4

Play: Meditation

The trip back to the elevator leading into the Ark was relatively lackluster.

Because we took out Black Smith, no other Rapture units drew near.

But we did have a problem...

Shifty's voice echoed over the comms and she said, "I finished the report to the Deputy Chief. But um... Commander Hoopa?"

"Yes, Shifty?" I rested against the back of the elevator, glancing at my data pad. "What's the matter?"

"Well. I only reported the 'essentials.' But... the fact that a rookie commander not only survived his first mission, but went and took out a Tyrant-class Rapture, and with only three Nikke... none of which were equipped with anything other than standard equipment..."

Anis sighed. "Let me guess? We're going to get grilled by the upper brass?"

"Yes. No." Shifty sighed. "I don't know. It's strange. Deputy Chief Andersen said to report to his office. And to come fully armed."

I blinked. "I beg your fucking pardon?"

Shifty threw her hands up. "I don't know, okay? I just work here!"

Rapi frowned. "...If I were to guess, I believe we may be tested upon arrival."

Marian rubbed her arm and said, "...Will we be okay, Commander?"

"...Well." I let out a helpless laugh. "We're in the elevator going down. We can't head back up now." I focused. "Fine. We're going to meet him. We'll find out what he wants. Worst comes to worst, we fight our way out."

Anis looked at me. "...Are you seriously suggesting we fight our way OUT of the Ark? You know, humanity's last bastion? The place that's resisted Rapture invasions for over a century? The place we're supposed to protect?"

"I'd rather take my chances with the Rapture than with crafty humans and false platitudes, yes. Besides." I tilted my head, thinking. "...I have theories I need to test regarding the Raptures anyway."

Rapi looked at me. "Theories, Commander?"

"Mm. I don't know who's listening, so we'll leave it at that."

The fact that the corruption code could be defeated by an axiomatic proof... the fact that Raptures were imitating flesh...

And the near endless amount of supplies from the destroyed Rapture units...

"...Just out of curiosity, how much stronger are you than normal humans, Rapi? Nikke, I mean."

"...Countless magnitudes. ...Why?"

"Oh, no particular reason." I chuckled. "No particular reason..."

===

Upon arriving in the Ark, we were immediately ushered by troops to the Deputy Chief's office.

There, a stern looking man with dark brown hair and lines showing age and stress appeared in full uniform. A hat and pair of gloves in hand, he looked at us and said, "So nice to meet you all. I'm Andersen, Deputy Chief of the Central Government Command."

I stepped forward, making sure to put me between him and Rapi, Anis, and Marian behind me. After that, I held out my hand. "Deputy Chief. A pleasure. I'm Hoopa, former Commander of Silver Gun, current Commander of the makeshift squad consisting of the Nikkes Rapi, Anis, and Marian."

Andersen gave me a scrutinizing gaze and shook my hand. "Hoopa. Strange name. But understood." After a brief handshake, he said, "I called you here today to conduct a test." He looked at me and then the three behind me. "As you know, defeating a Tyrant-Class Rapture is no mere feat. We would like to confirm your capabilities. Proceed to the Simulation Room. There will be someone there to greet you. That is all."

Anis frowned. "...You called us here just for that?"

Rapi glanced over and said, "Anis."

"What? I'm just asking." Anis huffed.

Marian spoke up and said, "Even so, Anis, formalities are important. You wouldn't want to cause trouble for our Commander, would you?"

"Grk..."

Andersen watched the three interact, a flicker of a smile appearing on his face for a brief moment. Then he said, "I simply wanted to meet you in person." He looked at me. "Especially you, Commander. I hope you don't disappoint me."

I met his gaze without flinching. "I don't know what you're expecting, so I can't promise anything. But I do know I'm me. And I know that I won't lose to something that can die."

An amused look crossed Andersen's face. "Is that so? Well, we'll see. Dismissed."

===

"Ugh, what a weirdo." Anis grumbled as we walked out of Andersen's office. "Calling us there in person just for that..."

Marian let out a warm smile and said, "It makes sense. We ARE out of the ordinary."

Rapi nodded. "I would be more concerned if the Deputy Chief did not call us there."

I took a look around the corridors as we headed to the simulation room, gauging the atmosphere.

For the most part though, it looked like business as usual. If news had gotten out about us, it either wasn't that important... or the news wasn't public.

Probably the latter.

Anis put her hands behind her neck and glanced at me. "You sure this is going to be alright though, Commander? We're going to be the ones fighting, but they're testing you. And also..." She glanced at Marian.

Marian smiled. "No worries, Anis. I've confirmed. No anomalous readings in my frame or body. Combat will be fine."

"...If you say so. Just don't drag us into the mess too, got it?"

"Of course."

Rapi looked at me. "...Commander. If we are going to be tested in the Simulation room..."

I paused, suddenly realizing what she was implying.

If my knowledge about Rapture weaknesses applied to the real thing...

Would the simulation even know to account for it?

"Hm." I rubbed my chin. "...Well. I guess we'll see firsthand how good the Ark's simulations are, right?"

Anis paused. "Uh oh. I don't like the sound of that..."

===

Play: the Ark

When we arrived at the Simulation room, a stern woman with curly brown hair and wearing a white military uniform appeared. "I'm Ingrid, the overseer of today's combat simulation. Here, we'll be putting your combat skills to the test."

I nodded. "A pleasure to meet you, Ingrid. Commander Hoopa and my squad. Temporary name, Counterstrike."

Anis blinked. "Counterstrike? Really?"

"Well, I wanted to do 'Ace in the Hole' but I think that's a bit on the nose, right?"

Anis snorted.

Ingrid raised an eyebrow. "Well, you're energetic. Good."

Rapi frowned and looked at Ingrid. "Testing our combat skills AFTER a mission... a bit out of protocol, isn't it?"

Marian smiled and said, "Well, my commander is unbelievable. You have to see it to believe it."

Ingrid nodded at Marian. "Correct. Honestly, hearing a rookie Commander took out a Tyrant-Class Rapture with three Nikke is ridiculous. If it wasn't confirmed, we never would have even considered it. But since there were proper reports and evidence, we want to see if it can happen again."

I looked at Ingrid. "And if we can?"

"Then we will discuss it then. Now." Ingrid pulled out a datapad. "Before we begin, I need confirmation of your squad name."

Anis looked at me. "Commander..."

I chuckled. "Fine, fine. We'll go with..." I looked at Ingrid and said, "Brave."

"Brave?" Ingrid raised an eyebrow. "Interesting name choice... but very well. Squad, codename Brave, recorded. Beginning simulation."

After that, the surroundings flickered, fading away before revealing a proper battlefield.

"Interesting." I took a look around and saw that it was completely realistic. Almost as if space had been overwritten. But not quite. "Augmented reality? No, a texture over modular terrain and automatons."

Anis raised her rocket launcher and said, "Commander! Stop appreciating the tech and give us orders!"

"Alright." I chuckled, sweeping my gaze out at the simulated Raptures. "Well then..."

===

The Deputy Chief's office. After Squad Brave's simulation run.

Andersen sat at his desk and looked across it at Ingrid. "Well?"

Ingrid frowned and said, "...The results don't make any sense."

"How so?"

Ingrid ran a hand across her hair and said, "He should be a rookie. But that commander... even against brand new Rapture types that he had never seen, he responded with immediate and pinpoint orders that took them all out in a single command. Moreover, the way he took them out..." She sighed. "Here." She slid the report over.

Andersen raised an eyebrow and read it. Then his eyebrows raised more. "...He personally fought in tandem with his Nikke? Using side-arms as supressing fire... to proper effect?"

"I couldn't believe my eyes." Ingrid clicked her tongue and said, "A human commander using an ordinary handgun to not only stun Rapture, but sometimes deal the finishing blow. It goes against commonsense."

Andersen was quiet.

"Deputy Chief?"

"...Interesting." Andersen slid the report back and said, "Prepare a mission for them."

Ingrid raised her eyebrows. "Now?"

"Yes. Let's see if this is a one-shot wonder... or something greater. As for the mission..." Andersen picked a mission off the table and said, "Ah, this will do." He looked at it and said, "Since they appear to be quite the skilled individuals... Let's give them a mission of the highest difficulty."

===

Play: Maze in Abyss

"Investigate a power station?" I blinked, tilting my head at Shifty's report.

"Yes. The one in the coastal city."

I frowned, having just finished grabbing a soda from the rec room. "And we're setting out right now?"

Shifty sighed. "Yes. I've already informed Rapi and Anis. They, um... aren't too thrilled."

Marian sipped on her own soda and said, "That's understandable. I'm sure we all wish we could have rested a bit first."

I looked at Marian. "How are you holding up, Mari?"

Marian smiled. "I'm fine, Commander. I've been patched up. Mentally, I'm fatigued. But in terms of combat performance, I'm at 100%." She frowned. "I'm more concerned about you. Are you sure that you're fine after your heart was stopped?"

Shifty gasped. "What? The Commander's heart was stopped? When!?"

I blinked. "Oh yeah, I guess we missed that part. In the transport ship. After it crash landed, I was in shock and technically died for about a minute as my heart stopped."

"THIS WAS NOT IN THE REPORT!" Shifty frantically typed. "If it was, they wouldn't have sent you out! You should be resting!"

I waved my hand. "It's fine. I'm feeling better than ever."

Marian gave me a concerned look. "...Are you certain it's not the adrenaline, Commander?"

I smiled at her and said, "I'm sure. The fact that you're still here with me gives me enough motivation to fight the entire world, Mari."

Marian blushed. "C-Commander..."

"Ugh." Anis's voice echoed from down the hall. "Could you two NOT flirt so much?"

Rapi walked over with Anis. Glancing between me and Marian, she said, "I suppose Shifty informed you two as well?"

"About the mission? Yeah. It's us again, it looks like."

Anis blinked. "Wait. Us? Like, all of us? Weird... isn't there supposed to not be consecutive deployments between Nikke and a commander?"

Shifty's voice echoed over the comms. "That's not really a hard rule... And considering how Commander Hoopa reacted... I suppose the higher ups thought it would be fine?"

Marian hummed. "...The rule IS meant to mitigate conflicts between Nikke and Commanders. But that's because a Commander usually treats Nikke as... well."

Rapi paused. "...That is true." She looked at me, an amused smile on her face. "Our Commander is quite different in that regard."

I looked back at her and frowned. "...Do Commanders really not treat Nikke well?"

Marian looked at me, sorrow on her face. "That's..." She sighed. "...Commander. We aren't human. At least, not like you are. Even if our body is destroyed, as long as our brain is intact, we can keep living. In fact, it's not uncommon for appearances of a Nikke to completely chance due to damage..."

I blinked. "Well, yeah. And? How does that make any difference?"

Silence.

Then Anis stared at me, her golden eyes peering into mine. "...You really think that. Don't you, Commander? You see us as people."

"Well, obviously." I frowned. "You're not just people, you're the ones who gave everything up for the sake of humanity. Honestly, I don't get why people treat you as disposable when you're buying time with your very being for humanity's sake."

More silence.

"...What did I say this time?" I frowned.

Anis stared at me, mixed emotions on her face. "...Dammit." She averted her gaze, rubbing her eyes. "That's not fair, Commander. You can't just say things like that...!"

Marian didn't say anything. She just quietly held my hand and leaned against me.

Rapi was quiet. Then she slowly said, "...Brave. That's what you named us, Commander. But..." She tilted her head, thinking. "...You don't mean it like 'brave' people, right? Or the emotion. You seem to be a man very particular with his words. Could it be that when you said 'Brave', you mean like 'The Brave?' Or in other words... Yuusha?"

I blinked, surprised she got the reference. Then I laughed. "You're pretty well read. But yeah, Brave, like Yuusha. The hero who fights against the Demon Lord, chosen by the Goddess herself." I smiled. "If you're all Nikke, goddesses of victory... then since you chose me, I'm the Yuusha, aren't I?"

Marian smiled. "...Commander. You're pretty romantic, aren't you?"

Anis rolled her eyes. "More like cheesy." Even so, she couldn't hide her smile.

Rapi smiled as well and said, "Very well. Then... if you are our hero, Commander." She held out her hand. "...Lead us to victory. Again and again."

I shook it. "Obviously, Rapi." I laughed. "What kind of Yuusha would I be if I didn't?"

"Um." Shifty's voice echoed. "Sorry to interrupt. But you should probably get going..."

"Right." I nodded. "Before then... Shifty. Can I requisition personal arms?"

"Huh? Uh, I suppose so? What were you thinking, Commander?"

"Well..."