Nest Invasion Force Interception
The drug packs strapped to my body had increased. Dangling like flags, with all sorts of gear attached, and bandages wrapped tightly around my entire frame. Anyone seeing me would mistake me for a pickled corpse. The battle had dragged on so long and so fiercely that my body was utterly spent. I dragged that battered shell into the Nexus, staggering all the way.
Powering up the system brought up a single email. Sender: Renaissance.
I tilted my head. Hermann, the handler—everyone kept nitpicking my fighting style, but honestly, I had no idea what was wrong. They all said it was too reckless, but that's how you fought in the game, right? Without going all out, how do you beat another person? Sure, games let you respawn, but reality didn't seem that different. From the moment guns are pointed at each other, isn't there an unspoken agreement that lives don't matter?
Whatever anyone says, it doesn't matter. I shoved Renaissance's email aside and got to why I'd boarded the Nexus in the first place. Opened a comm channel with Hermann.
It didn't take long before the monitor lit up with video, and Hermann's voice came through.
"Rabe... so much to say, but..."
His voice was laced with complicated emotions. But only for a moment.
"First off, you did well. Faced unexpected situations back-to-back and still came out alive. Not just any pilot—you."
What I saw as perfunctory praise opened the main topic.
"Let's start with that machine that crashed the party at the end. Using Renaissance's hint, I dug around, and something turned up. It's from a product lineup announced years ago by the OTH Tech Development Bureau. Nothing major's been revealed yet, but the silhouette matches."
"Over The Horizon Tech Development Bureau, or OTH for short. Originally part of some huge alliance's R&D firms, but they went independent ages ago—probably before you were born. Whether they're behind the Watchdogs too... we'll need more digging. That's all for now."
The data screen vanished, replaced by another.
"Next, decoding the data we pulled from the enemy wrecks. It's encrypted in a complex scheme—not easy to crack fully. But even the scraps give us a rough picture. These mystery machines... seem to have been investigating a certain 'person' from that lab."
Hermann continued.
"From a tiny surviving drive in the old Gu-se-dae Reinforcement Human lab, we got the staff roster. Mostly test subjects for the enhancements. And in the enemy data, one ID popped up repeatedly: FD201-S2. Another subject code."
These mystery machines were investigating one human? Why?
If the lab's gone, where'd everyone inside go?
The thought flickered, then faded as Hermann went on.
"After spotting that ID in the encrypted data, I checked lab records. The subject was classified as a congenital adapter—rare brain optimized for machine signals. Can pilot a Nexus without enhancements. Sync rate even beats standard reinforcement humans." Odd calling them "standard," but anyway.
"Not sure what it means yet, but we'll keep digging on this subject. No clue where they went after shutdown. We'll find out."
Was it my imagination? Felt like I knew who it was. Just a vague hunch—no need to voice it.
Hermann paused after his breathless rundown, catching his breath. Only faint static hissed in the channel.
"Again, you did great. Beyond expectations. Just one request left now, right?"
Finally, the last part. Hermann straightened with a odd noise. After a pause, his voice grew heavy.
"About that final request—turns out, we had a linked mission planned with this one. Olivia Bio, the Hive group. Thought the lab raid was them countering, so planned hits on other corp labs to check connections."
Hermann wanted to see if other corps hit Hive-level results. Gauge project progress. But his tone said plans changed.
What happened? I tilted my head, focusing.
A data screen appeared before me. Nexus intel. Only one pattern fit.
Enemy takedown.
"Corp net picked up movement recently. Two Nexus en route here on Nest assault. Hard to believe, but confirmed."
Corps finally moving to wipe Nest? Suddenly?
"Normally, bigger allies shield us, but they went straight for us."
One of the two was unknown—big question mark. The other, I recognized.
"They're prepped for a HQ strike. Hermes Network ranked pilot. The one you just scrapped."
Scarab. His name loomed large on the Nest raiders list.
"Tried guessing the sudden attack's reason—no recent anti-corp ops. But then it clicked. Difference from before? You, Rabe."
I listened quietly.
"They see you as a threat, or some factor... Anyway, figure you'll block them while with us."
"Attackers confirmed?"
Hermann paused, caught off-guard.
"Sorry... not yet. Just know two corp-hired Nexus heading here."
"Hmm."
"Oh, the other pilot—not ID'd, but intel says rising star merc. Like... you."
Though unseen, I felt his gaze from afar.
"Pitting two rookies against each other, looks like."
"Super rookies..."
Only one rising star fit now. I swallowed a groan.
"Won't let them reach Nest easy. Nepels Sea City—once-thriving, now ruins. Our outpost."
"Definite path through here. Rabe, head there and intercept them."
"...Got it."
"Op in two days. Tight timeline. Sorry after hard mission, but... one more push."
Hermann hesitated, then continued.
"...This is Nest's—no, my final debt to you."