Warframe - Chapter 6 - The Brothers' War

Warframe - Chapter 6 - The Brothers' War

Prologue

Gylan Vidar merely feigned affection and concern when the Tenno warlord accidentally spat out his drink. In his mind, he had already prepared price quotations for the information and materials that he was peddling to the esteemed Mikado, Tenno Council Member and son of the First. Mikado merely waved his hands in apology as he tried to regain his composure.

The Trade Union executive then merely held back while sipping on his own refreshment. Seeing Mikado’s reaction gave him the assurance that he needed. Assurance that the technology he smuggled out of Empire property would actually get sold. Of course, he did not mention that the technology he stumbled upon was smuggled, here merely said that he found it near their borders, and he actually told something true.

Mikado coughed out what little left of his drink in his on a napkin and drew another to wipe himself dry. Mikado had known the term the merchant spoke, mostly from the memories he inherited from his Father. The mere notion that an outsider, not even a Tenno, would know of the Galatine system was shock even for him.

Regaining composure, MIkado then looked the merchant straight in the eyes and inquired on how he came to know about the word. Gylan, getting confident, leaned back, put down his refreshment and merely said that it was written on an old parchment that he found in the underground facility that they found near their borders. Nonchalantly, he dismissed notions that the technology he found was a hoax and that Mikado's own reaction was proof of its authenticity.

Mikado thought for a moment before talking again. He knew that Trade Union merchants in general were shrewd people, and that the one he was facing now was at an executive level. He drew a long breath, then motioned to Gylan that indeed the technology called Galatine was ideally plausible but was never realized. Mikado further warned the the merchant that the system was very dangerous and volatile and only the Tenno can handle such technology.

Gylan raised his palm to calm down the warlord stating that they only found documents and no systems whatsoever. Mikado, though doubtful of the merchant's words, stifled a sigh of relief. Unerringly, Mikado then directly asked the merchant his purpose for coming to him directly. Mikado knew that Trade Union merchants were infamous for reverse-engineering and selling technology not to the highest bidder, but to all bidders instead. The Tenno warlord was curious why would the merchant not offer the same technology to his archenemy, Baphomet himself.

The merchant again smiled at the notion, and merely expressed the decision of the Trade Union Board of Directors to cooperate with the Tenno. The sentiment merely made Mikado raise a brow but did not make him talk. Sensing curiosity from the Tenno, Gylan continued only to say that the Board does not want Baphomet to win and become Infested themselves.

Hearing a logical answer, Mikado then asked why would the Board not sell to the Empire. Gylan, smiling again, merely said that the Empire did not have what is required to secure the technology. Mikado was now thoroughly squinting his eyes with curiosity. Mikado then asked Gylan what was it that is required to secure the Galatine technology.

Gylan, leaned forward and gently said that they, the Trade Union, only need one thing; Profits.

Section 1

Mikado sighed with closed eyes as the battle ended. He withdrew from the command center balcony and went back to his seat in the war room. Several attendants then gave him various reports from other battlefields as he took seat. The Orokin were winning the Great War, he thought. Victories spread out one by one from each battlefront and the Tenno morale was high. Still, Mikado was ill content. Knowing his brother, no, his former brother, Baphomet would find a way to fight back.

After the attendants have had delivered reports and received orders, a slender hand then suddenly pressed on his left shoulder from behind. Without moving an inch, he let the hand caress his collar bone up until his heart before he pulled it off using his right hand. Medea has slipped in with his attendants and was playing with him as usual. Mikado sternly scolded Medea while he released the soft hands.

Medea rolls her eyes and pouted while saying that she was actually here to report. Being the Head of Intelligence Gathering, Medea had something important to tell to Mikado. Mikado then wondered how a Saryn like Medea became the leader of such a group consisting mostly of Nyx bearers. With hesitation, he then told Medea to report. Medea shook her head and smiled as she demanded a private audience. Everybody in the room suddenly looked at her while Mikado sat not amused.

Medea then childishly stomped the floor as she demanded to be taken seriously. Mikado was unmoved by this fact and did nothing to alleviate the incessant sound Medea was making. After a moment, Medea regains her composure and with a sigh, bows gracefully in respect to ask for a private audience. Mikado, still not moving from his seat, took a few breaths and moved his fingers to motion the other attendants to leave.

After the last attendant exits the main door, Medea slowly approaches Mikado on his seat then presses a button on the seat's panel to seal the doors. Mikado merely gave a cold stare as if waiting for something. Medea sat on the side of the chair and whispers that she knows where Baphomet is. Mikado raises a brow and scolds Medea as everybody already knows that Baphomet was sighted in the Dark Sector just a few months ago. An elite team of Ember Primes and Nekros headed by his own son Vadjura stormed the vault and investigated only to find nothing. The remaining area around the Dark Sector was swept by two groups led by Agni with Dahaka as her second-in-command.

The only thing the children found were scraps of human meat that were chewn out, several hive clusters and the still decomposing corpse of Mezner, despite the time gap since the time of the First. Mikado did not take the intrusion lightly, but Medea cut him off by saying that she does not really know where Baphomet is. Mikado was about to stand up when Medea suddenly shoves him back to his seat while whispering something to his hear. His eyes grew wide as she merely whispered that she knew though how to find him.

Section 2

Lotus' research results lightly gained favor at first, since it coincided with the release of the Golem prototypes. But now that the Golems needed to be updated regularly as the Infested merely adapted in turn for every improvement, Lotus research products sent the Tenno back to the battlefield. Her research, that was first promoted and thought upon by the First, took advantage of using nanotechnology to modify molecular structures through a vector of nanomachines that worked like the technocyte virus.

Skeptics were fast to criticize her research due to its similarity to Cain's prior research. They even insulted her that she was fast becoming like Cain ever since what happened on Cain's first attack on Tower 35. It was the first time she saw Mikado beat someone an inch before death from anger. Her family reputation had suffered because of her, but the First merely brushed it off. He encouraged her to continue the research as he had faith in the couple, his children.

And now, Tenno have become doubled in strength due to her research. She had been born a chimera, and the First, suddenly realizing that the Tenno Genome and Physiology is rather prone to manipulation, asked her to research on augmenting Tenno using controlled nanomachines instead of Technocyte samples. Using the combined failed research of Cain, her husband Mikado's reproduction and success at it, and her own penchant for reverse-engineering, she accomplished to produce a system that allows Tenno not only to modify their suits, but also to double its adaptability to the owner's specifications.

Distributing the first known Orokin Catalysts, Lotus was again received by the Tenno society and lauded for her efforts. Although she expressed a sense of great accomplishment during the declaration ceremony of the Orokin Catalysts, she was innately lonely due to the absence of her husband and children. Dahaka, her youngest, though a social introvert, weighed heavily on her mind as he was still too young to follow around his older siblings. But Dahaka merely wanted to gain the acknowledgement of Mikado and enlisted as soon as he was legally able at 81 years old.

The First, sensing the loneliness of his adoptive daughter and daughter-in-law, told her that he had received reports of the children's return in the next few days. She was ecstatic at the news but then asked about any new regarding her husband instead. The First tried to stop a frown, but that was all he could do and shake his head. Lotus sighed at the news and nodded.

Mikado had gone underground ever since the battle at the defensive line of the Lua settlement near Earth. Being one of the oldest Tenno settlements, it housed a large population and could not be evacuated. Mikado led the new N-series golems and made a highly successful defense from Infested incursion. Witnesses last saw MIkado bring with him his Elite Rhino Prime Unit, the lead group of Nekros headed by Osiris himself, and Medea, the Head of the Information Division together with several N-class golems on his private ship.

Mikado had a bad habit on going on solo missions, and Lotus herself was not concerned with the fact that Mikado brought with him Osiris' unit and his own Rhino Prime Elite, but was concerned with Mikado bringing with him Medea. Lotus has had a loathing for Medea since she could remember, even as far as their childhood, but the thing that concerned her was that Medea was a person she could not read. Lotus was not a Nyx, but she had good intuition regarding people that the First himself acknowledged as astounding. Medea and her sister Psyche, the latter's face always obstructed by her hair and stuttering, always made Lotus uneasy just by their presence. She felt that she being pressed by two similar walls closing in on her, and therefore always avoided the Hemlocke sisters in particular.

As if reading her mind, the First then inconspicuously says to Lotus not to worry about Mikado, as Medea will not hurt him. He jokingly says that after all this time, Medea is still attached to Mikado and that Medea even plays with her children, a fact that even Lotus herself acknowledges. Still, Lotus cannot still her heart. She was still lost in thought when she suddenly heard her name being called. She snapped out of stupor and remembered that she was about to announce the imminent release of her new research product, the weapon equivalent of the Orokin Catalyst, the Orokin Reactor. She stood up and went in front of the podium, her heart still aching for Mikado.

Section 3

A Saryn frame slowly walked towards the end of the darkened hallway. The lighting fixtures on this portion of the settlement were no longer maintained, but she was not surprised as the settlement was Empire owned and not Orokin. She came upon a window, but little did it help push away the darkness in the hall. She looked beyond the rusty glass and saw the underground city glow with faint lights and grow hazy with small bursts of steam. Empire technology had always been outdated due to their xenophobia, and worse, they inbred and cloned themselves, declaring that they were superior. The Saryn merely laughed softly at the sentiment, but then stopped as she sensed movement.

It was Cain, and the Saryn bowed in mockery of the former Tenno. The figure in the shadow merely spoke in an ominous and ragged tone to correct the Saryn of his name, dubbing himself Baphomet. The Saryn merely shrugged her shoulders and dismissed the error. Baphomet then suddenly screamed in anger and the windows around them shattered. The Saryn reeled back and apologized to him, addressing him of his favored name.

She then drew close to the hooded figure, lovingly walking towards him and rescinding her frame revealing only scant clothing. The voluptuous woman drew close to the hooded figure, placed a hand on his chest and rubbed her body on him. Baphomet merely asked her for the item he asked for in advance. The woman was obviously enjoying herself while playing with him, and was about to kiss the man when Baphomet caught her hand and pushed her away. Baphomet merely says she is only interested in Lotus.

The woman this time screams in anger and jealousy. She questions why Mikado and Cain are so obsessed with Lotus. She questions why Lotus was favored when she was taller, more seductive looking and just as battle hardened like Mikado and Cain was. She asked why was Lotus favored when she had more admirers and that Lotus only had that cute charm but had no real friends in life. Baphomet merely told her to stop in harsh tone. He was not going to tolerate any further insults to her and the woman calling him Cain again.

The woman stopped and calmed herself, only saying that she had been loyal to him all this time and that only her sister was really in love with Mikado. She claims she had done all she had to support Cain, but Baphomet only grunts at the mention of his old name. The woman stands up and corrects herself, claiming that she had even betrayed the Tenno as a whole by giving Baphomet information on the Galatine system. She had supplied Baphomet with the specifications of every golem made so that he can mutate his Infested to adapt. Baphomet only remains silent and in turn looks outside the window. He then punches the whole wall clean when he remembers that he did not know about the Galtine system in the first place. Mikado was the only twin who inherited the First's memories. He screamed again in anger that Mikado again surpassed him.

Kneeling down and pulling on his face, he had another bout of madness grip him. He rips his clothes apart revealing a permanently disfigured left arm and the loss of all human skin. The explosion on Tower 35 had made use of experimental void energy charges and that he can never fully regenerate as a Tenno anymore. He now looks like a burnt and rotting corpse with the skin of multiple types of insfested that he himself sew on his body replace his own. He even lost his favored mount, Merihem, and will have to breed several Phorid species again to make another mount that would at least come close to Merihem. He then cries in his madness as he misses his mount that saved him in the explosion and exposure to open space by swallowing him whole. Merihem had died saving its master. His mad screams of anger mingled with screams of anguish.

The woman then lovingly went to his side again and embraced the crying figure. She had loved this boy since she could remember and people had always thought that she had feelings for his brother. She tried to calm down the sobbing Baphomet and rocked him back and forth like a baby. The woman lovingly hushed the crying figure and lifted his head. She kissed the mouth of the man who had no lips, and yet felt bliss in her action. She then placed his head on her bosom and continued rocking the disfigured man.

Minutes later, Baphomet regains sanity and motions for them to stand up. He apologizes to the woman that he can only be true to his love for Lotus, but the woman's presence was severely comforting. He touched her face with his remaining right hand that was covered with poisonous boils, and the woman merely closed her eyes and rubbed her cheek against it lovingly. She says that it does not matter anymore as she will love him forever, whatever he becomes. Baphomet feels a stabbing pain at the sentiment but tries to do a makeshift smile. He then asks the woman to be careful on her way back as he had held her up for too long. The woman smiles at Baphomet's concern and replies that it was fine.

The woman then pulls out something from her cleavage and gives it to Baphomet. She tells him the data cube contains the specs of the new N-series golems. Baphomet asks why the naming convention skipped letters, especially that the last series was named J-series. The woman sadly tells that the new series is named N since they will now be using Nyx volunteers for better neural cohesion and sentience. Baphomet then asks about her and her sister, and how this will affect them. The woman then tells Baphomet the she already knows that her sister would surely volunteer just for Mikado. But before Baphomet could get angry again at the mention of the name, the woman then says that the reason the J-series was discontinued was that her father, Lephantis Mensik was the last volunteer of the J-series.

Lephantis, although part of the council, vehemently forced himself upon the golem engineers to give him a golem. When the First finally relented, being the friend of Lephantis' father Yargo Mensik, the First himself escorted Lephantis to the latest version of the J-series as the First himself was like a father to him. Being the largest golem so far, as Lephantis stepped on the golem's main body he was quickly assimilated and was no more.

The golem merely had some ounce of awareness upon activation, but when the sisters tried to approach it, the golem tried to avoid them as if shying itself from them. The woman insisted that this was the reason she herself stole and brought an N-series with her today. Baphomet was shocked but the woman merely said that the war had to stop, and even though she had been feeding Baphomet information all this time, she now wanted the war to stop and let their old days of laughing together come back. She herself brought the new golem for Baphomet to use and experiment on so that he can finally win and settle down with her. Baphomet stops for a moment, then, using his right hand, rubbed his disfigured left arm.

He looks at the woman's eyes and tells her nothing will come back, it will only change. Baphomet thanked the woman and turned around to go. The woman, confused, asks Baphomet to reconsider the golem. Baphomet merely talks as he walks away, saying that nothing will ever come back, and that he does not want anything that Mikado made. He finally says before disappearing that he will win with only his own strength, alone.

The woman, now alone in the dark, mentions only that Baphomet is not alone. She now turns towards her own direction, only uttering angrily Mikado's name on her lips.

Section 4

Mikado seated himself on the captain's seat of his modified ship. His personal cruiser, the Helios Ark, housed the quarters of his own battle hardened regiment of Rhino Prime Elite. Handpicked by Mikado himself, the unit could decimate a whole Infested hive by itself. But with Medea's information, he wanted to be sure and he dragged along Osiris and his men along with 50 N-series Golems.

The Helios Ark was no mere battle cruiser, for its design had Orokin, Grineer and Corpus technology incorporated into it. Working together with Empire Engineer Fomoria Vay Hek, Mikado bought materials, weaponry and sentinels from Gylan and designed the ship himself. Vay Hek contributed greatly with reinforcing the armor designs of the ship while maintaining it maneuverability and Gylan supplied him with his top of the line materials at discounted prices for purchases in bulk. The resulting ship dwarfed the current Tenno ships at the time and could hold an entire army of golems by itself, all the while maintaining the trademark speed of Tenno ships.

Medea, suddenly slips by his side, sliding her hand by his ear. Mikado takes no heed just as he always had for centuries. Medea then sits down in on the low metal railing in front of him, revealing her underwear as she was wearing a short skirt. Mikado dons a disapproving look and finally asks Medea where is she really dragging him to. Medea merely says that she was taking them to Terminus, on Mercury. Mikado acknowledges this but asks for details. Medea then sighs and says that men are always so impatient. She then tells the navigator several coordinates.

The Navigator then shouts a little in surprise and Mikado asks why. They navigator tells Mikado that the coordinates are for an old Empire settlement that has been abandoned by the Empire itself. It has since then become the den of social pariahs and outlaws. Mikado thinks over the information and orders the ship be sent to the coordinates. He then adds the order to scan for Infested once they come in range of Mercury.

Medea then chuckles as she taunts Mikado for not looking in the right direction. She tells that Mikado has always looked for the Infested on Jupiter and Eris as they had large numbers there but never thought of Mercury itself. Mikado disregarded the comment and shifted positions on his seat. Medea, irritated by the continued apathy, spreads her legs, showcasing her sheer underwear to distract Mikado. Mikado just looks at her face and tells her that he thinks she is just setting him up for a trap.

Medea then laughs, asking only whether Mikado was referring to Mercury or her underwear.

Section 5

The Rhino Vanguards disembark from the Helios Ark first followed by the Thrak Unit. The elite Rhino Prime unit, dubbed Mobile Task Force Able, followed strict protocols Mikado himself designed. They have not suffered any casualties ever since their forming and were highly looked upon by the Tenno society.

Upon preliminary reconnaissance resulting in no Infested presence, Team Able signals back to the Helios Ark that the area is secure. Mikado and Osiris disembark, activating their respective frames in midstep, the Nekros regimen following them. Mikado had decided not to deploy the golems as there were no Infested scanned on Mercury or its perimeter.

Medea, still changing her attire and makeup, then suddenly bursts from behind the lines of Nekros to join Mikado. Mikado tells her to activate her frame, but she merely says that atmospheric conditions in the dome are habitable, and that she did not want to spoil the surprise. Osiris merely gave a grunt and ordered his men to divide into squads and assist Team Able.

Mikado then orders the men to surround the valley where the underground settlement was installed and was not to let anybody get out of the enclosure. After dismissing the several unit divisions, Osiris bows to Mikado and parts to join the lead assault group that is to investigate the settlement itself. Left alone with Mikado, Medea tugs at his arm for him to rush at her surprise.

The Tenno carrier had one N-series golem inside it. Mikado avoided touching the exposed unit as it would assimilate anything sapient it would touch. The golem was haphazardly stolen and all of its restraints have already been "eaten" by the golem's skin, it has even started to assimilate the ship hull itself. Medea was sitting on a crate swinging her feet happily when Mikado asked her, what her secret was. He was sure this golem was not the surprise she had in store for him. Medea complimented Mikado for his ever sharpness and told him simply that she was like no other woman. She rephrased herself and told Mikado that she and her twin sister were like no other women.

Mikado retorted the sentiment to be impossible, as all Tenno are born ninety-nine percent as twins. Medea then acknowledged Mikado's point and said that she knew that Lotus was a fraternal twin chimera. Mikado, shocked, suddenly turned to Medea and demanded her to tell him how she knew. Medea merely reminded him she was head of the Information Division. Medea then further reiterated that as a fraternal twin, Lotus was more or less, a normal Tenno. Mikado was first confused with the statement when he heard the ship doors activate. Medea merely jumped off the crate and told Mikado that the show was about to start.

Medea entered her ship while Baphomet's words were still fresh on her mind. The trek from the settlement to the carrier was long and she had the time to think for herself. She tried thinking of ways on how to trick Mikado into a trap and finally earning Cain's, no, Baphomet's favor. She entered via the side door and headed towards the cockpit to try to start up the ship. She was onto an idea of telling Mikado that she had found Baphomet when the engine stalled on ignition. Kicking the panels and pulling up her short skirt, she was cursing when she went down to the cargo bay that was near the engine.

Mikado stood in front of the cargo bay doors as he expected Baphomet to enter. He had readied his glaive but had foregone activating the frame as Medea said that the person entering the cargo bay would be in human form. Medea was irritatingly rubbing herself against his left side as his right hand readied a replica of his Father's signature weapon.

He was then surprised enough to drop his glaive when he saw the person who entered through the door. Medea, sporting the same lewd outift, came through the door while cursing. The Medea at the doorway suddenly stopped herself in surprise also at finding Mikado. The Medea at Mikado's side suddenly shouts the word "surprise".

The Medea at the doorway suddenly addressed Mikado, bowed, and apologized. Mikado was about to call her Medea, when the Medea pressing her breasts against his left arm shouted that she was Medea. Mikado suddenly walked away from the two and rubbed his face with eyes wide open. The Medea that came with Mikado, the real Medea, said that it did not matter who Medea or Psyche was. The Hemlocke sisters were somehow different with the other Tenno in that they are not fraternal twins. Instead, they were identical twins.

Psyche, the one at the doorway, confirmed this and merely stood beside her sister. The two sisters, now indistinguishable, explained that for centuries they swapped places on a regular basis and that the one named Psyche would just cover her face with her hair and pretend to stutter. They even took turns in explaining that as identical twins, they have the compatible affinity for both their frames and that they swapped frames too.

Mikado was hard-pressed for he was beginning to have a headache, then in the corner of his eye he saw the N-series golem. He turned towards the sisters and asked why there was a golem here. Sensing that her sister Medea had betrayed her for Mikado, just as she had for Baphomet, she darted for the cargo bay doors and activated the Saryn frame. Mikado notes that the one in the Saryn frame was the traitor and activated his frame in return. Before Mikado could charge and throw his glaive, Medea had already activated her Nyx frame and cast mind control on both of them.

She told Mikado with an anguished voice not to kill her sister. They had both shared a love for Mikado and that Psyche merely pitied Cain. Mikado tried to resist the mind control and screamed that his brother is dead, and that Baphomet killed him. He screamed that Baphomet will die for what he did to Lotus. Psyche then starts screaming in turn that she never did love Mikado and that it was Medea all along who assumed that. She loved Cain instead all this time and she will not allow Cain to die, even if she had to kill Mikado.

Medea, now emotionally burdened by controlling the two highly emotional Tennos, loses energy and accidentally loses grip on Mikado and Psyche. Mikado regained his bearings and was readying his glaive, but stopped at what he saw. Psyche, stumbling due to the accidental release of Medea's mind control, had pressed herself on the yet to be activated golem. Psyche was pushing herself away from the sticky material clinging to her but she could not. Psyche tried to use her Saryn abilities to no avail; she was going to become a golem.

Mikado, pitying her, readied his glaive to either cut the absorbed part away or kill her. He summoned all his strength and used a power throw aimed directly at Psyche. Medea only screamed at her sister, but Psyche, determined to help her love, closed her eyes, breathed her last, and jumped instead into the golem whilst avoiding the glaive. The glaive nearly missed, bounced back from the cargo bay walls and returned to Mikado. As the golem started its activation process, Mikado then pulled up the Nyx Medea and used a Rhino charge to breach the hull of the ship to escape.

Mikado tried to increase the distance between them and the ship then transmitted an order to activate the other golems. Osiris then reported in that on the other side of Terminus, there was a shuttle that had escaped containing the data cube that Medea put a tracer on. Mikado, poised with the advent of chasing Baphomet or putting down Psyche, was gritting his teeth as he charged through the empty valley with Medea on his shoulder.

Section 6

Mikado reached the decontamination chambers of the Helios Ark and left Medea there to be treated. He went through the decontamination process and then rescinded his frame. After being handed fresh clothing by a neural sentry attendant, he darted for the command center of this ship. After sitting down, he then issues an order while still catching his breath. He stops for a moment, considering the woman in the medical ward, the escaping ship, the rogue N-series golem, and finally the settlement beneath them.

Mikado closed his eyes, clenched his fist and resisted temptation. Temptation to shoot down Baphomet in open space. He then issued multiple orders to take down the golem and issue an evacuation order to the settlement below. Osiris acknowledged and was last heard ordering his men. A squad leader of Team Able, while topside, apologized for the escape of the Baphomet. Mikado dismissed the issue and said that he knew that Baphomet was crafty and had help from a traitor. He then said it no longer mattered now, and that what matters is that the golem does not kill any civilian at all. The squad leader, Mordecai's own son Rigby, expresses gratitude and asks for the honor of holding back the golem.

Mikado simply smiles and says that saving people was always the specialty of Rigby's bloodline, and that his godson should go ahead and do what he does best. Rigby is then last heard roaring together with his unit. Mikado then turns to his screen and sees a message has been left noting that his children were en route to their mother's Orokin Catalyst Ceremony. He gives a sincere yet sad smile as he feels a twinge of regret of not being with his family, being especially fond of his youngest Dahaka. He then closes the message and seriously orders the men at the control room to go into attack configuration.

The golem merely knew it was a golem. It had body parts and knew how to move them. It was curious and hungry at the same time. It was severely hungry. It wanted to eat something. It wanted to eat everything. The golem then suddenly breathed acid and dissolved everything around it. It tried to walk and absorb everything it can. The insides of the ship suddenly became familiar. It had melted the ship halfway, but the ship was familiar. Everything was beginning to flood in. Suddenly the golem stopped as memories activated in its head. It roared and flailed and trampled around the ship, absorbing everything it touched. Then suddenly, a thought, a memory came back, a memory of kissing someone, a memory of loving someone, a memory of making love to someone. The golem suddenly roared in grief and ate the whole ship.

Medea stumbled haphazardly into the control room, donning only a patient's gown. Ignoring the fact that she was practically exposed, she tried to inch her way to Mikado. Mikado, sensing the commotion behind him, turned to see Medea slumped on the floor almost naked. He stands up and wraps around her his jacket and tells her she should be resting. Medea beats MIkado's chest and cries incessantly.

Mikado let's her beat his chest, knowing that he will kill her sister afterwards. Medea then tells Mikado that she has the Nyx suit now and she knows what he is thinking, and that he is thinking incorrectly. Although she was connected with Mikado back at the ship, she was also connected to Psyche. She did not really let go because she was holding two emotionally charged people, she let go because she was holding five. Mikado squinted in confusion at first but then realized that Psyche was pregnant with the first ever Tenno triplets.

He slumped down in surprise with eyes wide opened. He was resting his face on his palms in regret and cried. Medea slowly crawled into his arms and cried with him. After a few moments, the red alarms on the ship came on and Mikado snapped out of stupor. He wiped the tears off Medea's face and kissed her in the lips for the first time in her life. He said that was the only payment he could only give for all the pain he caused her all this time. He had claimed her childhood affection, her father, her sister, and now her sister's children. He could only ask for forgiveness as he was about to destroy what remains of her sister. Medea, although still stunned at the gesture, sadly nodded only.

Mikado motioned for someone to bring her back to the medical bay. Several neural sentries assisted them up and gave Medea a hover chair. Mikado watched as they took her back, and then returned to his seat with renewed determination. He demanded reports as he wiped the tears off his face. Then reports came in and indicated that the ship has now taken flight and are currently flying in their direction. Estimated time of contact was t-minus two minutes. Since the other golems needed to be activated properly for over 5 minutes for them to not go berserk like what Mikado assumed of Psyche, he orders a transmission to Rigby to accompany Osiris in their evacuation. The Helios Ark is now in danger of being struck by the prototype N-series J2000 golem. After hearing confirmation and encouragement from Rigby, Mikado orders the Helios Ark to take off.

Section 7

Mikado was mistaken. He had assumed that Psyche-golem had aimed itself at the Helios Ark, only to find it heading past them. Mikado Jettisoned the cargo bay that held the golems that he carried and took on hot pursuit of the makeshift ship that Psyche was controlling. Since the makeshift ship only contained its hull, engines and thrusters, it had incredible speed and Mikado had had to forego carrying the golems he had with him. He then issued a transmission to Osiris to contact the nearest Orokin Tower and carefully pick up the golem cargo.

Speeding through the Solar Rails, Mikado finally caught up with Psyche when they were already in view of Earth. Mikado did not really understand Psyche's intentions anymore, moreso now that she was now a golem. But she presents a clear and present danger to anyone and everyone on Earth, especially to his family and the Tenno.

He ordered all charges to fire as they came in range of Psyche. The golem-ship merely absorbed any rounds shot at it. Mikado cursed the bullet based Grineer weaponry and told the crew to use Neural Sentry Heavy lasers. Once the lasers hit Psyche, it wriggled in pain but stayed its course. Psyche then deployed several chunks of its flesh. As much as the Helios Ark tried to evade the chunks of flesh, some of them hit the ship and breached the hull. Mikado ignored them until reports of Infested came from within the ship.

Mikado gritted his teeth in anger as he realized that Psyche was now Infested also. Thinking that it was due to constant contact with Baphomet, Mikado orders that all non-essential personnel evacuate the ship first, followed by all the rest. All remaining Royal Guards on the ship were to ready for Infested Incursion. He then activated his suit and told the crew in the control room to transfer all controls to him. The neural sentries rerouted themselves to his control panel and Mikado ordered all Tenno present in the room to evacuate themselves. Seeing their hesitation, Mikado shouted them orders to help the civilians and wounded off the ship steadfast. They nodded, saluted him, and then went their way.

Mikado then interfaced his suit with the Helios Ark. He was thoroughly concentrated on bombarding Psyche when he felt a soft hand place itself on his right shooting hand. He already knew who it was but questioned her otherwise what she was doing not evacuating the ship. Medea had managed to escape the medical bay again and sat beside her beloved.

Medea merely said that if Mikado was going to kill himself, she would rather die with him. That and she also wanted to witness herself how the monster that her sister had become gets destroyed. She summoned all her strength to stand up and suddenly kiss Mikado in the lips. Mikado, unnerved by the action, told her that he already thought he paid her in full. Medea smiled as she painfully sat down and said that she will never give up, especially now that she had managed to get MIkado to kiss her finally after centuries. Mikado merely smiled and shook his head. He tried to tell Medea what he was planning but Medea knew what he was going to say eventually. He evacuated the Helios Ark so that he can crash it into the golem and send it away from Earth. Mikado nodded, and Medea re-placed her hand on his.

Psyche-golem could not die. Psyche-golem had to see Baphomet. It had to show him a new Infested for his army. It had to show him his child. It wanted to give birth with him watching. It wanted to name Baphomet's child Lephantis. It did not know why, but it liked the name. It was nearing Baphomet, but the enemykado was behind it. Making everything painful. Psyche-golem threw some of itself into enemykado, but it kept on coming. The enemy threw away its passengers and was catching up to it. Psyche-golem needed to see Baphomet. Baphomet. Bapho....

Mikado had managed to successfully plot a collision course between the Helios Ark and the golem. He breathed a sigh of relief as he watched the golem get flung off into the direction of the meteor belt. It would inevitably get tangled there and become an Orokin Derelict. He was saddened to see Lephantis’ daughter become like that. As he took off the restraints on his seat, he suddenly felt the ship shake. The Helios Ark has gotten too close to Earth. Caught on the Earth's gravity, it was fast gaining speed and beginning atmospheric re-entry. With all the ships systems dead, all Mikado could do was calculate the trajectory of the Helios Ark.

He looked the person seated by his seat, and saw that Medea was sound asleep. Everything was beginning to heat up as they started re-entry when he deduced where the colossal ship would fall. It was going to fall on the Trade Union home city, Dubai. Directly on Dubai. Mikado could not believe his calculations, he retried them several times and they came up the same. He suddenly rushed to the communications panel, but everything had no power. He cursed at everything, knowing he will be killing billions of people. He then resolved to save at least one.

He picked up Medea and rushed to the escape pods. After mowing down several infested with his Dakra Primes, he found a functional escape pod only to find out that it is dislodged and stuck in debris. He waited for the ship to enter the atmosphere, put Medea in, and gave the escape pod a stomp. The escape pod then launched into the atmosphere. He activated his Iron Skin and jumped into the atmosphere himself. Securing himself to the escape pod while enduring re-entry, he looked down as the Helios Ark fell down on the city below. To his surprise, the ship did not make much of an explosion itself, but dug into the ground as he found out that Dubai now had layers upon layers of underground Trade Union settlements. Still, the bitter taste of killing billions lingered in his mouth.

Section 8

Mikado was sitting down on top of a sand dune when Medea awoke from the pod. Medea had recovered some of her strength and tried to go to Mikado's side stealthily but failed. She stumbled and rolled down the side of the sand dune losing her patient gown in the process and exposing everything as she landed flat on the bottom of the dune. Mikado silently turned around and asked Medea if she needed any help.

Medea blushingly covered herself and called Mikado a pervert. Mikado sighed at the notion being called one and noted that Medea always flirted with him. Medea retorted that this was different. Mikado shook his head and muttered something about not understanding women for centuries.

When Medea finally came up the sand dune, the scenery that Mikado was looking at shocked her. It was Dubai in utter destruction. The Helios Ark had crashed head first into the city and has excavated a great deep hole, a hole that the adjoining sea drained into. It was simply a scene where people either died quick, or died slow. When Medea turned to Mikado, she saw tears running down his cheeks. She hugged him as tight as she can and hushed him to calm down.

After a few moments, Mikado stood up and wiped his face. He told Medea that he had already activated the distress beacon on the escape pod and that she woke up at a good time as Tenno rescue teams were most likely minutes away. Medea stood up, still trying to cover herself. She asked Mikado where he was going as she saw a hovercraft set down near them. The hovercraft had no pilot and was a personal transport system that Mikado recovered from the ship. It was still connected to his suit via neural sentry connection and he called it up here for him to use.

Medea insisted that Mikado still has not answered her question. Mikado merely says that he is going to end this war today. Mikado deduced that Baphomet was now in the Dark Sector, judging from the flight path of Psyche. At the mention of her sister's name, Medea started to cry again. Mikado turned back and kissed her again in the lips, now for a longer time. Medea was shocked but closed her eyes afterwards. She asked why Mikado did that again, but Mikado only joked that Medea might not have the chance to experience it again. Mikado apologized then, saying that he kissed her imagining Lotus. He wanted to see her but cannot.

Medea nodded in understanding, but asked a favor of Mikado, and Mikado nodded in return. Since she and her sister were identical twins, and that only Mikado knew what really happened, Medea asked to be called Psyche from now on. She had the Nyx frame, and she wanted her sister to be known as a good person, while Medea sacrifices her own name to be called a monster and traitor. Mikado asked if she was certain of her request, and Medea nodded saying that the only person who was important to her, Mikado, to know the truth was enough. She blamed herself for not being able to discover and stop her sister before it ended into this disaster. She wants her sister's name to be cleared by living her life.

Mikado accepted, but demanded one thing in return. Medea listened and Mikado asked for good old 'Psyche' to take care of his children. Mikado may not return and Lotus will need help with their children. 'Psyche' then accepted it as an honor and bid her Master Mikado politely good bye and good luck while stifling her tears. Mikado entered the hovercraft and traveled to Lasria.

Section 9

Mikado dismounted the hovercraft when he reached the vault doors of the Dark Sector. Seeing fresh foot prints, he calmly checked the weapon inventory at the back of the hovercraft. All he had was a Glaive, two Dakra Primes, several rounds of ammunition, two Vastos and one Paris Prime. He disappointingly looked at the compound bow and skipped it, saying to himself that Mordecai his friend would have jumped at the thing. Mikado often fought with blades himself and considered himself then lucky at getting at least a Glaive and two Dakra Primes.

He then ate some rations, drank several fluids, took some energy replenishment, activated his frame, and started arming himself. He took the two Dakra Primes and slapped them on his back. He took the two Vastos, checked their hammers and firing pins, put in bullets and pocketed reserve ammo. Finally he condensed the Glaive into its compact form and slapped it into his right arm. As a bonus, he brought some of the same void energy explosive charges and strapped it to his left arm. After making preparations, he ordered the hovercraft to hide itself, and then walked off into the opening of the colossal vault doors.

Baphomet was petting a young new mount when Mikado kicked the doors open. Mikado was smeared heavily with the blood of infested and showed numerous scratch marks all over his frame. Upon entering the doorway, he threw away his spent Vastos and took a Dakra Prime on each hand, all the while maintaining his slow walk towards the disfigured man atop the hall stage.

Mikado merely stopped midway and pointed one sword at Baphomet. Baphomet, still not rising from his seat of rubble, clapped his hands while laughing. He stood up, when on the center of the stage, spread out his hands and bowed. Mikado, still pointing his sword, taunts Baphomet to finally end this war. Baphomet laughs at the notion, noting that even though they were twins, he could never win in a fair fight. He then recounts the multitude of stories of Mikado's victories against him, in and out of the war.

Mikado, growing impatient, screams at the man to fight him already. Baphomet, with a hint of madness, shushes him and tells him everything had to be in order. He then notes on Mikado's tiredness, shows concern and offers him a refreshment. Baphomet then rushingly goes to fetch something fomr behind his seat, then throws it at Mikado. Mikado, being battle-worn, merely slashes away at the object. Mikado is then splashed with juice, then realizes that the object Baphomet threw was a Tenno refreshment, served only by Neural Sentries.

Lowering down his sword in realization, Mikado screams at Baphomet demanding to know where he got the item. Baphomet only childishly frowns that his brotherly gift was wasted and begins to stifle his tears. As the young mount behind him began to growl, Baphomet motioned it to go away and entertain the 'guest'. Mikado growled in turn at the mention of the word. Baphomet held up his hands and plead guilty to not fighting fair. He then tells Mikado to wait for their special guest.

Mikado relents and lowers his guard, not wanting to have one more innocent life taken in his name. The mount slowly comes back on stage, only to bring on its jaws a young man. Even through the darkness, Mikado knew the familiar figure and shouted his name. Baphomet suddenly step in front of the stage and urged Mikado not to make any hasty moves. Baphomet then mentioned that although he knew that Dahaka was his own son, Baphomet would not hesitate to kill the young man as he knew Mikado treated him as his own.

Mikado screams that Dahaka is his son. He screams that Baphomet will never learn to be a father, to be a husband, and to love somebody else. Baphomet snaps that he has loved and still loves Lotus. Mikado screams back that if he loved Lotus, he would have never harmed her. Mikado says baphomet cannot even give attention to and abandoned the woman who loved him all this time. Baphomet merely laughed at the mention of Psyche's name. Baphomet told Mikado that Psyche is merely a tool for his plans and has served her purpose well.

Mikado sadly told in turn, that Psyche is no more. He looks down and tells Baphomet she sacrificed herself to let him escape. He then looks back at the stage and Baphomet to tell him that Psyche was pregnant with his children when she became a golem. Baphomet merely says that he has a lot of "children" and the one child that matter is the one he was holding now. Mikado dropped his swords, skewering the ground with them. He sadly told Baphomet is a bastard and that Mikado pities him. Baphomet maddeningly laughs at the word pity and asks Mikado why he would say such a thing.

Mikado merely says that he pities Baphomet since nobody loves him anymore. Baphomet roars in anger and all the remaining Infested gather at the stage. Mikado still with empty hands, asks Baphomet a question while slowly walking unarmed towards the stage. He rescinds his armor upon coming at the edge of the stage and asks Baphomet what makes Lotus special. Baphomet in turn is only confused at the question and merely says that Lotus is pretty. Mikado smiles and taunts that he does not know Lotus' secret.

Staunched at mockery, Baphomet demands clarification from Mikado. Mikado then reiterates that Tenno are ninety-nine percent born as Fraternal Twins, and that Lotus is no different. Knowing Lotus is an only child Baphomet gives a puzzled look. Mikado raises and removes the gloves off his right hand and shows Baphomet his burns. Mikado retells how he, with his congenital analgesia, personally held Dahaka and pulled him from Lotus. Dahaka had burned his right hand with high voltage. Baphomet shakes his hands in confusion instead. Mikado smiles. He climbs the stage and stares the disfigured man in the eyes. He then tells Lotus is a chimera, and the she is the product of the fusion of two babies with differing DNA.

Baphomet reels back in shock. He had not known all this time that the woman he had obsessed for all this time had been actually two women. He then gains anger at Mikado for again knowing something he does not. He turns back to Mikado, but he sees the man smiling. He screams at Mikado to demand to know what he is smiling about. Mikado simply dares Baphomet to hold the young man's right hand. Thinking it a joke, Baphomet laughingly approaches the unconscious young Dahaka while tap dancing.

Baphomet looks at his face at first and marvels at the good work he did. He then takes the young man's right hand and shakes it, then shows nothing has happened to Mikado. Mikado merely smiles some more, and Baphomet becomes confused. He suddenly feels his hands stuck to the young man as high voltages run through his whole body. Baphomet's clothes start to burn at the high voltage, and since Baphomet lacks their Father's congenital analgesia, he screams in intense pain at the high voltage. Painfully, he looks towards Mikado's direction.

Mikado merely states that he favors Dahaka since he takes after his mother, since Dahaka is also a chimera. His left side has Baphomet's DNA, burning Mikado's right hand, while his right side has Mikado's DNA, burning Baphomet. In an instant, Mikado activates his frame and throws his Glaive towards Baphomet's waist. Baphomet is cut in half and releases Dahaka's hand. The young mount was about to attack when the Glaive bounces off a wall and proceeds to cut off its head.

Mikado receives the glaive back and hurriedly goes to pickup Dahaka while stepping over the cut down body. Mikado carefully picks up the young man and charges through the halls as the multitude of Infested descend upon them.

Section 10

With Dahaka still unconscious and his energy reserves draining, Mikado was getting anxious to get out of the vault. His hopes lit up as he saw the large main vault doors seep light from its sides. He uses his last energy to do a charge and lands themselves outside the vault. Mikado suddenly drops to his knees in exhaustion and rescinds his frame as he puts down Dahaka. He checks Dahaka for Infection and wounds, and only finds bruises on the back of the young man's neck. Relieved that the boy is safe, he orders his hovercraft to return to him.

After more than a few minutes of waiting, Mikado grows weary and repeatedly issues commands to the hovercraft. The silence in the grassland is broken when suddenly, bits and pieces of the hovercraft crashes just a few meters from them. Mikado turns towards the direction from where the wreckage came and saw a large figure on top of the vault doors. It was Baphomet, his torso attached to the severed neck of his mount, sporting a more sinister version of his old frame. Baphomet was pulsating with energy as he seethed with anger.

Mikado tried to stand up and get away from the young man, but he buckled with exhaustion. Baphomet jumped down from the top of the vault door and slowly started towards them. Mikado punched the ground and summoned all his strength to stand up. He only manages to stand up only to parry Baphomet's greatsword with his Glaive. The Glaive shatters from the force, cuts Mikado's palm and throws him aback a few meters away.

Even though reeling in shock, Mikado tried again to stand up for another attack, but saw in horror that Baphomet's target was the sleeping Dahaka. Not able to stand up, Mikado crawled to Dahaka while screaming his name. Baphomet raised his great sword and swung down with a large crash.

As the dust cleared up, a vision of hope made Mikado cry. It was the First, blocking Baphomet's sword with his metallic arm, all the while holding in his left arm the sleeping Dahaka. Their Father had finally donned the Caliburn and had saved his own grandchild. The First, The First Tenno, merely looked at the abomination that was his son and sends it flying with his Evolution Powers.

Mikado tried to stand up in joy when suddenly his right arm failed him. The cut that Baphomet made on his hand has been infected. Ignoring the infection for now, Mikado still tried to get up. The First seeing his remaining son in trouble, walked towards him and dropped several items to his front.

Seeing the gesture, Baphomet mocked his Father while painfully trying to stand up. Baphomet was still unaccustomed to being a quadruped but it did not stop him from taunting the First to finally finish the job himself. The Caliburn bearer merely pointed out that this long war has started with the brothers, and that it should end that way. He was merely here to pick up his grandson.

The First then turns to Mikado, explaining the items at his feet. The colossal sword that the First skewered the ground with was called Galatine, named after the system that made the golems. It was a new weapon made to commemorate the volunteers for the golems. The Glaive needed no explanation, but the First remarked that Mikado should keep an eye on it. The last item was an Orokin Catalyst, only, that it was purple in color. His Father merely states that it is a gift from Lotus, Mikado's wife. And with that being said, the First jumps off to a great distance with his grandson and left the brothers to end the war themselves.

Mikado pulled himself up using the colossal sword. He then looked towards the wriggling mass that was Baphomet, then turns to look at the purple Orokin Catalyst. He chuckled at Lotus' color sense and finally injected himself with the catalyst. An immediate burning sensation spread throughout his body. He noted that Orokin Catalysts were not supposed to react this way and that they only changed the DNA markers that were related to suit affinity.

Mikado then finally noticed that his right arm was turning into bands of metal and that the infection on his hand has halted. he felt his energy reserves fill up and double. Finally, he felt body had been forcibly renewed. Upon looking at his reflection on his right arm, he noticed that was his eyes now had a purple tint to them. This particular catalyst that Lotus had made was different from the normal catalyst that changed the DNA of the recipient. Instead, she had made a catalyst that injected her own DNA into Mikado. Now having three sets of DNA, Mikado now had three times the amount of energy reserves, as well as three times the determination to take down his old enemy.

Baphomet, seeing his transformation, roared maddeningly and called forth all of his remaining soldiers. Mikado activated his frame, surprised to see it lined with purple lotus insignias and glow with bluish purple energy. Mikado then roars back in retaliation as the infested rained down on him. He then executes a stomp and everything in a 50 meter radius was destroyed.

Sensing that he alone could take on Mikado, Baphomet himself charges at Mikado. Mikado calmly picks up the Glaive and throws it at Baphomet. Baphomet, not falling for the same trick and knowing there were no walls behind him, evaded to the side and continued his charge. Mikado picks up the Galatine sword and parries Baphomet's greatsword. While the two were locking swords, Baphomet maddeningly cries why Mikado always had everything. Mikado, realizing his old response to the question, answers differently this time, saying that he did not have everything, he was merely not alone. His strength came from the people behind him. He then asks Baphomet in turn who was behind him.

Stumped for an answer, Baphomet was speechless. Mikado then jokes about their Father's lesson about Glaives, and that the First had clued Mikado about this particular Glaive. Before Baphomet could realize his error, he felt the glaive cut through his back again and see that Mikado was controlling it telepathically like their Father. Mikado, now released from the sword lock, turned in his place to charge his sword, and then rotated his body to cut Baphomet with Galatine.

Baphomet was struck and cleaved from his right hip up to his left shoulder, hitting the area where his heart should be. Staggering from the cut on his abdomen and struggling to re-attach himself from the diagonal cut, Baphomet managed to laugh as he taunted Mikado that he has already managed to become truly immortal, as he can re-attach and regenerate anything. He also laughed as MIkado's effort to hit his heart has failed since he has none anymore.

Mikado still had his back turned from swinging the colossal sword forcibly when he spoke. He knew that Baphomet no longer had a heart and that he was actually expecting him to regenerate. Mikado suddenly turns around and activates the Void Energy Charges he strapped on his left arm earlier, and then shoves it in the cavity where Baphomet would have had a heart. Mikado retorts that he just wanted to fill up the emptiness in his brother's heart, while watching the wound close.

Baphomet, sensing the same bombs that burned away his human skin was inside his chest, panicked, dropped his sword, and started clawing away at his regenerated chest. Before Baphomet could get to the bombs though, Mikado executes another stomp and paralyzes him in mid-air, and then Mikado executes a charge attack that sends him flying into the dark insides of the derelict vault. Mikado rushes to the vault doors and again, this time with all his might, stomps the vault door itself to close it and lock it in chronostasis. After accomplishing the task, a large explosion was heard inside the vault and the whole mountainside and valley quaked and crumbled down. Mikado merely whispers a farewell to Cain, his brother.

Moments later, Mikado sighed a breath of relief, and then finally heard several footsteps behind him. The First returned alone, saying that a unit nearby has already taken Dahaka to safety. He asks about Baphomet, and Mikado merely nods to the smoking vault door. The First sadly nods and comments that the reason why Mikado always won against his brother was that he did not fight with strength, but always fought with wit.

Mikado stands up and expresses appreciation at the compliment, but corrects his Father that the actual reason he won against his brother was that Mikado never fought alone. The First smiles in understanding and escorts his son home. Just after a few steps, Mikado collapses, and the First checks up on him. The First then sees that his right arm, though metallic, has become tinted red instead of Lotus' purple. The First then picks up his son and rushes to the extraction site.

Final Section

Lotus merely wept in front of her mirror as she felt lost from all that was happening around her. The First, her adoptive Father, had recently sealed himself for the safety of the Tenno poeple. The First finally broke the silence to the Council regarding the Siege Perilous. It was a system to wipe off unwanted memories from his brain and interface with the Caliburn frame. The Caliburn frame, much like its sibling, the Galatine system, absorbs a sapient host to become a weapon.

Basically the Caliburn was meant to be a balance between the Arondight and the Galatine systems from Project Vivian. Nonetheless, Caliburn is evolving and compounding centuries of memories makes The First susceptible to the maddening effects of the Caliburn. He went regular maintenance to purge memories so that he can maintain control of Caliburn. When asked where the Caliburn system is, The First merely activated his Excalibur frame, and then activated it further transforming it into the Caliburn frame. The council was shocked to see that the Caliburn frame was with The First all along. And with that notion, the Council relented to the request of The First to be sealed within a special Cryopod that would purge his memories once improperly breached.

Lotus then turns her memories to the last time she spoke to her husband. Mikado also wanted to be sealed, but in a different way. Cain's Technocyte Virus has worked its way into Mikado's arm. His right arm was now basically Cain's arm and Mikado now carried four sets of DNA. Lotus's DNA staved off its further spread of infection, but like his Father, Mikado did not want to risk the safety of the Tenno. She merely cried all the while noting the similarity between the Father and Son. Mikado was now in a Cryopod that is contained in the reconstructed Helios Ark, renamed the Tenno Ark.

Mikado had planned to venture beyond Outer Terminus before the Great War started, and now he was going to finish it while in sleep. He had only kissed his wife passionately while asking Lotus to take care of the children while he was gone. He jokingly promised to come back and make other children upon his return. Lotus could only cry while laughing at his joke. And today, hours from now, the Tenno Ark was to disembark and she has not even put on any make up.

A voice behind her then tells her she does not need it. Lotus turns around to find Psyche, Mikado's friend and her new confidant. The Nyx bearer had been a second mother to her children in the past few years and had taken a liking to her youngest, Dahaka. Dahaka in turn, also had a penchant for Psyche and the two were often seen strolling together. Psyche approaches her and tells her she just needs to brush her purple tinted hair.

She asked Psyche how the children were faring and Psyche merely commented that they were most likely bickering again. Lotus laughs and thanks Psyche for being her friend. Psyche merely says that it was no matter as they merely cared about the same group of people, hinting on Mikado and the children. Lotus nodded and stood up to get prepared for the ceremony, and then asked Psyche to fetch the children and have them prepare too, especially Dahaka. Psyche merely giggled and went off.

At the ceremony, it had been more than an hour when Lotus sent out her twins to find Dahaka. The Tenno Ark was already igniting its engines and Lotus was worried that the children might miss the departure of their father. A few more minutes passed and the Tenno Ark entered into its final stages of departure. In a few more moments, the trails of the Solar Rails lit up and the Tenno Ark finally started its voyage towards the outside of the Origin system.

Lotus was now both disappointed and frustrated at the children, not only for being late, but for not being able to say their farewells to their father. The Tenno Ark was now beyond the Horizon when suddenly a commotion stirred up from the crowd. Bewildered, Lotus then suddenly hears the visiting Queen of the Empire shout incoherently.

Suddenly, the crowds burst into flames and death while the attendants of the Empire start gunning Tenno and innocent civilians alike. Pressed without much security, mainly due to the fact that the remaining Tenno forces were cleaning up the Infested in the system or came with the Tenno Ark, the Council was in danger of being killed.

After several moments, Lotus is horrified as she sees her twins Vadjura and Agni fighting off thousands of flesh bound automatons by themselves. Lotus was to run after them when the Royal Guards stop her in her tracks. She then realizes that she can save the twins by using the void key the First had given her. She activates the void key and sees Agni looking at her. She mouths off the word "Sorry" to Agni and points the void key to save the twins by transporting them somewhere.

Unfortunately, the void key was volatile, and it instead transports Lotus and her party into the unknown.

Epilogue

The Board of Directors met at an undisclosed location to assess their losses at the assault of Outer Terminus. After delliberating changing the company name to Commercion Unione Corpus, the chairman of the Board formally opens the discussion and addresses the Tenno as the "Betrayers" since Tenno Mikado destroyed their home city of Dubai.

Gylan Vidar had a contract with the Tenno assuring security from the Infested in exchange for discounts on building materials. Instead of honoring the sacred contract, Tenno Mikado dropped off his Helios Ark unto the founding city of the Trade Union and killed billions of their employees, including Gylan Vidar himself.

And now, the Betrayers have paid their price, they were not informed by the Corpus of the attack on Outer Terminus. On top of that, the Corpus has now switched customers to the Empire. A board member suddenly raised his hand. Addressing the question, the Chairman acknowledges the board member. The board member asks specifically how they got the information and how was it reliable in the first place.

The Chairman answers that Vidar's own grandson, Derald Vidar was vacationing with the Empire's Engineer Fomoria Vay Hek. Gylan had sent the young boy Derald to spy on the aging engineer in the guise of apprenticeship to his "friend" and partner. Derald had come upon a transmission from the Queen herself regarding the attack and the commission of new weaponry.

The asking board member rests his case while another one asks about what to do with the remaining Tenno. The Chairman merely says that that task had already been volunteered upon by the young Derald himself, vowing to get revenge on the family of the First for what happened to his grandfather and parents in Dubai. Noting that the young man might still be emotional, the Chancellor merely says that in time, Derald Vidar will be given a slight promotion, shortening his name to Derald Vida.

The board then unanimously approves this promotion and is excited to see Derald learn that profits will dull his pain.

To be continued...