The Next Morning

“Are you fuckin’ serious? The metallic infection, here? In Treséd?!”

“I hate to say it, but it’s true,” Colonel Saito reported.

“Damn it all…” Davídrius muttered, his brow furrowed as he leaned back in his office chair. Across his small desk from him stood Saito, Ralak, and Kaoné, meeting early in the day to discuss what they had discovered at Compound Falnon the previous night.

“The entire Compound had gone up in flames,” Ralak added. “And there weren’t any survivors. …I should’ve seen this comin’, after talkin’ to Olkath…”

“No one expected the Bleeders to have the means or desire to spread the metallic infection,” Kaoné insisted. “You can’t blame yourself for that.”

“I’m more concerned that you ran off in the condition that you’re in,” Davídrius stated while looking Ralak up and down. Her right shoulder was still heavily bandaged, drawing attention to her complete lack of a right arm. “You still need to recover from that wound. That means not runnin’ around the fuckin’ wastelands, tryin’ to get into fights!”

Ralak pursed her lips, but otherwise responded with only a reluctant nod.

“And on top of that…” Davídrius eyed Kaoné, Ralak, and Saito. “…I heard from Selind what y’all had to do in Falnon before you left. I understand and agree with why, but… are y’all sure you’re okay, after that?”

“It wasn’t exactly pleasant,” Saito responded. “…But it was the only option we had.”

Kaoné looked down, obscuring her eyes from the others. “…If… if only I had more practice, if I had better developed my ability to cure people, then…”

“You said it yourself, Dean: the infection had gotten to their brains,” Saito said. “No one’s blaming you for anything.”

“Yeah. It’s the Bleeders that did this,” Ralak said, only to look away herself. “…And if we hadn’t gone to Falnon in the first place, then—“

“A’ight, c’mon, now,” Davídrius interjected. “Y’all ain’t at fault for anything that happened at Falnon. You did as much as you could. It’s fucked up that the Bleeders would release the infection on the Compound, sure, and I’m not about to say that you should just ‘lighten up’ or whatever. But don’t go blamin’ yourselves for any of this.”

Kaoné glanced up at Davídrius, only to look away again. She released a silent sigh, and then forced a small smile. “Yeah… I suppose you’re right.”

“The big problem now is that the Bleeders have the dirt-damned infection with ‘em…” Davídrius muttered. “…Fuckin’ hell. How’d they manage that?!”

“I can only assume that they got a few specimens from the SFC,” Saito replied. “As for the why, your guess is as good as mine. Maybe the SFC just wanted revenge for us exposing their activities in Treséd?”

“That would be incredibly short-sighted,” Kaoné said. “To doom all of those innocent people who had nothing to do with them, with a ‘weapon’ that could very easily backfire… just what would the SFC stand to gain, from this? Or the Bleeders?”

“If you’re a spiteful bastard, then you might not care about any gains,” Davídrius pointed out. “I should know, I’ve met tons of spiteful bastards here in Treséd. Most of ‘em Bleeders. And to circle back to them, we’ve got a big fuckin’ problem. We can’t expect the Bleeders to handle infected animals with the right amount of care! The longer that shit stays in their hands, the greater the chance that wild, infected animals will get let loose into the wastelands!”

“I agree that it’s a problem… but, thinking about it, it might not be as bad as you think,” Kaoné suggested hopefully. “The metallic infection has become endemic to Relédiaka’s Giant’s Forest, but that’s only because the forest floor is so vast and dark, and there’s wildlife everywhere. Here in Treséd, the continent is mostly a wasteland — and remember, the infection can only spread through living creatures. So having less wildlife around, and less places to take cover, should help contain it. Not for forever… but it should help.”

“We still can’t just sit around and let this problem fester,” Saito pointed out.

“No, I agree,” Kaoné replied. “I’m just saying that the infection, if left to spread on its own, wouldn’t be as bad as it is in Relédiaka — so we can take the time to come up with a proper response. Assuming, of course, that the Bleeders or SFC don’t take action to accelerate its spread…”

“Knowin’ the Bleeders, they’re definitely gonna try to use the infection against Tresnon,” Ralak said. “We needa be ready for it.”

“What a pain in my dirt-damned ass…” Davídrius grumbled. “…We’ve lost two Compounds, now, after reinforcin’ ‘em with the Defense Force. And Strén and Feral alone almost killed you and you Earthians…” The Dean began massaging his brow, his mouth turned down in a frown of resignation. “…I hate to say it, but I don’t think Tresnon can handle any incomin’ Bleeder attack on its own. We need outside help.”

“Even when you have Dean Densalin?” Saito questioned.

“My powers don’t work on Nanocreature nanites, remember?” Kaoné pointed out. “If the Bleeders really do use the infection against us, then I won’t be able to help much, there. Not as effectively, at least.”

“Is it possible that the Bleeders are resorting to using the infection because you’re here?”

Kaoné and Davídrius exchanged an uneasy glance, at which point the former turned to Ralak. “Would they really do that…?” Kaoné questioned.

“I wouldn’t put it past ‘em,” Ralak answered. “’Specially if they’ve had contact with outsiders like the SFC, who’d be familiar with what you can do. You don’t really hide your abilities, after all, or the fact that you’re friends with Davídrius. Someone like Strén would definitely want a plan to deal with you.”

“If that’s the case, then me simply being here is putting everyone in danger! Maybe I should leave…?”

“Don’t be stupid,” Davídrius retorted. “The Bleeders already got their hands on the infection, they ain’t gonna not use it just ‘cause you were nice and left. Bleeders don’t believe in de-escalation.”

“Well, you said that you need outside help,” Saito said. “Would the NSD help you?”

“Bah.” Davídrius scoffed. “They ain’t never helped Treséd, not without demandin’ that they take over the whole damn continent.”

“Surely that’s preferable to letting the Bleeders win, or letting the infection run wild.”

“Even if it was, the NSD has a scorched-earth policy when it comes to infection outbreaks,” Kaoné explained. “Admittedly, they tend to make exceptions for highly-built-up areas, like Relédiaka. But I doubt they’d extend that leniency to Treséd…”

Davídrius snorted. “Hell, given how little they care about us, I wouldn’t be surprised at all if they just bombed the whole damn continent and called it a day.”

Saito glanced incredulously at Kaoné. “Is that an actual possibility?”

“They wouldn’t go that far,” Kaoné replied, only to look away uneasily. “…I don’t think…”

“Are there any other options, then? It sounds like you’ll have to look at the PMCs. The Chaos Knights, maybe?”

“The Chaos Knights are worse than the NSD,” Kaoné countered. “And after what they did on Karania, Rebehka and the Academy have cut all ties with them — and frankly, I wouldn’t trust the Knights with Treséd, either. We can’t bring them back.”

“Hmm, okay. The Light Keepers, perhaps?”

“This kind of protection mission does fit within their purview, but… I don’t know if we can afford them.”

“Something smaller, then.”

“Is there anythin’ smaller?” Ralak questioned.

“There has to be,” Saito insisted. “The Black Suns, Chaos Knights, and Light Keepers are known collectively as the ‘Big 3’, right? You wouldn’t need that moniker if they were the only PMCs around.”

“True…” Kaoné acknowledged. “Of the smaller options… well, the present-day RPF is too ineffectual for this kind of request. And before a week or so ago, I actually might have suggested the SFC, but…”

“Yeah, they’re right out,” Davídrius retorted. “Never trusted ‘em in the first place, honestly. They had the same problem as the NSD, always tryin’ to get land and control in exchange for their ‘protection’.”

“I don’t mean to be rude,” Saito responded, “and I understand that you’re in an unfortunate position, here, but people rarely give their help for free. It’s nice when they do, of course, but you can hardly expect it — definitely not from PMCs, anyways. So what else would you give a PMC for their aid, if not land? What else do you have?”

“That’s bullshit,” Davídrius spat. “We don’t got shit to give. And it ain’t our fault that we gotta deal with shit like the Bleeders. So why do we have to give up our own freedom to make the problem go away, huh?”

“I understand that many people and organizations seem surprisingly uncaring toward Treséd, but at some point, you have to figure out what matters more to you: your safety, or your pride. It’s not an easy choice, but it’s one you have to make.”

“That’s where you’re wrong, it is an easy choice. And our choice is to tell those outsiders to go to hell.”

“You said yourself that you need outside help to defend Tresnon. How do you intend to get that help, if you aren’t going to pay?”

Davídrius glared at Saito, only to look away with a scowl. “…Tch…”

“I can speak with the other Deans,” Kaoné suggested. “Between us all, I’m sure we have enough money to hire protection. It’s probably the least we can do, after forcing you and WCU to accept so many, uh… trial programs on our behalf. Not to mention how me being here might have been what inspired the Bleeders to get involved with the metallic infection…”

“…Do you got an idea on who to hire, then?” Davídrius questioned.

“Well…” Kaoné glanced uneasily toward Saito before turning back to Davídrius. “I was thinking the Black Suns.”

“…The Suns, you say…?” Saito echoed, his brow furrowing.

“I don’t got anythin’ against ‘em, really…” Davídrius mused. “But you’re talkin’ about the biggest PMC in the galaxy, here. If you don’t think you can afford the Light Keepers, then what makes you think the Black Suns will even give us the time of day?”

“We have sympathetic contacts in Sector 1,” Kaoné pointed out. “There’s Gavon, here. Rebehka and I met a Colonel Petro D’Tan when we visited Oriciid’kas, as well, and he shares our goals regarding the infection. He’s the one who set everything up to let me have another chance to hone my ability to cure the infection. If nothing else, we could leverage the Chaotic data that I gave them during that trial.”

“And you think that’ll be enough for us to get the Black Suns, here?”

“I think it’s at least worth a shot.”

“And you really believe we can trust Sector 1?” Saito questioned.

Kaoné nodded. “Yes, I do. They’re consummate professionals. And Sector 1 has never been known to pressure their contractors for additional or unreasonable pay, unlike the SFC or Chaos Knights.”

“Did somethin’ happen between you Earthians and the Suns?” Davídrius questioned. “I remember Luke bein’ cagey like this back when Gavon first showed up, too.”

“I’m not at liberty to say,” Saito replied. “…I can at least say that I’ve never had personal experience with Sector 1, outside of speaking with Gavon.” He glanced at Kaoné. “So if you believe they’re trustworthy, then I’ll take your word. Besides…” He then turned to Davídrius. “This is your Compound. You call the shots, here, not me.”

“Well, hold on, now, it ain’t like I’m the sole guy in charge, or anythin’,” Davídrius quickly refuted. “…Still. Sounds like gettin’ the Suns over here is our best bet, then. You really sure they won’t try to take advantage of us, Kaoné?”

“Certainly less than the NSD would, at least,” she replied.

“Tch. Guess that’s all we can really hope for, right now…” Davídrius sighed loftily. “…Guess they’re probably the best equipped to figure out exactly how the Bleeders got their hands on the infection, too. …Alright. Let’s do it, then.”

“Great. I’ll get right on that,” Kaoné declared as she began preparing to leave.

“And what about you, Colonel?” Davídrius questioned, his gaze turning to the Earthian. “You and your team have already helped us out a ton, without even askin’ for much in return. So I don’t wanna be too greedy. But for the sake of our defense plannin’, I gotta know — how much longer can we expect your help? Do you still not know?”

“It’s a perfectly reasonable question,” Saito said. “…But, unfortunately, I still don’t know. I haven’t heard anything from SERRCom brass just yet, but my warning from a few days ago still stands — we could be called away at a moment’s notice. You’re probably better off assuming that we won’t be around to help fend off a large attack.”

“Figured as much…” Davídrius grumbled. “…Looks like we really will be relyin’ in the Suns, then.”

“It isn’t perfect, but I’ll make sure you don’t regret it,” Kaoné insisted.

“I’m sure you will,” Davídrius replied. He then stood up from his chair, his hands on his desk as he looked at each of Saito, Kaoné, and Ralak. “…Well, I think that covers everythin’ then, huh? I probably don’t need to tell y’all, but the infection is serious business, as are the Bleeders. Keep on your toes. But for now, this meetin’ is over.”

---

*

Bright sunlight shone down through clear skies upon the beige buildings of Compound Tresnon, casting long west-ward shadows as the sun began its dayward march. A soft, cool breeze swept into the Compound from the adjacent lake, the waters serving as a mild mitigating element to the growing desert heat. After all, Treséd was now a mere month out from the summer solstice — and daytime temperatures had risen considerably. As such, most inhabitants of Compound Tresnon had been reducing the amount of time they spent out in the sun, preferring to stay inside or under large tarps. Accordingly, the roof of WCU’s dormitory building was practically devoid of all human presence… save for one man leaning against the guardrail, peering idly out across Tresnon.

Mark released a long, lofty sigh, his gaze sweeping slowly across the low skyline of Tresnon and the waters of the adjacent Mirage Lake. Barely an hour had passed since he had prepared breakfast for CSF-1 and the Keys, as he always did. At this point in the day, he would usually be helping to clean the dorms or engaging in some training, but today, he found little motivation to partake in his usual habits. Barely twelve hours had passed since he had left Compound Falnon, after all. Barely twelve hours had passed since he had helped to subdue the infected populace… only to then learn that they had all been doomed before he even arrived.

“Oh, Mark… there you are.”

Mark glanced over his shoulder, finding that Danielle had just stepped onto the roof. He offered her a subdued nod before turning back to look out over the roof’s guardrail; Danielle promptly joined him, though her movements notably lacked her signature energetic bounciness.

“…Are you okay?”

Mark glanced down at Danielle, noting that she was looking up at him with concern in her eyes. He offered a bitter smile in response before looking away. “…Sorry. Was I that obvious?”

“Well, I noticed that breakfast tasted a little off, today…” Danielle replied. “I mean, it was still good, but… …well, you know…”

“Haha… fair enough.”

“And I can’t really remember the last time I saw you like this, either, so…”

“I think both of us can say that. You’ve been pretty quiet today, too. Is there anything you want to talk about?”

“Sorta— hey! Wait!” Danielle’s face turned down into a pout. “I came here to cheer you up, not the other way around!”

Mark chuckled briefly in response. “Fair enough. Though I think we’re both thinking about the same thing… aren’t we?”

“You mean… last night?”

Mark nodded slowly.

“Yeah…” Danielle slowly replied, and then released a resigned sigh as she joined Mark in gazing idly over Compound Tresnon. “I guess… well… I don’t really know what to say, I guess…”

“I don’t blame you,” Mark said. “Last night wasn’t the first time I’ve seen the metallic infection in action, but… it was definitely the first time I’ve seen it affect people. It was…” He paused to chuckle uneasily. “…Stressful, at the very least.”

“Yeah, true…” Danielle agreed.

“But the worst thing… is knowing that there was never anything that we could’ve done for them. According to Kaoné, by the time we arrived, it was too late.”

“Yeah… but it just seems so, I dunno… weird, I guess. Like… those people were still alive, you know? I get that they weren’t really ‘them’ anymore, but… it still doesn’t seem real. They were acting so much like animals, too!”

“That’s the infection’s fault. As I understand it, the infection drives people and animals crazy like that to try and draw blood from other animals, so as to perpetuate the infection. So I suppose that seeing them behave like that should’ve clued us in that it was too late to save them, but… I just…”

Silence reigned for a moment, as Danielle quietly waited for Mark to gather his thoughts.

“…In the end, it wasn’t even the infection that killed them,” he eventually continued, his shoulders slumping. “It was… us. CSF-1. Dean Densalin. The Defense Force. We had to put them down.”

“Do you… do you think there was another way…?”

“That’s the thing. No, I don’t think there was. If even Dean Densalin thought that they were too far gone, then… well, they were. And aside from just putting them all out of their misery, we needed to be sure that the infection wouldn’t spread outside of Falnon. So I understand why what we did was necessary. But… I just don’t understand why it had to come to that in the first place.”

“What do you mean?”

“All signs point to the infection being let loose on Falnon by the Bleeders. That is, everyone there suffered, just because the Bleeders wanted them to. But why? What do they have to gain from doing something so barbaric?”

Danielle looked up at Mark for a moment, but he didn’t return the gesture; his furrowed brow was still directed out over Tresnon. With a sigh, Danielle turned away herself. “…I dunno. I don’t really get it, either. It’s just… mean.”

“Evil, even.”

“Yeah…”

“And the more I think about what happened last night, the more I realize just how deep the problems really run. I’ve heard plenty of times that the Bleeders are rotten, but I never really internalized it until now. But, given how the locals talk, the Bleeders have always been like this. Which makes you wonder… why does no one outside of Treséd care? Why is everyone willing to just let the Bleeders keep inflicting these nightmares on the people of this continent?”

“Maybe they just don’t know…?”

“Maybe, but I think… I’m starting to think that it’s because the rest of Nimalia just doesn’t care. I’ve seen for myself just how other Nimalians treat Tresédians. It’s… it’s the kind of discrimination that you’d think, that you’d hope an interstellar nation like Nimalia would have moved beyond. But no. It still happens.”

“…”

“And… well, I can easily handle specific threats. If an attack happens, then I can help fight it off. I’ve done that before, tons of times. But when you look at the problem from afar, you realize… the problems run so deep, there’s no way any one person can solve them. Driving off one attack won’t stop more from happening in the future. So sometimes, I can’t help but wonder… what’s… what’s even the point?”

Silence fell again, with Mark and Danielle quietly staring into the distant horizon. Several moments passed, interspersed only with the soft sound of their clothes flapping in the breeze.

“I think…” Danielle eventually said, drawing Mark’s attention. “…I think, that we can actually do a lot more than you think.”

Mark’s eyes widened in surprise. “Really?”

“I mean, just think about it: we already have, in the past,” Danielle remarked. “I mean, maybe not here in Treséd, but, like, in general. We’ve helped out on Earth a bunch, right? And we even found a bunch of cool stuff for SERRCom that Kate says will be really important in the future. Last night, too… we may not have been able to save everyone, but at least we were able to keep the infection from spreading, right?”

“I suppose so…”

“So, I think that… yeah, some of the problems we have are pretty big, but, like… that doesn’t mean we can’t do anything, you know? We can still help, here and there, even if only a little. And if you do it, and I do it, and Mote and Kate do it, and CSF-1 does it… it all adds up. Right?”

“Heh…” For the first time since the beginning of the conversation, the corners of Mark’s mouth turned up into a small, genuine smile. “…True. As long as everyone works toward the same goal, eventually, we’ll get there…”

“And, I mean… I don’t think everything will be perfect, or anything,” Danielle continued. “Sometimes, bad stuff will happen, like… last night. And sometimes, I think, we just won’t be able to understand why other people do what they do. But… that won’t stop us from helping out the people who need it. Right?”

“You’re absolutely right,” Mark affirmed. “…I don’t know how I managed to forget that. I guess I’ve been stuck inside my own head too much, haha.”

“You and Mote do that a lot. Kate, too, kinda.”

“Can’t really argue with that.” Mark then turned his gaze up to the cloudless skies above as a lofty sigh escaped his lips. “I still… …I don’t think Falnon is going to leave me anytime soon. I still find it hard to accept that all of those people had to die… but, you are right. We did still contain the infection, I suppose. And we’ll still have chances to help in the future.”

“Yeah, exactly. But I was there last night, too. You aren’t the only one who had to deal with what happened…”

“Haha, true, true. Sorry.” Mark sighed again, and then turned to give Danielle a small smile. “…Thanks, Danielle. For talking things out with me.”

“Oh, you do the same for me all the time,” Danielle replied. “And Mote, and Kate, too. I kinda… wanted to talk about this, anyways…”

“Ah. And instead, you had to cheer me up… sorry about that.”

“No, no, it’s fine! That’s the main reason I came here, anyways. I’m glad that I could help.”

“Still, if there’s anything you need from me, I’d be happy to help.”

“Well… what about a hug?”

Mark chuckled briefly as he drew back from the guard rail and turned toward Danielle. “For that? You don’t even need to ask.”

“Yay,” Danielle replied as she practically jumped into Mark’s arms, readily embracing him. With an amused smile, Mark gently hugged her back, softly patting her on the back.

“Now if only Mote and Kate were okay with hugs, too…” she said, her eyes closed and mouth turned up into a contented smile.

“Ah, well, you know how they are,” Mark responded. “They both have trouble expressing their true emotions, but that doesn’t mean that they don’t care.”

“True!” Danielle remarked.

Then, for the third time since Danielle had stepped onto the roof, silence fell over the duo — but this time, the quiet was much more serene. As Mark looked out over Tresnon, he still couldn’t completely tear his thoughts away from what happened in Falnon… but now, at least, he didn’t feel quite so hopeless.

“Is there anything you were gonna do today?”

Mark glanced down at Danielle, who was looking up at him with questioning eyes. “…Well…” he began to respond, “we do have a guard shift this afternoon, but before that… I do still have some daily cleaning to take care of. And maybe I’ll make everyone lunch, after that, as an apology for breakfast being ‘off’.”

“I mean, it wasn’t bad, it was just… less good, I guess…”

“It’s fine. If nothing else, making lunch will help take my mind off of things.”

“Oh, good point… can I help, then?”

Mark smiled as the two finally separated. “Of course, Danielle. You know you don’t have to ask to help me with my cooking!”

“Yay!” Danielle cheered, and then turned toward the roof exit and began bouncing toward it. “Let’s get going, then!”

“Sure thing,” Mark replied, readily following behind her — the both of them more than ready to move beyond the dark events of the previous night.