Aldnoah.Zero (アルドノア・ゼロ)

Has there been any contact with Count Mazuurek since then?

No. However, his Landing Castle is still functional.

If its Aldnoah is still active, that means that Count Mazuurek is alive.

Perhaps he is lying low and waiting for an opening. Or perhaps...

Or perhaps he has been taken prisoner by the Terrans.

Either way, it would be prudent to assume that Count Mazuurek will not return.

In which case, there is but one course of action.

What are you...?

I cannot allow that Earthborn stray to run loose any longer.

Resupplying and inspection operations are on schedule. No delays reported.

As for Kataphrakt repairs,

we are working in concert with the base's repair depot to get back on schedule.

Very good. Carry on.

Yes, ma'am.

And our Mars Knight guest?

Not a word. He appears to be the silent type.

Mizusaki, do you know why men who are the silent type are so attractive?

Is it because they always seem calm and collected?

It's because they sit quietly and listen to what you have to say.

And our replacement crew?

Y-Yes, ma'am. They're already aboard, and station shifts have been revised.

A few of them were members of our previous crew.

Warrant Officer Kaizuka and Lt. Marito.

As well as Dr. Yagarai, who is now serving as an official medical officer with the rank of ensign.

Also, there has been a request from Ensign Kaizuka to interrogate the Mars Knight.

From Kaizuka Junior?

He says he wants to use his analytical engine.

You programmed this yourself, Inaho?

All I did was customize the firmware that it was already running.

The area it's tied into has been expanded, too. How's it feel?

Not all that different.

Try not to expand it any further, okay?

By the time you notice it's affecting your brain, it'll already be too late.

I won't. I'm aware of the risks.

Oh, this is where you are.

Yuki.

Got a minute?

Nao, why did you decide to serve aboard this ship?

What do you mean, why?

There's no reason for you to fight, right?

You should have packed up and left once your injuries were healed.

It's the same for you, Yuki.

No, it's not. I'm a soldier.

There was no reason for you to become a soldier, so it is the same.

It is not!

I regret it every day... That I made you into a soldier.

When I saw you that day, unconscious and covered in blood,

I asked myself, "Why didn't I stop you?"

I became a soldier because I wanted to protect you and the world you live in.

But you still...

I'm sorry. But I can't stand around doing nothing.

It's because of the princess, then?

That girl's not the Princess Asseylum you used to know.

She's now an enemy who's trying to conquer the Earth.

That person is a fake. The real one is still alive somewhere.

How could you possibly know that?

That's what my left eye determined.

Judging from the situation, I think she's being held against her will.

So I want to rescue Seylum.

That's impossible!

Yuki, she was shot right in front of me.

I was hurt, and she was shot as she was trying to help me.

That's why I have to save her.

Nao...

It's been a long time.

What is the Kataphrakt's status?

When they ran diagnostics,

they found even the sub-frame had been warped by the gravity waves.

Looks like it basically needs an overhaul.

I hear you quit drinking.

My primary physician is a real nag.

I guess a toast is out of the question, then.

There's always room for toasts.

You're unbelievable.

It was doctor's orders. Medicinal.

How are you feeling?

Not very well, looks like. I heard you were subjected to a full body search.

I never imagined I would be subjected to such primitive questioning.

We can't have you using a poison tooth.

What an outdated notion...

That does seem to be your national character.

From a Terran's point of view, I suppose Vers' feudal system

would seem just as anachronistic.

If it's a problem, change it yourselves.

Spoken like someone born into a land of plenty.

You're like pigs who are about to die.

Once you are too cold to move, it is too late.

You know quite a bit.

You admit I'm right?

No, about pigs. Even though Princess Asseylum had never seen birds before.

You have spoken to Princess Asseylum?

She spent time aboard this ship.

I see. You are one of those who sought to exploit her, then.

It wasn't exploitation. It was cooperation.

Cooperation, you say?

Can you tell me one thing?

Do I look like a man who would sell out his country lightly?

You don't look that way. Or sound that way.

Which makes you the perfect man to ask.

Have you sworn loyalty to Princess Asseylum?

Aren't you going to eat, Rayet?

If you don't eat a little, you won't have any energy when we go into battle.

I'm not hungry.

With fasting diets, the weight starts coming off at your boobs.

I've never gone on a diet before.

You've never dieted before, Rayet?

That's amazing! How do you keep that figure?

Would you tell me, too?

Commander.

Having lunch, ma'am?

I thought it would be nice to eat somewhere besides the ship while we're in port.

Right, we don't get to eat out very often, do we?

That reminds me, has anyone seen Inaho?

I was going to ask him to join us for lunch, but I haven't seen him.

Ensign Kaizuka is interrogating the Mars Knight at the moment.

Inaho's interrogating him?

I'm heading back.

Hey, wait... Rayet?

She didn't tell us the secret to her figure.

So, you are saying that the Princess Asseylum currently at our moon base is an impostor?

Yes.

If that is true, where is the real one?

Is she being held prisoner somewhere?

Or is there a reason she cannot show herself?

Possibly both.

That left eye of yours saw through that, as well?

It's an analytical engine.

Impossible! I am not so foolish that I would believe such a preposterous tale!

We've retrieved your Kataphrakt.

Its Aldnoah Drive was knocked offline by the force of the explosion.

It will never work again.

You powered it down yourself, didn't you? Out of fear that Terrans would steal it.

Weren't you listening? It stopped working after the explosion.

Did it, now? Just as I thought, you shut it down intentionally.

I will say it again.

Princess Asseylum is an impostor.

There are many species of birds, as well.

Large birds. Small birds.

And brilliantly-colored birds.

They're beautiful...

This is how birds fly through Earth's skies.

Most birds fly, but there are some species of flightless birds.

Flightless birds?

I suspect that Princess Asseylum might say that she finds it sad

that they cannot fly even though they have wings.

She is a kindhearted person.

But their inability to fly does not trouble them in the least.

On the contrary, perhaps the ones to be pitied are the birds

who can fly, but are kept in a cage.

Why would someone lock them in a cage?

Because they are so very beautiful.

Princess Asseylum was shot right in front of me.

Shot by Count Saazbaum.

Preposterous!

Who then left with Slaine Troyard.

They took Princess Asseylum, who was on the verge of death, with them.

Count Saazbaum was celebrated as the hero who rescued Princess Asseylum!

He's no hero.