'Thinking'

"Speaking"

"[Intercomms/Radio Transmission]"

*noises*

======

Sector 16 - 1.5 Miles From Target Area
Commander (Y/n) "Ranger" Schmitt - Gray Raven
0858 Hours

"HAHAHA! Looks like I made it in time!"

A blonde individual landed nearby right after. He stood up and smiled at the group, waving his hand at them with a smile. The said individual had a blonde hair, wore a dark grey tactical jacket with neon green linings on some parts, black sweater underneath which had white lines on the sleeves, black combat gloves which covers half of his forearms, black pants, black boots, and a black headset to complete his outfit. His most notable feature is the horn-like metal protruding on the right side of his forehead.

"I finally found my way by following the distant gunfire! My pathfinding instincts saved the day!" He exclaimed gleefully, then notices Lucia and approached her. "Oh, are you alright?"

"Yes, I'm fine. Thanks for the help." Lucia said. "And you are...?"

"Whaaaaaat?! Lucia, you don't remember me?! We met when we entered service!" He replied, completely bewildered that Lucia doesn't have a memory of their meeting. "You look way better than then, that's for sure!"

As the rest of the Gray Ravens walked towards them, (Y/n) heard what the blonde had said, and became quite confused as well. They've met when they entered service yet Lucia had no memory of it? And she looked way better than then? He quickly knew that something's off, but he sets that thought aside.

Lee sighed. "We sent a signal for other squads for back-up, not to chit-chat. Can you please save that for later when all the enemies are dealt with?"

"Kamui of Strike Hawk, I suppose?" (Y/n) said, catching the blonde Construct's attention.

"If it isn't the Top Gun himself!" The new arrival, Kamui, salutes (Y/n). "Kamui, tank-type Construct. Strike Hawk's number two, sir!"

"At ease, Kamui." (Y/n) said, and Kamui complied.

They suddenly heard mechanical noises, and saw the second Terrapod slowly getting back on it's feet despite the damage Kamui caused earlier. (Y/n) switched his rifle to full auto, approached the struggling Terrapod, and unloaded his entire magazine, then said some cuss words in German.

"Seems like he really hate those." Kamui whispered to Lucia, who replied with a nod.

(Y/n) reloads his rifle and turned to face the Constructs. "Let's go, team. Let's pluck this Ascendant out."

======

Museum Estate - Main Lobby
Commander (Y/n) "Ranger" Schmitt - Gray Raven
0914 Hours

The four cautiously moved through the Main Lobby of the Museum Estate. (Y/n), Lucia, Lee, and Liv are constantly on alert, scanning the surroundings, preparing for possible ambushes. Kamui, meanwhile, followed after the Gray Ravens, but he's not sharing the same alertness as the others, and instead kept a carefree attitude, even humming occasionally.

"Will you please keep it down?" Lee complained.

"Okay, okay, geez. Calm down, grumpy guy." Kamui said.

"I'm not being grumpy. Your humming is just distracting." Lee shot back.

"Man, are you blunt or blunt? I think I'm beginning to dislike you." Kamui argued.

Lee sighed. "Go ahead."

"You two, shut it." (Y/n) intervened.

"[I am the butler of this estate]." An unfamiliar voice echoed across the lobby.

The Gray Ravens quickly formed a perimeter, looking for the source of the voice. And of course, Kamui just stood there, and is seemingly excited to have a conversation with the "butler".

"Lucia, got anything?" (Y/n) asked her.

"Negative." Lucia replied.

"Same here, Commandant." Lee said.

"Mine too." Liv cuts in.

"Good day, sir!" Kamui replied with his usual enthusiasm. Lee turns around and is about to say something, but (Y/n) stops him and nods, giving Kamui permission to continue his interaction with the Estate Butler.

(Y/n) then tapped Lucia's shoulder. She turns around, and sees him giving out hand signals, and nods. He wants her to track the signal as Kamui continues to talk to the Estate Butler.

"[I am contacting you through a private channel, so this will have to be brief. Simply, leave here while you still can. This is my advice.]" The Estate Butler went on.

"We can't. We have a mission to finish, Mr. Butler." Kamui denied the request. "Speaking of, you know where that Ascendant is?"

(Y/n)'s eyes narrowed.'That Ascendant? Is he talking about Alpha or he encountered another one?'

"[Sorry, I cannot help.]" The Estate Butler replied.

"Oh, well, anyways, why would you contact us through a private channel? You aren't a Corrupted, right? Then you can just come out and talk, we can even be friends!" Kamui offered, but received no response. "Hello? You still there?"

"Kamui is quite..." Liv mumbled.

"Over simplistic." Lee finished her sentence.

"Um, I meant to say... over friendly..." Liv corrected.

Kamui dejectedly sighed. "Shucks, and here I thought we might get a helping hand or something."

"Lucia, anything?" (Y/n) inquired.

Lucia shook her head. "I'm sorry, Commandant. I didn't manage to trace the signal. It would seem that this 'butler' is hiding his radar signature. And he hid it pretty well."

(Y/n) clicked his tongue. "The door's blocked. Found any alternative routes?"

"None. We'll have to go through the original route and pass through the door." Lee said.

Kamui took out his large sword, which he named Big Kamui, and prepared to charge. "Well, let's bust this door open."

"Wait." (Y/n) halts the attack. "Lee, any signatures on the other side?"

"Scanning... three Gardeners, three Shieldbearers, two Pilgrims, two Envoys, and fifteen regular Corrupted." Lee said.

"Alright, Kamui, you take the Shieldbearers. Liv, Pilgrims are yours. Lee, you take out the Gardeners. Lucia, we handle the Envoys. Once we enter, we spread out immediately." (Y/n) ordered.

"Roger that." The Constructs replied.

Kamui raised his weapons and brought it down, cleanly slicing the locks. He then kicked the door loudly and shouted, "ELEMENT OF SURPRISE!"

Following the breach, the Gray Ravens followed after Kamui, weapons all ready. (Y/n) took out several regular corrupted, while Lee provides additional fire support. Kamui ignored the other Corrupted and rushed to the Shieldbearers. He jumped in the air and threw his weapon at the Shieldbearer on the center. It tried to block the sword with its shield, but it simply sliced through it, and pierced its chest.

The Corrupted within the vicinity recovered from the initial shock as they roared in rage and dashed towards the attackers, seeking to end their life, but some were immediately dropped dead by the marksmen present.

Kamui landed near the fallen Shieldbearer and took out his sword. The remaining Shieldbearers charged at the blonde Construct, but he simply rolled to the side, causing them to crash against each other. Using this opportunity, Kamui swooped in and went behind on one of the Shieldbearers, slashing it horizontally as its now separated body falls to the ground. He did the same with the other one, finishing his objective.

Liv dodged to her right as the last Pilgrim attempts to take her out. She responded in kind with her own beams, striking the Pilgrim on its torso, finally taking it down. She then helped dealing with the other Corrupted, so did Kamui.

Lee rolled to the left, avoiding a charging attack from a Gardener. He then turned around and shot its back several times, killing it. The last Gardener tries to run away, but he too shared the same fate as the others.

As per Lucia, she killed several Corrupted that are coming towards her with thrusts and slashes. She then rolled forward as the Envoy tried to claw her. She returned the favor with a slash on its legs, crippling it and preventing its jumping attack. She dealt the finishing blow to its head, ending its life, the glow from its red eyes slowly disappearing.

With (Y/n), he's fending off the last Envoy. He leaped backwards, successfully distancing himself from the Envoy's blades. He veered to the side and jumped on its back. It tried to shake him off, but he already had a firm grip on its back. (Y/n) pressed the barrel of his gun, and unloaded the entire magazine. It fell to the ground shortly after, with the Ranger still clung on its back.

"That was awesome, Commandant!" Kamui cheered. "For a human, you sure do move like a Construct! You had the guts to climb on one of those!"

"Well, gotta make sure they don't come back as a lich." (Y/n) stepped off from the dead Envoy and puts another fresh magazine in his gun. "Lee, how many mags do you have left?"

"Still have six, Commandant." Lee answered.

*boom*

A distant explosion was suddenly heard. Seems like other squads had reached the area first, which was later confirmed by Liv. "Commandant, I've detected signals of friendly Constructs in the courtyard! They're... fighting an extremely powerful Corrupted! A Corrupted several magnitudes above Tifa..."

"Alright, let's move, people. They're probably engaging an Ascendant right now." (Y/n) said, and ran towards the courtyard, the Constructs following behind.

"From the battle with Tifa, we have also grown up as well. And we have an advantage in numbers as well. We will succeed." Lucia spoke.

"Don't be so sure yet, Lucia. We don't know the capabilities of that Ascendant yet. We don't even know what he or she looks like." (Y/n) replied.

Kamui laughed a little. "Lucia, you're still as feisty as the training times!"

Lucia glanced at him. "Training...? Sorry, I don't remember much from those days."

"Were you forgetful that before...?" Kamui confusingly queried. "Aww... It feels terrible to be forgotten by people!"

"..." Lucia said nothing.

'Again with that topic...' (Y/n) thought. "Let's save that for later. We still have a job to do."

======

Museum Estate - Courtyard
Commander (Y/n) "Ranger" Schmitt - Gray Raven
0938 Hours

"Alright, we're here. Stay focused, team."

The squad finally reached the Courtyard. There's no Corrupted in sight, but Lucia could still detect the signals of friendly Constructs right above them.

"Commandant, the Construct squad is right above us." Lucia relays the information.

(Y/n) nodded. "Roger that."

"The space is massive in here." Kamui stated.

"Thank you, Captain Obvious." Lee sarcastically replied, which Kamui ignored.

"They seemed to have finished the battle, and the squad members are all intact, but why aren't they answering our calls?" Liv questioned.

"I'm not sure." Lucia said. "Let's pass through this area first."

"Wait, the enemy concentration is high near our destination." Lee interjected. "If we were to move at once, we'd likely be found and surrounded, even if with EM camo. But if we split up, we can't cover each other if we're found."

"Lucia and I will do it." (Y/n) suggested. Kamui was about to say something, but he stops him. "And no, your weapon makes noise due to its size Kamui, so I'm not gonna allow you."

"Aww..." Kamui sadly looked down.

"I agree." Lee said. "Theoretically speaking, if a Construct can stabilize the energy output, then it is possible to destroy enemies even with EM camo on. My weapons and Liv's too have a high energy output, so Commandant choosing Lucia is a great choice since she can silently assassinate enemies with her techniques."

Kamui nods in understanding. "That makes sense!"

"But, Commandant..." Lee continued. "Your weapons makes very loud noises. How can you assist Lucia?"

(Y/n) takes out a specially made suppressor and showed it to him. "With this."

"I see." Lee said, as (Y/n) threads the suppressor unto the barrel. "We're counting on you both. Good luck."

"Commandant, Lucia, please be careful." Liv cautioned.

"Don't worry, Liv." Lucia assures her. "We'll contact you three once we clear the way."

After checking his gun, (Y/n) turned to Lucia and said, "Let's go."

Lucia nods. "Right."