The fall

[srwu_mods]

[Following is transmitted around Unity Group bases.]


"You... I'm sorry? Are you kidding? Was that a joke?"


"..."


"Rejected. Under authority of Unity Group commander in chief, all your requests are rejected. You won't be allowed to go as you please. Ilinka Venczel definitely won't be allowed to go as she pleases. You don't get access to your units until we figure out what to do with them and..."

"And you're not getting another upgrade! The last one was very expensive, was that not enough for you? Are you insane?"


"My uncle... fuck!"
Loni jumps up from his seat - but before he could lunge at Antov, he's held in place by several security guards. Still, holding him is not easy.

"My uncle promised me! He made all those promises, and you broke them! You can kiss your funding's sweet ass good-bye!"


"I am not your uncle. I didn't promise you anything, and... and so be it. We tolerated your behaviour for long enough but it only became worse in time. If Unity Group needs to stay afloat without your uncle's donations then so be it. Frankly, no money is worth it."

After Gavin leaves, or rather is dragged away, the camera continues rolling - with Antov wiping the sweat off his brow. Then suddenly, he turns in its direction with a look of shock!


"Wait, is this being recorded?!"


"Of course it is."

Click, end of video.

[1]

"Yes? I'm sure you must have a lot of questions for me."

Following the recording, you can talk to the commander in chief in his office. He looks a bit uneasy and twitchy as usual. But also relieved, like if a great weight was lifted from his shoulders.

[2]
How about talking to Loni or Desta? Even though not in cells, they are under constant watch to make sure no one tries anything funny. Not them, nor people who are there to visit them.


"Fuck... so this is how we'd end up, imprisoned by our so-called 'allies'. If I knew... shit!"


"Just wait until we get out of here, Loni."

[3]
Lastly...


"..."

Ilinka is sitting in a cell. She doesn't pay attention to anyone who comes and goes, but if you call out to her - perhaps she'll respond?

Comments

2

[empress_without_a_throne]

[Look who it is, Loni!]

You know, answer me this: have you ever thought to wonder what the Unity Group would be like if everyone here acted like you three?

[srwu_mods]

"Get lost."

You expected the duo to humor you, Mizuki?

[empress_without_a_throne]

I'll leave when I'm good and ready. Until then you're free to listen and respond however you see fit.

But like I was saying... all this time you've been rather spoiled, you know that? Imagine if your way of doing things was the norm for military and peacekeeping groups.

1

[actuallyselfish]

"Lots." Dido says, looking weary. "Where to start?"

She sits down and sighs. "Did Constans spill anything in the interrogation room? And...what Desta said about playing Frankenstein with Walt's demon eyeballs: was that true?"

She meets Antov's eyes. "Please tell me that's not true."

[srwu_mods]

"Sorry, but it's true."

Antov shifts around uneasily.

"It wasn't done by Unity Group but by an ESUN research division, but that doesn't change the fact that it's true."

"I didn't know until... pretty much until you knew too."

[actuallyselfish]

"Yeah..." Dido says staring down at her lap. "So...what are we going to do to shut down these experiments? Or at least put a cork in 'em?"

1

[gravitons]

Only one, Commander.

The amount of funding that comes from Gavin's relative...how substantial is it?

[srwu_mods]

"Unity Group doesn't have a single source of income, but that one is one of the largest."

"The single largest actually."

[gravitons]

It certainly sounds like it might be a problem if he decides to withdraw, then.

[Time to get to thinking.]

1

[brought_it_back]

...

One. It's probably a needless worry, but...

[A deep breath, before Eva says her question in one go.]

Does the Unity Group hold, or has it previously held, samples of my genetic material? For the purposes of this question, if it aided another group in acquiring such a thing, that should be counted as well.

Um...please answer me sincerely.

[srwu_mods]

"That is a strange question. No, I don't think we do."

2)

[not_a_prize]

Really not doing any favors for yourselves you know.

[Guess who drew up guard duty. Its the Alien Space Princess!]

I'm just surprised there isn't a line of people coming here to laugh at you goons.

[srwu_mods]

"Line? Is that how things are done here? Trample on me, and then turn me into a fucking laughing stock?!"

1

[abugslife]

Let us start with the obvious. I have no reason to believe these two matters Gavin talked about were lies; if I am mistaken, correct me immediately.

Why were these matters hidden from us?

[srwu_mods]

"No, both of these matters are fact. He didn't lie."

"I didn't tell anyone in Unity Group about the experiment with Walt Schmertz, because I didn't know about it. It wasn't something Unity Group was involved in."

2

[sakimori]

[Between what she talked about with Loni before and what just happened, Tsubasa is a mixed bag of emotions that are not very nice. That recording didn't make it any better.]

You.

You said it would be enough, and now this...?

[The fact that people like these were getting favors with those who made the decisions doesn't sit well with her at all, but she's restraining herself.]

[srwu_mods]

"Of course it wasn't enough. Would I be here like this otherwise? This was made on purpose, wasn't it? BrightSaber is not as strong as it could have been!"

3

[keep_your_dignity]

[There's a semispherical, diminute fairy floating in front of Illinka's cell, at about eye height.

The glowing green eyes of the mistletoe are absolutely fixed on the cell's occupant, with such an unblinking, intense stare that it's actually kind of unnerving - despite Kagura, between her diminute size, chibi proportions, and visibly scarred and frail body, being more or less the least intimidating thing on Earth. Mostly because it feels like the fairy is not just looking at the human in absolute contempt, but also sizing her up not unlike a predator would.

Both of which are not too far away from what she is doing, really. Not a lot of people know how Mistletoes work, and even less know that the human-made PRAYER-derived fairies have an uncanny empathic ability, being able to feel and understand the emotion and turmoil of other creatures - when Kagura sizes someone up, she's looking at a lot more than just her external appearance.

What she is thinking, though, is hard to guess, beyond it probably not being very good.]

[srwu_mods]

...

[Ilinka doesn't even acknowledge Kagura's presence. But from the way she sits and acts in general (or rather the general lack of acting), one thing is pretty obvious.

She's used to conditions such as these.]

3

[brought_it_back]

...

[She'll take a seat just outside Ilinka's cell, avoiding saying anything.]

[srwu_mods]

...

[The easiest kind of response to silence is also silence.]

2

[cloningblues]

You really think you're getting out of this so easily?

[srwu_mods]

"Of course we're getting out of here. What're you gonna do? Keep us in prison for the rest of our lives? Execute us? For daring to stand up against the great and mighty Unity Group?"

2

[tiger_ken]

[Ken looks towards the two, not uttering a word as he steps in.]

[srwu_mods]

"Hey, it's my 'rival'."