Chapter 70: The Underground Hangar

Meanwhile, carrying Casca on his back, with Celes gliding in flight right beside him and Craig, carrying Corie perched on his shoulders, leaping in massive bounds far below, Clyde finally exited the city and raced toward the mansion nestled deep in the woods, perched slightly on the mountain slope, a place rumored to be haunted and long since abandoned. Thud. They touched down in the mansion’s front courtyard, with Craig landing shortly after alongside Corie. All of them were still clad in their combat forms.

Standing before them was a sprawling, wide mansion choked with overgrown vines, looking dilapidated and completely abandoned after years of neglect.

"We’re back here," Craig observed, gazing at the massive estate before them.

"Yeah... but where is it, Brother? Didn’t they say the slaves are locked away around here?" Corie asked.

"Shh... don’t interrupt, Brother Clyde is trying to remember," Casca scolded, patting the back of Corie’s helmeted head.

"Oh... right... my bad," Corie apologized.

Celes, standing beside Clyde, watched him stand motionless. Though his face was hidden behind a mask, he clearly appeared deep in thought, with one hand raised to his chin. The area fell quiet once more. Then Clyde looked around, walking the perimeter of the huge mansion along a path clear of tall weeds. Seeing Clyde pace in silence, Celes, Craig, Casca, and Corie exchanged glances before following closely behind him.

When they reached the back, they found nothing but an overgrown garden choked with tall weeds and the forest bordering the rear. However, a narrow trail cut through the brush, and two parked trucks were vaguely visible at the far end. Clyde resumed walking forward, plowing through the human-high weeds along the footpath, with the others following in absolute silence. Once they pushed through the tall grass, they found it was true: two trucks were parked there, alongside a clear patch of ground and a rear fence featuring an exit gate, though there was no sign of life, the trucks looked as if they had simply been abandoned there.

"Hmm... it should be right here... based on my vision," Clyde muttered to himself.

"But there’s nothing here," Celes replied.

"Let me check those two trucks... those are definitely still in use, not just some junked vehicles," Craig offered.

"Okay... I’m coming with you, Brother Craig," Casca said.

"Me too... I’m going," Corie added.

Craig, Casca, and Corie walked toward the two trucks parked near the rear perimeter gate, while Clyde and Celes remained standing and staring into the woods.

"Are you sure it’s here, Clyde?" Celes asked.

"Yeah... though it’s not entirely clear. I just remember this location feeling familiar from my vision," Clyde answered.

"Okay... please hold onto my body," Celes requested.

"Huh... what are you going to do..."

Before Clyde could finish, Celes’s body suddenly went limp. He instinctively caught her as she swayed, watching her spirit drift out into the air and slip right into his head. Clyde felt no physical impact, save for a chilling sensation coursing through his mind. He lowered himself gently, sitting down to cradle Celes’s unconscious body while her consciousness resided within him. But moments later, Gasp! the Celes in his lap suddenly bolted upright.

"Done?" Clyde asked.

"Done... I found the location from the fragments of your blurry vision," Celes answered.

The two stood up. Celes stepped forward, planted her foot firmly, and "boom!" she stomped down hard against the ground before leaping backward to land right beside Clyde. Grrrrk. The patch of earth Celes had just struck crumbled apart as a section of the ground slid upward, forming a doorway with a descending staircase hidden beneath it. Hearing the commotion behind them, Craig, Casca, and Corie rushed over to Clyde and Celes.

"Right there," Celes pointed toward a wide, open pit framed by heavy steel plates, clearly leading into an underground bunker.

"Wow... a secret room," Corie marveled.

"No wonder it wasn’t visible, everything was covered in soil. Who would’ve guessed there’s a structure underneath all this?" Casca added.

"Hmm... are the people we need to rescue down there?" Craig asked.

"Yup... I saw it in Clyde’s memories," Celes replied.

"Let’s go inside... don’t waste any time, and thanks, Celes," Clyde said.

"You got it... you’re welcome," Celes replied cheerfully.

With that, they all headed toward the cave-like entrance and walked down the steps. Inside, they navigated a corridor resembling the interior of a deep-space mother ship until they reached the dead end featuring a digital scanner meant to unlock a heavy steel door. Clang! Craig slammed his fist into the door, ripping it right off its hinges. Beyond the barrier was an elevator shaft used for descending. They jumped straight down, crashing through the elevator car below until it was flattened, after which Craig smashed open the opposite door and they pushed inside.

"Wow."

Stepping forward, they found themselves staring at a starfighter cockpit, though the forward screens were dark. As power surged through the room and the lights flickered on, the displays illuminated an expansive hangar bay resembling a spacecraft dock. But the massive hangar doors directly in front of them were completely shattered and blown open, revealing something blocking the exit. They soon realized that what was wedged against the torn hangar gate was the very backside of the Chimaera Z-X they had accidentally parked right up against the exterior of the aircraft bay.

"Oh... so that’s what it was," Craig remarked.

"We accidentally parked against their hangar without even realizing it," Casca giggled.

"Hehehe... nice! That means they’re trapped inside. This must be their transport ship, just like in sci-fi space movies," Corie observed, looking around.

"True. Celes, could you see where the slaves are being kept from my thoughts?" Clyde asked.

"Yup... this way, follow me," Celes answered.

They walked toward a door on the left. Pushing it open, they returned to a long corridor flanked by two steel doors on the right and one on the left. Reaching the end of the hall, they found themselves facing a massive engine room featuring a cylindrical core housing a giant quartz crystal that evidently served as the ship’s power generator. Celes led them down a set of stairs to the lower level, where they discovered an empty chamber centered around the crystal core, designed to project an energy field whenever the vessel’s engines fired up.

Afterward, Celes guided them to a door on the left, leading them back into another long corridor. At the far end stood a locked door. Craig stepped up and pulled his fist back, ready to smash through the heavy metal barrier, but suddenly,

"Wait!"

Casca stopped Craig, stepping forward to press her ear directly against the door as if listening for something inside. Clyde, Celes, Craig, and Corie waited in silence, but suddenly Casca’s tail whipped upward, and scritch, it plunged straight into the door, tearing downward and ripping the metal wide open.

"Smash it, Brother Craig!" Casca shouted telepathically.

Craig punched through the already-ruptured door. Clang! Two men standing inside spun around in utter shock as the five intruders barged in. Though hidden behind their helmets, the faces of Clyde, Celes, Casca, Craig, and Corie were burning with white-hot fury. The reason was clear: the two men were in the process of stripping an antennaed woman who lay unconscious on the floor, their belts already unbuckled. Yet before the intruders could make a move,

Thud.

The two men simultaneously hurled punches directly into each other’s faces, knocking themselves out cold. Meanwhile, the woman lay sprawled on the floor. Spotting the scene, Clyde, Craig, Corie, and Casca turned their gazes toward Celes, whose third eye was glowing brightly. It was obvious the two men had beaten each other unconscious due to Celes’s mental manipulation, amplified by a surge of enforced kinetic force.

They looked around to find tiered cages lining the walls. Inside the cells were numerous women and young girls from various races, utterly broken and stripped of their will to live. Their faces were grimy, stained with tear tracks that seemed to have dried up long ago; their clothes were torn to shreds as if they had endured brutal abuse; and their hollow eyes stared blankly ahead, reflecting a deep, harrowing trauma.

"This... is going too far," Casca growled, glaring around the room in rage.

"Yeah... way too far," Corie echoed, equally furious.

"Alright... let’s free them and get out of here, back to the city," Clyde instructed.

"Will they even be safe in the city, Brother?" Craig asked.

"We don’t have a choice right now, do we? We can’t just leave them here," Clyde answered.

"Before we free them, there’s a cargo exit at the front leading out to the hangar, and there are a lot of guards stationed out there," Celes warned.

Clyde, Casca, Craig, and Corie fell deep in thought, exchanging glances before Clyde finally stepped forward.

"Let’s wipe out those guards first, then we’ll help these captives," Clyde decided.

"Got it," Celes, Casca, Craig, and Corie replied in unison.

With that, they marched toward the door at the end of the room to step out into the hangar and eliminate everyone in their way.