A short bout of silence, this time not so awkward as it was tense, was the general's only answer.

Ace adapted a pensive, tight-lipped sort of poker face. While his eyes were almost dead set on Green, his hand sneaked out to grasp gingerly at the mole's. It was a unique way to respond, if nothing else. With nothing specific spoken aloud, it said was that his 'friend' was both important to him, and under his direct protection. For once, Caz was the one to speak first. "I'm... ahrm, Caz," she said, as if speaking to a particularly intimidating bouncer at a club. It couldn't really be helped-- something about this 'bot made her feel very uneased on principal. "Hi."

Ace nodded eagerly at the pale primate, grateful for his intervention. "Yeah. I guess now's a good a time as any," he conceded. In all honesty, he would've refused for Caz's sake, but Jam's presence apparently lifted a great deal of stress off his shoulders regarding her safety. From all she had told him, the two were still close friends, and he could be sure nothing would come to her so long as they were together. He let go of her hand.

"I'll be back soon, a'right?"

"Mm." Caz nodded without argument. There was a certain mutual understanding between them of the importance of this 'talk'... even if she was inching her way towards Jam's side as he parted.

---

It was hard not to be in awe of the sheer size of the place. Whether or not it looked like it could've been but the Egg Destroyer's closet, (it did,) Eggman architecture rarely failed to impress, and the serval took the time to it all in. "Pretty nice place you got here...," he commented, strolling slowly onward as he spoke.

Green folded his arms over his chest as Jam moved between them. He may not have bitten, but that didn't change the fact he had a rather large heat-scimitar sheathed at the hip. And a pistol on a table behind him... and a heat-tomahawk by it... and the thing that had opened up a new viewing port in the ship prior to their arrival.

"Yes," he said in a slow tone, "make yourself at home."

And several machine guns lined along the wall. Hopefully her home looked like a military weapons depot.

"If you're anything like your yellow friend, I'm sure--"

"'SCUSE ME I NEED THIS SORRY." Phobia raced past the three of them, grabbing at the colossal warhammer leaning against the red couch. The CT abruptly whirled about, charging out of the room as if in the midst of a tremendous battle.

"--that you'll fit--"

"DIE SPIDER AAAAAAHHHHH DIIIIEEEE"

bang bang bang bang bang bang

"--right in around here."

He sighed into a slump. "...But I guess we're not here to talk interior design, huh."

---

'Well, I figure he can't bite,' Caz thought somberly to herself. 'But that wouldn't necessarily keep him from tearing me in half.'

"Whell, maybe if I could set people on fire with my mind," she laughed out, an impressive effort at hiding her intimidation. "I mean-- n-not that everyone in Chimera does that sorta thing-- o-or that anyone does, I mean, I mean anyone in Chimera-- I mean, y'know, it's just... ehehhheh heh."

---

"Well...," shrugged the serval. "What are we here to talk about?"

The reply Caz got: total silence. For several long seconds.

He fixed the newly-seated Jam with a look that, if one could read the ever-blank look on his face, would say she IS most certainly his type, before striding toward the machine guns lining the wall in a long, deadly row. He removed the one furthest to the left, inspecting it, perhaps looking simply for something else to focus his attention on, or perhaps... Well, who knew. In any case, he had nothing else to say regarding Ace, nor the other new guest the alley cat had brought along in his stead, but regardless of the inability to exude facial expressions, something about the way he moved seemed to simmer quietly.

"General."

...

"General..."

"What?"

"Um, Phobia just took out like the whole cycling statio--"

"Deal with it."

Slaw swiveled about, departing in rapid fashion.

And so, off they went in opposite directions, leaving the mole stranded in the middle of nothing. At least she was able to sigh out her tension when the general turned his back to her in favor of a gun rack (oh goodie), but was trapped between delivering awkwardly expectant, concerned and steeply-browed glances at Jam, and delivering awkwardly expectant, concerned and steeply-browed glances at the general's backside. Thankfully a stray comment from Jam found its way to her, but the utter non-sequitur-ness of it hardly lifted any veils. All too suddenly, Caz was surrounded by so much of nothing. She opened her mouth to say something:

"..."

But nothing seemed eager to come out, so she closed it again, with her cheeks puffed full of air just before giving it another shot.

"I'm gonna.... head back to the dock," she finally spoke, and promptly made her way to do just that.

---

"Schyeah, well." Ace scratched himself behind one of his floppy ears. "Seemed like if I didn't do somethin' then, I'd never get another chance. You're a hard man to reach, Rock. In more ways than one." His field of vision wavered from the primate's across from him, and for whatever reason, off to the side. Maybe there was just something he didn't want to see in them. But he still had something to say, even while he trudged in the direction of the steel railing he felt compelled to lean on. "I get it that you're not ready to trust me just yet. I prolly wouldn't myself, really. Not exactly a shining reputation for consistency. An' now that I think about it... I'm pretty sure I've pretty much made an enemy of everyone of I've met, at least once." The cat glanced behind himself, apparently in mid-cringe from the brief view Rock received. "...Some more than others."

"I'm really..." He shook his head in search of the words. "I wanna do something right. Y'know? For once in my life, I wanna do something that can help. I don't want there to be so much that-- ...I went through." His eyes roamed around briefly before those last three words, as if looking for a clue the room might have magically provided, but the words themselves felt like a deflation. "Like if I could just take one thing and make it stop, then I could die happy knowing I kept my promise." At last, Ace turned back around, leaning back with his sights refocused on Rock. "And despite that, I still feel like I'm public enemy number 1."

He blinked.

"...Or, maybe number 3." His head shook at the ground like a dissapointed father. "What a mess..."