When Roko woke up the next day, he felt like he had aged several years. He didn't look any different of course but his experience had left him feeling heavy. Like he was soaked to the bone and dragged to exaggerated lengths by the currents his mind was doing it's best to forget.
"Roko?" Kaguya called as she entered his room, "Roko! You're awake! You look pretty healthy from here. Good thing Momo's reinforcement magic protected you from the worst that physics had to offer."
"How's Momo and Azimuth?" Roko asked.
"A little bit more bruised but fine nonetheless. They really couldn't do anything so they left it all to you. And good on you for that escape! We didn't know how you achieved it but you did it! As expected from our miracle worker!"
"I don't know how I did that myself." Roko rubbed his eyes, "Regardless, are Momo and Azimuth well enough to attend a meeting? We need to sort out the details of the situation."
"Workaholic as ever huh? Don't worry, they're fine. We've been preparing for a meeting after all the chaos. We can start when you're ready."
"Roko!" Azimuth and Momo looked up as he arrived at his office, "You seem well."
"Maybe on the outside." Roko said as Aranea ran forward and hugged his leg, Roko patting her on the head in comfort, "Inside I feel like collapsing at any point."
"Same." Azimuth sighed, "Still, we wouldn't be here without you so thanks for dragging us the entire way back."
"It's fine. If anything I'm sorry for all the turbulence you must've experienced at the time."
"We were thrown around a lot but it's nothing my enhancement magic couldn't handle." Momo gave a thumbs up, "A little sore in places but perfectly fine otherwise."
"For once I'm glad I wasn't there." Helena nodded, "Sounds like an absolutely horrible time."
"More importantly, we need to sort out the details of our situation right now." Kaguya nodded.
"True, Roko said as he walked over and sat down at his desk, "What's the situation right now?"
"Everyone's been safely evacuated." Azimuth began, "Our supplies are a bit low but should hold for a week or two. It might be a thin stretch until our next resupply but it wouldn't be as drastic as during Nessus times."
"Good to see our efforts weren't wasted." Roko nodded.
"As it stands though, we don't have enough room for everyone in the rebellion." Melia reported, "Just barely though. We've moved all the tables and stuff in the main foyer to accommodate as many tents as we can but we just don't have enough room for everyone."
"Sorry about suddenly crashing the place." Azimuth scratched her head as if she was unsure if she should be embarrassed, "Not like there was anywhere else we could go though."
"I don't mind you using the base but if the problem is space we have one option." Roko replied.
"Do tell because we need what space we can get." Azimuth sighed.
"We go to the police."
"You want some of us to bunk with the police?" Azimuth said as she considered the idea, "Not a bad idea per say but do you think they'll let us?"
"After we helped them out in the Nessus incident? I'd say they owe us."
"I thought we owed them." Roland said.
"We gave them the food to distribute for us and that lead to their credibility increasing. They did work for us but we also gave them all the means to preform the work that lead to their credibility increasing." Roko replied, "Regardless, I think we need to sort out the rooming situation in the base. We have a limited number of rooms and people will no doubt be trying to take them for themselves."
"True, how are we going to decide who gets the rooms?" Momo asked.
"We have some rooms with old bunk beds. Those will be open for families. I don't think a lot of existing members have taken up those spaces but they will be allowed to upgrade to one of the single ones first. Any remaining single rooms will be given to veterans and those with physical disabilities, then to those with particular achievements in the rebellion's history. Also mention that there may be space available with the police if we ever do get the permission."
"Telling them about the police already?" Azimuth raised an eyebrow, "You're pretty confident they'll accept."
"I don't see why they wouldn't."
"You want to use our rooms?!"
"Yes." Roko replied, "Mind if we come inside first?"
"Oh, yeah sure."
The angry snappy girl that had come to yell at Roko before politely let him and Azimuth walk into the very small police station. It was in a better condition than most Mulapin homes and surprisingly well kept. The reason for which soon poked her head out from a nearby door curiously.
"Ara. Nebo, do we have guests?"
"Yeah...can you get the boss?" Nebo asked.
"Okay!" A young female police officer stepped out in a cleaning apron and carrying a feather duster, walking over to the stairs before calling out, "Merodach! We have company!"
"What?" A young looking man came down the stairs with an annoyed look on his face, "Who is it, Ishtar?"
"The Earthbounds."
"Whoa, it is." The man balked as he watched Roko and Azimuth remove their raincoat's hoods, "Damn, I was hoping we never saw this guy again."
"Don't be rude, Nergal." Merodach said as he finally stepped down the stairs to join his team, "Welcome, Roko and Azimuth. If you've come to us for help, you must truly be desperate."
"Well, not desperate so much as the best solution for us." Azimuth sighed.
"What happened?"
"The Earthbound's base is flooded."
"Whoa, this is bad." Nergal said, trying to hide a sneering smile, "No wonder you came to us."
"Everything should be fine." Azimuth explained, "The only problem we have is housing the displaced members."
"I don't think we can afford to house ALL the people in your rebellion." Ishtar said worriedly.
"No, we only need you to house about 15." Roko added, "We have a back-up base that can hold the rest just fine."
"15 is still a lot for our small base." Merodach rubbed his chin with a troubled expression, "We'd love to help but there's only about 7 more rooms that they can use."
"I believe you can hold more." Roko placed a hand on his hip.
"How so?"
"You have cells do you not?"
"Cells?!" Nebo cried, "You mean like for criminals?!"
"Yep."
"All our cells are open..." Ishtar said, "But...are you sure that's okay?"
"Better a cell than no home." Roko replied, "I'm sure some people would be willing to live in an open cell for the time being."
"I'm not against the idea..." Merodach said, "But how would we be able to ensure their freedom? I don't think anyone would be willing to take the deal without that guarantee."
"Give them the keys to their own cells." Roko said obviously, "That's basically how hotels work."
"Hotels is a bit of a funny comparison here." Nergal scoffed.
"Our cells haven't seen use in years." Ishtar said anxiously, "I'll have to clean them up to prepare."
"Wait, how do we decide who gets the cells and who gets the extra rooms?" Nebo asked.
"That's up to you to decide." Roko shrugged, "Set up your favorites or save them for those who are willing to change careers for you."
"Wait, you're saying we can recruit from you guys?!" Nebo cried.
"Sure." Roko replied, "Why not? Most people don't want to be rebels anymore so why not give them the chance to get a normal job? You seem like you can use the help."
"Wow! You sure are generous, boss man!" Nergal grinned.
"Are you okay with this, Azimuth?" Merodach asked the Earthbounds leader.
"The rebellion has always given people the chance to leave at any point." Azimuth replied, "More importantly than keeping our numbers is giving those members homes right now. It would be impossible for me to ask you not to endear yourselves. I only ask that you do not push your recruitment so much as to cause discomfort."
"Ha! Like we need new people THAT badly." Nergal snickered, "We're just fine with just the five of us!"
"I wouldn't mind more people." Ishtar said, "Then again, taking care of you and Nebo is trouble enough..."
"Hey! What do you mean we're trouble?!" Nebo protested.
"I assume we have a deal then?" Roko asked.
"Deal or not, it's our job to help people where we can." Merodach reached out a hand for a friendly handshake, "And you've already helped us before."
"I thought we were helping THEM." Nergal muttered.
"Nergal, get real." Nebo rolled her eyes.
"I appreciate the help." Roko shook his hand, "Rest assured we won't be asking you to help out with any of our actual operations and we'll provide a stipend of supplies to support you and the refugees. Apologies for the sudden visit. And hopefully we won't need your help on anything else as we continue our investigation."
"Investigation?" Merodach blinked, "Into what?"
"The flood?" Momo said as she munched on a cookie, "What's wrong with the flood?"
"It came way too quickly." Azimuth explained, "Yes, with such heavy rain the past few days, it's bound to get flooded but this is a bit overkill. At most the cistern should be knee deep in especially poor weather conditions like this. We're generally ready to seal off our base when it gets ankle deep. This is a complete flooding. The entire sewer is underwater now. You were there to help us evacuate. The water level was constantly rising. It's not natural by any means."
"This rain itself is likely not natural." Kaguya added, "Rainy seasons is one thing. Constant deluge without even a cloudy drizzle in between is not normal."
"The rain is almost certainly a cover for the flooding of the cistern." Roko nodded, "And it certainly helps sustain the flooding with less effort."
"Are you saying that Sirius is controlling the weather now?"
"Does it really sound so off?"
"Nope." Momo grinned, "What's our plan of action?"
"Well, there are two very noticeable changes to Minchir that we've already investigated."
Azimuth pulled out a photo from her pockets and tossed it on the table for the rest of them to see. Through the heavy rain captured in the photograph, they could see a set of three gargoyles that had never been seen on the walls before. They were each notably different, one of them carrying a pair of wings, another with a pair of horns and one with a tail. They looked like any normal gargoyles. A little freshly made perhaps but there was no indication that any of them could move and from what Roko and Azimuth reported they didn't look like they moved either. But their investigation ran deeper than their deception.
"I did manage to use my spells on these gargoyles." Roko explained, "And I can confirm that these things are in fact homonculi. Specially made semi automatic beings created in a lab."
"Wait, are they gargoyles or homonculi?" Roland asked, "Because we have both."
"They're probably homonculi modeled after gargoyles." Momo nodded, "I mean we can't create monsters like gargoyles, they're usually too sentient for us to just create. Creating a skin like gargoyles and animating it with simple commands is advanced stuff but it's much more feasible."
"Okay, why gargoyles?" Roland asked next.
"Probably because they're the best suited for this job." Melia explained, "Gargoyles are known to pretend to be like statues so they're perfect if they don't plan on moving a lot. Built to be still but able to fight when approached. That's as perfect a form as you can get."
"If I had to guess, they're what the alchemists in Min al Az'al were hiding in their vault." Kaguya added, "Nothing else in the lab was left after the fire at least of the parts that we saw anyway."
"And these things are not only physically strong but magically talented." Roko continued, "Though with the weather manipulation, you probably could've guessed that. All three are Trismegistus, able to use water, wind and lightning spells. My spells can't tell for certain if they're controlling the weather but it's pretty clear that they're equipped to."
"As bald faced a challenge as Sirius could give us." Azimuth shook her head, "What makes this a difficult fight is that we'll have to fight on Minchir itself. We've had to fight a few times on the wall to try and gain control of a gate into Muldingirmus but the soldiers there are no joke. They're not especially well trained or anything but the wall is armed with a bunch of defensive weapons meant to deter attacks. It's practically a barrack all on its own. Fighting on there won't be easy."
"But we're going to try anyway?" Momo smiled.
"Of course we are." Azimuth growled, "Gotta get some revenge after all they put us through."
"I can't even imagine." Helena nodded, "I know it was a real panic moment when we realized the torches were going to get extinguished so we needed to think of something. Melia was the one to think of using the earth magic to give you the footing you needed instead of getting tangled in the net. It was a bit of a risky move but we figured Momo was using reinforcement magic so you'd probably survive if you get smashed into it."
"Sorry, if we had more time we probably could've made a better plan." Melia grimaced. "But at that point, if you weren't back already you'd just be riding the currents now with no control."
"That's true for the most part." Roko nodded, "You did good, Melia. Don't worry."
"That was as far as we could think of at the time." Helena sighed, "We couldn't do anything about the absolute darkness so we were hoping you'd figure it out from there."
"I did point myself in the right direction." Roko explained, "But in all the chaos and darkness, I couldn't be sure if I was still going in the right direction. Thankfully you guys sent out a glowing line to help me out."
"What glowing line?" Helena blinked, "I told you the earth wall was as far as we could think of."
"There wasn't any line found near you all either." Kaguya remarked, "Glowing or otherwise."
"Were you hallucinating?" Azimuth asked.
"Hmmm..." Roko didn't reply, though he did try his best to hide his suspicions.
"Excuse us..."
The door to Roko's office opened and Pluteum and Medeia walked in curiously.
"Is something wrong, kids?" Azimuth asked gently.
"Pluteum's visiting today so we thought we'd play with Aranea." Medeia said.
"Visiting?" Roko raised an eyebrow.
"Yeah, we're living over in the police station right now." Pluteum scratched his head, "A bit weird to live in a cell but at least it keeps the rain off us."
"Aranea, you're doing a puzzle?" Medeia walked over to the shy child who had returned to her puzzle in the middle of all the talking, "This one looks pretty easy."
"Puzzles are boring." Pluteum came over as well, "Can't we play ball or something?"
"There's no room!" Medeia replied sternly.
"I mean there's the halls..."
"We can't play in the halls, we'd just get in people's ways!"
"Well then what are we going to do?"
"My dad's handing out supplies to all the tent people. We can help him!"
"We always end up helping your dad!" Pluteum complained, "Can't we do something else?"
"Oh fine." Medeia crossed her arms, "Then how about this? I saw a cat sneak into the base a while ago. We can go look for it!"
"I'm more of a dog person." Pluteum muttered.
"Oh stop complaining." Medeia shook her head, "Aranea you like cats don't you?"
Aranea looked around, not willing to pitch into the argument.
"Yeah you do." Medeia decided, "Come on, let's look for the cat!"
Medeia grabbed onto Pluteum and Aranea and began to drag them away with surprising strength. While Pluteum seemed used to it, Aranea held her hand out for someone, anyone to grab onto and rescue her. Alas all the adults just watched on with warm smiles as the deathly shy girl was dragged away to interact socially with her peers.
"How nice of them to include Aranea." Azimuth smiled, "Forcibly."
"Didn't know Gallus moved to the police though." Momo noted, "Wonder if he's going to join them."
"Probably." Azimuth shrugged, "Gallus has been pretty adverse to fighting ever since they had Pluteum. He and Argo became good father friends until Argo's wife died. Argo took it pretty hard at the time and I think it scared Gallus into being a much more family oriented person."
"That makes sense." Momo nodded, "Argo seems to be doing well as a single dad though there's always a sense of loneliness to him."
"You know who isn't doing as well as a single dad?" Helena grinned.
"Who?"
"Roko."
"Oh not this again." Roko growled.
"You know what could help with that?" Kaguya teased
"Don't say it." Roko warned.
"A mother."
"Stop."
"You know who would make a good mother?" Momo continued.
"What the hell's your problem anyway?"
"I want good food, Roko!"