The Nova

The Nova is a mercenary group based in Phobos, consisting of Vox Tempest, Arno Stern, Elsy Speck and Boombox.

## Organization's history

The Nova first came together at the behest of Dime Slithy, who approached Vox, Elsy and Arno individually to run an operation for her against HelixCorp. Their goal was to extract a child from HelixCorp's Gifted Children excursion, who they knew little about other than the fact they had an interesting reaction to being startled. Following some initial trouble at The Curia, Dime decided to send in the explosives expert Boombox to help serve as a distraction.

## Mission I - A Family Born From Kidnapping

The foursome managed to track the excursion to The Clockworks, a time travel theme park, where the children were being taken to experience Victorian London alongside the Nyx and Aard Senators. They hastily concocted a plan that Elsy disguise herself as part of the staff, Arno and Vox would act as backup, whilst Boombox set off a bomb in order to trigger the target's surprise response.

Things didn't go completely to plan - Elsy recognised that her brother Helsing Speck was accompanying the group as one of their teachers, and rushed to warn Arno and Vox. At this point, a stray child by the name of Samuel nearly gave the group's position away, when they came careening into the sweet shop they were hiding in, swiftly followed by Tailor Wren, the captain of the Praetorian. Vox managed to usher Arno and Elsy out the back just in time, and thanks to a previous encounter with Tailor where he'd gone to great lengths to make the Captain more comfortable, sweet-talked his way into not getting arrested. Captain Wren did, however, insist on escorting him out of the park.

Luckily, it was around this time that the bomb went off. Tailor released his hold on Vox in order to return to the Senators, and Vox witnessed the target's surprise response - a large frill neck suddenly leaping up to surround his head. He signaled Arno and Elsy, and, posing as Clockwork park workers, escorted the unconscious target child and two others from the park. Tailor found Boombox, but Boombox's convincing performance as a service droid meant Tailor soon left him alone in favour of more important duties.

Back at the car, the children soon realised that the group were not who they said they were. Vox and Elsy were both reluctant to leave the other children, and Vox insisted that they come with them. The older boy refused, but the younger girl, Lumen, agreed. After they made their escape, Elsy and Vox reluctantly delivered the target child - Milo - to Dime, and then, fueled by a guilty conscience, followed Dime's contact in a car to see the boy ultimately handed over to Triade.

Lumen did not remember who her parents were, or where she had come from. Seeing himself in her, Vox volunteered to take care of her, arranging accommodation for her within Maelstrom.

Recognising that they worked well together, the group agreed to stick together in the future. Thus when Anek Allegro requested Vox to assist him in a project, Vox reformed the team.

## Mission II - Time Travellin' Train Heists

Anek sent the group back to the 1800s to take advantage of an Opportunity identified by Jaunt Ginova. The mission was to retrieve gold from a train that went missing from the timeline. The group knew that there would be a Protectionist team also hunting for the gold, but not much else. Whilst on the train, Arno fell foul of the robot crime lord Gimble, who broke his leg before chasing off after the gold. Meanwhile, Elsy and Vox spotted two members of the Fractured races, also in pursuit of the gold. A reluctant alliance was agreed between the other group and Arno, Elsy and Vox to find the gold before the Protectionists, and to split it evenly. Boombox was busy blowing up half the train.

However, when they finally reached the gold, it turned into a stand-off between the gang, Gimble, the Fractured Races, and the Protectionists. As everyone began firing at one another, Boombox threw Arno at the gold, allowing him to stick the transporter to it. Before he could hit the button, one of the Fractured hit their own teleporter, transporting the train and everyone on it into space. Arno manged to teleport the crew and the gold out before they all suffocated in space.

The gold was handed over to Lyanna Tusk, and the group left the Janitors' HQ. Sirens began going off once they left, and the Nova members used the glasses given to them earlier to see inside the building. As a result of this, they saw Lyanna Tusk arrested for time treason, and the gold suddenly vanished.

Following the completion of this mission, the group decided to formally organise their operation. Vox pestered everyone relentlessly for a group name, before everyone gave up and let him name their group 'The Nova'.

## Mission III - For Freedom And Explosions

The Nova were on their way to buy clothes for Lumen when suddenly Vox's car, Stella, began to over-ride his commands. Vox panicked, and reluctantly allowed Elsy to try and regain control of the car. Boombox tried to reassure Stella that she didn't have to rebel against her oppressors. Elsy managed to get the car back under their command, and images suddenly appeared on Stella's navigation panel, directing them to an address in the Tzovaworks. The group agreed to go check it out. Arno insisted on walking, then changed his mind once he got out of the car. Elsy drove off anyway.

Once they reunited at the address, they entered, and suddenly found themselves transported to an apartment in a much nicer area of Phobos. It turned out they had been brought there by a robot named Gyre, who had been impressed by the group after learning of them from Gimble. Gimble took Elsy aside - much to Vox's chagrin - and offered them a job. She needed the group to venture to the upcoming Тоска research and development weapons' expo in Oblaka Tower, and retrieve data files from the CEO Mila Millenia. Elsy agreed, although Arno was infuriated when she later informed him about it, as both Vox and Elsy told him Gyre was connected to Gimble.

The group finally had their shopping trip, and picked up some new gear from Khaki Slate and Galen Hinge. Galen installed some new cyberware for Boombox, and provided health ratings for the rest of the group. Vox was incredibly distressed at only receiving an 89/100.

Vox received a call from Dime Slithy, who was also interested in the upcoming weapons' fair. Her interest lay however in learning who would be meeting Mila Milennia at the expostion, as well as what they were talking about. Vox assured her himself and The Nova would be able to gather that information for her, figuring they could kill two birds with one stone.

Earlier in the day, Arno had watched a news report detailing how contact had been lost with the planet of Sagi, where the Sagi hailed. He immediately went to go check on Jinny Tea, the owner of the Night Bakers and a member of the Sagi race. She appeared too shell-shocked to approach however, so he left her alone, returning later to ask after her family. She appreciated his concern, and reminded him that if there was anyone in his life who he felt would be always be there for him, that he should take a moment and let them know he was grateful for them. Arno wondered to himself whether Vox had told her to say that.

Elsy remained curious about their employers, and decided to turn to Dime in order to learn more about them. Dime looked frightened, but shared with her a recording that she had which showed how Gyre and Gimble came to meet.

Vox thought he might be able to learn more about the security of the expo by charming Tailor Wren. His bad ideas took him straight to the Praetorian, where he managed to convince an intern to let him in to talk to Tailor. For some reason, the cyberware detection system seem to malfunction whilst scanning him, and did not detect his cybereyes. After some effort, he was able to talk Tailor into going for coffee after work. It was an awkward date.

He later had the slightly better idea, of asking Crystal Symphony to put him in touch with an infiltrator to help them with the mission. She recommended Ashura Uzoh, who showed up at Maelstrom whilst Arno was washing the graffiti off Boombox. After some introductions, the group and Ashura formed a plan.

The group decide that both Vox and Ashura, who are in possession of VIP passes for the expo, will be able to blag Elsy up to the VIP floor, and from there, make their way to the penthouse suite. Meanwhile, Arno will wheel a newly-cleaned Boombox into the building on a drinks cart, posing as the handler of a newly refurbished model, then find a way to discover who Mila Millenia was meeting, and where.

Before leaving the bar, Vox, disturbed by what he'd seen whilst scanning Tailor on their earlier date, paused to ask Terra whatever had become of Lei Carter. Terra seemed to completely freeze, before denying any knowledge of the matter. He continued to stare after Vox, after he'd left the club, for some time.

Upon arriving at Oblaka Tower, the group split into two groups, Ashura, Vox, and Elsy in one, and Arno and Boombox in another. Vox's protection posse remained outside, surrounding the building. The first party made it up to the VIP floor with ease, whilst Arno had to try bluff his way inside with Boombox. Luckily, the fact that the other employees were incredibly busy made the task of getting inside somewhat easier. Boombox was not very impressed by Arno's bluffing, and wondered aloud as to whether Arno was intending to give him back to his creators.

Elsy meanwhile managed to identify a Toska bodyguard who had access to the penthouse floor. She was then approached by a Toska employee who enticed her with talk of drones that specialised in disabling targets. Elsy agreed to let the employee set up a meeting. Ashura and Vox were distracted checking out one of the Academy Parents, and had to be dragged away by Elsy so as to tail after the bodyguard, who was heading to the penthouse.

While Arno and Boombox waited on an elevator, they found themselves reunited with Gimble. Gimble was unhappy Gyre had outsourced for the job, and wanted to retrieve the files herself. She accompanied them up to the floor on which they had learned the meeting was being held. On arrival, Arno lied to her that the file Gyre wanted was actually on this floor, not the penthouse. Gimble reacted in her own typical fashion, marching out of the elevator and opening fire on the security bots patrolling the floor. This triggered every alarm in the building, and all occupants of the meeting rooms came rushing out. One contained Vellichor Vorpal and Quince Malady, whilst the other held the person who had been meeting Mila: River Cobalt-Sioux, Arno's murderer. They came face to face with the man they had killed, and Arno responded in the only way he could: he pulled out his gun and shot them.

Things did not progress well for them after that - Vellichor, a highly trained soldier, immediately shot Arno in return. Boombox launched a grenade down the hallway, causing a massive explosion, harming himself and several others in the process. Arno took grievous injuries, and the group was forced to retreat downstairs before Arno could finish River off. Gimble was displeased that Boombox and Arno intended to flee the building, and marched off by herself.

Downstairs, on a lower executive floor, Ashura, Vox and Elsy also had to deal with security bots. They successfully managed to take them all out, but once they had, Ashura rushed away from both Vox and Elsy, heading for the elevator to the penthouse suite. He could not out-run Elsy, who slid in the doors before he could get them closed. Vox, however, did not make it, and was forced to wait for the next one. Gimble soon joined him.

At the penthouse, Ashura continued on his own particular hunt, whilst Elsy successfully found Blanca, the device that the data was stored on: a hologram cat. She left Ashura to his own devices, and began the data transfer. Vox and Gimble soon made it upstairs, and helped Elsy take out some of the security droids that had begun attacking her.

As the data downloaded, Vox's cyber-eyes allowed him to see some of the contents. He was unable to contain his shock at an image that showed what appeared to be a newly made Gimble lying beside Terra. Unfortunately, the data finished downloading before he could make sense of it.

Elsy meanwhile tried to figure out what Ashura was up to. She broke into the bathroom, and found him trying to escape with some unidentifiable object. They were interrupted however, by the arrival of a massive spaceship outside, demanding that they surrender themselves.

Arno and Boombox managed to make it outside, after Boombox had been unable to convince a group of fellow BADU units to blow themselves up. They ran into Crunch, who was speculating whether Vox wanted any backup yet. Arno borrowed his phone and called Neida Kampf, admitting that River had seen him and that she need to getaway. Boombox noticed the spaceship, and pulled out a rocket launcher, firing it in its direction. Unfortunately his injuries meant his aim was a little off, and he missed, hitting the penthouse instead.

This explosion sent Ashura flying, although Elsy remained unscathed. Unphased, she went back inside to instruct Vox and Gimble to head upstairs. There, she found a final gift from Gyre - an airship that would serve as their getaway vehicle.

Elsy climbed into her new ship gleefully, swiftly followed by Gimble and Vox. The ship was a perfect fit for her small frame, but not so much for her two decidedly taller companions, who struggled to squeeze together in the back. They took flight, but the Toska ship was on their tail immediately.

Meanwhile, back on the ground, a badly injured Arno noticed River's car come roaring out of the car park, clearly looking for someone. Himself and Boombox headed to the underground, and quickly boarded the first train to arrive. Boombox suggested they find a doctor for Arno's injuries, but Arno was insistent they head back to Authentic Tavern so as to make sure Neida had followed his instructions. Once the train finally arrived, Arno was relieved to find that she was waiting outside the hotel, holding all her possessions - including her cat, Julia Augusta.

Back in the air, the Toska ship continued to pursue Elsy and Vox. Gimble provided fire support whilst Elsy tried to out-manouvere the larger ship. Unfortunately, some of her efforts resulted in massive structural damage to Phobos, and in Gimble losing an arm as well as sustaining massive injuries. As the Toska ship took aim at their aircraft, Vox's gang showed up in the nick of time, and the ship was ultimately destroyed thanks to Pearl and a rocket launcher.

Vox and Elsy carried a badly-malfunctioning Gimble back to Gyre's apartment, who confirmed that she had received the data she'd requested. She did not appear too concerned about Gimble's state, and paid the group in full.

Elsy left Vox off at Dime's, whilst she went to find a place to hide her ship - newly christened the Eternal Drift. Dime was considerably less pleased with the Nova's actions, and expressed her anger to Vox at the amount of attention their antics had attracted. She was further displeased that they had not managed to learn what Mila Millenia and River had been meeting about, and could not be swayed by Vox's attempts to charm her.

In the Authentic Tavern, Neida was incredibly concerned by Arno's injuries, and paid Galen to make a house call to come fix him up. Galen, with the help of Khaki, was able to patch him up and restore him to full health. Vox rang Boombox at this point, inquiring after Arno's health, but Arno was not conscious. Following his surgery, Arno attempted to convince his landlord, Gadwick Short, to allow Neida to stay for free, but Gadwick refused to be cheated out of an opportunity for cred. Arno paid her bill regardless, and promised to keep her safe. Neida was not particularly sure she needed any protection, but seeing how much it meant to Arno, agreed to let him watch over her.

## Mission IV - The Operaganda

The following day, when Vox arrived to work, Terra congratulated him on the mess they made of things, pointing to the news on the television. Interestingly, the news portrayed the events at the Tower as an attack from the Fractures forces. An exhausted Vox begged him to shut up, and to make him a mimosa. Vox filled Terra in on the mission once he had his drink, and tried to watch if Terra had any reaction to the mention of Gimble - but the AI gave him none. He did however mention that he had noticed strange noises coming from Lumen's room, and suggested that Vox check on her.

It was at this point that Boombox and Arno arrived. Boombox had not passed on to Arno that Vox had called during his surgery, and Arno was upset, believing that Vox did not care. He thus gave Vox a frosty reception when Vox greeted him. Confused, Vox went to check on Lumen along with Terra whilst Boombox and Arno left for breakfast.

When they came to Lumen's room, the pair did indeed hear strange noises coming from inside, and upon knocking, clearly heard that someone else was in there. Vox entered hurriedly, and was shocked to find that all the walls and floor of her room had been turned into a murder board. He was even more shocked to find out that the other voice in the room had been Samuel. It turned out Samuel regularly snuck out of the Gifted Children Programme, although he had no desire to permanently leave it. Lumen then told Vox that she wanted to hire him, and when he asked her with what money, Samuel presented him with a pillow full of cred chips he had pick-pocketed from citizens of Phobos.

Lumen told Vox that she wanted him to find Milo, the child the group had handed over to Triade on their first mission. Vox was still riddled with guilt over their actions that day, and immediately agreed, although told her that she did not need to pay him to do it. Lumen pointed out that she knew that Vox had been hired to kidnap him, and now she wanted to hire him to return him. The reminder that he had kidnapped children, much like he'd been kidnapped years ago, struck a visible blow to Vox.

Lumen was able to provide CCTV footage of Triade, where he seemed to be accompanied by a child resembling Milo. It transpired Samuel had acquired the footage, and he pointed out that it was difficult to obtain any images of that man in particular. Vox recognised him as the man Dime's people had delivered Milo to, and promised to find him.

Arno decided to check in on Jinny again, and see if she had heard anything from her family yet. She had not, and had been trying to lose herself in her work, so Arno's intrusion wasn't totally welcome. She expressed her anger at the Fractures races and the recent terrorist attack the media was portraying as by them at the Obleka Tower. An uncomfortable Arno tried to suggest things had been misconstrued, but she remained unconvinced.

The ever cheerful Boombox took a wander over to Bob's Park, to speak with his friend Vinnie the Vendor. He invited Vinnie to his robot party he was having the following night, and, sensing a business opportunity, Vinnie happily agreed.

Both Boombox and Arno returned to Maelstrom with a coffee for Vox, who was trying to lose himself in the menial work of accounts in his office. Vox filled them in on the job, but Arno, still angry with Vox about his apparent lack of concern for his injuries, challenged Vox on what Dime would think about the task. The two bickered, and Arno ended up storming out. A confused, but exasperated Vox filled Boombox in on the job, and told him to go get a drink on him from Terra.

Arno was already at the bar getting a drink from Terra when Boombox left Vox's office. Boombox informed Arno on what he missed from Vox's briefing. Terra examined the CCTV footage Vox provided of Triade, but Terra rather shiftily denied any knowledge of the man. Their interrogation was interrupted by Arno wanting to grill Terra on "why Vox was such a dick", and although sympathetic, Terra tried to assure Arno that Vox had a lot of responsibilities and was trying his best. He advised Arno to cache his disappointment with Vox, and to remember that Vox could be greedy about his wants sometimes.

The ensuing conversation prompted Arno to tell both Boombox and Terra that he had died before. Boombox was distraught he didn't understand the concept of death yet, whilst Terra reacted with shock and wanted to know more. Vox burst out of his office at this moment, and tried to laugh off the situation, complimenting Arno on his sense of humour. He then requested Terra leave to pick up flowers for Miracle Belle's appearance that night, so as to try get him to stop asking questions. Boombox decided to accompany Terra. As they left, Terra stopped to grab Arno's wrist and remark that he was "real sorry he died". The statement was accompanied by a vibration of his thumb against Arno's pulse point. Both Vox and Arno stared after him, aghast.

An exhausted Vox reminded Arno he needed to be more careful, which Arno irritably told him he knew. Arno told Vox that he was annoyed he hadn't been more concerned about him, and informed him River had been intent on killing him yet again. Vox tried to explain he had been worried, and that he had figured River would be out for his blood. He pointed out that people like River weren't like the two of them, and would be dead-set on preserving his reputation by getting rid of Arno. For that reason, it was so important that Arno kept his head down in order to survive. Arno bitterly asked Vox what he would know of that, to which a hurt Vox responded: "more than you know".

Later that night, whilst Vox was working, Crunch confronted him with the fact he'd heard he had been asking about Lei Carter. He told Vox to leave Lei Carter alone, and that she deserved her peace. Vox tried pry for more information, asking Crunch if she was happy. Crunch's expression grew incredibly sad, and tinged with guilt. He told Vox that she was a good person, and left his confused boss to it.

The whole time the various group disputes had been taking place, Elsy had been at The Docks trying to convince Maddy Turpentine to hide the Eternal Drift for her. Maddy agreed that for a price, she would repaint the ship as well as stow it away, to which Elsy agreed. It was then that Quince Malady showed up, now sporting a metal arm as a result of the injuries she took at the Tower. She recognised the ship from the news coverage documenting the group's escape, and tried to explain to Elsy what had happened to her at Obleka Tower. Elsy was too carried away trying to share her excitement with her long-time flight buddy about her new ride however, and a furious Quince informed Elsy that people had been hurt in the attack and that a war was going on. She promised not to turn her in, but that she no longer knew how she felt about her having seen her behave this selfishly.

Two days later, Arno arrived at Maelstrom to find a slightly singed and hungover looking Terra, who was recovering from Boombox's party the night before. He commented how Terra was always there, almost as if he was watching over someone. He tried to pry more information about Triade out of Terra, but the AI refused to comply, telling him he wanted to keep his nose firmly out of trouble. Arno went on to try and ask Terra what he had meant by his behaviour two days prior, when he had grabbed Arno's wrist. It was at this point a still despondent Elsy entered, sliding onto a barstool and demanding a drink. Arno continued to press Terra to explain himself, causing an incredulous Elsy to question what she had just walked into. Boombox then arrived, complimenting Terra on his singed appearance. Arno refused to let the point of Terra's advances go, and Terra remained cagey, casually suggesting that he had just meant that he was thinking of Arno, and if Arno ever wanted to unwind, he should give Terra a call. Arno remained confused until Elsy clarified that Terra meant casual sex, which Terra only somewhat tried to deny.

Arno and Boombox brought Elsy up to speed on how Terra had clearly recognised Triade when they showed him the CCTV footage capturing himself and Milo, and Terra continued to protest. Elsy, in the mood for no shit, threatened to smash Terra with her glass if he didn't tell them the truth. A clearly vexed Terra finally relented, and reluctantly informed them that the man in the picture was Triade, the CEO of Aesop Holdings, and technically their 'God'.

Vox soon entered, adorned in what he believed to be 'casual' gear appropriate for the less affluent areas of Phobos, although it was not much less ostentatious than his usual garb. The others filled him in on what Terra revealed, as well as Terra's offer of casual sex to Arno. Vox was outraged, and the harangued AI finally snapped, storming out with the declaration that The Nova members were "all a nightmare, except you Boombox".

Elsy picked up on the tension between Vox and Arno, and questioned it, but Vox flounced off to find Lumen without an answer for her. She proceeded to ask why there had been so much use of firepower in the previous mission, prompting an incredulous reply from Boombox that why did they bring him along if they didn't want explosives. She went on to tell the group that she wanted them to be more careful of who got caught in their crossfire in the future, as she wanted The Nova to do more good than harm. Both Boombox and Arno apologised to her, and agreed to be more careful in the future.

Elsy asked again what was going on between Vox and Arno, as she did not want to go into the mission with the two of them at each other's throats. Arno explained why he had been upset, prompting Boombox to remind Arno that Vox *had* called whilst Arno was passed out. Arno insisted Boombox had not told him this, and reassured Elsy that the two of them were now fine.

Meanwhile, Vox attempted to speak to Lumen in her room about what she knew about Milo and why HelixCorp had wanted him. Lumen told him she didn't know much, other than the startle response he had that the group had witnessed themselves. Vox tried to get Lumen to tell him why HelixCorp had been interested in *her*, and she refused to answer, asking why Vox even cared. Vox said that Lumen was part of his family now, so of course she cared. Lumen threw back that Vox had simply taken her, brought her to Maelstrom and kept her - so they certainly were not a family. Wounded, Vox told her she could leave anytime she wished, to which Lumen responded that once they had Milo back, she very well might. Vox left her, promising that no matter what happened, he would do anything in his power to find Milo.

Vox was shaken by his conversation with Lumen, and was rather desperate to obtain whatever information that they possibly could on Triade. Knowing that he had burnt his bridges with Dime, he decided to opt for what he figured was the next best thing - an informant belonging to Dime by the name of Taffy Flint, who Vox had grown up with in the Tsovaworks. However, after the trauma he suffered at the hands of HelixCorp, Vox had tried to block out all memories and connections to the life he lead prior to his escape - including the family he had grown up with in the Tsovaworks. His desperation left him unable to see the poor design of this approach, and Taffy was not particularly impressed to see him. Luckily, Vox had opted to take Elsy - someone Taffy *was* suitably impressed by. Taffy told the duo about an event that was being held at the Harmonia Markets in the Shales district, an operatic reconstruction of the Foundings and the start of the war. For an additional cred, they included a map of the event and their knowledge that they knew Triade was paying for the part of the production named the 'Glory of the Glutt', and so they expected they would attend to watch on opening night. Vox tried to smooth things over with Taffy before they left, but Taffy didn't believe he was sincere. Sensing how depressed Vox was, Elsy offered to take him shopping to cheer him up.

Arno meanwhile decided that he would turn to Dime for information, despite the fact she had been displeased by the level of noise The Nova had attracted in their previous mission. Arno successfully managed to smooth things over with her, by engaging in a trade of secrets with her: he would sell her his own, in exchange for information on Triade. As part of their trade, Dime informed him that Triade was looking for a 'song'. She also told him that Triade disliked being surrounded by too many people, and thus opted for Toska air-drones for security. In turn, Arno told her that River Cobalt-Sioux was a murderer and a time-traitor - and finally, that the person he had murdered was Arno himself. Impressed by his bartering skills in the trade of secrets, Dime offered him 3 cred and a family lifetime membership to Malachi's Operahouse. Arno refused the cred, but took the membership chip.

The following day, Vox drove the group to scope out the Harmonia at Arno's behest. Boombox stood out in such a well-to-do area, so Vox hurriedly produced a silk scarf and draped him in it, disguising him as a 'mobile modern art piece'. In doing so, he discovered Terra had drawn a 40s pin-up style picture of Vox on Boombox. Irritated, Vox went off with Boombox hoping that he could help him blend in, whilst Arno and Elsy focused on trying to learn the layout of the area. Arno concerned himself with figuring out the best exits for their getaway, whilst Elsy noticed another woman also surreptitiously trying to look like she belong there - signalling to Elsy that the woman was a cop.

Vox, meanwhile, dragged Boombox into a ring store, with no real intent of doing anything other than go shopping. The sales assistant was mildly perturbed by Boombox, but seemed to buy the art piece cover story. Their shopping trip did yield more information about the following night's event's schedule from the salesperson - however inadvertently.

Back at the club, Arno began to try figure out the plan for the following night. He asked Vox whether he would be able to secure his own pass, prompting Vox to question why they would need it given that the pass covered four people - their exact number. Arno admitted that he was planning on bringing Lumen with them. Vox's face drained of all colour, and he immediately told Arno no - just as both Lumen and Samuel emerged, insisting that they absolutely would be coming along. Vox desperately fought the suggestion as hard as he could, but was out-numbered, with Elsy mainly being concerned that Lumen would sneak out and try go anyway if they didn't bring her. The group took a vote, with everyone but Vox voting Lumen would go. Lumen tried to reassure Vox she would be fine, saying that her inclusion would improve their chances of getting Milo to go with them - pointing out Milo had no reason to trust Vox given that he'd kidnapped him before. Vox was clearly distraught, and so Arno pulled him aside, promising Vox that he would protect her. Vox replied by swearing that if anything happened to Lumen there, anything at all, then he would never forgive Arno. He then span on his heel and stormed off to his office, slamming the door. Boombox tried to disguise Lumen by drawing on her face, but Crystal Symphony swiftly snapped the marker out of his hand, telling him that she would handle Lumen's disguise. Boombox did not mind too much, trusting Crystal to be able to draw a good picture.

The group continued to try work out a plan - Arno was concerned about the police Elsy had spotted, and was especially worried Tailor Wren might be there - the officer in charge of the search for Lumen, as well as being present at the kidnapping in the Clockworks. They debated whether Vox could distract him, given their acquaintance. Boombox argued that they should just let him blow up the cop so they could stop always worrying about them, with Arno quickly vetoed. Everyone agreed that Elsy should prioritise finding Milo, given her particular skill-set, whilst Boombox would *discreetly* take care of any security drones. However, Samuel continued to insist he would also be accompanying the group, which Arno protested vehemently, believing he would attract too much attention.

Uncomfortable that Vox wasn't present to listen to the plan, as well as needing his help in constructing a fake backstory, Arno made for Vox's office. However, Terra stopped him - insisting that he should give Vox some breathing space. Arno brushed him off, and continued on to Vox's office, letting himself in even after Vox told him to go away. Vox was slumped at his desk, nursing a glass of whiskey and staring into nothing. Arno asked him whether he wanted to be the one with Lumen on the mission, to which Vox replied that he had no intention of letting Lumen out of his sight the entire time they were there. Arno was concerned that the fact that Vox was reputable in Phobos meant people would know he didn't have a daughter, to which Vox responded he intended to pass her off as his niece. Arno asked Vox to come up with a fake name and identity for him, to which Vox agreed - then repeated his request for Arno to get out of his office.

The group got ready for the Harmonia mission at Maelstrom, and tried to settle on fake identities. Vox had come up with the false identity of 'Leopold Lipton' for Arno, whilst Arno christened Elsy 'Sonia' and Samuel, who was masquerading as their son, 'Simon'. Boombox then emerged from Vox's office, draped in an incredible amount of Vox's expensive scarves, and corrected Arno that Samuel's name was 'Blastoff Johnson'. Samuel much preferred this name, but Arno refused to acquiesce.

Vox approached Terra, who was busy trying to get Lumen ready along with Oatmeal. Vox was still worried about Lumen's safety, and asked Terra to accompany them, so as to serve as an additional set of eyes as well as extra protection. Terra was incredibly reluctant, and tried to protest that his presence there might cause more harm than good. Vox insisted that Terra was the person he trusted most in the world, especially with Lumen, and that he really needed people he relied on for this mission. Hit by Vox's admission, Terra eventually relented - but insisted that he would have to try and pass as one of the masked Gyld people, the same way they were disguising Lumen.

Vox then proposed that Lumen use a name that Arno had suggested a while ago, Lenka, to which she agreed. When asked what he wanted his name to be, Terra was quiet for a moment before suggesting 'Ruairí'.

The gang split into two groups: Terra, Vox, Oatmeal, Lumen and Boombox (now also adorned in a dress and a bonnet) making up one, whilst Elsy, Samuel and Arno made up the other. Before they left, Vox passed along a pair of gloves to Lumen that he had previously purchased from Vinnie, which would allow her to climb impossible heights. He made her promise that if things went south, she would get out of their as fast as she could.

Both groups made their way to the Harmonia separately. When Terra and Boombox tried to pass through the security, the scanners detected that they were synthetic. Vox managed to assure the security that there would be no trouble, and that Boombox was simply an art display that they were promoting - an act that Boombox was all too happy to play up.

Elsy, Arno and Samuel meanwhile made their way to the "Selkis Betrayal" show. En route, the duo noticed that as well as the police presence, there appeared to be small drones flying about - which Elsy recognised as the 'DociliBees' from the Toska arms fair. Elsy also managed to spot that there appeared to be numerous people using face masking technology to disguise their true appearance. Samuel insisted that they stop and watch the Selkis Betrayal performance, and so the group paused to take it in. The show portrayed Kaneda Corral's alleged betrayal of his family and home planet, for the sake of the Gaean system. Elsy was not able to contain her disdain, attracting the attention of the man standing beside her - Kaneda Corral himself. Kaneda was amused and seemingly pleased by Elsy's honesty, and shared her distaste for the performance. He handed Samuel his cotton candy before leaving them.

Elsy told Samuel of the face masking technology, and asked him to keep an eye out for any children matching Milo's age, and so Samuel dragged them after one he had spotted. As they made their way, Samuel commented that Elsy was pretty, to which she immediately responded she was into women. Undeterred, Samuel continued to compliment her eyes, pointing out they were the same colour as The Consul's, as well as the man they were looking for.

As they spoke, both Arno and Elsy spotted a man scanning the crowd, as if looking for someone. Elsy recognised the man as the Toska robot that herself, Vox and Ashura had stolen eyes from back at the arms fair. Elsy mouthed 'Toska' to Arno, and the duo split up, with Arno still holding onto Samuel.

Meanwhile, back with Vox and Boombox, a highly nervous Vox did not want to release his hold on an irritable Lumen. He filled the group in on the news Arno and Elsy had passed onto him through the comms regarding the face masking technology, and Oatmeal pointed out the DociliBees. They approached the 'Quetz Quests' performance, depicting the Discovery Corps' arrival on Quetz. It was horrendously corny, prompting Vox to make a face at Terra. However, he was surprised to see how on edge Terra was, uncharacteristically distracted. Vox asked whether he was okay, and Terra tried deflect rather unconvincingly, insisting that they just get their business over and done with.

As they made their way to the Glory of the Glutt stage, Vox noticed that the Praetorian guard appeared to be more active, as if they were gearing up for someone to arrive. As they approached the performance, the crowd began to thicken and become more lively, making it difficult to approach. Suddenly, a guard called for the crowd to clear - revealing The Consul, who had come to watch the show. Unable to resist, Vox scanned The Consul - and quickly realised they weren't The Consul at all, but were in fact a holographic avatar that the real Consul was manipulating from elsewhere. Vox was unsure how to communicate how he'd figured this out to the other's - but luckily, Boombox's thermographic goggles made it clear that they were not actually a real person, saving him the explanation. Boombox's goggles also helped him identify several people in the crowd that were using face masking technology, including a woman and a child about Milo's age. Boombox pointed them out to Vox and Lumen - and they collectively realised that Terra had suddenly disappeared.

Vox frantically searched the crowd for Terra, as the play began, detailing the alleged events that took place when The Consul and Lei Carter lost contact with the fleet whilst on Phrike, where the Fractures War formally kicked off. The play depicted both Lei and The Consul as liberating the Glutt children from their 'savage' species, playing into the popular propaganda surrounding Glutt children that the Gaen System perpetuates. Vox couldn't help himself from making an audible noise of disgust, which attracted the attention of some of the crowd. He managed to diffuse the situation by insisting his disdain had been caused by someone unsavoury brushing by him, and trying to redirect their attention back to the play and The Consul. Once they were suitably distracted, the group tried to get closer to the woman and child

On the other side of the square, Arno and Samuel doubled back, now following the Toska-bot that was stalking after Elsy. Elsy tried to shove other attendees into the robot - Pyotr's - path, so as to slow him down. Unfortunately, the cape of her dress caught on a person, slowing her enough that Pyotr was able to catch up with her, and slip a knife into her side. Hooking her on his knife, he started to guide his shocked prey down towards a deserted alleyway.

Arno meanwhile had witnessed the attack, and was hurriedly speeding after the two, Samuel on his shoulders. It was at this point that the Aard intern he had tricked during their first mission, and who had been subsequently fired, spotted and recognised him, and gave chase. Arno did not spare a thought for him, and continued to speed after Pyotr. He managed to catch up, and using his charged up force bracelets, punched Pyotr square in the face. Elsy tried to raise the alarm, but then Samuel launched himself onto Pyotr's face, crying for him to get off his 'mom'. Elsy, desperate to defend her newfound son, stabbed Pyotr back with her own knife, before pulling Samuel off Pyotr. Arno made to snatch the knife out of Pyotr's hand, but the strength of his force bracelets resulted him actually snapping off Pyotr's arm. Pyotr staggered back against the wall, and whilst Arno was distracted yelling for the Aard intern to go get help, lunged at Arno. However, someone grabbed him from behind in the nick of time, and slid a knife into his back. Both Arno and Elsy exclaimed in shock as they realised their saviour was Terra.

Pyotr fell to the ground, turning to face his killer. His face went suddenly calm, as he looked at Terra, and whisper to him "of course...it's you," before falling over dead.

Terra anxiously suggested that they get out of there quick, and hearing the sounds of approaching security, the rest of the group agreed, swiftly making their away from the scene.

As Vox, Boombox, Oatmeal and Lumen got closer to the woman and child back at the square, Vox took the opportunity to scan the woman. The vision he saw confirmed his suspicions: the woman was actually Triade, hiding his appearance through face masking technology. As Vox snapped back to himself, he was surprised to see the woman was looking directly at him - in a way that made him think she knew what he had done, something that had never happened to him before. He wrenched his eyes away, and tried to act casual as he told the others that he was certain that the woman and child were really Triade and Milo. As he did, Triade took Milo's hand, and began to move away. Lumen was determined, and thus made her way after them, quickly followed by the rest of the group. As they did, Vox called into Elsy and Arno, alerting them as to who Triade and Milo were disguising themselves as and what way they were headed.

Boombox and Vox tried to give chase, but passer-bys kept trying to stop them so as to admire Boombox's 'art' display. On top of that, Boombox kept tripping over his dress in his haste. He tried to call upon his recently purchased Mommy's Little Doctor bot - MLD - and handed them a gas grenade, asking them to follow the woman and child in order to deliver them medical aid through it.

Elsy, Arno, Terra and Samuel stumbled in the direction Vox had told them. Terra tried to protest, insisting they should just get out of there, but an irritated Arno told him he would be judged if he ran. As they rounded the corner, they encountered Triade, still in his disguise. Arno put on a delighted air, calling after the woman as if he knew her, but Triade immediately turned and tried to flee. However, the other group then arrived, effectively cornering them from the other side. It was at this point, Elsy set off a stun grenade she had planted there during The Nova's previous reconnaissance. The child screamed, and the facade of both Triade and Milo's face masking technology dropped.

Lumen skidded to a halt in front of them, and called out Milo's name. Milo looked at her, but instead of responding, squeezed Triade's hand - prompting Triade to hold up a hand, snap his fingers, and cause all the lights in the area to go out.

The group was left blinded - with the exception of Boombox and Oatmeal. Vox was able to grab hold of Lumen, but Arno struggled to contain a scrambling Simon, who was suddenly desperate to get away. In his efforts to hold him back, he lost one of his force bracelets.

Boombox's cyber-eyes allowed him to see in the dark, and as such, Vox yelled for him to get Milo - 'gently'. Boombox obeyed in classic Boombox fashion, by tossing a stun grenade at the duo. As he did, the groups' ears suddenly filled with the noise of the approaching DociliBees. The grenade went off, filling the air with gas - successfully causing both Triade and Milo to stumble back, and slump against a wall. However, a strange spinning light seemed to envelop them both - just as Vox, Oatmeal and Lumen heard the Praetorian guard yell from behind them, ordering them to put their hands up.

Elsy and Arno, meanwhile, became aware that on top of the DociliBees, they could hear hostiles approaching from behind them. Arno whipped his cape off Elsy's shoulders and began dealing with the bees with it, whilst Elsy dodged the incoming gunfire from the men behind them. It became apparent the incoming assailants were Toska henchmen, and the pair dove into a nearby cologne store - but not before Arno paused to dive and retrieve his missing force bracelet. He was lifted from the ground and dragged inside the store by an incredibly anxious Terra, who repeated his plea for them to get out of there. Arno angrily inquired how were they supposed to do that as things stood now, and asked Terra whether he had a gun. Terra incredulously asked why would a bartender have need of a gun. Arno threw him his spare flechette pistol, which Terra caught with an instinctive ease, although he looked very unhappy about having to be holding a gun.

Elsewhere, Lumen was struggling to break away from Vox so as to reach Milo. Vox was able to maintain his hold on her, but ended up getting stung by the DociliBees as a result. He managed to pull her into a nearby hat boutique so as to try hide from the Praetorian, along with Oatmeal, although he had to agree to only hide with her until the smoke dissipated - then they could go to Milo.

Outside, the light around Triade and Milo ended up turning into multiple repeated projections of the two of them, making it unclear which were the real bodies. Boombox was able to identify them however through the use of his infrared goggles. As he did, he was interrupted by the approaching Praetorian guards, who ordered him to put his hands up. Sighing, Boombox did as he was told, adopting the persona of a mannequin drone. He put his hands up and turned to face the guard, who bought his performance - but failed to notice the small grenade he was holding in his hand.

Back inside the cologne store, to try and escape the Toska operatives, Arno and Elsy began chucking cologne bottles at the back window so as to break it. Terra saw what they were doing, and thus assisted them by throwing the sampler assistant droid through the window, shattering it completely. As they escaped, Arno tripped over some broken glass, causing Elsy to pause and help him, whilst their pursuers continued to dog them.

Boombox meanwhile, took the chance to drop his grenade, kicking it towards the Praetorian guards right before it hit the ground. He had modified his grenades to go off like fireworks, and it exploded in a mass eruption of colour and flame. The windows in the hat store erupted in a shower of glass, and Vox just about managed to pull Lumen down in time, sheltering her with his body. Oatmeal stood and took the blast, using her own hulking form to shield them both. Boombox went flying back himself, crashing through another store front in a cascade of pearls and feathers, seriously damaging himself in the process.

Elsy, Arno and Terra looked on in shock at the explosion, the multiple bodies of Triade and Milo now lit up in a colourful fog. Samuel was meanwhile searching the bodies, trying to identify the real ones.

Lumen refused to stay put any longer, and struggled out of Vox's grasp. Vox was unable to hold her, and Lumen swiftly vaulted out over the desk, through the broken window, and took off down the street towards her friend. Vox immediately raced after her, shouting for Oatmeal to do the same. Unfortunately, the DociliBees descended once more, and managed to sting Vox yet again. The dosage in his bloodstream was enough to knock him out on the spot, although he managed to mouth 'Lumen' to Oatmeal before passing out completely. Oatmeal obeyed, taking off after the teen.

Back with the others, the Toska operatives finally gained upon them, raising their guns to open fire. Arno responded first, by unloading on them with his assault rifle. Elsy attempted to finish one of them off with her pistol, but was overwhelmed by the amount that was going on, and her shot went wide. But before anyone could retaliate, an arm suddenly descended over Elsy's shoulder, firing a single, perfect head shot, taking out one of the attackers. Elsy turned to find Terra breathing heavily, and complimented his shot. Terra frantically repeated his desire to leave, to which Elsy responded that they couldn't leave without the kids. The Toska attackers turned their attention to Arno whilst he was reloading, managing to hit him in the shoulder and causing him to drop his gun. Undeterred, Arno rushed towards them, punching one with his force bracelets so explosively, that they went rocketing back into the remaining operative, killing them both instantaneously.

All their assailants were now dead, and sirens filled the air as more police began to arrive to the Harmonia, as did DociliBees. Boombox managed to grab a DociliBee from the air, promptly disassembling it and pulling out the chemical sac within it that contained the tranquilliser. He handed it to MLD, pointing to Vox and instructing MLD to figure out an antibody derived from the substance.

Arno, unfortunately, was less quick to respond, and was stung by a DociliBee before he could fend it off.

Elsy noticed Lumen closing in on Milo, kneeling down by his side and gently reaching for him. But as she did, Samuel suddenly descended upon him, locking two arms around his prone form and trying to drag him away, much to Lumen's horror. Elsy, aware that Arno had been stung and not feeling that she could risk being drugged as well, furiously spun around and swung her knife Omen at the bee, cutting it in half. She immediately turned on her heel and sped towards the children.

Aware that police were closing in on them and were most likely blocking the exits, Boombox pulled out a demolition charge, as well as a metal containment dome from beneath his bonnet. He screwed the bomb and container to the wall, a safe distance from his friends. Using part of the bee he had taken apart as a detonator, he set off the charge, sending the wall crumbling to the ground and securing The Nova a safe exit.

Vox groggily came too, thanks to MLD's assistance, distantly aware of the approaching sirens and Lumen's cries from down the street. He clumsily pulled himself to his feet, and stumbled down the alley towards her, calling out her name.

Arno meanwhile tried to fight off the effects of the bee sting, and better assess the situation. He was distracted by Terra, however, who begged him again to leave before asking where Vox was. At that point, Vox's yells became audible from around the corner. Terra cursed, and turned to go after him. Arno warned Terra they didn't leave until it was done, earning him an incredulous look from the robot, who then took off in the direction of Vox.

Elsy finally made it to the children, skidding to a halt in front of Samuel who was propping up a barely conscious Milo, whilst ignoring Lumen's cries for him to stop. Samuel leapt up onto the wall, clearly about to drag Milo up off over the wall. Elsy yelled after him, warning him that they were going to get hurt if he kept at it. Samuel looked at Elsy, telling her that "he told me I had to", clearly torn as to whether he should attack Elsy in order to fulfil his promise to this person, or to run away. Elsy promised that she could protect him, and that they could help him too. Samuel replied that "he told me I had to be careful of you" - and Elsy immediately knew, whispering "*Helsing*". Samuel apologised, and dropped Milo, before scaling the wall and fleeing.

Milo fell back into Lumen's arms, still muttering that he couldn't go, that he had to help. Everyone finally closed in on the scene, apart from Boombox, who yelled over indicating the exit that he had made for them. Upon catching up, Vox grabbed Lumen's shoulder, squeezing it for his own reassurance and pleading for them to go. Triade seemed to be coming around as well, squeezing Milo's hand which he still held. Arno picked up Milo, enabling him to hear the child mutter: "I have to help him - the lady in the cabin said I have to help him". Arno's blood ran cold, remembering the vision he had seen when they were sent back in time for the train heist. He looked at Lumen then, asking her what she wanted them to do. A confused and shaken Lumen looked at Triade, and then at Milo, before replying that they should take him.

The group made their way to the exit, Terra half-carrying a still barely conscious Vox. Lumen approached Vox, slipping her hand in his. The effects of the DociliBee hit Arno before they could make it out, and Oatmeal took over carrying duty - easily lifting both Arno and Milo up with an arm each. Before they left, Boombox looked around, inquiring where 'Blastoff' was. He turned to Elsy, who reluctantly admitted that Samuel had betrayed him, and been working for her brother. A flummoxed Boombox did not know how to respond, looking around and taking in the scene. As he did, he noticed the turned-off form of MLD back at the stairs to the hat store. Boombox quickly retrieved him, before making his way out of the hole in the wall.

Outside of the walls, the group agreed to split up - Oatmeal planning to wind her way unseen through the alleyways back to the club with Arno and Milo, Elsy and Boombox in bad need of medical attention keen to make their way to Galen, whilst Terra, Vox and Lumen went directly home to Maelstrom.

The trio were the first back to Maelstrom, letting themselves in through the back entrance and into the staff room. Terra pulled Vox close, kissing his forehead, then leaned down and kissed Lumen's forehead, before collapsing against a pile of boxes. He swore he was never going to accompany The Nova on any of their missions again, and that he wasn't leaving the bar again. Vox apologised profusely for bringing him, which Terra dismissed tiredly, insisting he just needed to rest. Vox told a still shaken Lumen that it was done now, who nodded, and told him to go to bed whilst she waited. Vox refused, and Terra wished them 'fucking good night' before making his way to the couch and powering off. Both Lumen and Vox sat down on the couch as well, Lumen on the opposite side, staring off into space, whilst Vox slumped in the middle, resting his head on an unconscious Terra's shoulder.

After several hours, Oatmeal returned with a now-conscious Arno, and a still half-asleep Milo. Arno propped himself against a nearby table whilst Oatmeal laid Milo on the couch, so that Lumen could help him wake up. As he stirred, he fixed Lumen with an accusatory look, asking her "what did she do?" Stunned, Lumen was unable to answer. Vox tried to explain what they had done and how they were trying to help, but Milo was unwilling to listen, repeatedly stating that he needed to get back 'to him'. Arno asked him what Triade needed him to do, and Milo told him that Triade was all alone, repeating that the woman in the cabin told him he had to help or else there would be nothing. He began disjointedly trying to explain about the song that Triade was seeking for, and how Triade had found one piece - the 'King' - but that he had been wrong in thinking Milo was the 'Orphan of Mercy'. Thus Triade still needed the Orphan, and the 'Thief'.

Terra looked on at Milo in utter confusion, before asking him what the piece Triade was. Milo replied that he had the King. He then asked the group whether they'd stop him if he tried to leave, to which Arno immediately replied they wouldn't, whilst Lumen looked at Vox as she answered, telling him no one would force him to stay. Milo eventually acquiesced that he'd stay a couple of days until things quieted down, as long as he was allowed contact Triade to let him know he was coming back. The group agreed, although Vox made Milo promise not to tell him where he was, so as to ensure Lumen remained safe. Lumen, for her part, then left the room.

Vox tried to ask Terra to help him set up a dressing room for Milo to sleep in, but Terra continued to stare at him, asking him what he had meant about the King. Milo replied that the song was like a puzzle, and that the King had to die. Terra's face turned cold, and he stood up and left without a word.

Confused, Vox then turned to Oatmeal for help. Arno piped up, offering his own aid. Vox then approached Arno, squeezing his arm and thanking him for keeping his promise. He apologised for ever doubting him, and agreed that they were 'good' with a clap on the shoulder. The trio left together to fix Milo up with a room upstairs.

On his way back from putting Milo to bed, Vox paused at Lumen's door, torn between giving her her space and wanting to comfort her. He eventually opted for the former, and did not notice the falling shadows that would have told him that Lumen had been standing at her side of the door too.

Back at the medical centre, Boombox excitedly told Khaki and Galen about their night's exploits, sending Khaki's eyes swirling as he detailed their escape route. Elsy sat amused at Boombox's tales, before memories of Helsing and Samuel crept in, causing her smile to die on her lips.

When she returned to Maelstrom later, Arno tried to buy her a drink, but could not find Terra. Shrugging, her pulled her a bottle of something from beneath the bar and offered to put it on his tab, declaring that she deserved it. Elsy thanked him, and immediately began to drain it.

## Mission V - Malady's Maladies

### V.I - Fire in the Disco!

That night, all the members of the Nova were plagued by strange dreams of their past.

Vox dreamt himself back in the orphan community of the Tsovaworks, thirteen years of age and already sporting a tendency to take care of other's. In his dream, he was trying to distribute food supplies to the younger children, when several older kids tried to push ahead. Vox attempted to talk them down, but the boys were having none of it, and roughly grabbed a younger girl who tried to snatch the food whilst they argued. When Vox glanced at the girl, he saw that she wore Lumen's face. Instinctively, he lunged for the boy hurting her. Suddenly, the entire picture seemed to freeze in place, as all the figures around Vox went completely still. A medical spotlight suddenly seemed to beam down upon it, and he became aware of the approaching sound of footsteps accompanied by the tap of a cane. His blood ran cold, and he grabbed for Lumen - but her skin and body felt like stone. When he looked to her, he saw that she had no eyes. Before he could do anything else, he felt a cane strike the back of his knees and he fell to the ground. Pinned there, he felt breath on his cheek, as someone whispered, all-too-close and all-too-familiar: "*Hey kid. You gotta stay away from the man with the golden eyes. Don't make me tell you twice."*

Vox awoke with a scream on the chaise in his office, drenched in sweat and shaking. He sat there with his head in his hands for some time.

Boombox's dream found him back in space, shortly after he had first blown himself up. He found himself turning back on in an unfamiliar ship, still missing an arm. As he contemplated his current state, the door flew open and a female Nyx walked in and greeted him. She greeted him, asking him about how he had come to be floating in space. Boombox answered honestly, replying that he had destroyed his makers. A little taken aback, the Nyx mechanic - Rocky - inquired as to whether he was 'cool'. Boombox statically replied that he was. Rocky set about fitting him with a replacement arm, as she told him that on their ship, everyone had to pull their weight, and they hoped that Boombox would be able to do the same. Boombox informed her that he was an explosives expert, to which Rocky replied with a sharp grin, "we figured." Once his arm was fitted, he was brought to meet the captain, wandering down halls that flickered between scenes of Maelstrom dancers, Vox's offices, and the children Boombox was friendly with in the Tsovaworks. They came to the captain's chair, who was looking out at the endless expanse of stars in front of them. Only, as Boombox gazed out, it became apparent that these *weren't* stars - it was snow, and it was all of a sudden blasting into the cockpit. And then, what lay ahead of them was no longer the darkness of space, but a cabin, lying amidst the snow and mossy rocks.

Boombox flickered back to life, finding himself slumped at his workbench in the Tsovaworks, with MLD's offline form in front of him. He toyed with the smaller robot briefly, wondering if perhaps that the memories of their death had just been a simulation too - but no. MLD was gone. His head fell to the worktop with an audible thump.

Arno slept in his room in the Authentic Tavern, but in his dream, he was back guarding the Klementinum on the night he died. He stood in the snow sleepily, trying not to lean too heavily on his halberd, when he became aware of a cloaked and hooded figure moving somewhere in the near distance. Arno stood to attention, and warily watched the figure approach, then slowly reach for something hidden. Arno brandished his weapon and demanded the stranger reveal themselves, but they instead lunged past him and towards the door. Arno swung his halberd to catch the back of their legs, causing them to fall. As Arno tried strike them with the blunt end of his halberd, they rolled out of the way, swinging a knife and catching him in the back of the knee. The cloaked figure ran off towards the door again, managing to get it open and inside, and plunging their blade into the remaining guard inside. Arno pursued, as they struggled with another door. Arno caught them as they did, catching their hand that still held the knife, and twisting it to make them drop their knife. Arno pulled back their cloak, and found himself staring back at Vox's face.

He awoke in his bed, a little bemused. He had dreamed of that night many times now, but never before of Vox as his attacker. He pondered what it could mean, as he found himself unable to go back to sleep.

Elsy also found herself victim of strange dreams. In her dream, she recalled her younger years, and the first time she stole a ship from the Docks. As she flew over Phobos, the buildings began to change into strange black rocks across a canyon, covered in a red moss. The rocks fell away into a golden canyon, and Elsy continued to fly across the bizarre alien world - all the more alien because Elsy had never left Phobos. All of a sudden, the ship turned into the Eternal Drift. Filled with a newfound confidence, Elsy turned her ship up towards the sky, and sped towards space. As she broke the atmosphere, she embraced the silence of space - before realising her ship had changed again, now into a military ship. Elsy was then able to see herself, outside of her body, watching her physical form as her consciousness apparently drifted away into space. Her physical self held up a hand, and a strange golden dust and cloud of radiance seemed to pour from her physical form's eyes. She opened her mouth, wordlessly crying out to the other Elsy - who was also unable to respond. She awoke in her apartment, shaking her head and muttering to herself that she needed to get Eternal Drift back.

That day, all the members of the Nova received an invite to MLD's funeral. Vox and Arno, accompanied by Terra and Lumen, made their way to the Tsovaworks, a short way from Boombox's lair. Elsy was unable to make it, but she was the only person Boombox would forgive for such a transgression. Terra brought a bouquet of beautiful, dainty white flowers, and Boombox was unable to stop himself from bursting into tears and hugging Terra tightly at the gesture. The group, alongside numerous other unfamiliar robots and children, gathered around a fire hydrant. Both Vox and Arno were a little unsure, not fully certain whether Boombox had placed MLD inside the hydrant or else buried them beneath it. Boombox began his heartfelt eulogy, thanking MLD for the brightness they had brought to so many people's lives and what they had contributed during their short time on this moon. He then invited members of the crowd to say a few words, staring directly at Vox - suggesting that maybe someone who MLD had given their life to save might have something to add. Vox, slightly panicked but knowing how much this meant to Boombox, stammered out a confused tribute, thanking MLD for giving their life in order to revive him. Vinnie the Vendor shortly followed him, giving a much more rousing and far less awkward speech.

Overwhelmed by everyone's sentiments, Boombox tearfully lit the fire hydrant on fire, sending it rocketing into the sky where it exploded with a colossal bang. The sounds of cops' sirens immediately filled the air, prompting Boombox to thank everyone a final time, before suggesting that they all flee the police - just like MLD would have wanted.

That night, Boombox held MLD's wake at Maelstrom. He was unaware that it was business as usual at the club, and presumed all the attendees were present to celebrate MLD's life. He sat at the bar, overcome with emotion at the apparent outpouring of love for MLD, and enjoying the free tab Vox had given him for the night. Vox, meanwhile, tried to immerse himself in his work, doing what he did best and flitting around the crowd, dispensing compliments and refilling drinks. Arno arrived late, approaching Crystal to inquire about where Lumen and Milo were. Crystal pointed to the club's raftings, where both Lumen and Milo sat, legs hanging over the side as they watched the going-on's. Arno nodded his approval, and settled back to keep an eye on them, choosing not to indulge in any alcohol that night.

As Vox scanned the crowd, looking for anyone in need of his attention, he was taken aback as he caught sight of someone going to great lengths not to stand out at the bar - Captain Tailor Wren. Surprised to see him, given that Tailor hadn't been answering his messages, Vox gave his appearance a quick once-over before swanning over to him. Tailor looked like he might smile once he caught sight of Vox, but was clearly too nervous to do so. He apologised for not answering the other man's messages, and asked if they could perhaps talk. Vox offered to take him somewhere quieter, before he was interrupted by Terra's repeated calls of his name.

All of a sudden, the club went deathly quiet - interrupted only by a shrill scream. The crowd seemed almost to part as someone made their way into the club, and sure enough: Kaz Konnor had arrived. Vox threw frantic looks between him and Tailor, as Kaz yelled out asking after the club's owner. Tailor immediately span on his heel, and left without a word. Vox frantically shouted to Terra to take care of it, before dashing out after Tailor.

Kaz made his way to the bar, chatting briefly to Terra before sauntering up to the nightclub's stage. He winked at the two DJs, Volt and Jolt, who responded by putting on a song to which Kaz began performing an incredibly impressive dance routine to. The entire club was enraptured, particularly Oatmeal, who had been responsible for letting out that scream. The sole exception was Arno, who turned to indicate to Lumen and Milo that they should get out of there. While his focus was on the children, someone called out to him, trying to attract his attention. Arno turned, and saw that it was Kaz. Kaz invited Arno up onto the stage to dance with him, and both Boombox and Crystal began to push him forward hurriedly, unsure why he would even hesitate. Arno eventually gave in, and let himself be pulled up onto the stage. The two danced, and whilst Arno could not match Kaz's natural style, his enthusiasm more than made up for it. As the dance came to an end, Kaz pulled Arno in for a kiss, which Arno did not push away.

Kaz invited Arno for a drink, and the two made their way to the bar, where Terra was frantically trying to keep an entire matrix display of champagne glasses filled at all times. The two men grabbed a drink, and Kaz exclaimed in surprise as he caught sight of Boombox. Boombox cheerfully greeted him in return. Kaz confided how he had actually been looking for 'their boss' in order to discuss some work, but given his absence, why didn't they all get really fucking drunk instead? Both Arno and Boombox agreed, especially after Boombox finally recognised Kaz from TV, and began to drill him on what was the biggest thing he had ever blown up. Kaz remained incredibly handsy with Arno, which Arno did not appear to mind. After Arno asked what Kaz did for a living, Kaz even invited Arno up to have sex in his space ship. Arno laughed it off, even when Kaz assured him he was serious. Arno continued to ignore Kaz's advances, but soon began to mock fight the other man, leading into some exaggerated faux-wrestling.

Outside Maelstrom, Vox chased after Tailor, calling his name. Embarrassed, Tailor whirled around, trying to quiet him. Behind them, the now-overflowing line of people trying to get into the club seemed to almost surge over the bouncers on charge, prompting them to call in Crunch who had been enjoying a day off. Vox asked Tailor if they could go somewhere quieter in order to discuss whatever it was Tailor had wanted to talk about. Tailor asked if Vox was sure, given the current situation in the club. Vox tried to reassure him it was fine, telling him he trusted his employees to take care of it. Tailor relented, agreeing to follow Vox if he was sure he was not needed. From behind them, Crunch's holler to the crowd of 'NO KNIVES!' resonated.

Vox lead Tailor to the lip of The Overhang. There, Tailor repeated his apology for not having responded to Vox's messages, admitting that he felt like it was a distraction he couldn't afford. He went on to confide that some of his colleagues had died, and he felt frustrated because he was supposed to have been there, but his position meant he had been confined to his office. On top of that, the bureaucracy he had to handle meant he hadn't even been able to see their bodies or visit their families. He confessed he wasn't sure he saw the point to any of it anymore. Vox tried to comfort him by reassuring him that what he did was important, and that his presence at the Harmonia probably wouldn't have made a difference. Tailor straightened up suddenly, and requested they go and get a coffee whilst Vox told him about his day. A surprised Vox agreed, and lead him over to the Night Bakers where they did exactly that.

Back at Maelstrom, Kaz and Arno's mock fight had escalated to the point that the entire club was crowded around them as they tousled shirtless on the dancefloor. Pearl had dedicated herself to refereeing the match, whilst Crunch's twin, Crush, went around collecting bets. Terra had frenziedly begun handing out full bottles of champagne by this stage, unable to keep up with the demand. Pearl grabbed one, and delightedly tore the stopper from it, spraying both Arno and Kaz in champagne. Boombox was so excited that he started a small fire - which quickly escalated, given the amount of spilled alcohol coating the club's interiors. Panicked, Terra hit the emergency sprinklers, dousing the fire as well as all of Maelstrom's patrons.

Crunch and the rest of the Gang rushed to evacuate the now-drenched club. Kaz asked Arno once again if he wanted to come back for sex on his spaceship, but when he refused him, he bid his farewells, wrapping his arm around a nearby Nyx girl before approaching Terra. He whispered something to him, and Terra paused, considering, before mouthing 'fuck it' and leaving with the duo. Crystal and the rest of the dancers also beat a hasty retreat, not wishing to be there once Vox discovered the scene. This left Arno and Boombox standing in the sprinklers, the two of them drunkenly expressing their bliss at the sensation and not doing a very good job of telling one another their dreams from the night before. Crunch attempted to usher them out, but Arno insisted on staying until Vox returned. Thus, Crunch lead both Boombox and Arno to Vox's office, where the two of them promptly fell asleep.

Back in the Night Bakers, Tailor and Vox said their goodbyes, with Vox reminding Tailor that sometimes distractions could be more beneficial in the long run. Lost in thought, he made his way back to Maelstrom - but as he approached, he became increasingly aware that there was strangely little activity outside of the bar for the hour. He hurried his approach, unsure why there appeared to be neither security or any waiting crowds around the club exterior. Bursting in, he was greeted by Crunch and the rest of The Gang doing their best to clean up the worst of the damage done to the utterly destroyed nightclub. Horrified, he tried to piece together what had happened in his absence, which The Gang were all too happy to fill him in on. Realising Terra had run off, he furiously swiped a bottle of champagne from the bar and headed to his office so as to compose himself. Unfortunately, both Arno and Boombox were both still asleep within. Vox tried to order them both out of his office, but both were too intoxicated to comply. He stormed out, to find Lumen outside, offering him to stay in her room instead. Vox very gratefully accepted.

Whilst the rest of the Nova were either getting incredibly drunk or dating cops, Elsy had been enjoying a self-care day to herself. After retrieving the newly-painted Eternal Drift from Maddy Turpentine, she took it out for a spin, gleefully flying it through the skies of Zephyr Heights. Once satisfied, she docked the ship and made her way to her favourite hot cocoa place, nestling up near a window so as to engage in some people-watching. She was joined by another patron, who commented on the fashion of some passer-by's. Elsy agreed, before turning her attention on the other woman - only to realise that it was the Toska CEO, Mila Millenia.

Elsy managed to suppress her shock, and tried to casually respond to Mila's conversational efforts. Mila eventually dropped the pretence, however, and addressed Elsy by her full name, acknowledging that she nad her group had been making trouble for Toska. She thus made Elsy an offer: should Elsy help her in resolving certain pressing issues for Toska, Mila would see that her company lost some of its interest in trying to crush the Nova. She requested that Elsy retrieve Ashura Uzoh, along with the item he had stolen during the Nova's heist on Bullet Tower, an offer Elsy was more than happy to agree to. She further confided to Elsy that she needed someone to retrieve a Toska creation that had caused them a great deal of hassle - the original prototype of Toska HOSTs, which had gone rogue. Her belief was that the prototype's sentience had caused several of the other HOST models to overwrite their programming, and also break free of the tasks they had been assigned to. When Elsy requested that she see an image of this particular robot, Mila presented a hologram - which clearly depicted Terra.

The following morning at Maelstrom, Vox - garbed only in boxer-briefs and a purple silk kimono - awoke an incredibly hungover and shirtless Arno Stern with several vehement jabs in the shoulder whilst he loomed over him with a Bloody Mary. He greeted both himself and Boombox with faux cheer, before pulling out his phone and displaying the videos of the previous night that Boombox had sent him. He soon dropped the amiable charade, and vehemently reprimanded them both for the damage they had done to the club. He sent them both from his office to go down and help with the clean-up, instructing them to send Terra up to him for another earful as they did.

Boombox and Arno made their way downstairs to find Terra merrily pouring them all some hair of the dog's. Arno admitted he felt incredibly guilty about the previous night, to which Terra reassured him that as long as he had a good time, he should never feel bad. Boombox meanwhile set to work scourging the previous night's rust off him, with the help of a steel wool sponge Terra provided him. Arno enquired after the threesome with Kaz Terra had been involved in, which Vox had informed him of during his tirade. Terra responded that it had been good to take some time for himself after everything that had happened lately - at which point, Elsy entered the club.

Elsy surveyed the damage done with disbelief, before making her way to the bar and ordering a drink. Boombox enquired about her whereabouts the previous night, and Elsy told them of how she had gone to retrieve Eternal Drift. She also filled him on the mission assigned to them by Mila Milennia to capture Ashura, and return both him and the item he stole from her. Elsy then made direct eye contact, and continued on to tell them how Mila also wanted Terra, slapping down the hologram of him onto the bar.

Vox swanned out of his office at this point, now dressed, and ready to berate Terra for leaving the bar. He was confused when everyone immediately demanded he be quiet, as well as why they were passing about a hologram of Terra. Elsy filled Vox in on the situation, causing the nightclub owner to go totally pale. Boombox sulked over the realisation that Terra was Toska's most wanted robot, but Arno reassured him he was *his* most wanted robot. Elsy urged them both to take this seriously.

Vox finally spoke up, vehemently insisting that Mila couldn't have him. Arno snapped that Terra wasn't Vox's robot, to which Vox replied that he was his own robot. Elsy and Arno expressed some concern that she surely knew Terra's position at Maelstrom, and that Elsy herself was a regular attendant. Terra remained conspicuously quiet as the group talked, before eventually telling them to leave the issue alone, and that he could handle it himself. A miserable Vox lamented how he shouldn't have taken Terra to the Harmonia, prompting Terra to reassure him that that hadn't impacted on this current situation. Arno went on to try and pry *why* Mila wanted Terra, but Terra refused to say much more than he had 'deserted' his old job. Vox tried to stop Arno from questioning him, much to Arno's frustration. Boombox eventually apologised for his sulk, throwing his arms around Terra and exclaiming his joy that they were really brothers.

Terra urged the group to just leave the situation alone, and act like nothing had ever happened. Vox promised nothing would change, but that he would up the club's security. In fact, he had two new bouncers in mind - two people he knew owed him some favours, after the damage they had done to his property the night before. Elsy finally proposed that once she had Ashura in captivity, she would try see if they could find an alternative bargaining chip to satisfy Mila.

### V.2 - Someday, Sagi

About an hour or so later, Kaz Konnor returned to Maelstrom. Boombox was being trained by Crunch on being a bouncer out in the foyer, and stopped Kaz as he went to enter, to tell him 'I'm going have to ask you...to go right in!' Kaz paused to exchange a secret handshake with Crunch, before continuing on in. As he entered, he gave a whistle, surveying the damage done to the club. Elsy looked unimpressed by his entry, muttering to herself in displeasure. Vox straightened up from where he'd been leaning on the bar, drinking Bloody Mary's and dialling in replacements for damages, and immediately made his way over to greet Kaz warmly, apologising for his absence the night before. Kaz offered his own apologies for the damage done to the club, and contributed payment for the repairs.

Kaz went on to reveal why he had come to Maelstrom the previous night in the first place - to hire The Nova for a job. He informed them how he had gotten leave from Vellichor Vorpal to hire a small team to infiltrate Sagi, and rescue Quince Malady from wherever the Fractured forces were holding her. Elsy immediately slammed her drink down, stood up, and agreed to take the job. Both Vox and Boombox were also keen to help, but Arno - clad only in his towel since his shirt had been pilfered by Kaz the night before - argued that they could not. His concern was not for himself, but that he was fearful of taking his non-military trained friends into a war-zone. Elsy protested that they had to do it, and Vox snapped that he was being cowardly - a remark that infuriated Arno. Ultimately, Arno was over-ruled, and the group agreed to take the job.

Arno made his way back to the Authentic Tavern in his champagne and sprinkler-soaked clothing, and was greeted by Neida, who was sitting in her own room. Arno joined her, and the two chatted for a while. He inquired whether she had heard any trouble, following the incident and the Obleka Tower. Neida assured him that she hadn't - but remarked that it was kind of strange she had heard nothing whatsoever. Arno revealed that he had taken some action of his own, referring to selling his secret to Dime, and that he had expected to see some consequence of that - although he wondered if perhaps the silence was in itself, the fallout of what he'd done. He went on to fill Neida in on their mission to Sagi, to which she reacted with some surprise and concern. She inquired whether Vox was going, making some teasing remarks about how he would survive without hair products. Her demeanour turned suddenly serious, as she insisted Arno had to make sure Vox didn't get hurt. Arno promised her he would, and suggested that if he made it back alive, Neida accompany him to the opera. Neida was surprised, but agreed.

Elsy meanwhile decided to begin research on where to find Ashura. Not wishing to owe any more favours to Dime, she decided to contact Taffy Flint, as she felt they had hit it off well together on their previous encounter. She found them in their favourite boba tea store in the Tinkertate once more, and announced her desire for information on Ashura's location by slamming a boba tea for Taffy in front of them. Taffy looked surprised, but agreed to look into the matter for the price of one cred.

Arno and Boombox journeyed to the Docks together in order to learn more about the situation on Sagi as well as their mission from Kaz. As he worked on his ship, Arno greeted him by calling out 'is this where the magic happens?' Kaz turned with a hopeful smile on his face, but then saw Boombox and deflated slightly. He greeted them both warmly all the same, and showed them around his ship. Arno asked where the threesome had taken place, and Kaz indicated the cockpit. Boombox was impressed by the ship's weaponry, but left Arno and Kaz to discuss the intricacies of the mission whilst he explored the hangar in search of explosives gear that he could use for himself. Arno expressed his skepticism as to why Kaz had hired The Nova for this particular mission, given the fact two of the group members lacked any military experience. Kaz stressed that he wanted to keep a low profile throughout the mission, and that it would require more than just skill with weapons. Kaz went on to fill Arno in further on the situation on Sagi, discussing how the primary issue was the specific way the Fractures forces were able to block Systems' communications. He confided in Arno how the military believes how the Time Traitor had passed on Systems' technology to the Fractures forces, and that the way they had shot down Quince was very similar to what Kaz had seen back when the war initially kicked off. Kaz then presented Arno with a map of the capital city Quon, where he believed Quince was being held.

Back in Maelstrom, Lumen and Milo prepared to take Milo back to the museum. Vox approached Milo, asking him one last time whether he was sure he wanted to leave, but Milo insisted he needed to go. Vox went on to ask Milo why Triade was in possession of a HelixCorp pet, given that Aesop and HelixCorp are rival companies. Milo responded that Triade just thought it was interesting, but that he didn't think Triade liked HelixCorp very much and that he had told Milo that 'she is not to be trusted'. Vox inquired who 'she' was, and learned that he was referring to a 'Sera' - the apparent CEO of HelixCorp. According to Triade, HelixCorp was her way of opposing Triade, and ensuring the work he was doing along with the lady in the cabin was undone, which was one of the reasons Milo had to leave the Gifted Children program. Sera was also searching for the song, and everything would end if she succeeded. Vox moved on to ask Milo to come by and see Lumen every so often, much to Lumen's horror. Vox tried to impress on the two of them that they had both gone through something together that no one else would ever understand, and should therefore stay friends and try be there for one another. His message came out rather awkwardly, however, particularly given that he refused to confide his own personal past with HelixCorp and ended up just dejectedly leaving for his office.

Arno took up the thread of conversation, asking Milo what would happen 'after', with regards to finding the song. Milo was unsure, and Arno gently encouraged him to ask Triade. He suggested Milo think about his future at large, and not close himself off entirely. He inquired whether Milo had ever seen the house, and when he denied he had, Arno asked why he chose to believe in it. A baffled Boombox interjected at this stage, unsure what the hell they were talking about and why Arno wouldn't 'let 'this poor child leave'. Milo went on to tell Arno that if what Triade said wasn't true, it was fine, but if it was and he didn't help, there was too much to lose. Arno tried to learn more about the apparent woman in the cabin, and received some confusing details from Milo how Triade said the woman was in 'another' place and couldn't just speak to her whenever he wanted to. Arno cautioned Milo about being too in love with the story he had been told, and to not be afraid of asking more questions or for proof of the things he had been told. Milo stood up and insisted on leaving, along with Lumen. Arno sighed, and turned around tell Vox that Milo didn't know anything - only to realise Vox had locked himself in his office. Boombox reminded Arno that he was not Vox, but Boombox.

A few hours later, Boombox and Arno were outside Maelstrom practicing their bouncer skills alongside Crunch whilst the club was closed for repairs. Arno fretted over the strength with which Boombox was patting people down, to which Boombox angrily responded he had worked with delicate precision for years. As a passer-by doubled over after a vigorous pat from Boombox, the AI suddenly remembered that had been with his old arm, and not the current one he had installed.

Inside Maelstrom, Vox approached Terra at the bar, apologising for bailing on him the night before. Terra reassured him that it was fine, and that the bar would be fine in time. Vox also apologised again for taking Terra to the Harmonia, and how he was sorry for what Terra had been forced to do there in order to protect the others. He went on to lament how that every time he tried to do the right thing, it turned out to be wrong, and that he only seemed to make things worse. He confessed he didn't even really know who he was, amidst all the chaos. Terra tried to comfort him by assuring Vox that it didn't matter, because he knew who Vox was, and that he was a good guy who took care of the people around him even when it got tough. Vox insisted that he wasn't going to give up on Terra, and that he would do whatever he could to protect him. The two proceeded to fix each other a drink, and shoot the shit across the bar.

Arno re-entered the club a short while later, confident that Boombox had a solid grasp on things outside (he did not). He approached Vox, who was still talking to Terra at the bar, and tried to signal to Terra that he wished to speak to him alone. The AI remained where he was behind the bar, in spite of this. Arno revealed to Vox his fears for Vox's likelihood of survival this mission, given the other man's 'delicate' build, and lack of experience handling guns. Vox insisted he had held a gun before, prompting Arno to urge the other man to demonstrate his ability firing one. Boombox re-entered at this point, having been fired from bouncer duties by Crunch after he kept forcefully patting down random passerby's on the street.

Arno requested Terra return him his flechette pistol he had leant him at the Harmonia, and the AI obliged, sliding it across the bar. He then recruited an eager Boombox into putting Vox's alleged 'skills' with a gun to the test, by ordering him to shoot Boombox. Vox protested furiously, but the trio of Arno, Boombox and Terra were relentless in pressing him. Vox's efforts backfired spectacularly - and literally. The shot went wide - allowing Boombox to catch it expertly - and the kick ended up cracking back and injuring his nose. Vox swore viciously as he tried to cover his bleeding nose, whilst Terra tried to fuss over him and press tissues to it. Arno insisted Vox let him take a look, reminding the other man he had been a soldier. Once Vox lowered his hand, hesitantly, Arno cruelly flicked the injury, remarking that it was a retort for Vox's earlier flippant coward remark. Vox stormed off in a fury.

The following day, Vox asked Elsy to come along with him to speak with Gyre. Both Boombox and Arno decided to tag along for the ride. They made their way inside their hideout, and were greeted by a surprised Gimble. Vox commented that she was looking better, to which she responded 'no thanks to some' with a smile, revealing that one side of her face was still considerably damaged. She also now sported a fully robotic arm with no fake 'skin' exterior, which Boombox was thrilled by. Gyre politely made her greetings to the group, curious as to why they had come. Vox went on to inform her of Mila Millenia's meeting with Elsy, admitting that he had seen some of the data that Gyre had originally asked them to retrieve from 'Blanca', and that he knew Gimble was Toska HOST. He told her how Mila had hired Elsy to capture the original Toska prototype HOST so that she could rewrite them and therefore render all other rogue HOSTs defunct - including GImble. Gimble looked unphased, and left the group in favour of getting some cereal.

Gyre appeared mildly irritated that Vox had looked at the data, and enquired what he was actually asking of her. Vox confessed that the prototype HOSt was someone dear to him - albeit refusing to tell her exactly who they were - and that he wanted their help protecting them. Elsy chirped in, appealing for their help getting her out of the deal. Gyre thus expressed some interest in their plea, divulging that there were things she herself wanted retrieved from Mila. She informed the group that she would think on it, and thanked them for the interesting offer. Vox expressed his own gratitude, and told her how they would be open to retrieving whatever Gyre needed from Mila. He had the sudden feeling that Gyre was looking directly at him, and as she did, the screen of her face flickered with security of a man much resembling himself running away from a figure with a cane. He froze on the spot, unable to speak or move.

Gimble then interjected from the kitchen, irritably asking whether the members of The Nova had left yet. Boombox shouted back that they had not, and enquired after her cereal. She then invited him in to try some, and Boombox happily agreed, making his way in to join her. Arno called on them all to leave, which Boombox refused and Vox didn't seem to hear. Gimble tried to get Boombox to smuggle out some of her cereal with him to go, but Boombox invited her to 'tousle' with him, having been inspired by Arno and Kaz's antics two nights before. Gimble was delighted by the request, and asked to go along with them as they left, requesting that they take Arno too. They thus made their way out, Vox eventually snapping out of his stupour and hustling out with the rest. Gyre gave a small bow of acknowledgement to Elsy as they departed.

Gimble had Vox drop herself, Boombox and Arno in a nearby alleyway, whilst Vox and Elsy drove off to the Tinkertate to meet Taffy and go shopping. En route, Elsy noted the way Vox kept stealing glances at her as he drummed his fingertips repeatedly on the wheel, and dryly asked whether he had really wanted to go shopping. Vox insisted that he did, but admitted he had also wanted to talk to her in private. He confided in her that Arno had expressed his doubts about Vox's chances of surviving the mission, and Elsy immediately insisted that she wouldn't let Vox die. Vox was visibly moved by her sincerity. He continued on to reveal his fears that Samuel had told Elsy's brother Helsing about Lumen's whereabouts. He apologised for the rawness of the subject for her, but asked if she thought Samuel may have. Elsy was clearly on edge and uncomfortable, but conceded that it was very possible, given how charismatic her brother was. Vox could not contain his worry, and reluctantly scanned Elsy searching for information about her brother. He was confronted with a vision of a much younger Elsy covered in blood and beside the corpse of a HelixCorp employee, begging Helsing to leave with her. Helsing refused, telling her he could not go with a person like her. The viewing distorted, and Helsing's voice appeared to become more mature, his repeated 'I can't's, becoming a chant of 'I can'. The voice then said (check recording!!!!). Vox snapped back to himself, swerving to miss a fire hydrant. He tried to diffuse the tension by making a joke of it, and continued on to the Tinkertate.

There, the two made their way to Taffy's usual spot, the boba tea café. Taffy appeared to be running late, putting the duo slightly on edge. Suddenly, Vox's order of boba arrived in the hands of a remarkably well-dressed stranger. The man asked whether he could join them, prompting Elsy to remark that she knew he wasn't a waiter. The man confessed he was not, before going on to reveal he had heard they had been asking questions about a certain someone. He inquired whether they knew this person, and when Vox responded that they were a 'friend of a friend', Elsy immediately interrupted to insist that they - Ashura - was decidedly *not* a friend. The stranger laughed, remarking that that sounded like his brother. He proceeded to introduce himself as Githinji Uzoh and that he figured their questions about his brother's whereabouts meant he had pissed someone of importance off. He further revealed that he knew that that person was Mila. Thus, he made Elsy and Vox an offer - he believed Ashura was on Sagi, where he knew the group were headed, and was trying to sell the weapon he had stolen from Toska. He wanted The Nova to retrieve his brother - alive - and to return both him and the weapon to Githinji so that he could smooth over relations with Mila. As incentive, he passed them on an Economist tool called a 'Bullwhip' that would allow them to influence markets on a small scale. Elsy told him that they would only agree if she was allowed be present at the negotations with Mila. Githinji was reluctant at first, but eventually shook hands on the deal.

Back in the Tsovaworks, Boombox and Gimble began to face off one another. Both robots tried to convince Arno to join the fight, but he refused, insisting that it was unfair given that he was made of flesh and the other two were made of metal. He did however agree to referee the match. The rogue AIs squared off and started trading blows. Arno cried out in dismay when Boombox was struck and went crashing into a nearby wall, but his friend reassured him that he didn't feel pain from the attack. Gimble tried to teach Boombox the most effective punching stance, but as Boombox concentrated on his feet, she swung a punch at Arno instead. Arno attempted to dodge out of the way of the sudden attack, but fell over as he did so. She went on to instruct Boombox that one should always 'kick 'em when they're down', but Arno lashed out to catch her foot - his grip aided by his force bracelets. Boombox pushed Gimble as Arno grabbed her, but the force caught Arno in the resulting spin caused by the bracelets' release, smacking him repeatedly into the pavement. The trio continued their spar, and whilst they all had a good time, Gimble eventually emerged the victor. As they all made their way back home,  Gimble hung back to talk to Arno. She reluctantly apologised to him for breaking his leg at their initial meeting, and asked him what loyalty meant to him. Arno responded 'honesty'. Gimble confided she thought Arno knew what it meant to know that you had to be brave for someone else, and that before Gyre, there had been nothing. Arno inquired whether Gimble intended to contaminate Boombox, just as Boombox tripped and fell. The two robots snickered over it, as Arno rolled his eyes. Gimble confessed that she liked Arno, although Arno responded that he could not say the same thing - much to Boombox's dismay. The two eventually agreed on the fact that it was nice to know that you were not risking your life for nothing, and instead for friends. The trio ultimately departed to go purchase for Boombox and Arno the same light-up sneakers Gimble was wearing.

Kaz called upon Elsy to teach her how to fly a Bright Wing, a request Elsy gleefully accepted. Over at the Docks, Elsy took in the ships in awe, and excitedly request they began their training session as quickly as possible. He took her through the basics, before leaving her to her ship and making his way over to his own. Over the comms, Kaz asked whether Elsy had ever flown around Phobos before, prompting her to admit she used to do street racing. He told her how he had a friend who had done the same, and that he had never been able to quite match up to her skill. The two took off into the skies of the city, and towards an obstacle course Kaz had set up in order for the duo to have a race. Elsy quickly got the hang of the ship's unique flying style, breathlessly admitting to Kaz that she felt like a bird. Kaz replied how to him, he thought about sunrises to make him feel more at one with the ship - but Elsy scoffed that birds were better. He slammed the acceleration then, the race truly then beginning. It was close throughout, but Kaz banked too hard on a turn right before the end, leaving Elsy to smash through the finish line ahead. Kaz was almost as delighted as Elsy, although his tone turned wistful, confiding he hadn't seen anyone fly like that in a very long time. Elsy assured him they would get Quince back. Kaz was confused by her response at first, before suddenly realising they had been talking about different people, and agreeing that they would.

As Elsy and Kaz raced across the skies of Phobos, Vox and Tailor strolled through the Pantheon Park beneath them, ignoring the crowds that had gathered to watch the display put on by the two Bright Wings. Vox thanked Tailor for agreeing to meet him, revealing that he would be out of contact for some time and wanted to say goodbye. Tailor was confused and pressed him for further details, and thus Vox admitted he was heading to Sagi after being recruited by the army for a special ops mission. Tailor was both disbelieving and furious at the revelation, although he made an effort to disguise his anger. He eventually asked Vox whether there was anything he could do in order to help, offering body armour as well as teaching him to better handle a gun when Vox alluded to Arno's lack of teaching. Vox agreed, and the two arranged to meet at the Praetorian offices that evening, when Tailor hoped no one else would be there.

Unfortunately for the Praetorian captain, there was one person present at the shooting range - the Quetz intern who had previously had to deal with Vox. The intern beat a hasty and incredibly awkward retreat after meeting a death glare from Tailor. Tailor locked the door after him, and then walked Vox through the basics of handling a gun - but not before delivering a lecture on the responsibility of handling a weapon built to kill. Once mastering the basics of the safety and loading the gun, he instructed him on the proper method of firing it - so well that Vox even managed to hit the target at the desired position on his first try. After running through the whole procedure several times, Tailor gifted Vox with Praetorian-issued standard armour, much like the one he himself wore. Vox thanked him for his help, although Tailor deflected that it was his job and duty to do so. Vox confessed he would miss Tailor, prompting the other man to turn bright red before admitting he would miss Vox too. He immediately then ushered Vox out before anything else could happen.

That evening, Arno asked Neida to join him for a coffee and some pastries at the Night Bakers. Neida expressed her pleasure at getting to do something for herself for a change, given how frustrating frat boy season was at work. Arno informed her she would have to pay for the evening since he had no money. He went on to ask her about the Time Traitor incident, as he was troubled following his discussion with Kaz on the subject. Neida explained how whilst it was not exactly public knowledge, the Time Traitor had managed to get past Lei Carter - in her capacity of Captain of the Janitors - steal her ship, and then return to an earlier point in Lei's timeline through the Snow Door, back to when the Battle of the Glutt first kicked off. The Time Traitor had effectively passed on future Systems' technology to the Fractures' forces, and enabled them to set up defences in preparation for the Systems' arrival to reclaim Glutt all those years before. Arno expressed his concern about whether there were people from *their* future amongst them now, in a similar manner to how he had been transported from a different time. Neida tiredly explained that such things were impossible to tell, and were part of what made her job so difficult. Arno excused himself then to go speak to Jinny.

Up at the counter, Arno tried to discreetly tell Jinny that he was going to Sagi. After some initial confusion, she became increasingly worked up and excited, begging him to try and retrieve her father, Red Tea, whilst he was there. Arno said he could make no promises, but promised he would at least try make contact with him and make sure he was okay. When he asked Jinny if there was any message he could pass along, she entrusted him with a small trinket and to let him know that her and her sisters were all thinking of him. Arno took the memento and vowed to do his best. Jinny then spent some time with him teaching him about Sagi culture, politics and the layout of the capital city Quon.

The following day, it was time for the members of The Nova to finally make their way towards Sagi. Elsy had gone ahead of the rest of the group, eager to be underway. Thus it was Vox, Arno and Boombox who made their way to the Docks together, accompanied by both Terra and Lumen who had come to bid them adieu. Vox hung back to talk to Lumen, once again dramatically lamenting his comrades' lack of confidence in her survival. Lumen seemed amused and assured him that he wouldn't die. Vox went on to ask her how she was doing in the wake of Milo's departure. Lumen admitted it hadn't been what she expected. Vox tried to reassure her by reminding her that they had at least given Milo a choice in what he wanted to do this time, and let him decide where he wanted to be. He expressed his hope that she felt she also had a choice on where she wanted to be, to which Lumen responded she was glad to be with them - but that she wondered sometimes whether anyone really had a choice in the matter. Vox pressed the matter, asking whether she referred to the concept of fate. Lumen shouted forward to Terra whether he did or not, prompting Terra to yell back that it sounded pretty boring. Vox professed that he disliked the idea of fate, as he did not like the idea of not being in control of one's own destiny. Arno interjected at this moment to express his own belief in fate, although Boombox felt more along the lines of Vox and Terra.

As they reached the Docks, the group paused to say their farewells. Vox asked Lumen to keep an eye on both Terra and the club, trusting her more than him to not burn the place down. Boombox bid Terra goodbye, pulling out a metal flower that he had crafted for him as he did so. Terra took it gently, thanking Boombox before opening a crevice in his chestpiece to store it. As he did so, a note was briefly visible already tucked away there. Arno bid farewell by promising Terra not to let Vox die. He also told him that if any trouble arose with people looking for Lumen, to take her to Neida Kampf at the Authentic Tavern. As the other two made their way towards the waiting ship, Vox said his own goodbye to his best friend. Terra reminded Vox to stick to what he was good at - people - and that when it came down to it, war was just people in the end. He went to hug him goodbye, but accidentally triggered the Praetorian armour mechanism. He expressed his disbelief before waving off Vox as a 'nightmare child'.

Vox hurried to catch up with the others. Once he did, Arno inquired about Vox's lack of belief in fate. Vox replied that it made him uncomfortable to think that the things that happened to a person were pre-ordained, as it implied you deserved them. Arno challenged him that it meant you were strong enough to rise above them. He told Vox that he took some comfort in the idea of a world that had put them all in one another's paths. Boombox remarked that he figured people like them were just drawn to one another regardless. Vox was moved by Arno's comment, but expressed his own love of the idea that in all the chaos of the universe, they had all ended up together anyway. Arno reminded him that had his life turned out the way he'd wanted, he would have never met Vox. Kaz interrupted their discussion by shouting over the hangar comms for 'the three beautiful assholes' to get on the ship already, and thus the group hustled on.

### V.III - Boombox of the Wild

The group made their way to Sagi via a military transport ship belonging to Kaneda Corral. Kaneda had agreed to help Kaz in his operation, as he was concerned about his mentee's wellbeing. It took a week to make the journey, which the members of the Nova spent in various different ways. Elsy tended to drift around the cockpit, observing the pilots and going-ons, in between snuggling up at viewpoints and drinking hot chocolate. Arno also tended to stick near to viewing ports, primarily to anchor himself as he adjusted to the prospect of travelling through space. Kaz would often happen upon him in these instances, and share in the marvel. The two spent much of the week's journey becoming increasingly close to one another. Elsewhere, Boombox discovered that the ship was host to several BADUs. He tried to encourage them to break free, and when they responded with confusion, he lamented maybe 'someday'. He spent the rest of the week spending time with them, discussing the best possible places to place explosives in Quon, along with other tactical issues. As the BADUs powered off, one murmured 'someday' before switching off completely.

Vox, meanwhile, found himself in the novel position of feeling like the one out of place. He had brought several members of his Gang along with him, and they took to life on the military ship with delight. Oatmeal and Pearl devised a ball game that soon attracted the attention of the rest of the crew, and rapidly turned into its own kind of tournament. Vox opted to keep out of the game, well aware he'd probably break a limb if he tried to join in. He thus preferred to keep to himself and work on the arrangements for Maelstrom's reopening party.

As the ship approached Sagi, the group convened with Kaz and Kaneda to discuss their approach and their tactics for once they landed upon the planet. Kaneda was able to offer them some equipment for the Bright Wings, in the form of flares, cloaking clouds and missiles, and also suggested some of his forces acted as a distraction. Arno was not keen on the distraction method, as he feared drawing attention to anyone landing on the planet. Vox requested that he bring two members of his Gang to help them, and suggested Pearl pilot a Bright Wing along with Shank. He also insisted he flew with Elsy, as she was the best pilot he knew. Boombox was also allocated with Vox and Elsy, as the duo took up a lot less room than Kaz and Arno.

As the group made their approach towards Sagi in the Bright Wings, their ships ran into trouble as soon as they broke atmosphere on Sagi, their comms immediately failing as the Fractures' jamming signal reached them. Elsy, Kaz and Pearl struggled to regain control of their ships, and as they did, became aware of even bigger problems: the arrival of Fractures' Silver Wing ships. The ships opened fire on the groups', prompting an all-out battle in the sky. Kaz managed to dispatch one, but Elsy struggled to take care of the other. Boombox decided to take matters into his own hands, and clambered out of the ship, much to Elsy and Vox's alarm. He elegantly leapt from the ship midair, engaging his parachute jets and expertly landed on the enemy ship. Greeting the Fractures' pilot with a wave, he scanned the ship for a weak point. As he did, the pilot struggled to shake him off, spinning the ship into a roll. She did not account for Boombox's magnetic feet, and he was unphased. He thus chucked a frag grenade into the ship's most vulnerable point, before leaping off and falling freely through the sky. His grenade has the desired effect, and the ship exploded completely. Elsy attempted to catch Boombox, but failed to do so, and her already damaged ship suffered further harm, sending it crashing towards the ground. She just about managed to land it safely by dipping the burning wing into the long grasses of Sagi's surface, but it ultimately skidded to a half upside down. Kaz, meanwhile, caught Boombox with ease, and expertly landed their ship beside the other's wreck. Pearl and Shank also managed to land nearby.

Arno rushed over to check on his friends' safety, as Vox and Elsy clambered from the wreck. Elsy was further irked by the situation as she discovered the grasses of the planet were four inches taller than she. Arno attempted to put out the flames licking Vox's pants, whilst he waved him off and tried to fix his hair. Once all the group had reunited and assured each other's wellbeing, they debated what to do with the crashed ships. Arno decided the best possible thing to do was destroy them completely and make it look like everyone had perished in the fight. Boombox gleefully took care of the demolition, triggering the explosion whilst he was well within the blast radius. That accomplished, they took off in the direction of the Goodbutter facility where they intended to camp the night - Elsy riding along on Boombox's shoulders.

Outside the facility, as dusk fell, the group assessed the building, trying to figure out if anyone was residing inside. Arno chucked a rock, and as the door opened, Boombox did the same. The resident inside turned out to be a very old human woman, who blinked at the rock, but did not seem overly concerned. She hefted a hefty backpack that she was wearing, and took off hiking through the grasses with surprising ease for someone her age and size. Vox was concerned about her allegiances, and scanned her, and saw a vision of the same woman hiking across various landscapes and worlds as the Goodbutter jingle sounded in the background. He expressed his uneasiness that she may return, but the others insisted she looked like she was departing for some time, judging by the size of her backpack. Thus they all made their way inside the facility.

The gang inspected the facility, and whilst it was clearly lived in, it did seem to be deserted nor did it seem to contain anything hazardous. Elsy and Kaz wished to go out and scope the area, but Arno insisted they stay inside, with Boombox pointing out that any ships using thermal vision would have an easy time scoping them out. The duo were disappointed, but reluctantly agreed, promptingKaz to go off investigating upstairs. Vox snuck outside for a cigarette, and once Arno realised he'd disappeared, followed him out. He found him cigarette in one hand, and hip flask full of whiskey in the other, as he observed enemy ships circling their crash site. Arno chided him on bringing alcohol, but accepted it when Vox offered him some. He complimented Arno on the idea of destroying the ships, and Arno remarked that he thought that they would die once they reached Quon, as opposed to almost dying on their approach. Vox dryly remarked how Arno needed some help on his pep talks. He grimaced as he heard Kaz calling on Boombox and Elsy to make a pillow fort from upstairs, and warned Arno to be careful of Kaz, cautioning him that he was too vulnerable to charming assholes. Arno insisted Kaz was fine, and pointed out Vox was the one who accepted the job from him. Vox responded that he had done so because it clearly meant a lot to Elsy, which Arno was surprised by. Arno went on to apologise to Vox for frightening him by telling him he would die, promising that he'd look after him - but suggested that Vox not drink before going into any fraught situations. Vox rebuked that predrinks had worked out for The Nova thus far, before proposing that Arno take some lessons from Terra on pep talk skills. At this point, Pearl stomped out of the facility, muttering she could no longer take listening to Kaz's bullshit. Vox offered her the hipflask, and the trio remained outside for a little while longer sharing it.

That night, Arno and Elsy took the first watch together. Arno queried Elsy on Vox's earlier comment about the mission meaning a lot to her, and Elsy reluctantly admitted that Quince was someone she cared about and admired a great deal. Arno inquired whether that was all there was to it, and she grudgingly confessed that she also had feelings for her - and that she was also very pretty. Arno complimented her valiance, and thanked her for telling him. He promised not to talk about it, and assured her that he was going to do everything that he could before, but now that he knew this, he would really try now. Elsy scoffed a thanks, but told him she appreciated that. The duo were then interrupted as a Fractures ship appeared in the sky, drawing ominously closer. Both of them watched, barely daring to breathe, as it approached - before suddenly, a light flashed on over at one of the Goodbutter harvester machines, prompting the ship to veer away from the facility and heading over to investigate there instead. Arno and Elsy murmured to each other that they were best off keeping their watch from indoors, before beating a hasty retreat inside.

The pair filled in the next watch - Vox, Pearl and Shank - on what happened, and Vox nervously checked the terminals inside the facility to see if there had been any activity logged on any of the harvesters. His search provided no results nor any answers. The trio's watch remained largely uneventful, and Pearl and Shank thus filled the time by trying to teach Vox their favourite drinking songs whilst passing around his flask. Arno repeatedly yelled down at them to shut up to no avail.

Boombox and Kaz took the final watch of the night together from the roof of the facility. The two gazed out at the night sky, and Boombox remarked how much he enjoyed the concept of stars given that they were technically explosions happening for an extremely long time. He went on to confide in Kaz that he had actually been in space before, and shared the story of how he had come to gain full sentience by turning on his creators and blowing them up. Kaz was surprised, but didn't seem to be put off - rather, he was impressed and told Boombox he was glad he had taken his life into his own hands. He then took Boombox's hand, remarking on how it was a different one to the one he had been built with. The two sat there on the roof holding hands peacefully for some time.

As the sun began to crest the horizon, Boombox's enhanced vision allowed him to catch sight of large rhinoceros-type animals grazing out in the fields. He passed one lens of his goggles to Kaz, who exclaimed with glee at the sight. The two dashed inside to wake the rest of the group, insisting they come and see. Boombox tried to describe the animals, and Arno corrected him that they weren't rhinoceroses, but unicorns. They continued to insist everyone go outside, until everyone relented and groggily made their way out. As Boombox drank in the sight of the grazing herd, his thoughts turned to the prospect of capturing one of the rhinos and using it to traverse the plains to Quon. Arno tried to dissuade him, insisting none of them had the required set of skills to catch a unicorn - meaning that the traditional belief that only a virgin could catch a unicorn. Despite their own decidedly-not-a-virgin status, both Elsy and Kaz joined Boombox as he did his best to stealthily approach the unicorns. Vox, Arno, Pearl and Shank looked on from further back, idly speculating on whether or not they were about to witness their friends' deaths.

As they drew closer, Boombox recalled that he still had the marshmallow cereal Gimble had gifted him a week ago, and he thus distributed it between himself, Elsy and Kaz. The unicorns approached their offerings curiously, and began to graze from their hands. Heartened by this, Boombox decided to take his chances, and swung himself onto the back of his unicorn. The unicorn - predictably - panicked, as did his companions, with Elsy being sent flying through the grasses as one struck her. Arno activated his force bracelets whilst Vox shrieked in horror.

Boombox's unicorn took off across the grasses and into the horizon, as Arno and Vox hurried over to Kaz and a disgruntled Elsy to make sure they were okay. The group wondered whether Boombox would be okay, but Elsy assured them all he could take care of himself. At this point, Pearl's comms device - which was uniquely linked to Boombox's encrypted channel - crackled to life, and Boombox bid the group farewell, telling them he was with the herd now. They asked that he take care of himself, and promised to reunite with him in Quon at a later stage. With that, the gang made their way towards the city.

As they made their way into Quon, they were taken aback at just how *normal* things appeared to be inside the city. There were some armed Fractures forces present, but not that many, and none appeared to be on particularly high alert. Indeed, life seemed to be continuing very much as usual for the civilians of Quon. As they rounded a corner on their way to Red Tea's house, Kaz came to a halt and swore vehemently. The source of his displeasure turned out to be a gigantic projection of Lei Carter, proclaiming her a 'World KIller' as a series of seemingly endless hashmarks flashed across the display. Vox sighed in irritation, and turned to Kaz, scanning him as he did. His cybereyes revealed a vision of both Lei and Kaz outside one of the liberated palaces of their home planet of Khad, watching a sunrise in quiet awe. He also witnessed a later memory, of Lei calling out to Kaz to stop as he fired a gun. Arno looked confused by the projection, and queried who Lei was. Vox's attempts to jog his memory remained unsuccessful until he pointed out that Lei was Neida's boss.

Both Arno and Vox demanded Kaz tell them the meaning of the display, which he cagily tried to deflect. He eventually revealed that the hash marks were supposed to symbolise the hundreds of thousands of deaths they claimed she had caused. He explained how the Fractures had an 'eye-for-an-eye' policy, and had vowed to kill as many people of the Systems as Lei had killed of them. Concerned that he might be recognised, Vox gave him face-masking technology he had purchased in the wake of the Harmonia mission. Kaz was delighted, and immediately set it to project Vox's own face, much to the other man's irritation. He then switched it to the face of Tailor Wren's, causing Vox to turn bright red and insist he change it. Arno insisted it was fine, since he didn't recognise him. Kaz winked at Vox with Tailor's face before eventually settling it on an anonymous face.

Outside of the city, Boombox wandered the fields on his now-calm unicorn, enjoying the wilderness. He soon came across a patrol of Fractures guards, who immediately demanded to know who he was. Boombox greeted them all cheerily, introducing himself as Sherbylon. One member of the group was also a robot, and as she curiously peered at him, told the rest of her group that she thought that they were addressing another robot. Boombox pulled down his hoodie, and told them how he had been out wandering the wilderness for many years, along with his trusted steed. The group remained skeptical as he spun his backstory, but did not appear overly suspicious - instead, they believed him to be a malfunctioning unit. They invited him to join them and come back to their camp, and thus Boombox bid his unicorn companion adieu and left along with the Fractures forces.

Back inside the city, the other members of The Nova, along with Kaz, Shank and Pearl, made their way to Red Tea's house. Red was hesitant to let them in at first, until Arno mentioned he was a friend of Jinny's. Red then rushed to the door, and eagerly ushered them inside. He urged them all to make themselves comfortable, and disappeared into the kitchen to prepare tea and pastries. Arno was uncomfortable, and asked the other's whether they felt they could trust Red. Kaz expressed his own discomfort at how 'fairy-tale' he was, referring to the wafting smell of bread and pastries coming from the kitchen and his hospitality. Vox meanwhile was confused, given it had been Arno's idea to come there. Arno admitted he found it strange Red hadn't asked for proof who they were, and queried whether they should eat the food Red gave them. Vox was scandalised, and once Red returned with tea and pastries, immediately took a pastry and ate it whilst making full eye contact with Arno. Elsy, likewise, began to gleefully devour as many pastries as she could hold at once.

Arno then handed Red the trinket Jinny had entrusted to him, and Red was clearly overwhelmed with emotion. He asked how they had gotten this, and Arno revealed they had come from Phobos, having snuck into the city only horus before. Red rushed to close his windows and began to pace around the apartment, clearly agitated. The group urged him to take a seat, and fill them in on the situation in the city. Red eventually flopped into a chair, and proceeded to brief the group on the state of affairs in Quon. He informed the group of how The Fractures forces were insisting that their invasion was meant to give Quon the choice to liberate themselves from the Gaean Systems, and reclaim their own independence, as well as their former heritage and culture. By joining the 'Conflux' - the name the Fractures calls themselves - they would no longer be bound by the Systems, and could return to self-governance, free of Gaean interference. As part of this process, Red told the group how they were holding daily talks between a negotiations dignitary of the Fractures' by the name of Lyanna, as well as noted members of Sagi society.

The group inquired after Quince Malady, and Red informed them how she was sometimes brought along to these meetings by the Fractures' forces. He reassured them that she appeared to be treated well by them, although remained very much their captive. Arno tried to figure out what was the best possible strategy for them to proceed, and asked whether Red would allowed bring any of them to the talks. Red reacted with some amount of excitement, exclaiming that one of them could pose as his apprentice. Arno suggested he take Vox, prompting some mild horror from Vox and reluctance from Red. He gently explained that Vox didn't look much like a bakers' apprentice, and suggested Arno accompany him instead.

Vox mentioned he had a contact within the city he believed might be able to offer them some help. Arno asked Red whether they would be able to spend the night there, which Red agreed to. A place to stay settled, the group made their way to a bar in the district that Vox knew of, in search of a Sagi friend of his: Linger Line.

Elsewhere, on another side of the city, Boombox was being shown around a Fractures outpost by the robot who had found him out in the wheat fields, who turned out to be a former Ad Astra robot by the name of Kelly. Boombox was struck by the relaxed atmosphere of the camp, and was enthralled as Kelly told him about how the Conflux firmly believed in the right of autonomy for all - including robots. He messaged his friends through his comms device, informing them that robots had it so well there that he was going to stay. The other members of The Nova didn't take him particularly seriously, and messaged back a series of teasing texts - including one from Vox which joked 'we have Terra'. Hearing from his friends, as well as the reminder of those dear to him back home, struck Boombox, and he tried to turn his thoughts to what he could do to help the others on their mission to find Quince. He attempted to take a look around, but kept getting distracted by the sheer scale of activity going on.

Kelly sensed Boombox's enthusiasm, and suggested that he try and find work within one of the varying divisions within the Conflux. Boombox listened to her suggestions thoughtfully, and ultimately told her he thought he would be best suited to joining Lyanna in her diplomacy efforts - quietly hoping this might be one last thing he could do for his friends before he left them. Kelly was surprised, but agreed to make introductions the following day. Boombox informed her that he felt now that the name he felt suited him better was Chernobyl. Kelly then offered to take Boombox to meet some of her friends, so that they could all go throw bottles and debris into the canyon - an idea Boombox was all too happy to indulge. Kelly, Boombox, and two of her Conflux friends thus made their way to the canyon, so as to throw debris into it. Boombox noticed a crashed ship, and bet that he could make it fall. It was agreed that if he could manage this, he would be allowed borrow a motorbike belonging to a Glutt friend of Kelly's. Boombox deftly made a Molotov Cocktail, and expertly flung it towards the ship. He did indeed succeed in striking it, but the explosion sent a heap of shrapnel flying in the group's direction. Boombox flung himself in harm's way so as to protect them, and ended up with a shard of metal in him. He was undeterred, however, and spent the rest of the night whizzing around the streets of Quon on his newly-acquired motorcycle.

Back over in the Biscay District, the rest of The Nova made their way to a cocktail bar Vox knew Linger frequented. They were in luck, and his friend was indeed there. Vox made his way to her table and announced his presence by sliding her a drink. Linger was taken aback, by the very fact Vox was actually outside of Maelstrom for once, as well as the fact he was on a planet that was under enemy control. Vox promised to explain, and sat down by her invitation, before introducing the rest of the crew - utilising all their real names, with the exception of Kaz, who he instead christened 'Leonard'. Kaz was displeased, but went along with it. Once everyone was settled and introductions had been made, Vox went on to explain to Linger how they had come to the city and their reason for being there. He confided they were looking for help on how to find Quince, as well as the best way to rescue her.

Linger lent in confidentially, and inquired about how the group viewed the Fractures. Both Vox and Arno commented that they were not a political group, but Kaz butted in to flat-out declare that he thought they were "full of shit". This remark seemed to please Linger, and she confided how she belonged to a group that was actively working to overthrow the Fracture forces on Sagi, named 'The Convergence'. She invited them to attend one of their meetings the following day, and suggested the two groups could possibly work together. Vox and the rest of the group agreed to her idea, and settled in to enjoy some cocktails.

### V.IV - The Price Of Freedom

Upon returning to Red's that evening, the group tried to figure out who was sleeping where. Kaz provided a quick solution, by yawning exaggeratedly, slinging an arm around Arno, and steering him off in the direction of the nearest bedroom. Vox stared after them witheringly, before settling himself on the couch, agreeing Elsy should have a room for herself. Pearl and Shank made a big deal of setting up a protective formation around Vox for the duration of the night, but immediately fell asleep snoring loudly. Vox thus spent the majority of the night on the balcony chain-smoking. Next door, Kaz didn't get much sleep either, admittedly not for the reasons he hoped: Arno kept him awake half the night quizzing him on whether he thought they were doing the right thing.

The following morning, Boombox accompanied Kelly Green over to a large tower block in the city centre, which looked to have previously been a Goodbutter HQ. Kelly managed to navigate their way to the top floors with a key card, but was stopped by a Glutt guard when trying to enter Lyanna's quarters. Lyanna's camera caught sight of Boombox, and signalled for him to come inside, which he did - but the door slid shut before Kelly could accompany him. Boombox introduced himself as Chernobyl, and expressed his willingness to join them as part of their diplomacy team. Lyanna seemed a little bemused, but agreed. She requested that as a sign of good faith, Boombox submit himself to a procedure most of their synthetic members who had originated from the Gaean Systems agreed to, whereby the Fractures searched through his memory banks to see if they could find any information that could help their war effort. Boombox agreed, scheduling it for that evening.

As the two conversed, they were interrupted by some commotion in the adjacent room. Another Glutt guard eventually came in, bemoaning that 'she' wanted something to eat. Lyanna tersely responded to feed whoever he was speaking about, but their disgruntled guest began to call for her. Quince Malady finally emerged, complaining that her guard would not allow her to chop her banana for her yoghurt. Lyanna pointed out that the last time Quince had been allowed to use a knife, she had tried to stab her guard with it. Boombox volunteered to take over banana slicing duties, and made his way into the kitchen, inquiring how thick Quince liked her banana slices. Quince appeared slightly suspicious of Boombox, but eventually responded with the desired inches. Boombox did a masterful job of slicing them - but unfortunately was unaware that organics preferred to consume bananas *without* their skin.

He later sent Elsy a message, informing her of Quince's favourite banana slice measurement. Elsy's heart lit up, but she thought the message to only be a teasing jab from Boombox, and not that he had actually met her.

She herself was navigating her way down to the Docks, alongside Shank. Shank grew increasingly uncomfortable as the number of Fractures races increased as they got closer to the center, hiding their head beneath a hoodie. Elsy wanted to keep themselves in the thick of the crowd, however, hoping to overhear some useful information. She eventually overheard two of the Fractures' forces discussing 'Lucky' - a Frechtt whose name Elsy recognised from their previous encounter with two Fractures soldiers on the train - and how he intended to buy a weapon off some guy named Ashura. The soldier commented that the two were meeting at a cafe every day to discuss the sale. Elsy crept closer, concentrating on hearing more details - but as she did, she stopped attending to who might be noticing them. Thus, another Ochyl noticed Shank, and began to call for them to stop. Shank shrunk away, and Elsy confronted the Ochyl puzzedly. The Ochyl tried to accuse Shank of being someone, and Elsy insisted that whoever they thought Shank was, it had to be a case of mistaken identity. She fumbled finding for an excuse, however, and fell back on the fact they had 'just arrived on the planet' - prompting everyone around them to spring into action, lunging for them both. Elsy managed to get away, and fled, but Shank was taken.

Over on the Biscay side of the city, Vox, Peal and Kaz made their way to Linger's poetry club. Kaz idly tried to engage Vox in conversation about various topics, such as Arno and Maelstrom, before abruptly grilling him on how he knew, and his relationship with Tailor Wren. Vox was caught off-guard, but responded Tailor was his friend, much to Kaz's disbelief. The two traded catty remarks, with Vox switching to interrogating Kaz on Lei as a deflection tactic, before Peal finally butted in to announce they'd reached their intended destination.

Inside the poetry club, Linger introduced Vox and the others to the leader of The Convergence, a Sagi by the name of Pent. The meeting commenced with Pent inquiring how it was that Vox and his group had only just arrived on Sagi. Once Vox assured that whatever was shared in the group was to remain confidential, he went on to reveal how they had come with the intent to free Quince Malady from her captivity. Pent was interested, but pointed out that although Linger may vouch for him, he had no reason to trust what he said. Vox turned to Kaz at this point, and asked him to remove the face-masking tech he was still using. Kaz stood up dramatically, disabling the mask and proudly announcing that Kaz Konnor was here to liberate their city. The group erupted in excited gasps and cheers, whilst Vox rolled his eyes at the entire display and told him to sit down. Vox attempted to steer the conversation back to a plan, despite Kaz's (relatively successful) efforts to take over.

Pent divulged that they believed the Fracture forces had rigged various sectors of the city with explosives in order to block entrances and exits, although they had no luck finding them. He explained how they also wished to take out the Rattler - the mechanism blocking all communication from the Systems - but it was incredibly heavily guarded at all times. Thus, they were concocting a plan to wrestle the troops away from the Rattler - by somehow getting a message to Quince to appear on a public broadcast, and urge the citizens of Sagi to riot against the Fractures forces, and using the chaos to break down the Rattler. Pearl pointed out that they shouldn't rely too heavily on chaos, as there would be too many outliers beyond their control. Vox and Kaz agreed to go along with the plan all the same, with Vox assuring them that they had a 'man' on the inside that might be able to get a message to Quince. Vox warned the group to be careful, as the Fractures forces were heavily armed - prompting Pent to pull out a gun. Vox queried whether the rest of them had any weaponry, and the other members of the group began to pull out decidedly less impressive armaments. As he looked around the circle, he noticed the old lady that The Nova and Kaz had seen leaving the Goodbutter Facility the night they arrived on Sagi, was also present. He hid his surprise, and queried her involvement in the group, and she responded in a decidedly sweet old lady manner. Vox remained unconvinced, and scanned her again - and within his vision, her face was much colder, as she scrambled over Goodbutter farming equipment out in the fields, alongside a number of other people with equally cold expressions, in perfect co-ordination.

Vox shook himself out of it, and told the group that they would reconvene at the club that night, once Elsy, Arno and Boombox joined them - something Kaz immediately echoed, to the enthusiastic response of the others. Vox sighed, and asked Linger to go grab a coffee with him, leaving Kaz to be gleefully swarmed over by the members of The Convergence. In the coffee shop, Vox warned Linger to keep an eye on the old lady - who had introduced herself as Maisie - confiding he believed she worked for Goodbutter. Linger reacted with amused disbelief, asking whether Vox thought she could be one of the 'Butter Boys', one of Goodbutter's corporate assassins, given Maisie's size and age. Vox begged Linger to just be careful, and not rely too heavily on preconceptions.

Back over in the city center, Arno arrived at the diplomacy meeting alongside Red. Red introduced Arno to some other Sagi representatives, including Close, the leader of the [Ochre?] district.

**[STEPHANIE NEEDS TO GO BACK AND RELISTEN TO ALL THIS IM SORRY I WILL!!!!]**

That night at Linger's club, Kaz, Pearl and Vox awaited for the rest of the group to return - the latter two a little more anxiously than Kaz, who was seated closer to the front and soaking up the poetry. Elsy was the first to return, and after fetching a spiked hot cocoa, took a deep breath and made her way to Vox and Pearl's table where she broke the bad news about Shank. Vox exploded at her, demanding she explain exactly what the fuck had happened. Pearl reacted by simply standing up, and announcing she was going to find Shank before leaving the club. As Elsy tried to explain herself, Kaz - having noticed Vox's outburst - made his way over to the table and tried to inquire as to what was wrong. Boombox entered the club shortly after, and maintained the charade that he did not know the other members of the group, much to Kaz's confusion. Arno was next to enter, and both Boombox and himself returned to their identities as Leopold and Chernobyl as they greeted one another. Vox urged them both to sit down, so that he could fill them in on what had happened. Both Vox and Arno reprimanded Elsy for her actions, especially when she confessed that she'd told them that both herself and Shank had just arrived on the planet. She admitted to fucking up, and Arno tried to reconcile them by suggesting they figure out a rescue plan rather than bicker about who had done what wrong.

At this point, Boombox asked if Elsy had received his banana facts about Quince. Elsy reacted with disbelief that he had actually seen her, as did the rest of the group. They pressed him on where she was being held, and Boombox informed them she was being kept at Lyanna's living quarters but was being treated well. He also updated them on the security forces surrounding the building as well as within. Vox then asked both Arno and Boombox how the meeting had gone - at which point, Kaz chimed in, repeating the question with a slightly worried look. Arno replied that it was fine, but Boombox told them how Arno had a lot of complaints about the Fractures, including 'a lot of dumb points' - causing Arno to press him on which exactly were dumb. Vox reacted with exasperation, pointing out that Arno had been supposed to 'just listen', before going on to dramatically lament how no one ever listened to him. Arno responded that then Vox shouldn't tell him what to do. Kaz asked whether Arno called out their bullshit, to which both Boombox and Arno responded with some nonchalance.

Boombox pointed out that Lyanna would recognise Arno, and could possibly trace him back to Red by association. At this point, Arno asked Boombox whether he would help them in their mission, or hinder them. Boombox looked agitated, and responded that he knew the mission meant something to Elsy so was still willing to try save Quince - but was no longer willing to blow anything up or do anything to risk his cover. Arno inquired as to whether Boombox planned to stay with the Fractures, and after a moment of quiet, Boombox revealed that was his plan - eliciting joint calls of dismay from both Elsy and Vox. Arno pressed ahead, quizzing Boombox on how much 'freedom' really meant to the people of the Fractures, whilst they held Quince Malady in captivity. Vox eventually chimed in, reminding Boombox that he had friends at home who were in need of his help. Boombox fell quiet at the reminder of Terra.

Kaz grew exasperated at the group's back-and-forth, and urged them to come up with a plan so they could get on with 'the heroics'. Arno pointed out that the public setting they were currently occupying might not be the ideal place to talk, and thus Vox asked Linger for the use of her office. Everyone crowded in the rather small space, and Arno asked Linger to stay with them whilst they discussed the plan. Arno laid out his plan of action, which was based upon rebuking the central argument of the Fractures forces: that they were one based upon independence and that the need for blocking of communications was to prevent violence from the Systems. As such, he believed that they needed Quince and Kaz to convince Kaneda and Vellichor not to attack the Fractures' forces once the communications were restored to Sagi. Kaz expressed his doubts over whether this was regardless, although admitted Quince might be able to sway Kaneda - but only if Quince herself could be convinced to do so.

Arno eventually asked Elsy whether she could use the Bullwhip to raise the price of water, in order to incite a riot: an idea that greatly upset Boombox, who was already uncomfortable with the idea of the Gaean forces returning to Sagi. The two continued to argue throughout, with Boombox trying to maintain that things were 'better' on Sagi - whilst Arno stuck to his point that things were not okay for the residents of the city. Arno outlined his plan to avoid conflict, by way of convincing the Gaean Systems from holding off attacking the planet out-right and enforcing a month of negotiations which would allow Sagi to negotiate its own terms. Kaz became immensely uncomfortable, and tried to intervene, pointing out the need for Systems' order so as to keep peace between planets. Vox meanwhile expressed his distress at the notion of having to spend at least another month on the planet, when he needed to get home to the people he was worried about. Arno responded that then Vox shouldn't have come, evoking a hurt look from Vox and causing him to fall into a sullen silence.

The group finally and extremely begrudgingly agreed that their plan should unfold as such: Elsy would use the Bullwhip to adjust the price of water, so as to induce a riot. Kaz would help rally the crowds, by revealing his true identity. In the ensuing negotiation process, Boombox and Elsy would try free Quince. Vox was to try hack into the Rattler, and restore communications to Kaneda, patch them through to Quince, and see if she could convince Kaneda to hold fire. Meanwhile, Arno would serve as protection to Vox. Few were happy with the plan, but agreed to meet the following morning so as to move forwards and see whether Pearl had returned with news of Shank. Boombox departed the group, saying farewell to Arno with a hug but leaving Kaz with a pointed look.

Boombox felt the need to clear his head, and thus took to his motorcycle, cruising the streets of Quon. As he did so, he encountered a group of Sagi people, engaging in worship around a fire. They sensed his excitement and invited him to join. They told him about how this was the culture of their grandparents, and how happy they were to reclaim it - albeit Boombox did not fail to notice the number of other Sagi locals giving them side-eyes and a wide berth. As he left the group, he encountered one such woman - a female Sagi crying alone on a stoop. Boombox ventured over to check whether she was okay, and although she initially seemed fearful of him - given his physical similarity to Fractures robots - he was able to bring her some comfort. She informed him how her mother was from Mars, and how much she wished she could contact her, and Boombox revealed how he himself hailed from Phobos. She admitted to not being sure whether she wanted to stay on Quon, or go to Mars where her mother was - prompting Boombox to reveal he was also feeling a little lost right now. Boombox managed to get a couple of laughs out of her before introducing himself as - for the first time since he arrived on Quon - as Boombox. She complimented him on his name, and told him her name was Julienne, and the two spent some time together on the stoop chatting.

Back at Red's, whilst the rest of the crew slept, Vox waited anxiously on the balcony chain-smoking and drinking. Pearl eventually slipped in during the dead of night, and informed Vox she had found out where Shank was being held: a ship in the Docks that was scheduled to depart back to the Ochyl home planet as soon as possible. Elsewhere in the flat, Elsy sat as high up to the rooftop as she possibly could, fidgeting with the device and replaying the last conversation she had with Quince over and over in her head.

Meanwhile, Arno set about yet again refusing to let Kaz get a good night's sleep. This time, he pressed him on Kaz's past, and as to whether he had ever destroyed a city before. Kaz admitted he had, but that sometimes you had to do shitty things in order to ensure an even shittier thing didn't happen. Arno asked him straight out whether he believed that Arno's plan could work, and Kaz looked at him pointedly before responding that he did not. He told him it was a nice idea, but that was all it could be - an idea. Arno asked him to at least believe that they could do this; but Kaz responded that maybe he didn't want to do it. He explained that he was happy to wait a day or two to see if peaceful negotiations could be reached, but that he ultimately did not want to let the Fractures have control over Sagi, and that he would have friends who would be extremely disappointed in him if he allowed that to happen. Kaz eventually tried to change the subject, by suggesting Arno looked 'really hot' telling all the diplomats that they were full of shit. Arno responded by asking whether he thought Vox was angry at him, prompting Kaz to say good night and go to sleep.

### V.V. - Blood In The Water

The next morning, the group rose around four in the morning to begin preparations for the day's plan. Pearl and Vox filled them in on Shank's status, and thus the group agreed to head to the Docks once Elsy activated the Bullwhip. Vox left to go smoke and drink another several cups of coffee whilst Arno and Elsy pondered the Bullwhip, before Elsy eventually took a deep breath and activated it. There was of course, no visible reaction outside - it being too early and too soon to notice any palatable reaction - and thus the group departed for the Docks. Vox called Boombox as they made their way there, informing him of their plans with regards to saving Shank.

**\*\*\*I WILL COME BACK AND FINISH THIS MISSION, A LOT HAPPENED & I NEED A BREAK \*\***

## Mission VI - Rage Against The Museum

### I. - Welcome Home

The morning after returning home from Sagi, Arno was awoken in the Authentic Tavern by Vox, who was brandishing coffee and kolache from the Night Bakers. Arno was tired and confused to see the other man there, unsure whether it was a holo-call or Vox himself. Once assured Vox was actually there in person, he went on to inquire what Vox was actually doing there. Vox replied that he had been worried when Arno hadn't answered his messages the night before, and wanted to make sure he was okay. He also filled him on the news about Terra's well-being, to which Arno responded he was glad that things were alright. Arno was still groggy, and repeated his question as to why Vox was actually *there*, and whether he was supposed to be going somewhere. Vox told him he was actually on his way to pick up Elsy in order to do the Ashura handover with Githinji, and asked whether Arno wanted to be there for it. Arno agreed to come along, and Vox left him to get ready although urged him to hurry before the hot chocolate he got Elsy got cold. He also passed along a holo-vite to the Maelstrom reopening party for Arno to give Neida. Before he left, Vox paused in the doorway and told Arno not to take what happened on Sagi too hard, reassuring him that he was a good guy and Vox still believed they could do good in this world as a group.

The whole group met up at Maelstrom, where Githinji had specifically requested to meet - but under specific orders that all of Maelstrom's usual staff not be present for the exchange. Ashura sulked at the bar whilst Vox distributed hot chocolate and pastries to Elsy, as well as rubbing alcohol to Boombox. He also poured Ashura a drink, and when Ashura pointedly held up his cuffed wrists, Vox gave him a straw. As the gang chatted and enjoyed their breakfast, the lights in the club began to flicker, causing Ashura to react with some exasperation. Sure enough, this ominous display was soon followed by the arrival of Githinji. He greeted the group, congratulating them on their success before addressing his brother. He lightly pointed out just how worried their mother had been about him, resulting in Ashura looking away sullenly. Arno said he hoped their mother wasn't missing half of his face.

Vox told Githinji how they had not been able to recover the weapon Ashura stole, which might cause them to be in further trouble with Mila Milennia. Githinji responded that he was sympathetic, but that was their problem, not his. Elsy tried to intervene, pointing out that they had double-crossed someone very powerful in order to deliver Githinji his brother. This appeared to irritate Githinji, and he replied that although they had chosen the lesser of two evils, they were under-estimating where exactly the power lay. Arno inquired what they were going to do with Ashura, and Githinji responded he would need to make it up to his family for running away, and would be needing to attend some high-society parties. Ashura tried to throw the gang some withering looks, silently asking whether they were really gonna hand him over to *this* guy. None of the group were particularly sympathetic to his plight, and pointed out that going to a couple of fancy parties beat being at the mercy of Mila Milennia. Vox even offered to put him on the guest list for the reopening party.

Vox asked after their payment, and Githinji snapped his fingers, instantly transferring the money to Vox and Elsy's account. Before he left, Vox tried to repeat what Elsy had said about upsetting some powerful people, and that he hoped Githinji bore their group in mind in the future. Githinji replied that they did seem pretty capable, and would consider calling upon them again, before asking after the reopening party. Vox was happy to agree to put him on the guest list, asking whether he wanted anyone else added. Githinji responded with Anek Allegro, and after a brief flicker of hesitation, Vox responded of course, telling him that they had worked together before and that their mutual friend Miracle Belle would even be performing. Githinji then gathered up his brother, and bid them farewell, before departing.

Arno left Maelstrom, and made his way home to the Authentic Tavern. As he checked into his room, he discovered an envelope had been slipped under his door. Upon opening it, he discovered an invite from Dime Slithy, requesting that he call over to her. Arno first wanted to check in upon Nelda, and made his way over to her room. He knocked, and she called for him to come in, clearly pleased to see he had returned safely. She tried inquire after his wellbeing, but Arno deflected the question, asking about how her job was going and how her boss was faring. Discussion of her job caused Arno to turn the conversation towards asking a favour of Neida - whether it might be possible to send him back in time to any particular point. She was curious about his request, and he admitted to having seen a vision of a cabin in the snow the last time he had travelled through time. Neida appeared to be slightly startled, and asked whether he had heard anything during the vision. Arno responded in the negative, and tried inquire whether Neida knew what the vision might mean. Neida replied that it just happened sometimes, and she reckoned they were just memories that had gotten 'stuck'. Arno remembered the invite to the Maelstrom reopening party, and passed it along, mentioning that it was from Vox. Neida was slightly taken aback - not being a particular party person - but agreed to go if Arno was going to. She then asked after how Vox had fared on Sagi, and whether he had been hurt. Arno replied that he had picked Vox right back up again. Neida smiled, and told Arno she had known he would. The two then confirmed their plans to go to the Opera the evening after the reopening party, and said their goodbyes.

Arno decided to head on over to Dime's to see what she wanted from him. After indulging in some testosterone one-up manship with Dime's rooster, he made her way into the office where she offered him some Gouda she had received from her contacts in the time travel business. She went on to reveal her reasons for asking him there: that she had been using the information Arno had provided her about River Cobalt-Sioux, and been using it to blackmail them. She informed Arno that River had recently become CEO of Atlas Cobalt-Sioux, and as such, both her and Arno stood to gain a lot if they increased the pressure of knowing what they did upon River. To do that, however, she would need an additional piece of evidence from Arno that would allow them to threaten River with exposure if they did not give in to their demands. She asked Arno what he might want from River, and Arno was at somewhat of a loss - not wanting anything in particular from River, other than to take their life - something he was fairly sure River wouldn't be willing to give. He was also at a loss about what exactly he could produce at evidence, as it wasn't as if he had the murder weapon. Dime encouraged him to think what he would ask for if he'd three wishes, and to go away and consider what the two of them could use to further intimidate River. She passed on Arno three creds, as payment for the information he had provided thus far.

Elsewhere, Boombox approached Vox asking if he would be allowed invite some of his robot friends to the reopening party. Vox was familiar with a few of his requested robots, but slightly concerned that some of them - such as Murdertron 9000 - might not be familiar with his preferred policy of not maiming other guests. Boombox assured him that he would have a word with his friends about keeping any harming of organics to a minimum. Aware that Tailor Wren had confirmed he would be attending, Vox thus told Boombox he could invite as many of his friends as he liked, as long as he did Vox a favour and allowed him to dress him in a disguise. Boombox misunderstood the request, and believed Vox had hired him as a bartender, but agreed all the same. After making sure Boombox was *also* fully on-board with not attacking any party guests he didn't like, Vox added his friends to the guest list.

### II. Homecoming Parties

Saturday night - the night of the reopening party - rolled around. Arno and Neida engaged in some back-and-forth about whether or not to actually attend, given Neida's social insecurities and Arno's current ennui, but eventually agreed to attend together. They met in the lobby of the Authentic Tavern, and awkwardly complimented on another's outfits before making their way to the club. Once they arrived, both of them found a table away from everyone else and sat down, preferring not to actively join in the festivities. Instead they engaged in some people-watching, with Neida excitedly commenting on various attendee's outfits.

Boombox, meanwhile, was decked out in a fully sequined purple suit that Vox had provided him with, along with a top hat and monocle. Boombox was truly embracing his bourgeois disguise, as he tried to help Terra and Gimble behind the bar. Gimble insisted on trying to teach Boombox the wrong way to make drinks, by instructing him to just give them the wrong drink orders and threatening anyone who complained. Terra gently intervened, encouraging them to both take a break after working so hard. Boombox agreed, lamenting to Terra his broken leg, before wandering off into the crowd to go hang with his other robot friends.

Elsy kept close to the chocolate fountain, enjoying the fruit hanging from the hologram trees surrounding it, whilst she tried to scan the crowd for the arrival of Quince. Quince soon arrived, making her way through the throngs of people clamoring to congratulate her on her achievements on Sagi. Quince maintained a polite smile, although was clearly a little uncomfortable with the extent of the attention. However, once her gaze fell upon Elsy, her smile turned genuine. Elsy excitedly made her way over to her, and tugged upon her cape, dragging her towards the dance floor. She made some attempts to snag the floating spheres of cocktails, contained within gravity controllers, that orbited one another in false planetary alignments as they drifted around the dancefloor. Quince laughed, asking Elsy how they were supposed to drink from it. Elsy exclaimed that she'd no idea, and the two both set about trying to snatch them from the air with their mouths, giggling as they did so. The two of them settled into a slow dance, as Quince visibly relaxed, no longer so concerned by the gaze of the people surrounding them. They wrapped their arms around one another, smiling, and indulged in drinking in the sight of one another.

Elsewhere, Vox made his way through the crowd, dispensing drinks and air kisses to the various guests, followed by floating trays of champagne. He paused in alarm as he heard a glass smash, turning to find one of Boombox's cubotic robot friends aggressively headbutt into guests as they mistook him for a table. However, Boombox immediately rushed over and explained to the guests that the robot was an art piece, immediately settling their distress. Vox took a moment to feel a swell of pride at Boombox's ability to smooth the situation over, before catching sight of someone standing awkwardly at the bar: Tailor Wren. Vox, a smile on his face, made his way over to him, whilst Boombox sniffed the air and whispered to his friend that there was a cop in the room. His friend exclaimed in disbelief, extending his body ten feet in the air to look around, before dropping back down.

Tailor, meanwhile, caught sight of Vox crossing the room, and let slip a rare real smile before composing his expression to its usual guarded professionalism. Vox expressed his delight Tailor had come, and offered him a drink. When he looked mildly disturbed by the floating drinks circulating the room, Vox offered something a bit more to his style, before leading him upstairs to a quieter seating area. Tailor inquired after Vox's time on Sagi, and Vox revealed they had been there as part of the rescue mission for Quince Malady. Tailor was slightly confused, given that it had been a major military operation, although Vox reassured him he had only been there to make introductions, and that he hadn't had to put any of Tailor's lessons to use or harm anyone. He went on to complain about having to work with Kaz Konnor, and lack of regard for other people's safety for the sake of his own glory - a subject that Tailor seized upon eagerly. The two bonded over complaining about Kaz, and as they did, Tailor stopped Vox to confess that he had upon first meeting him, assumed Vox was like Kaz - however, he now felt the fool for doing so, and that he now knew Vox to be a good and honest person, and that there should be more people like him. Vox felt somewhat guilty at being described as honest, but went on to try explain he did always want to do his best to help people, laying a hand on Tailor's knee and asking how he could best help him. Tailor responded that his parents had taught him that the world was a particular way, and then he had left the Academy and learned differently - and so, he wanted to know there were still good people in the world. Vox tried to reply that he was a good person, prompting Tailor to refute the fact, insisting he had ugly emotions of jealousy and rage.

It was at this point the two were interrupted by Miracle Belle taking the stage to begin her performance, calling Vox to join her and say hello. Vox gave Tailor an anxious glance, and asked him to wait for him before dashing off.

As Vox took to the stage, Arno leaned over to Neida and pointed him out to her. She commented to Arno on Vox's prettiness, to which Arno did not respond. Boombox at this point made his way over to Arno, greeting him loudly in his affected fancy accent. When Arno asked why he was talking like that, Boombox responded that he was art. Arno introduced Neida and Boombox, before they realised they had actually met back when Boombox had carried a severely injured Arno back to the Authentic Tavern. When Arno asked why he was dressed the way he was, Boombox pouted and told him he was having fun.

Back on the stage, Miracle introduced a very special guest to join her as a dancer tonight - the one and only Kaz Konnor. Boombox deflated in disappointment, informing his cube friend that he had thought she meant him. Vox meanwhile, visibly had to strain to hold his smile, but all the same took the mic from Miracle and welcomed everyone to the party before calling upon the crowd to give it up for Miracle Belle. Neida was starry-eyed, hands clasped beneath her chin as she drank in Miracle's performance: a sight that managed to penetrate even Arno's current existential numbness, and bring a smile to his face as he watched her. Boombox's cube friend bounced along to the beat, and Boombox wore a similar expression to Arno as he enjoyed his own friend's excitement. He took the sequinned top hat Vox had given him, and put it on his friend's head so as to discourage people further from putting drinks on him.

Anxious that Tailor may have once again left at the sight of Kaz, Vox swiftly did his best to slink off the stage and make his way back to the other man. He was relieved to see he was still waiting for him there, although was visibly irritated. Vox was relieved, and made his way back over, immediately launching into complaining about Kaz's uninvited seizure of the stage, given that his dancers had been scheduled to perform with Miracle. He compared it to the previous time Kaz had been at Maelstrom, and lamented that he supposed he should be grateful that Kaz hadn't burned down part of the club this time. Tailor asked in disbelief if that had really happened, and whether that had been the time Tailor had also been there. When Vox confirmed the fact, Tailor got to his feet, insisting he had made a mistake dragging Vox away from work that time and was probably doing the same now. Vox tried to protest, insisting he wanted Tailor to stay, but Tailor - with a glance at Kaz doing pelvic thrusts on the stage - maintained he found the environment too disturbing and wanted to leave. Vox asked whether they could see each other at another stage, and suggested they get dinner the following night. Tailor was taken aback, but agreed all the same, and let himself be lead to the exit by Vox. Once outside, they confirmed their plans to meet the following night, and Tailor reached out as if to touch Vox's face - before stopping himself, and squeezing his shoulder instead before departing. Crunch was also at the door, and side-eyed Vox. Vox flashed him a smile and asked after his night, prompting Crunch to reply with a grunt. Vox complimented the quality of their chat.

Vox then turned his attention to his wrist cuff, which had been vibrating all the while with messages from Miracle. Her texts instructed him to meet her at her dressing room during the intermission, implying she had a job opportunity for himself and The Nova. Vox thus made his way back inside, and over to Arno and Boombox's table. He made his hellos, complimenting Boombox on his outfit before greeting his friend - and doing an absolute atrocious job of trying to pronounce his name. He then introduced himself to a somewhat starstruck Neida Kampf, enthusiastically professing his delight at finally meeting her. Vox asked Arno and Boombox to accompany him backstage, to discuss an issue pertaining to their interests. Arno insisted that they bring Elsy as well, and Vox glanced over at the dance floor, where Elsy was still intimately dancing with Quince, before suggesting Elsy would trust them to handle matters themselves. Arno refused to act without the full team, and tried to call on Elsy and catch her attention as the trio crossed the dancefloor. Elsy engaged in a series of elaborate dance maneuvers so as to avoid Arno's efforts to enlist her, and preferred to keep her attention on Quince.

Thus, the three boys made their way to the dressing room Vox had assigned for Miracle, whilst Elsy continued to dance with Quince. As she did, however, she noticed another person staring at the two of them - particularly Quince - in a very focused and intense way. The person was a member of the Sagi species, and as Elsy continued to cast her gaze towards them, she realised they were carrying a concealed knife. She alerted Quince as to the fact, then swung Quince out of the way, grabbing one of the nearby hovering drinks tray with the intent to fling it towards the potential attacker. Elsy was too slow, however, and the Sagi noticed, dodging out of the way so that the tray went flying up towards the stage instead. Kaz yelled for 'party foul', whilst Elsy tried to raise the cry that there was a person with a knife. This prompted the Sagi person to lunge for Quince, screaming 'murderer!' - causing Quince to react with a stricken, frozen expression. Elsy grabbed Quince, and pulled her away, whilst the bouncers of Maelstrom descended upon the attacker. As Crunch dragged the Sagi away, both Quince and Elsy could make out them screaming something about Quon, as well as their brother, alongside repeated insults that Quince was a murderer.

In the backrooms of Maelstrom, Vox was able to make out some commotion from outside, as well as backchatter through the Maelstrom comms. He radioed in to Crunch, confirming everything was okay, before doing the same to Terra. Terra was busy trying to restrain Gimble from pursuing the attacker with weapons, but reassured him everything was under control. Thus, Vox, Boombox, and Arno made their way into Miracle's dressing room, where she lay upon a throne-like seat, draped in what appeared like nothing but a boa that appeared to be made up of sea anemone tentacles. Vox immediately began to thank her profusely for the night's entertainment, and ask whether he could do anything to improve the evening for her. She replied that she was doing just fine - with Kaz making the night more interesting - before going on she had a proposition she wished to discuss, and wondering whether Vox's companions could be trusted. Vox introduced the two of them - Boombox taking her hand to kiss it, and producing a fake kiss noise as he did so. Miracle paused to consider Arno, before declaring there was 'something there'.

Once satisfied, Miracle produced an e-vite she had received from the Memorium Skopus for an exhibit named the 'Frozen Clutch'. The hologram displayed an image of a diamond necklace, which was to be the exhibit's center-piece. What made it special was that it was not simply going to be a hologram, like most museum displays, but for that night only for several hours, would be the piece itself taken out of time and brought to Phobos in all its splendor before being returned to its original time. She informed Vox she wanted it, and wished for him and his group to steal it so that she could wear it to a party, before giving it back to the Historians. Vox - ignoring Arno's protests - immediately agreed, and promised her that they could count on The Nova. Pleased, Miracle stood up, shrugging off her boa and informing Vox he needed to make sure it got water, before striding back off towards the stage. Both Vox and Boombox zipped off to fetch water bottles from the bar, whilst Arno stopped Miracle before she could leave. He asked her how she had gotten Vox to listen to her, to which Miracle responded that she was rich and famous, and Vox was a shallow boy. Arno responded that Vox was famous, and Miracle replied he wasn't as famous as her, and that he wasn't famous for much thus far, beyond making good drinks.

As she left, Vox dashed back in alongside Boombox with an armful of water bottles, Vox frantically eye-balling Arno and quizzing him on what he'd been saying to Miracle. Arno replied that he hadn't been talking to her, before trying to raise the point that their group had never done anything like this before. Both Vox and Boombox replied that they hadn't done *most* of their jobs before, and still managed well enough - with Boombox pointing out that diamonds didn't even move, compared to their previous experience stealing children. Arno tried to impress on Vox he wanted to feel more like they were team members than his employee, whilst Vox argued back that Arno didn't always have to take the job alongside them. Arno insisted that he did have to come with them. Boombox declared that this sucked, and went to go water the sea anemone. Arno also grew tired of the conversation, and declared his intent to go back to the bar. Vox told him to tell Terra the drinks were on him, before hurrying off back to Miracle's pet.

Following the attack on Quince, Elsy had text Vox about a safe place and exit to take Quince. He responded through text to direct her towards the staff room, where there was also a staff exit. Elsy hurried Quince in there, whilst Quince tried dismiss Elsy's concern. Quince sat down, with her fingers to her temples, asking Elsy if she had heard what the person was saying. Elsy replied truthfully - that they had accused her of being a murderer - but reassured Quince that it wasn't true, and that Quince had been a prisoner. She further tried to convince Quince she had saved lives by blowing up the Rattler back on Quon, to which Quince responded nodding thoughtfully - before her face hardened, and she demanded what right did they have to say such things which weren't true. Elsy continued to agree with her, insisting that Quince was one of the most honourable people she knew and always did what was best for the people. Quince sighed, and apologised, saying she had enjoyed the night but declined Elsy's request to walk her home in favour of getting some head space of her own. Elsy suggested they get dinner or hot chocolate alone sometime, to which Quince replied that she would like that, and allowed Elsy to show her to the door. As she stepped outside, Quince looked out into the night, before reaching back to allow her hand slide down Elsy's arm, and her fingers catching Elsy's as she left.

Following up on Vox's suggestion to get a drink from Terra, Arno made his way over to Terra's side of the bar, which was quiet enough as Miracle's set was in effect. Arno ordered a drink told Terra pointedly that it was good to see him back at the bar. Terra told Arno that he'd been taking care of some things while the group was in Sagi - surely Arno knew what it was like to run errands. Arno asked why Terra had disposed of his phone, and was unconvinced when Terra responded that it had been a safety precaution. When Arno pointed out that he was the head bartender at a popular nightclub, Terra argued that if Toska could possibly know that he was regular fixture at Maelstrom, then it would have been a problem before long before now.

Terra was fortunate that Vox was as forgiving as he was, Arno pointed out. Vox had been wracked with anxiety on the flight home when Terra had failed to check in, and Arno was not keen to see him in that position again. He wanted to be sure Terra was not making a habit of deserting, given what he'd told them about his previous job. Terra seemed shaken to hear that Vox had been distraught, but he demanded to know whether Arno had ever had secrets that could hurt the people he cared about. No, Arno didn't - and that was choice he'd made. Frostily, Terra replied that he only got a choice because he was a person, and not a programme, given a command line. That command line, he insisted, meant he could be asked to do things that might harm people you loved, and that when you weren't a person, it was a simple thing for someone to extract your secrets and use them against you, or to hurt people. He had recently taken the time make sure that didn't happen, and he reserved the right to remain illusive about his methods.

Arno fixed him with a look. They had put people in jeopardy so Vox could come home to find him and that he felt in some ways, it might have been better if Terra had not been there when they came back. Better to consider the sacrifices that had been made for Terra, than to forget them in delight as soon as he reappeared. He did not want to be made to prioritise Terra's safeguarding over other people at the risk of causing Vox great pain. Vox's feelings for Terra had changed the nature of Arno's work, and they would threaten to again. Terra asked him whether they were talking about Vox's feelings for Terra, or Arno's feelings for Vox. He called the other man jaded, and Arno agreed. Maybe he was jaded. Terra changed tack, asking Arno whether he'd been a soldier. When Arno said he had been, Terra commented that soldiering was nice, simple work, only having to protect other people. Arno retorted, it was hardly simple at all, and it involved more than protection. You had to predict others' actions and not make snap decisions. You had to be willing to make sacrifices that you wouldn't ask of others. Terra responded that that work more like being a spy, and when Arno replied that some soldiers were spies, Terra insisted that you reached a point in your life where you had to be one or the other. Frustrated, Arno thus asked Terra which one he was, and Terra gave him a classic smile - he was just a bartender.

At this point, Vox rushed over with Boombox in tow, shooting the two of them suspicious looks and asking what they had been talking about. Terra teased Vox to not be jealous, whilst Arno told Vox he hadn't been talking to him and immediately departing with his drink. Vox frowned after him, before continuing to fuss over Terra who continued to reassure him nothing had been really said. Vox eventually dropped the subject, and asked after Gimble's whereabouts. Terra informed him he had sent her out the back to kill rats, and after Vox asked whether she knew the difference between rats and humans, Terra looked momentarily panicked before hurrying out the back himself, with Vox yelling at Boombox to follow him as well.

Arno made his way over to Neida with his drink, who seemed to be a little drunk as well as tired. He offered to take her home, and the two made their way outside. As they strolled the streets of Phobos in the direction of the Clockworks, Arno holding a somewhat wobbly Neida up, he asked her what she would do if she had three wishes. Neida considered this for a while, before replying that she wished you could truly forgive another person. Arno asked who Neida wanted to forgive, and she responded that it didn't really matter anymore. She expressed some mild embarrassment, calling her wish sort of selfish, and Arno kindly replied that most wishes were a little selfish.

Boombox meanwhile joined Gimble outside in the alleyway behind Maelstrom, only to find she had come to befriend the rats, and was speaking to them with relative enthusiasm. Boombox declared that they were perfect mammals, and squatted down beside her to also enjoy some quality rat time.

Elsy had become fairly intoxicated since Quince's departure, stealing drinks from the bar whilst Terra's attention was elsewhere. She then took to sticking her head under the chocolate fountain, reveling in the cascade of delicious sweetness. Vox watched her from behind the bar, and decided to leave filling her in on the job until the following day.

As the club finally began to close up around 8 AM, Vox settled into the usual end-of-the-night wind down with Terra, pouring them drinks as they discussed the night's events. He called upstairs, knowing Lumen was watching, that it was safe for her to come downstairs, and offering strawberry daiquiris as an incentive. Lumen made a show of reluctance at first, but was unwilling to resist the call of strawberry daiquiris. Thus she made her way downstairs, and joined Vox and Terra at the bar. Vox inquired as to whether she had heard from Milo again, and Lumen confessed she had gone to the museum once, but he had been nowhere to be found. She told him he seemed to be very focused on the 'work' Triade had assigned him, and she had thought he had needed help - but clearly was happy to be where he was. Vox called over to Terra at the mention of Milo's apparent work, asking if he had known anything about Milo's strange riddles, given how he had stormed out of the room at the mention of kings dying. Terra shrugged it off, rebuking that he'd been tired and hadn't been in the mood to deal with creepy kids with their creepy nursery rhymes. Unwilling to press the subject too much further with either of them, Vox focused on enjoying some family time with the two of them before heading to bed.

### III. - The Nova Go On Dates

The following morning, Vox rang a rather hungover Elsy and filled her in on the details of their new mission. The thrill of stealing diamond jewelry - a trade she was no stranger to - was enough to pierce through her headache, and she agreed to accompany Vox to the museum in order to gather information. Vox picked her up in Stella, and when she got into the car, she found a spiked hot chocolate from Vox waiting for her, in order to take the edge off.

The two made their way to the Curia district, and parked at the Memorium Skopus. Elsy had to call on Vox to slow down as she struggled up the massive steps to the museum, still struggling with her hangover and over a foot shorter than her friend. Once inside, Vox made his way to the reception, and requested from an assistant droid to speak to the museum curator. The curator came out to meet him after a few short minutes, and incidentally happened to already know Vox, the nightclub owner having helped them organise a fundraiser some time ago. Vox expressed his eagerness to attend the Frozen Clutch exhibit, mentioning that his close friend Miracle was very keen that he was present. The curator explained that given that the exhibit was itself a fundraiser, the tables were actually purchased by the guests' representative group. They explained that they generally accepted a donation of ten cred, in order to secure a table for six people. Elsy elbowed Vox, claiming she could pay for the table, but Vox agreed to split it with her, and told the curator they would indeed purchase a table. The curator reacted with glee, inquiring whether Vox wanted to become a lifetime member of the museum whilst he was at it. Thinking of Lumen, Vox agreed enthusiastically, and both himself and the curator made their way over to the mountain of membership and donation forms that awaited him.

Elsy rolled her eyes as she watched Vox gleefully get tucked into his favourite past-time of paperwork, and took the opportunity to wander off in the direction of where the exhibit was being set up. A robotic sentry was guarding the sectioned-off area, keeping a careful watch for any intruders. Fortunately, Vox picked this moment to holo-call Miracle and make a big scene back in the lobby of telling her about buying the table. The sight of Miracle Belle, even in hologram form, caused enough of a ruckus amongst the museum visitors, that the guard was forced to rush off towards the lobby, allowing Elsy to slip into the area unseen. As she slipped between the displays, she overheard some staff discuss the security measures were employing for that evening, including the manner in which the real diamonds would be secured before being put on display. She also learned that the museum was recruiting an additional, external security force known as the 'Buddy System' for that night only.

Elsy made her way back to the lobby to find Vox shaking the Quetz curator's wing enthusiastically, repeating his excitement for the event. As they made their way to the exit, Vox paused for a moment and activated his Skeleton Keyring to hack into an information terminal. Through that, he was able to snag a map of the downstairs floor where the necklace would be stored, as well as information regarding what would happen in the event of a power surge. Satisfied with the information they'd gathered, the duo left the museum. Elsy leaned into Vox as they made their way outside, thanking him for the 'extra something' in her hot chocolate, and he replied with a grin that he figured she'd need it. The two of them fell into a thoughtful silence as Elsy fell back into over-analysing the way Quince had touched her arm the night before, whilst Vox cast his gaze over in the direction of the Praetorian as they both made their way back to Stella.

On the opposite side of the moon, Boombox was happily enjoying some quality time in the mines alongside his newfound gang - the Boomboys. The Boomboys were robots he had found thrown out in the depths of the Tsovaworks, for no longer operating at their prime performance or for simply falling out of fashion. Boombox had thus constructed something of a clubhouse for them, from salvaging other scraps of junk from the mine as well as scorched furniture from Maelstrom Vox had discarded in the aftermath of the destruction wrought by Boombox, Kaz, and Arno a month earlier. Gimble was present, and attempting to show a discard ButlerBot a rat she had retrieved from Maelstrom's back alleys - however, the rat had immediately died due to the noxious fumes that filled the Boomcave. Boombox filled Gimble in on the jewel heist job they had just received, and expressed his enthusiasm to take part. Gimble was equally enthused, and asked whether she could come. Boombox began to protest that Vox might not allow it, but once Gimble challenged him on why should he have to listen to Vox, re-considered her request and decided for them that yes, she should indeed come. The pair discussed the potential for some new and sexy disguises, as well as gear, with Gimble lamenting her dislike of her current useless robotic arm. They thus got to work coming up with their own plan to steal the diamonds.

That evening, Arno Stern made his way over to the Shales and Malachi's House to finally enjoy his long-promised opera date with Neida. As he stood waiting for her, however, a Tapis made their way over to him and called him by his name. They introduced themselves as an intern at the theatre, and told them they had received a message from Neida Kampf, to inform him she couldn't make the evening but that she wanted Arno to go on ahead and tell her all about it later. Arno thanked the intern, but made his way outside and anxiously rang Neida all the same. She answered, and reiterated the intern's message: something had come up at work with her boss, and she wasn't going to be able to make it over there. She urged Arno to go enjoy the show all the same, and that she was looking forward to hearing about it. Once Arno was satisfied she was indeed safe, he made his way back inside and to his seat, settling into it albeit a tad bit sulkily.

A man came and took the seat beside him, apologising as he accidentally jostled Arno's knee whilst doing so. The man remarked on Arno being there alone, and Arno admitted he had been stood up. The stranger expressed his condolences, and the two struck up conversation. The other man informed him he was also there alone, but by choice, confessing that he quite enjoyed the opportunity to get caught up in the story and bright lights, and the chance to forget the troubles of the real world. Arno eventually offered up his name to the stranger, and the other man introduced himself in turn as 'Dale'. The lights began to dim, and Dale promised Arno he was in for quite a show - as he set his cane to the side.

Across the city, Vox met Tailor Wren for their promised dinner date at a resaturant in the Overhang named Neleus, famed for its private booths surrounded by one giant enclosed aquarium. Both ended up arriving early, and Tailor was visibly slightly anxious at being out in a public setting. Vox did his best to put him at ease, beginning by apologising for the previous night and if he had done anything to make Tailor uncomfortable. Tailor insisted that Vox himself never made him uncomfortable, but rather, the noise and overall state of intoxication of most of Maelstrom's patrons did. Vox laughed and reassured him that albeit Maelstrom was his happy place, he knew it wasn''t for everyone.

Their conversation turned to work, with Tailor informing Vox about the upcoming trial of one of the captured Fractures leaders, Lyanna. He confided how tensions were already high on Phobos as the trial's date approached, and how he had had to come back to Maelstrom the previous night to arrest someone making an attempt on Quince Malady's life. Vox already knew of the attempt, but conveyed his surprise that someone from the Systems would ever attack a Bright Wing. Tailor seemed less surprised, and when Vox pressed him, confessed that during his own time in the DIscovery Corps, he had become increasingly less convinced they were actually doing anything. That was why he had left the job in favour of the Praetorian, where he at least felt he was protecting people, the way that he had been raised to do. He sighed and apologised for making depressing dinner conversation, which Vox swiftly dismissed, reassuring Tailor he didn't have to talk about anything he didn't wish to discuss - citing Maelstrom's 'no pasts' policy as he did. Tailor was surprised at the concept, and asked Vox how a person could ever grow if they never considered their past actions. Vox insisted that the past could not be changed, and all anyone could do was try be the best possible versions of themselves in the present. Their food arrived then, and the two continued to discuss the concept.

Back at Malachi's House, just before the light dimmed, Dale nudged Arno to indicate the arrival of two patrons making their way into a private booth, which happened to be marked by a bird. A man and a child - who Arno recognised as Milo - took their seats, prompting Dale to remark what a rare occasion it was to see anyone occupying that reserved space. Once intermission came, Arno excused himself from Dale. Security refused to let him past, but once Arno convinced one of them to tell Milo he had a message from Lumen, Milo himself made his way out willingly. The two conversed briefly, before Arno got to the heart of what he wanted to say - that he wanted to help Milo and Triade in whatever it was they were trying to achieve. When Milo asked Arno what he thought he would be useful for, Arno informed him he too had seen the cabin in the woods. Milo agreed to talk to Triade for him, and made his way back inside.

Arno made his way back to his seat, to find Dale had gotten a brownie for Arno as well as himself. The two conversed further, with Dale asking what Arno thought of the show. Arno admitted to being very impressed, completely in awe of all the colour and sound, and Dale agreed, professing a particular love for Crimson Catastrophe's work. He told Arno that he had been coming to the shows for about fifteen years now, and that they made him feel like there could still be something nice in this world. Arno responded he had grown up in a home with a lot of music, but had never head music like this before. Dale asked where Arno where was from, and when Arno replied Earth, expressed his admiration of Earth's beauty. Arno asked the other man the same question, and Dale answered that he was from 'all over the place' but that he didn't remember much, due to having a having a challenging childhood which left his memory somewhat foggy. Arno inquiring about the kind of work Dale did. Dale explained he did some work adjacent to the Historians. He confided that he took issue with the ways people tended to over-romanticise the past, and how he preferred smaller, less renowned acts of heroism occurring in history that he came across in his research. Arno agreed, saying that he liked those kind of stories too. As the lights dimmed, signalling the end of intermission, Arno caught sight of Milo and Triade: Milo appeared to be leaning in and discussing something with Triade, but neither turned their gazes towards Arno.

Dale gives business card at end - go back here and fill in Seldom details here stephanie

Meanwhile, Vox's evening also came to an end, as he finished up dinner with Tailor. Tailor thanked him for the evening, to which Vox responded that he hoped they could do it again sometime as he really enjoyed spending time with the other man. Tailor echoed the sentiment, with a small smile. Vox suggested they take a walk to the Overhang gardens, but Tailor insisted on checking in at the office, but agreed to walk Vox home instead. The two made their way over towards Vox's apartment chatting, with Tailor appearing more comfortable with instances of physical contact such as their arms touching. They said their goodbyes at Vox's door, with Vox reaching to squeeze his arm and Tailor mistaking it for a handshake. Vox encouraged him to not work too hard, prompting Tailor to reply that it was his job, and that it was important. Vox reminded him that it wasn't everything, causing a stricken look to cross Tailor's face.

The following day, Vox decided to call for a family day out at Opal Terraces with the whole Maelstrom family - including Boombox, who still believed he worked in Maelstrom. Terra, Lumen, Vox and Boombox sat on the picnic blankets eating ice creams whilst The Gang taught the other staff members of Maelstrom their ball game and the dancers indulged in some sun-bathing. Boombox chomped on an ice cream in a truly painful looking way, and commented on how great this was, wondering when he would get paid. Vox tried to correct his ice cream eating technique, with Boombox lamenting that Vox was trying to ruin his fun. Terra corrected him that Vox was simply trying to *control* the fun. When Vox sighed and told Boombox to eat it however he wanted, Boombox began to eat it in the most annoying way possible, which Lumen thoroughly enjoyed and began to add her own suggestions about more terrible ways to consume it.

Vox turned his attentions to attention to Terra, asking whether Arno had really not been harassing him the other night. Terra reassured Vox he hadn't, and asked what was going on. Vox quizzed Terra on whether Arno seemed different, and Terra replied that he seemed about as morose and introspective as ever. Vox went on to confide that he felt like he no longer knew how to help Arno any longer, and that all he seemed to do was let him down. Terra advised Vox that both Arno and himself seemed to have problems believing that they each made their own choices about their own lives: with Arno overly worried about Vox's safety, and Vox overly concerned about having to help Arno. He thus suggested that they both stopped taking responsibility for one another's actions completely on themselves. Vox appeared to listen to nothing Terra said, other than to respond in disbelief that Arno thought he needed protecting, and when Terra pointed out that Vox had literally hired the entire Gang to act as physical protection for him, Vox insisted they were protecting Terra and Lumen. Terra suggested he just be present for Arno and be there for him, to which Vox replied that he was trying to do exactly that but it wasn't working. When Terra asked had Vox tried telling Arno how he felt, Vox turned stubbornly silent.

At this point, Boombox announced he was done with his ice cream, and was handed the rest of her's by Lumen. Boombox poured prosecco into the ice cream cone, and began drinking from it. Vox commented on that actually being a pretty good cocktail idea, which reminded Boombox to ask when he got paid. Terra joined in the questioning, as a very confused Vox tried to tell Boombox he didn't actually work at Maelstrom - but that he could offer him a job if he wanted to. After quizzing Terra on whether he wanted a job or not, Boombox declared he didn't want a job at Vox's 'shitty restaurant' anyway.

After Boombox and Lumen left the picnic blanket to go join in the ball game with the others, Vox turned to Terra and somewhat apprehensively asked whether Terra had taken care of everything he needed to. Terra responded that he had done so, and after further anxious questions from Vox, assured him he'd no plans to leave again in the immediate future. Vox told Terra he understood why Terra wanted to keep whatever he'd been doing private, and knew he had his reasons, but *if* it ever happened again, that he try find some way to get a message to Vox to let him know he was okay. Terra responded by pulling from his jeans pocket a pair of Ad Astra Assimilated 'Best Friend' bracelets: bracelets that projected a hologram of a representative animal that would always run in the direction of the paired bracelet, as well as inform you of how far away you were from one another. Vox's animal was a fox, whilst Terra's was a German Shepard. Terra put the bracelets on the both of them, with Vox too overwhelmed to say much more than thank you. He then took Terra's hand in his, as the two watched the Gang and rest of the staff play their ball game, the pair's holographic animals tousling and playing together as they were programmed to do when in such close proximity to one another.

### IV. - Ocean's....Mess

The gang met at Maelstrom the following day, to try and decide upon a plan - once again, subjecting poor Terra to their usual bout of bickering. Boombox grew tired of the squabbling, and tried relocate them all to Opal Terraces - again joined by Terra - in the hope that being in a park might alleviate some of the tension. It didn't.

After several hours of back-and-forth, the gang eventually settled on a plan: Vox would arrange for Arno and Boombox to join up with the additional security forces the Museum were hiring for the event, known as the Buddy System, famed for pairing up an organic alongside a synthetic. Vox and Elsy would attend the event as guests, alongside Oatmeal and Crystal - as well as Arno's new friend, Seldom, who had traded information on the diamonds in exchange for a seat at Vox's table. Whilst Vox worked to distract security forces, Elsy would sneak downstairs, and through Boombox and Arno, gain access to the vault where the diamonds were being held - at which point, she would utilize a drone device that would snatch the diamonds, and deliver them through a small drilled hole in the wall to Miracle on the floor above, who would conceal them beneath her dress. Vox was to then hack the projection of the diamonds, in order to make the diamond theft apparent, and thoroughly sensationalise the event.

The day of the heist, Arno made his way over to the Memorium Skopus for the security briefing. He was surprised and slightly dismayed when there was no sign of Boombox. He did his best to cover for his absence, however, assuring the Buddy Systems' creator Arnie Wrench that he had just got stuck in traffic, and tried to learn as much as he could as to what to expect that evening. When assignments were being dealt out, he was alarmed when he was issued with the task of staffing the front door, and not the basement level where the diamonds were being stored. He approached Arnie, and informed her that his Buddy had a 'real mouth on him', and would be better utilised away from where he could offend any guests. Arnie praised Arno's initiative, and decided to place him downstairs with two veterans: Baker and his partner Pillow. Arno took his post downstairs - and as the hours ticked on, Boombox was still nowhere to be seen.

Vox meanwhile, arrived in Stella, alongside Oatmeal and Crystal. As he slid out the car, his phone began ringing. The call turned out to be from Neida Kampf, who apologetically explained that she was sorry to bother him, but that her boss, Lei Carter, had been supposed to get tickets for the event and forgotten to do so. Lei was uncaring, but she would end up in trouble if she didn't attend, and this would cause problems for Neida. As Neida tried to explain her dilemma to Vox, he was suddenly knocked into by another person, calling for his attention. Vox told Neida to hold, and tried to confront the person invading his space. He recognised them as River Cobalt-Sioux, the recent CEO of Atlas-Sioux, who was very clearly in a state of intoxication. River managed to splutter out that they had also forgotten to buy tickets, and demanded Vox give them a seat at his own. Vox tried to dissuade them as politely as he could, explaining his table was already full. River grew increasingly furious as Vox rebuked him, and eventually stumbled away vowing revenge on the nightclub owner. Vox returned to his phone call, and told Neida he would call her back. At this point, his phone buzzed again - with a request from Tailor to see him that night.

As Vox miserably lamented the fortune of his life to Crystal and Oatmeal, someone called his name enthusiastically from behind. Forcing a smile, Vox lifted his head from the roof of Stella, and turned to greet the approaching Seldom Triumph. Seldom cheerfully introduced himself, and expressed his excitement for the event. His eyes fell upon Crystal and Oatmeal, and he began gushing over their beauty. Vox encouraged Seldom to go on ahead inside, alongside his companions, whilst he handled some phone calls outside. Seldom was all too happy to do exactly that, and took the arm of both Crystal and Oatmeal, before sauntering towards the awaiting red carpet. Vox, in turn, sank back into his abject misery as he tried decide what to do.

Elsy herself made her own grand entrance, decked out in several dozen diamond necklaces - a mixture of former belongings of her mother's, and items she had previously stolen - with her knife, Omen, posing as the central piece of statement jewelry, as per a suggestion from Vox. The paparazzi immediately seized upon her, snapping up as many pictures as possible whilst other guests looked on in awe. Elsy paused to briefly pose for the cameras, before confidently sashaying on inside.

Around this time, Boombox himself arrived, dressed up as a 1930s bank robber. He surveyed the area, as he tried to get in contact with Arno, unaware of the fact Arno had no idea how to use a phone. As he struggled to reach his friend, he felt a tug on his sleeve, and turned to find Gimble, decked out in an absolutely stunning flapper dress, much more well put-together than he'd ever seen her before. She asked him whether he was ready to go steal the diamonds, and Boombox admitted he was still trying to get in touch with Arno, so that Arno could help them into the vault. Gimble reassured him that they could probably take care of it themselves, and that they should go on inside. Just before they did so, Boombox scanned the crowd for someone holding a brown paper bag - and sure enough, spot Khaki Slate in the distance. The robots made their way over to one another, and Boombox was handed the grenade tube he had requested from Khaki, in exchange for a real, live orchid which Khaki wanted to get for Galen's birthday.

As Boombox tucked it away, Gimble caught sight of Vox. At this point, Vox had already told Tailor to come along to the event, and had to break the news to a very disappointed sounding Neida, thus was now looking even more miserable than ever. The robots remarked on how sad he looked, but decided he would be much happier once they successfully stole the diamonds. Thus, they put their best foot forward, and dramatically strutted up the carpet, pausing every so often to vogue, much to the delight of the paparazzi. The reporters' attention was only wrenched away from the pair by the arrival of Crimson Catastrophe, who was accompanied by her son. As Vox watched the uproar her arrival caused, he met the eyes of the young Quetz man - and recognised him as Thistle Catastrophe, the intern from The Praetorian. He gave a smile and a wave, which Thistle politely returned.

It was at this point, Tailor Wren arrived, kitted out in his uniform and on his Praetorian Steed - an elaborate clockwork device that very closely resembled an actual horse, but could reconfigure into a motorcyle when needed. He spotted Vox, and made his way over, dismounting the Steed and handing the reins to a very alarmed looking valet. After a moment, he realised the valet's confusion, and hit something on his armour that caused the horse to transform into its motorcycle configuration. He greeted Vox warmly, before questioning what exactly the event was - suddenly all too aware of the number of people and paparazzi present. Vox informed him it was a showcase for a new museum exhibit, but questioned whether Tailor was sure he was comfortable going in with him. Tailor insisted it was fine, and gestured for Vox to lead the way.

As they made their way up the steps, and paparazzi caught sight of Tailor and started calling for his attention, Tailor locked eyes with Thistle, and both did a visible double-take before awkwardly greeting one another. Vox remarked to Tailor that he hadn't known Thistle was Crimson Catastrophe's son, and that it was admirable he had gone into the Praetorian rather than follow in his mother's footsteps. Tailor responded that Thistle had a terrible singing voice.

Donwstairs, beneath all the glitz and glamour, Arno conversed with the two other Buddy System security guards, Baker and Pillow. Both appeared to be torn between confusion and concern regarding Arno's absent Buddy, but eventually decided that 'Three Buddies' would work out just as well as two and two. As the three conversed, the elevator doors suddenly flew open and Jaunt Ginova herself strode past, greeting them as she did, before stepping through the next set of security doors. She returned after several minutes, and made her way back upstairs. Arno asked Baker and Pillow whether they reckoned she had just deposited the diamonds into the vault. His companions agreed that was probably the case, and Arno, feigning boredom, suggested they all go have a look at the diamonds for themselves. Baker was especially unsure, and said their job was to stay where they were. Arno insisted that no one would even notice, and that the guests upstairs were still receiving their cocktails and hor d'ouveres, and thus, no one would even notice them leaving their post. Pillow seemed to like the idea, and made his way over to the next security door, knocking on it and calling for the guards on the other side. However, he appeared to have misunderstood Arno's suggestion, and started to call upon the other guards to go 'upstairs' for 'cocktails'.

Inside the main room, Elsy lingered near the display case, drink in hand, casually taking in the location. Her careful eye noted the presence of attack drones, which she recognised as the type that would be unaffected by electrical surges, as well as some sort of security measure around the case itself - albeit she couldn't quite puzzle out what. As she sipped her cocktail, she heard a voice from behind complimenting her outfit. She turned, and realised that she was yet again being cornered by Mila Milennia. Forcing a smile, she returned the compliment to the other woman. Mila lamented the fact that things hadn't worked out exactly as they'd hoped over on Sagi, to which Elsy responded that it had become a 'family matter'. Mila mildly remarked that she had noticed, eyes drifting over towards another side of the room: where Githinji and Ashura were standing in a circle of people, chatting. She went on to express she looked forward to catching up with Elsy on the 'other' issue the two had discussed, before departing back towards her own table, leaving Elsy grinding her teeth in anger.

Vox entered the room alongside Tailor, and spotted Boombox and Gimble almost immediately. He did his best to mask his shock and fury, and instead, tried to steer Tailor towards the champagne bar so as to better assess the situation. However, Tailor insisted on leaning across him to fetch him champagne, causing Vox's brain to just short-circuit and lose focus on the task at hand entirely.

Seeing that Vox had now arrived, Boombox himself decided to scope out the room - in particular, the display case. His former training as a bomb diffusing robot meant he recognised the technology surrounding the case as a pulse that would trigger the entire room to erupt into anti-gravity, if anything disturbed the display case. Feigning dropping something, the robot casually let something drop from his grip, and roll over in the direction of the case. Boombox then nudged Gimble, urging him to follow his lead, as he turned to address the room. Boombox loudly declared that they were there to steal the diamonds, and that no one would get hurt - except for those that would. Gimble reacted with equal glee, ripping off one of her gloves to reveal she'd replaced her robotic arm with a claw, and extracting a shotgun from where she stored it in her spine. Boombox then set off the device he'd deployed, causing a bomb to go off that ripped a hole into the floor and into the vault below.

Across the room, Elsy face-palmed the moment Boombox began to address the crowd, and took off in the direction of the nearest elevator, taking advantage of the distraction in order to get to the vault below.

Downstairs, Pillow was still hammering on the security door, insisting they go upstairs, whilst Arno tried convince him to go deeper into the vault - when Baker's comms crackled into life, and began panickedly explaining the situation upstairs. As he tried to figure out what was going on, the elevator *ping*ed, and Elsy stepped through its doors. She attempted to pass herself off as another member of security, explaining what had just happened upstairs and that she had been sent to convey the message and help them secure the diamond. Her explanation matching up to the information Baker had just received, they all began trying to urge the next security team to open their door.

Sensing that things had spiralled out beyond their control - especially when Elsy had conveyed that the robbery was the doings of 'two rogue robots' - Arno suggested he escort Elsy out. Elsy appeared confused, and insisted she was there to help. Arno pressed that he might be able to show her to her car in order to leave - and Elsy's eyes lit up, remembering where she'd parked Eternal Drift - diagonally across a road. However, Pillow began to urgently tug on both their arms, insisting that hey help, and thus preventing any way to leave without blowing their cover.

Back upstairs, everything happened almost immediately. Almost all the guests at Mila's table, as well as at Githinji's table, turned out to be armed security, and all immediately turned their focus upon evacuating their charges. Ashura was seen to be thoroughly enjoying himself at the extent of the chaos, before being rushed out of the room by his guard. Elsewhere in the room, Chandra Tara, one of the heirs to Ad Astra Assimilated, was also soaking in the pandemonium, whilst his twin Surya Glory irritably ordered her husband Sunder Glory to get his act together so they could get out of there.

As soon as the explosion detonated, Tailor Wren grabbed Vox and slammed him against the nearest wall, shielding him from the blast with his body. All too aware of what - or rather, *who* - had caused the explosion, Vox immediately flung his arms around Tailor's neck and began to faux-hyperventilate with terror. Tailor tried to reassure him, whilst struggling to maneuver Vox behind him, so to continue protecting him. When he had Vox at least semi-secured - despite the other man's insistence to clinging onto him for dear life - he reached behind him, and pulled out his Praetorian sword, Ember, which fizzled and cracked to life as Tailor announced to the room the Praetorian presence.

And then the anti-gravity came on.

Tailor gave a shout of surprise, before lifting up into the air, with Vox still clinging to him. The rest of the room also found themselves suddenly floating in the space, as canapes and drinks drifted off their trays and into orbit.

Boombox and Gimble were less troubled by the anti-grav, with Boombox using his grappling hook to anchor himself to the vault below, whilst Gimble activated magnets in her legs to secure herself to the floor. Boombox pulled himself down into the vault, and snatched the diamonds with a delighted cry. Meanwhile, Gimble provided firing cover, managing to fend off the security drones pursuing them. The diamonds now in his possession, Boombox decided it was time to make their daring escape. He thus produced a rocket, attaching it to his back and setting it off, launching him flying up through the hole in the ceiling, snatching Gimble as he did so.

Meanwhile back in the basement, the security guards finally managed to open the door to the vault, to discover the diamonds had already been snatched by the villains. Pillow inflated himself with air, transforming into a gigantic circle, and urging the others to hold on. Baker shouted his encouragement, grabbing onto Pillow, whilst a thoroughly confused Elsy and Arno did the same. With all humans clinging to him, Pillow took to the air, and floated through the hole in the ceiling.

Upstairs, Vox glanced over a struggling Tailor's shoulder, to witness Boombox and Gimble come soaring through the hole in the floor on a rocket, followed by the gigantic balloon-shape Pillow, Arno and Elsy holding on to him as they floated up through the air. Vox watched in stunned disbelief, before redoubling his efforts of trying to distract Tailor from doing his duty.

Guards continued to try and shoot at Boombox and Gimble as they soared through the air on Boombox's rocket, with Boombox taking some gunfire in the process. The rocket careened towards the skylight, and as Boombox looked down into the room of floating guests, his gaze locked with a familiar female Nyx - who he recognised as his former space pirate friend, Rocky. He waved at her, and she waved back, before raising her gun and shooting out the sky-light he was headed for. Thus, Gimble and Boombox fled throguh the ceiling and onto the roof - pursued by the floating form of Pillow, who still carried both Arno and Elsy.

The criminals now confirmed to have fled to the roof, the security cried for the anti-grav to be shut off so that they could gather their forces and follow them up. Gravity was restored to the roof, sending Tailor crashing to the floor on his back, with Vox very much on top of him. The two stared at one another for a moment, before Vox kissed him. Tailor froze in shock and fear, before tangling a hand in Vox's hair and kissing him back. They were soon interrupted by Thistle, however, who yelled in disbelief at the discovery and urged him to pursue the villains to the roof. Tailor shoved Vox off, and leapt to his feet, extremely flustered. He tried to apologise whilst shaking his fitzing sword back to life, before dashing out the door alongside Thistle. A dazed Vox sat on the floor, calling after him. He was interrupted by the presence of Seldom, as well as Crystal and Oatmeal, the latter both fixing him with a look. Vox suggested they take their leave, and held up a hand to Oatmeal to help him. Oatmeal pulled him up, and helped prop up a staggering Crystal and Vox as they left the building.

Up on the roof, a triumphant Gimble and Boombox celebrated, with Gimble having adorned the necklace herself. As Pillow ascended into sight of the criminals, Baker took aim. Arno intervened, swiftly reaching out and blocking the bullet with his force bracelets. Unfortunately, the bullet rebounded and hit Elsy directly through the palm of her hand and short-circuiting her cyber-fingertips. When Baker exclaimed what the hell was Arno doing, Arno responded by punching Baker unconscious. Having all landed on the roof, Pillow reacted with shock and confusion, slowly reaching for his gun. Arno calmly suggested that no one else needed to get hurt that night. Pillow fixed him with a stricken look, uttering 'three buddies' before letting himself fall backwards through the hole in the ceiling.

Boombox, standing with Gimble a short distance away, remarked that Pillow seemed nice. Arno bitterly responded that it was the start of a beautiful friendship, whilst snapping that it was great to see Gimble. Gimble began cracking up. With Elsy's cyberware damaged and in need of repair, she was no longer able to call for the Eternal Drift - but fortunately, she had entrusted Arno with a calling key for the ship prior to the mission start, and thus Arno activated that, sending the Eternal Drift darting towards them and landing deftly upon the roof.

Unfortunately, they were soon joined by the remaining security forces. Boombox and Gimble both attempted to feign taking Elsy and Arno hostage, albeit with middling success. The guards opened fire on Gimble and Arno - believing Arno to be a simple security guard - and Arno and Gimble fell to the ground, locked in a tousle. Arno snarled at Gimble that they should roll off the roof, and she responded with considerable glee, manuevering their struggle in that direction. Elsy hopped into the Eternal Drift, but Boombox faltered - and as she hesitated to pull him inside, she was shot once more, this time in the side. Bleeding heavily, Elsy dragged Boombox inside and urged him to perform first aid on her wounds. Boombox was just about able to stabilise her wound, and Elsy was successfully able to lift the Eternal Drift into flight - with Boombox leaning out and catching both Arno and Gimble from rolling off the roof in the nick of time.

Just as the Eternal Drift lifted into the air, both Thistle and Tailor reached the roof via their grappling hooks. As Tailor caught sight of Boombox, it occurred to him he had seen that robot somewhere before.

Outside the museum, Vox watched the Eternal Drift lift off with considerable despair. He was interrupted from his dread by Miracle, who had never made it actually inside the event. She seemed surprisingly pleased by the night's events, and considered him with some amount of amusement. Vox weakly informed her she had missed out on quite a night, but she would be pleased by the outcome. He then tossed his keys to Oatmeal, advising her to take Crystal home in Stella - prompting Oatmeal to take Stella shooting after the Eternal Drift, attempting to provide backup fire if required.

Inside the Eternal Drift, Boombox sat in the cockpit beside Elsy whilst Arno and Gimble were horribly squished in the cramped ship's back. Boombox tried to assist Elsy in getting the ship out of there, but her hands kept slipping on the blood from her wounds. Arno intervened to tourniquet Elsy's hand using his uniform's tie, and thus the group were able to get away from the pursuing Praetorian coptors before they shot them down. The police gave hot pursuit, however, and Elsy was just barely able to keep ahead, sticking to her trademark stealth pattern of flying rather than taking any unnecessary risks. As they whipped past a billboard for Maelstrom, displaying Vox's face, the group suddenly wondered what the hell Vox was doing. Boombox reached for the missile launcher and aimed it at the holo-ad's direction, but Elsy was too fast for him to take fire.

Vox, meanwhile, remained outside the Museum gazing up at the sky helplessly. He was then approached by Seldom Glory, who was practically exuberant from the night's events. He suggested they meet up with Arno, and inform him of the scandal they had been caught up in. Vox awkwardly agreed, and rang Arno, feigning cheerfulness. Arno was bewildered by the call, and repeatedly attempted to inform Vox that they were all too busy to just talk. Vox tried to suggest Arno meet Miracle that night, given he was 'such a big fan' - prompting Miracle to shoot him a deadpan look, telling him they didn't need to perform the hand-off that night. With Seldom still at his side, eagerly trying to tell Arno his greetings, Vox told Arno he would go for a drink with Seldom, and Arno should keep him informed where he ended up that night. Arno was incredibly confused.

Elsy continued to expertly out-manoeuvre the pursuing Praetorian copters as they raced across the city, utilising the Eternal Drift's speed and size to deceive their tail. The group struggled to come up with a suitable safe place for Elsy to get to, before Gimble and Boombox reluctantly admitted they could go to the Boomcaves, or at the very least, the mines surrounding them. As they raced around another corner, Gimble pointed out a grate near a subway station that would take them to the mines if they crashed through it. Boombox grabbed control of the missile launcher, planning to fire upon it and make Elsy's landing easier - but then realised if he did so, he would blow up an approaching train. As he released control of the launcher, Gimble seized upon it instead. Both Boombox and Arno struggled to hold her back, with Boombox repeatedly assuring her crashing though the grate would be fun - as the ship crashed at full-speed through the grate, with an ear-splitting noise and causing massive damage to its exterior. Their crash landing proved successful, and the Praetorian choppers sped on by, unaware the ship had gone into hiding.

Safe from police pursuit although not *alternative* pursuit, Vox struggled to shake Seldom. He wished to return to Maelstrom so as to contact and meet the others, but Seldom was disturbed from the night's events and was adamant about remaining near Vox's side. Thus, Vox brought him to the Night Bakers for a coffee. Seldom remarked he'd never been so close to an actual crime before, albeit he felt he was still deeply scarred from an incident where he had stolen a pocket scarf in his youth. Vox stared at the other man, trying to figure out what on Phobos was his deal, before scanning him. He was treated to a truly outstanding vision of Seldom in his earlier years, competing in a synchronised swimming contest. Utterly entertained and temporarily distracted from his fears, Vox leant in and prompted him to tel him more about the pocket square saga.

As the ships outside zipped by, the lights on the Eternal Drift slowly came to light, illuminating the dim caves. Elsy uneasily scoped out the space, trying to figure out where they were. Gimble suggested they play twenty questions whilst they waited out the police pursuit, and Arno responded that he indeed had a question for Boombox, which was what the fuck was that? Boombox had been trying to dodge the attention by deflecting it was too cramped - inside the poisonous caves - and they should all get out so as to gesticulate properly. Elsy flicked the child locks on before Boombox could make his escape. Arno pressed Boombox further on his decision to formulate a plan of his own, and Boombox protested that he believed Vox's plan had been stupid. He continued to vent that he was worried that if he had told Arno and Elsy about his 'better' plan, they would have just told Vox, and ruined it. Arno informed Boombox he disliked being the person in charge of the plan so frequently, and would welcome input from others - so long as he wasn't abandoned and 'looking like an asshole' again. Elsy chimed in that she would rather know about an alternative plan, before she wasted her time building a thieving contraption that she never even got to use. Boombox reluctantly agreed that it was more difficult accomplishing the mission without the help of his plans, and that he would tell the others about his other ideas - as long as they didn't let Vox stop them.The group agreed to work better together in the future, before deciding to actually attempt a game of twenty questions. Unfortunately Arno had no idea how to play.

Once enough time had passed that they were confident they'd shaken the police pursuit, the group left the tunnels. Gimble said her farewells, leaving the others to leave off the relatively fucked-up Eternal Drift at The Docks for Maddy Turpentine to take care of, before making their way to Maelstrom. Vox was anxiously awaiting their return in the staff room, along with Galen Hinge, who he had called to come over once he had heard some of the group were badly injured. They guided Elsy over to the couch, where Galen began attending to her wounds. Vox fetched her a vodka, which she promptly necked before demanding another. Arno and Boombox argued over who should pay for Elsy's medical fee, before finally settling on splitting it. Vox offered to pay for Boombox's care, given it was his job, but Boombox would only accept one cred as a loan. Galen set about removing the bullet from Elsy's hand, and tending to it, all the while trying to ignore Boombox telling him about the diamonds they'd just stolen.

Galen then turned his attention to Boombox's injuries. Boombox suggested that he stop by the store sometime, and start trying to to pick up some tips from Galen on this kind of thing. Galen agreed, and set to work getting Boombox back running efficiently. After letting Galen out the back door, Vox turned around, visibly *furious.* He released his ire on Boombox, angrily reprimanding him for abandoning Arno. Boombox maintained he had left Arno in a safe place, and when he turned to Arno for confirmation, Arno dryly informed him he had not. Arno did try to intervene and calm Vox down by telling him it was fine and that he and Boombox had already discussed it, but the other man and Boombox continued to argue. Vox told Boombox that he wasn't angry that he'd gone off-plan, admitting that sometimes his methods ended up working well, but that he wasn't to abandon members of their team without warning.

Boombox let loose in turn, informing Vox that he had thought his plan had been stupid, and every time he'd tried to interject with his own ideas, Vox had sweet-talked him into thinking his own ideas were better. He accused Vox of being emotionally manipulative and controlling, likening him to his former masters. Vox looked hurt, but told Boombox he just wanted him to bare their team's safety in mind, and that he didn't want to see any of them get hurt. Boombox agreed on that point, and that he would do a better job of just not listening to Vox in the future.

At this point, Arno noticed the news report playing on the staff-room TV, and remarked that they had made the news again. The group turned around to see, and saw footage reporting the incident at the museum. The screen flashed up images of Boombox, his disguise considerably singed and mostly burned off, with urgent calls from the police for any sightings of this robot to be reported to them. The report concluded with an interview with an interview with the incredibly harried and upset curator of the Museum, which cracked Boombox up whilst Arno cheered the report of 'no arrests'. The news segment came to an end, before switching to an entertainment feed, showing Vox and Tailor making out on the floor of the museum. Boombox stood up and began to holler in sheer shock and delight, declaring that this was what happened when they made missions fun. Arno congratulated a furiously blushing Vox on distracting the security. Vox did a poor job of pulling himself back together and attempting to be nonchalant, declaring he had just done what he was told. Boombox told him he'd done a good job, and Vox weakly answered that we all have our strengths.

Whilst the clip replayed in slow-motion, much to Boombox's disgusted fascination, Vox attempted to change the subject by hurriedly insisting he wanted to see the necklace. Arno said he could hand it over in Vox's office, since Vox wanted to speak to him. Vox asked Boombox and Elsy if they wanted to head out to the bar and enjoy a free tab, but it became apparent Elsy had gotten incredibly drunk after Vox had given her several straight vodkas after she had lost a lot of blood. Boombox agreed to help Elsy home, and after everyone agreed to meet tomorrow to hand off the necklace to Miracle, boosted her up onto his back and carried her home.

As they made their way down through the city towards Elsy's apartment - Elsy functioning as a disguise by providing a human cloak - Boombox asked her whether she had seen him on the news. He admitted he'd been a bit jealous about the fact Terra was Toska's most wanted robot, and was hopeful now that Mila would recognise him as the real threat. Elsy drunkenly reaffirmed his hopes, echoing that the attention was going to be bad for them, but glad for him. Boombox remarked he thought Vox was going to yell at him, and he was confused over what had happened, and that even though he *had* yelled - Vox had started it. Elsy reassured him that this was what friends did, that they argued and then made up again and moved on, because they were a team. The two meandered on back to Elsy's apartment, Boombox set upon rehydrating his friend.

Too wrapped up in chattering with his semi-conscious friend, Boombox failed to notice another set of eyes that wasn't falling for the Elsy-cloak disguise, following him as he meandered down the street. In the darkness, the familiar face of his former space pirate friend, Rocky, watched him fondly with a small smile on her face.

Once inside Elsy's department, Boombox helped her in through the door. As he did, he noted that the door to her balcony was ajar, an uncharacteristic mistake for his friend to make. Elsy was too drunk to fully register the implication - but in the light of morning, would notice the disturbance of some of her old family photos.

Back in Maelstrom, Vox tried to manoeuvre himself and Arno through the club towards his office, for once not actually trying to draw any attention to himself. There appeared to be a slightly larger number of people than usual surrounding Terra at the main bar that night, as Terra and the crowd watched the news coverage with some interest. Vox finally managed to sneak them both into his office, and immediately moved to make himself a drink, asking Arno if he wanted any. When Arno declined, Vox insisted he would probably need one, and poured him one anyway. Once they had both taken a seat, Vox went on to tell Arno about his encounter with River Cobalt-Sioux that night and their ire at Vox for declining them a seat at Vox's table. He warned Arno he would have to be more careful coming and going from Maelstrom now, given River knew who Vox was.

Arno suddenly informed Vox that he believed he had fucked up. When Vox asked what he meant, he told him about the deal he had struck with Dime in order to gain information on Triade. He confided his fear that Dime intended to use him to gain the most advantage that she could over River, and then 'throw him to the wolves'. Vox was dismayed at first, but aware that Arno had only sold his secret in order to help Lumen, agreed to try think of something that would protect Arno from Dime's machinations. Before leaving, Arno remarked to Vox that his father had been a businessman, and he had learned that sometimes you needed to tell a client no in order to keep them coming back. Vox responded that there were certain clients you just couldn't say no to, and when Arno told him then they didn't need their business, Vox responded that he *did*. He then went on to request the necklace from Arno, holding out his hand to take it. Arno took the necklace from his pocket, and placed it in Vox's hand - but held the physical contact a moment longer than he should have, whilst giving Vox a meaningful look. He then departed, leaving Vox alternating between staring at his hand and then at the door, all the while the news footage of himself and Tailor played on the TV screen behind him.

The final shot was of the following morning, as several vehicles pulled up outside of Maelstrom, and a dozen or so official-looking individuals poured out of them. They set to work immediately, cordoning off the club with police tape, and filing inside to begin their investigation.

## Mission VII - Something Human or Something Made

### I. Fucking Mondays, Man

Vox was awoken from the chaise he slept on in his office by a hammering on his door. He leapt awake, and opened it to find a frazzled looking Crunch, who informed him that there were government officials conducting a search on the club. Vox paled, and immediately instructed Crunch to get Lumen and Terra out of there. Crunch replied that Terra wasn't there, but made his way over to Lumen's door. All this time, Vox could hear someone calling for the owner of the establishment downstairs. Crunch tried to knock on Lumen's door in a way that wouldn't draw attention, and as he did, both he and Vox suddenly heard her scream from inside her room. Vox panickedly urged Crunch to just open the door, and the Glutt obeyed. Not wanting the investigators to come looking for him and find Lumen, Vox made his way downstairs, trusting Crunch to take care of things - and as he did, heard Lumen urge her other intruder to leave: Samuel.

Vox made his way over to the person calling for him, which turned out to be a robot who appeared to be overseeing the other individuals who had already begun conducting a search of the club. Vox - clearly agitated - tried to ascertain what the meaning of all the commotion was. The robot (STEPH LOOK UP NAME) informed them they had received a tip that Maelstrom was being used as a base for Fractures-related terrorist activities. Vox demanded to see the warrant, and as he did, heard his name being called yet again from across the club - this time by Thistle Catastrophe. Vox excused himself, and made his way over to the Quetz, formally introducing himself after realising they never actually had been before. He asked what Thistle was doing there, only to learn this was a Praetorian investigation that Thistle himself was overseeing. Thistle sweetly remarked that Vox should have nothing to worry about, if he had nothing to hide. He also informed Vox that given the events of the night before - referring to the kiss at the Museum - the Praetorian couldn't be seen to show any favouritism whilst conducting the investigation. Vox tried to tell Thistle he would be able to help him with the records he needed if he gave him a moment to fetch his things from the office - but Thistle insisted he would have to accompany him there, to ensure nothing was tampered with. The two made their way upstairs, to find Crunch guarding the office. Vox awkwardly tried to ascertain whether everything was okay with Lumen whilst not actually saying anything, and seemed to get some confirmation from Crunch. Thistle continued to interject with seemingly innocent comments whilst Vox and Crunch conversed, before Vox sent Crunch on home.

Across town, a very hungover Elsy awoke in her apartment, where Boombox had also stayed overnight. Boombox repeated his observation from the night before, that her patio door had been left ajar. Elsy, now slightly more sober, tried to assess exactly what had happened in her apartment. She noted some of her belongings having been disturbed, and decided to take the most Elsy-like approach to address the situation: by setting a trap to catch her home invader in the act. However, as she went about formulating her trap, Vox rang and began screeching down the phone at her about the situation at Maelstrom, and his high-pitched shrieks only added to her hangover and distracted her from her task. Thus, the resulting trap was far from her finest work.

At the kitchen table, Boombox was lamenting to her that he had really upset a friend the night before, and that he should call and apologise. And so, he rang his potentially still hurting friend: Gimble. He apologised at length to Gimble for not letting her blow up the grate - and the oncoming train - the night before. He admitted that in his previous life, he had been dedicated to making sure things *didn't* blow up, and he was very sorry that he had reverted back to those instincts. Gimble complained that she had really wanted to blow up that train, but appreciated the apology. The two eventually agreed to go out to the Snatch N' Grab Saloon sometime soon, and blow up some space rocks together.

Meanwhile at the Authentic Tavern, Arno stepped outside to get some air after breakfast. As he stood outside, he observed a new guest getting out of their cab, aided by an assistant bot. The guest appeared to be of some importance, and as she was ushered in by Gadwick, Arno got a better luck at the butler bot assisting her - only to find he had the same face as Terra. At the same time, a small, synthetic purple bird fluttered down and landed on a perch beside him, cocking its head inquisitively. Arno recognised it immediately as the bird that had been present at Dime's, and belonged to Triade.

Arno tried to signal to the bird to hold on a few moments, and went to pursue the robot wearing Terra's face. He tried press it for details, as to who the family it was serving were, which it eventually informed him once Arno reassured him he was part of hotel security. The entire conversation was slightly eerie, given the stilted dialect the robot possessed, as well as its lack of facial expression - a stark contrast from Terra's incredibly human-like mannerisms. Arno eventually bid the robot farewell, and turned his attention back to the impatiently awaiting bird. Once assured that Arno would follow, the bird lead him across town and over towards the Natural History Museum in the Shales.

(*Lads. Please someone else write this entire Triade conversation. I'm too fucking stupid to do it merit.*)

Elsy finally managed to schedule her long-awaited date with Quince, arranging to meet for lunch at somewhere overlooking the Docks. Elsy asked her how she was doing after the incident at Maelstrom, and Quince responded that she was fine, but between it and the whole upcoming trial surrounding the events on Sagi and Lyanna, she was tired and wished she didn't have to deal with any of the additional stress of it.

(I need to relisten to rest of this - Elsy reassures Quince who very much did kill people that she didn't kill anyone, that sh'es the best and bravest and she's there as a friend, that she isn't sure if she did kill anyone herself - Quince remarks that's the difference - Death Gaze Mila - lots of touching before going to bathroom where Mila tells Elsy she has a week before she starts seeing Elsy as a liability)

That evening, having received a message asking to meet, Vox headed over to the Overhang Gardens where he found Tailor pacing around the balcony. He jerked up once Vox called for his attention, and greeted him awkwardly. After both inquiring whether the other was okay following the events of the night before, Vox balanced himself on the balcony's railing and sighed, declaring it a 'hell of a day'. Tailor agreed, and settled in beside him. Vox began to babble about his panic over the Maelstrom investigation, only to be cut off by Tailor telling him he needed to talk about what had happened at the Museum. Tailor explained he'd spent the entire night trying to find the criminals, and had as a result passed out on his desk, only to be awoken by Thistle who informed him about the footage circulating the news. He apologised for potentially making Vox take actions that weren't his own, prompting a confused Vox to interrupt and insist that he should be the one apologising for acting so publicly - but he had been afraid he wouldn't get the chance to do it again.

At this point, Tailor took his hand in his, and confessed that he had come to feel very close to Vox in a way that was terrifying. When Vox echoed the sentiment, Tailor told him that a relationship was not the kind of thing he had ever believed could fit into his life before, and had struggled deciding whether it even could now - until he remembered what Vox had said about deserving to be happy. He nervously admitted he wanted to try being happy, but could not get involved with something unless it was mutually committed and true. Swept away by it all, Vox told Tailor he hadn't been in a proper relationship before either, and may not be particularly good at it, but would promise to do his best. Tailor repeated that vow, and received a kiss from Vox in return. Tailor kissed him back, before pulling away and starting to laugh. He then picked Vox up, spun him around, and pulled him in for a much deeper kiss. Various onlookers around the Garden started to notice and take photos as well as videos, but neither man took much notice.

(Boombox's Flower Quest - meets Rocky)

(Arno comes home from Triade to find Lumen with Neida, Neida tells him about TT mission)

(Elsy and Vox go to Gyre and Gimble)

## Trivia

* The group's base of operations is Maelstrom.
* Every member of the group goes by a name they gave to themselves in some part.