Space, the final frontier. For as long as humans have had the ability to look up and dream, we have always desired to know what's above us. What lies beyond the moon and between the stars. Are we alone in the vast nothingness of space, or is there other life beyond?

  At the turn of the Twenty first century, the major consensus was that there was a whole lot of nothing but rocks out there, and maybe there was probably other life.

  Not ten years later and fucking plants destroyed Ohio and computers started giving out superpowers. Turns out, space ain't that empty. So I'm gonna do my job and blow the everloving fuck out of any space plant I can.

  -Vanguard Gunny before charging into the North Arizona Incursion, 2046

  The cabin up was little more than a metal closet with a bench and straps. But it moved very smoothly and quickly, so that was nice. I tried to do some scans for future use, and while I now know how it is put together, I do not know how it works or what it is made of, which was very annoying. More Catalogs for the list then.

  I felt the cabin dock in Gunny's station, making me glance down towards where I knew Victor and everyone else should be. I could not feel them, I could not sense their network, and I felt alone. I know this was my plan, but I hated this feeling of isolation.

  The cabin door slides open, revealing the mad mechanistic face of Gunny. Apparently he didn't use gravity generators, because he was upside down.

  “Glad ya’ could make it, missy!” He said, reaching out a hand. I giggled a bit, twisting my hand to grab his upside down hand.

  “Glad to be here, Gunny.” I say.

  He laughs at me hand shifting around. “You really are just nanites, huh!” He shakes his head, then waves me to follow him. “As much as I want to pick your servers, we have a job to do and I have to be getting gone soon after.”

  We float through his station which is reminiscent of the old ISS, though I know that this is only true for the living areas if my scans are accurate.

  “Gotta admit, building the launcher was fun, and getting to shoot the moon will be even more interesting. But are you sure you will be alright?” He asks as he maneuvers through the space like a monkey.

  I nod, “Of course! Your reputation as an engineer precedes you, so I trust your work,” I don't, I will be checking everything and fixing things before launch, “plus, I got some new upgrades recently so I am even more comfortable with the landing.” The capsule will be strengthened mid flight, of course. I brought plenty of materials in my new subspace pocket to make sure of that.

  Gunny nods as we arrive at the loading bay, “Alright then, missy. Go ahead and load up. I finished the final checks as you were on your way up.”

  I'm sure he did, but I still released a small cloud of nanites to go over the launcher systems. They were designed to meld into any problems and if there are any left over, to meld with the station, hiding their presence. No need to antagonize Gunny or his pride, after all.

  Loading myself into the core of the capsule, I shifted my form to a ball of nanites and connected to the support structures within.

  There are a few micro fractures on the launcher, some less than perfect welds. Nothing that would affect the operation, but still enough of a problem to bother me, so I fix them.

  I feel the capsule move into position as Gunny connects to my comms. “It will take ten minutes from launch to the moon's surface. You will lose contact with Earth after thirty seconds. If the portal doesn't open by this time tomorrow, I have a satellite that will begin to make its way to the moon to retrieve you. May the stars be with you, Morrigan.”

  Then the world shifted as I accelerated to blistering speeds. If all went according to plan, I would be back by ten tonight. Maybe even in time to watch those wannabe yakuza play with my traps!

  ************************************

  Cody was working with Bahamut in the building's security network, getting familiar with the new and varied defenses Morrigan left us with, as well as vetoing a number of highly unethical ones, while Buddy and Roger were preparing their own entertainment for the evening.

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  Cari had returned in a new outfit of skintight jeans and a loose, baggy shirt that looked like one I wore the other day, as well as arm length blue gloves. As she arrived, she surprised me with a hug, wrapping her arms around my neck and leaning her head on mine.

  “Thank you,” she whispers.

  I assume it's about not asking about the massive weapons catalog she wanted that she asked to keep a secret until later.

  Huh. Am I weak to a pretty face? Both Morrigan and Cari asked to keep secrets from me about weapons… Am I an idiot?

  Before I could go further down that line of thought, Cari pulled back and smiled. “Would it be okay if I borrow Leman and Vulkan for a bit? I want to train with them to get our coordination right.”

  I raise my eyebrow, “Cari, they are their own people, and can make their own choices.”

  She sighs slightly, “Victor, love. I know that. It's very obvious after talking to them this morning.” She pauses, looking at my face, then giggled, “Yes, I called you love, and we can explore that later. I ask to borrow them as I don't know if you wanted to do something with them instead. It's a fairly common turn of phrase, I'm a bit surprised you haven't heard it before.”

  Baba Yaga intersects, “His past was very limiting when it came to social situations and the like,” she said with her thick Russian accent. “More to talk about tomorrow, yes?”

  Cari looked confused and curious, but just nodded. “There is a lot about my past that we can talk about later, Cari.” I say. “For now, yes, you can spar with them. My preparations for tonight are very simple, and I can do them alone.” I then smile at her, “And I suppose you don't want me to see you spar now?”

  “If you wouldn't, please?” Her face looked uncomfortable, which as much as I wanted to pry, I would respect her request.

  Leman and Vulkan led her to a training room as I made my way to the Screen. As I began to work on my preparations, I looked at Outsider who was watching the Mikosanos though city cameras. “You all know what Cari's secret is, don't you?” I ask.

  “We do. Jill knows, as well.” She responds.

  I nod. If Jill knew and didn't warn me, that meant it wasn't a deal breaker for her. No spiders, at least.

  ************************************

  As we prepared for this evening, I got a call from Bo, or Laser Lasso.

  “Heya kiddo! Just checking in on you and making sure you were a responsible person last night.” Her grin implied many things.

  Then a hand pushed her face aside, “Bo! He's still a child!” Cassandra scolded.

  “But he's still a guy! A teenage guy at that!” Bo said with indignation in her voice.

  “Hey! No! Nothing happened! Not like that!” I said quickly, drawing Bahamut's eye before he returned to working with Cody.

  Bo took center screen, “What? Really?” She scoffed. “Coward.”

  “”Bo!”” Both Cassandra and I shout. She just snickered.

  “Do you have an actual reason to call, or were you just looking to be a gremlin.?” I ask.

  “Yeah, Vic." She nods, shit eating grin fading from her face. "Doma told us that you know about Mars, so I wanted to invite you to and yours to a meal tonight before I ship off.”

  “You're going?” I ask, concern obvious in my voice.

  “Yeah,” she nods, “While I may not be the strongest in the city, I do want to grow stronger in order to protect more people. Plus, it's space!”

  I see Cassandra shake her head, “I tried to convince her not to go, but… instead she convinced me to stay, saying she needed to know she had something to come home to.”

  “So! We could come over tonight, since our place isn't big enough for five guests plus robots.” Bo said, changing the topic.

  “Uhh, so…” I start.

  Bo looked angry, “Are you rejecting my going away dinner?”

  “Bo, on literally any other night I would say yes. However we have a situation happening tonight that, if it happens, will prevent all of us here from having dinner for quite a while.” I say conflicted.

  I see Cassandra furrow her brows, her red Panda ears flattening against her head “Talk, Victor. You don't seem the type to make up excuses, and I know you're not embarrassed by Bo's existence, so it must be big.”

  I sighed. “How much do you know of Blizzard's family situation?”

  “”Blizzard?”” They ask. “What does Blizzard's sister have to do with anything?” Bo asked.

  “Okay, so not everything." I mutter. "This is not my story to tell in full, but Cari's. Short explanation is that Blizzard's old family is trying to grab Cari, and she doesn't want them to. We are expecting them to attack here tonight, and are in the process of setting up traps and capture methods.”

  They look to each other and I see them communicating with their eyes. Cassandra looks at me. “They are watching the building?”

  “Yeah, we have two vehicles marked.”

  She nods. “And you don't have any hidden ways in yet?”

  “No, not really. Morrigan mentioned wanting to put out hidden portals throughout the city for quick dispatches and the like, but we hadn't had the time to plan that fully.”

  “Fine.” Bo said, leaning back. “We will be on standby nearby to catch any stragglers. And after, we will be by to learn more about Cari’s situation. She's like a niece to us and a few other Sams in the city, so we won't take no for an answer here.”

  “Yeah, sure. Thanks for that. I'll make sure we have some food ready for you guys as well. Apparently Buddy is doing a ‘Shellfish boil” tonight.”

  Bo and Cassandra get very excited. “Screw waiting outside! We will be there! The moment you have those guys trapped, you better open the garage for us, no way we are missing that!” Bo says.

  I decided not to argue and just not. I'm sure Bahamut or Outsider would alert them about the timing.

  After a few more pleasantries where I can see them drool over dinner tonight, the call ends.

  “Having backup is never a bad thing, Victor.” Outsider chimes in. “And they know how to be discreet and not ruin our plan.”

  I nod, then get back to working on my project.

  “How many eyes are too many?” I mutter to myself after a bit.