Chapter 21: Line Ark
The place was astounding, Seth struggled to comprehend the size of it all. Line Ark was huge, a massive bridge ran all the way into the horizon on both ends and skyscrapers jutted from the water like spires. Seth had only been there a day and a half and everything had been sorted. All the Administration had been completed and he was now a member of Line Ark. They did a number of background checks on him to make sure his goal wasn't of malicious intent, but once they came to a conclusion that he was indeed a member of S.H.E.L.L, and he was who he said he was, he was given the all-clear and was allowed to enter.
The Linebreaker stayed on the drop ship during this time, when he gained permission to enter, they took the drop ship and the Next to a hanger bay that had been designated for his use. Seth had quite a few questions he wanted to ask but the only thing that the representative told him was that most of the information was classified, and that he would have to gain their trust before they divulged sensitive information. Everything would be answered in time.
Line Ark told him about how they intended to supply every Lynx with a drop ship, but as Seth brought his own, they were going to let him keep it. The entire place was much nicer than S.H.E.L.L Central but it wasn't home. Even so, he'd been at S.H.E.L.L for so long, deep underground in the abandoned military base, the expensive, modern feel he got from Line Ark was refreshing. Seth came to realise that this is what happens when you have power and money, you can afford a little luxury. He'd fought in cities before but he hadn't lived in one. It was still affected by the pollution but that didn't mar its majesty.
Seth was stationed in a separate facility from the main bridge. The base was where most of Line Ark's Normal pilots and Lynx were stationed including White Glint. He hoped to meet the Lynx, the person who would help his ideals come to fruition.
Seth was sat in his room. He had a television, but aside from the League propaganda channel, Line Ark had a broadcasting studio and with it, their own channel. It wasn't on all day but what was on was more informative, with only a fraction of the propaganda. There was a kitchen in the next room as well as a bathroom through the door at the foot of his bed which he was sat on. There were also windows that had a good view of the city, the expansive bridge not to far away, going on for as long as his eyes could see, but mostly Seth enjoyed the natural light bathing his room. He soaked in the glamour of it all. He had already unpacked his clothes but found new clothes in the drawers, Line Ark were giving him everything he needed.
Seth decided that it was time for some exploring, so he left the confines of his room, picked a direction and walked. He had a vague idea that he was walking in the direction of the hanger which stored the Linebreaker. He was happy to know that each Next had its own hanger, meaning that it wouldn't be too cramped. After walking for a while he found himself exactly where he thought he would be, the hanger. The Linebreaker was docked up against the wall, the new paint job making it look far more powerful than ever. The bay had a few engineers in overalls doing some odd jobs but what stood out was the plain clothed, short haired woman standing in the middle, looking at his Next. He walked up to her side and looked at it too.
"So what do you think, pretty cool huh?" The woman kept her composure so much, she didn't even flinch, and just turned to Seth.
"It is indeed an impressive looking machine. Are you it's Lynx?" Seth stuck out his hand as an attempt of a greeting.
"I am. The name's Seth Torbrasko." The woman grabbed his hand and shook it lightly.
"I'm Fiona Jarnefeldt, the Operator for White Glint." This revelation shocked him, and his eyes widened as a response, Fiona smiled back at him.
"Huh, I didn't expect to bump in the White Glint's Operator like this."
"Well we've just come back from a mission a day ago, and I heard that we had a new Lynx join our ranks. I wanted to see for myself." Seth calmed down considerably.
"Well, I was just exploring, this place is big."
"It's not as big as you think, they seal off the parts that aren't being used, which is over half the base at the moment."
"Really, how many other Lynx besides me have joined up?"
"You're the first."
"You mean that Line Ark has only has two Nexts to their name?"
"Yeah, but more will join I hope."
"Me too." Seth said, looking down to his feet. Suddenly, a mobile phone began ringing. Seth had been given one after he had been accepted in, the place was big enough that was easier for personnel to be contacted by phone, however, it wasn't his phone that was ringing. Fiona pulled her phone out of her trouser pocket and answered it.
"Fiona here… Right… I'm needed for a briefing? Okay, I'll be right there." She snapped the phone shut.
"New mission?"
"Nothing like that, there's just some new information we need to be aware of that may lead to new operations."
"Oh, uhh, fair enough." Fiona began to walk away before turning to him.
"Don't worry, give it time and we'll let you in on our secrets too." Seth smiled at the reassurance.
"Alright then."
"Bye Seth, it was nice meeting you." And with that, she ran off, when she was out of earshot he mumbled to himself.
"Glint's Operator huh, now I just gotta meet the Lynx." With that, he trotted off and explored some more.
He walked for a few minutes when he heard the distinct sound of a crowd of people chatting, he followed it and found the canteen. Many people were eating and chatting amongst each other. Seth guessed that the people in here were not only staff working in the base but also Normal pilots. His stomach rumbled as he remembered that he hadn't had anything to eat in a while so he decided to venture in.
He hadn't made it ten seconds through the door when someone called out to him.
"Oi! Lynx!" Upon hearing this, Seth stopped in his tracks and looked around before looking behind himself. Two men were standing in the doorway he had just walked through and were glaring at him. The entire canteen settled down to see what the cause of the commotion was. Seth pointed to himself.
"Are you talking to me?" The two men approached him, one was big with a bald head, and the only was smaller with short brown hair. The small man muttered to the other one.
"You sure this is the guy, the Next we're looking for was green, not white."
"No. I'd remember the look of it anywhere, it's the one." The man pointed at Seth. "Are you the Lynx for that Next in the hanger we followed you from."
"Who wants to know?" Seth stood defiant at the two men as the bigger man clenched his fist. He started speaking in a slow deliberate tone.
"Answer the question now. Are you the Lynx?" The two men we standing in front of him now, the unknown aggressor was a bit bigger than him and Seth had to look up slightly, but Seth wasn't easily intimidated.
"Yeah, I'm the Lynx for the Next in the hanger."
"Did you clear out a mine that was controlled by Line Ark just over a week ago?" This question worried Seth, there could be no chance that being honest would do him any good, but it was obvious to him that this man in front of him wouldn't take no for an answer, he already knew what the answer was.
"Yes. I had a mission to attack the mine and…" Before he could finish this sentence, the man grabbed Seth's collar, swung him around and pushed him against the wall next to the door. Seth stared at his attacker.
"I almost thought I wouldn't get this chance. Now I can get payback for you killing my brother."
"Your brother?" Seth responded.
"Yes, you killed him, you killed Syren." Upon hearing the name of the Sergeant, Seth flash-backed to his encounter in the mine, everything from hearing out his proposal to delivering the final blow. It all came back to him, Seth looked away from the man that had him pinned to the wall.
"Syren? I remember him well. He fought hard and died fighting for what he believed him." The brother released him, his face grew red with fury.
"It was you!" Syren's brother pulled back his fist ready to swing, Seth tried to get out of the way but his back was against the wall, there was no escape. The brother's fist caught Seth square on the cheek and sent him crashing to floor like a ton of bricks. Seth attempted to recover but it was apparent to him that all the rage was put into the punch and he pain was staggering. Syren's brother was about to grab him when Seth drew upon all his strength to raise his hand.
"Wait, I didn't want to kill him, I respected him." To Seth's surprise, this stopped the brother dead, he used this opportunity to stand back up, using the wall as a brace. He let out a couple painful coughs."Sure, I went there to kill everyone for the League, but he approached me and asked if I wanted to join Line Ark. He's the reason I'm here. I respected him because he believed in what he fought for, he even told me that I had to kill him. I didn't want to, because I believed in the same ideals as he did." The pain was subsiding and he stood up straight, looking the Sergeant's brother eye to eye. He was relieved to see the anger had begun to diminish. "I'm sorry for killing him, really. I'm here because of him and I'll fight on his behalf."
A small moment passed, the pair never breaking eye contact, the grieving brother clenched and unclenched his fists several times, unsure on what to do. He grunted and stormed pass Seth and out of the canteen. The smaller man looked at Seth and then back at the departed aggressor and followed him, not uttering a word. Seth let out a weary sigh and forgot all about his hunger, the rest of the canteen got back to what they were doing now that the drama had passed them. He decided to leave in case someone else wanted revenge for a pilot he killed and walked back his room.
He retreated to his own room to assess the damage. His cheek was bruised and slightly swollen, it ached considerably. He couldn't fathom the coincidence of meeting the brother of Syren like that. He must have been told that it was Seth that killed him and was shown an image of the Next that did it, and when he saw the Next in the hanger, he hunted Seth down until the fateful confrontation. Seth had killed multiple pilots in that mine but remembering Syren like he did truly made him feel regretful, but he also remembered that that was the reason he was there, in order to change the world and make it so that battles like that would perhaps stop. It was a long shot but he wanted to try.
As Seth's mind wandered whilst he stared at the damage to his face he thought of his home at S.H.E.L.L Central and all that lived there. He hoped that he wouldn't have to fight them, leaving them behind had been a tough decision but he believed his ideals called for that action, but he hoped that his ideals wouldn't call for their sacrifice too. Seth believed he didn't have it in him to kill his former lover and friends and he prayed he'd never have to make that choice.
Suddenly a phone call aroused him from his daydreaming. He reached into his pocket and pulled it out and answered it.
"Hello? This is Seth." The voice on the other end sounded professional and formal.
"Mr Torbrasko, this is the representative that you spoke to when you arrived. We have your first mission to discuss with you as well as a couple of other things. Please come to briefing room 1L17."
"Can you give me ten minutes before I head out?"
"Of course, that is fine. I do hope you are settling in well."
"I'm doing fine, mostly."
"Glad to hear. We remember that you left your former Operator at home. Is this correct?"
"Yeah, so?"
"We would like to introduce you to your new Operator."
"I'll be there soon."
"Thank you Mr Torbrasko, we'll see you shortly." Seth hung up the phone, flipping it shut and popping it back into his pocket. He stared at the mirror one last time.
"Time to get to work."