The chaos ended fairly quickly once Erwin killed Bridge.


    What was left of the Helmets, he made light work of, stripping the children of the helmets in mere moments. Inside the lab that sprawled beneath Bridge’s mansion, they found Lucas, wounded but alive. He’d beaten Kaia and had passed out afterward. When they found him, Kaia was gone, escaped somehow in the chaos.


    Those who’d helped in Bridge’s experiments, Erwin left to Yuri who showed absolutely no mercy. Mason and the others who’d survived were moved to an official lab where they continued to regenerate, Erwin watching curiously as they did.


    Mason was the first of them to wake and he remembered nothing since he and the others had been attacked down in the tunnel. He did recognize Chloe and the others, and was confused to see them when he woke. And once he’d been filled in on everything that had happened, all he had to say to Chloe was: “All of this is because you shot at my car.”


    Miguel too had sustained some injuries during the fight against the Helmets and he now had one hand wrapped in a cast. The tech he’d put together for his ensemble as Nightman was examined by Erwin who labeled them archaic, but oddly useful.


    Chloe left Yuri alone with Jon and her recovering unit members, and went to find Jin in the next room where she was laid in bed, already looking much like her old self. She’d occupied herself with a book from Bridge’s library.


    “Hey,” Chloe said as she walked in. “How’re you feeling?”


    Jin shrugged. “Alright, I suppose. This is a pretty uninteresting read though.” She looked up and met Chloe’s eyes. “How are you feeling?”


    “Your blood’s wearing off now so I’m pretty sure I’m about to feel incredibly exhausted and pass out,” Chloe answered. “But before that happens, I figured I’d check on you, see how you were doing and you know…thank you.”


    “Thank me?”


    “Well, you did help out against Bridge. And your blood’s the only reason Jon and I are still alive.”


    Jin smiled. “Huh, you were right, it is nice being thanked. But just so you know, you don’t have to thank me. I’m happy to save your life whenever.”


    Chloe snorted. “Well, don’t get too used to it.” She let out a long yawn then, her vision blurring slightly.


    “I’ll try,” Jin said. “Now go lay down or something, you look awful.”


    When it was time for Erwin to leave, he made Miguel Chancellor of the District. Only the Council could permanently appoint a Chancellor but with Erwin currently the highest ranking official in the District, responsibility to assign tasks on a temporary basis fell to him and so he tasked Miguel with cleaning up everything that had happened, and sending an adequate report back to Capital.


    This content has been misappropriated from Royal Road; report any instances of this story if found elsewhere.


    “The Councilors might yet decide to appoint someone else for the position,” Erwin said as he prepared to leave, “But based on what I’ve learned here, I can’t imagine there’d be anyone more fitting to lead the District.”


    In the morning the following day, the kids who’d been kidnapped and turned to Helmets woke. Jon and Yuri were with them, monitoring to see how much they’d changed. They were very clearly still Pandorans but without the Helmets, they weren’t as feral or even as strong.


    “They’re staying,” Yuri said to Andre when he looked like he’d been about to suggest that the children come with them back to Capital. “They’re kids and far too young to be involved in any of this. Been through enough already.”


    Andre simply nodded and let it go. Choppers arrived by evening to transport Jon, Chloe and the others back to Capital. While they got set to leave, Jon went to speak to Yuri, presumably to ask if she’d come with. When Chloe saw them kissing in an almost melancholic manner, she figured Yuri had turned down the invitation in favor of remaining in District 5 with her unit.


    “Chances are the Council will want to examine them,” Andre told Yuri before leaving, referring to the others. “They’ll want to know just how much they’ve been enhanced.”


    “Sure.” Yuri shrugged.


    Chloe, Jon, Aiden and Lucas left aboard one chopper. Andre left aboard another. Chloe wondered for a while if there was perhaps someone else like Erwin aboard the chopper who he’d needed to speak to. Then once the choppers took off and they set back for Capital against the backdrop of a purplish-orange sunset, the thought left her entirely.


    Nothing really mattered. They’d fought and won, but she reminded herself that everything that had just happened with Bridge meant very little compared to what dangers they knew were still out there.


    The Others hadn’t moved to reclaim Jin yet and she knew it was only a matter of time until they would. With that on her mind, she couldn’t care less who it was with Andre on the other chopper or what they were even talking about.


    ***


    Andre stood with his hands behind his back, staring at the Council. “So yeah,” he continued to speak to them, “That’s everything that went down in 5, everything associated with the Bridge Incident. And as you asked, it’s been contained—none of the other Districts know about what went down, or about Bridge’s experiments.”


    “And the children?” asked Councilor Atwell.


    “They remain in the District, under the supervision of reinstated Captain Voss and Chancellor Temporaire Miguel Navarro. Their abilities are unremarkable, at least they appear so for the time being. But we have eyes there monitoring them, and if there’s any developments, we will be informed.”


    “And the other business?” Councilor Donovan queried. “The true purpose for our sending you to accompany Taylor’s unit?”


    Andre slipped his hand into his pocket and produced a thumb drive. “All the data pertaining to Bridge’s experiments was wiped, but not before I backed it up. Your authorization of Bridge’s secret lab, or the other laboratories isn’t known by anyone other than yourselves and of course, me.”


    “Good. Bridge’s madness was unforeseen and were we to be implicated in the matter, it would be…difficult,” Donovan said slowly. “And the samples?”


    “I could not acquire a sample of Crowman’s blood.” Andre shook his head. “But I did bring the girl back with me. Bridge’s daughter, Kaia. She recuperates down in the lab, heavily sedated and in a pod, next to no chance that she escapes or poses any trouble. I also managed to retrieve one of the helmets.”


    “Okay,” said the man who sat now at the head of the table, broad and with a head of blond hair. He leaned forward, placing his hands together. “That will do for now. Dismissed, Mr. Nicholson.”


    “Thank you, Mr. President.”