Dana retreats to her private chamber. A small benefit of being the leader of the cave Ponu. She just wants to rest. Soon, however, she is joined by a visitor, with drinks.

  "Holly, you recognize that I did the right thing? We have no idea what Geeryo is capable of. We could be sending people out there to die."

  Holly looks at her best friend. "I can't say. This could be a wise decision that saves the cave.....or it could be a horrific blunder that dooms us all. If I knew which one, I'd be a dangerous person, ha, Holly the Clairvoyant."

  Dana looks on with an expression that says thanks for nothing, my friend.

  Holly continues, "All I can say is that sometimes moments like this come, and you have to seize them. The sad thing is, there are probably fewer than a dozen moments in our lives that define the rest of our lives. A decision made or not made here or there can have great ripple effects. Dana, you're my best friend. Just know that whatever you decide, I stand with you."

  Dana looks, "wow...did you know you give crappy speeches?", they laugh, "but still you give good inspiration. I just don't know. Defending the cave is one thing; this is our home ground. Out there, we would be going out to try to fight with people who hate us; we'd also have to go up against our fellow Ponu, but the main thing is, we would have to take on a Geeryo-backed army. They have technology that would make even Lana shocked. We hide from Geeryo; we do not go out to fight them on a battlefield with spears.

  "But....but aren't you tired of hiding?" Holly asks.

  The question cuts to Dana's heart. She stares for a few moments, letting it soak in.

  "This is no way to live," she says quietly.

  Her eyes wander. Even Dmoko realized the time to fight was now, she thought. She realizes there are many women who want to fight, but won't unless she leads. Perhaps she is mistaken.

  "You're right...we have to make a stand somewhere. I was a fool. Can we catch up with Kaela and Audrey's team?"

  Holly, now optimistic, says, "They should not be too far ahead."

  "We fight," she proclaims. "Call all the Ponu who can fight."

  Holly says, "There should be about 50 left. Our best two fighters, though, Audrey is already there, and Marcela is staying back with Lana."

  "ok, then, get everyone else, the 50. We will march now!" says Dana, filled with hope that she is doing the right thing, but secretly dreading even now that she is about to lead 50 women to their deaths.

  ______________

  Later, JaKaelath and Audrey's group approaches the scavenger camp. They are shocked not to see the siege but just how many there are. JaKaelath was expecting a dozen at most. What she sees is likely 100. All with eyes glowing.

  They all, from a safe distance, look on in shock.

  Even Audrey is hesitant, "We'd never make it through there".

  Kaela, now defeated, says, "If anyone wants to go back, you can. I am going to sneak in and fight with my camp.

  One smaller Ponu, Patty, nervously says, "Ms. Kaela", I think I know a way in, for at least a few of us. Lana's wings."

  Kaela looks on, confused. Audrey grins, "Good job, Patty, that might just get us in, for all the good that does. Get word to the Dowath, go back to the cave, have Lana send as many of those energy wing attachments as she can, pronto.

  "Wings?" Kaela asks. "Yes, you're going to love this." Audrey says with a grin. She tells Patty before the young Ponu can relay the message to the Dowaths, "Make sure to tell Lana not to send the ones that turn off 50ft in the air". Kaela's eyes widen.

  ______________

  Miles away from the camp, at the Geeryo Transport, "One" is showing the closest thing to a smile she has shown the entire mission.

  To her, this is the moment her team can finally fulfill their mission, to serve Geeryo. The metallic sphere appears. It is the geeryo woman, the man is too sick to communicate now.

  "Does he need water?" I can bring some back there. "No Ponu", the geeryo woman says. "We are ok, as soon as the mission is completed, we can leave. "

  One looks at the wall inside the transport that separates them from the physical bodies of the geeryo man and geeryo woman. "Yes, your will is being carried out. We found an unopened vault and, using the Sphere, we now have almost 100 Ponu under your control to be used in the assault. We...lost Four...and Three was found, badly wounded from her own energy whip and died later." One holds the whip, the last memento of Three.

  "Do you have the report on the Ponu scavenger, her bioscans, and genetic map?" the geeryo woman asks.

  "Yes, Two has them; she will send those. However, we figured finding the cave city coordinates takes priority, so that is what she is working on now."

  "You heard Ms Hawksworth, you were to send those as soon as you had them."

  "Yes, we will obey," One says, kneeling.

  Minutes later, walking outside the transport, she gives the order, "Prepare to march to the camp, we attack on my command."

  ______________

  Later, the camp is tense with fear. Janeda is sick inside watching the preparations and regretting she could not pick up a weapon. Joric commands the camp forces, including Kallian's refugees. They are outnumbered, their only hope is to inflict as much damage that the enemy retreats.

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  What he does not know is that the enemy does not care about the number of casualties, as long as they achieve their result.

  Kallian searches for another bottle of brew. Fed up that he can't find one, he stumbles out to join the preparation for the fight, when he sees them; everyone in the camp outside sees them, Ponu descending from the sky with what looks like wings.

  6 of them, including Kaela, Audrey, and Patty, all with palms facing out in a gesture of peace.

  To Kallian, this is impossible. Kaela was supposed to be dead. It's almost as if seeing her spirit with wings descending. Spirit or not, he wants to kill whatever it is.

  Kallian slurs, "fire, blow them out of the sky."

  Joric screams, "hell no, that's JaKaelath, let her land, even if she's with them, we might can talk this out."

  The Ponu fairies land. JaKaelath steps forward, quite a sight in her ponu suit and pink energy wings.

  Everyone gathers round, including Kragon, JaLena, JaMaya, and even Janeda looks on from her tent.

  "I went to the cave to get help. There were more, but with the blockade, we only had 6 of these wings that allowed us to go over the blockage.

  We're here to help. Our goal is simple: we have Dowath standing by, and they have a sound weapon that keeps the Dowath from interfering. If we can destroy the sound weapon, the Dowath can land and flip the odds in our favor."

  For once, the crowd in the camp has hope. They accept the plan even over Kallian's scoffs and groans.

  The 6 Ponu women walk towards Joric. The Red Band members protest, "They are here to attack us from inside once the battle starts!"

  One Red Band woman yells out as she trips Patty, who falls to the ground on her face, "fucking wet behind the ears Ponu here looks like she would run the first time someone raised their voice at her".

  The retribution is swift. Audrey's shove knocks the Red Band woman onto her backside. "If you touch her again, you won't live to see the battle start!" The Red Band woman gets up, and soon she and the Amazonian Ponu are face-to-face, about to battle. Another Red Band stands behind the first woman, "You've got to go through both of us." Kaela stands beside Audrey, "Then it's two on two, then." The rest of the Red Band step up, "Make it twelve to two," one of them says.

  Surprisingly, the local scavengers fall in behind Kaela and Audrey, "Make it seventeen to twelve!" Joric says. Someone in the local camp scavengers crowd yells out, "She's one of us, you Red Band scum!" Kaela doesn't know who said it, but it fills her with pride. The Red Band stand down.

  Then, the attack began.

  ____________________

  The sentries call out before they are taken out. The Fairy Ponu, armed with flashbombs and spears, and the scavengers with whatever weapons they can use, prepare for the onslaught. Word goes out to strike anything with glowing eyes.

  The fighting is fierce as the Geeryo "White Guard" Ponu in their containment suits make their way through, eliminating resistance.

  It becomes clear what the strategy of the Geeyo Elite is: to use the newly awakened 100 as cannon fodder. They will engage the camp defenders, and then the White Guard will take them out.

  It's a strategy that becomes brutally effective.

  Audrey comes face-to-face with a massive "White Guard". At such close range, he intends to use his weapon as a club and swings with the intention of ending her life.

  Patty grabs his legs from behind just as the blow is about to be delivered. It's the opening Audrey needed as she thrusts her spear into the large male Ponu, causing him to fall in agony.

  Kaela is using all her speed and agility to evade the attacks of the Ponu with glowing eyes. She is searching as she fights, hoping to see if the siren is nearby.

  If it is in the transport, she thinks, that will be impossible to get to. She pins her hopes on it being portable, somewhere within reach.

  She lures 3 of them chasing her, swinging wildly at her almost dancer-like movements with the enemy getting frustrated at coming so close to getting her with each attack. This is the Ponu in her. Then, when they are close, with brutal efficiency, she takes a weapon from one, using it to kill another and injure the third before finally using it again on the first. This is the scavenger in her.

  A third of the camp's defenders have fallen, "One" smiles. She still has a visual ID on Kallian; he is there in the fight. This will be good; she will serve Geeryo well.

  Patty, the young warrior, fights beside Audrey, each watching the other's back. "Damn girl, you got a lot of fight in you for someone so small". The words echo in JaKaelath's mind, something someone said to her not long ago, "You have a fight in you", Janeda. JaKaelath looks and sees Janeda's tent almost behind enemy lines, and she races there.

  She enters, seeing the woman who helped raise her on her bed, breathing heavily. Everything stops, she moves towards her, then she sees 4 of the mind-controlled Ponu enter the tent behind her.

  She can't run and leave Janeda. This is where she makes her last stand. Just then, there is a commotion outside. The 4 mind-controlled Ponu turn and leave the tent.

  It's Dana and her group of 50 Ponu. They have just arrived. Taking advantage of the chaos of the ongoing battle, they plow into the fight with their spears. "One" sees her and instantly recognizes the face; this is the prize that Dr Hawksworth wants, even more than Kallian.

  She communicates to her legion via the metallic sphere, "Priority 1 has changed. Now Kallian is Priority 2, Priority 1 is the Ponu named Dana. Capture if possible, kill if not".

  Then just as soon as the order is given, she sees a ghost. She notices Kaela on the battlefield. "How is this possible?" she thinks, afterall, they found Kaela's body on the way to the camp. She already informed Doctor Hawksworth that the Ponu scavenger was dead, a victim most likely of scavenger small arms fire to the chest.

  Nevertheless, she thinks, if Kaela is somehow still alive, it will be an even greater gift for her masters.

  Even with Dana's 50, the odds are not in their favor; they begin to be pushed back.

  All is not lost, but it feels inevitable.

  High above, the Dowaths observe the collapsing battle. Drookan's heart is with Kaela, but he knows it could be suicide to get closer. Dmoko looks on. He tells Dmeko, "Prepare to leave if there is no signal or breakthrough soon. This battle appears to be concluding. We must be ready to move quickly. Everyone must be ready to evacuate the cave as soon as we can." He looks at Drookan, almost as if saying this is partially your fault, "Where we will go, I do not know," Dmoko finishes.

  "One is pleased." The capture of the camp, the capture of Kallian, the capture of Dana, the capture of the anomaly known as Kaela. No one will have served Geeryo as well as she has today.