A light flashed into existence, blinding Tobias. He blinked involuntarily to adjust his vision to the newly brightened room.
"So ... let's find out what your story is."
A man sat adjacent to his own seat at the stainless steel table. He wore a standard Pilot jumpsuit, and had short buzzed hair. If there truly was any stereotype of a hardened military vet, this guy was its spitting image. Behind him stood the same Pilot who'd retrieved him and KT from Nedar, her arms crossed over her chest. He noticed that she'd kept her helmet on for this; whether it was something she just normally did or if it was to help intimidate him due to her reveal of her acquisition of it, he had no idea.
"Gates here reported that her team retrieved a survivor from the nasty skirmish down on Nedar, one that was instigated by the IMC." The man narrowed his eyes. "She didn't mention which side you were on."
Tobias crossed his arms. They'd relieved him of his armor and pistol when they'd reached this Militia frigate stationed in the system. He felt a bit helpless without them, at the mercy of the faction that had been his enemy less than twelve hours ago- was still technically his enemy. But so far, the Titan had been right; he hadn't been harmed, just shoved in a cell for the night until they'd woken him up and dragged him here for answers.
She'd asked him to trust her, and so far his faith hadn't been misplaced. For the time being, he was content to keep following her advice.
The man glanced at a data-pad, a mission debriefing of what Gates had found. "Says here that you're a PFC and Pilot in the IMC. Tobias ... Four. Huh. Odd name. How about we start off with a simple question, hmm? What drove you to fight for the wrong side?"
"Funny, I thought it was the other way around." He knew that a biting remark like that probably wouldn't make a great impression on his interviewer, but he had little patience for this 'victim' mindset of the Militia's.
The man gave the subtlest of tugs on the edge of his mouth, the ghost of a smirk. Tobias had anything but a good feeling about that smirk.
"I'd watch yourself, if I were you." The grin materialized in full on his face. "I've been cordial thus far, especially considering the circumstances of how you came to be on Nedar in the first place." He made a tsk sound. "However, if you want to keep that attitude up, then I'm sure the Captain here wouldn't mind the prospect of getting to throw an IMC soldier out the airlock."
A sigh of frustration escaped the Pilot, the one Tobias now knew as 'Gates', and she lightly hit the man's shoulder with the back of her hand. "C'mon, we're trying to convince him we're not savages here." She looked over at Tobias, the visor of her helmet hiding any facial expression she may have been making behind it. "You're not going to get spaced. We just want to ask you a few questions."
That wasn't at all what he'd been expecting. "Why?"
She shrugged. "Humor me."
He couldn't detect any animosity from her stance or demeanor. He didn't know what it was, but something about her seemed worthy of his trust, much like the Titan- KT had been.
He met her unyielding gaze with a steely look of his own. "I grew up on Gridiron, if that tells you anything about my upbringing. Just my mother and me against the world; we weren't wealthy, but we made do with what we had. When the surface of the planet wasn't being bombarded with solar flares, it could be rather pretty at times. If you got out of the cities and made your way to the outskirts, sometimes you could spot a passing group of Leviathans. It wasn't much, but it was home."
The man's eyes were calculated, intent. He was hanging onto Tobias' every word.
"The IMC was a daily presence since I was a kid, constantly keeping a watchful eye over the population. As a kid, they used to scare me. Had gunships fly over every other night, loud noises all the time, the works. When I was older, I failed to appreciate them for what they were doing until it was too late." He leaned forward. "They were protecting us from the likes of you."
"What do you mean, 'until it was too late'?"
He clenched his jaw tightly, and sat back in his chair once more.
"About seven years ago, there was an attack. I was seventeen at the time, I'd never seen anything like what happened that day before then. A bomb went off in a tram station, a terrorist attack that was intended to kill a high-ranking IMC official in the vicinity. Besides him, the blast killed a lot of people ... my mother included." He crossed his arms. "The Militia claimed responsibility. Called all those innocent deaths, 'collateral damage'."
His two interrogators glanced in one another's direction, seemingly reaching a silent understanding. Gates turned back to him. "Go on."
He exhaled deeply. "Not much else to tell. I had nowhere else to turn, nothing else to lose. I needed a purpose, and I wanted revenge. Joining the IMC offered both. It gave me a chance to establish peace on the frontier, to save others from the same kind of tragedy I went through."
She seemed to process that answer, then grabbed a chair from behind the man and pulled it up to the table before setting herself down in it. "Maybe you still can."
He raised a suspicious eyebrow.
Clasping her hands together and setting them on the table, she leaned in. "I'm sorry for what happened to you, truly. The Militia isn't a group of saints, and I'd be the first to admit it. But I can say with certainty that its end goals are far more justifiable than the IMC."
He snorted derisively. "Yeah, everybody thinks their side is the right one. Of course a Militia captain would-"
"I'm not Militia."
He closed his mouth, and furrowed his brow in confusion.
"Dimitri here and I are both part of a freelance unit called the 6-4," she explained, gesturing towards the man and herself. "Technically, we don't really have a side."
"You're mercenaries," he muttered, "but you fight for the Militia? Why?"
"Because it's right," she said with an air of finality. Looking at Dimitri, she gave a small nod and the man brought out a data-pad which he tossed over to Tobias. Hesitantly, the latter picked it up and examined the screen.
"What is this?"
"What we usually show to people like you, people who think that the IMC have their best interests in mind," she answered vaguely.
He pored over the contents of the tablet before him, namely files upon files of classified data belonging to the IMC. "Where did you get these?"
"Don't act surprised that we've got an inside man, I'm sure the IMC's got one or two as well," Dimitri said with a smirk at Tobias' question. "The point is that you know that these come directly from the ones you've proclaimed as a savior to the frontier. We can argue our case all day, but I think it works better for you to learn it from them."
He couldn't believe his eyes as he searched every line, read every string of words that provided the context for these files. Here was one about a colony on the planet Troy, G21. Everyone had been told that the IMC responded to a Militia presence on the planet, but these files said otherwise; they proved that the IMC had been the instigators, that they'd set Spectres loose on the colony and slaughtered them to test the automatons' capabilities.
There had been rumors of that, but it had always been dismissed as Militia propaganda. He'd never imagined ...
He continued on, noting that some of the colonists had been taken for experimental testing somewhere, the file didn't say. Now they were experimenting on live human subjects? He read past it, swallowing these uncovered secrets with the desperation of a starving man.
Thone, an IMC controlled planet. A massive underground structure run by Vinson Dynamics under the guise of a 'weapons testing facility' was discovered and turned out to be a nightmarish battle-royale arena for captured Pilots. Funded by the IMC. Zone 18, a seemingly decommissioned construct in the Dakota system turned out to be a secret testing facility for a new model of Spectres. Once again, civilians were used as fodder. Approved and controlled by the IMC.
His heart stopped as he read the next file.
Gridiron. Attracted many of the less fortunate amongst the frontier, none of which usually took notice when a few colonists occasionally went missing. Steady supply of testing subjects. In addition, the radiation of its anomalous star was worth observing for its potential radiation effects on the population for study.
He slid the pad back over to Dimitri with shaky hands, and fell back in his chair.
"Now you understand," Gates said at his reaction. "The Militia is fighting for freedom on the frontier, to be the masters of their own destiny. The IMC sees the frontier as an investment, nothing more. They don't care about the people living here; only how they can profit from them."
He looked at her seriously. "Why haven't you spread this around the net? Warned the frontier about this?"
"Because not only would it alert the IMC to the possibility of a mole and jeopardize them, people would likely claim we made it up." She gestured at him. "But you're familiar with IMC protocols and encryption. Tell me, are those files legitimate?"
He took a glance at it, and swallowed hard. "They are."
"And I can see that I don't need to ask you if you agree with what was done, the answer is written all over your face." Crossing her arms over her chest once again, she leaned back in her chair. "So, let's move on to why we brought you here in the first place; we want to offer you a second chance."
He blinked a few times. "I don't understand."
She tilted her head slightly. "Earlier when we asked you why you joined the IMC, you said you 'wanted' revenge. As in, past-tense. Is that no longer the case?"
He was about to reply that it was before he reflected honestly on her query. "... No."
"So what changed?"
He thought back to the aftermath of yesterday's skirmish, where'd he held Shears' arm as the man died. "I saw something that I haven't ever seen before in this war; a moment of unity. I killed a Pilot ... had to watch as he died, knowing that I was responsible for it." He sighed. "Thing is, he knew I'd been the one to shoot him- but he embraced me as a friend anyway. When there wasn't a war to be fought, when there was no one alive but him and I ... I didn't see him as a Pilot. Just a man who wanted some comfort as he died."
Dimitri nodded. "Then it sounds like we can make some use of you. That second chance she mentioned; it's an offer to join us."
"... What?"
"You saw for yourself what the IMC has been doing," he continued, "and the Militia intends to put a stop to it by driving them out of the frontier. You're a trained combatant with a Pilot certification, all you need is a bit of Titan training; we can use every hand we can get in this war with how few resources we have. You could help make that happen."
This conversation was steering in a completely opposite direction of the way he'd imagined it going. First, they showed him just how monstrous the IMC could be, and now they were offering him a position when he'd been shooting and killing them little more than half a day ago. Could he make that kind of choice? To turn his back on the only life he'd known?
"... No."
The man crossed his arms. "I urge you to reconsider-"
"I get it. The IMC isn't what I thought it was. But even if your end goals are noble, I don't like your methods," he shot at them.
"What happened on Gridiron isn't reflective of the Militia as a whole-"
"Maybe, maybe not. But it doesn't matter," he murmured. "I'm tired. I'm tired of war, I'm tired of death, I'm just ... tired. Do what you want with me, but I don't want any part in this war anymore. Not for the IMC, and not for you. I just want out."
The two of them were silent for a few moments, analyzing his response and apparently accepting it. Gates stood up from her chair, and beckoned for Dimitri to follow.
"That's all for now. You are to wait here until told otherwise."
With that, they abruptly exited the room and left Tobias alone with his thoughts.
...
"You said KT-0298 is your designation, correct?"
"Affirmative."
Gates crossed her arms over her chest patiently. "Alright, well you're here because I need some kind of explanation for what happened down there. How exactly did it come to pass that you were hunkering down in a garage with an IMC Pilot?" She waited for the Titan to provide her with some context.
"At roughly 1700 hours, the Militia outpost on Nedar deployed all available personnel to combat a deployment of IMC forces. The battle was short, but brutal. My pilot, Captain Shears, was fatally wounded in action."
Gates gave a soft sigh. She'd known Shears and even served alongside him from time to time. He was a good man, very capable and dependable. "Go on."
"As far as I am aware, another Militia Titan was successful in destroying the escaping IMC soldiers' evacuation shuttle. I was under the impression that I alone had survived."
"And then this IMC Pilot came along?"
"Yes. I did not react to his presence originally, too preoccupied with my dying pilot. But rather than leaving, he approached and even comforted Captain Shears as he died. He showed a respect that is not commonly observed amongst the IMC."
Considering the story that he'd given her, Gates was more than willing to believe it. He seemed like just another person with good intentions who'd been caught in the IMC's deceit.
"When Captain Shears died, I advised the Pilot to leave before the approaching blizzard hit us in full. For my part, my chassis had sustained damage and a faulty battery prevented me from having full functionality. I was unable to move."
"So how did you escape?"
At this, KT paused for a moment. Gates felt like the Titan was reflecting on something, seemingly still in disbelief over it herself. "He returned to me with an undamaged battery, and replaced my malfunctioning one. After that, we both proceeded to the outpost for shelter from the storm. No further events took place until we were recovered."
Gates contemplated this new information. He'd had an opportunity to abandon the Titan, but had instead chosen to save her. It was definitely something to consider when deciding what exactly to do with him.
"Thank you, KT. That will be all. I need to talk this over with Dimitri, I'll get back to you in a bit."
"Yes, ma'am."
Leaving the Titan to her own devices, Gates walked a few paces away to where Dimitri was waiting for her. They were in the hangar, an ordinarily place of activity and loud noise, and today was no exception. Dropships were constantly being refitted and repaired, squads of riflemen and Pilots meandered about, and it was one of the few places besides the Titan barracks where a Titan like KT could actually move around in.
"So, what do you think?" he called out to her.
"It's a shame that he won't join up, I've even got the Titan vouching for his character now. I say we drop him off on Harmony. No risk of him rejoining the IMC, and I don't think he's a security threat considering his actions."
He shook his head. "You ask me, we should space him."
"Dee, that's-"
"Definitely safer than letting him run amok with our civilians."
She crossed her arms. "We're not spacing him."
He held his hands up to concede. "Alright, alright. What about the Titan?"
She gave a resigned breath. "We're gonna follow standard protocol. This late in the game, it's just stupid to waste a perfectly good AI- they're not cheap to produce, but we can't have her back on active-duty without a Pilot. And the risk of a double-link with her-"
"Too risky with the potential side-effects."
"Exactly."
She glanced back at the Titan who was watching the bustle of the hangar intently. Even if she wasn't observing, it was practically a certainty that she'd already guessed what was going to happen. Damn shame.
"Get- what's his name again? Four? Tell Four to get out here, I'll deliver the news to both of them."
...
The door to the interrogation room opened with a rush of air. Tobias jerked his head towards the noise which was revealed to be Dimitri.
"Alright, come with me. We're sorting you out for good."
He nodded, stood up, and followed him out the door. Dimitri lead him through a few hallways before they entered the massive hangar of the frigate. Ships flew in and out of the large shields to land, Militia soldiers and Titans alike were standing around every so often ... it unsettled him a bit that he was surrounded by so many people who he might have considered his enemy just a day ago. He was pretty glad now that he wasn't wearing the signature white armor of the IMC.
Finally, he spotted two familiar faces near a group of crates away from the activity of other Militia; KT and Gates.
"Alright Four, well Gates here and I have just been reviewing your case and figuring out what to do with you."
She strode forward and nodded at him. "Dimitri is my second in command of the 6-4. I trust him more than anyone else, hence why I wanted his opinion of you while the Titan here briefed me on the events down on Nedar."
Tobias looked up at KT to see her looking back at him. There was something reassuring about seeing that blue optic of hers again, and he was glad to have her here.
"It's regrettable that you won't accept our offer, but understandable." Gates crossed her arms, something that seemed to be a favorite pose of hers. "We've decided to drop you off on Harmony when we get the chance. You'll be treated well, I assure you- but we can't put you back in IMC space."
He nodded, secretly relieved; with what he'd learned of the IMC, he wasn't keen on going anywhere near one of their occupied planets anytime soon.
She turned away from him, and set her gaze upon KT. "Titan, you're going to be decommissioned until further notice. Understood?"
"Affirmative."
Tobias was taken aback in surprise. He heard KT agree, though he sensed the dejection in her tone as she did so. "Wait, she's being decommissioned?"
Gates returned her attention to him. "Afraid so, she doesn't have a Pilot anymore. See, we rarely have this problem; most of the time, it's Titans that get destroyed and humans are issued a new one. A new Titan to bond with, form connections with. As humans, we're able to do that. But it's a bit more difficult for the AI."
She gestured at KT who was tracking the captain's movements with her optic. "A Pilot and a Titan have a certain bond; when you're piloting a Titan, it's not you and them; it's a feeling of oneness. Their AI's are produced with that idea in mind, but take away one of the halves and what happens? You get complications, side effects ranging anywhere from emotional instability to potential fragmentation of the mind itself." She shook her head. "We can't risk sending a Titan into battle without a pilot, she'd be too easily destroyed, a waste of a good chassis. And we can't really link her up to a new Pilot, the odds of her forging a real connection with anyone else are slim to none."
She sighed regretfully. "So the only option left is to scrub the AI's memory, completely wipe the core. Keeps us from having to waste any resources creating a new AI, and we can link her up with a Pilot without any accidents."
Tobias looked up to KT, standing above them and no longer looking at anyone, refusing to allow them to see how this news of her fate was affecting her. Even now, she was ready to follow orders despite how much it pained her to do so.
He thought back to how she mourned over her Pilot, how she'd spared his life back on that frozen world when she could have easily killed him. He'd partially saved her just as a means to an end; they'd helped each other survive, but with that conversation in the garage ... it had become more than that.
He realized that he didn't just think of her as hardware like he once would have. He remembered all the times he'd regarded Jospert with disbelief and laughter when the latter compared Titans to people in how they thought and acted ... but now, he wasn't so sure. KT had gone out of her way to save him not once, but twice, she'd expressed her insecurities to him- and now she was agreeing to something she very obviously did not want to do, all for the good of others.
Something she did not want to do ... for the good of others.
She'd asked him to put his trust in her, and he had with fortunate results. In turn, she'd placed her trust in him, but it was yet to be seen if it would be as well rewarded.
If she was going to live, she needed to bond with a Pilot, someone she could feel a real connection with. And there was only one living person who'd gone through the same ordeal that she had.
Gates started issuing orders to Dimitri. "I want you to take her over to engineering, see how soon they can work in a total wipe of her memory banks-"
"What about me?"
Gates stopped talking and spun to face him. Behind her, he could see surprise on Dimitri's features.
"What about you?"
If he went through with this, he'd be throwing away his chance to get out of this war. He certainly didn't want to do this ... but KT had shown him that it was often the hard choice that was the right one.
"I'll join the Militia like you wanted ... but only if KT is my Titan."
"I don't think you're in much of a position to be making demands," she retorted. "What makes you think the link would even take?"
"You said that Titans need to forge a connection with their pilot, someone they can properly bond with." He took a breath, nervous to voice his argument. "We both lived through that skirmish, we were both lone survivors of our teams. We both lost friends ... we may have been failures, but we were failures together. And it was because of that failure that we survived through each other, and that we're even here at all."
He looked up at the Titan. "So, I'm proud to have failed. It's because of her that I'm alive, and I'd like to return the favor."
KT was looking back at him, frozen in place and silent. She seemed to be completely at a loss for his idea.
Gates' reaction remained hidden behind her helmet, masking any hints as to what she thought of his suggestion.
Finally, she broke her silence. "Well, it would certainly be a far more efficient use of resources. There wouldn't be a need to assign an unused Titan to you, we don't have to wipe the AI's mind, and we get a Pilot out of the deal." She became quiet again, contemplating the choices before her as he stood there waiting for her verdict.
Eventually, she placed a hand against the side of her helmet much like one would mimic when experiencing a headache. "I'll work on setting you two up with a link-session to see if you're as compatible as you think. But in return, I want your guarantee that you'll fight for us even if the neural link is rejected. Deal?"
That hadn't been part of the proposal, and he set his mouth in a thin line. But it only took one glance at KT who was still utterly astounded that he'd do this for her to solidify his feelings on the matter.
"Deal."
"Well, I guess your request is approved. Now get out of here before I change my mind." Gates mirrored his action and looked up at the Ion. "Titan, if you're not going to be decommissioned, I want you to report to engineering and get your chassis fixed."
Both nodded, and set off towards engineering. He couldn't help but wonder what exactly he'd gotten himself into with this endeavor of his.
However this turned out, he had a feeling that there'd be a lot in store for the two of them in the future.