The Angel, now dressed only in his undergarments, doesn't seem so frightening as he paces around in his cell and complains about feeling cold. We all stare at him, he grows uncomfortable as he refuses to hold eye contact with any of us for too long. We leave him and part ways to do our assigned duties.
I find myself in the hangar bay to stare at his ship. We parked it next to my Ucello, and I've been studying the differences between our machines. This jet that the Angels are issued is some of the best pieces of technology and design I've ever seen in my entire career as a pilot.
The body is slick and gorgeous, the paint of choice is a nice shade of white to represent their holy mission. At the front end are their photon cannons, the barrel being noticeably bigger than ours for a wider shot. I see the processors are different too, Cheq says it's so that they can charge a stronger shot much faster than a standard ship. It explains why getting hit a few times almost doomed me to a burial in space.
I don't dare to open the cockpit again, but looking through the glass, I can see the console and controls on how to pilot the ship. Even their steering is strange to me, and I have no clue how to use it. Where's the throttle? It's just a black sphere.
"It's a thing of beauty, isn't it?" Titan says.
I turn to see him coming my way, a mug of coffee steams in his hand. "More like a thing of unknown destruction. By the look of this ship, Paxes has some strong enemies to deal with. What's going to happen if they don't win?"
His smirk is interrupted, his eyebrows raise, and he quickly sips his mug and clears his throat. "Well, what the Angel has been telling us, we get evicted from the galaxy...or else. But I'm not sweating over it just yet, Paxes have been holding their own."
"That is until they decide to teleport behind their frontlines and attack from the back."
"They haven't done it yet, and we'll keep going like they won't ever. Deal?"
"Sure. Do you think Cheq is going to steal some of these designs for the next upgrade?"
"He won't be able to help himself. You know how he gets around technology."
"And Knight? Has he learned anything else from the Angel?"
"Just his name for now. Aiden."
"They have names? I was beginning to think they were from another dimension."
Titan walks around me and puts a hand on the ship. It slides across the hull slowly, treating it like a feral animal but with confidence and trust that it won't bite him. "They are a scary bunch. Like nothing I've ever seen before, and kid, I've seen a lot at my age." He takes his hand off and backs away, but his gaze never leaves it. I don't judge as I seem to be hypnotized too.
"Do you think they thought about it when they obliterated Kroyoza? Like, if they stopped to think about all the lives they were going to cut short?"
"Honestly, Nev, I don't even believe they remember doing it. Seems like their agenda is an ambitious one, and Kroyoza was just a spot on the map for them. They don't believe they're ending lives early, they believe they're making progress."
Echoing footsteps cause both of us to turn to the door and see Cheq walking in with a small bag in his hand. "You're both here? I've finished replicating the program that allows the use of the CN-Gateway. I was gonna install it first and say something later."
"How was breaking the encryption?" Titan asks.
"Do you actually care about the process?"
"I do care, following along is the hard part."
Cheq hops onto my ship and opens the cockpit. He sits in my seat and begins installing a small chip he pulled out of the bag. "You know, we might have access to using the gate, but where exactly is the gate? It'd be great to see my work in action."
"What does it even look like?" I ask.
Titan puts a hand up. "Guys, as much as I like to pretend that I am, I'm not all-seeing. We'll just have to play it by ear. This is something out of the blue for all of us, so we'll learn together. I'm gonna go check on Knight and see if I can help. Come on, Nev, let Cheq work in peace."
He leads the way to the lockup as I follow. The door stays shut and the security panel waits for credentials. This one only works if you know Titan well enough.
"Please present a one-liner," the door asks.
His eyebrows lift up and down as his sheepish smile stretches. "You shot for the stars, and now I'll make them your new grave." It seems to have enough cheese behind it, the door opens with an annoyed groan coming from the panel. Inside, Knight stands in front of Aiden's cell firing off questions but leaving him untouched.
He holds a calm and confident stance as he talks. "Do you really think the Angel Vanguard is going to let you back in with open arms after leaving your team to bite the dust? What happens if they figure out you were interrogated? All trust for you will be thrown out."
Aiden sits on the cot, still refusing to look up from the ground. "You're right, my time with the Angels is finished. That doesn't mean I'm going to spill their secrets. I still believe in the mission, I'm not just some dirty merc in it for the money."
Titan pats Knight on the shoulder. "Let me try."
"I've only just begun."
"It's all right, I just want to give it a shot."
"All yours."
Knight steps to the side and sees me standing by the door. "Did Cheq breach the encryption?"
"It's all out in the open now. He's installing the chips in our Ucellos as we speak."
"Did you know that the plural for Ucello is Ucelli? I'll be right back, I want to run a plan with Cheq on how to run the program."
He leaves the cell and I stay standing there watching Titan talk to this former soldier.
He approaches the bars and rests a hand on one of them. "Did you ever think about what the future looks like after leaving the Vanguard?"
Aiden looks up. "What?"
"I mean, in your particular set of circumstances, there isn't anything left in the form of options. You said it yourself, the Angels aren't going to let you back in if they find out you've been interrogated. They seem like the type to find something like that out quickly too."
He hangs his head down again. "It wouldn't surprise me if they find out immediately. When you terminated my comrade's ships, a report is instantly sent to my superiors to let them know of their deaths. They'll notice that my ship never sent the automatic report. They know that my ship is fine, but they don't know if I'm still alive."
"So...they might think someone is dissecting your ship while they killed the pilot?"
"It's a possibility."
Titan's smirk becomes a toothy grin. I lean in as my interest grows more intense. He resets his face to a stereotypical look of worry. "You know, without your uniform, you look like any normal, handsome guy in this galaxy. Maybe we can set you up with a few credits, a place to start looking for a job, and you can live a new life here."
Aiden looks up again, his eyes wide and searching, scanning Titan's face. "What? Live a new life here?"
Titan rolls his eyes. "Well, you could if this galaxy still existed in the future. The Angels are kinda throwing a wrench into that idea. This galaxy dies, and we along with it, and now that includes you. Didn't see that coming when you took flight this morning, did you?"
He shakes his head. "I know what you're getting at. I tell you what I can to help you stop the Angel Vanguard, and you let me start a new life."
"Uh-huh."
"Even if I tell you, there is no guarantee that you'll win. I start a new life just for it to end at the hands of my former allies."
"You'd be too dead to ponder the irony. Nev," he says, "go get the peace offering from my safe."
I nod and leave for Titan's room. I get there and unlock the safe underneath his bed to pull out a flat card with a holographic screen. I take it back and hand it to him.
"This," he says while flashing the screen in Aiden's direction, "is what I promise to give to help with your new life. I don't know what the rates are in your galaxy, but these numbers here will feed you for a year if you're a cheap spender. It'll be enough until you find a job, and we'll even show you where to sleep until you can afford a place to stay."
Aiden stands up and looks at the credits displayed on the card. He crosses his arms and holds his chin up. "You're truly willing to give away such a large number of credits in the hopes that what I say will help you fight an enemy too great for your military?"
Titan doesn't shake, doesn't avert his eyes, doesn't fidget in his posture. He smiles, and my skin becomes riddled with goosebumps. "Yeah. I like living here, and I think you will too."
I can see Aiden's resolve crumble. His once stern and powerful gaze fades and softens, the surface shines with tears as his back hunches and his arms unfold. "I...I don't know what to say."
"Say what matters. Where can we get our hands on this gate? What's the best way to use it against the Angels?"
"Only squad leaders are allowed to control the locations of the CN-Gateways. There's already a squad here in this galaxy blending in with the civilians on Paxes. They're supposed to be collecting data."
"That's worrisome. How do we find the squad leader?"
"My squad is supposed to link up with them at a certain date, in a certain location, at the right time. They don't know who the squad leader is, so you can take my leader's place and pretend to be him. Show up with all of your boys if you want, squads are different sizes."
"Thank you. I'll bring you a pen and paper so you can write down the specifics. Nev," he says to me, "do me a favor and let this man wear your old clothes, he looks like your size. We'll send him down to Paxes' homeless shelter tonight."
"Yes, on it."
###
In the hangar bay, we all wait for Titan to enter. I gave the duffle bag I packed for Aiden to Titan to send with him when he teleports him to the homeless shelter--- just some old T-shirts and jeans along with some travel shampoos and deodorants I've stolen from countless motel stays.
Titan enters with a piece of paper held high in his hand. "We're heading to the big city, boys!"
Knight shrugs. "You got him to talk?"
"Yeah. Turns out all he needed was a friend. We got some details to start a plan with, and this is a big one."
"What's on the paper?"
Titan reaches us and holds it out for us to see. "Location: Planet Paxes, the city of Xesowah, at the Slick Skin gentleman's club. Time: 21:00 on Saturday, November 12th, 3314."
"Isn't that tonight?" I ask.
"That's right. I suggest we all tidy up a bit, don't want to get rejected at the door for the dress code. Collared shirts, everyone! Even you, Knight."
He pulls on his skin-tight top. "I'm wearing my combat gear underneath, I won't be told otherwise."
"Deal."