Daemon Impact: Chapter 4

 Chapter 4 

Making their way through the winding halls of the Osiris again, the two of them had arrived at their destination. The cafeteria was large enough to accommodate a large number of people while they ate their meals.  After a short wait in line, they were greeted by a cafeteria worker behind the counter. 

“Commander Sakai! Hungry again?”  

“No, I don’t need to eat again. She, on the other hand, hasn’t eaten anything in a few days.”  

“Oh dear! We can’t have that! Just wait right there sweetie, I’ll have something to fill you right up!” The worker grabbed a tray and loaded it with an omelet and some potatoes. Then filling up a cup with orange juice, they handed the tray to her. Thanking the worker, the two grabbed some utensils and found an empty table to sit at. 

“Eggs and potatoes have become staples nowadays. They’re easy to produce and have most of the nutritional value we need.” As Anri explained this to her, she took a bite out of the omelet. It wasn’t really anything too special but it tasted good. She began to shovel the food into her mouth as her hunger took over.  

“Whoa! You must have really been hungry!” 

“Anri!” A female voice rang out from across the room. As she turned to look at who called out, she saw a group of 4 people stand up from a faraway table and make their way towards them. As they drew close, she noticed they had the same Blue Arrow insignia on their clothing that Anri and Marko had. Two of them had a single stripe under their insignia, while the other two had double stripes.  

“Hey guys, how are you all holding up?” Anri took up a casual tone with them despite being their direct superior. 

“We’re all healed up and ready for action!” A gruff looking man who had taken a seat across from Anri replied.  

“Good to hear. What about the others?” 

“They got the a-okay from the Medical Unit earlier this morning, and are currently in the training room.” The same woman who had called out responded. 

“So, this is the girl from the Cocoon?” Another man who had come over looked towards her. 

“Yes, this is Elda. She just woke up about two hours ago.  Elda, these are some of the other members of the Recon Unit.”  

“Hello Elda, my name is Melissa Walker. I’m more or less the second in command for Squad 2. It’s good to see you up and about.” Melissa smiled at her.  

“I’m Jakob Harris, also from Squad 2. We heard from the commanders what you’ve been through. It must have been terrifying.” Jakob’s smile towards her was sympathetic.” 

“Rachel Carter, Squad 1.” These were the first words the other woman who came over had said. 

“Rachel isn’t much of a talker.” Anri whispered to her. 

“And I am the backbone of both squads, Brandon Hall!” Brandon was physically larger than the other members she had met.  

“Backbone? More like Squad 1’s reckless idiot!” Melissa chastised him. 

“I’d rather be a reckless idiot than a coward who hangs back and waits for the Combat Unit to fight all their battles!” Brandon spat back. 

“Oh? And what did that accomplish? Besides getting your ass surrounded by Daemons and-” 

“Enough!” Anri’s sharp tone caused the two to stop their bickering. 

“Melissa, instead of throwing insults you should be trying to make common ground. Even though you are in different squads, you’re both comrades and need to have a level of trust between you two.” 

“Yes commander.” Melissa replied apologetically. 

“And Brandon, our job is not to fight the Daemons. If you wish to fight so badly, I can arrange a transfer to the Combat Unit. Is that what you want?” 

“No Commander, I wish to stay with the Recon Unit.” The large man balked at the threat of transfer. 

“We’re all a team here, and Marco would say the same if he were here. You don’t have to get along all the time, but you must be able to work together. Understood?” 

“Yes Commander!” All four responded at the same time. They clearly held respect for Anri, and the tense atmosphere dissipated.  

“My name is Elda. It’s nice to meet you all.” She had been eating quietly this whole time and felt now was a good time for her to introduce herself. 

“Aw such good manners! It is very nice to meet you Elda!” Melissa beamed; the scolding she had just received forgotten.  

“So how is Marco holding up?” Jakob asked. 

“He’s fine. He’ll be out of commission for a while however.” 

“I see, so if something comes up, you’ll need to assume command of both our squads?” Jakob pondered on this 

“He’s still injured, so he’ll most likely hang back to give orders.” Rachel observed. 

“Which means we’ll have to make up for both our fallen commanders!” Brandon pounded his fist into his other palm.  

“Hey, what fallen commanders!?” Laughter filled the air the same way it had back in the infirmary. She could tell despite all their differences, they each cared for each other. They were more like a family than a squadron of soldiers.  

“Second Commander Sakai please report to the captain’s quarters. I repeat: Second Commander Sakai please report to the captain’s quarters.” A voice rang out over an intercom system.  

“Seems like the Captain needs me. Can you guys keep an eye on her for me?”  

“Of course commander, leave her to us!” Melissa cheerfully answered. 

 “Elda, I’m going to leave you here for a bit, ok?” She nodded, and watched as the man stood up and left the cafeteria. A few moments after he left, the 4 members all turned to her with a look of expectancy on their faces.  

“Say Elda, could you maybe...if it doesn’t bother you-” 

“Tell us about what happened in the cocoon! We want all the details!” Brandon cut Jakob off excitedly.  

“Brandon! You can’t just pile on her like that!” Melissa turned to her. 

“Sorry about that sweetie. Anri is a bit tightlipped. He told us the general events of what happened in there, but he gave very few details. If it doesn’t bother you, would you mind telling us all about it?” It didn’t seem like an unreasonable request, so she nodded and began to recount her meeting with the two men. The group listened carefully to every word she said, and their eyes lit up when she had described how Marco was forced to face the giant monster alone. As she told of the battle Anri had against the horde of the Daemons, she noticed that there were more people who were gathering around the table to listen to her story.  Everyone remained silent as she described the battle between the two men and the monster, and there was an eruption of cheers when they heard how the two men had prevailed.  

“Those crazy bastards! Taking on a Class 3 all by themselves! That’s why they’re the Osiris’ Prodigies!” She could hear someone exclaim over all the clamor. Prodigies? She wondered what exactly they had meant by that? 

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

“Second Commander Sakai reporting to the bridge!” I announced upon entering. To ensure they can take control in case of an emergency, the captain’s quarters is located at the back of the bridge. A few of the bridge crew nodded towards me before turning back towards their monitors. Their work is critical so there’s no need for decorum. 

“Ah, Second Commander Sakai! The captain is waiting for you in her quarters.” Bridge Commander Serah Chuu greeted me. As the Bridge Commander, she was the second in command of the Osiris. Giving her a salute, I walked to the back of the bridge and knocked on the door to the captain’s quarters. 

“Second Commander Sakai, reporting Captain!” 

“You may enter.” Captain Meyer was sitting at her desk as I entered. As I saluted and stood at attention, she motioned for me to be at ease. 

“I heard the girl woke up?” Straight to the point as always. 

“Yes. She was able to remember her first name, Elda.” 

“Elda? That’s a nice name. Does she remember anything else?” I shook my head. 

“I see. Listen Anri, I need you to do me a favor. Please, take the girl into your home.” She seemed strangely nervous as she asked me this.  

“Ok.” She was taken aback by how quickly I had responded. 

“Wait, just like that?” 

“Well yeah, I figured you were going to ask me that.” I’ve known the Captain for a long time now. She would want Elda to be somewhere she knew she’d be well taken care of. 

“Are you sure you’re ok with this?”  

“It’s fine. The poor girl is all alone in an unfamiliar world without her memories. She’d be better with someone she was at least a little familiar with. Besides, Rena will be ecstatic at getting a little sister.” I couldn’t help smiling to myself. I could already see my sister doting on the young Elda. 

“Thank you Anri. With that out of the way, we can focus on what I really called you here for.” Her tone had turned serious.   

“We have discovered Elda’s Cocoon is #27. Our intended target was Cocoon #31.” 

“4 numbers off? That’s quite a distance.” Each Cocoon was numbered by the order they were created. Each one was built a not insignificant distance from each other. A difference of 4 numbers would mean we had been blown completely off course. 

“Indeed. We found there was an error with the navigation systems that had changed our targeted Cocoon. We have already fixed the issue and are on our way towards #31. But that is not the real issue here. According to our records, #27 had a massive structural failure rendering it incapable of operation. It was abandoned, and all resources were moved to other Cocoons, including the power supply.”  

“It was abandoned!?” I couldn’t hide my shock. When Marco and I entered, it was fully powered. The lights, the machinery, and the air filtration system were all operational. Furthermore, there was no trace of Daemon Haze on the inside. There are only two possible explanations for that. First, the air filtration system was operable and had been working all the way up until we entered. But if the power source had been removed, the air filtration system wouldn’t work and the haze would have seeped into the inside. So the only other solution is that someone repaired the Cocoon, installed a new power supply, and purified the air inside. But now the question becomes who? CPOL had abandoned it, so no one from Oasis could have done it. It’d have to be another group who did so. But CPOL is the only organization in the world with the means to purify the Daemon Haze, and that was only after decades of research Post-Impact. So whoever did this was fully capable of purifying the haze and repairing the Cocoon. But now that raises several more questions. How were they able to repair it? Why would they go to the trouble of fixing the Cocoon? Why would they then abandon it? I had no way of answering these questions, but there was one singular question that burned in my mind. 

“How did Elda end up there?” When she was taken aboard the Osiris, the medical team checked her for contamination. Their examination revealed no traces of corruption in her blood. She has yet to be exposed to the haze. But then that would mean she’d have to have been inside the Cocoon Pre-Impact. But the Cocoon was inoperable at that time, so she couldn’t have been sleeping there. Then that means she would have to have been placed there after it was repaired. 

“...I guess we won’t truly know until her memories come back.” I had to give up. There just wasn’t enough information to go on. The Impact occurred 300 years ago, so anything could have happened back then.  

“Anri, I will have to report that we were taken off course to CPOL when we return, but I want to keep the fact that Elda was there a secret. We’re going to have Elda as an unaccompanied minor we found in #31. I’ve already informed the commanders, and the order is going around.” I agree with her on this. A singular girl found in an abandoned Cocoon would raise questions to the higher ups at CPOL. Who knows what they would do with the girl if they found out. Luckily the Osiris is one big closely knit family. We won’t have to worry about anyone revealing anything to CPOL. 

“That is all. You are dismissed.” Saluting her again, I left the room while trying to push all these questions out of my mind. 

“Second Commander Sakai! I have orders for you!” Bridge Commander Chuu called me over as I exited the captain’s quarters. 

“We have detected a large energy signature about 2 hours away. It’s significant enough to launch a mining mission. With First Commander Etel still in recovery, you will take command of both squads.” Her tone then turned apologetic. 

“I know you’re still injured yourself, but we need you on the mission.” 

“Understood. I will gather the Recon Unit and relay orders.”  

“Thank you, Second Commander.” With Marco out of commission, I’ll need to step up. Giving the Bridge Commander another salute, I left the bridge and started making my way back to the cafeteria.  

“...and so then he picks up part of the pillar and smashes it right down on the giant bastard!” As I pass by a few rooms, I overhear two technicians recounting our fight with the Class 3 Daemon. How did they...oh! Clearly, they pounced on poor Elda when I left and now the whole story is spreading throughout the Freighter. Letting out a sigh, I could only hope that “The Legend of the Two Recon Commanders” didn’t get blown too out of proportion...