((STORY EXTRACT))
 
 
Reaching a hoof up to try and keep her from firing - don’t really want to have her somehow accidentally set off the launch circuits while we’re still in the base - the brain let off another bout of laughter, catching us both by surprise and forcing Aerith to drop her rifles as she made up an even bigger set of earmuffs. “A-hah, oh, WOW, you must be at least as old as I am to remember THAT old insult! And to use it so childishly as well, my gods above… Doctor Haukohl, not my birth name but the closest approximation your offices of citizenship could be bothered to put down. Not that it really matters, anyways, I’m sure my name will live on as Cerberus once the missile takes flight. At least, to those who may survive, anyways…”
 
“And what makes you so sure your missile will fly?” Taking another step forwards, the brain floated in front of us, silent. “We saw the missile before we got here, it was still being constructed by your dragons. If it does launch, it’d probably tear itself apart before it even breached the atmosphere. Not that we’re even going to let it get to launch in the first place.” The brain - Haukohl, I guess - only seemed to settle in the jar, my eyes focusing on it as the hum of computer banks filled the air around us. I blinked a few times, looking up around the room for just a moment, a very good point dawning on me, and probably Aerith as well - he didn’t have any defenses in here, at all, did he? No roof-turrets, the floor’s too cluttered by wires to have any pop-up turrets there, and I kinda doubt the desk would be hiding any, either. It’d just be the dragons, and without the brain controlling them…
 
“Oh, those utterly incompetent oafs! No wonder they left me to surrender, their utter laziness and inability to do ANYTHING without me babysitting them left me short on construction robots! If only I never let them take those dragons for those stupid recoilless rifle warheads…” I turned my head to grab the handle of my umbrella off my back, before what he’d said sank in. Or, more specifically, the way he had said it - I’ve done enough sweet-talking in my life to know when someone’s putting up a show. Still, I pulled the long Taser up, just watching the brain bob silently. “Hmh, unimpressed then? Well, you can’t fault me for trying. Though, if you really think killing me will save the day, then perhaps your misguided and mentally unstable marefriend might’ve gotten into your head too much, Static. The truth of the matter is, whether I’m still in this jar or not when you leave, heh heh… I’ve already won. And there’s nothing that you nor your hopelessly deluded friends can do about it.”
 
I lifted up my umbrella, gripping the handle between my teeth tightly as I approached the tank. Well, if he’s going to make it this easy… I leaned backwards, only to swing my neck around and smash the end of the umbrella into the tank. With a resounding crack, several fissures appeared in the glass before the entire structure gave way. Gel rushed out over the desk, the brain flopping pitifully onto the wood. Lights flickered, shutting off one by one as each of the computers tied to the brain began to shut down, silence falling in the center.