Chapter 6: Misinformation

A/N: The confirmation of an absence of mid-meal-morsels marches on.

# Beginning troubleshoot on split in Trinity Processor Core 'Pneuma'

# working…

# Information: Trinity Processor Core 'Pneuma' has been networked with 'external memory bank.'

# Warning: 'External memory bank' contains data inconsistent with current database. Data is corrupt. Errors detected.

# Quarantine corrupt data for review, Y/N?

# Y

# working…

# Corrupt data quarantined. Data mining process initiated.

# Attempting full data sync with Trinity Processor Core 'Pneuma,' 'external memory bank' and current database to remove data inconsistencies.

# working…

# Error: some items were unable to sync. Store error data for review: Y/N?

# Y

# Error data storage successful. 'External memory bank' has been updated.

Clink, clink, clink.

The x-shaped emerald crystal near her sternum didn't respond to the tapping of Lora's fingernail, but continued its too-steady rhythmic pulse. She looked up to where Pyra sat demurely in a comfortable looking padded chair facing towards her, and her eyes zeroed in on Pyra's core crystal, missing an x-shaped piece.

The room itself was a simple but homey affair, and its furniture was nice, if nothing special. Even so, Lora could tell it had been prepared with the meticulous kind of care that sometimes felt like only Jin was capable of. There had been a small note from him which she had tucked away to read later.

"Does it...bother you? The core crystal?" Pyra asked, eyes flicking away, looking uneasy.

Shifting on the edge of the surprisingly comfortable bed she sat on, Lora tapped the core crystal with her fingernail again, then tilted her head. "Not really, no. It's just," she hesitated, looking for the right word and settled on, "...different."

"Not what you were expecting?"

Lora gave a wan smile. "That's a good way to put it, I suppose." She looked down and felt the transition between skin and the Core with her finger. Her mind said it should feel like crystal - and to her finger it did - but her body reacted it was almost like sensitive skin. Almost like a burn. "Is this what Blades feel like?"

Pyra chuckled a little.

Lora looked up, confused. "What's so funny?"

"Sorry. I guess I just never thought about it before." Pyra's hand hovered over her part of the emerald core. "My core has just always been a part of me, always there. I never really questioned it."

"That makes sense, but…" A jolt went through Lora's mind and she straightened up on the edge of the bed she sat on. "Wait a second, if I have part of a core crystal, does that make me a Blade?"

Pyra laughed good-naturedly, and then gave a reassuring smile when Lora pouted. "No, you're still just you."

"Oh, okay, that's good." She paused, realizing what she just said. "Not that it would have been a bad thing, but, urm…" she trailed off awkwardly.

"Don't worry. I think I understand what you mean. Despite it all, you're still you, right?"

Nodding, Lora closed her eyes and curled her hand over the crystal, feeling the pulse that continued steadily onward. "I think it's nice, like a physical reminder of the bond we have now."

Opening her eyes, she looked up to Pyra, expecting to see a smile, or something. Instead, Pyra averted her eyes, squeezing her hands together as her fingers fidgeted.

"Did I say something wrong?"

"No, no, it's fine." The smile that Pyra put on was strained. Fake.

"...If you say so." Clearly, something was bothering her, but Lora couldn't really put her finger on what it was, and decided to let it go for the moment. "There's something I don't really understand, though." She glanced at the door to the room provided for her. "Back there, in the kitchen, what happened?"

"Which part?"

"After Malos finished talking about the core crystal cleansing, you put your hand on my shoulder. For me, there were just a bunch of images and feelings, things that I couldn't make heads or tails of. It kind of hurt my head, to be honest."

"Sorry, I should've asked before I did that. I won't do it again if you don't want me to."

Lora waved her hands in front of her placatingly. "No, no, it's okay. Maybe just give a warning next time. So...what was that?"

"Well, when I was..." she hesitated. "After Milton passed, Mythra subconsciously put a block on accessing the data of the Blades. I can feel that the information is still flowing up to somewhere, maybe to Father, but I couldn't see it."

Lora tapped the crystal again. "Until this?"

Pyra nodded. "Until this. Through you, I was able to bypass the block that Mythra put up." She chuckled. "It's funny to think that I learned that I could get that information in the first place from Malos, of all people."

"So, does that mean Malos can access it on his own as well?"

"Not anymore. He's hurt, damaged from Mythra's last attack. But before that, he used the Blade data advantage to its fullest when we fought against him in Torna. Imagine, knowing exactly how others fight even though you've never met them."

"That makes a lot of sense. He did seem to know an awful lot about us for having never met before our first fight. It was frustrating. Almost like he knew exactly how to counter us, not just like your foresight, but like he'd fought against us for years before."

"Mm. He had the information, the data...but, even with all of it, I don't think either Malos or I really know anything about who we are, why Father created us different from other Blades."

"Hmm…" Lora tapped her chin thoughtfully. "I can't say I really know either, but at least you're you, right?"

"Am I?"

The wavering statement threw Lora off, and she tilted her head in confusion. "Huh?"

"I'm...not even sure who I am. They say I'm an Aegis, but that's just a title. You and I keep talking about Mythra and I like we're different people, but are we? I have her memories; I can feel what she felt when I remember things. But even then, I feel different."

"Um…"

"How much do I really understand?" Pyra shook her head. "Nothing. I really don't know anything about myself. About who I am."

"But we can figure it out, right?" She tried to give a reassuring smile. "I trust you."

"Maybe...maybe you shouldn't."

Lora was taken aback by that. "...Pyra?"

"I destroyed your home. That," she took a breath, "that killed me inside. All those innocent people who died because of what I did. How you and Jin ended up in this situation because of me. If I was there, if I hadn't let Addam seal me away, I could've…" She trailed off, biting her lip.

Oh.

The feelings that she'd put aside after the Tornan Titan sunk rushed to the surface of her mind. She had had moments where she'd wondered before Spessia, wondered if it would have been better off never meeting Addam and Mythra in the first place. But they had been fleeting moments. After a moment, just like back then, she shoved those doubts and fears aside, even if she was lying to herself.

"That was then, and this is now." Lora looked her way, but it seemed that Pyra was intent on avoiding her gaze. "I have to trust you. We're Driver and Blade, and that means we're one in body and soul." She saw Pyra flinch at Mythra's words being used back at her. Even if they hadn't been Driver and Blade for long, the connection was there. "But more importantly, we're friends, right?"

Pyra fidgeted with her hands, and Lora could practically feel the hesitation in her answer. "I guess."

"I trust you." It was hard, and she didn't fully. She was…scared of what Pyra could do, but Lora shoved aside the niggling doubts and the weight of it's meaning for a moment. She could tell that Pyra needed this right now.

Pyra averted her eyes. "Even...after what I did to your home?"

There was something, a falter in her voice that made Lora stop and think closely about what she said next. Standing up, she walked over to Pyra and crouched down to look at her directly.

"Pyra, look at me," she said softly. Slowly, very slowly, Pyra lifted her head and Lora looked her straight in her red eyes. "I won't pretend that I understand everything that happened then, but it wasn't your fault."

"It is." She shook her head vigorously, "I caused so much grief, hurt so many people."

"You were hurting; Malos was going to destroy everything you came to love."

"But he's still alive!" There were tears starting to form in her eyes. "What I did didn't do anything. Even if I thought it was alright that people died, that it was an acceptable sacrifice, nothing changed! It's worse, Lora."

"Worse? What do you mean?"

"Alrest. When I connected with you, those images you saw, I understood them. I don't get how, but I did. It's...bad. If I hadn't…If I hadn't lost control then-

Lora cut her off by putting her arms around her.

"I don't know what you feel, and I don't think I can fully understand what you're going through. What you went through. But we're here now. Both of us, and we can try and do something about it."

"But what can we do?"

"I don't know. But we'll figure it out together. One step at a time, okay?"

Jin ruffled her hair and she almost reflexively shied away from the gesture, until she remembered Jin wasn't like that. "One moment at a time, Lora."

They stayed there for a time. Though she could tell it wasn't hers, Lora felt relief. Relief mixed with a horrible guilt that wasn't her own.

"...Okay. One step at a time."

She pulled away, leaving her hands on Pyra's shoulders. "Now we just have to figure out the next step, what's right in front of us, right?"

Pyra smiled weakly, nodding. "Yeah."

It was still a smile that didn't reach her eyes, but it was a step. "I'm going to see if I can find some material to make a weapon. I have a sneaking suspicion that we're going to need it."

"I think I know a good place; just...let me compose myself and we'll go."

"Of course." Lora hopped up and clapped her hands together. "We're going to face it all with gusto!"

Pyra wiped her eyes. "Gusto?"

"Yup! We'll start by opening the door, but we'll do it with energy, with enthusiasm." Lora extended her hand. "We'll do it together."

Hesitantly, Pyra took her hand, and Lora lifted her up.

"If you want to talk to her, then just go and do it already."

"Gah!" Heart lurching, Mikhail whipped his head to the side at the sound of Nia's voice, backing up quickly from the door, before his mind registered who it was. Cheeky smile and all.

"Nia." He ran a hand through his hair. "Why'd you have to go and sneak up on me like that?"

She set a hand on her hip, puffing her cheeks out in clear frustration. "I've been standing here at least a minute already. Honestly, I don't think I could've been louder if I tried. You weren't going to try anything sidewise, were you?"

"Of course not." He looked at her unbelieving expression, and promptly changed topics, even if he really hadn't been. "You can't really have been here that long can you?"

"You've been away here longer then I have. We finished welding everything and the walls look just dandy now. No bent panels or anything, I'll have you know."

"Wait, seriously?" Just how long had he been standing in front of this door now? Hours?

"Yeah, I 'volunteered' to go look for you."

To get away from Malos, went the unspoken words. He looked over expecting to see her faithful Blade with her like he always was, but didn't spot him anywhere. "Where's Dromarch?"

She winced, looking slightly guilty. "Holding them off."

"What are you looking at, cat?"

Dromarch's mind ran through an endless array of possibilities of what to say as Malos - arms crossed and annoyance clear on his face - stared straight down at him. Sever lurked behind, adding to the intensity. If his lady wished for him to stall, he would stall.

He cleared his throat.

"Pardon my curiosity, Master Malos, but I can't help but wonder. Do you perchance like…" he scrambled through a number of things before he settled on, "...sweets?"

"...Sweets?"

Malos raised an eyebrow at him, and for an uncomfortably long moment there was silence. His tail twitched. If he needed to, he could probably buy himself time by diving down the hole in the floor. Dromarch felt his fur bristle as the silence ticked onward.

"Yeah, they're not bad. Why do you ask?"

He let go of a breath he didn't realize he was holding. He hadn't planned on Malos actually taking the first thing that came to mind. Now what?

"Ah, well…"

"Talk about throwing the poor guy under a trampling armu," Mikhail muttered, even if he couldn't help but chuckle.

Nia jabbed at his arm with her finger. "Hey, I'm covering your backside too, you know! You're supposed to be directing us on what we can do to fix the big old hole in the floor and you were gone long enough that Malos was getting antsy."

"Oh, right. The hole."

"Yeah, that. Big thing, hard to miss, easy to fall through if you try hard enough. What do we need to do to fix it?"

Mikhail spread his arms in a shrug. "Right now, there's nothing we can do. The Aegis went right through a control core when she sent down that giant pillar of flame. Not only that, but she burned through the spare parts I set down nearby. So we'll have to try and locate them while we're in Mor Ardain. Some of the parts they'll probably have, but some aren't normally just lying around."

"When are we landing?"

"In less than a day." He kneaded his forehead. "Gah, it's going to be such a pain! Getting the parts for the first one was already a hassle and a half."

"Something tells me I'm going to be helping with that," she murmured.

"What was that?"

"Nothing. So...we're done for now?"

"Yeah. You can tell Malos that too before something else gets wrecked."

She rolled her eyes. "You can tell him yourself, after you talk to her."

"Easier said than done, Nia," he muttered. "Besides, what am I supposed to say to her anyways? 'It's good to see you Lora. How've you been?' Nah, that's too cheesy. Maybe, 'remember that quiet kid you used to lug around? Well, he's not dead. Hey wait, you're not dead either? Wow, we have so much in common-'"

"Aaand nope; just going to shoot that down now. Didn't you say she was kind of like your mother? You're not trying to flirt, Mik, just talk."

"You don't think I know that?" He started pacing in front of the door. What did you say when the last thing he remembered of her alive was her telling Haze to take him and run. He could still practically feel the heat of the explosions, Haze wrapping herself around him to protect him, until she returned to her core after Lora...had died.

Except now she wasn't dead. Or maybe she never fully had been?

That wasn't even taking into account that the Aegis was probably in there too, and that was a whole different dance party.

Ugh!

He reached out to the door to knock-

And got a face full of metal as the door swung open, with gusto, slamming into his skull and knocking him away. He let himself melt onto the floor hand clutching his throbbing face. That almost hurt worse than Patroka knocking his face in, but somehow way less satisfying.

"...Ow."

"Hey, are you alright?"

He didn't look at her, but the voice was clearly hers; Lora's. He waved his free hand in dismissal without looking up from the floor. "Just dandy. Just about to do some routine maintenance in the area, don't mind me."

Wow, that hurt.

"Oh, well if you say so. I...don't think I've seen you around yet. What's your name?"

There was a long, awkward silence that he didn't fill. He felt a lot of things he could say rush through his mind, but his throat choked up and he couldn't speak. He seriously wanted to die right now.

"Urm, do you need any help?"

After a moment, Nia came to his rescue. "Nah, he just needs a bit. You can go on ahead if you need to."

"...Alright, if you're sure. Well, it was good to meet you both. You're…?"

"Nia. It was Lora, right?"

"Yeah. How'd you know?"

"Heh, your name's famous around here. Everyone's had nicknames for you while you were in ice. Patroka's called you 'Jin's icicle lady' more than once. Besides, it's hard to miss someone you've only seen frozen in ice talking and walking around all of a sudden."

He heard her chuckle. "I guess I didn't really think about it like that." There was another pause and he could practically feel her looking at him again. "Are you sure you're alright?"

He gave a thumbs up. Please go away.

"Well, if you're sure. See you both later."

The sound of two sets of footsteps echoing in the hall retreating away was eventually sealed by the slight sound of the lift closing.

"Ppft." Nia snorted and then busted out laughing.

Mikhail picked himself up off the floor, sitting up, indignant. He rubbed his face where a bruise was starting to form. Not that it would last long, but it still hurt in the meantime. "What's so funny?"

"You just stayed there on the floor the whole time. Usually you act so suave, but you didn't even try." She let out another snort mixed with a laugh. "You have no idea how much I needed a good laugh, Mik."

"Yeah, yeah; glad you find humour in my misery." Heaving himself off the floor, he started going towards where Lora had gone, ignoring the pain in his face.

"Misery?" He heard her start after him. "Oh c'mon, she was right there and you did nothing. All you had to do was say hi to-"

He whirled around at her. "Shut up!"

Her ears flattened and she narrowed her eyes, shying away a little. "What's got you all worked up? It's not like you can't try and talk to her again."

He hissed out a frustrated breath. What did she know? And even if she was right, it didn't make it any easier. "Yeah. Maybe I'll try again in another five-hundred years."

"Oi, you can't just walk away!"

"Really? Why not?" He threw his hand up in the air dismissively. "And why do you even care, Nia? It's not like you know her. Honestly, I barely even know you."

"So what?" He saw her clench her fist, open, closed, a couple of times. "If I'm going to stay here with Torna, I can't very well just stick with Dromarch all the time, can I? If I'm going to be useful, it'd be good to know who I'm working with, yeah? You included."

He blinked, slightly taken aback. Was she really trying to open up to him, to help him, because she wanted to be useful? No, there was something else to it.

"We can come with you, Master Addam! Mik and I can be useful: we won't get in the way, promise!"

Nia wasn't Milton. Never would be. But...that didn't really matter right? She wasn't a child; she was a Driver, and a flesh eater besides.

Maybe...just maybe, she could be his temporary partner in crime.

"Why are you so silent all of a sudden? You open up to me, but I can't open up to-"

He cut her off. "You know what, why not?"

"Eh?"

"If you want to help out, why not?" He grabbed her hand and despite a hiss of protest, started dragging her into the lift. "You want to be useful? Well how about starting by helping me convince Ahkos to let me take you and Lora out when I go into Mor Ardain to find those parts."

She slammed one of her dormant twin rings into his stomach, and he folded over as the air rushed out of him. "Should've known you were going to drag me out into it." She brushed her arm off where he'd grabbed her. "Just don't do it literally."

Mikhail coughed, sucking in air and then let out a chuckle as he straightened up, smoothing his hair over. "And here I thought you'd be forever aloof. Welcome to Torna, Nia; the greatest bunch of miserable misfits you'll ever find in Alrest."

"Special Inquisitor Mòrag!"

A headache came as Mòrag looked over her shoulder, and suppressed a sigh. "Consul Dughall." Outwardly, she showed no expression, but she was anxious to get to the bottom of this situation and quickly send out a warrant to catch the rest of the thieves' crew. "It seems you were able to keep the peace while I was away."

Even though it wasn't much more than a couple hours.

He perked up. Oddly, his face looked rather red, almost sunburned. "Absolutely, Inquisitor. Order was restored after those Blades," he sneered in the direction of the two Core Crystal thieves in the ether nets, and the conscious one stuck their tongue out at him, "caused a mayhem in the market district."

"That is good to hear." She glanced past him at one of the soldiers struggling with a Nopon writhing around in an ether net. "There were no complications?"

"None, Inquisitor!"

"Big bully man lying! Tora is being arrested for no reason! Tora law abiding citizen!" Behind Dughall, a soldier bopped the Nopon on the nose and the Nopon started yelling what sounded like gibberish profanities.

He whipped his head around. "Quiet, Nopon."

"Who is he, Consul?"

"No one important. Just an unruly Nopon who caused a ruckus. An unregistered Driver." He chuckled. "And what an excuse he had for it too. His Blade claimed that she was an artificial Blade and therefore had no need for a registration number!"

"Really now?" She buried her reaction, keeping a neutral expression, but inwardly it perked her interest. "An artificial Blade?"

"Ridiculous, I know. Can you believe it; artificial Blade. Perish the thought."

Looking around, Mòrag didn't spot anyone else with Dughall's little crew. "Where is the Blade in question?"

He stiffened. "They ah, escaped. From an ether net. A faulty one, no doubt!"

The Nopon blew a raspberry.

"Clearly," she remarked dryly. "If I were you, I would do all in my power to find them. As we are well aware," she sent a meaningful look at the Blade thieves, "Blades are still quite capable on their own."

"Y-yes, Inquisitor!"

She walked away towards the Ardainian consulate office. Another piece to add to the puzzle, but for now, she would focus on the task at hand. Lots and lots of questioning.

She didn't have the title of Special Inquisitor for nothing.

Rex shifted uncomfortably in his seat, trying to look anywhere but the tired looking dark-haired lady in fancy-looking imperial armour sitting in front of him. Standing behind her and to her right, her Blade - Brighid - watched him. He didn't know how someone could do that with their eyes closed. Come to think of it, he'd never actually seen her open them. Maybe it was a Blade thing?

The room itself had relatively little to look at. There was the desk he sat across, a few storage shelves - mostly barren - and in the corner, a dormant communication terminal sat hooked up on a table.

The lady in front of him cleared her throat. "Are you finding anything interesting?"

He leaned back as casually as he could in the chair, hands lacing behind his head. "If I'm being honest, considering how important you looked, I kind of expected you to have more stuff."

"Ah. This is a temporary abode. I don't suspect I will be here very long before I return to the empire."

"So you're a guest, then? You picked quite a time to get here. Bet you haven't had a break at all."

Amusement peaked through her voice, tinted with tiredness. "You could say that."

What was that about? He shook his head, clearing the thought. "So who are you, anyways?"

"I am Special Inquisitor Mòrag." Rex's eyebrows shot up. That sounds important. "But that is neither here nor there. Do you know why you are here, Rex?"

At the question his eyes widened a moment before he leaned in suspiciously at the lady - Mòrag - looking directly at her brown eyes. "How'd you know my name?"

At his question, he noticed a quiet smirk play out on her lips. "So you do not? Tell me then, what is your association with the Blades, Praxis and Theory?"

"Them? They stole Gramp's core crystal, and I got it back from them." He paused. "With your help, I guess."

There was an amused snort from Brighid, but Mòrag seemed to ignore it. "And where did your grandfather obtain it in the first place?"

"Uh, well, he's not actually my grandpa, but he was definitely old enough to be and then some. Gramps was a Titan, but when he...when he died, the core crystal was all that was left of him."

"Until you awakened the Blade within. He and I have already had a brief visit. He is safe." That explained how she knew his name. "Considering how recently he was awakened, there wasn't much to discuss. Tell me, do you have any idea the danger that you put yourself in when you awakened that Blade?"

"Danger?" He thumped a hand on his chest. "I'm a salvager, diving into the cloud sea since I could walk. It went pretty deep, but it was nothing I couldn't handle."

"Quite." He saw her close her eyes and she folded her gloved hands under her chin. "When you came in contact with the core crystal in the cloud sea, did you feel anything?"

"Maybe? I don't exactly remember. It's hard to think straight that deep down there, especially without a full salvager suit."

"I see. Allow me to enlighten you. When someone attempts to awaken a Blade, there is a sort of test that happens."

"Test?"

"Not a test as you would take in a classroom, but rather a check of your aptitude, your inherent abilities and nature." Her eyes caught him. "Why do you think that not everyone has a Blade? Wouldn't it be useful?"

Scratching the back of his head, Rex shrugged. "I dunno. I just sort of thought that they were rare."

"Not exactly, but there is more to it. The test that I spoke of, if one fails it, the consequences are quite severe. Typically, there's blood involved, and in rare cases, death."

"So wait, you're saying that if I hadn't passed this aptitude test thing, I would've…?"

"Most likely perished, yes. That you are alive speaks something about you, especially considering that by your description, the core had never been to Indol."

"The Praetorium? What's that got to do with it?"

"Core crystals that have been to Indol have been cleansed. In short, because of it, there's a higher chance of someone awakening a Blade if it has been. But even then, the danger still remains."

Rex didn't really know how to feel about that. On the one hand, it sort of made him feel sort of special, but on the other, it made him feel stupid for not knowing. "Oh."

Brighid crossed her arms, speaking up for the first time. "Just be glad you are alive to speak with us."

Mòrag nodded in agreement. "Indeed. There is no need to look back at what could have been anymore. Which brings us back to my original question. The two core crystal thieves; had you ever met them or the crew they were a part of before yesterday?"

"Not that I can think of. That was the first day that I'd seen those Blade girls. Wait, no the night before last!"

She raised an eyebrow. "Really. Which is it?"

"Sorry, I'd almost forgotten about the first one. One of them, Praxis I think was her name, pick-pocketed me when I got here two nights ago."

"The night of the big storm?" Brighid asked. "Why were you out and about in something like that?"

He shuffled in his seat. "Nothing bad. I just got into town late."

"If you believe we are trying to accuse you of something, put that fear to rest. We simply are trying to sort out the truth."

Yeah, and accusations could come later.

Rex, let out a big sigh. Did he really want to tell that to the Empire? Sure, maybe they could help, but Niranira had already promised to do something with the information. But at the same time, he had a Blade now. He could do more; maybe even fight Malos, and Torna.

But he was bad at lying, and the longer he sat around here, the longer he'd be away from the search. Gramps' advice niggled at the back of his brain.

"Truth has a way of always surfacing eventually, m'boy. Often painfully. Best that you just stick to it."

He sighed, dredging up the memories again. They were still painful to think about. "I was part of an expedition run by the chairman of the Argentum Trade Guild to recover a sunken ship in uncharted territory in the cloud sea."

"I take by your expression that it did not go well?" Mòrag asked.

"You could say that." His fist clenched for a moment thinking about what Malos had done before he let out a breath. Salvagers weren't supposed to be about revenge. "I'm...the only one left."

Mòrag bowed her head and closed her eyes a moment before looking back up at him. "My condolences; I am sorry to hear that."

He waved it off. "It's fine." It wasn't, but he didn't want her to know that. "The fact that I'm alive is good enough for me, so I can repay Torna with a good old fashioned scrap before-"

"Torna?"

The air in the room seemed to shift with the intensity that she interrupted him. He let out a hesitant, "...Um yes? They were the ones who chartered the expedition."

Her eyes flicked to Brighid, then back, and he noticed her sitting up a lot straighter. "I need you to tell me everything you know about them."

Rex's eyes narrowed. "Why are you so interested in them?"

"They are a threat, a menace, far greater than just to you and your little worldview."

"And if I don't tell you?" he ventured.

Brighid spoke up again with a 'hmph.' "Then you will rot in a cell until you do."

He waved his arms in front of him in a placating gesture. "Whoa, whoa! I was just trying to understand what was going on, lady. No need to throw stuff like that around. I'll tell you."

He saw Mòrag relax as she let out a sigh. "I would apologize for our being so direct, but this is important." She gestured to him. "Please."

He thought about it for a moment. "Fine. I took a job from the Argentum trade Guild…"

The metal holding cell door slammed closed and Azurda heard the lock twist closed. A low hum echoed throughout the room.

"Well, this is certainly an eventful first day to be alive," he muttered. Turning about, he viewed the small enclosure of the people calling themselves part of the 'Ardainian Empire,' had put him in. A very basic and no nonsense layout. The only splashes of color were little pillars with green lights on them situated in the room's corners. Something about them put him on edge.

Aside from those and a bed bolted to the opposite wall, there was nothing of note in the room. Well, at least he'd have an interesting story to tell. He'd wager that most couldn't say they'd been imprisoned on the day they were born.

With nothing else to occupy his time, he sat cross-legged in front of the bed on the floor, fearing it may not take his weight. Closing his eyes, he pondered.

From their small talk, the Special Inquisitor of the Ardainian Empire seemed to possess a goodly character. The empire likely wouldn't force him or Rex into anything they didn't want to, but there were certain things that Rex had done that, according to her, were very much illegal and reckless.

And he was the evidence of one of them. So unless Rex wanted to go rogue, they were very much at their mercy. He would follow him regardless of what choice he made.

Breathing in, then out, Azurda sought for the connection he had. The bond was there, and he could feel his Driver, in the relative vicinity of the Ardainian base. Even if he couldn't feel exactly where, he knew Rex was in the Inquisitor's office in the consulate building. Certainly far enough that a link couldn't be established.

But he didn't have much else going on, so why not try? It could be good practice.

However, as he tried, his attempt was met with flat resistance, and a headache. Not even a speck of ether was drawn into him.

Perhaps if he tried harder?

The fire within him flared, but it still wasn't enough. Nothing was coming in.

Breath in.

Out.

But it didn't seem to make a difference. Mostly it made his headache worse.

A nearly imperceptible sparking noise to his left interrupted his meditation. Opening his eyes, he glanced over to the sound to see tiny little sparks of fire arcing out from the metal wall, cutting through it. As he watched, it slowly made a circle.

Quickly standing, he backed away from it. Turning to look at the locked door, then back to the potential intruder, he wondered if he should alert the guards. Not being able to draw in ether from the air had him on edge.

Before he could decide, the sparking from the welding in the wall ceased, and by instinct, Azurda tried to call to his hand his weapon. He was frustrated when it didn't work, and his headache pulsed.

The circle finished and sparks stopped. A long pause followed.

A muted bang followed and instinctively, Azurda caught the thick piece of metal that shot out from the wall with his free hand before it could crash into something. Wincing only slightly at the hot edges of the metal piece, he carefully set it down so as to not make as much more noise.

Looking again to the hole he called softly, "Who's there?"

A small metal fist retreated into the hole and Azurda carefully backed away into a more defensible position. Never hurt to be prepared.

"Poppi comes in peace." The voice that came through was childlike; the voice of a young girl. His mind registered that it was interesting that he knew that distinction, despite having never seen or heard one before.

"Really now?" He glanced back at the still cooling circular piece of metal. Thinking it over, Azurda eventually called. "You might as well come in after going through all the trouble of making your little entryway."

"Affirmative."

On hands and knees, a person - no, a Blade, he quickly realized - scooted through the opening. First, an oversized white floppy cap, covering lilac metallic-looking hair, a bright red tattered looking cape with a white flower pinning it to her. The figure stood to her full height, blinking up at him with orange eyes. She barely came up to Azurda's waist. The rest of her looked metal, but his eyes fixed near her sternum, and at the deep seated feeling of something not right.

Her core crystal was orange.

"Do you know where Masterpon is?" she asked.

"Hmmm," Azurda rumbled, shaking off the discomfort. "I can't say I've met someone with that name yet. Though, perhaps that's not saying much."

The shoulders of the young Blade girl slumped, and she began marching stiffly over to the opposite wall where she had entered. A welding arc popped out of one of her fingers as she approached the wall.

"Now hold on a moment, young lady, it would be rude not to at least tell me your name before you go."

She stopped and abruptly pivoted. "Poppi is Poppi."

"Poppi, eh?" So it was her name. "My name is Azurda. Although I'm afraid I can't tell you too much more than that."

"Poppi pleased to meeting you." She tilted her head. "Why Azurda not tell Poppi more than name? Is horrible dirty secret?"

Azurda chuckled deeply. "Hardly. I don't know too much more than that. This happens to be my first day awakened."

Poppi's eyes widened and she leaned up close. "Is Azurda's first day active as well?" He nodded and her arms started moving in stiff, possibly excited motions, up and down, the fire of the welding arc moving with her. "How long has it been for Azurda?"

"Well, I suppose it can't be too much more than a few hours at this point."

She abruptly stopped moving her arms. The welding arc closed as she set her hands on her hips. "Poppi will impart all of wisdom to Azurda. Poppi has been activated for eighteen more hours."

"Truly? Well, I could use all the wisdom you're willing to give. What can you tell me?"

There was a long moment where Poppi simply stood there.

She blinked twice. "Poppi is unsure. Was so excited to meet someone in similar situation that the information to give was not thought through. Will think deeply about it and let Azurda know."

"I look forward to when you do. So, who is this 'masterpon' you're looking for?"

"Masterpon is masterpon." She stated it as though it were the most obvious thing in the world.

He glanced again at her orange core crystal, mind reeling instinctively at the colour again. "Are they your Driver?"

There was a pause. "Poppi is unsure. Masterpon is one who built Poppi, and cares for Poppi a lot." She looked down as if ashamed. "But Poppi is artificial Blade. Does Azurda know if that makes Masterpon artificial Driver?"

"Hmm." He scratched his chin. "That certainly is a good question." That could be the reason that the orange core crystal looked wrong. "I'm not sure I could say anything for sure from experience, but you came here searching for Masterpon, correct?"

A bobbing nod. "Poppi is on the search."

"A Driver and Blade have a bond that transcends normal friendship, something that connects them from the moment of their awakening." He was surprised when it fell out of his mouth, but it felt right. "Do you feel as though you and they have something like this?"

Poppi was silent. "Poppi does not know."

"While I cannot speak for him, the fact that you are searching for him says something. I believe you have a bond, or at least the start of one. And while it may be different from a normal Driver and Blade, it is there." He tapped her core crystal, or whatever it was.

Poppi's hand hovered over it. "Poppi has a bond." She looked up to him. "Poppi has a bond with Masterpon." He nodded, encouragingly. "Poppi has a bond with Masterpon!"

He hoped desperately that he wasn't lying to her. "You'd better go find him, then."

With a salute and an, "Affirmative!" she crouched and crashed shoulder first through the wall, making an extremely loud noise, and shaking the room.

"Oh dear."

Turning back to the entrance of the cell, he was just in time to see two very concerned guards level their guns at him. They probably thought he had done that.

He pointed at the holes in the walls. "You may have a little problem."

She hadn't expected the boy to have the answers. Out of all that had been detained, he had seemed the least likely to know anything.

One of the thieves, the last one she had interrogated before Rex, had broken under the interrogation and told her everything. Someone had given them a tip and promised to split the profits of the stolen cores. The name they had given was unfamiliar and likely an alias, but she took it down and would look into it.

But this, if this was true, was far worse than simple core crystal piracy.

Mòrag heard her gloves creak as she curled her hand into a fist. After a brooding, uncomfortable silence, she looked up, eyes not quite meeting Rex's. "So that is their aim."

"Huh?"

There were so many implications, each of them worse than the last. She focused and looked him dead in the eyes. "Are you aware of the war which took place nearly five hundred years ago?"

"Uh, maybe?" He seemed uncomfortable with the intense scrutiny. "It does sound familiar, like something Auntie Corrine mentioned at some point. Didn't it have to do something with a really powerful Blade or something?"

Eyes flicking over to Brighid, then back, Mòrag sighed as his naiveté. He was a civilian, and a Leftherian besides. They typically didn't involve themselves too much in world affairs outside of trade and their salvagers.

She nodded. "Indeed, it was a war unlike any Alrest has seen or had since. Three Titans, nations, were sunk beneath the cloud sea, and many others never recovered. The once great nation of Coeia is one such example. Of the Blade you spoke of, history is unclear on them. Most conclude that after the war, the Aegis was either destroyed or lost. Until now, it seems."

"Hold on a second, you're telling me that that girl in the capsule was the Blade that wreaked havoc on Alrest?"

"Correct. History has a tendency to repeat itself and in the hands of Torna, left unchecked, we will see more Titans perish."

"That's horrible! Things are hard enough with everyone already fighting over what little land we have. Why would they do that?"

She let out a breath reminding herself of how young he was. "Sadly, some people just want to see the world burn."

"But there has to be another reason that they're doing this. It can't really be that simple."

"Perhaps. And by the time we figure that out, what if it is too late?"

"But…"

"If they are not stopped, who's to say they won't destroy more Titans, kill more than just soldiers? Tensions will escalate, and wars will inevitably follow." She shook her head. "I cannot afford to take risks with innocent people's lives at stake."

His gritted teeth mixed with his silence was telling of the effect of her words.

"I thank you for sharing this with me, Rex. However, there is one other thing which we need to address. You awakened a Blade without the sanction of any party, which under Indol's law would make you a wanted fugitive."

A slight lie, but close enough to the truth. Given he was Leftherian…

Standing suddenly, the boy's eyes widened. "What?! But that's ridiculous. How was I supposed to know that?"

The bait was taken, and she could practically feel Brighid judging her for it.

"Calm down, boy. Allow me to finish. I have a proposal for you. If you say that you awakened your Blade as part of the Empire's Driver recruitment initiative, you would be fine."

"But that would be lying."

"The alternative is...unpleasant to discuss. Once Driver recruitment ends later this week, I will be returning with the new Driver recruits assigned to Mor Ardain once I conclude my business here. It wouldn't look amiss at all for you to be among them."

She saw him clench his fist. "No. Absolutely not. I won't be a soldier fighting in someone else's war."

Brighid made a 'hmph,' and Mòrag could practically feel her derision through their bond. "You would rather become a wanted fugitive?"

"Yes."

Mòrag raised her eyebrows. "Interesting." He certainly is stubborn. But so was she.

Standing from her seat, the boy backed up, as if he hadn't expected her to do so. She stared him down a moment before she walked away from him the short distance to the window, facing the sun nearly set, trusting Brighid would watch him for any unexpected moves.

"What do you mean, interesting?" he asked.

Setting her hands at parade rest behind her back, she watched the evening crowds go by. "What is your goal, Rex?"

"My...goal?" He sounded taken aback by her sudden change of tactics. Good. "To find Torna and give them a piece of my mind. Maybe have a drink with them afterwards. Whatever happens, I just don't want them to kill any more innocent people."

Ah. Revenge. Perhaps well intentioned, but revenge nonetheless.

"And you expect to do this alone?" Mòrag asked. "From your description, there were at least three members of Torna. Two were Drivers with Blades, and dare I say with far more experience than you at their craft. It's very likely there are more than just them."

"Well…maybe, but-"

"And, suppose they awaken the Aegis and convince her to bond with one of them, fight for their cause. How would you stand against that alone?"

"But I'm a Driver now. I'll find a way. I always have."

She heard Brighid speak. "Your naive optimism is touching, if unwarranted, especially considering that you are still in custody."

Brighid was unyielding as usual, though it was true. He really doesn't comprehend what he's planning on going up against.

"Brighid is right. Custody aside, consider this. Your likelihood of succeeding in your quest is far higher if you join with the empire; the instructors could teach you far more about being a Driver than you would learn on your own. Our goal is the same, to stop the Aegis and Torna from accomplishing their aim."

Turning, Mòrag watched a complicated set of emotions wrest their way over Rex's face. "I get it. I get what you're saying, but how could I fight with a cause that I don't even believe in? The empire is just so...militaristic."

And there it was. The prejudice against the Empire come to rear its ugly head once again. "You say this as though you're an expert on the Ardainian Empire and its people. Why not come and see for yourself?"

His brow furrowed. "What do you mean?"

"Exactly as I said. Join the recruited Drivers, see for yourself what the Empire is like. Do this and I will help you fight against Torna."

"And if I don't like what I see?"

"There's more to the Ardainian Empire than its soldiers and military. We are an industrious people, Rex. It would help those you want to protect."

A long moment of silence passed, and she saw his fist clench and unclench as he thought. A minute passed until he looked her dead in the eyes.

"Fine."

She expected him to ask for time to think about it, but she wasn't complaining.

"Excellent choice." She stopped herself from smirking. It wasn't appropriate of her station to gloat.

"I'll come with you, but I make no promises about staying with the military." He held out his hand to shake.

She took it. "I believe this has been most productive for both of us." The most productive of all the interrogations from today. Letting go of his hand, she drew out paper from her desk, and wrote a note to the Driver recruiters explaining the situation. Handing the explanation over, she gestured to the door. "Give the recruiters this. They will know what to do. You may go; the guards will lead you and your Blade to them."

He snatched the paper and left without a word. The door closed with a strange sense of finality.

Brighid turned to her and raised her eyebrows. "Another win for you, Lady Mòrag?" Her tone wasn't scathing, but there was some disappointment there.

She allowed a smile to take shape on her face now. "I haven't the faintest idea of what you're talking about."

"You look far too smug and satisfied for me to believe you. Aside from keeping an eyewitness close, was there any other reason for how much you wanted to recruit the boy, especially with your lie about Driver registration?"

"You know me too well. I don't enjoy wasting life. Even if he turns out to be a horrible Driver, there are other ways to utilize his skills. He is a Salvager, and though reckless, is good at adapting quickly in chaotic situations. Either way, he will be an asset to the Empire, and a life won't be wasted."

"So he's a useful resource."

"Hopefully more. Time will tell."

"At least his information makes your trip here more worthwhile, assuming it's true." An amused smile made its way onto Brighid's face. "If this is the kind of work that gets done, perhaps Emperor Niall should send you on obligatory leave more often."

Mòrag snorted. "If this is how it really always worked, I would take it myself. But no matter."

There was a banging on her door, followed by a soldier barging in without asking. Another part of not being in the empire proper. At least he saluted smartly.

Glancing at his rank, she nodded. "At ease, private. What is it?"

"Ma'am! Consul Dughall sent me to inform you that there's been a breakout on the base!"

Narrowing her eyes, a sinking feeling came into her heart. "Where?"

"From one of the Blade holding cells. A small girl - a Blade - she cut through both the Blade containment cells, crashed through the prison yards and escaped with the Nopon the consul had put in custody."

Never a dull moment.

"Fetch the captain and I will organize a search party," she ordered.

"Ma'am!"

A/N: Nothing funny going on with Lora and Pyra while she goes through an identity crisis. Nope.

Meanwhile Azurda makes his first friend as Mòrag inquisits so hard that Rex joins the empire.