23
The Ark, Midnight.
Andersen's room.
The Deputy Chief had finished work for the day and was laying down to get some rest, the low hum of his life-saving devices filling the room.
But then he received a call. And not just a call, but one from Enikk.
"Hm..." Andersen picked up his phone. "Yes, Enikk? Is it an emergency? You don't usually call, let alone at this hour."
"Neither. But I wanted confirmation on something, Andersen."
"Shoot."
"Commander Hoopa's recent medical records. Would you allow me access to them?"
Andersen paused and sat up. "...What for?"
"Confirmation. There have been a few anomalies reported regarding him."
Andersen stiffened. Then he slowly said, "...Anomalies how? Commander Hoopa is under my direct command. If there are any problems-"
"No problem. Just curiosity. And also... I want to help my friend."
Andersen blinked. "Friend? You have one?"
"Yes. Commander Hoopa."
Andersen paused. Then he let out a soft chuckle. "Well I'll be damned. Guess he is my kid. Making friends with all sorts of weirdos..."
"...Pardon?"
Andersen froze. Then he sighed. "...I must be tired. I'm usually more careful." He paused. "For old time's sake, pretend you didn't hear that- Wait. If you're seeing his medical records, you'll find out anyway..." Andersen rubbed his face. "...Fine. Yes, he's my son. Mine and Lilith's."
Enikk was silent. Then she said, "I see. That explains a great deal. But also... not what I was curious about."
"Hm?" Andersen blinked, processing Enikk's words. "...What were you curious about then?"
"It has come to my attention that Commander Hoopa developed a monomolecular blade with enough durability to cut through a Rapture's limb. That was what he used against the Tyrant-Class Chatterbox."
Andersen paused. Then his eyes widened in surprise. "A monomolecular blade? That's how he cut through the Rapture's limb? No, he DEVELOPED it?"
"Yes. I received confirmation that he did so in the recycling center of the Outpost with a box of scraps."
Andersen's eye twitched. "You're telling me he made that in a box of scraps while it took entire development teams to create Scarlet's blade?"
"Yes. And he appears to believe it is a straightforward process. Moreover, he states, I quote, 'Martial arts is the art of amplifying force via kinetic chains. If I just make the first cut, I can cleave through everything else. Come on, it isn't that complicated.'"
"...That's not how martial arts OR physics works."
"Indeed. Thus, my request to review his medical records."
"...You have it. But let me know immediately what you found."
Andersen gave Enikk permission. And as he did, he thought back to that report.
A 50% match to him.
A 48% match to Lilith.
A 2% match to anomalous material...
Andersen paused, thinking. Then he slowly said, "Enikk."
"Yes, Andersen?"
"...You know about my bloodtype, right?"
"Yes. We discussed this prior to the V.T.C. incident. It was also the reason why you were in a forced coma. Why do you ask?"
Andersen leaned forward, lacing his fingers together, wracking his mind. "...It's a particular protein on my blood cells that makes it special. A modified Rhesus factor. Commander Hoopa lacks that. But he does share my bloodtype."
Like Andersen, Commander Hoopa was O-. But unlike Andersen, he was Rh Null.
But...
Enikk was quiet. Then she said, "Analysis complete. Confirmed. Commander Hoopa's genetic structure is a complete match for you and Miss Liliweiss. But his X-chromosome has been edited."
"Edited?" Andersen clenched his hands. "Those V.T.C. bastards...!"
"It isn't detrimental. In fact, it's beneficial. Individuals with Rh Null bloodtypes cannot receive transfusions, and there are various somatic concerns. However, it appears that the genetic expression of the edited X-Chromosome has counteracted the downsides of having Rh Null."
"How so?" Andersen frowned. "Explain. In detail."
"Of course. To begin with, Rh Null is extraordinarily rare. While not as rare as your Rh X, it is still quite rare. However, it comes with various drawbacks and health issues. Individuals with this bloodtype typically suffer from chronic hemolytic anemia due to abnormal red blood cell shapes and reduced cell lifespan."
Andersen paused. "...Mary said in the report his readings were normal though."
"Correct. Which is what the edited chromosome entails. Rh X is a dominant trait. Rh Null Type is a recessive trait. Miss Liliweiss had neither and possessed simple Rh Negative. However, her chromosome was edited to include Rh Null Type."
Andersen frowned. "...So what does it mean then? How does that matter?"
Enikk hummed and said, "This is a hypothesis. Not much is known about Rh X. And there are no known descendants with it. While we presume that your recessive gene for Rh Null Type is normal... what if it has mutated further?"
Andersen was quiet. Then he rubbed his beard and said, "...From what you're telling me, Rh Null is the lack of any Rhesus factor. At least, it should be. But since Rh X is an unknown antigen... what? The Rh Null factor that Hoopa inherited mutated to account for that?"
"Yes. That or it was edited to account for that."
Andersen paused, mulling it over. "...And you believe that explains his superhuman abilities?"
"Perhaps. It is hard to tell." Enikk sighed. "Commander Hoopa operates from clear heuristics built upon valid axioms. In short, there is a method to his madness that is undeniably valid. Anyone who followed his steps should be able to replicate it. But the fact that he can perceive those steps is the problem. It's similar to the Library of Babel."
Andersen blinked. "The what now?"
"Imagine an infinite library that accounted for every single permutation of letters, spacing, and punctuation possible. Within that infinite library, all possible written knowledge is stored. A majority of it is pure chaos. Unintelligible nonsense. But there exists a true copy of every written knowledge that could, has, or ever will be." Enikk paused. "...It appears that Commander Hoopa possesses the ability to pluck those intelligible copies of knowledge as he pleases."
Andersen was quiet. Then he slowly said, "You're telling me that it's not intuition or talent. It's not even genius. It's that he somehow can see the pattern in the noise? It's perception?"
"Yes. If Rh X is a bloodtype that affects the physical realm... it is possible that the Rh Null Type Commander Hoopa possesses is one that affects the mental or spiritual realm. And he cannot perceive the fact that it does. For him, it is simply 'natural.' And in hindsight, it's obvious."
"...That's how genius always looks, isn't it? A simple step. But one no one would ever think of taking." Andersen rubbed his chin again, thinking. "...So what do you plan on doing then, Enikk. If you brought this to my attention, you have plans. Plans that affect the entirety of the Ark."
"Yes. Ask him."
Andersen blinked. "Ask him what?"
"Ask him to save you. I'm sure he can. And then, once you are healed, retrieve the Goddess Squad properly. With that, we can commence a Third Surface Reclamation war. And this time, humanity will prevail."
Andersen tensed. "...You're joking. Another reclamation war? Now? No one will buy it."
"Not yet. But soon. I'm certain. My friend is special. Given time, he will win the hearts of the people of the Ark."
"And if he doesn't?"
"Then he will fight the war alone. He is your son and also the son of Miss Liliweiss. You know what he will do."
Andersen let out a long exhale. "...You're right. I hate it, but you're right."
He'd seen it first hand.
The fierce protectiveness of his squad. The barely restrained anger at how they were being treated. The way he had pointedly observed the religious symbology hidden in plain sight. Like the crosses in Missilis...
It was just like him when he was younger. Just like the Legendary Commander who roamed around with the Goddess Squad... except more extreme.
Andersen, at least, was light-hearted back then. He goofed around and made sure to bring some levity into the situation.
Hoopa was the opposite. Like Lilith... like his mother, he was clearly no nonsense. Harsh and forgiving in equal measure... but in a different way.
Lilith had been harsh and forgiving towards the people she loved, pushing them to be the best and forgiving their mistakes.
Hoopa... he was harsh towards those who opposed him and unconditionally forgiving to those walking beside him.
If Andersen had to describe it...
'It's like a fence.'
Hoopa built a domain. Anyone he invited inside, he would lay his life down for. But everyone outside? They met the sharp end of a blade first.
Enikk spoke up and said, "Apologies for disturbing you. Just something to consider, Andersen. Please, rest well."
Andersen chuckled. "Hard to rest after what you dropped on me, Enikk. But... thank you. I'll think about it."
If Hoopa... if his son really could cure him. If he could make it so that 'Deputy Chief Andersen' wasn't restricted to remaining as support staff, but could take to the field again...
Andersen glanced towards the report in his desk. The one with Snow White's message towards him.
"If I still see you and the others as Goddesses of Victory, meet you on the fields once more... The fight hasn't ended..."
Andersen stared off into space and mulled over the words his old subordinate had mentioned.
"...Maybe I should."
He was tired.
He was old.
But.
"...I still need to apologize."
Yes.
He needed to apologize.
Although it wasn't intentional, at the time his girls needed him the most, he wasn't there.
So...
"...Better late than never. Right, Lilith?"
Andersen sighed and closed his eyes, willing himself to rest.
===
When I woke up, I found myself napping on Marian's thighs while she looked down at me.
Marian smiled and said, "Good morning, Commander. Sleep well?"
I blinked and said, "...I didn't even remember falling to sleep, so I must have." I yawned and sat up. "How long did I work?"
"Through a portion of the morning, Commander." Marian moved to my back and gently massaged my shoulders. "You should rest more often, you know?"
"Well, constant motion is the same as rest. Stopping and starting is more energy intensive than momentum..." I stretched and looked around. "Where's Endless-"
"Coffee, secured." Endless walked over, appearing almost out of the blue. Then she placed a cup of coffee in my hands. "Commander, drink."
I blinked and took it from her. "...Thank you?"
Endless nodded and then stared at me with intense violet eyes.
And to the side, I noticed Marian doing the same with her violet eyes...
Wait.
"Marian." I stared at her and wracked my memories. "...Were your eyes always violet?"
Marian smiled. "No. But after I became yours, they changed."
Endless paused and then nodded. "Violet eyes indicate belonging to Commander Hoopa. Understood. As I possess violet eyes, I too, belong to the commander."
"...I mean, you're not wrong, Endless, but semantics matter... We'll clear this up later."
Endless tilted her head. An increasingly human emotion.
Hm.
Yeah.
That pretty much confirmed it.
I didn't know what technology existed for "AI" in this world, but it DEFINITELY wasn't the generative AI that plagued Earth. Instead, it was more like a seed of sentience that grew and adapted.
Mm... like the bottom up approach versus top-down.
But anyway, later issue. For now...
I looked at the set of blades I'd designed and fabricated throughout the night.
A long zweihander for cleaving through larger Rapture units, a katana because of the cool factor, a normal longsword for utility, a rapier for precision strikes, a spear for precision strikes at range...
It was all useful. And all wearable too on my armor.
I'd considered making a bow and arrow, but on thinking about it, I realized that it probably wouldn't be worth it in the long run since the benefit of a blade was the sustained force after the initial impact. Pushing power, not piercing power.
I did keep the schematics though, just to revisit later if I changed my mind.
Picking up my new blades, I tested them on some spare Rapture parts, nodding at the efficacy of each. "Perfect. They're DEFINITELY going to shatter, but they're meant to be disposable anyway."
The hilt was the most important part.
I took inspiration from Attack on Titan and made basically snap-off razor blades. Each one had about five uses before it was worthless, but that was more than enough to clean up against anything that got close to me.
And in a pinch, I could always use Rapture components as makeshift weapons anyway.
Endless stared at the weapons and said, "Commander. This is unoptimal."
I nodded. "It's built that way on purpose, Endless. If something is 'optimal' or 'perfect' then it doesn't have any gaps. It's complete. And something complete becomes unpredictable. However, if it's deliberately flawed like this, you can control for the failure. The weakness becomes a strength."
Endless paused, thinking about it. Then she slowly nodded. "Utilizing transient states as strength... Recorded." She looked at me. "Is this why 'emotions' provide enhancement to humans and Nikke?"
Marian smiled and said, "That's exactly it, Endless! Emotions like love make you fight even harder."
"Understood- No. Recorded. Understanding is still incomplete." Endless absently nodded to herself.
Since I was satisfied with the performance, I set the fabricator to print my blades en masse, making five copies each. Meanwhile, I stretched and said, "You know what everyone else is up to, Mari?"
Marian shook her head. "I've been here with you and Endless all night, so no."
Endless tilted her head, like she was listening to something. Then she said, "Nami, Suri, and Hana are sitting in the lounge of the dormitories listening to music. Anis is sleeping. Neon is tinkering with her equipment. Rapi appears to be journaling."
"Huh?" I looked at Endless. "How do you know that?"
Endless blinked and said, "I can see it."
"...You can see it?"
Endless nodded. "Light bounces. Due to my processing capability, I can perceive anywhere light travels within a certain radius. The radius covers the Outpost. Thus, as long as light reaches it, I can see it, albeit with a small latency."
"...Huh." I stared at Endless. "...Enikk is one of those overprotective and giving friends, I see..."
I could understand HOW Endless did it. I mean, the basic principles were simple.
But the fact that she COULD do it...
I stared at Endless and then said, "How high spec ARE you...?"
Endless looked at me and said, "I, along with Eternity, were produced by Lady Enikk with the aid of CEO Ingrid and authority of Deputy Chief Burningum shortly after Commander's successful reclamation of the eastern power station. Due to the additional resources, Lady Enikk was able to divert some attention and focus into developing personal autonomous agents to respond to her will."
"...Huh."
For want of a nail- No, this was more the butterfly effect, right?
I didn't think that saving the power station would result in enough resources being freed to spend on making a whole synthetic Nikke.
...Then again, Chief Andersen DID say that it was enough power to supply the Ark for two months in a row.
Even if it was damaged, it should still be a substantial boost to resources.
Endless nodded and placed her hand over her heart, her anti-gravity wings floating beside her. "Rest assured, Commander. Although designed as Lady Enikk's agent, I am yours. Whatever service you desire, I am able to provide."
I instinctively shifted my gaze towards her hand and heart. But because of that, I realized just how LITTLE she was actually wearing. Mostly, the fact that her entire midriff was just covered by a thin black mesh, her breasts were completely revealed from the bottom, with the rest only barely concealed by a black leather top. And then there was the fact that she wasn't actually wearing any pants. I just THOUGHT she was wearing pants because she had what looked like leggings on.
But they weren't.
Pants, that is. Oh, they were leggings. And leggings that went up to her thighs and crotch.
But that was all.
No connecting fabric WHATSOEVER.
And only a thin patch of darker black cloth miraculously floating over her groin saved her modesty.
...Though I wonder if you could even consider that modesty at this point...
Marian immediately narrowed her eyes and grabbed my hand before placing it on her chest. "Hmph. Mine are bigger, Commander."
I laughed. Then, moving my hand, I pulled Marian into a hug and kissed her cheek. "Oh, I'm well aware. I was just caught off guard at Endless's clothes... or lack thereof."
Endless tilted her head. "Is my attire a problem?"
"Yes, because it makes me want to do things to you. And it implies I do it often."
Endless blinked. Then she nodded and said, "Understood. Commander is a male. My current form is ideal for reproductive actions-"
Marian narrowed her eyes.
Endless paused. Then she said, "Of course, it would be deterimental to combat performance. I would ask Commander to restrain yourself until further preparations are completed."
After hearing those words, Marian smiled. "Good girl."
Endless's lips twitched into a smile as well. For just a moment.
...Well.
I sure hope no one else fell for me. Because Marian was DEFINITELY a yandere, and she had completely roped Endless in as a helper to keep me to herself...