Battle for Resolving the Fate of the Universe (and also Dream Island Again)

Episode 18 - Remembering All Sorts of Nonsense

"Hey, Book."

Neon suddenly getting Book's attention would catch her completely by surprise. She was just about to go do her usual training with Puffball, much like she'd always done both before and after becoming miserable. Book turned around, with Puffball doing much the same. "Huh?" She'd raise an eyebrow. "Yeah, Book." Neon continued. "You mind letting me join in too?" He asked. Book grew even more confused. "Join in on what?" She asked. Neon scoffed. "Come on, don't play dumb." He replied. "I wanna join in on what you guys are doing. Sharpen my senses a bit, you know?" He paused for a moment as he made his way to them. "We're in this together, right? We're both old fools, hit rather hard and at a low point in life." Book squinted at him. "In *no* way are we alike at all." Neon shrugged. "Maybe. Maybe not." He remarked. "GD Inc trained me to try to find a deeper meaning to everything, even if it initially doesn't make any sort of sense." He paused for a moment as he recalled all the fun times he had back when he was just an inexperienced newbie at his job. Well... perhaps 'fun' isn't exactly the right word. "Helps with espionage, since most of the stuff you dig through in that line of work tends to be hidden." He'd glance away, then looked back at her, winking. "I might teach you a thing or two about that if you let me hop on."

Book would naturally be disgusted by such an offer. "Like I'd want to learn anything from *you*." Neon scoffed again. "You've already learned quite a lot from me. Far more than you're probably supposed to know." He remarked. "Besides, it'll also help you. GD Inc tends to obfuscate a lot of things under redundant and nonsensical language. So much so that you tend to question whether or not it's a genuine attempt at maintaining secrecy, or if they're *really* that incompetent." Book squinted at him. "And why can't you just teach me about that now, instead of having to waste time on you?" Neon frowned. "You *are* already wasting time on me, though." He chuckled. "Since we're getting into some rather dangerous stuff, what with GD Inc being all secretive and angry and such, I feel like we should learn to cooperate better in order to not get into trouble." He paused for a moment to breathe. "...Considering who I know there, we might be well and truly dead if we get found out." Book raised an eyebrow. "...You said you were going to betray me the first chance you get, though." She remarked. Neon's eyes widened. "...I didn't say *exactly* that, though..." He remarked. He paused for a moment, sighing to himself. "Look, do you want the knowledge or not? I figured that since you're supposed to be a repository of information, being a book and all, that you'd love to learn a thing or two."

Book grumbled. "Fine."

-

As soon as they stepped outside, the two of them would get on Puffball, and they would instantly disappear into the horizon. They'd spend the next half an hour or so just aimlessly flying around, under the guise of 'flight training'. They'd spin around, do a few loops around the hill, and several other complicated maneuvers that almost made Neon sick. It had been a while since he'd ever flown. Not just on a plane, but on... *anything*. After a while of this, however, Book would finally tell Puffball to stop. Neon sighed. "...I didn't think I'd handle much more of that." He remarked. Book chuckled. "Alright, give him a few more minutes of that, Puffy." Puffball grumbled. "Don't-" Book continued laughing. "Come *on*, you know I didn't mean it." She'd pat her in the head. Neon would also let out a few bits of forced laughter as well, in order to sound... friendly, I guess. "Drop us off, will you?" Book asked. Immediately, Puffball would start lowering down into the forest beneath them, cautiously avoiding the branches and leaves as they did so. Puffball would stop just a mere inch or so above the ground, hovering near-perfectly still. "Alright, get off." Book ordered Neon. Neon raised an eyebrow. "What?" He asked. "We're supposed to be training, right?" Book asked back. "We need to sharpen our combat abilities on the ground as well. You never know, you know?"

Neon grumbled. "I knew that." He muttered to himself. He'd struggle a bit with getting off Puffball, much like he had been all the other times. As soon as his feet were on the ground, however, Puffball would immediately fly up into the sky once again, and she and Book would seemingly abandon Neon right then and there. Neon swore he could hear them laughing as they flew away into the sky, but perhaps it was just them cracking a few jokes, or something. The voices went away too quickly for him to tell. As much as it was completely obvious that the people forced to work with someone on the opposing side would try to leave them behind at *some* point, Neon would still be shocked at how sudden and blatant it was. After recovering from the initial shock of being suddenly dropped off at a forest with no intention of being brought back, Neon would come to the realization that that was indeed what happened: he was once again all alone, in the middle of nowhere, with not even any supplies whatsoever. He had left them all with the soldier before running off with Book. He sighed, berating himself for not even bothering to grab even the most essential supplies. It would've made this situation slightly *less* miserable, since he'd at least have *something* to kill time with.

Friendships are... a fickle thing, as stated many times before. As much as people would love to be absolutely sure that their friends would never leave them behind under any circumstance, that just isn't a possibility. There are a million and one reasons for anyone to betray you, and even your closest allies aren't safe from this game of blind faith. It was GD Inc stressed this point when training their spies, and it was why Neon followed it by heart. Far too many times had he felt the crushing sting of someone he'd trusted and supported of all his heart not return the favor. Far too many times had he been led astray by a supposed comrade, only to feel like a fool when it was all revealed to be a ruse in the end. Too many times... Neon shook his head. Don't dwell too much in the past, Neon reminded himself. Always contemplating about the could've been means you miss what *can* be. He reminded himself of how he didn't know all that he did now, of how most of those instances were caused as a result of a lapse in his judgment. This one being no exception. Why *did* he put such trust in someone that had continuously worked against everything he had stood for? Why did he think he was going to get anywhere with that, knowing full well that their goals conflicted with each other? Why... Why did he do any of that?

Neon sighed and looked up at the sky. Book and Puffball weren't going to look around here any time soon, he reckoned. He *could* try to make his way back to their base, but they had been flying for so long that he couldn't even remember which way it was. The only option, it seemed, was forward. Metaphorically, anyway. He looked back down on the ground, and all the trees around him. When it was stated before that the forest was virtually lifeless, that was only half-true. All around them, the trees continued living their silent lives. Collecting nutrients, growing their branches, and creating the next generation of greenery for no one to enjoy. It didn't matter to them whatsoever if there wasn't anybody to look at them, or to chop them down and turn them into furniture or firewood, or to forage whatever they could from what was nestled in the canopy. They just... did it. The trees didn't care whatsoever about anything that went on in the world. They simply cared about growing and nurturing themselves and their future. Granted, that was probably because trees don't actually think about *anything*, but Neon didn't care about how silly this all seemed. All Neon cared about was becoming like them: a silent man, living off the land, not caring even if the world around them was burning. With his new path in life now set, Neon took the first step...

The sound of a gunshot, followed by the sight of a bullet bouncing off the grass right in front of him, completely broke Neon's vague illusion of safety and security. He stood there for a moment, completely frozen solid. There was ringing in his ears, even though it wasn't really *that* loud. His mind only made it seem like it, considering that he almost just *died* right then and there. After the shock set in, he'd slowly tilt his head towards where the bullet flew in from, only to find... Book hiding behind a tree, giggling to herself. Neon couldn't help but frown as she approached him, continuing to laugh. "Got you!" She'd say in-between breaths. It took Neon a while to comprehend what had just happened. First shock, then anger, then... humor. His eyes twitched. "T-That wasn't funny!" He exclaimed. "I could've *died*!" He'd try to forcefully grab the gun from her hands, but her grip was surprisingly strong. "I told you about these things, right?" He continued. "These things are extremely accurate! If you'd just aimed it a few degrees to the left, I could've... could've..." Neon realized that his tirade was falling on deaf ears. Neon watched as Book continued laughing to herself, then looked up to see Puffball looming overhead, presumably giggling as well.

"Come on, don't take it so badly!" Book patted Neon in the shoulder. "I got you good, didn't I?" Neon was still upset by the whole thing, but there was *some* truth to that. Of course, GD Inc trained its spies to never show fear or surprise. It was part of what made them so feared by many. Neon grumbled. "...It still wasn't funny, though." He muttered to himself. He sighed. "What'd you do that for, anyway?" He asked. Book took a minute or so to calm down before finally explaining it to him. "Alright, it wasn't *all* just for a practical joke." Book replied. "You said it yourself, we gotta work on sharpening our senses, right?" Neon nodded slightly. "I figured that we should work towards being prepared for everything. And I mean *everything*." Book continued. "The enemy, no matter who it may be, can attack us at any moment, right when we least expect it. That's why I did... that, to you." She giggled. After taking a moment to calm down again for a moment, she'd look at Neon. "I figured you would've handled that situation far better than you actually did. Weren't you supposed to be some sort of spy?" Neon blushed slightly out of embarrassment. "Erm..." He'd sweat slightly. "...Yeah." He nodded. "...It's just that I've been... out of action, for quite a while now. I kinda lost my edge."

Book nodded. "Right... right." She'd gesture towards Puffball, who would lower herself down. "Come on. Let's try that again, shall we?" She asked. "You can surprise me next time. How's that for getting back at me?" She'd then point the gun towards him, though not in a threatening matter, but as if she was handing it over to him. Neon raised an eyebrow and would point at it. "...You're just giving this to me?" He asked. Book nodded. "Again, why are you suddenly so trusting of me? Literally nothing is stopping you from just..." Neon then suddenly grabbed the gun, aiming it at her. "...taking it and killing the both of you, here and now." Book frowned. "...Are you?" She asked. There'd be awkward silence for a few seconds as Neon nonchalantly kept the gun pointed at her. Neon then finally sighed and pointed the gun away. "...No." He answered. "...Not yet, anyway." Book sighed. "Well, that's a relief." She sarcastically remarked before getting on Puffball. As she did, however, she'd think about what Neon had just said. Why *was* she so trusting of this person she just met, and that she had absolutely no reason to even talk to? If they had been in literally any other situation, one of them was probably bound to have killed the other by now. What was he ultimately planning? For that matter, what was GD Inc up to? In fact...

Book shook her head. She had to keep focusing on the training. It was her turn to get caught unaware, after all.

-

Neon was taking a walk around the hill after that small hit to his barely-remaining pride.

He kept his gun close to him now, since he felt safer with it. That reminder from Book about how the enemy can just appear out of nowhere had made him wary of the situation around him, even though nothing has been out to get him for all these years. As much as there wasn't any sort of threat for miles around, Neon couldn't help but perceive them just lurking around the corner. The forest *was* a good hiding place for all sorts of things, after all. Not just hiding GD Inc facilities and military installations, but also rebel bases, gangs of murderers and criminals, and also other... terrible characters. They could be hiding just behind the trees, or high above in the branches and leaves, or perhaps underground, if they were rather crafty. That was also another reason why Neon had decided to take this short walk: he was no longer so sure about whether or not this place is actually as secure and hidden as it was purported to be. After all, it was literally right next to a road. A road which hadn't been on any of the maps he's seen from before the exchange, but that small detail was overlooked. Who knows who, or what, could be travelling down this road at this very moment? What sort of crazy gang of survivors could be just about to happen upon their small hideout a little while from now? It didn't sound plausible, given the state of the world, but it was still possible.

Neon would quickly run for the road, having just remembered that it existed. He'd look around for any sort of sign which could point to it being used in recent times, but those pieces of evidence just didn't exist. Which was far more concerning, than anything. Any road, even one that has been abandoned for many years, was bound to have *some* signs of it having been driven on at some point in history. Perhaps a few pieces of little here, a pothole or two there, and maybe a tipped vehicle or wreckage if you were lucky. But to his surprise... there was nothing. Nothing but perfectly intact asphalt going on a nearly-straight line. It was a sign that it wasn't used an awful lot, but it was also a sign of something far more concerning: it could've been *recently built*. It felt just a bit too clean and a bit too smooth to feel like a road that was built before the exchange. The paint used on the markings showed no signs of age, and there were no road signs that could be seen rusting. Such a road like this, should it have existed before the exchange, would've been used plenty of times. It was a road that went through a massive forest, thereby making it a good midway point between the disused cities and the pockets of survivors trying to keep on living in the middle of nowhere. It was just... off.

Neon would walk along the road from end to end, from where the forest cleared up just as the hill began to emerge from the flat land, to where it started again when the downward slope finally flattened out. He'd continuously check for any signs of usage the whole way through, but could find absolutely nothing of use. Well, save for one *massive* exception. Neon couldn't believe it himself when he first saw the GD Inc vehicle parked beside the road, berating himself for having been so blind. Why *hadn't* he seen it earlier? For that matter, how long had it been there? Surely it couldn't have been that long, since he only saw it *right now*, right? Neon quickly dropped whatever he was doing (which was probably nothing, anyway), and ran back to the base. He'd quickly look for Book, who wasn't all too hard to find since the base was pretty small. "Uh, hey." Neon grabbed her attention. "When were you gonna tell me about the vehicle that's been parked on the road?" Book seemed to be genuinely surprised when she was asked about that. She turned to him. "Oh, that?" She asked. "I almost forgot that thing even *existed*. Uh..." She scratched her head, looking for the relevant information about it in her head. "...yeah, about that. A while ago, some people came here on that vehicle. Said something about being on some sort of journey."

That would pique Neon's interest. So the road *has* been used before. Though signs pointed to just the one. Still cause for alarm, he reckoned. "Uhuh?" Neon nodded. "They stayed for a little while, we got to know each other quite..." Book blushed slightly, and would turn away to prevent Neon from seeing it. "...quite well, but then they left us all of a sudden. That vehicle's the only thing that they left behind. A reminder of... Of..." She shook her head. "...That reminds me of why I forgot about it in the first place." She remarked. Neon frowned slightly, fearing that he'd just accidentally trespassed upon some rather sensitive issues. He had already been doing so for quite a while now, but the bonding experience made him more cautious of that. "Uh..." Neon scratched his head. "...Does it still work?" He asked. "I think so." Book replied. "They came here driving on that, as I said, and I don't think any of us tried to mess with it afterwards." Neon nodded. "Good to know." He remarked. "Could be useful in any... future instances. Perhaps we can use it as an escape vehicle." Book nodded. "Maybe, maybe." She remarked. "...Though I'm not so keen on leaving this place behind, actually." Neon shrugged. "Well, you never know." He replied. "I didn't say we were going to leave this place *voluntarily*."

Shortly after, Neon would make his way over to the top of the hill, where the soldier had been sitting for most of the time. "Hey!" He shouted to get his attention. The soldier turned to him and raised an eyebrow. "Hm?" Neon kept running towards him before stopping just in front of him. After catching his breath, he'd continue. "Has that vehicle always been there?" Neon would point towards it. "Huh." The soldier was rather surprised. "I was wondering when you'd bring it up." He remarked. "I thought it belonged to you." "We got here by a giant ball of fluff, remember?" Neon asked. Being unsure of where he was going with that statement, he'd continue on like he hadn't just said that. "...Anyways, since we're not doing anything else right now, I was wondering if you'd join me in checking to see if it still works." The soldier thought about it for a moment, then shrugged. "...I guess." He replied. "I don't know that much about fixing cars, but it's better than nothing." Neon chuckled. "I don't know that much either, so we're on the same boat." He replied. "But it *could* be a useful vehicle. Escape, expedition, escapade..." He chuckled again. "...some other word that doesn't start with E..." He'd help the soldier get up. "Come on. We don't got all day, do we?"

They'd quickly make their way down the hill, and would immediately do the first thing that comes to a crazy teenager's mind when they see an unattended car with the keys still inside: start the engine. Neon got on the driver's seat, started the vehicle up, and it went without a hitch, surprising him. "Hm." He'd close the door, it barely closing shut before hitting his side. The soldier would get on one of the back seats before Neon would put his quickly-fading driving knowledge to use. He'd drive it around, slowly at first, but going faster as his confidence in his driving skills increased. He'd make a few turns, try to go up the hill (only stopping after realizing they were making quite an ugly trail), and do a few loops around the hill. They'd be rather excited by this rather-mundane test drive, given that they've never seen a working vehicle in *ages*. It seemed like a miracle to them that such a complex thing was still functioning perfectly (to them, anyway) after the years of wear and tear. After a few more laps around the hill, they'd stop in front of the base and start obnoxiously honking the horn. All good vehicles have a horn, even if it's supposed to be a completely serious military excursion vehicle, complete with several working armaments (although without any ammunition).

Book, Needle, and Puffball would step outside, wondering what all the commotion was about. Needle in particular would be rubbing her eyes, as she'd been woken up from her (rather uncomfortable) nap. "What're you doing?" Book shouted at them. "You're making too much noise!" "Yeah!" Needle agreed with her. Neon opened the door to respond, since these things weren't built to have moving windows. "It's rather obvious, isn't it?" He shouted back. "We're taking this thing for a ride!" Book obviously wasn't too satisfied with that answer. "That's *our* vehicle, though!" She'd say. Neon raised an eyebrow. "...I dunno about that one." He remarked. "The GD Inc markings on the side sure seem to say otherwise." He paused for a moment. "Don't worry, alright? I know what I'm doing with this thing. Besides, it's not like I can destroy anything useful, or something. Your base is built onto a hill." Book sighed, grumbling about *why they were still trusting this person*, since they were clearly a madman. "I'll test this thing out on the road." Neon continued. "Won't take too long, since I don't wanna waste on fuel." He then turned to the soldier. "You okay with that?" He asked. The soldier simply gave a thumbs-up, though it wouldn't be seen from a window. Neon then closed the door, and they would drive off. "SEE YOU IN THE EAST!" He'd shout as they drove away.

They'd quickly head for the road, heading away from the setting sun. Neon would do a quick check on the fuel to make sure he wasn't going to waste it all by accident. The vehicle, to his surprise, still had a completely full tank of gas. He knew that vehicles from this time were made to be incredibly fuel-efficient, given that it was one of the many resources in very, *very* short supply at the time. In fact, some of them were even powered by other energy sources entirely. He figured, however, that he only hadn't noticed it since he'd never been behind the wheel all too often. He often either took other methods of transportation, or were stuck in the back seat with all the other spies. It didn't really matter to him, as long as he got around. Of course, however, he still knew how to drive *a little*, since he was obviously expected to know how to make a getaway completely on his own, since his work tended to get a bit... complicated at times. He at least knew how to drive in a straight line, look out for other cars coming in, and, most importantly, how to crash into a car in such a way in order to maximize casualties. All part of standard training, of course. None of that was needed at the moment, however. There was only a clear road ahead of him, and Neon didn't have to pay attention in order to keep on going.

The afternoon quickly whizzed past them as they kept driving along the road. They'd pass where the Oran facility was without taking notice, the trail of fallen trees leading right to it being assumed as just destruction caused by a fallen space object. Neon would keep track of the passage of time, taking notes every time (around) 15 minutes had passed, to make sure that they wouldn't be gone for *too* long. Even though Book had done the same thing to him, he didn't want her to think she had just left them without a single word. He was already at the brink of snapping due to her pulling that little prank on him, and he didn't want it to escalate any further. As he continued on driving however, every time he promised himself to turn back now, he just couldn't help but keep on going. At first, it was because he couldn't find a good place to turn. Again, Neon wasn't all too skilled, and so he felt like he needed a larger area in order to make it. He didn't want to damage (or worse, completely wreck) the thing, after all. But as the forest gave way to vast and empty plains, it became due to curiosity more than anything else. The people Book had met, they had to come from *somewhere* around here, right? Neon kept on driving, promising to finally turn back once he found a sign of civilization, or if it fully became night. Whichever came first.

Blue hues turned to orange, and then to purple and black. The moon slowly rose above the horizon, and the sun descended in a similar fashion. The stars appeared all around them, breaking apart the eternal void that looked just like their eyes, in a sick and twisted sense. Neon would turn on the headlights, and again would be surprised when they turned on without any issues whatsoever. They'd continue on, with Neon constantly promising to himself that they'd *really* turn back when the sky became fully black, watching closely at the horizon as the last hints of the formerly blue sky finally left the scene. Just before that long-awaited moment finally arrived, however, something else would. Something more... surprising. As the vehicle began descending from one of the many hills that dotted the plains, Neon and the soldier would be surprised to find... a settlement. Neon blinked and rubbed his eyes to make sure he wasn't seeing things, and sure enough, there they were: a few blurry blobs just before the horizon, clearly giving off light. It couldn't *possibly* be anything else, can it? Neon quickly slammed on the brakes, bringing the vehicle to a complete stop, just as brakes should. After a few moments of awkward silence, Neon would turn to look at the soldier.

"I'm not the only one who's seeing that, right?" Neon pointed to the shapes in the distance. The soldier shook his head, and that said all that Neon needed to hear. He'd instinctively reach for his map, but then realized that he forgot to bring it with him. While berating himself for forgetting to bring it, he'd start thinking about what to do next. Do they drive straight to it, regardless of who (or what) may be there? or do they turn back and return there at a later date, this time with the support of Book and friends? "It's not a GD Inc base?" The soldier asked. Neon shook his head. "...No, I don't think so." He remarked. "...The only one out here is the Oran facility, and we probably already passed it in the forest." He sighed and looked back at the soldier. "What do we do?" He asked. "You're the soldier. You probably have *some* experience in approaching unknown situations." The soldier raised an eyebrow. "I thought *you'd* have some experience too." Neon shrugged. "Let's put both our brains to work, then." They looked back at the settlement, and they'd spend about a minute or so thinking. After said minute had passed, the soldier would speak up again. "...I say we approach it, but slowly." He'd propose. "Take a cautionary glance around, assess the situation, then quickly leave." Neon nodded. "Excellent. That's what I was thinking too." He remarked. "GD Inc has always been known for it's incredibly bold maneuvers. They'll never expect it, after all."

Neon would then put his foot on the pedal once again, and they'd slowly drive towards the settlement. He'd turn off the headlights shortly afterwards, realizing that that might blow their cover. As they continued on their approach, however, they'd spot several similar vehicles parked beside the road, with absolutely no one in them. As soon as the soldier spotted them, he'd urge Neon to stop and take a look. "...Probably a bad sign." The soldier remarked. "We should turn back." Neon thought about it. "...I mean, maybe they just went the rest of the way on foot." He replied. "These vehicles *are* supposed to look threatening, after all. Perhaps we should just do the same." The soldier was mildly disturbed by this plan. "And leave the only thing protecting us behind?" He questioned. "Are you *crazy*?" Neon sighed. "Right. You're right." He'd take a look around the surrounding area, before suddenly flashing his headlights for a few seconds. The soldier was just about to tell him off again, but Neon was quick to speak up. "...Just wanted to make sure." He replied. After another few seconds of thinking it through, Neon would decide to push on, and the vehicle would (more slowly) continue forward. "As soon as we hear movement..." Neon whispered. "...we get out of here."

They continued on in this rather tense situation for a few minutes, though it may as well have been for an eternity. They slowly inched closer towards the settlement, keeping a close eye out for any sort of suspicious activity, or really *any* activity, in order to find an excuse to make a run for it. For a while, there'd be nothing but silence as they continued to cautiously approach the place, grabbing on tightly to their weapons. You know, just in case. A few dozen meters before reaching the settlement, however, the lights would reveal what was going on. The place *was* inhabited, with several individuals being spotted inside a now-obvious fence, which marked the perimeter of the place. What was more concerning, however, was the fact that they weren't alone. There were several others outside the fence that those inside didn't seem to know about. Neon immediately stopped the vehicle again as soon as he spotted the first figure moving about in the darkness, followed by several more. Neon would quickly mutter to himself shortly afterwards, hoping that they didn't catch them. Tightly holding on to his gun in one hand, he'd start looking through the vehicle with the other. After looking through the compartments, he'd find just what he needed, some particularly-advanced binoculars which allowed him to see in the dark.

He'd look through them, though he'd consider getting out of the vehicle to get a better look before ultimately deciding that that was a dumb idea. From what he could see, there were about a dozen or so people outside the fence, and a similar amount inside. Neither group seemed to know about each other, and, more importantly, neither group seemed to know about *them*. Neon would take a closer look at the group outside the fence, since they seemed to be the greater threat. He'd assume that they were trying to break into the settlement for... reasons. Probably not good reasons, he assumed. As he continued to search the area, he'd see the figures continuing to move about, mostly just walking along the perimeter of the fence. Nothing seemed to indicate that they were carrying anything, and so his attention was drawn to a series of structures just outside the fence. Presumably some sort of shelter for the guards, given that it was just beside the fence. There were less people there, but given what could be inside, it could be the more important area to look through. As he continued watching the area, its lights, which had been off at the time, would suddenly turn on, almost blinding Neon if he hadn't looked away in time. After turning a few dials to adjust his vision, he'd look through it again.

There was at least one person moving in the structure in question, presumably the one who turned on the lights. They were slowly moving about, as could be seen by their body very clearly blocking the light seen through the window. After pacing back and forth for a few minutes, however, the figure would decide to exit the structure. Neon would take an *even* closer look to watch the person as they exited. What they looked like could give them a hint as to who these people were, particularly which faction they could belong to. As the person appeared, however, Neon was... surprised. The person who stepped out of the structure was in the shape of a triangle. Given what little color he could see from the light, probably a red one too. "...No." He muttered to himself. Without another word, he'd stop looking through the binoculars.

"...Could it be?"

-

Triangle obviously didn't want to be here. He especially didn't want to be here *again*.

After telling everyone what they had found during the previous night's expedition, they obviously demanded that they wanted them to go back there, this time being accompanied with more people. Well, that was what Triangle reckoned, anyway. He immediately left for his temporary house as soon as they made it back to Tlemcen, and then spent the next couple of minutes screaming into a dusty old pillow. When GD had returned there as well following the meeting, he, of course, wanted him to go again. Once again, GD, being a *human* (and not only that, a *disfigured* human), didn't feel like going out of fear of being treated weirdly. He yet again requested Triangle to go with them while he continued talking with those who stayed behind. Triangle, understandably, would be mad about this. He had already protested against going the first time, and so he couldn't help but wonder *why* he thought that he'd want to go a second time. There'd be yet another argument between the two, much like the ones they've had over the centuries, over their conflicting interests. They didn't really care whatsoever if anyone just so happened to overhear them. Being the self-centered fools that they were, they cared very little about the wellbeing of others, or even of each other.

"I *hated* being with them, man!" Triangle complained. "They all hated me, I couldn't say anything, and I was forced to sit on a cramped space for hours on end!" He groaned. "It was even worse on the journey back! I couldn't sleep due to all their talking!" GD sighed. "Again, I fully understand you, alright?" He began. "But you *gotta* understand this. We're not gonna get anywhere if we don't do anything." "We *are* doing something!" Triangle interjected. "At least before we were suddenly dragged out here, anyway. We were getting as far away from all this nonsense as possible!" GD sighed again. "I know that you understand this, alright?" He took a moment to calm down. "We can't just run away from our problems. We know this. It'll just keep on following us until we finally succumb to the elements and die. That was *exactly* why you-" "Then why don't we just die, huh?" Triangle interrupted, surprising GD. "There's nothing left to live for on this desolate planet, anyway! Why should I have to keep on living with no way to redeem myself for all that I've done?" He sighed. "You know how much I've struggled every day, remembering all the atrocities I had to do to get to where I was then? It hurts! Every single day, it hurt. And I don't wanna have to live through another day of it, or I might just go mad!"

GD took a deep breath, considering making a quip about how he's already gone mad, before realizing that that was probably just going to make the situation worse. "...Do you even hear yourself right now?" He asked rhetorically. "Just what do you think you're talking about? Of *course* you can still redeem yourself. What has this been all about, then?" Triangle froze. "It's been about... Uh..." He scratched his head. "Well..." "It's been about rebuilding what you've destroyed, right?" GD continued. "You may not have told me that directly, but I can easily figure it out." He took a moment to breathe. "Look around us, Tri. The world may be devastated right now. We may have lost nearly all that we've worked towards. But that doesn't mean that there's nothing left to keep us going." He paused again to find the right words. "If anything, this should get us to work even harder than before. The old world has been destroyed, and in its place, we can create a whole new world. One which *truly* represents what we've imagined." He sighed. "...I've said this before, and I'll say this again: I've considered offing myself many times before. I've thought about finally going into the great beyond, and yet I never did. Do you know why that is, Tri?"

Triangle remained silent. He remained confident with his decision to give in with what seemed like their fate. GD sighed again. "Because I knew that there was always a second chance." He'd crouch down to be level with him. "I told you this before, and I feel like it bears repeating now: it's never *truly* too late to do anything. Even when it's *way* past the deadline, even when all hope already seems to be lost, even when you feel like there's nothing you can do, there's always *something*. Doing the bare minimum is far, *far* better than doing absolutely nothing at all." He paused for a moment to take a deep breath. "I know this, and I'm sure that you know it too. Even if you hate to admit to it, you still have to act upon it." Triangle scoffed. "...And why should I do that?" GD seemed to frown, but his face remained in that inappropriate fixed smile. "Well, I'm not gonna force you to do anything you don't want to do, but I'm just saying." He shrugged. "It'll be one more thing that you'll beat yourself up over in the future. It's a vicious cycle that'll never end until you finally *do* something to stop it." GD then patted him in the shoulder. As strange as that old man was, he always seemed to listen to whatever he had to say with all attention focused on him. He didn't know why, but he just... did.

After a bit more encouragement, Triangle finally conceded and decided to join the second expedition. After a brief meeting discussing the details of how it was going to go, they entered one of several vehicles (which they had, for some reason) and formed a convoy. Once again, Triangle was forced to... *co-exist* with the people that had imprisoned them and got them roped back into the whole... situation. The ride was bumpy, the seats were packed, and Triangle was just as angry about it as he was the previous time. He couldn't find a second of relaxation amidst all the commotion and conversation, and all he could do was just look out the (rather dirty) window, as it was his only luxury in this terrible vehicle. The journey took about as long as the previous one had been, which meant yet more time to contemplate everything that he had done in order to get to this current predicament. He wondered about why exactly he had founded GD Inc, and continued to have faith in it and its goal for centuries, even though virtually no progress was made towards achieving it. What exactly caused him to have so much hope for the world? It was already a terrible place to live in, even before all the things he'd done to it. He could've just sat back and watched as the world consumed itself and burned to ash, and yet he just *had* to try and have a go at fixing it, only making it worse as a result.

Afternoon transitioned to night, with Triangle trying his hardest to just sleep through the rest of the journey. He'd find no luck in trying to get even a moment of rest, however. Before he even knew it, they were already back at the place they'd found. To their surprise, however, they'd find it with its lights on and its population very much alive and well, in stark contrast to how it looked the night prior. Several questions would be raised about why this was the case, but they figured that all of them would be answered when they actually took a look. The convoy eventually came to a stop, and they'd go the rest of the way by foot. Triangle immediately distanced himself from the others, as if he was leading the group towards the place, even though they already knew where it was. As he was keeping his distance however, he'd suddenly remember the fact that his body had vast quantities of electronic augmentations. As he was trying to get a closer look at the base, his vision would unexpectedly zoom in on it, showing it in finer detail than it normally would've been from that distance. Triangle sighed to himself as he remembered it. It was one of the many things he had gotten surgically installed on him back in the days when it was possible to do so. It proved to only be interesting for several days before the novelty wore off. He had mostly forgotten about it until now, considering that he had... other issues to deal with.

As soon as they finally got to the base, he'd quickly head over to his camper once again. He'd slowly squeeze through all the stuff in it and would turn on all the equipment once again, running another scan to make sure the chaotic energy levels hadn't increased while they were gone. As he watched all of the equipment boot up, however, his attention would be drawn to something else. His ears would begin to pick up on the sound of those inside the living quarters talking to each other, going about their lives as if nothing had happened at all. It felt... awkwardly comforting to hear their voices for the first time in... a few days. Although those times were filled with arguing and chaos, it was at least *somewhat* manageable. He somewhat enjoyed watching the contestants comply and participate in the little competition that he and that weird speaker box had set up. Although it had a rather depressing ending, he felt like it was a positive experience overall for everybody, him included. Although... the more he thought about it, the more it sounded strange. Why *did* he host that competition, anyhow? The original mission had only been to contact groups of survivors in order to help them rebuild. Despite this, however, he was roped into this whole competition thing due to that speaker box. *Why on Earth did he*-

That thought had to wait, however. As the equipment continued to scan the area, Triangle would hear the sound of another vehicle approaching slowly. He'd be somewhat surprised that he heard it, considering that it was quiet compared to all the other noise going on outside. Perhaps he had just gotten so used to the bickering of the contestants that he had managed to ignore it without a second thought. As the vehicle drew nearer, Triangle began to think it through. As far as he recalled, none of them had stayed behind, and none of them *definitely* planned on moving the vehicles any more forward. At least, that's what he thought, anyway. Again, he wasn't bothering to listen so much. Despite being unsure, however, he decided to move ahead with his hunch, since it was all the information he got. If it wasn't one of the vehicles in the convoy, then it must've been *another* vehicle. And that would obviously be suspicious. Triangle would quickly head out, checking to see if anyone else had noticed the vehicle approaching. To his surprise, none of them had noticed it, although it may have been because all of its lights were off. Triangle would notice this fact as he'd use his newly-rediscovered enhanced vision to take a closer look at the unknown vehicle, particularly who it was driven by.

As he zoomed in, however, he'd be surprised to see who was driving it. The driver in question was a black rectangle with small little details, details which he couldn't discern, despite his augmented vision. Triangle's eyes widened as he was surprised by this discovery, and, try as he might to return to the camper, he couldn't move a muscle.

"...Could it be?"