Karabell leaned back in his chair, stretching out his legs. A line appeared between the Captain's eyebrows as he glared at the tall stack of papers on his desk. Base Tau's records really were all over the place. His eyes fell on his watch. Dante had fine-tuned the Ringleader's Stone, allowing the device to communicate with regular ones. Was it too late to call in reinforcements? Karabell let out a deep sigh. An entire month had passed since their first conversation with Captain Rose Kron. They'd kept in touch since then, but he still couldn't do anything to help her and her team directly. And that probably wasn't going to change for a long while.
"Come in!" the Captain exclaimed as he heard someone knock at the door.
Alice and Lyra entered the small chamber, carrying four large files. The Captain grimaced. He had asked Alice to search Fen's old office, but he definitely hadn't expected her to find so many documents. The two girls placed the folders carefully onto the desk. He clearly needed reinforcements.
"I see you've decided to take a break, Lyra. Where's Een?" Karabell asked with a grin.
"Still writing. I keep telling him to take it easy, but he won't listen. I really worry about him sometimes, you know?" Lyra huffed. "I swear he is just as headstrong as you, Captain."
Alice and Karabell chuckled simultaneously. Those two were so stubborn. Karabell had tasked the both of them with writing down not only Lyra's memories of her old life, but also the things they'd learnt from the Ringleader. What the world had looked like before. The Agency of Aberration Disposal. The events that had led to humanity nearly going extinct. The Lower District. The attack on Base Yuna. Commander Frederick Sel and Base Miu's destruction. Their encounter with the Ringleader. Befriending the Aberrations. Gullinkambi. Captain Rose. America, Japan. The world. They needed to write everything down. The Captain realized that it was no easy job, but there was no one more suited for it than Een and Lyra. Luckily, working together had also helped them realize their feelings for each other. Well, that had also been Karabell and Alice's intention. Fortunately, things had gone according to plan.
"It's fine, it's fine. Though it does feel like I haven't seen him in a long time," Karabell added with an embarrassed smile.
"It's your fault for holing yourself up in this study for the last two days, Captain." He heard a hint of worry in Lyra's voice.
"I guess I might as well pay him a visit..." The Captain got up sluggishly, realizing how stiff his body was. "Anyway, I'm almost done here. I just have to look over the stuff you brought over from Fen's office."
Although she didn't say anything, Alice was obviously relieved. The past month had been especially hard for Kar. He'd had no choice but to spend most of his time working. A team of Aberrations led by Kirru had surveyed the area surrounding Base Miu and confirmed that it had been completely destroyed. Dante had informed the three farms based in the Upper District of the situation, requesting them to reinforce their defenses... and to get ready to run if anything happened. Gull's Aberrations had made another trip to the Lower District, recovering the weapons and burying their comreades' bodies. Thus, the Reserve had been turned into a huge cemetery. And the one who'd kept track of it all had been none other than Kar.
"Quit spacing out, Alice!" Lyra laughed, giving her a light tap on her shoulder. "Didn't you say you needed to feed Sasha? She'll get lonely, you know? Besides, I have to go pick up my new bow."
"It sure took them a while..." Karabell remarked, as he placed his hand on the doorknob.
"Well, it couldn't be helped. It's not a wooden bow this time," she replied, gesturing towards the Captain's spear. "It's pretty hard to make a weapon like that out of such a flexible material."
*
A small group of soldiers saluted the Captain as he walked down the hall. A corner of Karabell's mouth lifted, and he returned the salute. He knew those guys. They were a few of the trainees who'd fought alongside him. The images of them lying on the infirmary beds, wounded, were still fresh in his memory. Thanks to the results they'd achieved during that battle, however, they'd become full-fledged soldiers a little earlier than intended. Despite the fact that he was only seventeen, the shield bearer who'd saved Lyra had been directly promoted to the rank of captain, beating Karabell's record. Even if her skills were just as formidable, his partner, the longsword wielding girl, had chosen to become his subordinate instead. Karabell shrugged as he walked past the soldiers. Well, those two had always been a team, after all.
The Captain found Een chatting with Shono. The two were so absorbed in their conversation that they didn't notice Karabell come in. Enormous stacks of papers covered Een's desk. Shono propped his chin on his palm and yawned. He looked like hadn't gotten any sleep the night before.
"What's with the long face?" Karabell asked jokingly, taking a seat next to them.
"Good afternoon, Captain. Don't mind me, I'm just a little tired."
"He stayed up all night, training by himself," Een explained with a smirk. "Honestly, you need to take better care of yourself, Shono. You remind me of a certain stubborn man," he added, glancing at the Captain.
Karabell burst into laughter, and the other two joined in. They were all working too hard for their own good. They were all aware of that, but they were too pigheaded to listen to reason. Since one of the teachers had lost his life in the previous battle, Shono had taken it upon himself to train the children until they went back to the Lower District.
"Between looking after the apprentices and making sure I don't neglect my own training, I guess I can't really take breaks." Shono shrugged. "At least I'm getting better at wielding my mace with my left hand. Dante told me I should just use a lighter weapon, but it wouldn't be the same."
Karabell nodded. He understood Shono's determination. They hadn't stumbled across many Aberrations during the past month, but the possibility of a large-scale attack wasn't out of the question. They couldn't afford to get complacent, and the more skilled soldiers they had, the better.
Out of a sudden, the door flung open, and Kei barged into the room. She stopped for a moment to catch her breath. "East moved!" the girl said excitedly, jumping up and down with joy. "Oh, where's Lyra?"
The Captain looked at her, perplexed. It took him a moment to realize what she meant. He scratched the back of his head and said, "The Superior you defeated? The one we brought back from the Reserve?"
"Exactly. Kirru gave me a call earlier. East's still alive!"
"We just can't get a break, can we? Well, it's not that bad. I wanted to have a chat with Gull anyway. So I'll come with you." Karabell gave Shono and Een an embarrassed smile, excusing himself. Had teaching the Superiors how to use the watches been a wise decision? He doubted it, but at least they didn't have to worry about the possibility of anyone else going insane...
Kei flew up the stairs, running so fast that Karabell could barely keep up. It'd been a while since he'd last seen her that thrilled. Hadn't she killed that Superior? Didn't she hate East? He felt like it wasn't that simple.
"So, where's everyone else?" the Captain inquired. The abandoned factory was almost empty, except for Gull and a few other Aberrations.
"Greetings, Karabell. They have just left. Kirru wants to try and gather more allies, and it took most of the Aberrations with him. The rest of us decided to stay behind to protect Base Tau in case anything bad happened," Gull explained straight away, like it'd just read Karabell's thoughts. "I apologize for not consulting you first, but you know how that guy is..." A loud noise interrupted the creature. Karabell's shoulders tensed, and his hand instinctively reached for his spear. It was, without a doubt, a Gargling's screech. Were they getting attacked? "Don't worry," Gull hurried to say. "Arago's taking care of the... children, I guess you could call them, in a separate building."
The Captain slouched as he let out yet another sigh. Right. He'd come there to ask Gull about the new Aberrations. Arago and the other creatures had managed to create a bunch of them, but it was a lengthy process. It took them quite a while to develop into full-grown Aberrations, but at least it didn't seem to be painful.
"So everything's under control, huh?" he heard himself say as his eyes locked onto the chunk of meat laying on the floor. "That thing over there is East, right?"
"That is a correct assumption. It's slowly but surely regenerating. It even moved slightly earlier, all by itself. There's no doubt that East'll eventually come back. But the same goes for the Superior that killed Fen. And the one that attacked Base Yuna."
"Bario Sel. Leave it to Dante to give it such an odd name..." Karabell muttered. He shook his head dismissively. "It seems like everyone's doing fine, but there're still so many things we need to take care of. I've been so immersed in reading the records that I've almost forgotten that."
"There you go again, saying stuff like that," Kei whined as she used a stick to poke East. "Don't you ever get tired? Alice told me about it. You've worked restlessly for all this time. Didn't you promise her that you'd take it easy a month ago?" The girl turned around, staring daggers at him.
"What do you mean? I've been slacking off for a while now." Karabell paused. "You know what? Now that I think about it, I've talked with almost everyone today. Was this Alice and Lyra's way of convincing me to take a break? Which reminds me," he added, slowly walking towards the exit. "Have you seen Annie? Well, she's probably sleeping somewhere, but I might as well say hi."
Kei looked at the Captain's carefree smile. He was a lost cause. Was he seriously unable to rest for even a second? However, she realized that she wasn't in much of a position to say anything. She wanted to resume her training as soon as possible, too.
If they wanted to find Annie, going to the infirmary was their best bet. She was a slacker, but she was also one of their best medics. Karabell cast his mind back to the night they'd first met Annie. She'd helped Shono without a second thought. After the Reserve Battle, she'd officially become a member of Squad Ress. Out of her own volition. And, even if she didn't exactly look it, she was a reliable person. Although he still hadn't gotten used to that weird eye patch covering her right eye.
*
"You're lucky, Captain. I just got back from the dungeon." Annie pushed herself up to a sitting position. "Hey, Kei. It's rare for you two to come here."
"Sorry for disturbing you. We just wanted to see how you were doing. Checking on Gun again?"
"Yeah. He's making progress. Still can't string together a sentence, except for when he tells me to leave him alone, though. But he doesn't scream so much anymore. He'll get there eventually." Annie looked at the ceiling, as if trying to remember something. "Oh, Ono called earlier. He said he'd be back tomorrow with the supplies."
"That's reassuring. I was beginning to worry that something might've happened to him. Which reminds me, I almost forgot why I came here in the first place. We may need to make a trip back to the Lower District soon. Would that be alright with you?"
"We can leave whenever you want, Captain. Just say the word," Annie replied quickly, obviously eager to go back to sleep.
As they exited the infirmary, Karabell realized that he felt oddly relieved. Maybe he'd just wanted to make sure that everyone was doing well. The past month had been rough. His teammates kept telling him to take it easy, but they were all working just as hard. Shono, Kei and Alice spent whatever free time they had honing their combat skills. Even Een had started to take his training seriously. The battle had changed them, but they probably weren't aware of that yet. The Captain cracked his knuckles as he headed back to his office.
Karabell spent the next four and a half hours reading. Fen's handwriting was... atrocious. And to top it all off, most of the papers were absolutely useless. The Captain dropped the last folder onto the floor, groaning. He hadn't learnt anything new. The same boring information he'd examined a hundred times already. He needed to get some fresh air.
He didn't run into any other soldiers on his way out. Well, it was almost dinner time, so they'd probably gone to the canteen.
"Was I always this tired? And to think that we used to be so afraid of the night..." he muttered as he stared at the stars. His own thoughts were starting to suffocate him. Karabell took a deep breath, letting it steady his nerves. He took a few steps towards the abandoned factory, his eyes still fixed on the sky. The Captain sat down onto one of the bigger boulders and tried to clear his mind. He felt as if he'd just finished running a marathon. And, to make matters worse, he was getting dizzy.
"You're something else..." a familiar voice came from behind him.
"Hey there, Alice. Done with dinner already?" Karabell said jokingly, but he didn't get up. Were his knees shaking? They definitely were, but he couldn't help it.
Alice lay down on a patch of grass next to the rock. She closed her eyes and took in the night air. Karabell's smile broadened as he looked at her.
"See? Isn't it better this way? You always worry too much about everyone. It'll work out. Just give it some time," she said as she noticed Kar's body relax slightly.
"Rose, Zachary, Leticia... I'm sure they will be alright, but..." he mentioned absently, slowly lying down next to Alice. "I'm thinking of rebuilding our home. You know, the AAD's base. It'll be a hassle to get the building materials all the way to the Lower District, but I think we'll manage."
Alice suddenly propped herself up on her elbows. Her eyes sparkled as she gazed at Kar's face. The girl inched closer to him, staring intently into his eyes.
"What?" the Captain asked, a little embarrassed.
"It's the first time you've ever said something like that. Normally, you would've said that we needed to rebuild our old base," Alice claimed, emphasizing each word. "Like there wasn't any other way. But this time, you only said you wanted us to do that!" she exclaimed with a laugh.
"Is that something so exhilarating?"
"Of course it is! Everyone cares about you, Kar. And everything we've done so far would be meaningless if one of us died, right? Too much work can kill you too, you know?" Alice added in a grave tone.
"It's alright. I won't go down so easily. I'm your Captain, have some faith in me. Plus, you'll always be there to scold me if I overdo it. Seriously though, I'll be careful." Karabell looked into Alice's eyes. "We'll fix this twisted world. Together. Isn't that what we promised?"
Alice snuggled closer to him. They wouldn't have gotten so far without Kar. They probably wouldn't have met Kei, Lyra and everyone else. He'd given them so much... He'd been brought to that world through sheer coincidence. But Kar had, without a doubt, saved them.
"It's getting chilly. We should really go back," the Captain remarked. "I promised Kei I'd help her train for a while... Also, I have a feeling that Een's slacking off again."
"I can't believe I'm saying this, but you should try following his example for once."
Karabell helped Alice to her feet, laughing lightly. It looked like, if he didn't learn to relax more, he would never hear the end of it. Well, not that it bothered him. Maybe Alice was right. No, she was definitely right. Everything was going to be fine. Karabell drew in a long breath as they approached Base Tau's entrance. Still, it was certainly going to take him a long time to get rid of that constant feeling of uneasiness...