Gran Crevasse

The Gran Crevasse (グランクレバス, Gurankurebasu) is a location in DARLING in the FRANXX 

History
Gran Crevasse is a sturdy fortress, surrounded by walls and mountains and seas of Klaxosaurs. Conrad, Moho, and Gutenberg klaxosaurs were visually seen to have occupied the area. Because the area has a large amount of magma energy, it attracts a horde of klaxosaurs and makes it a suicide mission for a FRANXX unit to approach it.

Obtaining control of Gran Crevasse has been Papa’s long-term dream because Gran Crevasse possesses a powerful klaxosaur weapon called  Hringhorni  (referred to as Star Entity by APE) that APE intended to obtain it and have Zero Two operate it on their behalf to eliminate the klaxosaurs.

In the manga, Gran Crevasse is revealed to be the fortified structure, referred to as a castle of the Klaxosaur Princess by Papa. Hringhorni is revealed to be a aggregation of Klaxosaurs after eons of fusion and evolution, and it is protectively guarded by 001.

Preparations
The APE council decided to speed up their plan to seize the Gran Crevasse following an increase of Klaxosaur attacks on the plantations and the established compatibility of Hiro and Zero Two as the pilots of Strelizia. After agreeing to move forward ahead of time with this plan, the council arranged to have all the parasites from every plantation gathered in close proximity and Papa approved the coalition. The parasite managers met with the parasites to discuss gathered intel of the area and the klaxosaurs surrounding it so the parasites can develop a defence strategy.

The plan suffered a minor setback when Zero Two, after having a violent fallout with Squad 13, decided to leave Hiro’s side out of guilt for trying to kill him a moment of blind rage. APE found this issue to have little effect on the upcoming battle and made arrangements to have her returned to the 9's and positioned in the front lines with available stamen as back-ups. Hiro, without a partner, is held back at Plantation 13. Squad 13, having improved their combat strategies, is assigned to the Sixth United Company alongside Squad 26 and the 9’s to fight in the front lines.

Battle
About 443 parasites from every Plantation are sent to neutralize the klaxosaurs, which was estimated to be in the thousands in numbers and seize Gran Crevasse. The Sixth United Company is deployed to the front lines and rendezvous to take out the first round of Klaxosaurs so the 9’s can reach Gran Crevasse and open its doors. Zero Two fights in Strelizia while in stampede mode, allowing her to effortlessly kill hundreds of klaxosaurs in a short matter of time but causes her to act aggressively towards other parasites.

Once the parasites reach the proximity of Gran Crevasse, a Super-Lehmann class Klaxosaur appears from underground and destroys Plantation 26 and makes its way towards Plantation 13. Papa orders Squad 26 to carry out Protocol 32 (self-Destruction) as a last resort to stop the klaxosaur. However, this sacrifice fails to slow the klaxosaur down and it invades the plantation. With the parasites outnumbered and even Strelizia struggling to keep up, Papa orders the self-destruction of multiple plantations to break through Gran Crevasse, causing the deaths of the plantations’ inhabitants and parasite squads.

The parasites gain the advantage when Hiro and Zero Two reconcile and reconnect to activate Strelizia. They quickly neutralize the Klaxosaur and give the 9’s the opportunity to successfully open the doors of Gran Crevasse, causing the protective dome to shatter and reveal a deep cavern in the ground. However, when the parasites attempt to destroy the cores left by the klaxosaur, a giant colossal hand erupts from inside the Gran Crevasse and smashes Plantation 13. Miraculously, the parasites survive and the hand returns to the cavern.

Aftermath
The battle resulted in the demise of 265 parasites, dropping the parasite reserves to 60%. After declaring victory over Gran Crevasse, APE seized control over Hringhorni and made modifications to it. Preparing for the worst-case scenario, should 001 take control over Hringhorni, APE constructed a self-destruct bomb powerful enough to destroy the entire planet.

Preparations
Due to the inevitable intervention of 001, APE was aware of the possibility of losing possession of Hringhorni to her in a battle should she retaliate. APE made arrangements to gather all the surviving parasites at the Bird Nest and prepare them for the upcoming hostility. The strategy was decided that all the parasites would attack the klaxosaurs on the front lines and create a pathway for Strelizia to enter Gran Crevasse and operate Hringhorni. Zero Two was tasked with piloting Hringhorni on behalf of humanity with Hiro.

Battle
The battle began with more than 260 parasites engaging the klaxosaurs to create an opportunity for Strelizia to enter Gran Crevasse and activate Hribghorni. Strelizia did enter Gran Crevasse and was about to awaken Hringhorni until 001 managed to sneak into the area and attempted to seize control of it by forcing Hiro to link with her and severally injuring Zero Two. As the worst-case scenario has come to be, Papa stunned the rest of the council by revealing his true identity as the leader of VIRM, an alien mind-hive species that invaded Earth millions of aeons ago, and he intended to take matters to a drastic level by destroying the planet and absorb all the souls of its inhabitants. He also revealed he had secretly implanted a self-detonate virus which was also a bomb within Hringhorni should 001 make a connection with it, but since Hiro’s presence caused it to delay briefly, Papa sent an armada of VIRM soldiers to Earth and eliminate all those present in the battlefield.

More than a hundred parasites are killed by VIRM, including two members of the 9’s. The klaxosaurs stopped fighting the parasites and turned their focus on VIRM. Squad 13 counterattacked against VIRM as they attempted to help Zero Two rescue Hiro before he succumbed to the effects of the virus. Zero Two made it to Hiro and revived him in time and 001 sacrificed herself to help stop the detonation. Strelizia reactivated and proceeded to destroy the VIRM fleets, completely obliterating Gran Crevasse in the process and forcing VIRM and Papa to retreat to Mars’ orbit.

Trivia

 * Crevasse is a term used to refer to a large, deep crack in thick ice or rock.