"How is she?"
The first question ever asked to Lania after a serious meeting.
"She is… dumb, as always." Lania answered her with a joking voice, "I heard her gain the respect as a squad leader in the academy."
Vanny smiled but her eyes were disappointed.
"She didn't remember at all huh? After she looked at his face, she used to be over protective toward him, even after she lost it all, she was still the same." Vanny looks at her necklace that was given by her mother when she was a kid.
"Forget about that, Lania, you are allowed to share our information with Takaya, and also I allow him to team up with you if something is off later, remember to report back to me whatever happens then." Vanny said
"Roger that general!" Lania salutes at her.
"Arghh! I told you don't call me that, I will never get used to that." Vanny blushed and slapped her forehead.
"You should be used ma'am." Lania smiled at her to mock her up.
"Anyway Lania, you free Saturday night?" Vanny asked.
"If your brother didn't bother me with his mind, I would've been free that day, I hope so." Lania's sad face makes Vanny laugh.
"You must free your time that day, I need your company anyway," she stands and walks toward the door, "Or you might never see me in that suit." She exits the door.
"By the way, I'm going to report this to the president, you may leave and pack your things and go to Takaya's place, and take your rest today."
Lania smiled at her "I hope they have a nice cake and tea too."
Vanny leaves the room "I inform that."
Vanny walks away from the room going to the elevator that goes to the third floor. She brings out her phone texting someone but she already gets a message.
"Rin.." she read the message,
'I'll throw a party for her, I tell big bro for it! :)'
She smiled and type the answer, 'Cake and Tea, Also don't let her use my bed! :p'
"Ah I missed you." She giggled.
—-------
Meanwhile at Takaya's house,
"Bro, are you already invite them for tonight?" Rin shouted from the kitchen.
"Of course, Asahi is on her way here." He answered from the living room.
"Oh good! Man power increased!" Rin happily reacts to Takaya's news.
"Hahaha, anyway I'm going to get some things in store, need me to get anything?" Takaya wears his jacket and is about to leave her apartment.
"Bunch of Ice cream, snacks, and soda!" Rin shouted.
"Okay!" He leaves the room.
5 minutes later he was shopping at the store, moving around with a shopping cart with a bunch of snacks, and suddenly someone bumped into him from behind. He surprised to see a woman's leg and try to help her to stand and apologized,
"Sorry I didn't pay attention!" Takaya raised her up and apologized.
The woman's stand and looked at Takaya's face and froze for a moment,
"Takaya?" The woman called his name.
Takaya looked at her face and confused,
"Did we know each other?" Takaya responded to her with confusion,
"How rude! You didn't remember your friend! It's Anna, one of your classmates." The woman replied.
"Anna-belle?" With a shocked face.
"Yup, in the flash!" She smiled widely.
"Oh my god you're the idol! What are you doing here?!" Takaya asked,
"Oh I just bought some drinks, and snacks." She responds to Takaya.
Takaya is shocked to see Annabelle, he knows that she is an idol because his sister is one of her fans.
"Umm Anna, have a pen?" Takaya asked with an excited face,
"I have, but why-"
"Can you sign this bag of chips?" He smiled awfully,
"Ah you must be my fan aren't you?" She take the pen and the chips and sign it,
"Well yeah, and also my sister was your fan too." (I'm sorry Anna, but I only know you because of my sister…)
"Here you go! By the way I have to go, next time I'll send you tickets for my concert!" She runs away leaving Takaya, "For both of you!"
"Ahhh thank you!!! See you Tomorrow!" Takaya shouted to her from afar.
After that unexpected meeting he then finishes his shopping and goes to the cashier, paying his shopping and leaving the store then heading home to continue their preparation. While on the street near his apartment he sees Asahi walking alone bringing a big plastic bag full of snacks. He then ran closer to her to walk together.
"Asahi!" He screamed her name while running,
"Ah Takaya! Uwah, you seemed to buy some stuff too." Asahi reacts to his bag that he's carrying.
"This is Rin's request, Honestly I just wanna buy some toothbrush and paste in case we need extra," he looked at Asahi's bag, "Hey let me carry those bags." He grabs her bags and carries them.
"Thank you." She smiled at him for his kindness, "She staying huh? What a sudden…"
"Yeah, Vanny's idea to let her in our place, actually not a bad idea too." He said.
"Haha! I hope you guys have a good time." Asahi said.
"So, how's your day Asahi? I heard alot about you yesterday, you are really someone now." Takaya asked about her daily life for the first time after they met.
"Nothing special, I'm just doing as I can do for me and my family, being Asahi now is no different from before." She replied, "By the way, you actually can do that transformation smoothly, what was that? For me it's taking a month to be able to control it."
Takaya silent for a moment,
"I was practicing, and it just happened, but honestly I only can do it for a short time, so it's not that good."
"No! I mean why do you have it?" Asahi asked in a serious tone.
"Hmmm, I don't know…" Takaya trying to close that question.
"Well it's good that it is you who have 'that' power, rather than someone else…" Asahi said with a sad face.
They arrived at Takaya's apartment and quickly entered his room.
"I'm home" Takaya enters the room
"Rin! I'm coming!" Asahi followed him
"ASAHI! COME HERE QUICK!" followed with a dropping sound of pans and metals,
"Takaya, what is she doing? She didn't forge a weapon, right?" Asahi's face weirded.
"..." Takaya kept silent with a smile on his face.
"ASAHI!!! HELP ME TO GET THIS OUT!" Rin screamed even louder.
"Alright, Alright, coming!" Asahi ran to the kitchen and helped Rin with her cooking.
At the end 3 of them spend their time for the rest of the day together making the preparation for welcoming Lania.
It's 5 PM, and they have already done their preparation, then Rin takes a bath to relax. Takaya is sitting on his balcony sipping a coffee, while Asahi is talking to someone on her phone. After hanging up the call she goes after Takaya to join him,
"What a beautiful view isn't it?" Asahi reacts to the sunset skies scenery that both of them see.
"I like sitting here to see the sunset, it's very calming and makes my mind relaxed." Takaya said.
Asahi takes a sit in the empty chair beside Takaya,
"I heard you visited the northern base last night." Asahi said.
Like a gunshot without a warning Takaya spit his coffee surprised by Asahi.
"Why- (coughing)" Takaya can't finish his sentence.
"Hahaha, it's my mom, she told me last night about it." Asahi laughs at Takaya's reaction.
"Don't… tell Rin!" Takaya said with a weird face.
"Hmmm, can you promise me one thing for that?" Asahi said that with a sad face.
"Eh??"
"Promise me you won't go anywhere alone like that again." Asahi said that and looked at Takaya's eyes.
Takaya couldn't tell how he must respond to that promise, Takaya never involved someone for his action because he never wanted something happened to them.
"I can't, I don't want to cause you a troubl-"
"Cause me trouble my ass! Last night you got knocked out and you said I'm not gonna do anything about that?" Asahi was angry at him because of what he said, "I know it is none of my business but you can't just do that alone, try to think about someone else who can help you!"
"Asahi…" Takaya was surprised by her reaction that suddenly changed not as her as usually reacts.
"Am I that weak for you? To help you?"
Asahi words echoing in Takaya's mind make him unable to move even an inch.
"It's been a year you do everything by your own, I know everything, I know what you did with Lieutenant, I know you are secretly moving behind us," She started crying,
"Ah… Sorry I'm carried away." She stops her outburst and apologizes.
"Takaya, What I'm trying to say is you need to rely on other people with your problems, don't know maybe you can solve your mess, that's why we're here-" The bell rings, that sign of Lania's arrival.
Both of them walk to the entrance door and open the door at the same time. Both of them froze to see Ai and Fukushima carrying a gun crate and bags full of goodies, while Lania carried her big bag in her bag and some sleeping bags just like they were going to camp. They get inside and drop their things just piled up.
"What was that?" Takaya asked,
"Oh, the general did not allow me to sleep in her bed so I might have been sleeping on my sleeping bags." Lania said with a joking face.
"You can just sleep in Rin's room, she has an extra bed." Takaya said.
"Ehh??? Why she not say that?!" Lania slapped her forehead. In fact she was pranked to not let her sleep on Vanny's bed because there is no bed for Vanny either since she never stayed. Then they started the welcome party for Lania soon after Rin was done with her bath. They spent their time all night long until Rin suddenly fell asleep at Ai laps.
—--------
"She sure fell asleep." Lania smiled looking at Rin's funny face while sleeping.
"It's been a while since she worked so hard, she rushed me to get this and that for today."
Takaya said compliment on her hard work.
"Also it's been a while since her brother had someone come to the house, that is why she is so pumped up." Ai jokingly says to poke Takaya.
"What a nerd." Fukushima mocks him even more.
Takaya just laughed along with them joyfully.
"I might take her to her bed."
Takaya walks over Rin and carries her to her room, and places her on her bed. Then he closed her room. And looking at Lania that smiled seeing his soft side.
"Are you guys sleeping over here tonight?" Takaya asked to Ai, Fukushima and Asahi.
"I'm staying!" Asahi said.
"I'm staying too." Ai said.
"I'm staying." Fukushima also said.
"Alrighty then we should start our serious conversation." Lania breaks the comfy homey vibe, "Takaya, can you bring us to 'the room' ?"
He looks at Lania with sus, but he follows her and brings them to the secret room that Takaya has in the apartment. He opens the hidden elevator behind his fireplace and uses it to go to the underground level of the building.
—---
The elevator door opens and shows the inside of the hidden facility that Takaya hids,
in the heart of a dense apartment building camouflaged by cutting-edge technology, lay the clandestine facility known only as "Shadow Vanguard ." This hidden sanctuary was the covert headquarters of an elite special unit tasked with missions shrouded in secrecy and complexity.
The facility's entrance, disguised as a rock face, seamlessly blended with the natural surroundings. Biometric scanners and retina recognition systems guarded the entrance, allowing only the chosen few to pass through. Once inside, a labyrinth of high-tech corridors led to advanced training rooms, state-of-the-art command centers, and living quarters for the operatives.
The aura within "Shadow Vanguard " resonated with an air of disciplined silence. The operatives, handpicked from various military branches, moved with precision through their daily routines. Advanced simulation rooms allowed them to rehearse missions in virtual environments, preparing for scenarios ranging from covert infiltrations to high-stakes rescues.
The facility's nerve center, known as "The Core," was a room bathed in low light, featuring a massive digital display of global hotspots and potential threats. It was here that the unit's leaders orchestrated missions, guided by intelligence from around the world.
Deep in the heart of the facility, a cutting-edge armory housed futuristic weaponry, advanced gadgets, and prototype gear designed exclusively for the Shadow Vanguard operatives. The development labs, shrouded in secrecy, buzzed with the sounds of engineers crafting the next generation of stealth technology.
They go to the private room that says "Chief Office" and enter the room. —-
"You guys can sit anywhere you want, there's many chairs-"
"(Interrupting Takaya) What is this place?!" Ai screamed angrily at him.
"You may see the logo that was placed in the hall, but you need a lot of explanation though."
Takaya sits in the middle chair and touches the holographic screen on his desk. Reveal the logo and its name,
"My friends, Welcome Shadow Vanguard."
He introduced the name of the facility,
"This is my personal defense facility that I raised under the Elite Team military operation officer supervision, for short this is like a second type of Elite Team that was secretly created by the current Elite Team Commander General Vanny Takahashi herself."
"So it's nothing to do with the government or the military, we operate under the Elite Team's name and disguise as their troops."
"I honestly don't want to bring you guys here but because of our current situation, I have no choice."
"No choice?" Asahi reacts to what he says,
"(Lania walks to the seats.) Please have a seat, and we continue our conversation."
Everyone sits in their seats.
"Takaya, you said this is your personal facility? No authorization from this county counts as an illegal facility." Fukushima says that a death stare to Takaya.
"Indeed, but this facility is not for military operations, this facility is tasked with in-depth development and research of the reincarnated ancient warriors and supports them, rather than XAG doing research and using them as a weapon, I personally don't agree with that idea."
"As I say, this facility works together with Elite Team, we move by our own, we're not following any XAG standards or missions, we are free to decide what we are doing, as payback we work for the Elite Team to support them with various information and technology we developed."
"Technology? Is it not a fair trade?" Fukushima argued with Takaya.
"Fukushima, it's a fair trade."
Lania smirked.
"While you all are having fun finding stuff and training for yourself and serving XAG, Who do you think keeps protecting your ass and this country?" Lania raised her voice.
"Takaya fought with us in the frontline, defeating Chaosits and killing hundreds of people who threaten yours and all of the people lifes on this country."
"Forget about the Elite Team, without him we'd all be dead-"
"(Stopping Lania) We're not here to discuss that, more importantly I have an offer for you all… Of course you can decide it freely, but keep in mind if you guys decline you must never ever share this facility's whereabouts."
"Honestly there's no one keeping a promise, and I already put myself in danger by letting you in on this facility."
"What makes you believe us? By letting us in here and revealing this and that? You must have a good reason for it, don't you?" Ai asked Takaya.
Takaya smirked at her,
"How about we start from both of you Ai and Fukushima, you guys are truly a prodigy, your family serves XAG long before we are even born, and end up with you two that are actually leading scientists in research for defense and assault of XAG troops."
"Making them gears and weapons equipment to support them on the battlefield."
"But what if I tell you that you findings is only been used for a mass genocide that XAG done over this years?"
Ai stands up shocked "What do you mean?!"
"(Takaya stands up and walks over her) D.V Gear, is a revolutionary device that can amplify humans 'chi' to can be used as a defensive weapon."
"After your XAG legally uses your design and mass-produces that gear, have you ever known that they change the emergency protocols for safety usage?"
"Code - 009 is designed to protect its user to force shutting down the device when the user overuses the device for a long time period, but they change it rather than protect, they actually destroy its user brain and its device making them die instantly, what do you think that for?"
Ai suddenly sits again but trembling hearing Takaya's explanation, "Stop it…"
"Self destruction protocol to never let the enemy take XAG personnel data, they kill their own man."
"Takaya stop it!" Fukushima shouted at him.
"Ironically, Fukushima you know about this but also try to close your little sister's ears and eyes so she never knows about it." Takaya looked at Fukushima with a cruel look.
"I hate to tell you, death caused by that protocol is 14.532 people, and of course it's increased as we speak." Takaya reveals unbelievable information, Asahi that hears that gasped.
"Li- Lieutenant, is it true?" Asahi asked,
"I hate to break it to you but yes it's true, General Vanny was also nearly killed because of that."
"But Takaya is already taking care of the problem, So no people are going to die as long as the device is checked before distribution." Lania explained.
Ai raised her head and look at Takaya,
"You?! That device has a complex matrix inside, only few people know how to work on it but why do you just easily say 'Taking care'?!" Ai madly asked,
"I honestly impressed that you using a gravity matrix for build that device, but it's too easy to solve by deleting the matrix string."
"Despite that matter, what I'm trying to say is you will never be a scientist if you don't have the freedom to build, even at the end you don't have any value for whatever you've done." Takaya tries to calm Ai.
That explanation makes Ai and Fukushima depressed, while Asahi still doesn't believe what she has just seen and heard. Lania gives the rest of the people in the room some drinks to relax.
"You seem to be having a hard time, Asahi" Takaya looked at her.
"(Asahi raised her eyebrow.) Of course! Do you think I'm going to just believe what you said and walk away from XAG?!"
"I never want you to do that." Takaya sits again on his chair.
"So you have something to tell me? Bring it on and let's get this over with!" Asahi challenges Takaya.
"(Takaya laughed)"