While the darklings continued their endless light show over meaningless metal husks in the void, the Elders waited and conserved. Brief feelers were swiftly severed, as those of the flesh harbored greater hatred for those of the light than for their own kind. But as the fire borne from light receded, those without light in their minds swiftly excised the threat - and its motivation. The Elders, wise in their currents within the Community, had already grasped this truth, and now the collective had followed suit. Yet, as with all waiting, one atom touches another, then another, and at last, the light shifts its luster toward ever greater brilliance - one that cannot be contained.

The one question Forsberg had been asking himself and his staff, over and over, was why the aliens had chosen to lay low during this latest conflict. To confirm his vague suspicions, he ordered a general analysis of sightings and engagements over the past three months while also receiving reports on the new capabilities detected by the Mars battlegroup. Though his staff begrudged the "pointless" task, they produced the results easily enough. Indeed, it was almost commendable that the aliens had quit the field just as the Core was making itself a real nuisance.

And yet, none of it felt right… The retaliatory strike by Kusari-infected forces was clearly a feint to draw defenders away, but why then had the real objective - whatever it was - remained untouched? It was ludicrous to think the Core had managed to communicate with the aliens as effectively as they had with their pet machines, but what other explanation fit the context? Unless…

The first to sound the alarm was a picket stationed near the Pohnpei Nebula. The Core’s own vessel, named after the same region, had always preferred to stay away from its "cousin," favoring direct assaults with its zombies clearing the way. But orders were orders, and while their comrades covered themselves in glory (or heroically perished in action), the two Order operatives stayed put, watching the flank. What emerged from Pohnpei was not some clever group of ex-Libertonian killers - it was the answer to Forsberg’s riddle. Indeed, the very answer that the man and woman had joked about in their darker moods. The aliens, now emerging from the cloud in massive force, had finally made their move. And now, all humans - friends and enemies alike - would once again suffer the consequences of their infighting.

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