Chapter 7: A Small Reunion

A/N: The recognition of a total shortage of nosh presses on.

"Sister, I don't want to fight."

"What can we do to change that, Niall? Mor Ardain is dying, and our people need to eat, just like anyone else. What else can we do but fight for it?"

"...I'll find another way. When I'm emperor, I'll find another way. There's been enough war in Alrest."

"Thankfully, Brionac hasn't made any discernible move, even in your absence. What of the situation in Gormott?"

Emperor Niall's image flickered on the communications console in front of Mòrag. To the side of him, she could just barely see Aegeon, his Blade, though his image was cut off. Legs crossed, hands folded in her lap, she let out a sigh as she thought of the mess that it was. "Most of it went to plan, but there were some complications. It's something of a developing mess, one I need to get back to as quickly as I can."

"The core crystal thieves?" She nodded at his question. "You've captured and interrogated them already?"

"Yes."

He let out a soft laugh. "That was quicker than I would have expected, even of you. Was there any connection to Torna as you suspected?"

"Nothing conclusive from them at the present moment. The initial round of questioning against the thieves only yielded the name 'Patroka.' It's not one I'm familiar with, unfortunately." She quirked a brow. "You wouldn't happen to know anything of it, your majesty?"

"Sadly, no. If you'd like, I can have some of the intelligence division here begin looking into it, if you would like?"

"That would be agreeable. However, there is a more urgent matter."

"What is it, Inquisitor?"

"During the operation to capture the thieves, a civilian boy, a Leftherian, interfered."

"Was he killed?"

She shook her head. "No, but he did awaken a Blade. He's to be part of the Driver recruitment program."

"That is excellent news. The empire needs all the help it can get nowadays. But, why tell me this? Does he seem promising in some way?"

"Perhaps. He knows Torna."

Though it was harder to tell over the screen, she saw the tell-tale sign of Niall's expression souring a moment before it vanished, a smile plastered itself over his face. "I suppose that's good news. But as much threat as they pose, what else is there that has you so rattled?"

She steeled herself. "If the boy is telling the truth, and I believe he is, Torna is after the Aegis. According to him, Torna already found and retrieved her. The Aegis has returned."

She gave him the shortened version of the story Rex had told her.

It was telling that the only change from Niall was a slight hardening in the eyes, looking somewhat out of place on his young face. Once again, she was reminded of just how quickly he'd had to grow to take his position.

"That is unfortunate: It is also not the first I've heard of it. Not but a scant few hours ago, I received an anonymous tip from someone within the Argentum Trade Guild detailing just this. I was loathe to believe it, but if you have a first-hand witness to it, then…"

As he trailed off, she saw his brow knit, and he seemed to age ten years in a moment. Given how much Niall worked for there to be peace not only in the empire, but as much of Alrest as Mor Ardain had influence over, the prospect of another time like the Aegis war five-hundred years prior seemed to terrify him.

She would never show it to him, but it terrified her as well.

"What do you propose we do, your majesty?"

His eyes snapped back into full focus. "We won't be able to keep something like this quiet, especially since the information is already out there. Rumours are going to spread like wildfire across Alrest. But I don't want to mobilize for a threat just yet. "

"I believe that will be wise," Mòrag agreed. "From the descriptions that history gives, if she comes to Mor Ardain with the intent to sink it, there will be little we can do."

Niall nodded. "I will raise the Alba Cavanich military to a quiet state of alert and begin using the aid of the populace to locate her. If we can negotiate with her to prevent her from unleashing destruction, that could work."

"And if the opportunity presents itself, I will attempt to capture her, or failing that, neutralize the threat she poses."

"Very well. Is there any other business to discuss?"

"The remaining situations here in Gormott are developing, and I will update you as I can."

"Very well." He smiled. "Stay safe, Mòrag."

"You do the same, your majesty."

The terminal winked off, and Mòrag closed her eyes as thousands of different thoughts swirled around in her head. She rubbed her eyes. Best to get back to the matters close at hand.

Night had fallen by the time Mòrag made her way out of the consulate office over to the Ardainian base.

The few Gormotti civilians she passed shirked away from her, and the rest gave her cold stares. It was hard to miss the distinct uniform of the special inquisitor after all. Considering how much chaos had happened earlier, she couldn't blame them, even if it wasn't entirely the empire's fault.

By this point, the search party - now headed by Brighid so she could update Niall - was unlikely to come up with anything. She was beginning to suspect they wouldn't find the errant Nopon and his supposedly artificial Blade, at least not by actively searching. A pity, but a less pressing deal than the larger looming matter of Torna and the Aegis.

Entering the base, she found it in a veritable uproar of activity, people running to and fro, some stopping to smartly salute her before passing on, others forgetting. As she passed by the hole running through the Blade detention centre - which was already being cleared and prepared to be patched up diligently by Ardainian engineers and workers - Mòrag couldn't help but wonder if something else would pop up today.

Nearing the centre of the base, she heard before she saw the 'dulcet' tones of Consul Dughall, frantically ordering men and women around. Approaching, Dughall caught sight of her, and finished ordering a harrowed looking worker who saluted and dashed off in a hurry. She turned to where they went and was reminded of why.

The holding cell for non-Blades was completely demolished. She'd seen it before when she initially came to the scene, but it was still impressive in a morbid sort of way.

"Inquisitor, pardon my lack of propriety, but where in the blazes have you been?"

Turning back, she found Dughall attempting to glare a hole through her - his face still red as she now understood from the escaped nopon's Blade blasting him with enough steam to give him what looked to be a bad sunburn. She raised an eyebrow, meeting his gaze, coolly. "Taking care of something pressing, but also confidential."

"And it couldn't have waited until tomorrow?"

"Destroyed property can be rebuilt, but Titans cannot."

"What's that supposed to mean?"

"I cannot say, but you will know soon enough." Even though the whole of Alrest would know before too long, she knew it would be wise not to spread undue panic, as things like this tended to get out of hand quickly with rumours. She set her hands behind her back. "Even so, I am here now to help. Report, consul."

He muttered something, before clearing his throat, and regaining a sense of composure. "As you likely know, Inquisitor, there was a mass breakout."

"Yes, I had heard." She glanced over again at the demolished building and the cleanup crew clearing out the debris. Unsurprisingly, she spotted the boy Rex and his Blade among those helping out with the couple other Gormotti Driver recruits.

Azurda had seemed innocent of whatever the Nopon's Blade had done, so he and the other recruits were delegated to the hard labour jobs. Rex and the other recruit's training wouldn't officially begin until they went back to the empire. Driver or not, work needed to be done

"As I said before, even Blades without their Drivers can be dangerous."

Though the amount of destruction was worrying. Just what were they trying to accomplish?

"The stinking Nopon's Blade snuck in and cut through the Blade detention centre first, and after causing a ruckus, literally crashed through the regular detention centre, grabbed the nopon and ran."

"Truly? The Blade in question wasn't affected by the ether dampening field inside the Blade holding cells?"

"Not in the least." She saw him wrinkle his nose in disgust. "Indol must've pulled a fast one on us selling us those things. Faulty pieces of junk."

"I doubt that. The Indoline Pratorium has a good reputation for anything Blade-related it sells. Those cells have worked on other Blades in the past. Their ether nets work like a charm, as you well know."

"Yes, but it doesn't excuse or explain this." He pulled out a handkerchief and wiped his sweaty brow. "Pah."

"Hmm." From the reports from other officers, she knew that Dughall had a habit of shifting the blame away from himself, often to make himself look better or to save his or, as he supposed, the empire's hide. She started probing. "Perhaps, consul, the Blade's claim of it being artificial had more merit than you first thought?"

He grit his teeth. "It may be, but I still feel it's ridiculous. On another subject, the other detainees from the core crystal thieves that were captured before and still alive were taken from the ensuing debris and moved temporarily to the holding cells on your ship. I hope you don't mind me intruding on that?"

"Not at all. I believe that was wise, so long as there is a place for them here before I depart." And he was also dodging the subject of the supposedly artificial Blade. "Was there anything else?"

"Ah…" He tugged on his collar. "Well, there was also the small matter of the uh… the Blade thieves escaping in the chaos. After Lady Brighid departed to head the search, they knocked out the guards at their cell and slipped out in the chaos."

She shut her eyes a moment, maintaining her composure, before opening them again. "An unfortunate but acceptable loss."

The consul blinked owlishly at her, disbelieving. "We just spent a blasted amount of resources capturing them, and you say it's an acceptable loss? They're the whole reason you came here in the first place, aren't they?"

"I'm officially here on leave and just so happened to be here when they were."

He snorted in a sarcastic laugh. "And I'll believe that story when the second Aegis war starts." He laughed heartily at his own joke.

She forced a faint smirk of amusement onto her face, but behind her back, her hands clenched. He had no idea how close a war like that could be. "My reasons are my own. Be that as it may, the information they and others provided before their escape will be vital in the coming days. Send a missive for their capture and add it to the group they're a part of."

"Of course, but...what should we do about all the damage the thieves caused to the town in their distraction? The Gormotti are already in an uproar about it, but surely you don't expect us to repair that damage from our own funds?"

"Yes, actually. I need you to find some way to repay the Gormotti for the damages that we have brought on them by what happened today."

"What? We're already stretched thin on resources-" She stopped him with a raise of an eyebrow at the lie, he coughed, clearing his throat. "Well, perhaps we're not too stretched thin, but we can't start the precedent of giving handouts every time something bad happens."

"I didn't necessarily mean repay financially, consul. Provide labour, Ardainians to help fix the damage, a show of goodwill, something to build trust." She gestured around to the base and the work being done. "You've done a commendable job in helping solidify the Ardainian presence here in Torigoth, which is a good start, but that is not our ultimate goal."

"The might of the Empire must be known-"

"And in a generation or two when we are throwing ourselves at the feet of the Gormotti for refuge if Mor Ardain becomes unliveable, they will be slow to hear our pleas because of the past. They will care little for our might."

There's been enough war in Alrest.

"That's…" He trailed off in a grunt, which turned into a sigh. "Your counsel is wise, Inquisitor, but no offense meant, compared to Mor Ardain, the soldiers here are nothing but slackers. Once you leave they'll go right back to their old ways. They're not as disciplined as they are in the empire itself."

"Then let me give you a charge, consul. In six months' time, I will visit Torigoth again, and when I do, I will expect the relationship between the Gormotti and Ardainian peoples to be in excellent standing. You will be completely responsible for this. If you do not do this, you will be stripped of your position and replaced with someone else."

His eyes balked. "What? Forgive me for saying this, but that's ridiculous, Inquisitor! What if the Gormotti refuse to change their minds? I have no control over that."

Mòrag met his eyes. "You are completely responsible for this, and if you do not accomplish it, you will be stripped of your position."

"B-but the soldiers; they barely know what basic primary colours are, much less how to be diplomats. You can't seriously expect them to change their attitude, especially when I don't have a deadline!" Dughall laughed nervously. "You must be kidding."

"They are valued members of the Empire. I will not repeat myself again, Dughall. You are completely responsible for this, and if you do not accomplish it, you will be stripped of your position, no excuses. Are we clear?"

"...Quite clear."

"Good. Now would be a very good time to start. Dismissed." He saluted but afterwards stormed off - making it too easy for anyone to tell how much he was still fuming.

As he passed the clean-up crew, he stopped, whipping to face the workers who had stopped to watch the scene. "Get back to work, slackers!" And then stomped in the direction of the officer's hall, hopefully to begin fulfilling her request. The workers slowly went to comply, muttering amongst themselves.

Bowing her head, Mòrag sighed as she watched him go. It was a start, she supposed, but it would take much more than driving them to work to get things moving in the way she had meant to Dughall. She'd have to talk to him again before she left. The Blade thieves escaping was a loss, but she would take it.

A warm tug of ether in their bond and through it, Mòrag felt Brighid approach. She smiled wanly. "How long have you been listening?"

"Long enough." Mòrag heard the soft clap of Brighid's journal being closed as Brighid approached. "I felt it interesting to see how you dealt with Dughall's ways."

"Mm." Mòrag nodded, noticing the rest of the workers still watching them out of the corner of their eyes as they worked. "Take away someone's excuses, and often they will step up to the plate. If he does not, well... We shall see."

"Would you care to follow me, lady Mòrag? There's something I need to show you."

"Of course." She fell into one step beside her, noting they were heading towards the Battleship Gladio.

Mòrag allowed silence to reign for a while as they made their way to her battleship, noting that to the side in the port, the thieves' titanship docked on the cloud sea, a few surveyors scoping out what could be done with it.

"I suppose I can assume by your expression earlier that the search party came up short?"

Brighid nodded. "So far. Do you feel we should call off the active search?"

"Mmm. Yes, I feel you should stop for now, but have the guard keep watch, and have Dughall assign someone to post a bounty for the Nopon and the Blade."

The hatch for the ship lowered, ramp extending for them. "Is that what you want? There's no guarantee that bounty hunters or gangs won't be as exact as the empire. After all, I seem to remember you being interested in the mention of the Blade being artificial. We risk them not coming back alive if we aren't careful."

"I am interested, yes, but I can only do so much at once." Around them, the hanger was quiet, yet their footsteps were absorbed by the armaments and weapons stored there. The night guard saluted as they passed. "As you well know, it is difficult to mask our presence, so it will be more effective to have others bring them to us. Lure them into a false sense of security by thinking we have given up the search."

"I'll trust your judgement, lady Mòrag. Were you able to get in contact with Emperor Niall?"

She nodded. "It went about as expected. In order to avoid panic, we'll keep quiet about Torna, but only briefly. I doubt we'll be able to keep the Aegis' return under wraps for long as it seems we weren't the only one looking out for Torna or the Aegis. Niall mentioned that an anonymous source from Argentum contacted him through a secure channel to warn him of the Aegis' impending return."

"How was he able to get through?"

Adjusting her cap, she let out a sigh. "I don't know, but I could tell Aegeon was fretting in the background the whole time. It does seem to add credit to the boy Rex's story." She glanced down at the journal now hanging at Brighid's hip. "Does your journal have any insight on Torna or the Aegis?"

Brighid shook her head, as she tapped the journal she held. "Not this one. The journal from the Aegis War would normally be stored back in Hardhaigh Palace."

"Did you take it with us?"

"That's where we're going. It's in the storage safe in your cabin."

Mòrag let out a small snort of amusement. "Without even asking me?"

Brighid simply smiled in response. "I thought it prudent to do so. I looked through some of the beginning and it was...strange to read, like it was, yet wasn't me; another lifetime. I've done it many times before, but…" She trailed off. "Did you know back then I was handy at picking locks?"

Mòrag chuckled, raising an eyebrow. "It does sound strange, knowing you as I do."

"I can't imagine myself doing that either. With each Driver, I start a new journal. It makes it easy to see how similar yet different I am…"

The conversation trailed off into a moment of contemplative silence, the familiar sounds of the ships' machinery filling it in as they continued trekking up metal stairs and through hallways towards the cabin of her ship.

Brighid eventually broke it. "Did Emperor Niall mention anything about Brionac making a move?"

"No," Mòrag answered. "Despite our absence, they've made no discernible advances. Our informants have also been disturbingly silent."

"Hmm. That's worrying."

"Indeed." She nodded to the guard posted outside her cabin door, who stepped aside, allowing them entrance. Stepping through, the door slid shut behind them.

The room was small, but familiar, given the amount of time she spent travelling. The cabin had a section built like an office, a desk front and centre. To the side, a closed door led to her personal quarters. She bypassed it and headed instead headed for a storage safe sitting at eye-level, built into the wall. "We'll have to focus on Brionac as soon as we get back. I'd like to eventually root them out once and for all preferably before Torna makes a big move. One less looming problem to worry about."

"You never do rest, do you?" When she gave no response as she dialled in the combination, Brighid continued. "You know that working this hard is only going to get you wrinkles."

"Rest can wait for a time." The safe clicked and she popped it open, revealing the contents inside. "Ah, here it is."

She brought out the journal, which she knew couldn't have been the original. Five hundred years wouldn't have left a book as pristine as this one. However, it was a copy, carefully transcribed by diligent scribes in the empire, preserved for the Jewel of Mor Ardain, Brighid. She almost cracked it open right there before she paused, and handed it over to Brighid.

Brighid raised an eyebrow. "You won't pour over it yourself?"

"History or not, it is yours, whether or not you remember it. I shall let you take the responsibility."

"I see that in your own way, you're taking my advice. Ever the pragmatist."

She smiled, and Brighid smiled back, as she took it. "Let us hope it helps."

Nia watched as Mikhail tapped his foot to some inane and imaginary beat. Right now she could tell he was trying to look cool, as the explanation he'd just given to Ahkos hung heavy in the air.

Ahkos crossed his arms, displeasure clear on his face. Obrona giggled behind him. "You truly think this is a good idea, letting both the leading ladies exit the stage so simply and without letting anyone else know?"

"Well," he tried, somehow, to look more casual as he leaned his shoulder on the archway of the control room. The hole in the ceiling still loomed above, likely the next thing she'd be helping out with. "They wouldn't be gone forever, just long enough to get the parts for the control core, and then come back."

Ahkos leaned back from where he'd been fiddling with some data on the side of the medical tube thing she'd seen Lora in.

"Your draft needs work. What if it takes longer than you expect? What happens when Jin comes back and finds his precious Driver gone? What happens when he and Malos discover you let the way for us accessing the World Tree and the Architect go away without even telling them?"

"I…" She watched him trail off, his finger that had been raised in objection lowering slowly. "Those are really good points, actually," he muttered just loud enough for her to hear.

Oh boy, here we go.

Nia rolled her eyes and sauntered up. Looks like it was up to her to save face. "If you don't mind me butting in, even with everything you brought up Ahkos, you have to feel it as much as I can. There's tension on the ship, so thick you can practically cut it."

"Well yes, that much is obvious. You don't need the wisdom of the Architect to see that."

"She's right." Mikhail smoothly jumped off of her point. "And if we don't relieve that pressure, something else is liable to burst or break, especially with both Malos and Pyra just a hair away from tearing each other's throats out. There's no telling how much more something like that'll take away our stride."

There he goes.

Nia set a hand on her hip. "And what if Indol catches up to us before we have a chance to do anything?" It was a very real possibility, one she didn't want to think about too much if she didn't have to. "Wouldn't be good if we got stuck doing repair jobs every time someone blows a lid, yeah?"

Ahkos pinched the bridge of his nose. "As interesting as that could be, can we really afford to take that risk?"

"We can't afford not to take that risk, for everyone's sanity, not just mine." Nia insisted. "I for one have had enough experience replacing wall panels for a lifetime."

Mikhail crossed his arms. "She's got a good point. It took me long enough to get this ship in working order anyways, so let's not spoil it because we're being careless. Patroka and Perdido can hold their own while I get what we need. Once we're done, we swing by, grab them, the bots, then boom, we're outta there."

There was so much that could go wrong with what he was saying and they all knew it. A long tense moment of silence was broken only by Obrona humming tunelessly in the background while she perched on the railing nearby, striking different poses.

At last, Ahkos let out an over-dramatic sigh. "I suppose it wouldn't be a bad idea to put an intermission into this drama, but how will you guarantee that act two will commence in our favour?"

Mik gave a mock salute. "Trust me: we've got it covered, right, Nia?"

"Yeah, sure."

She saw him wince, and she just shrugged slightly in response. It wasn't like she knew if this was going to go well or not.

Seeming to notice their silent conversation, Ahkos let out another sigh. "Dare I ask if the leading ladies are aware of this?"

"That leads into my next question. Do you know where they are?"

Ahkos gave them an unimpressed look. "As it turns out, I saw them heading to your workshop."

She saw him freeze, and she could practically see his heart drop. His voice came out halting, and maybe a little angry. "You saw them where, again?"

"Are you sure it's alright to just use it? It looks locked tight."

Pyra answered Lora's question by typing in on a keypad next to the metal door with a small viewport, and a little light lit up green. The door slid seamlessly open a moment later, and Pyra stepped partway through the opening gesturing through.

"Come right in."

"Uh…" Lora looked at her funny, and after a moment, Pyra stepped inside. Hesitantly, Lora followed her in. "How did you know what the code was?"

"I may or may not have been snooping around before you woke up. Does it look like you could make what you want here?"

Glancing around, her eyes widened. "Whoa, that's...yeah, I think so."

Though the room wasn't the largest she'd seen in the ship so far, it was roomy. Or, at least it would be if it wasn't filled to the brim with stuff. Stepping forward, her fingers brushed over what looked like a half-finished machine, the use of which she had no idea what it would be.

All around there were other machines in various stages of completion. Machines parts of every kind she could think of and more - in various states of repair, rust and use - littered the space. There was probably some form of organization to it, but she couldn't tell what it was.

Hugo would've been in paradise.

As she sifted through the shelves, she started picking out materials she could use. Strong, flexible looking thread and weave, and a couple elemental ether gems. After a few moments of feeling slightly bad about using the expensive looking materials, she remembered how possible it was she'd need this to help fight them.

It wouldn't have been her first time stealing.

Hopefully it won't come to fighting. Driver of the Aegis or not, facing Malos the first time was hard enough, and that had been nine against one.

A bright light automatically flicked on in the back of the room, catching her attention, illuminating Pyra poring over some machine-looking thing laid on a sturdy - and well used looking - bench.

Putting the materials she'd gathered up into a stray container, she carried it over to the bench. Balancing the load in one arm, Lora brushed aside some stray parts on the bench and set the container down. "This should be good enough, though it might take pulling an all-nighter if we want to finish it before we dock in Mor Ardain."

"Do you think they'll willingly let us off the ship?"

"I don't know, but I hope it doesn't come to a fight. Most of the people here on the ship we've met don't seem horrible," Malos being the exception, but even then… "Jin always did have a good judge of character."

"It's been a while since then," Pyra reminded her.

Lora hummed, though she couldn't help but wonder - had Jin really changed as much as Malos said? She'd passed out soon after seeing him, and maybe he'd seemed more sad, but not that different. At least not that she could tell immediately.

She shivered, as an unexplainable cold seeped into her heart, or, where her heart should be. Not comforting at all.

"Something wrong?" Pyra asked.

Lora shook her head. "It's nothing, just a chill. We should probably get out of here as soon as we can. I feel like we're stepping on eggshells here."

"Yeah." Pyra seemed absentminded, fiddling with part of the mechanical creation on the bench until she turned to her, leaning in closer to the materials she'd gathered. "So how do you make it?"

"Honestly, a rope would do just fine so long as I can put this," she hefted one of the elemental gems, tossing it up lightly in the air "on the end of it."

"Really? I thought that you had a whip."

"Nope. I did make the rope myself, but that's all it was."

"Huh. So where did the term 'braided whip' come from?"

Lora flushed. "I...um, named it. People wouldn't trust you to kill monsters as much if you told them your weapon was a rope would they? I'd just as much use punches and kicks as Jin's sword anyways."

"I guess."

Clearing her throat, she picked up some of the weave. "Anyway. Well, it's pretty simple, really. All I have to do is closely weave together the threads fibres of the cord and the weave in a way that'll work how I want it. I'm not exactly sure if this material will work great, but I was going to give it a shot, start it and see if it'll work before I make the whole thing."

"Maybe if you strip it down some, it would work better?"

Lora nodded, looking around, trying to spot a specific tool. "Yeah it would, but that would take time that I don't know if we have, but I'd need something to do it with."

Feeling a tap on her shoulder, she looked back to Pyra who now gripped a knife in her hand. "Would this work?"

"It might, but…"

The knife lowered. "It would take too much time." Lora nodded, and Pyra set the blade down on the bench and started sifting through the pile near the machine. "He probably keeps his tools nearby so if he has one we'll probably find...it..."

Lora looked away from her search as Pyra cut off abruptly. "What is it?"

Quietly, tenderly, Pyra's right hand retrieved a small wooden photo frame. Lora leaned over and tilted her head to get a better look. Inside the frame, lay an old faded picture, frayed near the edges.

"I remember taking that photograph," and how it was originally just supposed to be her and Jin, "but what's a copy of it doing here?" Lora asked.

Her eyes brushed over all the people and Blades in there. Addam, Minoth, Mythra, Hugo, Brighid, Aegeon, Mikhail, Milton, Jin and herself. But who was the other woman to the right of her? Lora didn't recognize her.

Pyra's hand clenched on the glass of the frame, her thumb covering up the part on the right that showed Mythra. "Because it's Mikhail's."

Tearing her eyes away from the photo, Lora's forehead scrunched in confusion. "Mikhail? Are you sure? He's just a kid."

"Five-hundred years later, remember?"

Oh, right. "But how would he be alive?"

Pyra set the picture face down on the bench, cutting off her view of the unknown woman. "We're here."

The steady beat of the shared core crystal seemed to pulse for a moment. "My situation isn't exactly normal, and Mikhail isn't a Blade like you. As much as I'd love to see him again, he'd have to be...well."

Even though saying that made her heart wrench. Memory of her heart?

"I'm not so sure. You remember the ship's engineer, what he looked like?"

Lora crossed her arms in thought. "He didn't show his face, but he sort of looked like him, if he was older. But," she looked pointedly at Pyra, "like everyone keeps saying, almost five-hundred years have gone by."

"It's not just that. He's specifically avoiding me, and every time I catch a glimpse of his face there's a lot of anger there. I think I know why. Do you remember what happened after Torna sunk, on the ship?"

Lora shuddered, remembering Mythra's anguished scream. "How could I forget?"

"I think he still blames me for it." Pyra's left hand hovered over her part of the core. "There's something else too, a feeling I have," and her right hand went to hover over Lora's shoulder, but she stopped short. "Do you mind if I…?"

"Is it going to hurt like it did last time?"

"Probably, but it'd be the easiest way to check."

"Go ahead, then." Lora smiled encouragingly, despite the trepidation she felt. "I think I'll be ready for it this time."

Pyra averted her eyes, smiling a brief moment before it faded as her hand landed on Lora's shoulder. The core thrummed, and the link burned hot.

The images and feelings returned, but this time Lora tried focusing on them. It still hurt her head, maybe even more when she concentrated on them. The images swirled to a stop and a feeling of darkness pervaded. The clear image of a pair of war fans - Blade weapons - dancing in hands that weren't hers, paired with a feeling of lightness, quickness of feet.

An image of an unfamiliar Blade holding those weapons came to view. Lora didn't recognize her.

She felt the hand left her shoulder jerk back and the images sharply, painfully, cut out as Pyra abruptly pulled back in a gasp.

Blinking back pain in her head, Lora asked, "What's wrong?"

"It's...I don't understand."

"What do you mean?"

"This," she breathed in a steadying breath, shaking her head as if to clear something, "this isn't right. I'd need to see him in person to make sure, but-"

Lora breathed in sharply as the door slid open, and both she and Pyra abruptly turned to face a large hulking Blade, carrying a bunch of metal panels in one arm. She felt like a kid again, caught stealing sweets before Jin corrected her.

"You!" The Blade looked intently at her, his glowing blue eyes peering out of a golden face mask framed by long thick red hair flowing from the sides of his head. His massive hand jabbed a finger to point directly at her. "You're Jin's icicle lady."

It was a statement more than a question. It was the second time she'd heard that nickname and Lora wasn't sure how she felt about it. She supposed it was weirdly charming, in a way.

"Kind of you to notice."

He laughed bombastically, surprising Lora. "I, the amazing Cressidus, have something for you."

"Huh?" The panels were carefully laid to one side and he walked right up to her and extended a massive open hand. "You do?"

Looking down, in the centre of his massive hand, was a golden pin attached to a red bar. The pin she'd been given to commemorate being knighted in Torna. "When you first woke up, it dropped on the floor. No one else noticed it but me. I meant to give it back for a while, but you were recovering. It is yours, right?"

Carefully picking it out of his massive open palm, she examined it. Glancing down to where it should be, sure enough, it wasn't pinned above her breast. "Thank you." Even though she wasn't sure how much it meant now that the Tornan Titan was no more. It only felt like yesterday that the knighting ceremony had taken place. Her hand clenched over it.

The Blade turned his attention to Pyra, making the same kind of dramatic pointing motion to her that he'd done to Lora. "Ahkos said that you made the food that's in the kitchen. Is that right?"

Pyra tilted her head quizzically. "Yes."

He let that hang in the air before he busted out laughing again. "That's the best stuff I've tasted in a long time! I don't even know what it was, but it had tons of protein. Filled me right up, and healthy to boot." There was an awkward pause. "Since you're not really supposed to be in here, can you make it again sometime? Ahkos doesn't use a lot of meat in his cooking."

Clapping her hands together, Pyra smiled brightly. "Of course! I would be happy to." She glanced at him, then her, then the materials Lora had gathered. "By the way, Cressidus, do you know your way around this workshop?"

He pounded his chest proudly. "Amazingly well. Mik lets me help out a lot, but I'm not the best with little detailed stuff like he likes to work on."

Pyra glanced at her, and her smile turned conniving before she turned back to Cressidus. "Maybe, if you help us out, I can cook you a big juicy armu steak once we get to Mor Ardain."

Lora's mouth watered at the sound of that, even though she'd eaten not but a few hours ago. "Save some for me too."

Pyra nodded. "Chef Pyra is on the job!"

He punched his massive fists together. "Sounds like a fantastic deal to me! What are you looking for?"

Mikhail turned away from the small glass viewport of the closed metal door of his workshop, resisting the urge to hit something in frustration.

"What's going on?"

He turned to Nia. "They're in my workshop."

"Well, that's where Ahkos said they'd be, wasn't it?"

"They're working at my bench, Nia," he whispered.

"...Yeah, and?"

"I don't think you understand. They're working at my bench."

"Uh…"

She wouldn't understand.

A loud bout of laughter leaked through the door.

He ran a hand through his hair after he glanced through the viewport again. "Aaannd Cressidus is helping them, because of course he's helping them, because the Aegis can actually cook now, and cook well - as if that isn't confusing enough - and I'm freaking out a little right now."

"Geez, Mik, calm down a second and breathe already. It's not like they're going to wreck anything in there."

"You don't know Cressidus like I do. The big guy knows his stuff, but he's not good at fine details, or being careful."

"Well stop worrying about it and just go on and talk to them. Where's all the confidence you had when talking to Ahkos gone to?"

"This is different. The Aegis is in there."

She crossed her arms. "Pyra? How does that make it different? Sure she's 'the Aegis' or whatever, but big deal. Lora is Pyra's Driver, so you're bound to find both of them together, especially from what I've figured about them is true."

"Yeah? And what's that?"

"Well, think about it. They came from the same time, and both don't really know what's going on. It's like they're out of their element. With all that, it's only natural that they're sticking together."

Mikhail let out a long stabilizing breath. This was going to be rough. "The Aegis killed my friend, Nia." He paced around, letting that sink in. "Yeah, Malos may have goaded her into it, yeah, maybe it was an 'accident' but it was her. She was the one who sunk old Torna."

"...Oh."

"Yeah, 'oh.' Do you see why I don't trust her now?"

Her ears flattened, and she looked away. "I think I do. But you don't have to trust someone to be in the same room with them."

"You think I don't know that?"

"Besides," she lightly punched his arm, "I'll be here to back you up."

"Is that supposed to make me feel better?"

"'Course it is. I backed you up with Ahkos, didn't I? I wouldn't back down at this point. So, are you going to punch in the code or what?"

Steeling his nerves, he punched in the code as an answer. However, the pep talk still didn't prepare him to see her again.

At the sound of the door opening, the group inside turned. Cressidus was hefting the prototype Blade bot; Lora had what looked like the start of some sort of charm in her hand, a cut elemental ether gem weaved into it. The Aegis was holding a knife.

Why is she holding a knife?

All the attention was on him.

So he did what he did best.

Faked it.

Putting on a suave smile, he spread his arms wide as he walked in. "Cressidus! You started a party with these two lovely ladies without me?" He shook his head disapprovingly. "Way to let a man down. At least invite me to be your wingman next time."

The sound of Nia's hand hitting her forehead was encouraging. So much for backup.

He saw Cressidus step up in front of the other two, his massive from nearly blocking Mikhail's view of them. He held out his hands placatingly. "It's not what it looks like."

He pointed a finger accusingly. "Yeah, you totally didn't let them in here on a food bribe."

"I was just dropping off the extra panels. They were already in here when I got here."

The finger lowered. "Wait, what?" If that was the case, they'd snuck in.

Lora poked her head out from around Cressidus. "Sorry, we should have asked."

Nia shoved her way past him. "What Mik is trying to say is that he wanted to talk to you all."

"Way to take the wind out of my step," he muttered to her. He stumbled as she just shoved him forward in response. She really needed to work on playing off each other if this little partnership thing was going to work. He awkwardly turned and let out a suave wave. "Hey, Lora. Long time no see."

"Mikhail." There was disbelief clear in her eyes as she saw, really saw him, not the hazy, unclear stare in her eyes when she first awakened. "Is it really you?"

"...Yeah."

He wasn't sure how to react as she ran out and his breath was knocked out as she practically tackled him, and wrapped her arms around him. She was a lot shorter than he remembered.

"Thank you. For being here."

What was he supposed to do? He just felt awkward, and maybe a little warm. In the end he decided it was sort of okay and awkwardly patted Lora's back.

She released the hug, and backed up, sizing him up. "Wow, you really have grown." She set her hands on her hips, a teasing smile forming on her face. "What happened to the quiet boy back in Torna?"

Alrest happened. Amalthus happened.

He didn't say that, and instead, letting out an uncomfortable chuckle, his hand went to scratch the back of his head. "It's…" he sighed, unsure of how much he wanted to lay on her right now. "Let's just say it's a long story."

He saw her glance at the Aegis, and some sort of silent conversation went on for a second before Lora lightly shook her head before turning back. "Well, if you don't want to talk about it, that's alright. You don't have to." She smiled, and he pointedly ignored the Aegis close by, scrutinizing him. "I'm just so happy you're here."

Feeling a light punch on his arm, he glanced beside him to see Nia give him an encouragingly cheeky grin and a victory sign as she walked up. He gave a grin of his own, a smile. Maybe the first real one in a while.

For now, maybe it was enough, even if he knew it wouldn't last.

"Yeah. Me too, Lora."

A/N: Then they all got along, held hands and made dorky power of friendship speeches.

...

Phpt, nah.