— Watedia, Aldredath 4, 8054 —

(Tuesday, November 29, AD 2129)

“Alright… everything checks out, ma’am. You’re clear to enter.”

“Thank you,” Kaoné replied cordially, briefly bowing her head toward the uniformed guard standing before her. As the guard stepped aside to open the gates in front of him, Kaoné glanced behind herself at Luke, Mark, and all of the Keys who stood with her. “Alright! Let’s go!”

“That’s awfully cheerful for a tour of a military base…” Austin muttered as the group followed Kaoné through the gates, and onto the grounds beyond. A long road stretched from the gates to a modest courtyard resting between two three-story buildings, each one appearing to have a footprint the size of a football field. Verdant grass and tall, healthy trees lined the road and the two buildings, though gave way on either side for a distinctly more military appearance. Far to the left was a series of massive hangars, with a handful of tanks, mechs, and other military vehicles parked outside while military mechanics and WCU students crowded around; off to the right appeared a large athletics complex, with a track that appeared to be in use by some Nimalian soldiers. The entirety of the base was encircled by a metal fence and more trees, helping to disguise the military nature of the complex from the surrounding civilian buildings.

“Damn, everyone else is already so far ahead of us!” Pierce remarked, his attention directed toward the WCU students near the hangars. “Why the hell did we have to sit outside the gates for so long when all of them could just walk on in?”

“It’s the unfortunate reality of us not only not being Nimalian, but also being part of the military of an entirely foreign government,” Luke pointed out. “Earth and Nimalia might be allies, but that doesn’t get rid of all the issues and red tape of us visiting an NSD military base.”

“I do apologize for taking so long,” Kaoné commented as the group continued walking down the long road to the base’s central courtyard. “I didn’t expect to get held up like that… still, we’re in now.”

“But don’t forget that we have to stick together as a group,” Luke quickly declared, just as Pierce and Austin made to split off in separate directions. “Dean Densalin here has graciously agreed to be our chaperone today, but there’s only one of her, after all.”

“The Nimalians really don’t trust us, huh?” Phoenix questioned bitterly.

“Heh.” Pierce passed her a spiteful smirk. “Mad you can’t spend the day with your wonderful boyfriend?”

“Anything to get me away from you,” she shot back.

“Since we’re all here, though,” Spike interjected, “what do we wanna check out?”

“What even is there to do?” Conrad questioned.

“Kaoné… you used to be in the NSD, right?” Twy asked, her attention directed toward the Dean. “Do you have any insight?”

Kaoné responded with a deep sigh, her own gaze slowly sweeping across the base around them. “Yes, I was once an NSD soldier… but it’s been a while, and as I said a few days ago, I’ve never been to Sikalia before. So I don’t know much about this base.”

“Well let’s start with that, then!” Sky exclaimed as she gestured off to the right. Not far from the track were a handful of open-air training fields, and on one of the fields appeared a group of soldiers in white shirts and shorts. Water, flames, and rocks swiveled around the group, slowly lowering, rising, and then dipping down toward the soldiers in a distinct, yet graceful rhythm, all while one of the soldiers seemed to dance outside of the levitating elements and made punching motions toward the center.

“Some kind of training…?” Mark suggested.

“Looks way too choreographed for that,” Sky refuted. “It almost looks like they’re dancing.”

“I agree…” Phoenix commented as she watched the group from afar. “It certainly doesn’t look like combat training, anyways.”

“You’d be surprised what ‘training’ can look like for Chaotics, sometimes,” Kaoné replied. “Not everything we do is combat, after all. As for that group over there — well, I don’t know for certain what they’re doing, but if I had to guess, I’d say they’re warming up or practicing for tomorrow’s show.”

“You mean, during tomorrow’s Brightest Day celebrations?” Luke asked.

Kaoné nodded. “Right. There’s a talent show of sorts running all through tomorrow, and some of the performers are NSD Chaotics.”

“So we’d heard,” Twy remarked. “It might be nice to see Chaotics using their powers outside of a martial context.”

“Mm…” Kestrel grunted, her gaze lingering on the training Chaotics. “…Why we’re here?”

“…Ah, yeah, I bet that’s the entire reason we’re here, isn’t it?” Conrad questioned, briefly passing Kestrel a glance before turning toward Kaoné. “The NSD wants to hook people by claiming that Chaotics don’t actually have to fight all the time, or some shit, right?”

“If that’s what they wanted to do, then they wouldn’t have dragged us to a fucking military base,” Pierce countered. “With tanks! And mechs! You don’t get more ‘military’ than that!”

“Still makes you wonder why we’re here,” Conrad insisted, with Kestrel offering a nod of agreement from beside him. “What’s the point of visiting a military base, anyways?”

“Judging by how those tanks and mechs are lined up, all clearly for show… I’d say that you weren’t completely off track,” Phoenix declared. “This whole visit is one big recruitment ad, isn’t it?”

Kaoné sighed warily. “I wish I could say otherwise… but you’re right.”

“I thought you didn’t like conscription, or the military,” Austin said.

“I don’t,” Kaoné quickly replied, fixing Austin with a stare before turning to address the group as a whole. “But, the only way Davídrius and I could convince the Union to allow this off-world trip was to agree to this tour of the Ilia NSD base.”

“Well that doesn’t sound very cool of the Union, then,” Sky declared.

“No, it doesn’t… especially since joining the NSD is one of the only ways for Tresédian Chaotics to legally leave their homeland. This whole visit reeks of exploitation, and if it were up to me, we wouldn’t be here. But…” The Dean sighed once more. “Davídrius claimed that letting his students see the world outside of Treséd was worth it. I just hope that he’s right.”

“…This is way heavier stuff than I was expectin’ to think about today…” Spike muttered.

“Yeah, I kinda hoped we’d just get to look at some tanks and mechs, or somethin’…” Austin added.

“Well, while we’re here, it at least couldn’t hurt to look around,” Luke commented, though as he spoke, his attention was fixed entirely on the hangars, and the half-dozen mechs that stood outside them. “Besides, I’ve always wanted a closer look at Nimalian mechs, myself.”

“This is going to be all day, isn’t it?” Phoenix questioned with a roll of her eyes. “Just you guys salivating over military hardware, huh?”

“Better than just standing around, feeling sorry for ourselves,” Pierce retorted, and then set out toward the hangars. “C’mon, you slow asses, let’s go do something already!”

“Can’t believe I agree with him on something…” Austin muttered to himself, only to shake the thought from his head and join the group as everyone began walking to the left, starting their day visit of the NSD base.

---

Several Hours Later

“Damn, it’s so crowded in here…”

“It’s a fucking cafeteria, of course it is,” Pierce shot back. “Get over it, dweeb.”

Austin responded with an irritated scowl as he took a seat at a long cafeteria table alongside the rest of the Earthians. After spending the day looking through the mechs, tanks, and other machinery of the local NSD garrison, the group of Earthians now found themselves sat within the base’s large mess hall, a little off to the side of the portion of the hall that was marked off for the WCU travel group. Scents of just barely above-average food filled the room as the traveling students all took turns grabbing dinner, all while a handful of NSD officers looked on from nearby the serving lines.

“Pretty big cafeteria, though,” Spike pointed out as he began spooning food into his mouth. “Ain’t seen one this big in a while.”

“I have to agree with Spike,” Luke declared, his gaze slowly sweeping across the large hall. Dozens upon dozens of long tables filled the room, featuring enough space to easily seat several hundred people. By comparison, the WCU travel group of under 200 filled far less than half of the space, with the rest occupied by the actual soldiers of the garrison. “…I guess there’s a lot of soldiers on this base, huh?”

“Fort Ilia is Sikalia’s primary NSD garrison,” Kaoné pointed out from her seat across from Luke and to the side of the Keys. “And you all saw the facilities, today. It takes a lot of people to run a base like this.”

“Half of them dedicated just to maintaining all of the vehicles around here, I bet,” Phoenix retorted.

“It’s true that there’s a large support staff, but automation can take care of most standard maintenance.”

“There sure were a lot of mechs and tanks, though!” Sky exclaimed. “Nimalia’s at peace, right? So why keep around all of that stuff?”

“Dismantling your weapons during peacetime is one of the quickest ways to end peacetime,” Luke countered. “Nimalia may not have any immediate enemies now, but who knows when they will. In the interim, they have to maintain their weapons — just like SERRCom, and any other military in the galaxy.”

“I reject the premise that peacetime militaries need fifty mechs and a hundred tanks, all in the same place,” Phoenix retorted.

“And even if we were to accept it,” Twy commented, “based on what I know about military defenses… wouldn’t it be really easy for most Chaotics to destroy it all?”

“That’s a bold claim,” Conrad deadpanned.

“Nah, she’s right,” Pierce declared. “Eating through energy shielding is piss-easy. I’ve done it several times, myself.”

“Yes… it’s true that most Chaotics can easily shutdown energy shielding, or bypass it entirely,” Kaoné responded warily. “However, Chaotics are rare. Only 1 in every forty thousand Nimalians is a Chaotic — and I’m sure you all are aware that you are Earth’s only Chaotics.”

“In other words, most military defenses aren’t designed to stop Chaotics, because the likelihood of running into one isn’t high enough to justify the insane extra defenses you’d need,” Luke stated. “Most doctrines say that the best anti-Chaotic weapon is another Chaotic. And it isn’t like Chaotics are all that useful at the kinds of ranges that you use vehicular weaponry for, anyways. Why, the shortest-range mech-mounted weapon the Nimalians have is a plasma shotgun, and that can still reach fifteen hundred meters! I’d like to see a Chaotic that could attack from that far away!”

“Chaotics are conscripted, though,” Conrad pointed out. “Only 1 in every forty thousand Nimalians is a Chaotic, sure, but that ratio has to be way higher for the military, right?”

“It is, but even then, not all Chaotics can bypass energy shielding. And many aren’t even front-line combatants,” Kaoné replied. “You saw that yourself, today.”

“Right, with the Nucleartechnic in charge of the local power plant…” Mark nodded absentmindedly. “And the Electrotechnic that was helping him…”

“A couple of the mechanics were Metallitechnics, too,” Spike said. “I guess bein’ able to move metal with your mind would help out with mechanic stuff a lot, huh?”

“Though the only Hydrotechnic I saw was cleaning dirt off the side of a hangar…” Twy muttered.

“Yeah, yeah, everyone has a second job that they’re good at, we know,” Pierce retorted with a roll of his eyes. “But that doesn’t change the fact that Chaotics are way more useful in a fight!”

“Maybe you are,” Austin countered. “Is fightin’ people the only thing you’re good at?”

“Ha!” Pierce scoffed. “Hardly. I still have a lot of improvement to make in that area — and yet I’m still better at fighting than you’ll ever be, dweeb.”

“Hey, that’s—!”

“Now, now,” Luke quickly interjected, briefly drawing the attention of both Austin and Pierce. “Let’s not be fighting over dinner, especially not in the middle of a military base. Of a foreign nation.”

“You hear that, Pierce? You could be an embarrassment to all of Earth,” Phoenix remarked with a smirk.

“…Anyways,” Kaoné eventually continued, “my point earlier is that not all Chaotics are put on the frontlines, even in a war. There aren’t many Chaotic types that are only useful in combat, after all, and as Luke said earlier — most wartime combat takes place over long ranges, the kind that Chaotics aren’t very useful for.”

“Unless you’re a Velocitechnic like me, and can close that distance hella fast,” Pierce declared smugly.

“And then get surrounded on all sides as you attack an enemy frontline all by yourself?” Austin retorted.

Pierce smirked. “As if that’s a danger. I’d just use my superior speed to stay out of trouble. You can’t hit what you can’t see, after all!”

“If it were that easy for you to take on a whole group by yourself, then I wonder why you had so much trouble back when we were fighting EA’s robots,” Austin challenged.

“Ah ha ha… looks like y’all are doin’ as good as ever, huh?”

Austin and Pierce stopped their bickering as they turned to the side, where they found Karísah approaching with a tray of food in hand. She offered the group a curt wave.

“Oh, Karísah!” Mark exclaimed. “What brings you here?”

“Just thought I’d check up on y’all…” she replied, her gaze briefly sweeping across the Keys before lingering for a moment on Kaoné. “Oh, Kaoné, I didn’t see you there…”

“It’s fine,” the Dean replied with a smile. “Everything okay with the rest of the travel group?”

“Yeah, Davídrius and the other teachers have it all handled.” Karísah then nodded toward an empty seat next to Mark. “…Would y’all mind if I joined you?”

“Not at all,” Mark said as he made room for her. “More friends are always welcome for dinner, I say.”

“I’m surprised you’d pick us over almost literally anyone else here,” Conrad said, eying Karísah warily as she took a seat. Beside him, Kestrel also kept an eye on Karísah; the joint wariness of the two wasn’t lost on the Nimalian, who responded with an uneasy laugh.

“It’s… as I said,” Karísah replied. “I’m just checkin’ in. Though you all seem to be just like your normal selves, huh?”

“We don’t need to be ‘checked in’ on,” Pierce countered, and then shot Austin a glance. “Well, most of us, at least.”

Austin opened his mouth to respond, only to stop himself before actually saying anything and settling with glaring at Pierce.

“Looks like any further conversation will have to wait,” Luke spoke up, gesturing toward a group of NSD officers standing near the mess hall serving area. The last of the students in the travel group had just gotten their dinners, and one of the officers appeared to be preparing to give some kind of speech.

“Oh, boy,” Phoenix deadpanned, her elbow on the table and chin resting in her palm as she half-turned to face the officer. “I wonder what kind of jingoistic bullshit they’re going to try to peddle at us?”

Any replies to her rhetorical question were cut off by one of the NSD officers loudly clapping their hands, so as to draw attention. The ambient noise of cafeteria chatter failed to subside, however, until Davídrius stood up and shouted across the room, “hey, y’all, shut your traps for just a couple minutes!”

Soon after, the idle conversations subsided, and everyone’s attention turned toward the NSD officers. A tall man in the front, with thin gray-black hair and the beginnings of wrinkles on his face, hidden only by a massive, thick beard, stepped forward and cleared his throat. “Thank you, Dean Wrikax,” he commented, offering a curt nod toward Davídrius before turning his attention to the travel group at large. Adopting a welcoming smile, the man said, “welcome, everyone! I’ve run into a handful of you over the past few hours, but allow me to introduce myself to you all: I am Ground Colonel Folas Orough, of the NSDGC — the Nimalian Systems Defense Ground Core. You can just call me Colonel Orough, though. I’m the commander in charge of Fort Ilia, as well as all of the NSD’s operations here on Sikalia.” He then swept his gaze across the sea of students. “I trust you all have had a good time on Sikalia, so far?”

The Colonel’s question was met by the low murmurs of quiet conversations in a crowd, accompanied by a handful of positive — if somewhat subdued — exclamations.

“The park was fun,” Sky commented, her voice low so that only those near her could hear, “that museum trip, though…”

“Can’t say we didn’t learn anythin’, though,” Spike remarked.

“Quiet,” Kaoné hushed. “Let’s save the talking for later.”

The group turned their attention back to Colonel Orough, who had begun speaking again. “I’m glad to hear that many of you are enjoying your time here,” he declared. “It’s always heartening to see my fellow Nimalians immersing themselves in the culture of conservation and preservation that we’ve cultivated over many, many generations — dating as far back as when we lived only on Nimalia itself! Though I suppose I need not say that to all of you, hailing from the Homeworld as you do.”

“Does this guy know we’re from Earth?” Conrad whispered to Pierce.

“Forget us, I don’t think he knows the Nimalians are from a fuckin’ wasteland,” Pierce retorted.

“Now, with most of your trip revolving around Sikalia’s preservation efforts until today,” the Colonel continued, his hands clasped in front of him, “I’m sure many of you are wondering why you’ve spent today at an NSD facility. Well, my friends, we aren’t just here to show off the advances in Nimalian technology that you can see in our latest-gen Nikom tanks, or the impressive mobility of our Rivad and Rétek mechs, or the intricate targeting systems that allow our snipers to use our Regad and Imarin laser guns to their maximum capability. Neither are we here just to demonstrate how Chaotics fit into the regime of our modern military, and their training practices to remain in top shape. Today, I have offered you a glimpse into your future — and now, I would like to discuss it.”

Murmurs from the WCU students built up again, quickly filling the brief silence after the Colonel’s declaration.

“I bet this asshole is about to wax poetic about Chaotic conscription or some other tone-deaf subject, isn’t he,” Phoenix deadpanned.

“Mm…” Kestrel grunted in acknowledgment, her expression blank — though with her lips ever so slightly pursed.

“Now, now,” Colonel Orough spoke up again, briefly raising his voice to draw attention back to himself. “I’m sure you’re all thinking the same thing — ‘is the military, the NSD, really right for me?’ All of our servicepersons must ask themselves this question before joining. Ultimately, I find, the answer comes down to the following: if you have power, then what do you do with it? Do you sit idly by, letting your abilities waste away, or do you rise to the occasion and do all that you can to better the society in which you live? After all, what is the NSD but an organization of defense that allows the Nimalian Union to blossom under our watchful protection — and what is more honorable than using the powers at your disposal in the most efficient manner to do so?”

“I expected this, but it’s still pissin’ me off…” Austin muttered.

“We are on a military base…” Twy replied with a sigh. “Just sit tight. I’m sure he’ll be done soon…”

“And thus, we come to the one thing you all have in common,” the Colonel proclaimed, his hands spread apart and palms held open and upwards in a welcoming gesture. “All of you before me today are Chaotics — and not just any Chaotics, but students at one of Nimalia’s esteemed Schools of Chaos! You are the rarest of the rare, and some might even say that you are some of the Union’s most important citizens. But do not think that we at the NSD take that for granted. No, we understand all of the hard work that goes into training your Chaotic abilities, and maintaining your enrollment at one of our Union’s most prestigious institutions. Each and every one of you are dedicated, hardworking citizens, easily on track to join the NSD as a commissioned officer, in fact. Additionally, I hear that the famed ACT — the Annual Chaotic Tournament — is soon coming. While it may seem a mere sport to you all, the reality is that the entire Union is watching, NSD included. Those of you who perform well may find yourselves rewarded handsomely. Just ask your own member of the Elite Six — Karísah Lekai, I do believe?”

“…Ugh…” Karísah groaned, though forced a smile as many of the WCU students turned to look at her. “…’Elite Six’ isn’t even an official title…” she muttered under her breath.

“I’m not a fan of what the ACT has become, either…” Kaoné added in kind. “But, like it or not, Karísah, you are a role model. And in that capacity, you do a far better job than any other member of the Elite Six.”

“Thanks… I guess…”

“I’m sure you’re all wondering just how long this old man is going to drone on, by now,” Colonel Orough continued, his mouth turned up into a wry smile. “I’ve just about said my piece, but before I leave you all today, I’d just like you to consider my words. As Chaotics, you all hold immense power — far more than your average person. Just as every individual has a responsibility to aid their neighbors and advance the society in which they live, so too do you all have a responsibility to use your powers for the forces of justice, and the well-being of our Union. Do not be afraid of this responsibility; rather, rise up to it and beyond, and the Nimalian Systems Defense will reward your societal contributions accordingly.”

“…Is this what SERRCom recruitment speeches sound like?” Mark questioned as he passed Luke a glance.

The Captain responded with a nervous chuckle. “Ah ha ha… well, that’s just the military, for you.”

“And with that, I will open the podium to your Dean,” Colonel Orough finished. “I hope you enjoy the rest of your dinner, and be sure to join the festivities that Ilia has planned for tomorrow! Now, Dean Wrikax, if you would?”

“Uh—…” Davídrius paused mid-chewing, his mouth full with food as Colonel Orough turned to look at him on the far side of the room. The Dean hastily swallowed and stood up, clearing his throat once before stating, “…well, y’all heard the man. Let’s fuckin’ eat!”

An uproarious exclamation met the Dean’s declaration, easily drowning out any of the tepid murmers during the Colonel’s speech. All of the WCU students then readily returned to eating and loud banter, filling the mess hall with the noise of a crowd decompressing after a long day.

“Well that went exactly as I expected,” Phoenix deadpanned as she turned to look at the rest of the Earthians. “I wasn’t the only one who thought it was all bullshit, right?”

“Yeah, I have to agree with you, there,” Pierce declared. “What a bunch of fuckin’ hot air.”

“Are NSD recruitment speeches usually like this?” Twy questioned, her attention directed toward Kaoné. “Are they always, so…”

“Underhanded?” Conrad suggested.

“It was typical military recruitment rhetoric,” Luke commented between bites of food. “I’ve heard the same from the American army and SERRCom. It’s just rhetoric.”

“’Rhetoric’ works on people,” Phoenix countered. “Why else would it exist?”

“This all was just an obligation, on everyone’s behalf,” Kaoné said. “Our visit to this base, and the Colonel’s speech just now… I wouldn’t look into it too much.”

“Easier said than done…” Austin muttered.

“That guy seems really out of the loop, though,” Sky declared. “Does he know who he was talking to?”

“You mean how he talked up Nimalia’s ‘preservation’ efforts, and the duty of Nimalians to help out the Nimalian Union, despite everyone here coming from Treséd?” Pierce scoffed. “The hell did you think I meant when I said he was full of hot air? He clearly doesn’t know what he’s talking about.”

“Is that true, Karísah?” Mark questioned as he turned toward the Tresédian.

“…Well…” She adopted a pained smile as she replied, “…Davídrius always told me about how the ‘outside world’ didn’t care about Treséd. I always thought he was exaggeratin’, but… I have to say, it was a little irritatin’ to hear him preach about our responsibility to the Union, when the Union hasn’t actually done anything for us.”

“Just a little?!” Phoenix eclaimed incredulously, “if I were you, I’d be livid!”

“Either way… talkin’ about it here isn’t really, uh, helpful,” Karísah replied, passing a nervous glance to her left — where a couple of NSD soldiers were milling about just outside of earshot. “Let’s… talk about somethin’ else?”

“I have a question, then,” Austin said. “That Colonel introduced himself as a ‘Ground Colonel’ from the ‘Nimalian Systems Defense Ground Core’.” He looked over at Kaoné. “What’s that mean?”

“The NSD is split into three Cores: the Ground Core, the Space Core, and the Colony Core,” Kaoné answered. “The Ground Core handles all planetside military activity, while the Space Core handles everything in space. And the Colony Core handles Nimalia’s expansion efforts.”

“Oh, so it’s just organizational stuff…”

“All large militaries are split into different commands like that,” Luke declared. “SERRCom has a bunch of different commands, too. It’d be impossible to manage everything if it didn’t.”

“Maybe it’s just too big for it’s own good,” Phoenix countered.

“There’s certainly a discussion to be had about how large the interstellar militaries have gotten,” Kaoné commented, “but I don’t think it’s a factor here. Splitting up the overall military into individual, separate commands ultimately leads to less conflict. After all, you wouldn’t want someone who’s primary training is in field combat to handle the development of a new colony, would you?”

“The Dean makes a good point,” Luke agreed. “It’s the same with SERRCom. You wouldn’t want someone from the ECC running intel, or someone from the ESFC running a colony, or someone from the EIIC doing in-field combat. Unless they’re a spec ops squad, I guess…”

“I have no idea what you just said,” Conrad deadpanned.

“Figures you’d still know nothing about SERRCom, even after getting all wrapped up in it,” Pierce retorted. “The ECC is the Earthian Colonization Command, and the ESFC is the Space Force Command — you know, the actual military part. And I think everyone here already knows the EIIC.”

“Don’t remind me…” Austin muttered.

“Where do Chaotics fit in, then?” Spike questioned. “I guess Nimalian Chaotics would all end up in the Ground Core, right?”

“Well… mostly, I suppose,” Kaoné replied. “There are some Chaotics who perform better on spacecraft, or with developing colonies… and the NSD’s intelligence agencies are part of the Space Core, so you’ll usually find Intellitechnics there. But, overall, you’re right. The NSD sees the most value in Chaotics as combatants, and in that role, it only makes sense for Chaotics to be in the Ground Core.”

“I assume that was also true for Hero Machina, back when you were all part of the NSD?” Mark questioned.

“Our squad was actually formed a few months before the NSD, and even then, we reported directly to the Commander. It wasn’t until after the Nanocreature War that we were moved to the Ground Core. Which is also right about when everyone started leaving, too…”

“To found the Schools of Chaos?” Twy asked.

“In the end, yes, but we actually weren’t expecting it to turn out this way, at first,” Kaoné commented. She then leaned forward, resting her elbows on the table as she folded her hands, thoughtful reminiscence crossing her face. “Davídrius was the first to leave. He wanted to actually help out Treséd, somehow, and the NSD wasn’t really doing that. Then Christeané left shortly after, to help Davídrius… they were the ones who founded the school that eventually became WCU. Honestly, none of us expected it to work out as well as it did — I guess that was a little prejudicial on our part, ah ha. But after seeing so many young Chaotics joining Davídrius and Christeané’s new school, the rest of us decided to follow suit. That’s when I left to create the Densalin School for Chaotics, with Rebehka’s help.”

“I’m surprised the NSD just let y’all leave,” Austin said.

Kaoné smiled forlornly, with just a hint of bitterness hidden behind her eyes. “When you’re part of a group that helped to save the entire galaxy, well… you can get a lot out it,” she replied, and then sighed. “At the time, we all thought we were finally free from the NSD’s influence. But in the end, we still have to listen to them. Just, indirectly…”

“Because of Nimalia’s Chaotic conscription taking your students…” Twy muttered.

“I’m sure this whole ‘ACT’ thing doesn’t help, either,” Conrad pointed out. “A big tournament that the NSD explicitly has eyes on? Sounds like a lot of scrutiny, to me.”

“It didn’t used to be this way,” Karísah said. “The ACT used to be small. I remember watchin’ the first one, seven years ago… just one team from each school, in an empty field, with no cameras. Barely any audience, outside of the locals. And now it’s a whole… thing.”

“A ‘thing’ that we’re going to join and beat,” Pierce declared.

“And that’s exactly why the ACT is still around…” Kaoné sighed. “The students like the competition too much…”

“This is something I’ll have to agree with Pierce on,” Phoenix said. “Competition is fun! And healthy, if run well. I don’t see what’s wrong with an annual tournament.”

“I was afraid you’d say that…”

“It also seems like a bit much to assume that any of us would be able to win,” Twy said. “We’ve all only had our powers for three months!”

“Yeah, but we’ve also kicked some ass, you know?” Austin declared. “Remember, we’ve fought and beat EA, twice!”

“I remember winning once, but the second time was a stalemate…”

“Besides, dweeb, you didn’t even do anything that whole fight!” Pierce countered. “But if you want to throw down in a tournament so I can properly kick your ass, then be my guest!”

“Oh, great. Just what we needed. A new competition for Pierce to get into,” Conrad deadpanned.

“I might be down for a tournament, too,” Spike said, and then passed Kaoné and Karísah a wary glance. “But if we joined… we’d just be replacin’ a regular Nimalian team, right?”

“Oh, yeah, that would look bad…” Phoenix replied with a frown. “Especially with how poorly the Tresédians look at outsiders, already…”

“I still think it’s just a little presumptuous to think that we’d even qualify,” Twy argued, and then gestured at the sea of WCU students in the cafeteria with them. “Do you really think you all are better than all of them?!”

“We won’t know until we try. That’s the whole fucking point of a tournament!” Pierce exclaimed.

“Well, first, let’s make sure you wouldn’t actually get in the way of a home team,” Luke declared, and then turned to Kaoné. “…Would they?”

Kaoné and Karísah exchanged a glance, at which point the Dean released a lofty sigh. “I hope I don’t regret saying this,” she replied, “…but there are free spots in the ACT bracket. Four teams from six schools is 24 entrants — so there’s eight empty slots in the standard bracket, to be filled by exhibition teams and the like.”

Pierce grinned. “Perfect! Hear that, dweeb? No excuse for you and your friends to sit out now!”

“What are you dragging us into this for?!” Twy responded incredulously.

“I dunno, sis, I was with you at first, but this sounds like a great chance to show off!” Sky said. “Not to mention a chance to finally get Pierce to shut up!”

“Exactly!” Austin added as he glared at Pierce. “You won’t be braggin’ when we wipe the floor with your ass!”

“I’d like to see you fucking try,” Pierce countered with a smirk. “You’d better bring your best! That goes for you, too, Conrad and Kestrel! Don’t think you’re sitting this one out!”

“Oh, great,” Conrad muttered.

“Ah ha ha ha!” Karísah smiled as she looked over the group. “It’s funny to see that Earthians can be just as competitive as Tresédians. Still, don’t get too ahead of yourselves. You have to get past the Qualifiers before you make it into the ACT itself.”

“Oh please, that’ll be a walk in the park,” Pierce declared, and then pointed at Karísah, as if directly challenging her. “Hey, you’re one of the Elite Six, right? You’d better be in this tournament, too, so I can really show how great I am!”

“That’s awfully rude, to tell someone to join a tournament just so you can beat them,” Phoenix snarked, only to shake her head. “…Still, I can’t help but feel the same. I’d like to see just how you earned your title, Karísah.”

“A title that she didn’t want,” Mark quickly pointed out.

“Oh! Right…” Phoenix’s expression turned sheepish. “Sorry, Karísah… didn’t mean to pressure you.”

“It’s fine… don’t worry about it,” Karísah replied. “I’m used to this kind of pressure by now, ha ha.”

“That’s even worse! Girl, if you don’t want to do something, then you should stand up for yourself!”

“Uh, well, I didn’t say that…”

“We still have some time before the Qualifiers, anyways,” Kaoné stated. “Let’s discuss this more, later. We have other things to concern ourselves with in the meantime.”

“Yeah, like the celebrations tomorrow?!” Sky exclaimed. “I hear it’s supposed to be a whole-day, city-wide festival, right? Oooh, I can’t wait!”

“That’s been on your mind all day, hasn’t it?” Spike remarked with a grin.

“It’s hard not to look forward to a holiday, you have to admit,” Luke commented, and then glanced toward the side of the room where Davídrius and a handful of the other teachers were beginning to round up the students. “But to actually enjoy a whole day of partying, we’d best get a good night’s sleep.”

“Finally, time to leave the fucking military base,” Phoenix replied, collecting her silverware onto her tray.

“Yes… sorry about today,” Kaoné apologized as she stood up with the rest of the group. “But I do think you’ll enjoy tomorrow. Hopefully, it’ll make up for today.”

“Depends on whether we have to join the party or not,” Austin grumbled.

“What’s with that lame response, dweeb?” Pierce challenged. “These kinds of festivals always have all kinds of contests, after all — and if I don’t see you at any of them, then that’s as good as conceding defeat!”

“How about we get some sleep before we start challenging each other to contests we don’t even know about yet,” Luke interjected. “We can save this talk for tomorrow.”

“Oof…” Austin muttered to himself, lagging slightly behind the group as they began moving to stack their trays in the dirty dishes area. “…Tomorrow… is gonna suck.”