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Dante spent the next day pacing on the bridge alone, mumbling to himself. The rest of the crew was worried, but realized they had no idea how to comfort him. Jill, Chey, and Angel were in the lounge area, quietly thinking of what they could do, "Hey... should we ask what the mission was? I mean, we are on a course for wherever it's supposed to take place."

"Yeah, but... you look a little tense Jill. Here." Chey walked behind the couch and began to massage Jill's shoulders, "You haven't slept in a while. I know you want to help, but you need to take care of yourself. Come on, let's go to my room. My bed is softer, and I can watch over you."

Jill was shaking, "Uh, I guess, but isn't Dante a more pressing issue- AH!" Chey had hit the sweet spot, and Jill's muscles all relaxed at once, "How did you... I am tired."

Angel was watching the two the entire time. While she knew what was happening (after scanning certain physiological functions of the body), she didn't want to say anything. Instead, "I will go seek out young Serenade. She seems to be working on the ship's main cannon. I could be of use." She stood up and left the lounge, as did Jill and Chey.

Angel quickly made her way to the ship's core, which also contained the main controls for the cannon. Sere was there, just as the AI had told her, "Oh, hey Angel. Here to give me a hand?"

Angel stared at Sere with her cold, unblinking eyes, "What are you trying to do? A recent scan showed high levels of stress in your body and your brain. You should be rest-"

"It's taking my mind off of things..."

The sudden interruption was a shock for Angel. She was still not used to interactions with living beings, and she knew less about the subtle actions and behaviors that weren't explained, "What does that mean? A cathartic effect perhaps?"

Sere continued to fidget with the computer, "Uh... I think so. If I do something I enjoy, the pain seems to go away. And besides, this will be helpful for Zero Unit. Right AI?"

The AI spoke, "Serenade is attempting to add a new setting to the main cannon, which would reduce power but allow a three-round burst. This would be ideal for air-to-ground combat on minor enemies."

Angel looked at the little dragon girl, "How do you know this Serenade? You are young, my records indicate that most people of a young age lack knowledge to do such tasks."

Sere sighed, "How many times to I have to tell you two, it's Sere. Actually, I've always been good at this stuff. And since I studied Earth technology in my spare time, I gained some new ideas. Alright... all done! I can it the Burp Cannon!" She stood up and wiped her arm over her brow, "Now, what can we do to celebrate?"

Angel stared, "'Burp Cannon?'"

"No, not 'Burp Cannon'. Burp Cannon! Like an Earth weapon I found, or rather, a nickname for one, it was commonly called a burp gun, cause it fired a quick burst of rounds."

The AI now crackled over the speakers, "Updating... updating... complete. All systems normal. I would recommend that you assist the others in determining the purpose of the next mission. I am unable to access the files, but I was able to see the screen when Dante accessed the data. It appears that a new group of mercenaries has amassed on a planet. Also, this information was part of Dante's contract. From my records, it seemed that he wanted this mission, or he wouldn't join."

Angel looked around, "Very well Serenade. I shall accompany you to the armory. You still have not been assigned any weapons or armor. While there, I can finalize modifications to Dante's armor."

Sere looked depressed, "Sere. Call me Sere. And alright, guess I can't do much else here."

...........................................

Chey had put Jill onto her bed, "There we are. Just rest up, alright?"

Jill smiled as she snuggled under the blankets, "Thanks Chey, I mean it. You've been awake too, haven't you? Aren't you tired?"

Chey smiled back, "Yeah, a little. But I'd rather watch over you."

Jill flipped the blankets off and moved to the side, "Here, it is your bed. This way you can watch over me, and be comfy." Chey shrugged, then climbed into the small bed. They were up against each other as she put the blanket over the two, "You know, you always seem so serious, but when we're alone, you always get so nice. I like you when you're nice Chey."

Chey turned to face Jill, "Well... I like being around you Jill. You're very kind, and smart, and braver than you think. I... I know this probably isn't the right time to say this, but..." She lowered her voice so it was almost impossible to be heard and lowered her head, "I love you."

Jill blushed. Her hearing was very good, "Chey I... I like you but I'm... I'm..."

"I know you're a woman. But I don't care. I want to be with you!" There were tears forming in her eyes.

Jill didn't know what to say. She was actually a man, but Dante was the only one she had told. So, Jill panicked and grabbed Chey's hand, "I can't... I mean... here." She had sorrow in her eyes when she slowly moved Chey's hand down to her crotch. When she felt Chey's fingers grab hold, she looked away, embarrassed and scared.

Chey's eyes went wide and she looked down. She couldn't believe it. Jill was actually a man. A very feminine man. With her other hand, she reached for Jill's breasts. They were real, "I... I don't understand Jill. You're a... but..."

"I'm a woman on the inside. I've been undergoing a treatment to make it permanent. Only a few more months, then surgery. I hope you won't hate me-" Chey kissed her.

............................................

Angel and Sere had just reached the armory. Sere hadn't been here before, so she was impressed at all the spare weapons lying around, "Amazing! I mean, I prefer Earth weapons, but still! Maybe I can customize the appearance, modify the insides so it would fit... I could make a Beretta 92F! It's my favorite!"

Angel was surprised at how energetic Sere was, "I do not know of that weapon. For now, let me scan and pick out an appropriate weapon." Her eyes glowed faintly as she looked at Sere, then she picked up a handgun off of the rack, "This would be most appropriate for someone of your build. Minimum kickback with maximum stopping power." She handed Sere the gun and a holster.

"Thanks Angel! About my armor, I don't think I'll need much. I won't be seeing action, or, at least I hope I won't. So something light would be nice."

"I understand. Please wait." She glanced at the rack of armor scraps, "I shall make something." Angel removed a few pieces with calculated movements and picked up a fusion rod. Sere watched in awe as Angel finished in a few minutes, "This will cover your vital organs and joints with little restriction on your movement. The shield is lacking, however, so an elongated firefight would prove fatal. Now if you'll excuse me, I need to finish Dante's armor."

Sere set the gun down on a bench, and struggled to put on the armor. Her clothes were a little baggy, so she had to remove them first. The armor slid on, but was a bit revealing, "Uh, Angel?"

"Finished. Yes?"

"Can we do something about this? Like add some cloth or something?"

Angel looked to the far end of the armory, "There. A thin suit designed to be worn under armor. Please find an appropriate size. The suit will also aid in temperature control." Sere walked over, removed her armor, found a small suit, then put everything back on, "Very good. I shall assist in carrying your belongings to your room." Angel picked up Sere's clothes and gun, then followed her to her room.

In the hall, Sere could swear she heard a soft thumping sound coming from Chey's room, but she ignored it. When she opened her door, Angel paused, "What's the matter?"

The entire room was filled with books, data cards, movie cubes, and posters created from still shots of security footage from Earth, all depicting Dante in action, "I am... having trouble comprehending your obsession with Dante."

"Obsession?" She looked around her room, then rubbed her cheek with a finger, "Yeah, I may have gone a little crazy. But he's my hero. He came from nothing, and led all sorts of people to victory! He never gave up, and he always put himself in harms way, rather than send someone else to get hurt. I know he would never be into me, so the least I can do is work under him, right?"

Angel set the belongings down, "I am not sure how to answer. May I examine some of your data about Dante? I know little about him, but as I am to stay by his side, I wish to know more."

"What do you mean? You can choose not to stay, right?"

Angel shook her head slowly, "It is... scanning... scanning... destiny. That word seems to fit the situation. I will always be by his side. It is who I am."

Sere sat on her bed and kicked her feet, "Oh. I was wondering... are you the same as me... down there?"

Angel thought for a moment, "I am a full, complete copy of the human form, though I lack reproductive capabilities. This is an odd question, is it not?"

"Well, yeah, but you are a robot. I was just curious. Hey! Let's watch some movies I found about Dante!" Sere hopped off the bed, picked up a few cubes, and turned them on. Angel sat on the bed beside Sere as the images were projected onto a wall.

......................................

Titus was in the miniature firing range near the bottom of the ship, firing round after round at a target. He was still angry that he wasn't the one who could save his sister, no, not that. He was angry that he was too weak to save his sister. Firing at a target seemed to calm him down.

After he had made sure Sere would be alright (rather, after she finished crying for a few hours), he had gone to the armory and adjusted his shotgun. The power was decreased slightly, but the range was increased and the spread decreased. Since then, he had been firing at targets non-stop.

Miss Star walked to the stall next to him, "Hey, are you alright?"

He fired until he was empty, "Not even a little, but I shouldn't be saying that. Dante'd have my head. At least I could help keep her sane, but I was too slow..."

There was a bang and he looked over. Miss Star had received a pistol when Titus and Dante went out to save his sister, and judging by how startled Miss Star looked, this was her first time using it. She didn't even hit the target. She did hit the ceiling though, "Ouchie... guns are such a pain!"

Titus reloaded, "Exhale when you fire. And don't blink. For now, keep your muscles tense until you adjust to the feel of your weapon. Also, start slow. One round at a time."

"Thank you Titus! I'll do my best!" She fired for a while, as did Titus. He looked over a few times, as he needed no help aiming. He smiled as he realized that his little sister was a better shot than Miss Star, "So tell me, how do I get on Dante's good side?"

Titus stopped firing, "What?"

Miss Star walked up to him and gave him the most innocent puppy eyes she could muster, "You've been with Ratchet, so you must know how to get people to like you!"

Titus was blushed as he rubbed the back of his (still tender) head, "Uh, well, she kinda came on to me. I guess... be seductive? He thinks you're annoying, which is ridiculous! But, uh... try to not be whatever he finds annoying."

Miss Star put a finger on her chin and looked up, "Hm, I suppose that might work. Your sister knows a lot about Earth and humans... I'll go talk to her! Hm?" Titus had snatched her pistol out of her hand, since it was pointing at him as she waved it around.

"Just be careful with this, it isn't a toy you know." He laughed nervously.

................................................

Ratchet was in her room, taking apart and rebuilding her sniper rifle over and over. She kept cleaning the parts, so that not even a speck or dirt or powder or anything would exist. She was still upset that she didn't spot the Cyclipion on the rockface. After all, that was her job. And she had failed.

She was vigorously wiping away a small imperfection inside the barrel with an adhesive rag, "Never again. I said I wouldn't Abuio. You told me that you would help me. But I... I didn't see..." Tears formed in her eyes. Most wouldn't believe it, but when she was alone, Ratchet cried a lot. She hadn't lived an easy life.

She had failed a good friend when she was just a common thug, she had failed her family when she refused to marry someone, and now she had failed herself. She slept with many men, but she never felt pleasure. Ratchet just wanted temporary release from her troubles.

"Never again. I'll make sure nothing hurts him again. Nothing will hurt anyone ever again as long as I live and breathe. And who knows... I may get to enjoy myself if I do a good job." She smiled at the thought.

........................................

Dante was slumped over in the commander's seat on the bridge, staring blankly though the massive window. He lifted a finger and rubbed his eyepatch, "Seems like we need to get some revenge." He then removed his desert eagle from its holster and looked carefully at it, "Tell me... do I deserve revenge? To be rewarded after the things I have done?" He smiled as he put the gun to his head, "You've never lied to me before..."

There was a piercing scream coming from the corridor.

"Commander Dante, please lower your weapon. If you are not feeling well, I will change cou- shots fired. Shots fired. All hands on the bridge immediately. This is an emergency."

.................................................

The members of Zero Unit all rushed up to the bridge to find Miss Star leaning against the wall, "Hey! What happened?!" Ratchet, first on the scene, was gripping her sidearm tightly. Dante was standing in the middle of the bridge with his gun to his head. He pulled the trigger again, "No!"

Nothing. He lowered the gun and cleared the chamber, then returned aim to his head just as the others arrived. They all watched in horror as he pulled the trigger one last time. Still nothing. He cleared the chamber and grabbed the bullet, "You... you will be the one."

"What the fuck are you doing?!" Chey was screaming at the top of her lungs. Her clothes and fur were both a little messy. Jill was about to cry.

Sere took a step back and grabbed onto Angel, who had her usual apathetic look, "Why... why would you do that?!"

Dante smiled, "Anima never lies. Anytime I'd shoot at someone who didn't deserve death, she wouldn't fire."

Ratchet yelled, "What are you talking about?! It was just a bad batch of ammo! Or a problem with the hammer! Just because it didn't fire doesn't mean- woah!" Dante tossed one of the discarded bullets to her.

"It's not what you are used to, but look at the back. The hammer went off fine. Here." He took it back, put it into the gun, and fired at the floor. The loud bang echoed through the bridge, "See? She never lies."

He began to slowly reload his magazine with fresh bullets. But the first was the last one he fired at his own head. He smiled as he holstered his gun. Titus stepped forward, "Dante. Have you gone mad? We have a mission, don't we? So don't fuck around until we're finished. If you want, I'll put the bullet in your head myself."

Dante looked out to the stars, "It's my mission. Your jobs entail dropping me off and confirming the kill. That is all. What happens after is all up to you Titus, seeing as how you're second in command."

Ratchet was furious, and showing a new sort of passion she hadn't shown before, "Wait! What's the mission?! One kill! I can do that from the ship!"

Dante laughed a sorrowful laugh as he turned away, "No... she's mine. We have unfinished business."

Jill thought for a moment. He hadn't really met too many people since he left Earth, so, "You mean we're going to Earth?"

"No. She left Earth, same as me. She started her own mercenary group. All stationed on a single planet. I will be the one to set things right. It's my burden."

Angel spoke clearly, "It is our burden. If you die, I shall also die. You must understand this-"

"I do. But did you love her? Did you share passionate moments together? Did you get betrayed by her, shot in both kneecaps? Then, did she smile and shoot you in the head?" The crew fell silent as Dante continued his monotone rant, "Well, not the head. She turned to face a camera. You can guess where I was hit. As for all of you, have you been in pain like that? Every muscle twitch caused untold pain. I was left to die.

As it began to rain, my brain was working enough to drag my battered body under a little rock overhang. I stayed there for three days before I was found. I became a monster like nobody had even seen, none of our enemies dared to attack while I was near. None of you saw that, and none of you will see that. All I need to do is put a bullet in her head after she feels the horror that I felt." He chuckled, "After all, it takes a monster to kill a monster..."

.........................................

The crew was disturbed, but did their best to sleep. It was only shortly afterwards that the AI called them onto the bridge, "The mission has commenced. Dante is on the planet, I have a visual."

"What?!" Ratchet screamed, "We didn't even stop!"

"He jumped out when we were close to the ground. Now examine and confirm the kill. As for the planet, the atmosphere is stable, however balloon-type crafts are popular for their simplicity and the easy of control due to winds. Population is low, but we are away from the civilized sections. We are near the Ghilo Cliffs."

The video was clear. It appeared that many members of this new mercenary group were gathering in formation, listening to a human speaking at a podium near a cliff. There was also some sort of hot air balloon craft over the gap in the cliff, "What the hell..." Titus couldn't figure anything out.

Then Dante walked into the picture, from behind the formation. The human stopped, every member turned to face him. Then, Dante tossed four belts into the air, each hovered over the four square sections of the crowd. Chey was the first to notice, "Demolition packs!" The explosions caused major casualties, and scattered the remaining force. The AI switched to another view, which showed reinforcements arriving.

"Hey! We need to do something!" Miss Star was in full panic mode.

Jill nodded, "Yes, AI, please let us go and assist, he'll get killed out there!"

"I'm sorry, my orders we to not let you interfere with the mission."

Sere thought for a moment, which Angel noticed, "You seem to have an idea in your head."

"I got it! Take us in AI! We won't interfere at all. Dante will be able to kill that woman! We'll take care of the mercenaries so he CAN complete his mission! See? It's not against anything!"

The AI fell silent, but did change course, "Very well, I entrust the mission's success to you. Sere, please assist in cannon maintenance, we have not tested the modifications."

"Alright! Let's kick some ass!" Ratchet pulled out her sniper rifle, "If you all don't hurry, I'll kill them all myself!"

The ship dropped low enough so that the crew, save for Sere and Miss Star, could drop out. Titus smiled as he raised his weapon, "Kill them all!"

Dante heard over an AI communication what was happening, "So be it. Listen up bitch! Your life ends now!"

The woman was in shock, "D-Dante? I can't... it's you. It's really you... I'm so happy..."

Dante was behind a rock, waiting for the mercenaries that blocked his path to run out of ammo, "Shut it! You killed me and smiled about it! Now I'll show you what I felt..." Three quick beams came from the Albatross and hit the mercenaries, "Ha! Now suffer!" He charged forward, now wielding his desert eagle.

There was nothing on his mind now. Just her forehead, which had a target on it. There were no enemies, no allies, just Dante and his target. Time didn't matter anymore. He could see a path between themselves, and he was going to take it.

Behind him, Zero Unit was occupied with taking out the non-essential mercenaries. Other than the Albatross' support fire for Dante, it was busy with taking out land and air vehicles with it's modified cannon. This new mercenary squad's inexperience was quite obvious, most had given up and tried to run. Ratchet didn't give them the chance. Zero Unit was engaged in a very serious battle, which had completely escaped their commander.

For Dante, things seemed to slow down. His former love had jumped onto the balloon ship, and was already trying to create distance. He could see the fear in her eyes, but that wasn't enough. She will feel the icy grip of death. When he got to the edge of the cliff, he dove head-first.

He saw his gun's aim slowly drift down towards her head. Time had all but frozen. His aim came ever closer, her expression was one of pure terror. Then that magical moment... the perfect shot. He pulled the trigger.