The mobile hospital set up by the SETI unit within Alsium Two was a mixture of a large tent enclosure and a pre-fabricated structure. It had been erected in mere hours thanks to the assistance of the plethora of mobile frames that now flooded Alsium Two after SETI’s inter-service fight with AXIS.

  Aster sat on one of the many cots in a general area where many rested from injuries, both minor and major. Many nursed some wound or another. But everyone had bruises, cuts, and scraps. Some had lost limbs. Others had parts of their bombs either smashed or punctured.

  Both AXIS and SETI lie intermingled with each other. Captain Titanetta, SETI’s chief medical officer, didn’t discriminate between anyone. She had ensured that proper triage was practised regardless of what unit someone was a part of, which meant that her ire was also practised on everyone equally.

  The entire place was neat and orderly. And the various wounded likewise. Even while others exchanged glares and hushed whispers at one another, it never got out of hand under the watchful eye of Titanetta, who was always eager to deliver a much-needed dose of common sense to whoever got out of line in the mobile hospital.

  The medical staff who went to and fro in the place were just the same as their captain. They went around in their white coats, like spectral ghosts, glaring at anyone who disturbed their busy tasks. It seemed their Captain had rubbed off on them.

  The place was relatively empty, though it was still filled with numerous people. He and his friends had come after the rush had subsided. The pain from their injuries was less than the agonisingly long lines, with actual queues for queues, which was also a good thing too considering the various small fights that had also broken out from people annoyed at the long lines. Despite how quickly and efficiently things had been set up by Titanetta and her staff, she could do nothing about how people had fought with each other without abandon.

  Which was why Captain Titanetta was looking at himself, his friends, and Lelesia, peeved, her green eyes twitching in annoyance.

  “You didn’t have to beat them up so badly,” Titanetta said as she looked over Aster and Garrod. “Not to mention the others.”

  “Not my fault if they can’t handle a little playful fun,” Lelesia said.

  “You’re supposed to be a high-ranking officer of an elite unit,” Titanetta replied, pushing a finger into the chevrons and stars of Lelesia’s uniform. “Act like one sometime, would you?”

  “No promises,” Lelesia chuckled.

  Titanetta scowled at her as she turned her attention to Captain Blanche and Bernard. “And what were you two doing!? Fighting with each other again over the smallest, stupidest things? You’re both higher rankings, too!”

  “Bunch of idiots,” Titanetta said, her fairy glossmar wings vibrating with anger. “If you two idiots had done your actual job, then I wouldn’t be this busy, would I!?”

  “Things had certainly got out of hand,” Blanche said.

  “Well, how about next time you don’t try to kill a VIP in our protection, would you?” Bernard replied.

  “Well, how about next time you try to refuse orders from General Headquarters?” Blanche said, snapping his head towards the dragon.

  “Don’t you have like a million lives!?” Bernard retorted to the phoenix. “Just take it on the chin and die a few times!”

  “You try dying a few times. Let’s see how you like it, you overgrown lizard!?” Blanche said, grabbing the cuff of Bernard’s uniform.

  “Oh ya. Then how about I kill you a few times, you overgrown bird!?” Bernard replied, also grabbing the cuff of Blanche’s uniform.

  Titanetta hopped and, with the assistance of her wings, rose in the air, then came down and smashed a fist into both of their heads.

  “Idiots! You want to fight. Do it somewhere else. Not in my hospital!” Titanetta roared.

  “Sorry…” both Blanche and Bernard said together, nursing their sudden head pain.

  Captain Blanche and Bernard coughed in chagrin, then left to see to the rest of their soldiers within AXIS and SETI.

  “Well, the rest of you will be fine enough,” Titanetta said, finishing her inspections and analysis. She looked at Aster and Garrod. “That limb will take some time to be regrown, but you should make a full recovery. And so will you, Aster.” She threw an annoyed glare at Lelesia. “At least you didn’t lose any limbs.”

  Lelesia shrugged. “I just wanted to beat Aster up a little bit.”

  Titanetta rolled her eyes as Garrod sighed with relief, looking over the stump of his arm.

  “As for our residence princess from the moon,” Titanetta began. “She has no injuries to speak of, either physical or mental. I give her a clean bill of health.”

  Selenia looked relieved as she sat quietly, trying not to draw attention to herself.

  “But as for what happened with her previously, I cannot say,” Titanetta ended. “I’m not an expert in matters concerning Proto Particles.”

  Selenia twitched, looking down, fiddling with her fingers.

  Aster put a reassuring hand on her shoulder, and she gave him a faint smile.

  “Alright. I have others to see to. Just make sure I don’t have to see you again,” Titanetta said, then walked off. “Or you’ll have more to be concerned about than a little bodily injury!”

  If you come across this story on Amazon, be aware that it has been stolen from Royal Road. Please report it.

  Then, from the entrance off to the side, Fia arrived, rolling Saphie in on a wheelchair. Both of them had numerous bandages and gauze pads on them. Saphie especially was a mummy. Aster would have chuckled until he remembered that Saphie was a flesh mimic, a creature from the depths.

  “Well, aren’t you looking quite well?” Lelesa said to Fia as she looked over the harpy. “But then again, you are a child of the Labyrinth.” Lelesia hadn’t been holding back like she had with him and had more seriously fought with her. Yet, his sister Fia had already mostly recovered.

  Fia gave Lelesia a sour glare. “No thanks to you. I’ll file a protest to General Headquarters against AXIS!”

  “Fia Lethea,” Lelesia chuckled. “What happened to that little harpy girl I met so long ago who fell into my web?” She waved Fia off. “You should learn to relax some more. Besides. It wouldn’t matter anyhow.”

  “You!” Fia ground out. “...And what happened to the Lelesia who would weave a funny web and laugh at me whenever I got stuck in it?” Fia grit her teeth at Lelesia. “And never going along with the whims of others?”

  “She grew up,” Lelesia replied calmly, seriously. “Though it seems like you never did, girl!” Lelesia pointed a finger at Fia’s chest, her crimson spider eyes growing dark, as Fia glowered back at her. “After all, whatever happened to that traitorous sister of yours who sided with those Settlement Front Alliance bastards!” Fia vibrated, looking ready to explode.

  “Don’t you talk about my sister!” Fia roared.

  “Whatever,” Lelesia started, dropping the matter. “File your protests with General Headquarters if you want. This whole incident will just be swept under the rug. It won’t go anywhere anyway. So, how about we just make up and be friends again?” Lelesia held out a claw. Fia slapped it away with an arm-wing.

  Lelesia turned away from Fia, ignoring the death glares she sent her way, silence falling upon them.

  “Saphie!” Fafapan said, flying out of the safety of Garrod’s long silver hair. The little pixie rushed to the wheelchair bound flesh mimic, hugging the exposed head of her mummified body. Saphie attempted a weak, tired smile. Getting squished by the foot of a mobile frame, a giant humanoid machine many tons heavier than you, was not good for your health. No surprise there.

  They all looked as the little pixie nearly cried over the flesh mimic.

  “You know, you remind me a lot of my father and mother,” Lelesia said to Aster suddenly.

  Aster perked up, looking at Lelesia from where he sat.

  “What do you mean?” Aster asked.

  Lelesia chuckled in response, not bothering to respond, instead turning her attention towards Selenia, who sat by him, trying not to look at Lelesia’s crimson spider eyes.

  Lelesia patted Selenia’s back, causing her to jump where she sat in surprise. “Hey, moonbutt, you worry too much! If I really wanted to kill you, you’d already be sliced up in a thousand pieces, fertilising the soil of one of these farms in Alsium Two.”

  Selenia turned her gaze up towards Lelesia, and they stared at each other for several moments. Then, numerous long, sharp, and deadly spider black limbs broke out of her back, the sharp ends pointed straight at Selenia as she recoiled backwards in fright.

  “Boo!” Lelesia laughed.

  “That’s not funny!” Selenia stammered in anger.

  Aster chuckled weakly while Garrod and Fia sighed.

  Lelesia chuckled in a chittering manner, her mouth full of fangs on display. “Eh. I didn’t really care about any of this to begin with, even if my mother and father ordered us to kill you.” Lelesia looked at them all. “The only reason I’m even here is that someone had to babysit these idiots since AXIS has no shortage of idiots like SETI. And my mother and father asked me to do it.”

  Lelesia sighed as she put her claws on her hips. “Well, it seems like my mother and father were both right about you being a dangerous threat, even if you look harmless.” She stared at Selenia as she wilted under the pressure of Lelesia’s gaze, then shrugged. “Oh well.”

  Then, another group of AXIS soldiers entered.

  Aster recognised Etoile among them. Etoile stared back at him as they made their way to them. They carried large helpings of food, likely forced upon them by the medical staff.

  He was rather hungry now that he thought about it.

  Lelesia motioned for Etoile to come over with a happy, fanged smile.

  Etoile was heavily injured, though well enough to walk on his own two feet. Though that wasn’t surprising. After all, getting blown up in a mobile frame after it had gotten hit by Proto Particle beams did that to you.

  A tenseness hit all of them as Etoiled approached. Selenia crossed her arms. She refused to acknowledge the pilot of the mobile frame who had attempted to kill her. Garrod sighed, feeling the missing stump of his arm where a kinetic shell explosion from the mobile frame’s kinetic rifle had blown it right off. Fia didn’t look happy. Fafapan glared at the pilot of the mobile frame, who had squished her friend with its giant foot, and she did so on behalf of her friend as Saphie looked quite pleased in contrast. It appeared she didn’t mind getting squished by the foot of a mobile frame.

  Etoile approached them, calm and composed, silent. Lelesia wrapped an arm around him, giving him a questioning look.

  Several moments passed, then Etoile sighed.

  Etoile passed Aster his food, a container full of simple sandwiches. “Here,” he said. “We already had enough to eat. They pretty stuffed us full with as much food as they could.”

  Aster still felt famished, even after all the sandwiches that Captain Bernard had passed around earlier.

  Aster looked at the food thrown into his lap, then at Etoile. He didn’t show any remorse about what he had done. Rather, he looked sure of his actions. What had he said earlier? If people could have a meal together, then they can’t be that bad?

  Aster took a sandwich from the container, then bit into it. Thanks,” Aster muttered as he chewed on the sandwich.

  He passed one of the sandwiches to Selenia, who looked at him with a sceptical look, then at Etoile. After several moments, she took the sandwich offered to her, then began eating it too. Aster passed the container around. Everyone else took one, then started eating their selected one in silence.

  “...Now, say you’re sorry,” Lelesia said suddenly.

  Etoile glanced at Lelesia for several moments, then sighed.

  Etoile stared down at Selenia, who chewed in delicate bites as befitting her upbringing as a princess. “...I’m sorry for trying to kill you.”

  “There you go!” Lelesia laughed, patting Etoile on the back. She also looked at Selenia. “I’m also sorry for trying to kill you! Now we’re all friends again, right?”

  They all looked at each other. None of them looked sure of what to think.

  “Okay!” Saphie cheerfully chirped from her wheelchair.

  “...okay?” Selenia added, glancing at Saphie, then at Etoile and Lelesia. “Sure, we can all be friends again. I guess…”

  Aster didn’t think it was that simple. Or… was it really that simple?