Honkai, why do you only throw me into high-level battles?

"Ms. Cocolia, you still intend to reactivate that device?" Einstein asked, her voice calm, but her tone firm.

"Why not? We simply need to be more cautious this time. If anything goes wrong, we'll shut it down immediately," Cocolia replied, her expression unchanged. "We can't let a single… incident scare us into abandoning this research. What would be the point?"

She was still obsessed, still clinging to her dream, despite the heavy losses she'd suffered.

She surveyed her remaining forces, her heart aching at their diminished numbers, then continued, her smile strained. "Doctors, since you're… sharing a cockpit now, I'll have to… restrict your movements, for safety reasons, of course. Wouldn't want any… accidents." She gestured, and the mechs surrounding Einstein's Titan closed in again.

"What are you doing now, Cocolia?!" Tesla roared. "You've barely got any mechs left! Are you planning to go in there yourself and get squashed?!"

"No, you misunderstand, Dr. Tesla. I understand our current… limitations," Cocolia replied, her smile widening, her true intentions now clear. "I simply want… your people, when they arrive, to join us in this… grand endeavor."

Her plan was a coup – to hold the scientists hostage, forcing them to hand over control of Anti-Entropy.

It was a bold, aggressive move.

"You're insane!" Tesla laughed, her anger replaced by a cold fury.

She'd always considered Cocolia annoying, unreasonable, even deserving of a good thrashing. But she'd still been one of them. Internal conflicts were… internal.

They presented a united front to the outside world.

But now, Cocolia was the enemy, a traitor who needed to be dealt with. And the only way to deal with enemies was through force.

Unfortunately, she was the one at a disadvantage now. It was infuriating.

"I'm disappointed in you, Cocolia," Einstein said, her voice still calm, but her tone… cold. "If you want it so badly, then take it."

A brilliant blue light filled the chamber, and hundreds of mechs materialized around Einstein's Titan, pushing Cocolia's forces aside.

"Perhaps now, Ms. Cocolia, we can have a… productive discussion," Einstein said, smoothing back her hair, her voice still calm, but she felt a surge of relief. They'd made it just in time.

While they hadn't fully cracked the ruins' systems, they'd managed to reroute enough energy to transmit a signal.

The tables had turned.

"What…?" Cocolia stared at the mechs surrounding the scientists, then realization dawned. "So, the ruins' communication systems are also functional… as expected of Mu's technology!" She hadn't noticed Einstein's actions. Ein was just a small, unassuming robot, easily overlooked.

"Hah! Cocolia!" Tesla, no longer holding back, yelled, "Looks like your little plan failed! Not so smug now, are you?!"

It's over!

Cocolia, realizing her plan had failed, asked, "Tesla, did you only contact HQ when you called for reinforcements?"

"Why do you ask?" Tesla retorted, refusing to answer. "Trying to stall for time?"

But Cocolia had already gotten her answer. She smiled, her voice filled with a chilling confidence. "Silence is consent. Excellent…"

She issued a command through her communicator.

Every advantage has its disadvantages. While Cocolia hadn't discovered Einstein's actions, she still controlled the ruins' systems. She could use the same channel Einstein had opened to transmit her own orders.

Another wave of blue light filled the chamber, and more mechs materialized, surrounding Einstein's Titan and the HQ forces.

The tables had turned again.

"What…?" Tesla stared at the new arrivals, dumbfounded. They were outnumbered, surrounded.

"Judging by their markings, these are mechs from the various branches and affiliated organizations," Einstein said, quickly assessing the situation, her voice grim. "It seems the infiltration is… more extensive than we anticipated."

During their earlier investigation, they'd discovered signs of infiltration within Anti-Entropy, a subtle erosion of their organization from within, coinciding with their recent expansion. But their investigation had been interrupted, the evidence pointing towards Cocolia.

"Excellent! You honored our agreement!" Cocolia said, relieved by the arrival of her reinforcements.

They weren't her direct subordinates, but they were still loyal to Anti-Entropy, and for now, that was enough. "This… division… is hardly befitting of colleagues, is it?" She'd dropped all pretense, her voice filled with a cold authority. "So, Doctors, now that we have… sufficient forces, shall we resume our… exploration?"

"Cocolia… are you still loyal to Anti-Entropy?" Tesla asked, her voice filled with a mixture of anger and despair. Seeing the organization she'd helped build fractured like this… it broke her heart. "This is… mutiny!"

"We are Anti-Entropy's most loyal members, Doctor," Cocolia replied, her voice condescending.

"We simply need to… unite under a single, strong leader, to face the ever-growing threat of Schicksal."

She was that leader, of course.

"Scientists like yourselves should focus on research and development, leaving the… practical matters to… professionals."

Then, Fake concern, she added, "I don't want to… harm you, Doctors. But accidents happen, especially in such… tense situations…"

"You're a hypocrite, Cocolia," Tesla spat.

"If Ms. Cocolia is so eager to proceed, then we won't object. Be our guest," Einstein said, her voice still calm. "But I trust you won't be using our forces as… cannon fodder? We will exercise our right to self-defense if necessary." They were still outnumbered, but they weren't helpless anymore. They had enough leverage to make Cocolia hesitate.

"Hmph, just don't… disappoint me," Cocolia replied, her own confidence wavering slightly. She didn't want to push them too far, especially Tesla. She ordered her forces to stand down, easing the tension.

But the two factions remained separate, wary of each other.

With a tentative agreement in place, Cocolia reactivated the furnace, channeling the energy into the device, reopening the shimmering gateway.

"Roar!" A few quantum shadows emerged, then a massive hand reached through the gateway, crushing them. Tlaloc, its colossal form finally revealed, stepped through.

It was not happy.

These insignificant ants had dared to reopen the gateway.

"Attack!" Cocolia sent a squad of mechs to test its strength. They were swatted aside like flies. She frowned, then sent more, this time using a more dispersed formation, trying to suppress it with concentrated fire.

Einstein watched, her expression unreadable.

"Roar!" Enraged by the barrage of attacks, Tlaloc lashed out, crushing the mechs one by one, then, growing impatient, unleashed a series of energy beams, obliterating them all.

Cocolia was speechless.

This creature was far more powerful than she'd anticipated. Sending more forces would be pointless, a suicidal waste of resources. And these were her forces, not the HQ units that wouldn't obey her. If she lost too many mechs, she would be vulnerable.

"Giving up already, Ms. Cocolia?" Einstein's cold voice echoed through the comms. She sighed, then said calmly, "Ein, cut the power to the furnace."

She'd finally cracked the access codes.

The roaring furnace fell silent. The HQ mechs took defensive positions, wary of both the monstrous creature and Cocolia's potential reaction.

"What did you do?!" Cocolia realized she'd lost control, her carefully orchestrated plan falling apart, handing victory to Einstein.

"Don't be hasty, Ms. Cocolia. We wouldn't want to damage this… valuable facility, would we?" Einstein's calm, mocking tone, echoing Cocolia's own earlier words, made Tesla grin. "As you can see, that creature is… beyond our capabilities. I doubt we can proceed without the Sovereign's… direct intervention."

"Hah! Easy for you to say!" Cocolia spat. "You stole my prize, and now you're lecturing me?!"

"Whether you like it or not, Ms. Cocolia, you were the one who activated these ruins. So, it's only fair that we share the… spoils. But I have a condition," Einstein said, her magnanimous tone infuriating Cocolia, who had no choice but to listen.

"What is it?"

"We leave," Einstein said coldly. "And to prevent any… unauthorized activities, neither of us will station any forces here. We'll wait for the Sovereign's return."