Rubis had forgotten how flying felt like. Granted, inside the sealed pilot chamber, where the wind and snow could not reach them, it was no different from a slightly turbulent road trip. But when Dameko opened the hatch above them, and the drizzle fell on her hair, it almost felt like she could soar out of the opening and into the sky again.
When both of them climbed out of the robot, Blanc was back in her human form.
"Is she nearby?"
"No." She shook her head, and pointed to the distant horizon, above the roaring waves of foamy grey water. "She's further north, offshore. But I can't pinpoint the exact island."
"Then we'll search them," Blanc said. "Every single one of them. You'll know it when she's near, right?"
"No, unless she's on the move. My tracking magic is already fading. It won't last until tomorrow." She closed her eyes. "I suppose we should call for the local Guild's reinforcement, and start the search later?"
"Yeah! This looks like a good place to stop." Dameko swung an arm over Blanc's shoulder, who looked a little spooked by this sudden gesture. "While we're waiting for the crews to get here, let's just chillax and have fun!"
"Sorry to keep you waiting." Respella nodded at the monitor on the table, before she started rummaging through the giant cardboard box next to it.
A blue crying emote appeared on the monitor's screen, followed by a series of low beeps.
"Nope. Still can't plug you back in a proper body yet." She sighed. "Cheap-ass hotel and their regulations. On a brighter note, once we get onto the boat, you can jump and grapple around all you like."
The previous emote was quickly replaced by a smiley face, as Respella gave the monitor a few pats. It couldn't feel her hand, but its heat sensors and Social Core were definitely able to recognize a gesture of comfort. That was what she liked about AIs. They'd always be honest if she did the job right. Unlike some people.
"While we're stuck here, let's continue the speech training, shall we?" She grabbed the smooth metal disk at the bottom of the box, and, after receiving an affirmative beep, slid it into the back of the monitor.
"SURE THING, CREATOR!" A deafeningly loud voice blurted out of its speaker, which soon faded into an embarrassed whisper. "Oh, I'm talking now. Not beeping."
She smiled. Excitable little thing. "Ready to talk some more tonight?"
"Of course. Ready to go."
"Alright. Your name? Your first Protocol? My name?"
"I am MARVIN, Listen to my creator, Respella Ward!"
"Nice. We're just going through the motions, but still. Hi-Five?"
MARVIN displayed a cartoon hand print on the screen, as she reached out to pat it. "Hi-Five."
Riddles. Tongue twisters. Halfway through the speech training list, her enthusiasm had hit rock bottom, while MARVIN was as excited as ever. But, much like teaching kids how to talk, it was a necessary trial, and she'd tear her robotics degree in half before she let one of her AIs develop the sarcastic bitch personality that seemed to plague Gold S.R.C.'s customer service bots.
That gave her an idea. She wondered if MARVIN could see her mischievous grin. "Now, say 'Fuck Aktivis'. Just to test your politeness setting."
"I am unable to say [BEEP]." A big exclamation mark flashed across the screen. "And you are not speaking the truth, creator."
"How so?"
"Your heart tells me. Literally." MARVIN said, and the exclamation mark was replaced by a red, angry emote. "You are displaying physical reactions that are commonly associated with the emotion of anger. Have I made a mistake?"
"Nope. Not even close. Don't you start feeling bad." She replied, feeling a small pang of guilt in her chest. "This one's on me. I've deviated from the standard routine for...really petty reasons."
"Are said reasons related to the stuffed toys in your possession?"
Respella glanced towards the small pile of teddy bears in the corner, without a word. So her reluctance to toss all of her father's old gifts into the dumpster had been picked up by MARVIN, after all.
Ah, good old Captain Ward. How he kept trying to mail her more teddy bears on her birthday, after he'd watched her being cuffed to a chair and interrogated like a criminal for six hours straight, without uttering a single word of protest.
Like that could fix anything.
"You aren't wrong. Won't diss her in front of you again, I promise. That garbage doesn't belong in your storage space," she said, just as her phone started ringing inside her pocket. "Delete our previous conversation, please? Gotta' halt the training for a while."
"Yes. Deleting memories from 5: 35 p.m. to..."
She groaned when she saw the caller's name on the cracked screen. Out of all the people she didn't want to talk to right now, this person was amongst the top five. Right behind her boss and the head of Leanbox's Foreign Relations Department.
"Clancy," She said, in her most dry, impatient voice. "I'm not your sister's babysitter. You shouldn't act like one, either."
"This is the last time I'm contacting you. I need information from the Lastation police department, about the recent attack on two foreign visitors—"
A gruffy female voice could be heard in the background. "Really? And you call me superstitious over that clip doll machine?"
"Hey, Asa girl, a lot of the cursed stuff are fancy jewels in legends! Maybe some folks decided to fashion a cursed earring, just because it looked cool!"
"Sorry for the noise. I'm going somewhere quieter right now." The heels of her boots clicked against the wooden floor. "I'm unable to make a trip to Lastation, after the recent incident over there. Which is why I require your aid. Do you know—"
"Only been there for a few sales pitches. Don't even like the place," Respella said. "Hope that answers your question. Goodbye."
"That blonde girl E.A. had offered a temporary job to?" Clancy asked, before she could put the phone down. "I can't remember her name, but I know she's in the Lastation Defense Force. And you still have her contact."
Respella put a hand to her forehead. As much as she hated to trouble Luna Ratchett, she didn't think it was practical to deny her association at this point. Not after she'd invited the girl to see the R-1 mechs during that year's G3 Conference.
"Oh, 'Insomniac'? Sure. Will text her number to you later." She paused. "Don't call me again."
"I won't. Thank you for your assistance."
"I'm...really not hungry right now. Sorry."
"That's fine! I'm not asking you to eat all of them at once. But there's another long bus trip ahead. I just think you may like some more snacks on the way."
Rei eyed her stuffed suit pocket like there was a ticking bomb inside. Her hand shook, the candy bar fell on the bus station bench, and she didn't reach for it again.
C-Sha quietly picked the package back up, without a word. She must've been acting like an overbearing parent while they were on the bus, in her effort to ease Rei's nervousness. It seemed to have the opposite effect, unfortunately. Perhaps she should change her tactics?
"Anything else you wanna do after this?"
"Go back to work, I guess," Rei mumbled. "It's not like I have the money for anything else...n-not that I'm complaining, of course!"
"Eh, my friend always says that a healthy love for money makes the world go 'round. I wonder how much B-Sha's charging people for cleaning up the bug infestation in Lastation right now?"
Rei fell silent again. So friends were a sore topic too. If the woman had just one good friend while growing up, she wouldn't be nearly as jittery. Speaking of which, maybe an honest inquiry would be the key to...
"If you don't mind me asking, why do you dislike CPUs?" Seeing the way Rei flinched at her question, C-Sha hastily added, "I'm not blaming you or anything! I'm just curious, that's all."
"I...Nothing I say is going to make sense," Rei sighed. "I'm just stupid, and I nearly destroyed the world because I believe in stupid things. That's all."
"Hmm. Would you be upset if I make a guess?"
Rei shook her head.
"It's because people can be really ungrateful and mean and thoughtless."
As much as C-Sha would like to believe what Kurome had shown her was all lies and manipulations, she was too old to deny that some people really would cheer for the death of a stranger, if they thought she was the source of all of their problems. That vengeful specter merely took it out of context.
"They want to let someone else take care of all the hard decisions for them, without realizing that they are part of the problem too. They can't accept that she may not be perfect, may not be able to solve everything with ease. So, when she fails, they either blame her, or start pointing fingers at everyone but themselves."
For the first time, Rei looked up and made eye contact with her. She didn't nod, nor make any gestures of agreement, but she clearly wasn't expecting to hear something like that from C-Sha.
"People like these are a very, very small minority. But when you are facing them every day, it sure feels like the CPUs aren't doing anything to help—" The familiar chiptune of her phone interrupted her speech again. "Excuse me. Be back in a sec."
"O-Okay."
"Hi there, old chap," C-Sha said, after she'd walked to the edge of the bus station's roof, and saw the caller's name. "You found anything? How's your...new special agent lady friend doing?"
"Well, She's still a little mad at that Primo guy, but my flawless detective talent is enough to impress a true professional." Someone let out a deep sigh in the background, just as Mr. Esaka finished speaking. "With her assistance, K-Mantra & Co is glad to report to you that yes, we did find something!"
C-Sha chuckled at the dramatic pause that ensued. "C'mon. Don't keep me waiting."
"Alright! After establishing contact with the witnesses' family, they told us a thief had broken into their cabin on Sunshine Isle and stolen some supplies, right during their radio call with our missing tourist gal. They picked up an earring at the scene, and she asked them if it was a tri-color one."
Another dramatic pause. "Now, I thought it must be a cursed artifact someone used to brainwash the poor girl into doing their biddings. But, thanks to our special agent friend's connection, we were able to get our hands on some police reports, and guess what we found? That chain-wielding CPU in the archive had attacked her in Lastation, too, while wearing the same earrings!"
"—And that's our finding so far, Blanny." C-Sha said, before a yelp came from afar, followed by a thud.
Rei's small luggage bag had rolled all the way down the slanted driveway. Seconds later, Blanc picked up the bag, ran up the slope, and plopped it down next to Rei. Muttering a hushed "thanks", the woman soon hurried past the giant robot in the courtyard, and disappeared into the hotel building.
"Good. That narrows down the places we need to search tomorrow." Blanc nodded, after C-Sha had caught up to her. "Please thank your friends for me, next time you call them?"
"Sure. They'll probably call me first, once their search parties have found something." C-Sha tried her best to hide the worry in her voice. If Blanc noticed it, she didn't make a comment, as they pushed open the glass door and entered the small front lounge.
Their missing tourist had charged into danger, once again, and after being lost at sea for two days, the chance of her survival was...slim, to say the least.
"You've been holding onto that card while we were eating dinner." Dameko pouted, right before she jumped onto the bed, and pulled the blanket over her head. "And now you are sleeping with it? Aww, take a break!"
"I just don't want to miss anything."
Dameko made a funny snorting noise in response. Within minutes, she was snoring gently, leaving Rubis to stare at the ceiling. How she wished she could fall asleep so easily.
She ran her fingers across the surface of the cold metal. By all means, it was a good night.
Dameko was talking to her again, even though she had to physically restrain her from grabbing root beers from the hotel's vending machine during dinner. Her successor had a friend now—perhaps more than a friend. That Rei woman didn't look as scared as before, although she did apologize an awful lot to everyone, and seemed to be avoiding Rubis on purpose.
But none of this will last. You'll become so endeared with them, and then you'll slip back into your old manners again. No, you've already slipped back far enough. It won't be long before they see who you really are.
She lay there in the darkness, and let the memories wash over her like the rising tide. Just when the drowsiness started to blur the regrets, a tingling sensation struck her fingertips, followed by a surge of heat.
Her target was on the move again.
"Well, that's a fair cop!"
Almost immediately after Verdna popped out of her amulet, droplets of rain shot through her glowing form. The CPU flew faster at the sound of her frustrated yelling, without turning back. Lynka was nowhere to be found in the cloudy sky, and when she looked down, she only saw an inky darkness, stretching out infinitely towards the horizon.
"Where are you going now? And where is she?"
No response. Of course. Her HDD Form didn't have enough emotions nor empathy in her to answer a simple question. Verdna had the urge to scream out harsher accusations, but the very real risk of being silenced by another sound attack kept her stewing quietly in anger, as she drifted behind the CPU like a particularly sullen humanoid kite.
So much for wanting more intellectual excitement in her life after death.
"Ah-ha! There she is!" Dameko cheered when she saw a bright dot on the radar screen, and pushed the lever all the way down. Within seconds, the robot sped up, pressing both of them against their seats.
"Wait," Rubis turned towards her, "There's only a single target, and my card isn't—"
"Ooh, so she has to be the girl who beats you up! That's even better." Dameko slammed down on the buttons. "Let's see what good her chains could do against rocket missiles! L-Scope Tracking System, activate!"
"Listen to me, Dameko," she said. "They are going in separate directions, and she's serving as a distraction again. That Candidate is much weaker and injured, and if we stay on task, we'll have a much higher chance of capturing one of them."
"Ha! That oversized bug can't even scratch HANDY-Booster Plus!"
"I know you just want to beat her up, but my tracking magic is about to reach its time limit." She tried her best to maintain a calm tone, but the impatience still bled into her voice.
"Come on! You know there's a 50-50 chance we'd run into her!" Dameko yelled. "Why else would you leave without telling Blanny?"
"She needs some good rest, and she's not prepared—"
"Exactly! My robot is soundproof, and if you can't hear anything, her illusions won't work. We are prepared!" Dameko gripped the lever again, and the robot soared up. "I'm the pilot, and if you want me to give up, make me!"
The first sharp shriek was indistinguishable from another gust of howling wind. The next second, the CPU dived down, yanking Verdna with her. Above them, a fiery light erupted in the darkness.
The second explosion struck closer. Multiple shrapnels grazed past the CPU's beetle-like wings, as she zoomed up and down, evading the homing projectiles. A couple collided with each other in a blinding burst of light. Before the searing heat in the air dissipated, another trail of smoke and sparks cut across the darkness.
"Crystal Chains."
The CPU made a sharp U-turn, just as the second wave of missiles were inches away from her body. Chains sprouted out from her hands, covered in spiky crystal growths. With a flick of her wrists, she shot out multiple crystals towards the missiles in a glowing blue arc, creating a chain of explosions. When the light and smoke fizzled out, she had dived to an even lower altitude, hovering above the waves.
Verdna glanced up, in unison with her, at the low rumbling sound. A white silhouette rammed through the thin veil of rain. Its hulking size was deceptive; the bright red flare under its wings blurred into a thin strand of light, as it cut through the air at a terrific speed.
Bam Bam Bam. Water splashed up around them. Before long, the white robot whizzed past again, followed by another spray of projectiles that barely missed their target. Not missiles. Arm cannons, perhaps.
The CPU flew up. Right at this moment, the shriek of rocket missiles pierced through the Bam of rapid cannon fire once more. It rained down from the sky, and struck her wings mid-flight.
She plunged towards the sea in a burst of sparks. The robot dived after her in hot pursuit, steam shooting out of its boosters, its huge hands extended in a grabbing motion—
Verdna mentally screamed out a cluster of expletives when the rainbow explosion hit again.
"You think that's gonna work—?" Dameko's grin disappeared when she looked at the radar screen again. "Wait. Where did she go?"
"Into the water. We saw the light explosion on camera, but none of us aren't affected by her illusions..." Rubis put a hand to her chin. "I've made a mistake. She's capable of creating non-illusory light magic, in conjunction with her sound-based assaults."
"Well, no worries, I still have—" Dameko paused. "Oh. No. I don't."
"What's the matter?"
Dameko slapped her forehead. "My sonar attachment! Right before the flight to the Basilicom, I found out I'd lost it!"
"If I remembered correctly, your robot can't stay underwater for long."
"Well, I doubt she can swim faster than my robot!" Dameko retorted. "She's either out cold and at the bottom of the sea now, or swimming towards the shore. Let's go wait for her on the coast. Is your magic still working?"
"It was gone when you fired the first wave of missiles. You...haven't piloted this robot in a while, I presume?"
"Hey, it's like riding a bike. Once you learn the tricks, it stays with you forever!"
She sighed. "Look at your fuel gauge. If we fly to the World Labyrinth shores, we won't be able to make a return flight."
"Oh. Bummers." Dameko's face scrunched up when she saw the pointer, teetering between the red and yellow areas on the dial. "I'm so gonna replace these secondary boosters when I get back."
A long, awkward silence ensued, as the robot made a turn, hovering through the air at a leisurely speed. Dameko was staring at the radar screen, her head lowered, and even though Rubis couldn't see her face, she knew her sister was scowling.
"Dameko, I—"
"Ugh." She held up a hand. "Please, please don't say you're sorry. I was acting like a dummy, and you pointed it out. You aren't being controlling again, and I can admit it when I screw up!"
Without a word, Rubis went back to staring at her metal card, accompanied only by the soft humming of machineries.