"Okay." Roko said as he finished writing, "I think I have a good idea of your mom's capabilities now."
"Is that right?" Naga frowned, "Then...is it about time you dismiss the rebellion?"
"I never promised that I would end the rebellion if you helped me. I don't have the power to do that."
"Then what have I-"
"I can, however, promise that we will not try to kill Sirius. We only seek to overthrow him so once he's off the throne, we can lock him away or exile him. If all you want is your dad to be alive, I can do this much."
"'Try' is not very promising." Naga mumbled.
"I only say 'try' in the case that your father is somehow more powerful than we thought and we end up having to kill him to avoid further casualties on our end. I don't see that happening but just in case, I'd like to hear about Sirius next time we speak."
"Next time huh?" Naga sighed, "How long will this continue?"
Roko looked at the disheartened child, considering how to approach the thoughts in his mind.
"On that note, where is your mom?"
"I don't know." Naga crossed his arms, "Probably talking to some officials or something."
"No, I mean why hasn't your mom noticed your disappearance? It's been a few days, surely she would have noticed by now."
Naga's face twisted a bit more in emotional pain as he responded, "I...rarely ever see my mom. I rarely see my dad too. They're just...usually busy. I don't know when she'll look for me next and notice my absence so I really want to get this agreement done as quickly as possible before she notices."
"One or two days would be understandable. It's close to a week now and there's been no hint that she may be looking for you. Is that normal?"
"...Is that not?"
"...Let's change the subject." Roko sighed, "How are your lessons with Azimuth?"
"She's a bit nagging but she's taught me a lot." Naga looked down, "I...didn't know my did all those terrible things. Sending goons to attack people. Breaking apart families. Some...died..."
"That's the simple stuff." Roko nodded, "The market manipulation stuff might go over your head at this age but suffice it to say his crimes there are even more numerous."
"I heard about the crazy plans he came up with to attack the rebellion along with the entire city. It's...surreal stuff."
"Do you still want to save your dad?"
"I mean...he's my dad."
"Of course." Roko nodded, "I'm not telling you to let us kill him. I'm asking if you're still comfortable with your dad as leader of this country. Knowing all he's done and all he is still doing. And all he is willing to do."
"I...I don't know..." Naga's hands clenched tightly onto the sofa, "What CAN I do?"
"That's up to you to decide." Roko replied, "You arrived here because you wanted to do something right? Think about what you want to do and see if it's possible."
Having given his advice, Roko gathered his notes and left the young man to stew in his own thoughts.
"Way to put the pressure on a kid." Azimuth scoffed.
"Well, there's a lot of brainwashing to undo." Roko replied.
"You really putting a lot of stock in this kid."
"We still don't know how the investment's going to go so I wouldn't say we're that invested but I'm willing to see how this will go."
"You're putting more stocks into this kid than your actual kid."
"Aranea is not my kid." Roko sighed as he watched Aranea reading a book on a crate as the rest of the soldiers at the underground base continued their drill.
"Still, you bought her because you wanted to study her right? Haven't done much of that have you?"
"Well you've seen how jittery Aranea is. She'd be quite stressed under an interrogation."
"You also kept her as a slave to use the magic thingy so she can fight right? And she hasn't been doing much of that either."
"Believe it or not, I'm not a fan of sending kids in to fight if I can avoid it."
"You've been keeping her around for a while and haven't done any of the things you said she'd do. Are you sure you're not coddling her?"
"I don't make people do things they don't want to do."
"And now she's not doing anything."
"And that's how she likes it."
"Look, I'm all for letting kids explore themselves and all that but it's clear Aranea isn't making any progress."
"I mean she has friends."
"She has Medeia who forces her to be friends with her. And honestly, you should be thanking Argo for all the work his daughter has been doing to raise your kid."
"...What are you, her grandma?"
"I ain't that old, man. I will stab you in the nuts."
"Aranea!"
Medeia shouted before she even arrived, flinging the door open with Pluteum and Naga in tow, "It's time for round 13 of Naga's trial!"
Aranea looked a bit exasperated but quietly closed her book and hopped off the crate.
"How many rounds are there going to be?" Naga scowled.
"As many as it takes until I win!" Medeia said smugly.
"Then how am I supposed to win?!"
"Dunno. Figure it out, rich boy."
"What, do you want me to just pay you?" Naga frowned.
"How much you offering?" Medeia said with only a hint of interest.
"I dunno. Do you really need money that badly?"
"More money means less reason for my dad to go into battle." Medeia nodded, "Right, Pluteum?"
"Well yeah, that's what my dad says." Pluteum shrugged, "He's been working at the police station so we'll have money and don't need to be rebels."
"Wait, so why are you still here?" Naga said as he turned to Pluteum, "Are cops allowed in here?"
"Roko said Gallus is free to visit whenever he wants." Medeia nodded, "And besides, Pluteum's mom is still a rebel...kinda."
"Well what does she do?"
"General upkeep." Pluteum shrugged, "Mostly laundry."
"We're really gonna count that?" Naga smirked.
"Hey, Corissa works the same job you know." Pluteum frowned, "She just mostly does cooking."
"Yeah but at least Corissa is good at her job."
"Pluteum's mom is good at her job too." Medeia frowned.
"Yeah but Corissa is way better."
"You know Corissa is Aranea's mom and not yours right?" Pluteum scoffed.
"Yeah but Corissa is a woman who may have become like a mother to me."
…
"What?"
"What's with the weird looks for?" Naga frowned.
"Don't you already have a mom?" Azimuth called.
"Oh, Roko!" Medeia said as she finally noticed them, "There was a police officer that wanted to meet with you!"
"A police officer?" Roko frowned, "Which one?"
"Dunno."
"Where are they?"
"Umm...my dad said he's waiting outside the spare meeting room."
"So the same one near the entrance of the sewer?" Roko sighed, "Alright, I'll head there."
"Want me to come with you?" Azimuth asked.
"If you really want to." Roko shrugged, "I don't know how important this meeting will be."
"So you don't know what this will be about huh?" Azimuth mused, "Alright, I'll come along."
"Alright." Roko shrugged.
As they prepared to leave, the kids returned to their discussion.
"So what are we doing today?" Pluteum asked.
"Today...it's a ball contest!" Medeia said, pulling a ball out of a crate, "I've seen this sport where these two people throw the ball back and forth over a net!"
"Volleyball?" Naga asked.
"That's the one!"
"But it's raining outside right now." Pluteum said, "We can't play outside."
"We'll just play it inside."
"Inside...the sewer?" Naga and Azimuth said as she turned to look at them.
"Yeah."
"What if the ball falls into the water?" Naga frowned.
"Then whoever dropped it automatically loses!" Medeia proclaimed proudly.
"What if YOU fall into the water?" Azimuth said.
"T-That won't happen, ma'am!" Medeia saluted Azimuth.
"Uh huh." Azimuth sighed, "Roko, you go on ahead. I'll watch over the kids."
"Got it."
It was indeed raining today. The dripping of water could be heard from every drain on the surface. A very natural rain this time and the water level hadn't risen a single inch thankfully. Still, it only made it odd that one of the police officers would take the time to come here in the middle of the rain. And indeed, standing outside of the meeting room where Roko first met Azimuth was someone in a raincoat. As he approached, the figure turned to meet him.
"Hello Merodach." Roko greeted, "What's the occasion for the visit?"
"You helped us once and then we helped you." Merodach replied, "So now we feel like we need to help you again this time."
"Trying to put us in your debt?" Roko crossed his arms.
"No. Just here with a warning."
"A warning?"
"The Starry Knight are going to invade your base. This one. They're looking for Sirius' son. You...do have him right?"
"Indeed we do." Roko frowned, "But how'd you know? How'd you even come across this information?"
"I'm not allowed to reveal my source." Merodach replied seriously, "But they made it very clear that this is reliable and it's imminent. I suggest you prepare for the invasion the moment you get back. It's probably going to happen within the hour."
"...This is very valuable intel, Merodach." Roko nodded, "I'll return right away. Is there anything you want in return for this information?"
"No. I have to leave before I get pulled in." Merodach shook his head, "I can only hope you'll be able to weather this storm. We can talk about prices then."
"I'll be waiting." Roko nodded.
Merodach nodded back and quickly left, disappearing around the corner very quickly.
Roko had time to consider the veracity of the situation but with no real way to prove the claim either way in such short time, Roko quickly decided to move forward as if the claim was true and there was going to be a raid very soon. So when he arrived back at the cistern where the kids were playing volleyball with Azimuth watching, Roko's mind was already constructing the frameworks of a plan.
"Hey Roko." Azimuth greeted as Roko returned, "Any big news?"
"The Starry Knights are raiding us very soon to recover Naga." Roko said bluntly, "Prepare to defend the base."
"Wait, are you SERIOUS?!" Azimuth cried, "When?!"
"Within the hour."
"It's already 12:40!" Azimuth cried, "Could you not have arrived sooner?!"
"I was busy planning."
"Oh so you got a plan?"
"Not much besides turtle up. Gather up all able bodies and prepare a line of defense in front of the two paths leading to this base."
"We don't have a lot of soldiers." Azimuth sweated.
"Yeah but we have a Momo."
"That'll count for something." Azimuth nodded and ran back inside the base to spread the word.
"The Starry Knights are coming?" Naga frowned, walking away from his match to consult Roko.
"To retrieve you, yes." Roko nodded.
"That's..." Naga bit his thumb, unsure of how to take this information.
"Are your parents coming to pick you up?" Medeia asked.
"Yeah but they're going a bit overboard with it." Roko sighed.
"So...is Naga leaving?"
"You tell me, Naga. You want to go back?"
"I..." Naga bit even harder on his thumb, close to drawing blood from his anxious thinking, "I...I decided when I came here that I wouldn't go back until this rebellion's gone."
"So do you want us to defend you?"
"...I...don't want to endanger all of you..."
"Got it. You can stay with Corissa inside the base. There's no time to evacuate so we'll have to make a stand here. Varis will be there to protect you so you should be pretty safe."
"So...should we go back inside?" Medeia asked anxiously.
"Please do." Roko nodded.
"Okay...then this trial will be put on hold for now!"
"Is this really the time?" Naga sighed.
"A few questions first, Naga." Roko cut in, "Who do you think is behind the order for this attack? Your mother? Your father? Or both?"
"I..." Naga looked down, "My dad...doesn't really care about me...so it's probably my mom."
"Do you think any Planetary Stars will be in this raid as well?"
"If it IS my mom then...probably not. She may be a Planetary Star herself and married to Sirius but she doesn't have the authority to mobilize her fellow stars."
"Got it. I'll take it into consideration." Roko nodded.
"Roko!"
The rebels around the cistern had mobilized relatively quickly. While there were still a few latecomers still just arriving in the main chamber, the rebellion's key players were all here. Momo, Varis, Vespa and Hirudo stood in front of the group, armed and ready to fight.
"Reporting in." Momo said seriously, "What are our orders?"
"Okay." Roko took a deep breath, "There's an important part to this mission that I need you all to understand. But first, the plan. There are two pathways into this base. In essence, I will call them the Muldingirmus side for the pathway that leads in towards Muldingirmus and the Mulapin side where the path opens up for access on the Mulapin side. I expect attacks on both sides and so our forces will be divided in three. One for each pathway and one final group to protect everyone who can't fight nor evacuate. Everyone pick a side you want to join right now and we'll make some quick adjustments afterwards. But here is the important part you all need to understand. This is not the first time the Starry Knights would've invaded this base. It's a long story but we had a few try to infiltrate this base when Corissa and I was using it as a place to rest while it was flooded. You can read the report on that later. What's important to know is that they entered as we did, falling down the cistern opening."
Roko pointed up at the open sky beyond the hold in the ceiling meant to collect rain, "I fully expect them to use this method to infiltrate us as well. That means enemies WILL be dropping into our base behind our defensive lines. This is the important part that I need each of you to understand: DO NOT break from the defensive lines to pursue these invaders. The non-combatants will be holed up in the kitchen with the final group holding the line inside the mess hall. They will be the ones who will defend your family and friends. The ones who will need your support now will be your fellow frontline defenders. If you break from the formation to chase down these invaders, the frontline will crumple and we will get overwhelmed. I understand it might be hard, especially if you start hearing the cries of your friends and family. Even then, DO NOT break formation. Any weakness in our lines could easily lead to everyone's death. Thankfully, we don't have to do this all alone.
On the way back, I have called the rebels in M83 and informed them of the raid. I do not know if this attack will include an attack on M83 but just in case, I had them arm themselves and wait for any potential assault. If no attack is made on them, they WILL arrive to assist us in our defense. In 20 minutes. So at the very least, I need you all to maintain formation for 20 minutes. After which, assuming the M83 reinforcements arrives, we will have pincered the Mulapin attack force and everything should get easier from there. Any questions?"
"A-Are you sure they're going to approach from the pathways?" One nervous rebel asked, "What if they all plunge down from the ceiling?"
"I'm confident they will approach from at least one pathway. For one, there isn't enough room for all of them to plunge down from above. If we focus on subduing those who fall into the water it would be very easy and very messy. The plunge would only be effective with a frontline to distract us. What's more, they need the footing and opportunity to negotiate for an easy out."
"So where do each of us go?" Momo smiled.
"Between the Mulapin and Muldingirmus side, I'd place the Mulapin side as more important." Roko crossed his arms, "Sure, we will eventually receive reinforcement on that side but that makes it more important that we do not lose that side until then. So Momo, I'll have you defend the Mulapin side. I've already decided that Varis will be at the kitchen in our final lines. Having two of our strongest assets at our most important defenses would be ideal."
"Strongest huh?" Malus scowled, "And what about me?"
"You're taking orders from me now, Malus?"
"Hey I don't know if you noticed but this is my home too you know. So if you got a plan, I'll at least play along for now."
"Uh huh. Then I'll have Momo watch over you for me. I'll be busy switching around the defensive lines to check up on everyone."
"Suit yourself you rat."
"What about me?" Vespa asked.
"Your...abilities are difficult to use with many people around. However, you do have a collection to protect so placing you in the inner defenses might be a better fit for you."
"You've thought that far huh?" Vespa scratched his head a tad embarrassed, "Alright, I'll do my best without resorting to any drastic means."
"So does that mean I'm all alone in the Muldingirmus side?" Hirudo asked, "I'm actually surprisingly weak you know."
"I know." Roko sighed, "I was hoping for one more person to join us but-"
"Papa, no!"
Medeia shouted desperately with tears in her eyes trying to drag her father away as Argo finally arrived, dressed in his light armor and carrying his own sword.
"Sorry I'm late everyone!" Argo said sheepishly, "Too a bit longer than I expected to find my armor."
"No! No fighting!" his daughter sobbed insistently.
"Medeia, listen." Argo knelt down to consult his daughter, "I know you don't want me to fight but if the fight is coming to our doorsteps then daddy has no choice but to defend you and everyone else here. Don't worry. Daddy's invincible so I won't die on you okay? Trust me and return to the kitchen with everyone else."
Medeia didn't seem like she wanted to leave but Pluteum quickly ran up and took her hand, dragging her away even as she desperately tried to find the words to say to her father.
"Right." Argo took a deep steadying breath as he turned to Roko, "We have a position to defend in the Muldingirmus side right? I'll take it."
"Are you sure?" Roko asked, "We could assign you to the rear defense team."
"It's fine." Argo nodded, "I just hope you're right about this attack."