Chapter 79

I walked out of the room, bluntly ignoring the two corpses outside that were letting air out of their lungs; after all, they’re dead, probably… hopefully.

Norn followed me from behind after beating the absolute daylights out of them. We walk to the armoring room in the medical center nearby to have people remove the heavy armor plating from us. When that was done, we went to the locks next door and removed our circuitry suits, then we put on our military uniforms, which had been placed in our lockers by someone beforehand.

Now leaving, we walked to the main entrance to the medical center, and Scott was there waiting for us on the side.

Showing concern in his voice and expression, “Are you okay, Alina? I heard you suddenly collapse.”

I respond in my emotionless voice, while internally happy he was worried, “I’m fine; it’s just this idiot’s fault.”

I pointed at Norn, who I could tell was offended under her emotionless face.

“I haven’t gotten much sleep over this week or so because, you know, I was the responsible one this week. I have to write reports by hand as punishment for her starting the training area fiasco again.”

“Again? You’re the one who started it.”

I look at Norn, who was definitely lying to Scott and shifting the blame onto me.

“No, I didn’t; you're the one who threw a dumbbell at me.”

“Yeah, says the one who was egging me on,”

“I did no such thing.”

“Did too.”

“Did not.”

“Did too.”

“Did not.”

We bicker with each other till Scott stops us and tells both of us it was both our faults, even though it was all Norn’s fault for starting it.

“Anyways, didn’t anyone tell you, Alina, that you don’t need to do all that? We’re in a war right now, right?”

“Wait, what? So you’re telling me that all those sleepless nights writing reports were all for nothing.

Nodding his head, he said, “Yep.”

“You've got to be kidding me. I could have pulled all-nighters playing games, but instead I was writing reports. Why didn’t anyone tell me?”

I looked at Scott, equally part annoyed and baffled that I was wasting my time writing reports instead of using my time chipping away at the backlog of games I still hadn’t touched yet.

I turned to Norn, who was looking gleeful under her expressionless face, taking pleasure in my suffering for the last couple of days.

“Huhhh…” Looking baffled, I turned back to Scott, who was sighing.

“Why can’t you both be responsible?”

“If both of us try, then we’ll just keep waiting for each other to do it, and you know how that turns out.”

“Yeah, yeah, I know, just take it easy for the next week or so till repairs and upgrades to your Aias are complete.”

“We’ll keep that in mind.”

“Yeah, after all, I’m no longer the responsible one this week.”

Norn groaned at that, which uplifted my mood.

“Right…” having a wry smile, “just get some rest and don’t stay up too late, Alina, and you too, Norn. I’ll be going now. I’m just happy that you two are okay.”

“Yeah, we’ll go to the nursery to check up on Athrun.”

“Oh, I see. Tell him I said hi.”

“Got it.”

“Okay.”

With that, Scott walked off, and we began walking to the nursery, which took a while to get to since the nursery was in the R&D section of the base, on the other side of the base from where we were.

Normally, there would be a vehicle to pick us up, but since everyone was all hands on deck with the war, there was no one available, which was honestly a pain, even with the moving walkways carrying us most of the way there.

When we arrived at the R&D section of the base, the grey walls gave way to white ones, and the atmosphere shifted, making it feel sterile, as we were on a moving pathway that led directly to this area.

Getting off the moving pathway, we went straight to the main entrance. There was a long line of people waiting to get through security to get in, since this place was heavily guarded to keep unwanted people out. We, however, skipped that line since we were named pilots. Instead, the door opened for us automatically because our movements are tracked everywhere on the base.

Making our way through many twists and turns, we got on an elevator and went up to Wing D, floor 7. Then, when we were there, we placed our hands on the access panel, which opened the elevator door to a lobby that had a waiting area.

Approaching the reception desk, Norn said to the receptionist. “Hello, we’re here to meet with Athrun.”

“Good evening, Lieutenant Norn and Lieutenant Alina. Athrun and the rest of the children are currently at recess in the play area.” Hearing that, Norn and I thank her, and we walk there.

As we walk through the colorful hallways, covered with children's drawings and paintings, which contrast with the sterile, metallic feel of the rest of the R&D section of the base.

Eventually, panels of clear glass came into our vision, and we saw a playground through them. Children, around 5 years of age, with wildly colorful eyes and hair, stop playing and look at us for a moment before they resume with what they were doing, except for one.

A child with black hair and blue eyes, the same color as ours right now, since Ori energy was still in our bodies, ran up to us as we approached the door.

Following him was a teacher, placing his hand on an access panel inside to let us in.

Immediately, he ran out and hugged Norn first, then me.

“Athrun, don’t run. You’ll hurt yourself.”

Releasing me from his hug after telling him not to run. “But I was really excited to see you. You haven’t visited for a while, Mom.”

“Huh… You're calling us that again, Athrun?”

“Yeah, Mom, you two are my mothers, right?”

Hearing that, I sigh at his response. For the last couple of months, whenever we visit, he started calling us that, though, technically, Norn and I are his mothers.

This place is in the R&D section of the base. It means that this isn’t a normal childcare facility, and they weren’t normal children either.

Though we didn’t give birth, our DNA was used to make him artificially. It’s cruel and questionable, but these children are experiments.

The goal is to mass-produce and surpass naturally born named pilots, like us, while also getting rid of the mental instabilities in other named pilots and other flaws.

They do this by mixing in Kaiju DNA, specifically using DNA from Kaijus that Named Aiases get their cores from. Ori energy has different signatures in each Kaiju, and named Pilots are specifically tuned to that signature, so it means it’s a matter of compatibility.

Only time would tell if it would work, but from the initial results, it looks promising.

Looking at Athrun, who was pouting, I let it slide, choosing not to argue about it, and I turned to his teacher.

“Good evening, Ms. Carter. Has Athrun gotten into any trouble, and how are his studies?”

“He is learning well, and compared to the other children, he’s the easiest child to work with compared to the others.”

“Good, that is good to hear.”

“Yeah, good job, Athrun

Placing her hand on Athrun, who was by my side, clinging to my leg, Norn patted him on the head. Athrun, in turn, smiled brightly.

Scott's perspective

After finishing talking and checking up on Norn and Alina after they were done in the medical center for pilots, he went to their base’s command center because Commander Sharp called for him to meet in person.

At the command center, Scott had passed through many security checkpoints since he didn’t have anywhere near the security clearance Norn and Alina had.

He thought this was a massive pain because he could think of a million other things to do than wait in line. Scott is a captain, meaning he is flooded with numerous forms he has to approve, requests to make, and a bunch of other stuff that he has to look at, especially because there is a war going on, a war for the survival of the human race.

Scott sighed as he was at the last security checkpoint. He stepped into a machine that did a complete body scan of his body, and when that was done, a door that was as thick as a vault opened.

Inside, he saw a lot of officers working hard as they coordinated the war effort in their base’s region of responsibility.

It looks like complete chaos, with numerous tablets and other things filling every one of their desks, followed by a handful barking out orders.

Though it was chaos, there was an order to it, so not trying to disturb them, Scott quietly made his way to the elevator that led to Commander Sharp’s office, which had an overview of all this.

Going up to Commander Sharp’s office, the door opened, and Scott took a step in.

Saluting, “Captain Scott, reporting.”

A man in his 50s, with grey hair over his messy black hair, looked exhausted, like he hadn’t gotten much sleep for the last few days, as shown by the numerous empty cups of coffee on his desk. It took him a couple of seconds to respond, as if his attention was focused elsewhere.

The glasses he wore occasionally blinked as he heard Scott saluting him. They were augmented reality glasses, specifically ones that could connect to implants in his head, allowing him to work directly through his thoughts.

Finishing up what he was doing, Commander Sharp took them off and responded.

“Sorry, I was expecting you, but I had to redirect some bombers to City 64. Had to break up low-level Kaijus from forming into a horde about 48 kilometers away from the city. But enough about that, you know why I called for you, Captain Scot.”

“Yes, Commander Sharp.”

“How are Alina and Norn holding up?”

“Nothing to worry about; their mental states are within acceptable parameters."

“Good, you’re handling them well.”

“For the most part.”

Nodding, Commander Sharp picks up a tablet on the desk, and it plays a video automatically as he touches it.

The video showed Vila Crow’s combat footage, specifically combat footage of Alina and Norn’s first-ever real mission and the last one as well, both being in cities.

It showed footage of cockpit views of them fighting off Kaijus, buildings crumbling, streets torn apart, and other things being destroyed in their battle.

However, different from what Alina and Norn saw, it was unfiltered, and he saw things that a normal person would have trouble watching.

“How long do you think this would last before they find out?”

Grimacing, Commander Sharp did not take his eyes off the video, and he came to see people fleeing for their lives, only to ultimately die in the crossfire.

People who hadn’t made it to the underground bunkers were squashed like small insects, whether it be directly by the fight itself or by falling debris.

Though the number of people who hadn’t made it to the bunkers was only a handful, their bodies were torn apart, mangled, crushed, and scattered around. What made it hard to watch was their attempt to run away from the fighting, with desperation in their eyes, clear to all, to be ultimately meaningless.

Being Alina and Norn’s handler, Scott knows more about them than anyone else.

“It’s unlikely, but this is my way of protecting them.”

He knows Alina and Norn would not approve, which is why he keeps it from them. He knew Alina and Norn were good people and had a moral compass that cared for people, compared to the other named pilots, who rarely had one at all. If they ever found out, he would gladly be the target for their animosity.

“I see, you are dismissed. I’ll delete the unfiltered footage on the servers and data vaults, as we previously arranged.”

“Yes, thank you, Commander.”

Saluting, Scott made his way back to the elevator.

Sarah’s perspective

Running out of the hospital, Sarah led Alex’s party in the direction Athrun pointed them.

She looked at Alex, and desperation was shown in his expression as he wanted to catch up with Nyx.

Then she heard loud explosions and thunder clashing in the background. At first, everyone other than her was startled, and it didn’t really help when she told them that Athrun was dealing with someone dangerous, with a grimace on her face.

“Alex, are you sure you want to find Nyx with me?”

Sarah, asking the question again, the first time when Athrun jumped out of the hospital to deal with someone, showed worry in her expression about everyone in the group.

“Yes, he needs our help. I can’t let him go on his own.”

With his desire to protect a friend in his heart, Alex did not waver as he said that.

And hearing that, Chelsie said, “Yes, if it’s what Alex wants.” Then Wendy said, “Yeah, those black knights sure were strong. I want to try and fight them again. They’re nowhere near as scary as Nyx.” Following that, Lucia huffed, “It’s not like I have a choice,” and Maria meekly said, “Yeah, we have Ms. Sarah on our side; I think we can manage.”

Hearing all their responses, Sarah nodded and accepted their resolve. However, as she did that, she saw arrows descend on them. Immediately, Sarah yelled for everyone to stop running, as arrows landed in front of them, followed by black knights descending from above.

“Leave, do not interfere; this is a warning, we will not repeat ourselves.”

Anger in his voice, Alex shouted. “No, we won’t. What are you going to do to Nyx?!”

“That is none of your concern; commoners should not meddle in affairs of nobility.”

“I refuse; we’ll force our way if you don’t let us through.”

Seeing that Alex and everyone were not backing down, they drew their swords and said, “Then die.”

Immediately, seeing the archers above, Sarah cast a barrier around them as arrows rained down, followed by the black knights striking the barrier, trying to break through it.

Turning to everyone, Sarah said. “I’m going to cast my support spell on you all; it’s a 1.5x increase on your strength and speed. I’m sorry that I can’t use anything much stronger; it would be too much for you to handle.”

Looking a bit apologetic, Wendy responded enthusiastically, “No need, this just levels the playing field a bit.”

“I see. Okay, here.”

Hovering one of her free hands above everyone, as the other holds her staff to maintain the barrier, light came out of it and touched everyone. A warm feeling spread throughout their bodies as strength grew.

With that done, Sarah focused on her barrier, and cracks started to appear throughout it. The black knights, seeing that, expected it to break but were surprised to see it suddenly explode, surprising them.

Sarah did it intentionally, knowing they would be attacked the moment she released her barrier, so she decided to intentionally shatter it, letting fragments of the barrier fly outward.

The fragments hit the Black Knights, hitting most of them and sending them flying back.

It left two black knights near them, which Alex and Wendy closed in to deal with, using the momentary shock to their advantage.

While they were doing that, Sarah cast chains made out of light and targeted them at the black knights a distance away, with Maria throwing vials at them, splashing them with fast-acting, paralyzing potions, to come and support them.

As for the rest, Lucia cast Flamethrower, suppressing the archer above them from firing, while Chelsie shot her arrows with deadly precision at the ones Lucia couldn’t reach or those.

Alex and Wendy, finishing up with their fights, moved to the Black Knights, who were restrained by Sarah or paralyzed by Maria.

Everyone else followed as they led the way, Sarah and Maria supporting them while Chelsie and Lucia covered everyone from the Black Knights above.

They move and break their way through and to the next street over. Having their guards up for more Black Knights, to some, they strangely saw no Black Knights near them or coming for them.

Alex took a sigh of relief, believing that it was over, but Chelsie spotted black knights running between rooftops, like they were suddenly going somewhere.

Muttering under his breath, Alex muttered questioningly, “Where are they going?”

Sarah, looking at the black knights who were running away, stared at them curiously till she made a decision.

“Everyone, follow them; they are roughly going in the direction we're going.”

Hearing that, they immediately began running, chasing them. However, as they did so, Wendy sniffed the air around them, and she immediately stopped, causing everyone to stop as well.

“What is it, Wendy?” Alex asked, confused, and Wendy responded seriously.

“I—I smell Clare and her blood, lots of it.”

“What? Where?”

“Follow me.”

With Wendy in the lead, she led them to Clare, and upon seeing Clare, all of them turned pale.

Sarah, the only one who wasn’t shocked, due to her experience of being a healer, immediately took action.

Her hair glowed brightly, and she immediately cast the strongest healing spell in her repertoire. Balls of light appear above Clare’s body, glowing brightly as Sarah said next.

“Maria! Do you have a blood restoration potion? Give it to me now.”

Startling her out of her stupor, and everyone else, she said. “Yes,” quickly digging into her potion pouch for it and running toward her, nearly tripping in the process, giving it to her.

Pouring it over Clare's stab wound through her heart, Sarah quickly began healing Clare.

Flakes of light fell on Clare like snowflakes; her minor wounds began healing as Sarah focused her mana and poured it over Clare’s chest, where her heart was stabbed. After a minute, she managed to close up all her wounds, but she did not sigh in relief like everyone else, as Clare’s skin was no longer pale when she stopped casting her spell, because it didn’t mean Clare’s heart would even beat.

Putting her staff aside, mana flowed into her hands, and she placed both of them on top of each other and began to perform chest compressions.

Clare’s heart had completely stopped, and Sarah had never done this before, meaning that Sarah didn’t know if it would work, but she had to try something.

Remembering a book she had read, which was an artifact found in a dungeon about medicine from another world, she read parts of the translated text, specifically a section about the procedures for restarting the heart.

She needs a special medicine to restart the heart, found in the same dungeon as the book. However, even though the special medicine was not as rare as the book she had read, she did not have it on hand.

With that in mind, Sarah tried to use her mana as a replacement. One of her natures in her mana is to heal, meaning if she focuses on ways to help heal people, her magic would go in that direction, like with focusing on mending people’s wounds or curing diseases.

Following the steps in the book, she performed chest compressions. Sweat formed on her brow as she also intensely focused her mana to replicate the effect of the drugs in the book, because it was an effect that was extremely specific and much harder compared to something as general as mending scrapes and cuts.

Eventually, between her chest compressions, she felt a faint heartbeat, causing her to stop and feel for it.

Sighing in relief, Clare's heart restarted, albeit very weak, so she cast a healing spell to heal the damage she caused from her chest compressions.

Sarah sighed in relief, then, calling over Maria, she told her. “Maria, sorry for shouting at you, but could you watch over Clare?”

“Ummm, s–sure, you don’t need to apologize; it was an emergency.”

Sarah nodded with a gentle smile as Maria came to her side. Maria, being an alchemist, was thoroughly knowledgeable about the human anatomy, so she examined Clare and checked her vital signs, then retrieved some potions from her potion pouch.

Backing away, Sarah watched Maria take out a paralyzing potion and dilute it to give it to Clare as a sedative to help her relax if she woke up.

Seeing that Maria knew what she was doing, she shifted her focus to their next move because they had to abandon the chase after the Black Knights for Clare.

However, her eyes shot open, sensing powerful mana growing, which… she thought felt too familiar.