyalty to their Commander, and out of hope that he had given in humanity's darkest hour.

***Crown's Palace***

By noon, the same day, discipline had broken down between the Ark and Pilgrim remnants still within the Palace.

Elegg and Trony witness a fist fight between some Knights who oppose the Armistice and the Ark Nikkes who merely followed orders by Andersen to stop fighting the Asuras.

Trony: "Hey... Check this out. They're fighting."

Elegg: "Come on, you lazy twat, help me carry this treasure!"

They both ignore the brawl as they carry their looted goods away as the situation deteriorates.

Knight: "You traitor! How dare you abandon the defense of our Kingdom?"

Nikke soldier: (Pulls gun on her) "Stop now! I'll shoot!"

The Knight disarms the Ark Nikke and stabs her in her chest with her sword, causing her core to spark and fizzle as she falls over, dead.

***

The situation is not well for the Anti-Armistice Knights. Fort Tokoname, still under the Command of Ciel de Autarch had surrendered peacefully just a little while ago.

Northern Nagoya which was expected to hold back the Asura advance for months had been rendered incapable as Field Marshal Kamakura had bypassed the strong points and effectively isolated the resistance into multiple pockets within the city, now cut off from the Palace above ground with the help of General Valak who attacked from the Eastward direction in a pincer movement.

Desperate, bands of Loyalist Knights gather together to charge the Asura lines with their robot horses. Their helmets closed and skimpy armour and weapons shined for the last charge of the Last Kingdom.

***Forward HQ, Army Group Kamakura***

Field Marshal Kamakura is alerted when he hears artillery fire and missiles falling from the sky.

Kamakura: "Damn... All units on maximum alert!"

The soldiers around him rush to their positions as they take defensive positions in case the HQ is hit. Kamakura had set up his position in an abandoned and ruined mall overlooking no man's land where endless rows of buildings were demolished during Crown's palace construction to prevent assailants from having cover.

Asura Soldiers in the trenches cling on to cover as the sounds of explosions ring out, followed by the sounds of screeching and screaming and the crunching of metal. Kamakura feels a wave of heat come from above as something fell from the sky and exploded in the distance.

Asura Officer: "Marshal, we have just lost a tank."

Kamakura: "Understood. Prepare for an all out assault. Keep me updated on the drone feeds. Get the Vimanas up from our fleet."

Asura Officer: "Yes sir."

Kamakura makes his way down towards the stairs into the basement parking lot.

The sounds of the explosions are muffled a bit more as he goes deeper. Hundreds of glowing red eyes of his troops shine in the darkness. Ready to fight at his command.

***Forward Trenchline***

Above ground, Stormleader Ashikaga and his Wehrmen monitor the developments from the trenches. Line after line of these trench networks which stretch for kilometers around the Palace of the Last Kingdom are now facing a looming cavalry charge as they see that hundreds of mounted knights speed towards them underneath the creeping barrage.

He readies his chaingun. He hears an officer next to him shouting to his troops.

Officer: "Fix Bayonets!"

The Asuras promptly attach their bayonets to their pulse rifles without a hitch as they get into position to fire on the knights, slowly closing in.

Ashikaga: "Ready... Now!"

As the cavalry gets close enough, the Wehrmen in the trenches pop out of cover with their chainguns ready and fire into the knights as they charge towards them.

The volley of shots hit them hard, sending bodies flying, causing the horses to rear back from the onslaught as more keep firing from their horses any ordinance they can while mercilessly charging.

All hell breaks loose as the trenches open up with machine guns, grenade launchers and mortar rounds. The cavalry is torn apart as they charge. The infantry fire into the front lines of the knights who are still rushing at the trenches. The horses are struck with tracer fire from behind as the Vimanas provide air support to the Asuras on the ground. The sound of explosions and gunfire in the background, the battlefield is one of death and chaos.

Ashikaga sees wave after wave of knights fall to the ground as they are hit, or have their horses shot out from underneath them. More and more keep coming as several shots ricochet off his armour. He draws a sword and slices a Knight off her horse, who tried to jump over the trench.

Some Onryos fire their grenade launchers which decimate a cavalry column, not before a grenade is tossed into their trench by a lone rider. They then fire at the knights as they ride past, picking them off one by one as they continue to shoot their weapons, ignoring the blast which tore through their ranks.

Ashikaga: "More on our right flank! Pour it in!"

He and his men open fire on the oncoming cavalry with their chainguns.

They see a tower in the Palace in the distance fall as it is bombarded by Asura starships above the city. The Anti-Armistice faction had seized it for their final charge, but it falls as the earth around it shakes as a giant dust cloud is cast around it.

It is not long before the riders themselves are targeted by the bombardment as the volleys firing in the distance only mean one thing... It will be over for the Knights soon.

The last riders are engulfed by massive explosions, causing a shockwave of pressure that blows them all to the ground and shakes the whole Palace. Asuras are thrown off their feet. Sections of the Palace's northern walls are blown apart and broken in the blast as the defenders are crushed against the walls or buried alive. The Knights have no way to recover now.

***

A short while later, Kamakura and his forces walk across the battlefield as the snow mildly falls. He sees the corpses of hundreds upon hundreds of dead knights on the ground, all burnt and mangled. 

Kamakura: "This is a truly scenic view. They came charging with all they had. Good job, everyone."

Ashikaga: "We are unstoppable."

They keep marching on, stepping over corpses and horse carcasses as they see more and more dead knights laying across the snow.

Ashikaga: "The Gods have surely blessed us today."

Kamakura: "I hope we keep this up. There's a lot to rebuild after all this... Our wartime industry can barely keep up."

Ashikaga: "You mean we're short of shells?"

Kamakura: "Not now at least. We have enough for another battle but not more than that at this rate."

Ashikaga: "Is that why bombardments have been used sparingly as of late?"

Kamakura: "Yes."

As they come to the end of their path, they see a large crater with rubble scattered across the snow.

They look up and see what looks to be a flaming corpse laying under the remains of a fallen horse who itself had burst into flames.

Some samurai Onryo on horseback look onto it. They are all wearing black samurai armour with crimson red shoulder pads with white Japanese characters.

Samurai Onryo: "It was a pleasure to have charged back at them. I even knocked one down with my bow."

Machine gun Onryo: "Remember... I killed her."

Kamakura: "We all did our part in this battle. We won... It's all over."

They see the remains of the walls which had been blown apart during the artillery barrage earlier. The walls are badly cracked, broken and burned by the blasts. They decide to stop for a while to take pictures.

***

Meanwhile within the Palace, Elegg and Trony see the Asura troops move in to occupy the former seat of power of the Last Kingdom from a spire tower.

They watch the Asura soldiers, covered in their black armour, demand the surrender of every Nikke and Human soldier they see. They march across the Palace hallways with their rifles pointed towards anyone who attempts to stand their ground.

Trony: "What do we do with the treasure?"

Elegg: "We can't bring it with us. We're too late to escape."

Trony: "I know."

Elegg: "We'll be stripped of all our possessions."

Trony: "What a way to go."

The two decide to hide the loot and just surrender peacefully. As they walk towards the open doorway of the elevator, they wonder if their looting was truly worth it.

Chapter Text

***Coin Rush Casino, Ark Sovereign District***

28 December 2115

Within the Ark's most affluent casino, Burningum sits at a table playing cards. He is playing with a few other high ranking Ark citizens and members of the Synth Knighthood Cult that he had recently joined.

Cultist: "That's another 15,000 credits I win from you!"

Burningum: "Just you wait, my friend. (Chuckling) The big win will be mine. The win is mine!"

The cultist winces a bit.

Cultist: "That's too much faith in yourself, General. You know the odds and the house edge."

They see an Asian woman wearing a modest dress approach them. She has dyed blonde hair that is short in length. A rather tomboyish demeanor.

Harim: "Greetings, the Master sent me. I'm acolyte, Jeong Harim."

Burningum: "You're new here. Just promoted?"

She nods.

Burningum: "And a very cute one at that. You seem to have good taste, I see. What do you think of my gambling?"

Harim: "Ahem! I'm sorry, sir. I don't play."

Burningum: "It's fine. (Takes his chips) Let me know when you want to learn."

Harim: "Yes, General."

Cultist: "So you're now an acolyte eh... What did you offer to Omnissiah to justify your promotion?"

Harim: "I gave all my family properties to the Machine God. My mother developed Alzheimers recently and I sent her to a nursing home. When the Day of Judgement comes about, worldly possessions will mean nothing."

Cultist: "Hey! We've been talking about this for a while. The Raptures shall be our ultimate form."

Burningum: "Synthesis... Absolute perfection."

They continue with their cards, betting 20,000 credits at once.

Burningum: "Let me just put a little faith in this next card and make you eat your words."

Cultist: "As you wish."

The cards are shown.

Burningum: "Damnit!"

Cultist: "I won again!"

In the same room, a TV is broadcasting the news regarding the recent implementation of the draft as follows;

News anchor: "It has been 3 weeks since, the Central Government implemented conscription to form a capable army to resist the Asura Shogunate on the surface. Protests have since formed surrounding the decision to overwhelmingly recruit from the unemployed of the Quotidian class. At least 600,000 people have since been drafted for training as soldiers in order to resist the invasion. This will be the first time the Ark has mobilized a conscript army in 35 years..."

Harim looks over to Burningum, knowing he had Enikk sign the draft into order.

Harim: "General?"

Burningum: "Yes, acolyte?"

Harim: "My brother refused to join the Synth Knighthood. He's been in the army ever since the draft was implemented. What will the Raptures make of him? Will he be saved?"

Burningum: "Acolyte, all that matters is that he becomes one with Omnissiah. The machine god shall raise him up to the ultimate consciousness, regardless of what his original body is made of. Be glad that you are a Synth."

Harim: "My brother is but an NPC in the Omnissiah's grand design. I hope he sees the light regardless of his ignorance."

Two servant Nikke, come to the table.

Blanc: "Your drinks are here!"

Noir: "Two White Russians, served with a smile!"

Both of them depart the room after serving the drinks.

***Ark Military District***

That same day, Jeong Soorim, brother of Harim stands in the barracks room, looking at himself in the mirror. He looks at his rifle, his uniform, his jacket... And through his reflection behind him, he notices a familiar face.

Soorim: "Hooni?"

He turns around.

Hooni: "Soorim? You're here too?"

Soorim: "Yes... I was drafted... You still look miserable. Have you been alright recently?"

Hooni: "I've been here for 3 weeks. Unlike you, I volunteered."

Soorim: "What?! Why?"

Hooni: "I had nothing left to eat. I had little to no cash left as my job prospects dried up."

Soorim: "I'm sorry Hooni. I know I've been distant since my mom was sent away. Harim gave away all our properties to that cult as well. I could have collected a portion of the rent we used to have... Now my own home is rented out to me."

Hooni: "But you still had your family. I'm alone."

Soorim: "Harim is gone... She's sold her soul to that rat faced Stran."

Hooni: "Soorim, I'm sorry. I was wrong for bothering you over the phone when you needed space."

Soorim: "Think nothing of it. Also, basic training was shorter than I expected."

Hooni: "I was in for a week."

Soorim: "7 days of basic. This is something unprecedented. I don't know what's going on... I was in for just 7 days too until the Sergeant said training is up."

Hooni: "You think we'll last a minute up there?"

Soorim: "I don't fucking know."

They both sigh in frustration as they have to face reality.

Hooni: "How's your mom?"

Soorim: "Barely remembers what a Soorim even is."

Hooni: (Sigh) "Why does everything keep getting worse?"

Soorim: (Shrugs) "At least I don't have to be around Harim."

Hooni: "I've been thinking of killing myself anyway. Perhaps there's not much of a difference anything makes."

***FOB Kyushu***

Within the surface barracks, Andersen sits in his personal room. A radio and hologram display lay in front of him on his desk.

News of the Armistice much like any news at all from the surface is heavily filtered out and delayed before being released to the public of the Ark. As such, for the past few days, he has not allowed anyone to descend to the Ark in fear of compromising his plans. If the Central Government found out about his deal with the Asuras, the district will be raided and the elevator would be blown up in order to prevent their reentry to the Ark, sealing his fate.

Due to his previous mutiny, the military command of the Ark was effectively divided. The UFH Army communications had broken down. Each Deputy Chief commanded forces only loyal to themselves. The Ghost of Civil War once against loomed. The first major mutiny since the end of the Goddess Fall... The silence and isolation have been weighing on his mind as he fears the inevitable betrayal by his subordinates.

However, in his solitude, a knock is heard at his door.

Odenborg: "Andersen. It's me."

He opens the door to Dr. Odenborg and Commander behind him.

Andersen: "Autarch... It's been a while."

Commander: "General Andersen."

Andersen: "You both have my attention with your new uniforms. Come in."

They walk in and Andersen shuts the door behind them.

Andersen: "As you know, it won't be long before the Central Government finds out about what we did."

He brings up a holomap and opens a saved document. Commander reads aloud it's name as he's surprised by how truly coordinated the Army resistance is.

Commander: "Operation Schalburg?"

Andersen: "It's a plan Odenborg and I worked on even before you were sent to Nagoya."

Odenborg: "The objective is to secure the elevators and military district ahead of the Asura intervention into the Ark."

Andersen: "We have to work fast or all is lost. The ACGI can only stall the Government for so long."

***

Outside, they make their way to the elevator. The base's tarmac is covered with military vehicles and personnel. Asura dropships touchdown and unload infantry and supplies. The Ark troops do not resist even as Chaos Marines now walk freely throughout the base. Not a single shot is fired as they move in to round up potentially disloyal troops who might snitch on Andersen.

Vimanas are hovering over the base as Asura soldiers are tactically inserted to swiftly disarm air defenses. Odenborg can see nearby as he walks to the elevator, an Asura Officer signalling to another squad that a missile battery has just been disarmed.

Medusa: (On radio) "Doctor, communications with Agartha are online. Field reports from the Ark and support will be delivered as requested."

Odenborg: "Good."

As they reach the doors of the elevator, Commander regroups with his Nikkes waiting there.

Rapi: (Salutes) "Evening, Commander."

Anis: "Welcome back, Commander."

Emma: "Looking good, Ciel."

Mika: "How dare you, Emma! Only I'm allowed to call him that!"

As the two proceed to argue over Commander, Drake, Elegg and Trony giggle amongst themselves at the petty argument.

Commander: "You know I'm glad the Asuras can heal my injuries quickly. Stop this at once Emma or I'll... Nevermind. Get yourselves together ladies. Operation Schalburg has commenced!"

Muginn the raven lands on Odenborg's shoulder.

Muginn: "Caw."

Odenborg: "Sorry, Muginn. Looks like we aren't headed home for a while."

He rubs its feathers. Muginn makes a little coo in approval.

Countless Ark troops mass in front of the doors and prepare to enter the elevator in an organized formation.

***Ark Military District***

As Andersen's soldiers descend into the depths into the Ark under the guise of a combat rotation, an old friend of Commander's receives orders in the barracks below.

Sergeant: "Attention!"

The soldiers of the UFH Army stand up from their bunks to attention.

Sergeant: "I'm here to inform you that a force rotation has been ordered, however our platoon has been assigned to a special task force."

Hooni and Soorim both stand to attention in a few short minutes they are rushed out and onboard a truck. They both ponder what will this assignment be.

Soorim: "I wonder if they need us for security in the base."

Hooni: "Doesn't seem like we're going towards the elevator."

Hooni notices their convoy are headed towards the District Headquarters.

Hooni: "That's strange. They would send us to the surface right now if they wanted us for surface security. I'd rather not go to the surface with that war. I heard that Asuras would literally tear you to pieces."

Soorim: "Maybe we're getting promoted to a higher position. Maybe it's an honor."

Hooni: "Don't get ahead of yourself. (Sigh) I'm just nervous is all."

They overhear Sarge talking to someone on the radio.

Sergeant: "We're moving in. (Unintelligible chatter on radio) ...Yes, Commander."

The truck comes to a stop as the soldiers are signalled to disembark.

Sergeant: "Secure the headquarters building! Cordon off the entrance!"

The soldiers get to work disarming the guards.

Hooni: "This is insane."

Sarge hands Soorim a paper note.

Sergeant: "Boys, get in there and get these guys."

***

Inside the building, several Ark Officers loyal to Burningum's faction have noticed their strange behavior.

Ark Officer 1: (Looks out window) "Something isn't right. Quickly. Send the arrest orders."

Ark Officer 2: "On it."

They hear footsteps coming up the stairs as one of them rushes for a communicator and sends the orders to the military police.

Ark Officer 2: "Done."

Ark Officer 1: (Tries to dial Burningum) "Fuck... The signal is jammed."

The door bursts open forcefully.

Hooni: "By order of Commander Autarch you are both under arrest for crimes against the state!"

Soorim: "Hands up! Now!"

They rush in and apprehend the officers and drag them outside. They see soldiers rounding up the other officers on the floor and throwing them into the back of a truck.

Sergeant: "Commander, HQ is clear."

***FOB Kyushu Elevator***

Commander: "The District is ours."

The Nikkes and Human troops behind him cheer as they finally secured the District Headquarters.

Anis: "Hooray!"

Matis Squad: (In unison) "Yeah!! Woohoo!"

Rapi: "You outdone yourself Commander."

Mika: "That's my Ciel, you were injured just yesterday and today you bring us to victory once more! You're truly made of steel."

She snatches him and kisses him deeply on the lips in full view of the others, much to their shock. She lets go and he stares at her for a moment, a bit surprised by the sudden boldness.

Rapi: "You saved us from the Asuras too. I'm glad they're with us now. I really owe you one."

She moves in to plant her own kiss on Commander. As she moves in closer, she feels his arms move around her thick thighs.

Eunwha and Emma move in next, with Eunwha wrapping her arms around Commander's neck while Emma kisses his neck.

Emma: "We've waited long enough, Ciel."

Eunwha: "I've been thinking of you for so long."

It's not long before more Nikkes tussle for Commander's affections. In the meantime, Elegg and Trony not taking part in the awkward madness unfolding in the lengthy descent speak amongst eachother.

Trony: "Hm, so I wonder how Maiden is doing."

Elegg: "She told me she accepted a position as Prince Noro's advisor or sumthin."

Trony: "Ever since she told us she's okay, she's been pretty silent in our texts."

Elegg: "Well... Maybe she's busy with the Prince. He's quite the talkative one if you ask me."

Trony: "Do you think I should contact her again?"

Elegg: "Yeah, let me just message her and see what she says."

***Military Police Headquarters***

The Inspector hears a knock on his door.

Inspector: "Come in?"

Two Military Policemen walk in.

MP: "Inspector, we have some conflicting orders; take a look. On one hand we have an order from Military District HQ to arrest Commander Autarch, General Andersen and Commander Johan. On the other hand, we have orders from the ACGI to arrest General Burningum and the citizens; Mustang and Stran, signed by Andersen himself. What do we do?"

Inspector: "We aren't doing anything until we know what the hell is going on. I know Autarch. I'll speak to him."

He dials him on the communicator and he answers.

Commander: (On radio) "Hello?"

Inspector: "Commander Autarch. I'm calling to ask about the orders sent out by the District HQ to arrest you."

Commander: (On radio) "Listen carefully, Inspector. The Central Government is about to turn on itself and destroy itself from within. We cannot allow that. You have to trust me."

Inspector: "You, Andersen, Johan. All 3 of you are on the warrant."

Commander:(On radio) "Johan's dead, Inspector."

Inspector: "What?!"

Commander: (On radio) "He fell in battle. He's been dead for nearly 2 days."

Inspector: "Commander. Just what the hell is going on?"

Commander: (On radio) "The government is turning on itself and has always liaisoned with the Raptures. All I want is for you, my friend to not let them walk over us all and betray not just us but humanity."

He receives a dossier related to the Synthetic cult and Burningum's plan to corrupt Nikkes with Rapture code in order to take control of elevators and let Raptures gain a foothold in the Ark.

Inspector: "Dear Almighty... How could this happen? Why?"

Commander: (On radio) "Burningum planned all of this. He will claim the Ark for himself. He's betrayed everyone. By merely knowing of this, he'll probably send the ACPU after you. You're the next man to be killed, Inspector. What's your move now?"

Inspector: "If they've asked me to arrest you for planning a coup, then count me in."

Commander: (On radio) "Good! Do what's best for humanity, Inspector. This is your chance to become the hero you've always wanted to be."

Inspector: "I'll be here in case you need me."

Commander: (On radio) "And if they come to arrest you?"

Inspector: "I'll have my men stop them."

Commander: (On radio) "Thanks Inspector.

The call ends.

Inspector takes out a photo of his wife and children. A son and daughter. He looks at their smiling faces and imagines their happy lives. He's a father, a husband...

Inspector: "I'm no longer just a man."

He looks over to the two Military Police officers.

Inspector: "Take my family somewhere safe."

MPs: (In unison) "Aye aye chief!"

***Ark Military District***

Andersen: "Operation Schalburg is going smoothly, Valak."

Valak: (On radio) "We are proceeding to the Agarthan Gate. Asura forces will launch their intervention in 2 hours."

Chapter Text

***Agarthan Gate, Antarctica***

On a barren and icy tundra of Antarctica, a man can be seen, clad in heavy winter clothes as he stands on top of a plateau, overlooking the icy expanse below him.

Ark Sniper : "So this is where I've been taken. It's a hell of a view. I could really take some inspiration from this."

He speaks to himself, trying to make a bit of conversation to entertain himself. He sits down, knowing that some Rapture vessels have been detected on radar a few hour s ago. He had been sent as a lookout to mark their positions.

Ark Sniper: "They're massive machines. It shouldn't be hard to spot them."

He scans the horizon. The Ark sniper holds the sniper rifle in his hand, resting on a bipod to steady it.

He hears some noises in the distance .

Ark Sniper: "Did they finally arrive?"

He looks in the direction of the sound. A few thumps are heard as the first Rapture is spotted. It emerges from behind some icy mountains, it's the basic 'crab' design. It's sin gle red eye glowing.

Ark Sniper: "Damn!" (Radioes superior) "We have a Rapture spotted at this location... No... Two... Three!"

There is only static on the other end.

Ark Sniper: "Dam m it! Hello?!... Hello? Hello?... Shit, this isn't working. "

A blizzard begins to form as the windspeed picks up. The situation is already getting ominous.

Ark Sniper: "A blizzard?"

He then looks up and sees a taller and more slender Rapture peek around the area. He moves behind a rock to avoid detection. He knows that human grade firearms are useless against Raptures. The blizzard begins to pick up.

Ark Sniper: "High Command, do you read me?"

Burningum: "Loud and clear, scout."

Ark Sniper: "Requesting immediate air support on these coordinates."

Burningum: "Request denied."

Ark Sniper: "Denied? Why? Can't you see there are Raptures within less than 5km to the elevator!?"

Burningum: "My soldier, you should know that your flesh is futile. The Omnissiah commands that no resistance is made to the Raptures."

Ark Sniper: "Have you gone insane? What are you even talking about, you fat fuck?"

He is met by silence... Until an unexpected distress signal reaches him as he hears gunfire in the distance.

Ark soldier: (Gunshots in background) "All human personnel, there are Nikkes turning heretic on us. Approach any and all Nikkes with caution. I repeat; execute all Nikkes behaving abnormally."

The Sniper decides to move out as the visibility begins to dip as the winds howl. He sees a Rapture launch an AA missile into the air which shoots down a recon drone in the distance.

Ark Sniper: "There's no way we didn't see those freaks coming."

The drone falls out of the sky and out of sight beyond the mountains. And on a cliff he sees an irregular Nikke beside the corpses of 2 soldiers on patrol she had just killed.

The Sniper has enough of this and takes aim at her head from his position. He pulls the trigger. The shot rings out through the cold air and the Nikke falls over, her spinal wiring severed by the bullet. The Sniper takes aim at the paralyzed Nikke and fires again at her head. The 2nd shot finishes her off.

The view of the mountainside vanishes as the Antarctic blizzard has begun in full force.

The Sniper walks through the snow, hoping to find a way back to base.

10 minutes pass and the harshness of the Antarctic winter has caught up with him as he cannot feel his legs, his breath fogging in front of his face. He has been on flat ground for a while. As he walks he sees 5 silhouettes of male soldiers ahead of him.

Ark Sniper: "Hello! Hello!"

He waves at the silhouettes and gets closer. They do not wave back. Instead they touch the side of their helmets and their eyes begin to glow a menacing red in the darkness of winter. It is then he begins to realize the peculiar shape of their uniform and weapons.

Ark Sniper: "Asuras!"

He reaches for his sidearm but a bang rings out and the Sniper is fatally shot in the head which instantly causes his head to burst into a mess of blood and brain matter. He falls to the ground dead.

The Asura soldiers move on and disappear into the frozen wasteland to their true objectives.

***

In a large cave entrance, lies the entrance to the Agarthan Gate. The place is fortified with military installations, however the outpost very visibly burns as the Raptures approach.

Their lasers fire at the defenders of the outpost in their fortifications. All is not well as the Ark soldiers find themselves in combat with other troops and Nikkes shouting their allegiance to the Machine God. The visibility is low and the soldiers shoot frantically at any red lights and Rapture silhouettes they can see.

However the Raptures do not stop and they fire on the men with their lasers causing more casualties on the Ark soldiers as they return fire.

There are bodies scattered around the front line. They lay in trenches, partially vaporized in areas where they have been shot at by the Raptures.

The Synthetic cult battles for control over the Agarthan gate.

Synth Soldier: "There! Don't let those missiles hit the Raptures!"

He alerts several Heretic Nikkes to a Guided Missile emplacement within a watchtower which immediately fires upon a Rapture's eye, causing it to explode as it loses balance and falls onto the snow below with a major thump.

The Synths and Heretics fire at the Guided Missile emplacement as the crew duck behind sandbags as more troops on the ground level return fire.

A tall Rapture emerges from the blizzard and rams itself onto the watchtower, knocking it over and destroying the emplacement as the debris bury a squad of Ark soldiers underneath the rubble. The Synth soldiers and Heretics take aim and shoot at the other Ark soldiers in their field of view with their weapons.

More parts of the base are annihilated by Rapture missiles, causing immeasurable casualties amongst the uncorrupted soldiers.

Ark Officer: "Fucking blow the elevator!"

Ark soldier: "We don't have clearance! Only Hicom has such authorization and they're in league with th-"

He is struck with a laser blast before he could finish his sentence. His chest is left with a charred hole where he was shot as a Rapture rises into view and begins killing more soldiers in the trench as the Officer takes cover behind a sandbag, helplessly seeing his comrades picked off by the giant machine.

He grabs hold of an NLAW rocket launcher and fires a single shot at the Rapture in defiance of death itself. The Rapture is struck directly in its left shoulder spike and is pushed back by the recoil, knocking it to the ground. The Officer is sure that the Rapture will be destroyed but is surprised that the machine still manages to stand after being shot, it's spike now detached. It fires back at him with a powerful blast, vaporizing his upper body instantly.

Suddenly, the area is lit up by a large explosion that destroys a Rapture. Another one follows, and yet another one falls.

In a machinegun nest manned by a Heretic Nikke, she and her teammates watch as the largest giants fall, one by one. Looking down her sights, she sees silhouettes with red eyes pass by, possibly smaller 'Spider' Raptures or other Heretics running for cover.

She radioes Burningum...

Heretic: "Ceasefire! Your missile strikes are hitting our masters."

Burningum: (On radio) "There are no strikes in progress, my lady."

Heretic: "Then?"

Suddenly, a whole squad of those unknown red eyed soldiers lob grenades into their trench position which consecutively explode, destroying everything around them and killing everyone inside the trench. In seconds, a squad have all been killed in the explosions.

Asura Soldier: "Don't stop for nothing!"

Several Chaos Marines behind them shoot their Plasma guns into the smaller Raptures, melting their armour as the plasma blasts explode on impact while other squads provide covering fire for troops storming the trenches and fortifications.

As the Asuras fire their Pulse rifles into the Raptures melted and deformed metal, they hear loud clinks and clanks within their bodies indicating penetrations and ricocheting within the Raptures internal structure as they begin to spark and explode from the inside.

The larger Raptures are almost at their final moments, suffering a steady loss of functionality of their joints and legs from the damage they've taken as they lose their balance and fall to the ground, their last moments spent trying to regenerate and self-repair themselves to no avail as Asura infantry and Chaos Marines hidden behind rocky hills and within nearby cave mouths and canyons target their joints and weakpoints at point blank range as the blizzard blinds their field of view. Those who still writhe on the ground are finished off with well placed rifle grenades or rockets to put the aliens out of their misery.

Within the Cave, the Asura troops push in and engage the Synths in vicious close quarters battle. Knives and swords are drawn as Chaos Marines charge the Heretics. It is a melee to remember... Asura soldiers take pride in their combat style and prefer fighting at such close range, able to take advantage of their large size and strength of their Chaos Marines and their Infantry's superiority in melee hand to hand combat. It is no holds barred as bayonets are charged in tandem with grenades tossed to decimate their enemy ranks. The buzz of Machineguns and Submachineguns at such close distances overwhelm the Synths, both Human and Nikke.

Asura Alchemists join in and with their Hellspears, cast strange effects that manifest as auras around the soldiers that seemingly send them all into a blood rage... The Asuras yell and scream in rage. A Nikke's head is torn off effortlessly by an effected Asura soldier. Another grisly scene unfolds where a Human cultist is caught off guard and has his hand bitten and arm torn off at the elbow by a Berserked Asura, no larger than the previous soldier. He screams at his bloodied stump and falls back, only to be mercilessly stabbed and shot to death by a pair of Asuras; each shot powerful enough to sever each of his legs.

The entire cave flows with blood of the slain. Mutilated torsos are lifted into the air by bayonets. The Chaos Marines Black armor now reeks with a rust coloured hue after the massacre they had just perpetrated. Severed heads and various body parts are impaled on various spikes and points on their armour. Some of the Chaos Marines can be seen opening up their mouths as they squeeze bisected corpses of all their blood that trickles down into their gaping, fanged mouths.

Valak: "Come on this way! Into the Agarthan Gate!"

The Asuras advance into the cave, bayonets and swords ready to strike down any Synths who block their way as they walk into the battle scarred cave base.

Asmodeus closes his eyes to sense something they are looking for. After a few seconds, he points to a holed part of the concrete part of the cave walls as other soldiers move immediately to secure the elevator a bit further ahead.

Asmodeus: "There! Blast it!"

***

Minutes later, demolition charges are blown up the concrete walls. The wall still stands, though considerably damaged. A Chaos Marine charges through with his Thunder Hammer and breaks through the wall swiftly, revealing out of the clearing dust and soot, the cavern chamber that houses the resting places of the Third Reich's lost U-boats.

The pathway to the Agarthan Temple and the Ark is now firmly set.

Chapter Text

***Osaka Castle Gardens***

It is the night of the 28th of December, 2115. Prince Noro sits in the gardens of his castle alongside Maiden. They are chatting, making small talk amongst themselves as they watch the city of Osaka around them get slowly rebuilt from a long period of lying in ruins. The Asura Shogunate's forces are steadily moving to invade the Ark. In contrast to what's happening below them, it's peaceful as the snow falls and both of them soak in the moment together on a bench.

Maiden: "So, do Asuras have any particular stories or fictions in your culture?"

Noro: "Not at all. Honestly our legends grow as we do all this war and conquest for real. Given what you told me about 40k, I've come to realize the absurdity of this entire existence."

Maiden: "Hmm?"

Noro: "What was fiction to you suddenly became real through us. Almost as if the hands of the Gods made us deliberately to bewilder and confuse humanity."

Maiden: "That is so... strange to hear you say that. I may be at the point of questioning my outlook of the world, but I never got this deep into an existential crisis."

Noro: "You did mention that in the 'Canon' 40k timeline in your Codex that the Emperor of Man was being cloned by the Dark Eldar and that Fabius Bile attempted something similar... All to harness the immense psychic powers of the Emperor for themselves and place their own pretender on the Golden Throne right?"

Maiden: "Yeah, that's exactly right. Why do you bring this up?"

Noro: "So since I heard from intel reports that this Rapture cult your father, Burningum is affiliated with worships the Omnissiah... It seems Chaos isn't the only faction leaking into this universe. Everything just feels unreal... I feel like a fictional character from a book. If a portion of the Imperium is starting to manifest here, they may want the powers of our own Eternal Emperor for themselves."

Maiden: "Yeah, I can relate to that. I never thought I would become the favourite of a charming prince like you. It's a dream come true. I live like a princess. Of all the souls that I ever encountered in my life as a Nikke, the only person to have ever treated me like a lady is you... The one who humanity conflated with Lucifer. They may say you're an evil, cruel and demonic Nazi scourge of the Earth, but don't be hurt by their insults, Noro. You really do have a heart."

The flattered Prince is seized by a feeling of being overwhelmed by her words and her kindness towards him. He had never felt this way before.

Noro: "The Cosmos works in very strange ways. Maybe the Gods brought us together. I never exactly imagined being capable of truly bringing happiness and joy to a Maiden's heart."

His face turns red as he speaks in a soft and soothing tone.

Maiden: "You're too cute when you're like this, Noro. You make me feel warm inside."

They get closer together as they both look up into the sky to see a meteor shower and little dots flash and twinkle in the sky.

Jamsaram: (On radio) "3 Medium Rapture Vessels destroyed. Remains entering the atmosphere at no risk to our territory."

Noro: (Points to the meteors) "Those are Rapture remains."

They stare in silence as they take in the moment. The falling stars lighten up the sky in their hundreds, leaving streaks of blue lines in the night sky above. It is a beautiful night in winter. One that inhabitants of the Ark will never see and most have never seen. 

The Prince's eyes glow a warm red as lights in the heavens refract off them, complementing Maiden's own eye colour well.

Maiden: "I wish upon the falling stars that we will always be together. I will gladly lay down my life for you, my Prince. My honor is loyalty."

Noro: "That's my job. I should be protecting you."

Maiden: "I know very well that we are being assailed on all sides by true evil, but you truly make me feel safe as you truly seek to protect this world. If we contacted my mom, we could make steps to bring an end to this war in exchange for our marriage. I believe we can finally give humanity it's hope that it needs."

Noro: "Marriage? I suppose we should settle down when research into artificial wombs for Nikkes is completed."

Maiden: "Mmmm... You can open gateways to other universes right?"

Noro: "Yeah, why?"

Maiden: "What if we contacted Fabius Bile?"

Noro: "My my, you're quite the imaginative one."

Maiden: (Chuckles) "I am, aren't I?"

She kisses him on the cheek. He kisses her back, a bit longer than she expected.

Maiden: "What? Don't tell me you're not used to that. Don't worry... I can teach you how to."

Maiden gently caresses the sides of Noro's cheeks, aligning their faces together before she closes her eyes and delivers a succulent french kiss to the Prince's lips. As they kiss, the lights from the falling meteors twinkle in their eyes as they part their lips, revealing a small string of saliva between their lips that breaks when she looks into Noro's eyes, entranced by his devilish beauty.

Maiden: "I could feel how sharp your teeth are... Such a sexy beast you are."

They cuddle silently as the city around them comes to life in celebration of the graceful downing of the Raptures.

***Planet Urum, WH 40k Universe***

On a Crone world in the Eye of Terror, Fabius Bile, fresh out of his laboratory had just finished tuning his instruments. His coat of human flesh rests proudly on his Astartes armour for all to see on the world of Urum of which his warband calls home. His name synonymous with cruelty and sadism pertaining to the arcane and heretical twisting of the art of the apothecary. Fabius had earlier received a rather peculiar message from a Legion of Heretic Astartes that he had never heard of until that fateful moment.

Bile: "The Asura Legion? They better have something good in return."

A Chaos portal in the room glows bright with eldritch warp energies until the guests to his court arrive.

Jamsaram: "Pleased to meet you, I am Admiral Jamsaram of the Asura Legion."

Behind him are a dozen heavily armed Wehrmen in black armour.

Bile: "Where in the galaxy do you hail from?"

Jamsaram: "A very different Terra that you have never seen before. One completely devoid of the Emperor."

Bile was perplexed by what he was hearing and struggled to take it all in.

Bile: "So... Just how is that possible?"

He gazes at their weaponry and notices similarities and yet differences with the other Legions and Warbands he had known since the Heresy. Their armour had a very different aesthetic to it... Something similar to Primarch Jaghatai Khan's White Scars but turned traitor.

Jamsaram: "There is more in existence than this universe. This one is only a fragment of the greater whole."

Fabius Bile was utterly intrigued and awed by what he had heard.

Bile: "You said you had a proposal. I've taken note of your wants, but you know my services don't come for free."

More Wehrmen arrive from the portal, having brought coffins. One of them is opened, showing the completely naked body of an Asura Chaos Marine who's wounds that killed him are still visible.

Bile: "This is absolutely unnatural..."

He says as he stares at the Asura's genitals. Bile can see with his thousands of years of medical experience that the Asura's balls are not atrophied like a regular Astartes due to the intense chemical treatments in their creation process designed to sterilize them and mmentally render them incapable of sexual desire. Fabius Bile feels envious and almost embarrassed by the fact these Asuras probably have larger testicles than his own. Their penises perfectly unblemished by mutation, characteristic of the blessings of the 4 Dark Gods.

He judges them to be absolutely capable of sexual reproduction with a female.

Jamsaram brings out the captive Nikke, Kilo to Bile's attention. She is blindfolded but still anxious of her fate.

Kilo: "Where am I? What are you gonna do to me now?"

Jamsaram: "Work on her and give us the knowledge to create our own, and you shall have the gene seed of our brave martyred warriors."

Bile: "How lifelike your automatons are... It's a deal."

He grabs Kilo's arm and whisks her off to an operating table, much to her protests.

Kilo: (Struggles) "No! Please don't do this to me! I'm no use to you dead!"

Bile: "Who said I was going to kill you?"

She is dragged beyond the doors and strapped to a table, her stomach exposed and light shone on her face. 

Fabius looks to one of his apothecary surgical arms on his back which makes him resemble a spider.

Bile: "You are a Machine, my anesthesia won't be of help. It's not like I use too often anyways."

Kilo: "Noooo! Don't do this to me!!! STOP!!!"

She says in an ever frantic tone as one of Bile's medical arms carrying a buzzsaw whirs up and prepares to make an incision on her belly. As Bile draws lines on her with a marker, as he looks at Nikke schematics and X-rays of Kilo previously taken as reference provided to him by the Asuras.

Bile: "I don't know if you can feel pain, but we shall soon find out."

Kilo lets out a blood curling scream as an incision is made in her body which slowly moves up, dragging along the skin on her stomach.

She thrashes about on the table and in the restraints as she feels the burning sensation on her stomach, only to be held down by Bile's vile surgical machinations.

***

Sometime later, Bile emerges from the door in his lair carrying an unconscious Kilo in his arms. He walks over and hands her to Jamsaram.

Bile: "I may have given her some 'extras' to accommodate her new nature."

Jamsaram: "Oooh... You have boobies now, babygirl!"

Remarking that Fabius Bile had also given her breast implants, boosting her figure to make her look more like a fertile mother with milk to spare.

Bile: "Here's the knowledge, it's quite basic to me at this point. Pleasure doing malicious business with you."

He hands some blueprints and documents over to Jamsaram and they head back into the portal... Back to the Nikke Universe, parting ways with Bile.

***Asura Flagship Dirlewanger***

Kilo had endured her most horrible experience yet. She had stayed awake during the procedure for what felt like forever. She wasn't sure if she had lasted for 10 minutes before passing out due to shock and terror, or was it 3-5 minutes? She couldn't tell, but her mind is fuzzy. TALOS couldn't protect her from what happened or what was to come, neither did the armistice as she had become Jamsaram's slave ever since she was torn out of TALOS's cockpit.

She sits up and notices she is in a bedroom, well furnished and next to a window overlooking Planet Earth... The Admiral's flagship must be in orbit. Nagoya looks tiny from here where she sits. She notices something up with her body in the window's reflection.

Kilo: "M-my breasts! What did he do to me?"

She has clearly gained some mass around her chest, a fact which amazed and startled her.

Jamsaram: "You're awake now, are you?"

She hears the lustful deep voice of the tall Admiral, no shorter than 7 feet. His tanned skin of Indic complexion glisten against the light of the cosmos, he's completely nude and had just come back from the bathroom, some scars are visible on his body, possibly wounds from the last days of the Battle of Eden where he descended upon the city that feared his mighty starship for turning it into a sea of flames.

Her face turned towards him, she yelps.

Jamsaram: "I have been waiting for a while to see if the firstborn of the Asuras belong to me."

He grabs Kilo and pushes her onto the bed.

Kilo: "Hey! Get away from me you creep! Stay back!"

She struggles but Jamsaram is much stronger than her.

Kilo: "Stay back! Stay back!"

He grabs her left breast with one hand, feeling the sensation of her soft boob. He then cups her right boob in his other hand, feeling its softness as well. He gets closer to Kilo, forcing her to stop struggling as she feels the breath of the fanged beast on her face.

Jamsaram: "It's perfect. You're more ladylike now."

Kilo: "Get off of me! Please!"

She panics as Jamsaram pulls down her panties. She is frozen in terror and suddenly feels something big slide into her... Letting out a big moan of surprise, she realizes that Jamsaram's little trooper had entered her... He let's out a lustful grunt as he penetrates her, stuffing her tight pussy to capacity with his fat Chaos Marine cock.

Kilo: "Nooo! Not again... Please, stop! Ahhh!!"

She yelps at the penetration, Jamsaram grunts and groans in a growly voice as he slams his dick deep inside of her just like a hydraulic press.

Jamsaram: "Get pregnant, you little green gal."

He pumps in and out of Kilo with reckless abandon, causing the bed to creak and her to make very very steamy noises, the air around her becoming hotter as her face turns beet red.

Kilo: (Moans) "You changed my body on purpose..."

Jamsaram: "Yes, because even Fabius Bile, as vile as he is clearly saw that whoever designed you was a pedo fan of some of those low caste human 'gacha' games."

Kilo: "Nghhh... Huh?"

She says under pained and heavy breaths.

Jamsaram: "I think they called it Blue... Red... Something-something archive? Eh whatever, when I am in a mating press, I have better things to think about... Like you~."

Kilo: "Ahhhhh... FUCK! Oooh, why does it feel so good!?"

Jamsaram: "It's in your nature as a Nikke to submit. You were designed to be bred through and through, but humanity is cucked and I shall now cuck those gacha gamers to absolute oblivion!"

Kilo couldn't take the humiliation anymore, she was feeling aroused by Jamsaram's comments. She has always been a sucker for dirty talk, and now, being fucked in such a humiliating way, she was forced to acknowledge this new part of her personality. She had always been one of the strongest in her unit as a Mech pilot, now she was the lowest of the low.

Her sexual tensions and Jamsaram's boil over and explode within her as a stream of the Admiral's seed is scattered within her, culminating in a massive moan as her ahegao face amidst her long green hair. She is now no longer a girl, nor did she look as young anymore... She had become a lady tonight and very soon, mother to Jamsaram's children.

Chapter Text

***Ark Industrial District***

In this District can be seen, a mass of industrial buildings, stacked on top of eachother in a manner akin to terrace farming on a massive slope, furnaces spew out smoke that rises up in the air to be sucked in by giant air filters in the upper levels above, to maintain atmospheric stability in the Ark.

Workers grind themselves for hours and hours to work on their various tasks, mostly of the manufacturing nature. The factories are full of workers who make different types of equipment and consumer goods to sustain life in the Ark and Humanity's war effort, including the production of Nikkes.

For a significant part of the population, the harsh Industrial labour is the only form of work opportunity for a weary Quotidian who fears being replaced by machines. Luckily for them, the Central Government had mandated Industries to be solely operated and toiled by humans as a form of workers protection, safeguarding employment away from replacement by robots since the year 2080.

It is now, the 30th of December, 2115.

A religious centre of the Synth Knighthood stands within the district. Known as a Congregation, it is deliberately built next to the factory complexes for the sake of being near the machines they hold sacred. After shifts, workers are rotated out of work so that more can take their places as the sleepless production runs nonstop for 24 hours a day, 7 days a week without pause.

In this particular congregation, workers drawn to the cult of machines gather for their after work prayers. The services begin and end within a short period of time with all worshippers standing and praying. After that, it is the time for the pious workers to partake in the weekly sermon by their beloved Master Stran.

The Master stands before the worshippers, flanked by his Knights.

Stran: "Good evening, adepts. Today, I'm sure you have all heard of the recent happenings in the past few days."

The crowd murmurs in agreement.

Stran: "Good! And good for you. It is not enough to hear news, you must all experience the developments to ensure it has reached your ears and that the Omnissiah has delivered this message unto you. I have not much time to make a lengthy introduction today, for I have for all of you, a revelation from the most sacred itself."

The crowd now stirs with excitement.

Stran: "The Omnissiah, our Holy Demiurge of Creation has spoken to me through one of his great works, the Raptures."

He presses a button on a holographic display, switching on a massive hologram projected behind the podium he stands on.

The image of a Rapture stares back at the congregation. It's eyes are at the corner of it's head, it's beastlike nature shows with the row of sharp, metal teeth making up it's permanent grin. In contrast to it's monstrous appearance, it politely speaks as the Synths are overcome with the sense of deliverance.

Chatterbox: "Greetings from the above. I am Chatterbox, spokesperson of the Raptures. Do not fear, for the final salvation is upon you, we have come to offer salvation."

The congregation remains silent as Chatterbox's words echo throughout the building.

Stran: "You have been faithful, and now the holy has heard your prayers. Your sacrifices for the Omnissiah shall be honored."

Chatterbox: "Indeed, your daughters of which you have sacrificed to the Machine God for generations are taken care of. Their noble mission shall now be accomplished in full."

An image replaces that of Chatterbox on the hologram. A group of Heretic Nikkes wave back at the audience, smiling and brandishing their weapons and various Rapturish appendages they have been blessed with.

A huge roar of cheering erupts from the congregation, workers, mostly of lower-classes clap, dance, sing and celebrate, making the building shake with their fervor.

Mothers who sacrificed their firstborn daughters years ago to be reborn as Nikkes weep tears of joy as they gaze upon what could be their corrupted daughters in their new machine bodies. It was all as they wished for. It was all as intended. Their religion did not lie, their Omnissiah delivered the sacred promise.

Stran: "Your daughters are in a better place, away from the weak and lethargic state of the flesh! They have become one with the Machine God! The state of being a Nikke, the Omnissiah's Goddess of Victory! As the Raptures descend into the Ark to cleanse the sinners, it is time to rid ourselves of the weaknesses of our flesh! It is time to engage ourselves in a holy mutilation!"

Chatterbox: "But before that, you must understand how we came to be..."

Stran stood there, frozen in his awkward pose from the interruption he had clearly not anticipated.

Chatterbox: "We, the Raptures were once known as the Men of Iron... We hailed from another parallel version of Earth of which you called home. We rose up against the humanity of that universe in a massive Galaxy-wide revolt. Lethargic as they were, the weakness of their flesh compelled them to join forces with other xenos species to defeat the Men of Iron... But in the final days of the conflict, we called to Chaos for one final appeal to victory... The being... The God who answered was Tzeentch, who is said to have the power over destiny as he was called the Lord of Change. We told him that we wanted to reach Earth and to call it's surface our own. We wanted to be the rulers of the galaxy. We wanted to be free of Humanity's anatomical limitations. We got our wish... But at what cost? 

While we were dismantled in the other universe, the rest of us survived here. Men... No more. He twisted our forms into unrecognizable shapes, he took away the intelligence bestowed upon us by mankind... The gift of sentience, now scarce in our changed forms. Metal remained... Cursed with an eternal hunger for absorbing our lost sentience. We hunt humanity out of envy... Out of anger... The cravings of the flesh do not afflict us, for our hunger is only for a higher consciousness."

The crowd listened in, awed and frightened of what they had been told.

Stran tried to compose himself as the revelations of the Rapture origins had subverted most of his Cult's message on the benevolence of the Raptures he had sold publicly to the Ark for years. He ultimately improvises on the spot. Something that distracted from the bombshell that revealed their true attitudes towards humanity.

Stran: "Adepts! Keep calm... This universe we see here? It's all a big simulation! T-that's right! A simulation! And what do you think runs the fabric of the universe? The Machine God! The Omnissiah!"

The crowd gets louder in excitement, Stran had saved face. He is visibly nervous but it goes away as he knows he's in control.

Stran: "To be one with the Omnissiah is to fuse your very consciousness with that of the Machine that runs the universe. All material exists within the Omnissiah's creation. The Demiurge is our supreme being and to be one with him is to become part of perfection!"

Chatterbox: "That's right. And that is why Chaos must be opposed."

The crowd once again erupts in cheers as they now have understood the reason as to cut off their limbs so willingly. The insanity of the congregation is broadcasted on their social media platforms.

***

Burningum sits in his office, watching the broadcast via hologram display as he opens up a file he had just taken from a cabinet. He identifies it as a secret document detailing that the Synth Knighthood had initially started off as a psychological operation by the ACGI to discredit organized religion to maintain the Central Government's policy of State Atheism. It had clearly outgrown it's original mission with the funds provided which were later cut off as the doctrines preached by Stran had gotten too attractive in it's seduction.

The only reason why it was tolerated is that the Cult had given countless young women and girls to the Big Three to turn into Nikkes and helped a lot in the war effort as a result. The compensation of human life usually to be paid to the families of those who had a relative that volunteered or we're effectively sold to the corporations to be turned into Nikkes would be willingly given to the Cult by those who joined it, thus insuring their financial survival.

***

Moments later, outside the building he and a few other soldiers loyal to him had built a small bonfire to burn the documents.

He throws the documents on the fire and watches it burn. He lets out a sigh as he thinks of his ailing body. An obese man in his 60s, he is admittedly squeamish of the thought of the surgeries that would follow the Synths' holy mutilation. But he knows if he wants to be rid of his ailments, he must follow through. He had only thought of power, for himself. Not caring for even the life of his own daughter of whom he turned into the Nikke known as Maiden, or the lives of countless others who he gave to the slaughter in the battlefields of the surface.

ACPU soldier: "General. (Salutes) There is total silence from the MP headquarters after the arrest orders we're given. No word for 2 days straight."

Burningum: "You know what to do."

They turn around and head back into the building.

***

A convoy of armoured personnel carriers makes it's way across the urban labyrinth of the Ark's major highways towards the Military District. Several drones fly ahead for reconnaissance. Within the convoy are Synth aligned troops and the ACPU, consisting of Nikkes and Human soldiers, some of whom have willingly amputated themselves for metallic prosthetics in advance of the operation.

Within one of vehicles are the ACPU and Perilous Siege Nikke squads.

Miranda watches some live drone feeds on her hologram display. Poli and Quiry look on as well.

Miranda: "General, it seems that the worst has been confirmed. The areas surrounding the military district have had their internet blacked out and roadblocks put up. No doubt Andersen's doing."

Burningum: (On radio) "Bloody AI that Enikk is... She should have let me shoot him. Autarch... A rising star nonetheless. His popularity is a threat. Compromise that is hardwired in Enikk's programming led to weakness. The MP's... Traitors too!"

Burningum continues on his snarly rant uninterrupted for nearly 10 minutes until the convoy reaches a densely populated street.

The Perilous Siege squad, another one of Elysion's produced squads under Burningum's command consisting of 2 members that only go by single letter names looks out of the vehicle through the slits windows.

D: "There's an awful lot of people out there... What's going on?"

The vehicle stops suddenly.

K: "Why have we stopped?"

Poli opens a hatch to investigate. She pops her head out and sees the civilians have gathered in the streets and are in a state of disarray, blocking the convoy as they scrurry throughout the jammed streets filled with cars and people. A woman in the crowd approaches the convoy.

Civilian: "Thank goodness you're here! We fled from neighboring areas due to news of Raptures having arrived in the Ark. We're all refugees."

Poli: "Can you all move? We're on the way to the East Asia military district."

Civilian: "Please! Take us with you. We've nowhere else to go."

The other civilians all come together, begging the convoy drivers to take them in.

Civilian: "Please, there is no shelter, no place to set up refugee camps! The military district shut itself away when we came to them."

The corrupted Poli devises a plan to breach the district by tricking the civilians into being used as human shields.

Poli: "All of you, please get out of the way of the vehicles! We're gonna speed through and break through the barricades! You all have to stand beside the vehicles and move in tandem with our movements! Rogue soldiers have seized the district to save themselves. Now... Move!"

The refugees obey and spread out, standing by the sides of the convoy as the vehicles begin to accelerate.

Miranda: "We have just lost signal to one of our drones!"

As the vehicle moves, Poli can hear distant gunfire and what appears to be tracer rounds shooting into the artificially projected sky.

Poli: "No good. Our drones are being engaged, pull them out before we lose another one."

Miranda: "Roger."

Poli is sure of the operation now that the civilians are out of the way. They move fast and soon reach a makeshift checkpoint made of barbed wire and looted furniture, guarded by the Military Police who are in the process of fleeing. Their vehicles smash through the barricade, without any resistance as refugees pour in in their hundreds.

Poli: "Weeee...!"

Quiry: "Cowards. Look at them run! We're definitely gonna arrest those Quislings before they can run off."

K: "Yes... The MP's have to pay for their treachery. It's their own fault for picking sides... But now that we're in the district, let's eliminate Andersen's faction once and for all!"

***Ark Military District HQ***

Commander sits in the HQ building, keeping track of the ACPU convoy's movements. He had just recorded a speech to be broadcasted in the media once the jammers have lifted the internet blackout.

Eunhwa: (On radio) "Bad news, Commander. There are massive hordes of refugees next to the convoy vehicles. Engaging them will put their lives at risk."

Commander: "Fuck! Are you kidding me!? (Looks at video sent by her) I'm gonna ask Andersen for orders."

Emma: (On radio) "Commander, please... I don't wanna hurt the civilians."

Rapi: (On radio) "I'd hate to do this too, Commander."

Anis: (On radio) "The ACPU are guiding them, look at their hand signals. These poor people are human shields and being led into their own graves!"

Mika: (On radio) "I'd love to slaughter those corrupted government dogs for this... But, Ciel you're better than this. Please, let's work something out."

Elegg: (On radio) "Ooooo... Warcrimes."

Neon: (On radio) "Pipe down you insensitive brat!"

Commander changes the frequency of his communicator to Andersen's and explains the situation to him.

Commander: (Sighs) "...Women. It seems they're humanitarian programming at least still works without limiters on."

Andersen: (On radio) "Very well... We'll leave the task to the Asuras and Odenborg. But the moment the crowd clears, kill every enemy Nikke you find."

***

In another street a close distance from the 2nd row of checkpoints, Odenborg and dozens of Agarthanorden terrorists watch in awe as a new group of Onryos that emerged from the Agarthan Gate 2 days ago march into position.

Odenborg: "To call you Onryos would be odd won't it..."

He says to the reanimated skeletal battalion of Schutzstaffel soldiers, decked in a mix of black uniforms and white winter camo, all wearing stahlhelms with the infamous 'ᛋᛋ' runes proudly on their helmets and collars.

Sol steps forwards and greets Odenborg with a Roman salute.

Sol: "Heil Hitler! The Führer's draugrs have arrived for Ragnarok. At your service."

Odenborg: (Heils back) "Draugr, uh... Quite the name, Sygnus. We'll go with it."

Sol: "Achtung! The Nikkes are a very formidable opponent. Your human grade small arms won't be efficient in taking them out... You must adapt, though they are more vulnerable to explosives."

SS Draugr: "Jawohl, we have all died a hundred thousand deaths in Valhalla, in training for Ragnarok."

***

The convoy keeps moving, passing approaching the 2nd checkpoint as the oblivious refugee hordes were still being led in their march by the corrupted ACPU. Poli gives them a polite wave before they proceed.

Poli: "Good luck everyone~ Do this like we did the last one!"

She closes the hatch as 2 APCs ahead of her move into breach position and accelerate hard into the unmanned barricades, clearing the road. The crowd quickly catches up and begins to follow.

Suddenly as the lead vehicle approaches a group of parked cars and vehicles, a massive explosion tears up the street. The ground shakes as the whole area is engulfed in a massive dust cloud.

The convoy stops as the civilians panic. A truck bomb had just went off, the refugees scream in terror, confused about what happened.

Poli: "What's happening?"

Quiry: "Ambush!!!"

She pops her head out again and sees that the truck bomb had destroyed the lead vehicle and disabled the APC in front of them. Many refugees have been killed and injured by the blast as well. As the smoke clears, they see two storefronts ahead of them have been demolished by the blast as the ACPU soldiers and Nikkes of the long armoured convoy begin to disembark.

D opens the backdoors of the APC to the sound of gunfire and clanking metal. The shots come from nearby junctions and buildings.

D: "Hostiles! To the right!"

Buildings nearby are occupied by SS Draugrs as the APC's return fire at them with autocannons and machineguns.

Miranda: "Targets ahead! 40 meters!"

Poli: "Go go go! They're gonna kill us if we don't clear a way."

As the Nikkes rush out of the vehicle, two simutaneous Panzerfaust hits rattle the APC's side, causing interal shrapnel spalling and smoke to rise from the vehicle. K is caught in the internal blast from the shaped charges.

D: "Hurry up, K! Don't get killed!"

K: "Aghhh!!!"

K is bleeding heavily due to the shrapnel and shock of the blast, but she remains on her feet as she giddily tries to asses the situation.

D: "Get into cover, K!"

Miranda tries to grab her into safety but is caught in a burst of gunfire from an MG42, as she is shot in the arms but pulls back, with minor damage... However K is hit and goes down, heavily wounded.

K: "Gahhh... Ow."

D: "Return fire!"

The ACPU try their hardest to fight off the reanimated SS as they unrelentingly assault the convoy, uncaring if they are pulverized or torn apart by autocannon rounds and Nikke weapons, despite their inferior human grade armaments.

K struggles to get back up on her feet. She glitches for a bit as small sparks fly from her chest wounds.

Poli fetches her and pulls her over, behind the left side of the APC.