Search Party

Gerard rallied his squadron and organized a counterattack ahead of Arthur's group. They were given the task to throw off the enemy and search for Bernard based on his last known location.

"Don't get too close. We have the advantage of range so use it to pick them off one by one." Gerard ordered as he began shooting at the enemy.

As information about the counterattack reached the the Titan's flagship, Admiral Flint gave the orders to scramble the special forces under the command of Damien.

"Do we still not have a pin on Asterion's location?" Charles asked.

"I'll go look for Kjēl. I have her last known location." Veronica stated as she booted up her ship's system.

"I'll lead our squadron then. Everyone on me!" Brook exclaimed as he launched out of the hangar bay.

"Yes, sir!" The other pilots replied in unison.

Veronica launched using the second catapult deck and immediately headed to Kjēl's last known location. From the distance she watched as Brook and the other pilots engaged the enemies.

"Of all the times that we could possibly lose Kjēl and Asterion, it's exactly when a major operation is underway." Veronica mumbled to herself as she began searching through the debris.

Meanwhile, Bernard and Kjēl continued to talk about the events that took place after the Exo-wars when all of a sudden the lights turned off. Bernard turned his flashlight on and went to the control panel to inspect it.

"We have a problem. The power is critically low but I can still keep the ventilation running for the cost of the lights." Bernard stated as he pressed a few buttons.

"I can do just fine in the dark so I don't see why that's a problem." Kjēl said with a smug look on her face.

"Our main problem is hypothermia. Here take mine for now." Bernard replied as he wrapped his blanket around Kjēl.

"What about you?" Kjēl asked.

"My suit's still warm so no worries." Bernard replied with a smile.

Kjēl's cheeks flushed a soft pink as she nodded. She never expected Bernard to be this kind towards her. It almost reminded her of Shigo which made her heart ache a little.

"I miss home..." Kjēl mumbled as tears began flooding her vision.

"Are you alright? What's wrong?" Bernard worriedly asked as he crouched in front of Kjēl.

Kjēl leaned her head against Bernard's shoulder and slowly embraced him as she began sobbing. Bernard hugged her back and pat her head. It broke his heart to know that Kjēl is being put through so much as a result of his generation's fighting over territory and power against one another.

"A battlefield is no place for a child, I'm sorry. I promise to end all of this once and for all so no one has to suffer anymore." Bernard whispered as he rubbed Kjēl's back.

Bernard then noticed that Kjēl fell asleep so he leaned against the wall and embraced Kjēl to keep her warm. He drew a sigh, his breath turning into a light cloud, and his hands trembling from the cold. It's only been a few hours so they still have a high chance of being found. Bernard turned on the beacon on his ship but the debris surrounding them makes it almost impossible to pick up the signal.

"Hold them off here, I'll look for Bernard on my own." Gerard ordered as he separated from his squadron.

"Come on, Kjēl. Where did you go?" Veronica mumbled as she frantically searched on the monitors.

As Veronica checked on her radar, it picks up a faint pulse. She quickly turned her ship and headed towards the source of the signal. She wasn't sure if it would lead her to Kjēl but she just needed to find a clue or anything small that could lead her to Kjēl.

"It's coming from that shipwreck. Could she possibly have taken shelter inside?" Veronica said to herself as she slowly approached the shipwreck.

Veronica reached the hangar bay of the old ship and much to her surprise, she saw the infamous blue Stern-S in front of Asterion. She hurriedly took the gun inside her cockpit and exited her ship. Random thoughts filled Veronica's head as she slowly floated towards the Stern-S. She couldn't help but feel worried about Kjēl and what might've happened to her.

"Damn it, Kjēl. Didn't I train you so this wouldn't happen?" Veronica said in frustration as she checked inside the cockpit of the Stern-S.

Inside, she sees on one of the monitor the scan made on the ship and she sees that an area is highlighted. Veronica quickly headed up to the crew's quarters, with her gun and flashlight aimed in front. Her visor's assistive display shows high readings of oxygen coming from one of the rooms so she cautiously approached the door. Veronica then opened the door and aimed her pistol inside, shining light into the dark room.

"Kjēl...?" Veronica whispered as she scanned the room with the flashlight.

Veronica's visor picks up life readings and she shifted her head towards the point indicated on her visor. She was filled with relief when she spots a sleeping Kjēl wrapped in a blanket. Her relief was short lived when she sees Bernard hugging Kjēl and recognizes him as the XenoMarsian officer they met inside the colony.

"Hey! Let her go!" Veronica demanded as she aimed the gun and the light on Bernard's face.

"Veronica?" Kjēl mumbled as she rubbed her eye.

"Come towards me Kjēl. We're leaving." Veronica ordered as she kept her gun up.

Bernard suddenly woke up from the bright light and the loud voice. He couldn't make up much because of the glare of the light but he sees the end of a barrel of a gun. Bernard pulled Kjēl and shielded her with his body.

"Kjēl, when I say go, you make a run for it." Bernard whispered to Kjēl.

"No, wait. It's Veronica, she's come to save me." Kjēl replied as she moved away from Bernard.

"Don't make any sudden moves or I'll put a bullet in your head." Veronica ordered as she pulled Kjēl's hand.

Bernard raised his hands and stood up, facing the wall. Veronica then embraced Kjēl and checked if she was hurt.

"Look, I wasn't trying to hurt Kjēl. I would never hurt a child." Bernard explained.

"Bernard, right? So you're the pilot of that pesky Stern-S. We finally meet once again." Veronica stated as she aimed her gun back on Bernard.

"Veronica, he's telling the truth. He helped me after our ship's ran out of propellant." Kjēl mumbled as she tugged on Veronica's arm.

Veronica drew a sigh then lowered her gun. She pat Kjēl on the head and smiled.

"I'll let you go this time only because my mission is to recover Asterion and save Kjēl. But the next time I see you on the battlefield, I'll make sure to shoot you down." Veronica stated before handing Kjēl's helmet to her.

"I'm afraid I can't let that happen. I still need to fix this mess between XenoMars and Jupiter Astra." Bernard replied as he put his hands down and faced Veronica.