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As the Ladybird proceeds, it picks up incoming units: four Gespenst Mk. IIs. The IFF codes identify them as being from Peterson Base, though there's been no word from Tesla about it...
Fed: "This is Ares 1. L349, do you read?"
Transport Pilot: "This is L349, we copy."
Fed: "L349, we're here to provide escort to Tesla Reich."
Pilot: "Ares 1, we've received no notice of any escort..."
Fed: "The Institute requested we come here. Orders are orders."
Pilot: "....."
Raji: "We still can't reach them? Something's not right..."
Pilot: "I'll try to raise the Institute again."
Two Messers come in from another direction.
More Feds: "L349, watch out! Those are enemy units!"
First Fed(?): "Tch... Party crashers."
Having destroyed the newcomers, the Gespensts order our transport to follow them, promising that we'll be unharmed. Clearly they're not Feds, and DC remnants or not, they must want to get their hands on the Excellence or they would have fired already.
The music playing now is lifted straight from the GBA SRW games. It's pretty awful, in my opinion.
Raji is prepared to go along with them for the time being, but Fiona yells for him to open the hatch; she'll go out in the Excellence and keep them busy while the transport escapes, then catch up later. She tries to tell Raul to stay with Raji and Mizuho, but he insists that he'll be going out too - more enemies could be waiting along their escape route, and they'll stand a better chance fighting together. Furthermore, if the enemy are worried about damaging the Excellence, that gives them an advantage. Raji doesn't like the increased risks, but Raul only sees their chance of survival going up. Solve the problem they're facing now before worrying about what comes after, in other words.
Mizuho: "But... I..."
Fiona: "Mizuho, I know what you want to say. But we have no choice but to do this."
Mizuho: "....."
Fiona: "Sooner or later, this was something we'd have to deal with."
Mizuho: "But I didn't..."
Fiona: "I know. But we need the Excellence if we're going to get out of here."
Mizuho: "....."
Raul: (Mizuho...)
Mizuho: "I... I understand."
Raul and Fiona launch in their Excellences; Raji and Mizuho run through the preliminary checks (with Fiona needing to remind Mizuho to take a deep breath and calm herself), and everything appears green. Raji gives them a final warning not to push the energy converter.
Mizuho: "R-Raul, Fiona... please come back safe."
Fiona: "Got it. Our dad's research isn't getting snuffed out in a place like this."
Raul: "Don't worry, we'll be back."
The Ladybird withdraws, and the unknowns move to capture the Excellences. When the siblings prepared for testing their units, this wasn't what they had in mind...