- Oliver -

  Although Oliver's recovery had been remarkably swift, he still o remain in the hospital for another week under observation. During this period, he tried to use the as much as possible to keep up with the war and the fires raging within the Empire. However, it was difficult to glean much from publiformation alone.

  From what he could gather, the tenth wave had e to a halt. Both humans and Orks had suffered signifit casualties at Half Wall. The Orks didn't seem to expect that their Titans would be annihited.

  ‘Also, they lost the Elves,’ Oliver thought. ‘One way or ahey seemed valuable to the Orks, which must have impacted them.’

  Once he was discharged, a few soldiers apanied him back to Pals. He still had to undergo the mission debriefing, and until then, they were taking every possible precaution to know where he was at all times.

  ‘Not that these soldiers could stop me if I wao leave,’ Oliver mused as he observed them beside him. In truth, they'd been quite friendly with him, especially after he'd received a medal for his as on the frontline. He was seen as a symbol of the Empire's success.

  Wherever Oliver went, he could hear the newfound respect.

  "Sir, gratutions on your mission."

  "Thank you very much for your service."

  "It's a shame you couldn't receive the medal in person."

  Even so, Oliver was nervous about the debriefing.

  ‘Katherine, Isabel, and An will have to wait until I get back,’ Oliver thought as he walked from his home in Pals to the rail station.

  He had to go to one of the Ranger Operations headquarters, where they were expeg him.

  ‘There's no point in going to Yht now anyway; John isn't there. I’ll see Katherine and Isabel when he's back,’ Oliver pnned as he tinued on his way.

  ‘An is better off waiting until he's out of the hospital, too.’ Although his injuries weren't severe, he had to be hospitalized for some time due to the explosion during the ceremony.

  As Oliver stepped off the train at the station, he found himself in the administrative ter of Pals. Uhe research area, the buildings seemed more serious, with more people walking around with their armor partially activated.

  Everyone seemed to have somewhere urgent to be, walking briskly through the streets, entering aing buildings.

  ‘Is it always like this, or is it because of our current state?’ Oliver wondered, but he had no way of knowing the answer.

  Oliver stepped into one of the colossal buildings that domihe skyli was one of the few buildings that stretched so high that it appeared to ect with the opposing end of the vast orbital ptform.

  Riding the lift to the fifty-seventh floor, Oliver felt a slight tension knotting in his stomach. As the doors slid open with a quiet hiss, he was greeted by a group of officers waitihe entrao a series of ferens.

  "Mr. Oliver. They're expeg you in room two," one of the officials said, gesturing down the corridor. The officers fnked him subtly, their presence a silent escort as he proceeded. Oliver couldn't shake the feeling that he was under scrutiny; their eyes followed his every move, assessing.

  When he reached the designated door, he took a steadying breath before pressing the pao ehe door slid open smoothly, revealing a modest room furnished with several tables and a rge wall covered in iive dispys and writing boards. It felt more like a strategiing room than an interrogation chamber.

  Two individuals awaited him inside, seated and engaged in quiet versation. The first was immediately reizable: Wiz, one of the few who still wore traditional gsses over his sharp eyes. His white beard gave him a distinguished, almost schorly appearance.

  To Wiz's left was another man Oliver reized from a ret broadcast—the general who had bestowed medals. 'That was... Stewart?' Oliver thought, a flicker of uainty crossing his mind.

  As Oliver stepped through the doorway, General Stewart ceased speaking and turned his gaze upon him. The general's eyes were keen, appraising him with a thhhat made Oliver's pulse qui.

  'There's no way they know I'm the Green Ranger, right?' Oliver's thoughts stirred with uhey won't ask to see the Crystals in my gau, will they?'

  "Please, have a seat, Oliver," Wiz said, gesturing to the chair on his right. His tone was cordial but carried an undercurrent of seriousness.

  "Leave us," Stewart ordered the apanying officials and soldiers without taking his eyes off Oliver.

  "Yes, sir," they replied in unison, filing out of the room and closing the door behind them.

  "Oliver, you haven't had the opportunity to meet directly, but this is General Stewart," Wiz began, indig the man beside him. "He is part of a special division that deals directly with matters ing the Emperor."

  "It's an honor to meet you, sir," Oliver said, rising slightly to deliver a respectful salute before seating himself agaie his posed exterior, a swirl of fusion and apprehension stirred within him at the general's ued presence.

  "Given that the mission you were on has bee of utmost importao the Empire, he will participate in the debriefing," Wiz expined.

  Oliver nodded, his mind rag through the possibilities. 'Just stick to the official report,' he reminded himself. 'Don't give them any reason to suspeything.'

  "Very well," Wiz tinued, his gaze steady. "To begin, I need you to ret the entire mission from the start."

  Oliver took a deep breath, colleg his thoughts. He could feel General Stewart's eyes fixed on him, measuring every nuance of his expression. The weight of the momeled upon him like a tangible force.

  Oliver began his expnation from the moment they arrived in Olympus, detailing the pnning process, the Rangers involved, and the moment they departed from the Half Wall.

  None of the generals interrupted as he reted the events. Oliver then described the departure from the Half Wall, their enter with the Blights, and, ultimately, the Rangers' betrayal.

  "So, you mao eliminate a Yeller with more experiehan you?" Stewart questioned.

  "Yes, but it was sheer luck, sir. He expected me to freeze up, take no a, or that my attack would be weak because I’m a Blue Ranger," Oliver replied, attempting to provide as much detail as possible.

  "How is that possible?" Stewart asked.

  Oliver didn’t want to mentiorial Tower but decided to share only what was required. "I trained with one of the Yellers, who taught me a teique that temporarily increases my physical abilities by overloading parts of my body with Energy."

  Stewart nodded in uanding. If there were any other emotions on his face, unfortunately, Oliver couldn’t dis them.

  Then, Oliver began reting the parts no one else khe mome separated from Chloe, the Yeller who had been on the mission with him. He described what he observed at the Ork base, the magic being performed, and the moment the Titans began advang.

  This was the part he had prepared for over the past few days: how to ret what happened in the hangar.

  Oliver expihat he had arrived at the hangar, where he fought some Orks but failed against the Red Ork. However, the Orks had been transp beasts and creatures. By releasing them, the beasts turned on their captors, eliminating the Red Ork before fleeing the se.

  ‘Not a lie, but not pletely true.’ Oliver thought.

  Oliver then expihat he waited for rescue until the Pink Rangers eventually picked him up.

  Wiz posed several more questions about the structure of the Ork base, delving into the specifics of the ceremony that had brought a Titan to life. He seemed genuinely ied in every miail Oliver could recall—the yout of the ritual site, the symbols etched into the ground, the ts echoed by the Orks. Throughout the debriefing, General Stewart remained mostly silent, his sharp eyes fixed ily on Oliver. It was clear he was more ied in analyzing Oliver's demeanor than the particurs of his testimony.

  At times, Oliver could catch a few gnces exged between Wiz and Stewart. He wasn’t quite sure what they meant—whether he had been approved or if there was still distrust—but he didn’t feel good about it.

  "I believe that cludes your debriefing, Oliver," Wiz finally said, setting down his tablet. "Do you have any questions for us?"

  Oliver hesitated briefly before speaking. "Sir, how are Rangers Chloe and Emma?" The was evident in his voice. He hadn't had the ce to help them during the mission and hadn't heard any updates on their fate.

  Wiz offered a reassuring nod. "The same rescue team that extracted you also mao find both of them alive in the forest. We were able to recover the bodies of the other Rangers as well." He paused before adding, "Emma is currently on leave. She'll ime to recover psychologically before returning to active duty—if she chooses to. Chloe has already rejoihe Yellers at their base."

  Relief washed over Oliver. "Thank you, sir," he said sincerely, preparing to stand.

  "One more thing, Oliver," Wiz interjected, gesturing for him to remaied. "Have you been keeping up with the events of the past few weeks?"

  "Yes, sir," Oliver replied. He kly what the general was referring to—the attacks orchestrated by the Children of the Past were impossible to ignore.

  "Good," Wiz tinued. "That will make this versation easier." He exged a brief gh General Stewart before proceeding. "After extensive discussions, we've decided to assemble specialized teams to uake an infiltration mission. Given the circumstances, your name has been put forward for sideration."

  Oliver felt his stomach drop. ‘An infiltration mission?’ he thought, a mixture of apprehension and disbelief swirling inside him. The prospect was daunting—it would be a signifit escation in responsibility and danger. Moreover, he hadn't even pleted his basic training.

  "Because you're also a Nameless," Wiz expined, "it will be easier for you to ie without drawing unnecessary attention. You'll be able to move among them more freely."

  For a moment, Oliver eechless. He g General Stewart, whose expression remained inscrutable, his gaze steady.

  "B-but sir," Oliver stammered, finding his voice. "I still o plete my basic training." He hoped they would see reason, that they would uand he wasn't ready for such a high-stakes assig.

  Wiz regarded him calmly. "Rest assured, this isn't an immediate deployment," he said. "There will be a six-month preparation period. That's part of the reason General Stewart is here. You'll be undergoing interaining with the Sixth Division."

  GCLopes