- Oliver -

  "Before you go, I o talk to you about the fortress, your experiehere, and what we found," John ented.

  Oliver, Katherine, and Isabe looked attentively at the Ranger. John waited for one of them to start talking or perhaps ask a question. Seeing they hadn't begun, he expined a bit more.

  "I o uand how the atta GL-581 went, everything you found there, and how you were captured," John began the debriefing.

  Katheriook the lead, expining what the test was like and that they were heading south until they passed by the cave, which they decided to enter for shelter. She described the existence of Goblins and how they ended up in the lower part of the cave by act.

  She finally finished by expining that there was an Ork excavation and what seemed to be a research base. When they left the underground, the attack was already happening. They wao use the teleportation room, but Orks had got there first and, finally, their battle with a Red Ork.

  "Damn. A Red Ork. You guys were lucky to be alive." John ented as he listeo their story. "Did you at any point see what they were excavating or notiything in the research?"

  "It was impossible to know what they were digging. We even had taken some research papers but lost them when we were captured," Oliver recalled. "Couldn't you return to the b a more dots?"

  "Unfortunately, a fire broke out during the attack, and we lost all the evidehere," John expined.

  Oliver widened his eyes but chose not to speak. He remembered that he had set the room on fire to buy time to escape.

  "About the research. A friend that was with us transted some words," Isabe ented. "It's been a long time, but it was something about experiments with humans, goblins, and Orks."

  "Yes, yes," John aowledged while deep in thought.

  Oliver could see that John was thinking about something, assembling the puzzle pieces. Each piece of information they provided was valuable to him, yet it didn't seem to make any sense in Oliver's hands.

  "What does all this mean?" Oliver asked.

  "I don't kly yet," John said, still reflective.

  The Ranger paused momentarily to assess the three; from his gaze, it was clear that he was judging whether to share more information with them.

  "What I'm about to share is only specution, but it could put you in danger," John expined. "Moreover, I'm only doing this because I trust Kath and because you stood by her during the danger, some more than once."

  John rose from his chair. With a discreet haure, he indicated for them to follow him.

  "It's better if we talk in a more private pce," the Ranger expined, his voice low but full of authority.

  Katherine and Oliver stood up almost instantly, but Isabe wondered whether she should follow. She sidered whether she should delve deeper into this or whether it was safer to just stay in the infirmary and not hear anything more. Ultimately, her curiosity won out, and she followed the group.

  They crossed the silent corridor, entering the ornate elevator of the York family building. Leaving behind the infirmary wing, the elevator smoothly took them to one of the family's private areas. The doors revealed a corridor lit by soft lights that highlighted the cssic architectural details.

  Finally, after a few more corridors, they reached John's private office. The room was vast, with high ceilings and dark wood-paneled walls. Several imposing bookshelves lihe walls, crammed with physical books—a remarkable aremely rare sight, especially after the war that decimated much of the printed knowledge.

  In the ter of the room, a set of leather chairs surrounded a long, polished table used for meetings with his advisors. Holograms of star maps and tactical projes floated above the table, emitting a bluish glow trasting the room's warm lighting.

  John walked to the head of the table, pg his hands on the cold surface. His eyes sed the group again as they settled in.

  "How much do you remember from your History csses at school?" John asked.

  "A bit," Isabe and Katherine replied. "Absolutely nothing," Oliver ented; it was easier than expining his past.

  John was once again surprised by Oliver's response, but he knew how poor public schools were, especially on h, where the NEA had trol.

  The trio sat down in the leather chairs as John began to adjust the holograms that were dispyed.

  "Right. Ohing that's in almost every history book is the discovery of the Z Crystal during the first Wave. It was the crucial on for our resistance," John expined. "However, there's not a single piece of information about where this mineral appeared or who discovered it."

  "Wait. Weren't there some stists who presehe crystal?" Katherine could remember something like that.

  "They discovered how to use it and how to extraergy. But they weren't the ones who discovered the Crystal or even where it came from," John expined. "Even the best mineralogists 't figure out where we should dig to find Crystals or even how they are formed. So, our best option is to map using Energy signals."

  For Oliver, who didn't uand much about the eology, all of this was a step into magic. Therefore, he didn't usually think about the details; however, it was visible on Isabe and Katherine's faces that both were struggling to make sense of what was expined.

  ‘But how could this be something of io the Orks?' This was the only question that crossed Oliver's mind as he listeo the new information.

  "When some stists began to research the locations where the crystals were found, the main hypothesis obtained was that they are not a naturally formed material," John expined.

  "Huh? What do you mean?" Isabe questioned.

  "Someone had prepared the crystals ahem in pce," John ented.

  Obviously, this hypothesis raised even more questions for everyo the table.

  "That’s why I wao uand what the Orks were excavating. If that ce where there could be Z Crystals, it would be intriguing to know how they discovered it," John expined. "As for the research, this is something that the Blue Division had already obtained information on in other operations."

  "But what do the Orks want with human experiments?" Katherine asked.

  "From what we uand of Ork biology, they don't use the Z Crystal to evolve. Although they have a much higher physical capacity than humans, they have a clear power ceiling," John ented. "Our main hypothesis is that they are testing to try to absorb or replicate the human abilities to use the Z Crystal."

  As he finished expining, some photos of the Goblins that were captured on both ps appeared.

  "We've already seen that they alter other races, like the Goblins, to adapt to various ps. Or evehe Z Crystal to create and trol artificial beings like the Titans. It's a matter of time before they start testing on themselves," the Ranger finished expining.

  Upon receiving this information, Oliver felt for the first time that he was indeed ihe war, taking part in it and influeng its oute.

  "When I joihe Yellers, my iion was to seek more information about the whereabouts of our brother, Arthur. However, I only found several inplete dots when I searched for his operation. Simir to what's said about the discovery of the Z Crystal," John ented.

  "That's why you want access to the Red Rangers' data?" Oliver asked.

  "Partly. I believe they may have more pieces of this puzzle. However, I'm sure it will still be inplete," John expined. "However, by pulling some favors with older Senate members, I obtained some information that's not in any dots."

  "What would that be?" Katherine asked, ied in what John had discovered after all this time.

  "Arthur art of a squad that was dug Operation Mastermind," John ented. "What was their mission, or what did they want to obtain? To this day, I have no clue."

  Katherine was disced to learn that they had so little information.

  "However, there are rumors that they were searg for the Sn," John expined.

  "Sn?" Oliver said. "Who would that be?"

  "To be ho, I don't kher," John scratched his head, slightly embarrassed. "However, it doesn't seem to be a single person. Maybe a title? I've fouions of them both in human records and, more retly, during your rescue, there were some in Ork dots."

  "But why would it be so important?" Oliver once again asked without uanding the purpose.

  "It's just a hypothesis. But we've had several emperors who took office promising peace. Promising the end of the war. However, over time, they all became intoxicated with one more victory, one more battle," John ented as he presented photos of some of the emperors. "Also, looking at the movements of the Orks, my impression is that there's something bigger, something influeng both Orks and Humans so that the war doesn't end."

  "Which would be the Sn or Sns?" Oliver wao firm.

  "I believe so," the Ranger firmed.

  GCLopes