none of which so dangerous as virtue

Mileina, can you report to my quarters? There's something you need to see.

Tavros Nitram, it has come to my attention that apparently I am responsible for your fears regarding Mileina Vashti. That is to say, you are too afraid to ask her to visit you, and it is supposedly my fault.

I will not apologize for my harsh demeanor, nor will I apologize for scaring you. That was my intention, after all. However, it was not my intention to scare you away. You may be friends with Mileina, and you may even spend time together. Of course, I will make it clear now that if you should engage in anything even approaching inappropriate behavior, you will be...

...no, you will not be extremely sorry. You will not have time to feel remorse. In fact--




...

This is not doing anything to reassure you, I suspect. I just want to make it clear that I bear no particular ill will against you. As such, yes, Mileina can visit you. But there will be conditions.

I don't know why you're all so upset.

He's going to be fine.

He always is.

Always.

I'm going to find him. Look after the base.

He'll wake up soon. He will. His injuries have healed. He looks better, now. He's going to be all right. He's just sleeping. He's been in a coma before. He got better. He's all right.

I'm all right.

It's nothing. The videos aren't real. I'm not watching them. I'm not doing anything. I'm not watching him. Not at the moment. Linda Vashti is watching him for the next 57 minutes and 23 seconds and counting.

They told me to go and wash, and eat something.

I'm not hungry.

I'm all right.

[his voice is quiet, his breathing labored]

It's like before. It feels like before.

I need help. I. I. I can't think properly, my head, it...

[there is a series of low thumps, perhaps something falling over, or someone slipping out of a chair]

I need you to fix me. I need you.

My office, I... help me.

[and then, barely audibly]

I can hear it...?

An apology? What's the point in apologizing for saying what you think? Because that's all it was. It just made him rude and tactless. It didn't turn him into a liar. That's what he really thinks.

...he blames me. And he's right. It's my fault. It's all my fault. He nearly died because of me.

I am unfit. I don't know anything. I'm stupid, and weak, and deluding myself into believing I'm capable of being in charge. Why should anybody listen to me anymore? What authority do I possess?

I'm glad we didn't die. He wouldn't have wanted me with him anyway.

Don't be fooled - whoever that is, it's not Johann Trinity. It's a trap! For a start, we know Wang Liu Mei. We're still in contact with her! She would have informed us if he was still alive. We know for a fact that people can access our records and use them against us. I'm sorry to point this out considering the fact that they're now our allies, but the Trinitys did it themselves!

Whoever... screwed us all over in the first place can do what they want. That they should sink as low as this is revolting, but it's easily possible.

Approach this impostor with caution. We can try and assess him, but whatever you do, do not inform him of the location of any personnel or equipment. In the mean time, I'll try and contact Wang Liu Mei. If it's really him, she has a lot to answer for.

Just because Lyle Dylandy looks like Lockon Stratos does not mean you can tell him what you like. He is not one of us. If you wish to remain in possession of both your life and your full set of body parts, you will not mention one word about who we are or what we do.

You will also refrain from giving any indication of your location, or the location of any other personnel. You will not befriend him.

This man will be kept at arm's length until I have checked all appropriate data AND he has been admitted under our conditions of secrecy into our organization.

DO I MAKE MYSELF CLEAR, CELESTIAL BEING?

Luckily for Tieria, personnel at the base never really came to see exactly what it was he was doing. Oh, sure, they knew he was fixing up that big machine of his, but beyond that, nobody really had any of the details. This was decidedly a Good Thing, because he didn't have any idea how he was supposed to explain the various odd new details that had been applied during repairs.

Odd details like the rough approximation of a stripped down Virtue Physical armor set. Or even odder ones, such as the peculiar new cockpit.

Gundams were single cockpit affairs, with just enough room for everything a Meister needed to pilot the suit, as well as a little extra standing space for any "unexpected guests". But that wouldn't be enough for what Tieria had in mind.

Although he could just about scrape by with no tactical advisor--

(He was, after all, perfectly capable of making adequate plans that frequently matched up with Veda's predictions in the past. Sumeragi was far better, of course, but she was nowhere to be found, and as such, he had to cope by himself.)

--it was extremely difficult to concentrate on piloting a Gundam and try to remember what stage he was at in the mission plan he'd drawn up previously at the same time. What he really needed was a tactical operator, and as this mission would involve total stealth, as well as crossing the border between worlds, what he definitely needed was an operator on board.

And so, Tieria Erde was currently hanging upside down in Nadleeh's cockpit, screwing the last panels of the new dual cockpit tactical interface into place. Behind the normal set-up for a Meister, there was now another seat facing in the opposite direction, looking at a large bank of screens.

Now all he needed was his operator.