"Captain, the rebel squad has been secured," Echidna reported.
"Good work. Any casualties or injuries?" Axel asked.
"There are injuries, but no fatalities. The worst is a broken bone."
Zero deaths. Axel had fulfilled Vindel's orders perfectly.
"The follow-up Ladybirds from Ecuador base should arrive soon," Axel said. "Gather the parts from the downed mechs as best you can. The base's contents will be handled by the reinforcements."
"Understood. I'll instruct the W-Units," Echidna replied.
As Axel issued the orders, a thought struck him. The base commander aside, what about the fifteen PT and AM pilots from the rebel squad? And the other personnel—soldiers, staff—where were they? The battle was over, yet the base remained eerily silent, with no signs of anyone emerging to investigate.
"Echidna, can I speak with Captain Kirono?" Axel asked.
"Yes, he's unharmed and confined to a room on the Ladybird."
"Alright. I need to talk to him. You're in charge here. Contact me if anything's unclear."
"Understood," Echidna said.
In one of the Ladybird's rooms, Captain Kirono was under soft confinement. The guest cabin wasn't exactly a cell—escaping wouldn't be hard if he tried. Axel wondered if Echidna's choice of room stemmed from inexperience or confidence that Kirono wouldn't flee. Probably inexperience.
"Captain Kirono, mind if I ask you some questions?" Axel said.
"Sure, I've got nothing better to do," Kirono replied.
"Where's the rest of the base's personnel?"
"Gone. We evacuated everyone else. We knew a fight was coming."
"Got it. What about the Schwert pilots we first encountered? They weren't in the battle."
"Throwing fighters against PTs and AMs is a death sentence. I'm not that far gone," Kirono said. "Those pilots were in the Garlions you took down with that Tesla Labs weapon."
Axel recalled the two Garlions that had shielded Kirono, repelling his Phantoms. "So they were in those," he said.
"…How many survived?" Kirono asked, his voice low.
Had Echidna not told him, or was she withholding to pressure him? "Relax," Axel said. "Everyone's alive. Worst injury's a broken bone."
Kirono stared, incredulous. "Seriously?"
"I told you before the fight—our boss doesn't buy the base commander's story. We need your intel to get to the truth, so my orders were to minimize fatalities."
"But to take us all down without a single death…" Kirono paused. "What about your side's losses?"
"If you count downed mechs as losses, zero," Axel said. "The worst damage is minor."
The real sting was the twelve damaged Phantoms, hit hard by the Garlions' Sonic Breakers. The T-Link System suggested they weren't totaled, but Axel dreaded Lemon's reaction when she saw the repair bill.
"Zero losses, and you wiped us out with no deaths," Kirono said. "Your squad's a league of its own."
"You don't survive in Shadow-Mirror without skills," Axel said. "Now, Kirono, we'll debrief fully at base, but I want the basics now. Why the rebellion?"
No one believed the commander's jealousy excuse, but rebellion wasn't something you jumped into without serious cause.
Kirono nodded. "I promised I'd talk if you beat us. You seem like a decent soldier, so I'll trust you."
Decent soldier? Hardly, Axel thought, but he let it slide.
"The base commander, Carl, was running every crime you can imagine," Kirono said. "Extortion, assault, murder, rape, robbery, smuggling, black-market deals. The list's too long to stomach."
Vindel's suspicions were spot-on again. But something didn't add up. The whole base couldn't have been complicit, especially not Kirono's squad, who'd rebelled over it.
"That's vile," Axel said. "But there's more, isn't there?"
"Yeah. Most of Carl's crimes were hidden from the base's soldiers. But secrets leak eventually—that's how we found out. And there's worse. This base was a hub for the Federation's and government's dirtiest jobs."
"Shadow-Mirror's a special ops unit," Axel said. "We handle off-the-books missions too."
"Not like this," Kirono said. "I mean kidnapping kids and women from nearby towns on orders from Federation higher-ups or government officials. You can guess what happened to them."
Axel's jaw tightened. Kirono's bitter expression mirrored his own.
"We heard rumors and confronted Carl, hoping they weren't true," Kirono continued. "We clung to a shred of hope."
But it was futile. Kirono's squad had taken the leap to rebellion.
"He laughed and admitted it," Kirono said. "Bragged about his crimes like they were trophies. Said the Federation and government only function because of him. Even invited me to join his schemes—money, women, whatever I wanted. I barely stopped myself from killing him on the spot."
Kirono let out a bitter sigh.
"I thought reporting him would fix things," he said. "He gave me a data disk as a 'souvenir.' You can imagine what was on it."
From Kirono's tone, Axel could guess—nothing wholesome.
"I had a contact in the military police," Kirono said. "They didn't believe me at first, but the disk's footage convinced them to investigate."
"And then?" Axel prompted, sensing the grim turn.
"Next day, my contact was found dead," Kirono said. "Carl delivered the news, laughing about how my contact's family and lover were 'sent to the same place.'"
"So you rebelled," Axel said.
"Yeah. We took out Carl's lackeys, but he slipped away. Fat as he is, he's quick on his feet. I evacuated everyone who didn't want to fight, knowing what'd come next. Then you showed up."
It was staggering—a Federation base turned crime hub. "The follow-up Ladybirds will arrive soon," Axel said. "We'll head to Shadow-Mirror's Ecuador base, where my boss will want to hear this. Tell him everything."
This could be the tipping point. Vindel might finally move toward open rebellion.
"Fine," Kirono said. "But what happens to us after?"
"The orders were to make your squad disappear," Axel said.
Kirono's face fell. "I see."
"But my boss will likely protect you," Axel added. "He hates corruption, and you're skilled. You might get new identities and join our unit."
Kirono chuckled. "Skilled? That's bittersweet coming from the guy who crushed us."
"They'll probably deal with Carl too," Axel said. "Though the higher-ups might bury it."
"Yeah, he's got powerful backers," Kirono said.
Echidna knocked and entered. "Captain, the Ladybirds have arrived. The mechs' parts are consolidated as ordered."
"Good," Axel said. "Finish the handover, and we'll head back to base."
"Understood," Echidna said, saluting and leaving.
"Kirono, stay put until we reach Ecuador," Axel said. "Things'll get busy, so rest while you can."
"Got it," Kirono said. "…Hey."
"What?"
"I'm glad it was your squad that came."
"Say that after we're back and this is sorted," Axel replied.
Kirono grinned. "Fair. If we end up in the same unit, let's grab a drink at a bar with some ladies."
"My girlfriend's terrifying," Axel said. "If you get her permission, I'm in. But I'm a lightweight, so no booze."