Chapter II
Greetings! I have returned with chapter two! I know, rather quick compared to my usual pace. There are various reasons for that, part of it being I have not had much time to watch anything besides a couple anime given my current sixty hour workweek, and it has mostly been Gundam. So, it is what is in my head at the moment. That said, I hope everyone enjoyed the previous chapter, it seems at least a few of you have, so let's get responding!
Lawoi: I don't know if I would call it an update since it's starting a new story, but it is certainly movement from me that's sooner than usual.
ZenithTempest: I'm actually in the process of reading Arifureta when I have the time. I haven't gotten to the world jumping part you're talking about yet, but I am about as far as the anime gets.
Angron: Dead and replaced by Demon Lord's Adventurers.
Those three Kirito stories are all effectively the same story, just different setups, and they're all also defunct.
Armored Spirits is still active, I just haven't had much inspiration for it lately.
Anhilliator1: Yup, it's that same Becas. I can't say for certain he'll use Vassago, but I'd like to try it.
Not much to respond to there, but enough. So, without wasting anymore time, on to the main event!
Becas and the blue-haired woman sat silently in their seats as the plane took off and flew for quite some time, their less-than-optimal first meeting leaving a strong impression.
The silence eventually driving him mad, and hating the inane chatter of the people around him, Becas decided to try and start a new conversation. "So…"
That getting the woman's attention, she too seemed to dislike the silence. "M – My name is Cecile Croomy."
Thinking for a moment, he gave her a false name. "Kevin Kaslana. So… what brings you on this class of flight?"
Cecile's shoulders dejectedly dropped. "My boss is a cheapskate…"
Becas nodded in understanding. "Ah. I know your pain."
Annoyed, she continued, "He's one of the premiere mobile suit scientists in the Britannian Empire and yet he gives his assistant barely enough money for a plane ride…"
Becas continued nodding sympathetically. "Yeah I know how you feel. I have a coworker in charge of finance who's cheap to the point of only buying everything at a discount. Including transport."
The both heaved deep sighs.
After a short pause, Cecile added, "I guess it's relieving to know I'm not the only one who has to deal with a penny-pinching superior."
"Yeah," he grumbled.
Cecile gave a small, relieved laugh.
Smiling slightly, he changed the subject. "So a Mobile Suit designer huh?"
That seemed to get her going with a nod. "Developer, actually. Lloyd handles the design aspects, the machine's weapons and appearance, I handle making those things function as an actual mobile suit."
He nodded with surprise. "Impressive."
The blue-haired woman shook her head in denial. "Not really. I'm just good with machines, Lloyd's the one who has all the ideas."
"Yet you're the one that actually makes them function."
Shrugging, she retorted, "I'm more of an intermediary between the designer and the pilot."
"Which is important beyond what most people realize, since you're the one who makes sure the designs work to accommodate a living pilot, and keep them that way."
She smiled appreciatively, but argued, "I don't know if I'd go that far, but I definitely make sure the design works in the real world. Actually, I'm on my way home from a vacation."
"A vacation? In this season?"
Nodding, she explained, "I had to help Lloyd and some of his cohorts finish and fine-tune their newest creation. It took a long time, but they sent me here to get some rest after finishing the Gawain."
Becas' eyes almost got the size of saucers as he realized the chance he may have. "The Gawain?"
"Yeah. It's a mobile suit the Empire just unveiled. I helped make it."
"Sounds interesting."
Those two words seemed to get her interest sparked, as he could practically see stars twinkling in her eyes. "I think it's wonderful. It was a bit confounding to make everything work however, given the huge swords on its shoulders. And then making sure they, along with the other swords, can move like any Drone can and return to the Gawain."
"Drones?"
"Yeah, they're –"
Becas put a hand up, interrupting her. "No, it's okay, I know what they are. I am just surprised that the new Mobile Suit has that. Besides, thought drones were like flying guns, how would a sword work?"
"Most drones are. But the concept can be used for melee weapons if you utilize the thrusters as the main method of attack, ramming and spinning for stabbing and slashing, instead of shooting something."
"Interesting," Becas remarked, putting a hand on his chin.
Cecile shrugged in exasperation. "Of course, the real challenge was getting it all to work with the Knight System."
"Knight System?" Becas asked, having heard of it but hoping she would explain.
However, she gasped and put a hand over her mouth in realization. "Crap, I said too much…"
Becas sighed slightly. 'Guess it's no surprise I wouldn't get everything from her…' He waved a hand dismissively. "Sorry I asked. I am a Pilot after all, and was just curious about it."
Cecile laughed weakly, worried about her mistake. "No, it's okay. I get a bit carried away when I'm talking about something I have a passion for."
He nodded with a smile in understanding. "It's understandable. When someone feels strongly about something, they want to go into great detail about it."
"Yeah… so, you're a pilot?" she asked, changing the subject.
Becas just went with it. "Yeah. Heading for the empire to look for work."
"Work? Oh, are you a mercenary?"
"Yes, I am."
"Interesting," Cecile noted in thought.
"I guess," he answered with a shrug.
"So why go to Britannia specifically? They need mercenaries almost everywhere."
Leaning back slightly, Becas explained, "True, they do. But Britannia is one of the Big Five that would actively hire mercenaries. Sure the Human Reform League might, but they aren't really doing much. The Vatican I doubt would hire any. And while the Valhalla Union might have some of the best mechs around they currently aren't fighting anyone. And the AEU? No thanks. I don't do well in places like that."
"Ah…" she mumbled at his surprisingly thorough answer.
"So for me, Britannia is the best bet."
"So it would seem…" she trailed off with a finger on her chin.
Noticing this, Becas decided to prod. "Something on your mind?"
Cecile stared at him silently for a moment, as if deciding. "… You're heading to Britannia to find work, right?"
"That's what I said, yes."
"Have you found any yet?"
"I haven't even arrived yet, so no."
She firmly grasped one of his hands with both of hers. "Will you be the Gawain's test pilot?!"
He stared at her silently for several moments. "Um… yeah…" '… Dammit, this is all going too easy… Something is going to go very wrong, isn't it…? Isn't it…?'
The two continued small talk until they finally arrived at the airport and began their departure.
As they began to go their separate ways, Cecile called to Becas one last time. "Okay Kevin, do you know where the Camelot Engineering Institute is?"
He only shrugged. "Can't say I do. I've heard of it though, obviously. It's a big-name mobile suit Developer and responsible for the creation of the Elite Knights."
She nodded in approval. "Right. Which hotel are you staying at?"
He was silent for a few seconds as his eyes glazed over. "… I don't think my co-worker booked one for me…"
The blue-haired beauty slumped her shoulders with a sigh. "… I should've figured if she's anything like Lloyd."
"Probably…"
Pointing west of the airport, she explained, "There's some relatively affordable ones nearby. I'll send you a message when I get approval from Lloyd."
"I'll be waiting beautiful," he retorted as he began to walk away.
Her face turning slightly red, she rebuffed, "M – My name's Cecile."
He raised an eyebrow slightly. "Yeah, I know."
She just watched him as he walked out of the area.
Becas kept his head looking around nervously. 'What a day so far… and everything is going way too easy so far… Gotta be ready for anything… Anyth –' his thoughts were broken up when something bumped into him, causing him to see a flash of pink.
"Ow…" a small voice whined.
Looking down, he saw a girl with bright, almost fluorescent pink hair and lavender eyes with a modest figure wearing a plain white blouse with a long green skirt, and a wide-brimmed hat that, in theory, covered her face. 'Why does she look familiar…?'
"Euphie!" another, harsher voice called out from nearby.
Turning to the source, he saw a beautiful woman with flowing, waist-length violet hair, and matching lavender eyes to the girl that had bumped into him, wearing a long, dark purple dress with white gloves that did little to hide her voluptuous figure, her chest nearly spilling overtop, with a simple riflesaber at her side. As soon as he saw her, however, he put the pieces together and paled. 'Oh come on!'
The woman laid eyes on him near the pink-haired girl and tensed as she grabbed the handle of her weapon.
Becas did his best to remain calm and turned his attention to the girl as she sat up. "You okay li'l lady?"
"Ow, ow… Y – Yeah, I'm okay," she remarked as she stood up, giving Becas a better view of her pretty face. "Sorry about running into you."
"It's okay, I wasn't looking where I was going," he answered, hoping to defuse the situation.
"Clearly," the tall woman retorted coldly.
He tensed as that seemed only to agitate her.
The pink-haired girl put a hand on the woman's shoulder. "Cornelia, it's okay, I wasn't paying attention."
She looked the silver-haired man over suspiciously before sighing and taking her hand off her weapon.
Becas, still smiling calmly on the outside, shouted in his head, 'I knew something like this would happen! Fuck! Running in to the Witch of Britannia herself?!'
Cornelia continued the conversation. "I haven't seen you before, you must be new."
"I would imagine royalty don't see much of the common people."
Grabbing his collar, she warned, "My father may be the emperor, but that does not mean I am some world-ignorant noble girl, understood?"
"S – Sorry, sorry, it's just a joke." 'Am I going to find any way to talk that won't risk me getting a bullet in the head?!'
"So who are you?"
"Name's Kevin Kaslana, and I did in fact just get here. And you're Cornelia li Britannia if I am not mistaken."
She nodded in affirmation. "You are not. And this is my younger sister."
Bowing, the girl introduced, "Euphemia Li Britannia."
"Nice to meet you."
"So what brings you –?" Cornelia began before a third voice, angrily shouted her name.
'What now!?' Becas howled as he turned to see a beautiful woman with long, flowing, bright silver hair and deep red eyes, with a bustline that exceeded even Himeko's, wearing a military uniform of dark purple with black and white accents, the coat tightly hugging her bosom.
'Beautiful…' he mumbled in his thoughts.
The woman ignored Becas she stormed up to Cornelia. "How many times do I need to tell you not to go off on your own?! You're not a child anymore!"
"Indeed I am not, Selvaria," Cornelia answered bluntly.
"Then why do something so reckless?"
"To remain close to my sister."
The silver-haired woman's temper appeared to be growing at the pithy reply. "And you left without consulting me… why?"
"Your presence would have drawn too much attention, as you're doing now."
Looking around, she noticed people staring at the group, and then sighed.
Blinking, Euphemia turned to Becas. "Oh, Mister Kev - huh? Where'd he go?" she wondered as she looked around for him.
Becas, hiding around a corner, panted in exhaustion. "Too close… way too close… The Witch of Britannia is bad enough, but her knight too…?" Shaking his head, he reframed his focus. "Now, need to get to that hotel…"
After a few hours of probing the various hotels, he managed to find one he could afford. "Finally…" he groaned as he made his way through the halls. "Now to get to my room and rest a bit, then to wait for Cecile's call."
The next morning, Becas awoke suddenly to his phone ringing. "Hello?"
"Hey, Kevin?" Cecile asked, on the other end.
"This is."
"I got the approval for – hey!" Cecile began before she shouted as the phone was taken from her.
"Is this Kevin Kaslana?" an energetic, flamboyant voice interjected.
"Um… yeah?" Becas replied in confusion. "Who's this?"
"Lloyd Asplund, head of Camelot Engineering Corps."
"… Ah…" Becas answered quietly.
"So you're who Cecile chose?" Lloyd questioned again.
"As far as I know."
"Good. The car should be there shortly."
Becas remained silent for a moment waiting for a punchline. "… Car?"
"Yes, I sent it to get you."
Pushing open the blinds to his room, Becas looked outside as a somewhat conspicuous red car drove up to the hotel. "… Ah. I'll be there soon then."
Leaving the hotel, Becas walked up to the car and looked in the window curiously, where he saw the driver. A young woman with short, light green hair, dark purple eyes, and a modest bust, wearing a form-fitting white suit with gold accents. "I certainly like my chauffeur. Kevin Kaslana. Your name, beautiful?"
Smirking slightly, the woman retorted, "Nonette Enneagram."
Becas just nodded in understanding as the gears spun in his head. 'That sounds familiar…' "Nice to meet you."
Nonette, however, had long since stopped listening to him and was fervently scanning the area.
Noticing this and trying to get a grasp what she was searching for, Becas prodded, "Something wrong, miss?"
"Nah, just looking for Nelly," she answered nonchalantly.
"A friend of yours, I'm guessing?"
"No!" she answered emphatically, almost insulted. "She's far more than just my friend, she just doesn't realize it yet."
Becas just stared at her silently for a moment before deciding to let it go. "… Okay then."
"So, ready to go?"
"Just so long as you don't drop me off a cliff or something."
Nonette raised an eyebrow in confusion. "Why would I do that?"
Becas looked at her in silence for a moment before shrugging. "Forget it. Yeah, let's head for Camelot."
"Sure!" Nonette chirped before Becas got in the car and she gunned it, racing out of the parking space and towards the institute.
After a harrowing car ride, Becas coughed as he got out and looked up at the Camelot Institute, a rather extravagant building with tall spires and brightly colored walls. He stared blankly at it for several moments. '… I expected something resembling a school or a factory. Not… whatever the hell this is. Guess this Lloyd spends all the money on the MS.'
"Ah, Kevin, you're here," Cecile commented as she stepped out the front door, Becas waving to her. "I hope Ms. Nonette's driving wasn't… too bad."
"I survived."
"What's that supposed to mean!?" the green-haired woman hissed.
"Oh, and good to see you again, Cecile."
Before the blue-haired beauty could say another word, a tall, white-haired man with a white coat ran out of the door with his arms in the air, excitedly shouting, "Finally!"
Becas gazed silently at the man for several moments in disbelief. "… Lloyd, I assume…"
"In the flesh!" Lloyd declared proudly.
Becas stared silently for a moment before turning to Cecile and bowing slightly. "… I feel sorry for you."
Cecile just laughed weakly with a nod. "Thanks…"
Lloyd walked to the two and put his arms over their shoulders. "Come on now, let's head inside!"
"Right," Becas answered, slightly taken aback.
Nonette just waved to the trio. "See ya later, I've got some errands to run."
Lloyd just waved dismissively as they walked toward the door. "Yes, yes. I am sure you have something important to do for the Emperor."
Nonette smirked playfully. "Nah, just want to tea – ahem, hang out with Nelly."
"Poor Lady Cornelia…" Cecile mumbled under her breath.
Becas raised an eyebrow curiously but followed Lloyd silently.
Inside the building, Becas got his answer as he saw the numerous mobile suits of varying designs and types all over the area. White, green, pink, red, and more.
He gave a whistle as he looked at the numerous machines. "This is a lot of Suits. Lot of Knights and a couple Tristans and Kays from what I can tell."
Lloyd smirked in appreciation. "You're certainly knowledgeable in Mobile Suits."
"Mercenaries live and die by these machines. Only an idiot would not study up on the Suits the major powers have."
"Smart and skilled. I like you more by the minute," Lloyd cooed.
Becas stepped away from the man slightly. "Just… don't get too close…"
Lloyd just glanced at him in thought. "Hm?"
"Okay?"
"Right, right," Lloyd sighed.
"… So, shall we show him the Gawain?" Cecile suggested.
Lloyd just grinned proudly. "Oh, there's more than enough time for that. He should see everything else first!"
The bluenette sighed heavily with a hand over her face. "Sorry about this, Kevin…"
Becas just shrugged. "You learn to deal with eccentrics in my line of work."
Motioning to a large knife with a black, free-floating blade, Lloyd noted, "This is one of my earliest inventions, the vibration sword, which the Empire obviously copied for the Flag units. This here is my…"
Becas just began tuning him out as he walked with the man.
"These are some of the most advanced Mobile Suits in the world," Lloyd explained as they approached several large, intricate Mobile Suits.
"Huh… and that's the Gawain, then?"
"Indeed! My latest creation!"
"It's an impressive machine to be sure."
"It should be! It's a regional suppression Knight after all."
"A what?" Becas asked, confused by the terminology.
Cecilia answered him. "A high-performance Mobile Suit that should be able take on an entire army on its own. The Gawain is an experimental unit for this concept."
Becas narrowed his eyes slightly. "Is that so… is it intended to suppress rebellion in the colonies?"
"Indeed it could," Lloyd answered with no reservation. "However, that's not my goal. The emperor gave me a goal he wants a mobile suit to be able to accomplish, so I designed one that can do it."
"Right…"
"And to ensure that it can, he leant me one of his Knights of the Round to serve as its opponent!"
Becas looked at the man silently waiting for elucidation, before realizing he wanted a response. "And that would be…?"
"Lady Enneagram of course."
Becas stared quietly for a few seconds before sighing. "… Marvelous…" 'Why did this have to be a stealth and steal mission!?'
"So, would you like to get acquainted with her? I have enough time to set up a proper meeting now if you like."
Becas shook his head in response. "That's okay, I've already met Nonnette."
Lloyd just laughed lightly. "Oh, I didn't mean Lady Enneagram. I meant my beautiful Gawain."
Becas leaned in close to Cecile and whispered, "… Is he always like this?"
Cecile shook her head in return. "No, today he's rather reserved."
Becas stood straight before sighing in aggravation. "… Swell…" After a moment of thought he turned to Lloyd and asked, "How about I get to know it in my own way?"
Pouting, the silver-haired man relented. "Fine…"
Approaching the machine as the duo left, Becas pushed a button on the elevator platform that raised it to the Gawain's abdomen and opened a large hatch into the cockpit.
Leaning in to look at the interior, he whistled softly. "Impressive." Sitting in the padded seat, he looked around at the various panels and screens, the control set up wrapping around the chair. "Nice and simple. Just the way I like it. Right…" he muttered as he looked over the control panel before seeing a small switch underneath the central panel, "ah, here's the ignition."
A small screen flipped in front of him as the hatch closed, the panels lighting up brightly as the machine whirred to life.
Suddenly, an image of a blonde woman in elaborate black and green clothing appeared in the lower-right screen. "Good morning Prof –" she began before stopping as a camera in the top of the cockpit looked down at him. "Oh, you're new."
Becas looked at the woman in thought. "Huh? An AI?"
She just chuckled lightly. "Last time I checked."
"Right… interesting." With a sigh, he thought, 'Oh this just makes things more difficult… I knew this was going to go tits up with how it started…'
"Something wrong?" the blonde questioned.
"N – No," he stumbled over his words. "So what's your name?"
She just looked at him curiously. "You don't know already? I mean, you are in me."
"So… Gawain?"
"Indeed I am."
"Right…"
"So, who are you and why are you inside me?"
Becas stared at the feed of the woman in mild shock. '… Please tell me she know how that sounds…' "Kevin Kaslana, and I'm your pilot."
The little camera moved up and down to look at him. "I approve. Registering you and your biometrics now."
Becas stared silently at her silently.
"Something wrong?"
With a light sigh, Becas shook his head. "No, nothing. So, anything you can tell me about the mach – er, yourself, I guess?"
"Of course," she replied with a proud smirk. "As you can tell, I'm one of the most advanced units there are."
"Yeah, meant to handle entire armies on your own."
"Indeed. I also come equipped with an experimental Dragoon System utilizing my swords along with the Knight System."
"So, how exactly does this Knight System work, since I'll be working with it, and you."
"It generates a high density of protons to allow instantaneous movement during combat."
"Intriguing. I can't wait to get a chance to actually test it out."
"Oh? I'll actually be getting real world tests instead of just virtual runs?"
Becas frowned slightly as he thought over her words.
"Hello?" Gawain prodded to get Becas' attention.
"This would be your first time?"
Gawain, on the screen, nodded in affirmation. "Yes, so please try to be gentle with me."
Becas stared at her silently in disbelief. '… She has to be doing this on purpose!' Shaking his head of the bewilderment, Becas continued the conversation. "A – Ahem, anyway. I'll be sure to take it slow."
"Good," Gawain chirped, pleased.
After exiting the Gawain, Becas looked around the hangar curiously at the various machines and weapons before sighing. "Geez… There's a lot of pretty… crazy stuff here."
"Blame Lloyd," Cecile remarked with a shrug as she walked up to him.
Scratching his head in curiosity, Becas added, "I assume he's to blame for the AI?"
The blue-haired woman tilted her head slightly. "Blame?"
"She's a bit… odd."
Cecile blinked slightly before grasping what he meant and nodded. "Ah. Yeah, that probably is down to Lloyd's influence. Wished he'd leave her alone though. I don't go messing with things he made after all."
Becas blinked in confusion as he put the dots together that she made the AI. "… Ah… anyway… anything I need to know about her?"
Cecile put a finger on her chin in curiosity. "Hm… just treat her right and she will do the same."
He just stared at her blankly. "… Right…" 'Well that's helpful…' he lamented silently.
Shrugging, Cecile added, "After all, AIs are people too."
"Right. Anyway, so will I be staying here or traveling between here and the hotel?"
"That's up to Lloyd and you."
"Right. What about Nonette?"
"She isn't scheduled for any testing until tomorrow, so you should have some time to familiarize yourself with Gawain's controls and eccentricities." Cecile then stepped over to a table and picked up an incredibly thick book and handed it to the silver-haired man. "Here, Gawain's manual."
Becas stared at the piece of literature in disbelief. "… You could beat a goat to death with this thing…"
Cecile nodded in affirmation. "Good. It has to get through thick skulls at times after all."
He looked from the book to Cecile several times before letting out a weak, "… Ah." Thinking for a moment he just nodded. "Good to know."
Folding her arms under her cleavage, Cecile questioned, "Anything else you want to see?"
Becas just shook his head as he paged mindlessly through the book. "Not that I can think of, beautiful."
Cecile nodded, her face flushing slightly. "R – Right. I'll leave you to it then."
"Got it."
Becas sat silently reading through the Gawain's manual, sighing slightly as he did. "This manual is certainly thorough… very thorough…" Blinking for a moment in curiosity, he thumbed through the book, glancing at the pages as he did before scratching his chin in confusion. "That's odd… it doesn't seem to say anything about the AI. Weird…"
After some time spent reading the ridiculously thick manual, Lloyd walked up to the man and tapped his shoulder. "Ready for the test drive?"
Shrugging with a sigh as he stood up, Becas retorted, "Yeah. Hope it goes smoothly."
"That depends on you," Lloyd responded bitingly.
Becas just twitched an eyebrow before Cecile interjected tiredly, "What he means to say, is good luck."
Raising an eyebrow before shrugging off the eccentric man's insult, he rebutted, "In the merc business luck is something we always need."
"Back already?" Gawain asked as she saw Becas in the pilot's seat.
The man just nodded. "Yeah, it's time for work after all."
"Good. Let's get rough then," she commented excitedly.
The silver-haired man stared flatly at her. "… Please choose your words more carefully…"
Looking at him with the camera, the avatar on the screen merely tilted her head. "Why? Is something wrong?"
"Yes. Everything you say sounds related to sex so far."
She remained silent for a few seconds, as if waiting. "… And?"
He looked at her almost in shock. "… You're doing it on purpose?"
She could only shrug. "It's just a fun way to talk. Professor does it all the time."
He pinched the bridge of his nose in exasperation. "… Why doesn't that surprise me?"
Pouting slightly, Gawain answered, "If it's that bothersome I can change it."
Becas shook his head with a sigh. "No, it's fine, I just need to… get used to it."
The avatar saluted with a bright grin. "Understood. I'll ease it in nice and slow."
He just looked at her with a twitching eyebrow. "… I'm pretty sure that's supposed to be my line."
Inside a large viewing platform looking over a massive arena, Cecile and Lloyd watched as a lift raised the Gawain onto one side of the arena.
"We're just testing mobility and weapon functionality today, right Lloyd?" Cecile questioned.
"Hm?" he hummed, not having really paid attention to her. "Oh, yes, right."
Cecile narrowed her eyes suspiciously. "… Lloyd…"
"Yyyes?" he asked playfully.
"What did you do…?" Cecile asked, irritated.
"Oh, nothing much. Just made this test drive more intriguing."
"So far so good," Becas remarked as he moved Gawain around the arena.
"But of course," the AI chirped. "I operate perfectly smooth."
"Right, right," Becas retorted, just rolling his eyes.
Suddenly, Gawain interjected, "Hey, energy signature, ten o'clock."
Becas hopped to the side as an energy shot flew past him. "Hey! I thought this was just movement testing!"
Lloyd, excitedly, rebuffed, "A weapons' test's no good without targets."
Growling, Becas shouted back, "A weapons test and a movement test are two different things!"
Lloyd just smiled at him. "Perhaps," he chirped before pressing a button.
"Oh that can't be good…"
Several of the walls around the arena began to move and shift as numerous tall, lanky, grey and black mobile suits appeared from behind them.
Becas looked at the machines in confusion. "… A bunch of Ratels?"
The four machines raised their basic rifles toward the Gawain and opened fire.
Becas just hissed and jumped to the side, avoiding the stream of bullets.
"See?" Lloyd interjected. "Now you know how well it can jump."
Cecile twitched an eyebrow and grabbed for the large manual.
Snarling, Becas looked around the cockpit. "Dammit, okay, Dragoons, how to activate, come on…" Glaring up at the observation deck, he shouted, "When I get done, I'm going to kick your ass!"
A winded Cecile then came on the line and retorted, "I – It's okay… he's already unconscious."
"Oh, that's go –" Becas began before being interrupted as one of the Ratels fired a rocket at him. "Damn pieces of tin, just die already!" Looking around the cockpit fervently he saw a familiar sequence of switches and nodded to himself. "… Okay."
Gawain hummed with intrigue.
"If this works like a tethered rocket, this should do it. Now…"
Almost immediately, three of the smaller swords strapped to Gawain's back detached and took off into the air, flying towards the group of Ratels. One managed to dodge, but two were impaled straight through the chest, the swords continuing to fly and embed themselves in the wall.
The two machines stood for a moment before tumbling over and exploding in balls of flame.
Becas blinked in slight surprise. "Huh… went right through them… Sharper than I expected." He glanced to the side as he noticed the two remaining Ratels move to flank him. "Right."
"We should try out the Excalibur Galatine next," Gawain suggested.
"The what?"
"The big thick sword in my hand."
Becas glanced to the mobile suit's right hand and looked at the huge sword it was holding, two more of which were attached to its shoulders. "Ah. And wording."
"What? It's a big sword, it's thick, and it's in my hand."
Becas just sighed in resignation. "Let's just kill these things."
"Right. Now stand still and swing."
That confused the silver-haired man even more. "I'm too far away to hit them."
"I know what I'm doing."
Sighing with a shrug, Becas raised the Gawain's right arm high up and then swung it down with force, causing a massive blade of energy to shoot out and slice one of the Ratels in half with a conflagration.
The last Ratel took aim, only for Becas to retaliate with a horizontal slice, the blade of energy bisecting the lanky mobile suit.
"Well then… I've never seen a melee weapon like this before…"
"Ready to come back in?" Cecile asked over the radio.
"Yeah."
"Then head back to the loading dock and we'll get things sorted out.
After returning to the complex, Becas grabbed Lloyd by his collar, less than thrilled. "Are you insane?!"
Laughing weakly, Lloyd answered, "Th – The jury's still out on that."
"Indeed…" Cecile commented dryly.
Still holding Lloyd, Becas shouted, "You're lucky it's me who was your test pilot and not some military academy rookie or you'd have a dead pilot and a wrecked mech!"
"Sacrifices and risks need to made in the pursuit of science."
"This isn't science, it's engineering! You're making weapons, not trying to find the cure for Refrain! Do you understand!?"
Cecile interjected, "Next time, just stick to the plan we have in mind, alright, Lloyd?"
Lloyd merely pouted in disappointment, with Cecile smiling sweetly.
"Next time, I won't stop Kevin."
Lloyd just stared in defeat. "Okay…"
"Good. Now, let's all get settled for some food."
"Oh look at the time! I've got to get these reports and papers down!" Lloyd exclaimed before slipping Becas' grasp.
"Hey!" Becas shouted.
Cecile just sighed as Lloyd ran off.
"What was that about?"
The blue-haired beauty could only shrug. "I don't know. I think he doesn't like my cooking."
Gawain then chimed in over her speakers, "Not even a masochist would eat your cooking."
Cecile pointed at the towering mech in annoyance. "Hey! You can't even eat!"
"The fumes from your cooking melt my circuits, I think that's enough evidence."
Becas remained silent as he looked between Gawain and Cecile. "… I'm gonna go order some take out then."
"E – Eh!?" Cecile gasped.
"You do that," Gawain urged.
"D – Don't believe her!"
"Oh sure, don't believe her daughter. It's not like I have access to security footage."
Becas backed away slowly before Cecile turned to Gawain in disbelief. "How did you ever get that far into the system!?"
"Not all of Lloyd's tinkering was problematic," Gawain answered with a chuckle.
Cecile twitched her eyebrows viciously before turning to Becas. "Kevin, don't listen to –!" she stopped midsentence when she realized he was gone. "Kevin!?"
"He left when you were thinking of ways to kill Lloyd."
Cecile grumbled angrily before looking back up at Gawain. "… I am going to get you back for this."
Gawain could only giggle in amusement. "Oh? I thought you were trying to date him, not kill him. Next time I won't bring up your lethal alchemy skills."
"It's cooking, not alchemy!"
"It all depends on the result. And I'm pretty sure cooking isn't supposed to result in the food eating through the pot." After a moment of thought she added, "So next time, invite him out to a restaurant instead of cooking."
"Right…"
"Geez…" Becas groaned as he left the complex. "Guess I need to get a bite to eat. And have to pay for it… Marvelous…" After a short walk he saw a small diner on the end of a narrow street and decided it looked up to his needs. "Well that looks affordable. Hope it has good food at least," he remarked before walking in.
After sitting at a booth, one of the waitresses approached him with a smile. "Welcome to Snuffy's, food or drink today?"
"Both, if you don't mind."
"We've got tap, craft, and liquor."
"I'll take the hardest hitting cheap stuff."
"I can do that. Food?"
"I'll take the cheapest stuff."
"I got it, I'll get it ready soon."
Becas sighed as he focused on his newspaper before the door to the diner suddenly slammed open as four people stormed in.
"Yay! This should be far enough away to keep those jerks out of our hair!" the leader of the group, a tall, busty woman with long, wild blonde hair and bright blue eyes wearing a simple uniform of a black coat, a grey blazer underneath, a dark blue miniskirt, and thigh-high stockings, the three women accompanying her wearing nearly identical clothing.
"I hope so too, Excellen," a woman with long brown hair tied up in a ponytail, her light chestnut eyes behind square-framed yellow glasses, her matching outfit to the blonde doing little to hide her nearly obscene bust that threatened to spill out of her top.
"Well in such a place, it should be fine, Chitose," added the third woman in the group, slightly shorter than the rest, had vibrantly glowing blue eyes and long, dark black hair tied in a high ponytail that still reached her feet, ending in red highlights, wearing a slightly cut down variant of the uniform without the blazer, the blouse barely covering her mounds.
"Saying that always leads to trouble, Kaguya, always," lamented the final member of the group, a tall woman with wheat-colored skin and long, vibrant silver hair tied in a long, thin ponytail, golden eyes, and a curvy figure that almost appeared lacking compared to her friends, though still filling out her blouse, sighed at the others' rambunctious energy.
The blonde, Excellen, chuckled broadly, "Ah, come on, Villetta! You need to relax! Nothing is going to happen!"
Becas frowned in annoyance. '… I need to keep my wits about me…'
The four made their way to a table, still chattering.
'Because that blonde just jinxed everyone from hell and back…'
Excellen raised a hand excitedly. "Waitress, oh waitress! Strongest drink you have!"
Villetta put her hand down forcefully. "No! I will not allow you to get that drunk! Not after what you did last time!"
"Can we please just have a normal meal…?" Chitose, the brunette, lamented.
"Agreed…" Kaguya added weakly.
Excellen pouted in disappointment. "But normal is boring…"
Becas looked around the diner in thought, noticing four unusual men around the area at the perfect corners of the building, narrowing his eyes as he looked at them. 'They're planning something…'
"So… who's paying?"
Villetta, annoyed, remarked, "Considering I had to pay for damages at the bar, and Kaguya had to pay Jackon's medical bills after you knocked his teeth down his throat, it's between you and Chitose."
"Not it!" Chitose chirped.
"… Crap…" Excellen grumbled.
"Looks like you're paying, Browning," Villetta noted.
"Dammit…"
Becas watched silently as a couple uniformed officers stood and left the diner. 'Should be any minute now…'
Suddenly one of the men stood up and pulled a handgun from his coat. "Alright, now that those cops are gone, we can get back to business!"
A second, burly man revealed a long shotgun from under the table as he stood as well. "Just do as your told and y'all can go home okay."
Becas just sighed in boredom as the group continued their taunts.
A third, wiry man with a small automatic weapon walked up to the four girls with a sneer. "Well maybe you girls might fancy some fun outside."
Excellen just shot the man a sweet smile as she retorted bluntly, "Not on your life."
The man was less than pleased by that response as he pointed the weapon at the blonde bombshell. "Wrong answer li'l whore."
Becas sighed as he stood up from his position at the bar and turned to the group. "Okay, I think you've had your fun."
"Shut the hell up, punk!" the last man of the group growled as he aimed an automatic pistol at the silver-haired man.
Becas just stared at the weapon disinterestedly before scanning around at the four. "As amusing as your little toy is, we're not just going to let you walk out of here."
"We?" the first man of the group asked, bemused.
"Who's we, sucka?" the submachinegun toting, wiry man asked, turning his attention away from the ladies momentarily.
"Cleave, and Pierce, and me," Becas answered bluntly.
The man with the automatic pistol aimed at Becas angrily, "Okay, quit fucking arou –!" he cursed only for Becas to draw the sword at his waist with immense speed, slicing the man's hand off at the wrist before it fell to the floor in a spurt of blood.
Becas nonchalantly rested the blunt edge of the sword over his shoulder as the shellshocked man stared at his bloody stump. "This here is Cleave. She likes to take a hands-off approach in most things."
The three remaining thugs stared in disbelief before the rotund man raised his shotgun, only for Becas to whip out his pistol and blast the man with three rounds in the chest, knocking him through a window.
"This is Pierce. She's rather straightforward and always gets right to the point."
"Smug son of a bitch!" the third man bellowed as he readied his SMG.
Becas ducked past a spray of gunfire and launched his sword like a spear, impaling the man through the mouth and nailing him to the wall behind him, killing him almost instantly.
The remaining man fearfully ran up to the group of women and grabbed Excellen, putting her in a chokehold and placing his pistol against her head.
Becas merely raised an eyebrow as he pulled his sword from the gurgling mouth of the man's comrade. "Are you seriously this stupid?"
"Drop it!" he threatened as he pulled the hammer back on his weapon.
Becas only shrugged before stowing his weapons. "Your funeral."
As if on cue, Excellen gave a playful smirk before ramming her elbow into his ribs, doubling him back and causing him to reflexively fire off a shot.
Becas leant to the side to avoid the round before Excellen raised one leg up and delivered a devastating roundhouse kick that knocked the man unconscious before slamming him into the floor hard enough to crack one of the tiles.
"Told ya," Becas taunted the unconscious man before the familiar sound of police sirens blared in the air.
Excellen sighed as she looked out into the approaching officers. "Geez, better late than never." Turning back to Becas, she complimented, "Hey, Mister that was pretty – huh?" before stopping short when she realized he had already disappeared. "Where'd he go?"
Pointing to the man whose face was currently embedded in the floor, Kaguya remarked, "He left when you were putting that guy down hard."
Excellen responded by puffing her cheeks in frustration. "Dammit!"
Becas sighed heavily as he walked through one of the alleys behind the diner. "Glad I got out of there before the cops got in. Not something I need to get involved with at all…" His eyes perked up as a realization hit him. "Wait… I never got to eat! Damn it…!"
"So, how'd your first day go?" Himeko asked over the phone to Becas as the man sat limply on the edge of his bed.
"Terrible," he deadpanned.
"That bad, huh?" she asked with a weak chuckle.
Becas just gave out a heavy, almost pained sigh. "I actually managed to get in the cockpit of the Gawain, and it's got some damned AI that I'm sure will make taking it a pain in the ass. The crazy bastard that set up the test for it threw in live ammo drones to fight, and just when I found somewhere to get a bite to eat, a bunch of rats cause a commotion that gets the police involved and I had to book it before I even took my first bite!"
Himeko gave an impressed whistle at his predicament.
"And on top of it all, the Witch of Britannia is here along with a Knight of the Round!"
Himeko and the others, listening to the call, got silent for several seconds.
Guinevere was the first to speak up. "… Is it a woman?"
Becas almost face-faulted at the question. "Does that really matter?!"
"Yep, it's a woman," Fritz intoned.
"Knew it," the girls all added in unison.
"Why does it matter!?" Becas shouted.
"Because it will affect how well the mission goes," Helian explained bluntly.
"Why would it being a man or a woman change the headaches it brings?"
"Because it's you performing the mission."
Becas' fuse finally blew. "What does that have to do with anything!?"
"Everything," the girls answered in unison.
Becas growled heavily before sighing. "Whatever, I'm not getting anywhere with this… and I'm too hungry to keep arguing…" Pivoting the conversation, he asked, "So how are the sisters doing?"
"Fine, so far," Fritz answered. "We're giving them small jobs to see what they can do. Pretty much their only skill is their excellent combat compatibility. They're pretty terrible at anything else. Infiltration, espionage, or anything that doesn't involve fighting in a mobile suit. Though when it does involve that, they're pretty damn good."
"Is that so?"
"Both probably around B-Rank. The older one could be low A-Rank."
"Well I'm glad they seem to be working out. I could tell they had some level of talent, and wasting it all on smalltime jobs like they were doing just didn't fit. Plus it was only a matter of time before they pissed off the wrong group of mercs or bandits and got in over their heads."
"Yeah, I can see that. Given the older one seems to have a bit of a temper."
Becas laughed in amusement. "Coming from you? I don't think I know anyone with a worse temper than you."
Fritz twitched an eyebrow in frustration at his comment. "Oy! Cram it!"
"I would, but the food is at the diner."
"Some crummy diner was the best you could get?" Himeko questioned.
"It's not like Kalina sent me here flush with cash. You know how miserly she is."
"Hey!" the blonde in question shouted. "I'm right here you know!"
"We know," everyone answered in unison.
Kalina stared at the group in disbelief before pulling up a clipboard and writing on it. "Well I can cross of that cocktail dress and new shotgun from the list."
Becas, feeling the tension through the phone line, slowly pulled it from his ear. "… I'm going to hang up before I become witness to a murder. So bye."
"Hey, wait, what do you –?!" Kalina asked, her voice cutting out as Becas hung up.
"Hope they don't make me clean up the body afterwards," Becas lamented as he put the phone down and slumped onto the bed.
"Are you out of your mind!?" Cecile screamed at Lloyd.
Lloyd merely shook his head. "No, my mother had me tested as a child. Why?"
She stared at him with a single, twitching eyebrow. "Do you seriously want me to answer that?"
Shrugging, he added, "It's the best way to collect actual combat data."
"Baby steps, Lloyd! Baby steps! Take it one thing at a time before getting to the dangerous part."
Lloyd merely adjusted his glasses with a huff. "As entertaining as I'm sure that would be, we hardly have the time for it."
Cecile stared silently at the man as her tension built, dissipated when Nonette entered the conversation.
"Whoa, sounds like someone's in a bad mood."
Sighing and looking to the woman, Cecile bowed gently. "Lady Enneagram."
Waving to the blue-haired beauty, Nonette interjected, "So I hear the 'mobility test' got a little hot today."
"He let loose a bunch of Ratel drones!"
Nonette just raised an eyebrow curiously. "Those old junkers? Is that really a big deal?"
"It was supposed to be a mobility test. Not actual combat!"
Nonette could only shrug. "Well if the doctor's mobile suit can be damaged by something so pathetic it's probably not worth testing anyway. And if it's good enough to not be hurt, no harm done."
"And she effortlessly dealt with them all," Lloyd added.
Sighing, Cecile explained, "It's not the mobile suit I'm worried about, it's the pilot."
Nonette raised an eyebrow, confused only further. "If the pilot died fighting a bunch of walking junkheaps, he probably wasn't going to be any good to begin with. And it sounds to me like he handled the problem marvelously." After a short pause, a mischievous grin formed on her lips. "Unless… you're interested in him?"
Cecile lurched back at the accusation, her face tinting slightly red. "H – Huh?! What's that got to do with anything!?"
Nonette's eyes widened with excited surprise. "So you are?!"
"I never said that!"
Lloyd just rubbed his temple in exasperation. "This is why women bore me…"
Gawain, standing inactive nearby, could only sigh at the seemingly endless argument.
The next morning, Becas greedily woofed down the complimentary breakfast provided by the hotel, causing more than a little stir among the other guests.
Leaning back with a hearty sigh, he smiled contentedly. "Ahh… that hit the spot…" Looking around, he frowned slightly. "Wish they had some roast duck, though…" After a moment to think his shoulders dropped. "Ah who am I kidding? This is Britannia, home to steak and burgers, they wouldn't have an oriental dish like that."
Taking moment to stretch as he stood up, he nodded to himself. "Right, time to get going."
As he made his way back to the lab, his mind went through idea after idea on how to obtain, and more importantly keep, the Gawain.
"Hey, I'm back!" Becas announced as he walked into the lab.
Seeing him, Cecile turned with a smile. "Ah, Kevin."
"Cecile," he acknowledged before noticing Nonette and Lloyd nearby, talking about something.
Glancing up and seeing he had arrived, Nonette grinned and walked up to the silver-haired man with excitement. "So, I hear you had quite the ride yesterday."
Becas just stared at her silently before sending a scowl at Lloyd, the man instead just looking away and whistling.
"Think you're ready for a spar?"
"Anytime."
"Great! How about an hour to get ready?"
"Sounds perfect beautiful."
Stepping close to him with a playful smirk, Nonette threatened, "Flirtation may get you places, but it won't make this beating hurt any less."
Becas just shrugged. "Flirting and telling the truth are two different things."
Cecile just sighed as the two continued trading jabs.
"Disappointed he isn't flirting with you?" Gawain teased, earning an annoyed glare from the woman.
Becas glanced to the side at the two in confusion.
Sitting in Gawain's cockpit, Becas sat silently typing away on a pocket computer in his lap.
"You ready for this?" Gawain questioned, Becas not hearing or just ignoring her as he kept typing. "Yoo-hoo," she called out again, to no response. Finally losing her patience, she shouted, "Kevin!"
"What?!" he growled back.
"What are you doing?" she questioned, attempting to move the camera far enough to the side to see his computer, but not being able to.
"Looking up everything I can about Nonette's suit and how she fights," he answered as he quickly resumed his search.
"Ah," she mumbled in recognition. "She uses a customized Tristan."
Finally having his attention on her, Becas glanced up at her, or rather the screen with a representation of her. "Customized how?"
"It's slightly shorter and heavier than my sister, and any long-range weaponry she has, Nonette has traded in for greater melee capabilities, such as a large lance."
"Good to know," he muttered quietly as he listened to her.
"Don't think that means just keeping your distance is enough to take her down. That lance has rockets on it."
"Marvelous…"
"She also has a rather finicky fighting style. She charges in with a largely powerful attack and then pulls back. If that first blow doesn't do you in, she starts going at you with numerous smaller attacks until she finds an opening to hit you with another big one."
"Good to know." Stretching his shoulders as the elevator raised the Gawain up to the arena, he smirked with mild anticipation. "Alright, let's get this started," he noted before drawing the mech's large sword.
End of the chapter! I hope you all enjoyed it, be sure to let me know with a review. If you were confused, uncertain, or simply have questions on anything, such as what series different characters are from, leave your queries in a review and I will address them in the next reviewer response. If you did not enjoy it, that is fine, but know there are certain aspects central to my storytelling style that will not be changing.