" Sit down, Commander."
Ashera's expression was guarded, her stress palpable as she wondered what the General wanted to discuss, though she already had an inkling.
"Were you on a mission?"
"Yes, General."
"And the mission before that, where you acted recklessly despite the risks. I want the report."
"General, it's true I took risks—"
"The report, Commander Ashera!" The General slammed his desk, sending neon sparks flying and shaking the room.
"The latest version of the Pulsar was deployed, and billions of lives were annihilated..."
"Go on!"
"I, Commander, upon learning of General Nadir's dire situation, intervened because the planet's Heart Guardians had been killed. The Fool—"
"Argh!"
The General slammed his palm on the desk again, his brows furrowed.
"Can you give a report without mentioning him?"
"But he's the key factor—"
"No! Do you know what's making headlines across the galaxy? It's not *The Elder's daughter tried to stop Arcana's leader*, but rather *General Hayden's inaction, another failure of the Spades Guardians* or *Ashera Ibn Asad's martial crime*."
Ashera's face darkened further. She blamed herself bitterly. In trying to save innocents, she had caused the deaths of billions. And the General kept reminding her of it.
"You're an excellent agent. But your obsession has clouded your judgment. Many lieutenants have apprehended more criminals in the past five years than you. You're fixated on Arcana."
"You were right, General. But the situation is far more complex than you think. In the mission I just completed, Arcana tried to trap me."
"Really? And what's the proof?"
"Pirates attacked me with advanced technology, even causing a neon overload."
"Nothing proves it was them. You have many enemies, just like your father. And Arcana doesn't act without warning. Now, you see them everywhere, don't you?"
"No, that's not it, General. Since The Fool has disappeared, they're more—"
"The Fool disappeared? And what next, he was killed by the Pulsar? You know what I think, Ashera."
"General, give me some time, I think I can fix this. The Fool isn't as unreachable as everyone believes—"
"I'm not finished!"
"Sorry..."
"I think you should take a break for a while."
Her eyes widened, and she stood up.
"WHAT, GENERAL?!"
"FIRST! CALM DOWN!"
Ashera swallowed and sat back down. The General was already in a foul mood, and she didn't want to aggravate him further.
General Hayden opened a drawer and pulled out several letters.
"In this letter, the Millennium judges you as guilty, and you should face a court-martial."
"In this letter, Elder Asad explains he's reached a compromise with the Millennium, so you'll resign from the Spades."
"In this letter, the Warden leaves it to me...I trust my Commander, it's just a rough patch, and I think a break would be best."
Ashera sighed, somewhat incredulous at what was happening. She still intended to track down Zrahel, seek help from General Theron, who had many contacts among the Diamond Guardians. And maybe she'd find a way to restore his memories with all the technology at her disposal. But now...
"And what am I supposed to do after this break?"
"Well, as your father wishes. Go home."
She shook her head. "I'd rather die than let my father win. If I can't hunt criminals anymore, then..."
"Argh! You're giving me a headache." Hayden removed his glasses and pinched the bridge of his nose, then an idea struck him.
"Now that I think about it, how about becoming a professor at NOVA for a while? Teach the next generation of Universal Guardians. It'd be a good way to reconnect and take a break to regain your former peak performance."
"Alright."
NOVA... She had been a student here herself. She was part of a class where more than 9 out of 10 were already dead. But those who survived had all succeeded. It brought back good memories. And maybe, it wasn't such a bad thing after all.
"Good, I'll send the correspondence. You're dismissed, and don't forget the tribute to General Nadir tomorrow."
"I'll be there, General."
She saluted and left.
...
For now, she intended to search for Zrahel's name in the terminal, to see if there was any new information about him.
She walked through the long, chrome corridors of the base, bathed in a blue light. She took the elevator down to the 60th floor. Behind a large glass wall lay an imposing room, at the center of which was a holographic keyboard for entering commands.
This was the Spade Guardians' database, the Terminal, where all criminals, as well as all intelligent individuals across races, quadrants, and galaxies, were cataloged.
At the door, she placed her foot and felt her entire body weaken. It was due to her cosmic energy being continuously drained—a security measure to protect the terminal. She entered her biometric data: fingerprint, ocular scan, and finally DNA.
[Commander Ashera Ibn Asad detected!]
[Access granted]
The door opened, and she sat down, typing on the keyboard. The name of The Fool.
[The Fool
Leader of the Arcanes, unknown power, responsible for the third intergalactic war...]
There were his photos, videos of him using his powers, and his misdeeds were as long as an arm. You could scroll from now until tomorrow: updates were constantly being made, as every catastrophe, even natural ones, could be his doing, directly or indirectly.
The bastard had created a supermassive black hole that devoured galaxies every year, just one example among many, and so, even if he did nothing, he still caused the deaths of innocents.
She decided to search: *Zrahel Trinity Nihil*.
[This person is not listed!]
"Ah, just as I thought. It would've been too easy otherwise." But she grew quiet when she saw the related searches.
[- Second intergalactic war
- Divine Race
- Nihil
- GodSlayer Trinity
...]
"Hmm? What does this mean? I already know he was alive since the second war, but what's the connection to the divine races?"
Ashera already knew of their existence. But they hadn't been in this world for a long time, and only exaggerated, unreliable myths remained.
[DIVINE RACE
The five precursor races in the use of Neon. Exterminated during the second intergalactic war.
- Aetherian
- Nexarit
- Entropian
- Pandemonit
- Reakan.]
There's not much information, but now I see the link.
These races were exterminated at a time when Zrahel wasn't yet The Fool, but already immensely powerful, I suppose. The second intergalactic war, huh?