Chapter 21: Tactics

"Here they come!," Jean warned as all three Doms began to move. The Doms quickly fired their newly issued MMP-80 machine guns, exploding many of the Hover Battalion's surviving vehicles. He fired a few shots at one of the fast-moving Doms, but the enemy Mobile Suit evaded his shots entirely and fired a bazooka shell in return. A moment later his world turned into a mass of red and black.

"Jean!" Liv screamed as she saw his GM II take a direct hit, only to belatedly realize that one of the flying GM IIs had snuck up behind her and had begun firing its beam rifle. She managed to evade the first shot, but a second managed to nick one of her plane's wingtips, while a third very nearly scored a direct hit on her engines. Just as she thought that her time had finally come, the sole surviving Hover ADV sent tracers into the supporting Dodai's fuel tanks, exploding the airborne carrier along with the GM II it was carrying. A vengeful Dom however, quickly fired a bazooka round at the ADV, and Liv could only watch as the rocket blew the vehicle apart. None of its crew survived.

"Liv! Look out!" Gordon screamed as he realized something huge was now on the tail of Liv's battered JCB Kai, "Gau! Right behind you!"

Liv didn't respond. Instead, she just stared at Jean's burning Mobile Suit, before turning to the airborne carrier now creeping menacingly behind her. Death was coming, and she didn't think she would have the strength to stop it from taking her...
---------------
"Yoko! Shoot down that damn Gau!" John demanded as he tried to wrestle the Zugock's controls away from Yoko, "We need to..."

"Liv wants to die, so let her," Yoko replied cruelly as she tried to push John out of the cockpit of her now standing Zugock, not caring if he would get injured by the fall. "Now get out of MY Mobile Suit!"

"NO!" John shouted back as he angrily head-butted the surprised Yoko, stunning her for a moment and allowing him to take control of the Mobile Suit's weapons. He immediately fired several shots at the Gau, scoring several hits on its massive frame. And just as he had hoped, it began to turn towards HIM.

"IDIOT!" Yoko screamed as she punched John hard in the face, quickly dazing him and allowing her to re-gain control of her Mobile Suit. She was just in time. A second later, the Gau sent a volley of beams in her direction, and had her Zugock not ducked she would very well have been vaporized by those beams. She then muttered a curse as she realized John was beginning to recover from her punch.

"Yo... Yoko..." John started as he began to get up, still intent on...

Yoko never gave him a chance. Instead, she just gave him a second punch to the face, this time knocking his lights out. She then made a quick call to the ambulance heading for the Shigure. Mister Recto seemed to have been injured and was in critical condition, and she wanted to make sure that he got only the VERY best care AEUG could provide...
---------------
What a mess... Sylvie thought as she finally spotted the fires from the now burning base. She had... sensed that something was wrong and had hurried back, but she never thought that this much damage could be done in such a short time. Most of the Hover Battalion's vehicles were in flames, cut down as they tried to shoot at the faster-moving Doms and their aerial escorts, while the few, broken survivors began to flee to the safety of the jungle. Some succeeded, gaining a temporary respite from their enemy. Most did not.

"Erich! Get ready!" the voice of Lieutenant Yun Hitachi announced over the radio, "When I give the word, get out of cover and start taking down those *******s and..."

"Lieutenant Yun, belay that order," Sylvie ordered as she realized what that hothead was planning, "This is not the time for an impromptu attack. Give me your location."

"To hell with you!" Yun shot back, "For all we know you're just..."

"But... Yun sir..." Erich started.

"Fine, but with those enemy GMs flying around you won't accomplish anything and die a quick death," Sylvie admonished as she began a count of the enemy and friendly Mobile Suits, and wished that she could somehow find a way to contact the Major, "We need some fighters to take down those Dodais before we can do anything, but if you really want to die, just go out on your own because we can't afford to lose both of you. I've had enough of saving your idiotic, hot-headed butt anyway, Mr. Yun."

"You *****!" Yun shouted back, "I..."

"Now both of you just keep in cover and prepare to snipe those Doms at MY signal," Sylvie ordered as she watched a Dom mercilessly blow apart the crew of a disabled Type 82, whose members had been trying to surrender, "And if anything happens to me, run straight into the jungle and surrender to those Titans that attacked us earlier. They'll take prisoners. These butchers doesn't look as if they're going to give any quarter."

"I'm not going to take orders from you!" Yun shot back, "Not after what you did to Ming and..."

"Thi... this is Major Anderson..." the commander's distinctly weakened voice declared over the general broadcast channel, "I'm... wounded. The XO and Captain Powell are also both down. Captain Gressiere, YOU are to take command!"

"Wait a minute!" Yun demanded, "I'm not about to..."

"That is an order Mr. Hitachi!" the Major shouted into the radio, "Captain Gressiere! I'm now patching you through to the battalion radio net. Keep my people alive and get them to the Shigure!"

"Understood," Sylvie replied quietly, wishing there was another way but knew there wasn't. Soon dozens of panicking voices began to fill her ears, all asking her for instructions. One voice in particular however, caught her attention.

"Well, well Subject V," Yoko declared in a smug tone, "Welcome to the rebellion. I always knew you had it in you..."

'Doesn't she EVER stop?' Sylvie thought angrily but did not say out loud, knowing this was not the time for it, "Captain Nagato, what's your current situation?"

"Dock area," Yoko responded, "And I'm getting my *** handed to me by those flying GM IIs and that damn Gau, though I think I've put a couple of holes in that big bugger. The U-606 is getting ready to leave."

"Keep covering the U-606 until it's in open water. Make sure they get out SAFELY," Sylvie ordered as she started sending signals on O'Connor's frequency, wishing that the kid was still alive and still in control of his mental faculties, "Once you're done get to the launch facility ASAP."

"Understood, MAM," Yoko replied, the smugness still in her voice, as she signed off. Sylvie tried hard not to growl.

"O... O'Connor here!" the Lieutenant's shaken voice declared over the radio, "Awaiting instructions!"

"O'Connor, gather up everything left from the Hover Battalion and get to the launch facility NOW," Sylvie ordered as she watched the Doms hunt down a pair of Type 82s with their heat swords, intent on shredding the two to pieces, "And I mean EVERYBODY. Get going!"

"Understood!" O'Connor responded, "But mam, we still have prisoners and people in the hospital that need to..."

"You handle it," Sylvie ordered, not wanting to be reminded of that ******* who was still in that hospital, "Now who's in charge of our air support?!"
---------------
Your file definitely did not do you any justice, Subject V... Yoko thought with a smile as she left the rest of the battle to her "capable" hands. Those idiotic Feddies really didn't know how to use talent properly, and it was a good thing she relied on a very perceptive informant rather than their stupid, biased "evaluations"...

"Captain Nagato, this is Honour," the Lieutenant's voice declared over the radio, "The U-606 is ready to sail, however the skipper still has not..."

"Honour, take command of the vessel and get to open water as soon as possible," Yoko ordered as she set her sights on a newly arrived trio of GM IIs and their flying carpets, who were now escorting the injured Gau carrier, "Proceed to the rendezvous point as planned."

"But mam, this is a bloody full sized submarine!" Honour protested, "I only have experience in midget type submarines, and Mr. Recto is a far better..."

"You have your orders, so carry them out!" Yoko ordered as she cut the link before evading yet another volley from the still-persistent Gau. She fired back at the enemy air group, and scored a direct hit on one of the Dodai support craft. The craft quickly exploded and sent its GM II cargo plummeting towards the ground, unable to slow down its descent with its damaged thrusters. Yoko grinned savagely as the GM II came apart when it finally hit the ground.

"Yoko! The Gau!" Honour warned as the carrier began firing at the U-606, intent on destroying the submarine before it could escape, "Take it down! We can't afford to be hit!"

"Calm down Honour, I'm on it, I'm on it," Yoko replied as she shifted her aim to the massive carrier, this time aiming straight for its command bridge. The two surviving GM IIs began firing at her, but she immediately evaded their shots while keeping her guns locked onto the Gau. The Gau's weapons belatedly began to turn, now realizing the threat she posed, but by then it was too late. She fired.
---------------
"My God..." Titans Ashimar pilot Captain Gerhard Schneider said out loud as he saw their Gau command carrier take a direct hit to the bridge. The command crew was killed instantly, and much of the carrier quickly burst into flames and slowly began to fall towards the ground, its still-running engines trying but failing to keep it in the air. To his horror, he realized that the burning wreck was now slowly heading straight for the hospital building, and people were still in it...

"Well, that should take care of the AEUG wounded, sir," senior Dom pilot 1st Lieutenant Mikhail Filitov sneered as he blew apart a disabled Hover Tank, "I KNOW you were a little queasy on eliminating their wounded, weren't you sir?" he added sarcastically.

'And you have too little self-control when it comes to killing your enemy, Lieutenant,' Gerhard thought but did not say out loud as he watched the Gau's few surviving crew bail out of their burning craft. Spacenoids may be mere sheep, but even the most timid sheep will eventually fight back against such brutality, and once that starts, this war would never truly end... "Very well Lieutenant, just continue with your duty and clear the LZ for the second Dom team. I will be joining you shortly."

"Going out to save those inferiors?" Filitov replied arrogantly, "Perhaps you picked the wrong line of work."

"And perhaps I chose it because I prefer to be just," Gerhard replied quietly as his Ashimar started speeding towards the burning Gau, "Something you will never comprehend."
---------------
"Doc! Is anybody left inside?!" O'Connor demanded as he started running into the hospital building, knowing that he only had seconds to get everybody out. The doctor quickly followed him.

"Ming and that Titans prisoner are still unaccounted for," Harrington responded, "I'll take care of Ming, you take care of that young lady and..."

"Wha... what's going on?" a figure asked as he staggered out of the hospital. It was Ming.

"Captain Chow!" O'Connor shouted as he managed to grab Ming before he collapsed to the ground. He was quickly assisted by Doctor Harrington, "Ming, you shouldn't be up, you're still..."

"He's stable enough! I'll handle him," the doctor interrupted as he realized that the Gau was now very close, "Now get in there and save that prisoner! Even if she's a Titan..."

O'Connor didn't wait for the doctor to finish. In fact, he really needed no encouragement. He was going to get her out, even if it meant risking his own life...
---------------
****... Sylvie thought as she started aiming for the Gau. Firing at the carrier would probably reveal her position to the enemy and ruin the plan, but if O'Connor was to live she HAD to fire even if...

She didn't have to. To her surprise the blue Mobile Armor streaked close to the burning carrier, firing a shot that went through the Gau's main fuel tanks. The plane quickly disintegrated in the blast that followed, saving the hospital as what was left of the Gau scattered itself on an open field well short of the main building. His task complete, the gallant enemy pilot moved on to the dock area to fight a more worthy target, leaving the surprised hospital staff and their patients to continue their evacuation unmolested.

"This... this is Lieutenant Sondergard," Liv's shaken voice announced over the radio, "Gordon's... pulled me out of it. I think... I think I'm alright now, and I'm awaiting..."

"Concentrate on the flying GM IIs Lieutenant, we need both of you to keep the skies friendly," Sylvie ordered, "Captain Nagato, the blue Mobile Armor is heading your way. You think you can handle it?"

"No problem, just blast those Doms already. You're being a little too meticulous today," Yoko replied confidently.

"Hitachi, Thompson, you two ready?" Sylvie asked.

"I am!" Yun growled back, still angry of being under the damn *****'s command, "Just give the word already! All these preparations are taking far too long!"
---------------
Captain Gressiere... damn it, what's taking so long? Major Anderson thought as he tried to press his left hand against his bleeding right arm, his life now slowly ebbing away. Entrusting his command to her had been an enormous gamble, despite what she had shown she was capable of, but she was taking too long to organize a counter-attack, and while that was happening, more of his men...

"Well, well, what do we have here..." Lieutenant Filitov said out loud as he spotted a moving body right beside the wreckage of a command vehicle. He smiled as he realized that it was an AEUG officer, possibly their commander, and that the helpless man was now his for the taking...

"****..." Anderson managed to say out loud, as he realized one of the Doms was aiming its machine gun right at him. He quickly pulled out his pistol and started firing. Mobile Suit or not, he was going to go down fighting...
---------------
"Now!" Sylvie ordered as she stepped out into the open, firing a shot at one of the flying GM IIs and scoring a kill. Just as she had expected, all three Doms turned to face her, their mono-eyes now flashing a bright red to declaring their intent...

"The Barzam!" Filitov shouted as he fired off a shot at the still-resisting AEUG officer, blowing the man to pieces, "All units, you have your orders! Watch your aim and try to take back that prototype before..."

"This isn't the only toy you've lost, you Titans scum," Sylvie declared coldly over the "guards" channel as she readied her stance, "If you want your pet back, come here and try to take me!"

"That can't be!" Gerhard declared as he broke off his attack on Yoko's Zugock, realizing that Barzam now had to be their highest priority, "That's the rogue Newtype! All forces! Concentrate your fire on her! Don't let her escape!"

"Don't worry, I'm not about to run," Sylvie replied defiantly as she evaded a volley sent in her direction, before firing several shots in return. But the Doms were fast, too fast, and her shots missed while they steadily closed in on her location. She fired again, missing the lead Dom by a whisker, before finding herself the target of a volley of bazooka shells. She tried to evade, but one of the shells found its mark, taking out her Barzam's weapon arm and leaving her defenseless. Her situation only got worse as the Doms surrounded her like a pack of wolves, each of them now aiming their weapons at her Barzam's surviving limbs. It was obvious that these three had other plans for her...

"You know, we really would prefer to take back that Barzam in one piece," Filitov declared over the radio as his Dom team slid to a stop, now getting ready to apprehend Subject V, "But we won't hesitate to disable it if you do anything stupid. Just surrender yourself to your fate Subject V, and we may treat you with a little bit more mercy before we send you to your proper place. But then again, it has been a while since we've had a female prisoner to play with, and our commanders don't really care what shape they are once we're through torturing them anyway."

Filitov fully expected the spacenoid ***** would now cower like a weakling and beg for mercy at this point, but to his surprise her response was as calm as it was cryptic, "When one goes fishing, one needs to have some bait..."
---------------
Yun and Erich found themselves nodding as they heard Sylvie's signal. The spot Sylvie had picked for them was perfect. At this range and aiming at stationary targets, they knew that they couldn't possibly miss. They fired.

Filitov was still trying to comprehend what Subject V had told him, when he suddenly spotted two yellow beams heading straight for his team. He tried to shout out a warning, but to his horror both shots found their marks and exploded both of his wingmen. Surprise had barely begun to turn into rage when he realized that Subject V was no longer as helpless as he had once thought...

Already beginning to pull out her beam saber with her good arm, Sylvie charged the sole surviving Dom, kicking the old Mobile Suit in the mono-eye and shattering its optics. The stunned Filitov tried to pull away, but before he could get out of her reach Sylvie slashed off both of the Dom's legs, exploding the lower half of the Mobile Suit and sending what was left of it sailing into the air. Sylvie didn't bother to see what happened to the remains.

"Mam! The Mobile Armor!" Yun warned as he spotted the blue-colored disk heading right for the Barzam. He tried to shoot at it, but before he could do so one of the flying GM IIs suddenly swept low and strafed both him and Erich, damaging both of their Mobile Suits even as missiles from Gordon's Jet Booster Kai destroyed the supporting Dodai. The GM II however, survived the destruction of its flying carpet and managed to land safely, and its pilot wasted no time before engaging both Yun and Erich on the ground.

"Looks like you are alone for this one, Subject V," Gerhard declared as he fired several shots at Sylvie's Barzam, which she quickly evaded, "Perhaps it would be wiser for you to surrender. I'm not going to be taking it easy on you."

And you're a little too overconfident... Sylvie thought but did not say out loud as she pulled out her back-up beam rifle. She aimed at the flying disk as it began to turn around for another strafing run, aiming its own beam weapons at her Mobile Suit as it did so. Neither flinched as they both realized they were in each other's sights. Both fired.
---------------
"Get down!" O'Connor shouted as he shoved Gina into the floor, covering her with his own body in the process. The two beams were on a collision course, and once they hit...

A massive shockwave buffeted the hospital building as the two beams finally collided, setting off a massive chain reaction as two opposing streams of mega-particles annihilated each other and sent their stored energy expanding outward in a massive Minovsky fireball. Windows were shattered and walls began to crack, but to O'Connor's relief both of them had survived the incident relatively unscathed. Relatively.

"Umm... Mister O'Connor?" Gina started as she realized that both of them had been caught in... a somewhat indecent position, and it was causing her to slowly turn red in the process. The shy O'Connor, finally realizing what she was saying, shot back up into a sitting position and crawled a few steps away from her, totally embarrassed at this development.

"I... I'm sorry!" O'Connor replied in panic, "I... I didn't realize that... I mean... I never meant..."

"You... you were just trying to save me, weren't you?" Gina asked as the color on her face slowly returned to normal, "You've risked your life to save me, even though I'm an enemy. I... I'm sorry if I said some things earlier that..."

"No... I should apologize..." O'Connor started as he tried to forget her wild accusations the day before, knowing that one of them must have seemed to have been very justified after what had just happened, "I... I scared you. I shouldn't have brought that gun out and scared you like that."

"No, I'm the one who has to apologize," Gina replied indignantly, "I joined this war without knowing what it really was all about, and I probably killed some of your people for no good reason. So I want to know O'Connor, what happened at 30 Bunch. What did my people do to start this war?"

"It's a long story, and I don't think we have time for it right now," O'Connor replied as he began to stand up, "But with a little bit more luck, we'll soon be in space, and once we're there you'll have all the answers that you'll ever need."
---------------
Alright, perhaps your confidence IS a little justified... Sylvie thought as she barely evaded another shot sent in her direction. She fired back at the Ashimar, but its skilled pilot managed to evade the shot before turning around for another strafing run. To Sylvie, this had almost felt like a medieval joust with two mounted Knights charging each other with their lances, with one crucial disadvantage. Sylvie's Barzam couldn't fly, and in this day and age flight had replaced the horse.

"Need any help?" Yoko offered as her Zugock pulled up beside Sylvie's Barzam, "The U-606's safe in open water now, and I just wanted to join in on a little fun..."

"Let's split up and try to catch it in a crossfire," Sylvie decided as she evaded the latest strafing run, before firing back at the Ashimar in return. The Ashimar evaded, but then Yoko started firing as well, this time scoring a scratch hit on the flying disk. Its pilot didn't seem too pleased.

"So you decided to bring along a friend, eh?" Gerhard said as he shifted his attention to Yoko's Zugock, knowing the amphibious Mobile Suit was less maneuverable than the Barzam. Yoko began to fire madly as she realized the Ashimar was now heading straight for her, but Gerhard easily evaded her fire as he locked the Zugock into his sights. He was just about to pull the trigger when Sylvie finally scored a hit.

"You owe me one, Yoko..." Sylvie declared quietly as her beam sliced through the Ashimar's frame, scoring a direct hit on its flight systems. The Mobile Armor trailed smoke as it rapidly lost altitude, before smashing into the jungle due north of the base. Sylvie and Yoko both waited for an explosion to follow, but to their surprise it never came, leading both of them to believe the Mobile Armor had somehow survived the crash.

"Hey Sylvie, want me to go and finish him off?" Yoko asked eagerly as she rubbed her hands in excitement, "Or would you prefer to come with me? I could show you a trick or two in..."

"No Yoko, I'll handle it," Sylvie ordered as she began heading for the crash site, "Find Yun and the rest of the survivors and get to the launch facility as soon as you can. I'll handle that Mobile Armor."

"Gee, don't you EVER want to have some fun with me? I know we'd be great playmates if you'd just give it a chance," Yoko joked, "But then again, you may be planning to do something far worse than I could ever imagine. After all, your imagination is far more twisted than mine, so who knows what sort of atrocities..."

"Will you stop babbling and just get to work?" Sylvie ordered tiredly, "I need someone to make sure the launch goes on schedule, and to make sure EVERYBODY is onboard the Shigure before we launch. Is that understood, Captain Nagato?"

"Well, if you ask nicer maybe I'll do it. With all the boring work you've been asking me to do, I'm feeling rather under-appreciated. I have feelings too you know," Yoko replied with a grin. Sylvie didn't bother to respond. Instead, she just rolled her eyes.
---------------
"Is the Shigure ready for launch?" Doc Harrington asked as his Type 74 pulled up near the dock area. Scott was already waiting for him, and for once seemed to be bringing some good news.

"The launch booster has been attached, and all systems are go," Scott replied as he tried to fight off the sleep deprivation that was now shutting down his brain, "We're just waiting for you guys. Where the hell is everybody anyway? I haven't seen any senior officers in ages..."

"Major Anderson and his XO are missing, while Mister Recto has been wounded," Harrington replied grimly, "Captain Powell has also been wounded, very badly, and a Type 82 crew is bringing him in. Captain Gressiere is now in command."

"Wait a minute!" an angry voice suddenly intruded as the Type 74's back doors burst open, "That ***** is in command?! What have we come to?! How could you let..."

"She was the only one left, Captain Chow, unless you'd prefer to serve under an equally insane Captain Nagato," Harrington replied dryly, "Besides which, she's done a fairly good job, though I doubt she'd be very happy if she sees you running around."

"Damn it! You know we can't trust somebody like her!" Ming shot back defiantly as he tried to search for a vehicle, intent on hunting Sylvie down, "She's up to something! And I have to make sure..."

"No you're not," Harrington replied firmly as he grabbed Ming by the shoulder and pulled him back into the ambulance, "You are injured and are not going anywhere. Am I understood?!"

"Doc..." Ming started.

"That's an ORDER," Harrington replied as he suddenly pulled out a syringe and injected a sedative into the shocked Ming's bloodstream, "And it's something that you're going to follow whether you like it or not."
---------------
"Got'm!" Erich reported jubilantly as he finally scored a hit on the Titans GM II's reactor, blowing the Mobile suit apart. Beside him, an equally satisfied Yun nodded in agreement.

"Alright, that's the last of them, pull back," Yoko ordered as she motioned the both of them to follow her, "O'Connor's remaining tanks have already arrived in the launch site, and Liv's JCBs are on their way to the site as well. It's only us Mobile Suit pilots who still haven't made it to the party."

"Mam, what about Captain Gressiere?" Erich asked, sounding a little worried. Yun didn't share his concern, but he begrudgingly nodded his head in agreement. It wouldn't be too honorable to leave her behind after all that she had done.

"Oh don't worry," Yoko replied with a grin, "She's probably doing just fine..."
----------------
Sylvie, in fact, was NOT doing fine at all. She had fully expected to find a wrecked Mobile Armor, but instead found that it wasn't JUST a Mobile Armor. It was one of the new transforming types that could turn into either a Mobile Suit or a Mobile Armor as the situation demanded, and its Mobile Suit form was proving to be quite a challenge to beat. She made a mental note to check all the new weapons development files. Clearly, a lot of new weapons have been fielded since her incarceration.

The situation was almost as bad for Gerhard and his battered Ashimar, but unlike Sylvie he knew that he still had an ace up his sleeve. Three more Doms, his remaining reserves, were on their way to reinforce him, and he knew that Subject V couldn't possibly win against those odds, especially with that jet-something attack those three had been practicing.

In fact, he almost felt sorry it had to end like this. She had been a skilled opponent, and he could see most of it stemmed from hard-earned military experience and training rather than her supposed Newtype abilities. Abilities that had condemned her to a horrid fate if she was ever re-captured. A sick, twisted fate that was probably worse than death. He decided to peer around the tree that had been offering him shelter, wanting to see if he could finish this little fight before outside "help" arrived. In this case, he decided, death may indeed be preferable to "re-education", and if he could do a little mercy-killing...

Bad move... Sylvie thought as she fired off a shot. A second later, her beam blasted right through the Ashimar's Rick Dom style mono-eye, temporarily blinding the Mobile Suit as Gerhard frantically tried to get away, realizing his mistake. Sylvie followed, firing another shot that sliced off the Ashimar's weapon arm. A third shot followed, this one hitting the Mobile Suit in the leg and sending the Mobile Suit crashing into the ground. Then, Sylvie ceased firing, knowing that her opponent now lay completely helpless on the ground, before deciding to give the enemy pilot a call. Her opponent beat her to the punch.

"It seems you have won this match, Subject V," Gerhard declared calmly as he awaited the finishing blow, "But don't think that your little rebellion will ever bring peace, because in the end we shall prevail. End it quickly. I only ask that it be an honorable death."

'Brave *******...' Sylvie thought but did not say out loud. But something was still wrong. All her senses were telling her that danger was still near... or rather, coming closer and closer. Sylvie couldn't hesitate to ask, "You're not alone, are you?"

"Correct, but I doubt they'll make it in time to save me," Gerhard replied, "We have three Doms coming for you, Subject V. And believe me, this time, they're not going to be fooled by one of your tricks.

"And are you going to be nice enough to tell me where they're coming from?" Sylvie asked as she began to warily scan the jungles around her, watching for telltale signs of enemy Mobile Suits...

"Undisciplined as they are, I will not betray them," Gerhard replied simply, "Besides, someone with your talent should already know by now."

'Sorry to disappoint you...' Sylvie thought but did not say out loud, 'but my abilities aren't THAT powerful, at least not yet.' Even under severe torture her Titans masters couldn't make her perform as the level they had wished, her only apparent abilities being quicker reflexes and a heightened awareness of danger, and despite undergoing mind-numbing "enhancements" she had little idea of what real effect it had on her abilities. In fact, ever since her release she had never really considered what those...

To the east?! Sylvie thought as she suddenly sensed something in that direction. She quickly turned, but saw nothing. Part of her told her that she was imagining things. Another part of her told her that something very bad was coming...