“Thank you for being with us tonight, Captain Holt.”

“Thank you for having me.”

“We’re eagerly awaiting your return, with more amazing exploits to share with us.”

“Certainly, good night, everyone.”

The glowing red light saying “Live” turned off. Almost instantly, dozens of people started walking around, each with their special purpose, preparing the set for the next show.

Holt drew a large breath and shook his head. He somehow made it through another interview. The memories of all the blunders he just made started flooding his brain, but he pushed on.

“Captain Holt, you were great tonight!”

The host approached him all of a sudden. During the show, she relentlessly assaulted him with the hardest of questions and tried to methodically dismantle his presentation. After the red light was switched off, she turned into a completely different person. He knew that she was just being a professional host, but his mind still perceived her as a threat.

“Thank you, Lady Anya.”

“Oh, just Anya is fine. Despite my looks, I’m not from a prestigious family.”

“Is that so. Judging solely by looks, I would’ve guessed you’d be at least a governor’s daughter.”

“Heh, is that so? You could tell me more about your guesses, maybe.”

Holt’s eye twitched.

“I’d love to.”

“Tomorrow night?”

“Sure...”

As soon as she left, a group of people surrounded him. One adjusted his suit, the other held a plate with food, another stood behind them as security, and the last quickly shuffled through a bunch of papers reading the next appointments.

“Two more meetings tonight, Captain Holt.” Said his assistant. She watched as Lady Anya glanced back at Holt.

“Should I clean up your schedule?” She asked, eyes fixed on the host.

“Add an appointment for tomorrow night, note, bring an expensive present.”

“Added. I’ll make a reservation at the Hanging Gardens.” Her eyes glowed orange for a moment. “It’s me, I need a gift for Anya Murdock. The Captain will need a luxury vehicle for tomorrow night.”

Holt grabbed something to eat while listening to his assistant handling everything. He quickly finished and waved away the plate guy.

“Alright, let’s head out.”

His group moved to the roof of the TV building. There, an airship was waiting for them, rotors already running. Flying machines were incredible. Despite his packed schedule, Holt always made sure to travel around using an airship. While rail carts were generally faster, nothing could beat the feeling of soaring through the sky, high above the constant rumbling and tremors of the land carriers.

Inside, another girl held a set of clothes. During the interview, Holt wore his signature black military jacket. The crew figured that the Captain of the First Scout Team had to give the impression of elegance while also displaying power. Dozens of people he employed carefully maintained his image, each with their own unique set of skills and expertise. A good leader covers his shortcomings with skilled individuals.

As he read through the points of his next meeting, a sudden feeling of pressure engulfed his head. His eyes quickly left the pages, franticly looking around the cabin at the rest of his people.

Nothing seemed out of the ordinary. Each of them went about their business as if nothing happened.

The airship started to suddenly increase and decrease in altitude. The others didn’t seem to mind. Holt got up and entered the pilot’s cabin.

As he entered, the copilot looked ahead without a care in the world. The pilot, on the other hand, was frantically twisting and pulling the control lever of the airship. Holt looked for a few moments, conflicted about whether to intervene or not. In the end, he leaned over the pilot and pushed the cruise button.

“Oh! I see, thanks.”

“Granny Sinze... What are you doing here?”

The pilot raised the helmet, revealing that he, was a small elderly woman with pure white hair and a red blindfold over both her eyes. Gold bands held together strands of her hair, and gold bracelets and rings decorated her arms and fingers. Her skin was smooth, like that of a child, but her entire being radiated an overpowering aura, unlike that of any child.

“I needed to speak with you, so I figured I could just drop by like this.” She responded. Holt stared at her in disbelief. She cheerfully pretended to pilot the airship in a way that a kid would. The pilot’s helmet was too big for her, covering most of her face, but her eyes were hidden by the blindfold anyway.

“Do sit down.”

The copilot suddenly got up, giving away his seat.

“I know you’re busy, but you should always visit your grandma... I was lonely while you were away on a mission.” She pouted.

“I was going to. It’s in my schedule somewhere...”

“Ellie came earlier.”

Holt turned towards Sinze. He prepared some excuses for this moment, but he couldn’t voice them. Whenever he would talk with Sinze, his throat hurt, and he was unable to speak his mind. She didn’t look directly at him, but he could still feel her eyes watching him.

“Wah!”

After a few moments of excruciating silence, Sinze suddenly made a loud noise, wrestling Holt out of his own mind.

“That was close... We almost hit that tower!”

“It avoided it on its own, you can’t maneuver it.”

“If it weren’t for me, all of you would be dead right now.”

Her words felt more ominous than they should’ve.

“I’m telling you. The lever doesn’t control anything. The airship’s on cruise mode.”

“Anyway, as I was saying, I spoke with Ellie. She’s such a good child, always coming to visit me whenever she’s back. She even brought me a present from the field.”

“That... I also helped, so I believe I should also get credit.”

“Sure you get, sweety. She told me that you guys managed to reach all the way into Aaleph. If I knew about it, I could’ve pointed you in its direction from the start. After all, I’ve been there a few times.”

“That was a special operation under the direct orders of Kral Vacek. We couldn’t bring anyone else in, especially you, granny.”

“That old fool... What now? Is he going to send you back into Aaleph? Who is he going to murder next?”

“Actually, he hasn’t followed up with a Subjugation order. I was also surprised. Instead, he fell for our little diversion.”

“Of course, he did. That machine head of his can only look forwards after all.”

“A black zone is going to be established around that area, then we’re going to be sent in to exterminate the threat.”

“Good. Anyway, I see that you’re busy right now. Come visit granny whenever you’re free! Bye!”

“Wha! Wait!”

The pressure around his head suddenly vanished, along with the small girl piloting the airship. Instead, Holt saw the pilot and the copilot, both in their usual places. Ahead of the airship was the landing platform of the Danube Trading Association, his next meeting place.

“Captain Holt? Is everything alright?” Asked the pilot.

“It’s nothing.”

He went back into the cabin. The others were going about their business as usual. Blinking a few times cleared away the disorienting feeling. His thoughts immediately switched back to the task at hand.

“We’re almost at the Trading Guild. You’re ready?”

They raised their heads as one.

“Yes, Captain!”