Ahhh it sure has been a bit huh? First off I like to say sorry for this taking a while hopefully the others take not as long but life could get in the way.
Also I did beat Azure and it's maybe in my top 3 but not number 1. I had some issues with the ending but within the same time I finished 86 the anime and cried so yeah go watch it for some great shit.
For those on Archive I know that I need to tidy up some things on there but I'm still trying to figure that out so sorry for now.
Now for those on Fanfiction you might notice a change in cover image. Well that fabulous Iwonn on Twitter made it like the old one and I will always recommend them for any commissions you need to do!
Now for the normal can of beans! I do not own the Legend of Heroes series or anything in it! Just a few Oc's and ideas behind the story!... Yes I did copy this so what!
'Thinking'
"Letters"
(Whispers)
"Talking"
Change of time/Pov
Artist of Shade in the story cover is Iwonn on Twitter and they have their own blog where you can get yourself some nice art as well but for a price.
Iwonn's Art Blog ( )
Septian Calendar:January 13th,1204.
Time: 11:30 AM
Location:CPD Headquarters: Crossbell.
I walked into the building where I saw the lady with the twin tails behind the counter doing some type of paperwork and that she didn't notice me walking inside. Once I got to the counter I knocked on it which got her attention and she looked up at me which gives me a better view of what she looks like. She's young with tawny brown hair and hazel eyes, wearing the normal Crossbell Police uniform which consists of a blue and green skirt with black pantyhose, a gray shirt and a red neck-tie, on top of her head is a small navy blue pillbox hat.
"Good day, and welcome to the Crossbell Police Department. How can I help you?" She asks me in a cheery tone.
"Hey there, I was told by Sergei that I was to come here at noon and report to him." I say while looking at the clock on the wall, seeing that I'm a little early.
'It never hurts to be early, I just hope everything is ready'
"Ah, let me call him up. Can you tell me your name, please?" She asks while grabbing an orbment.
"Of course the name is Shade Junge and yours?" I ask while leaning on the counter, smiling at her.
She looks my way and gives me a bright smile. "Mine is Fran Seeker and let me call up Sergei real quick." As she said that, I sensed a man walking towards us from the door to my left.
"Don't worry about calling me Fran, I will handle him now." Sergei says while stopping at the door frame, looking at me with the same expressions as last time.
"Hey there Chief!" I say while walking towards him.
"Alright, then good luck with whatever it is!" Fran says while waving at me as I follow Sergei deeper into the building.
We walk until we get to the conference room door from before, where he turns towards me and hands me a few items. "Here take these, this is your police badge and ID and a key to your new living space." And hands me them which I put everything away in my pockets save for the badge which I fiddle with to have it on my belt.
"Thank you, Chief, I could never have done it without you!" I say with a grin and turn towards the door next to us where I could sense someone inside.
"One last thing." He says in a more serious tone, which makes me stop and turn towards him. "I don't know much about your background, so I have no idea who you are still, but if you do anything to harm people or anyone on this team then I will arrest you and lock you up for life. Do you understand me?"
I looked at him and with my own serious face I replied. "Of course, but I won't do any of that, I can promise you that and if I somehow do that then you can throw me into whatever cell you want, but I will do my best on this team!" I say while looking at him with a grin and a thumb up, which causes him to sigh.
"Fine I can see that you mean it but don't forget my words here alright? Now, since you are early, only one other person is here so far, so go meet him while I wait for the others." He says, then walks away, leaving me alone.
'Well that makes sense for him to be wary of me but still guess I better behave myself… Now it's time to meet my teammate!'
I took a deep breath and opened the door, where the first thing I noticed was a red-headed man sitting in the chair closest to the door and the big board on the wall. He turns to me and looks at me with his turquoise eyes, he's wearing a white turtleneck shirt, black trousers, and a large orange coat with a black fur lined collar.
"Hey there, guess you're early like me, yeah?" He says while giving me a small grin.
"Yep, names Shade Junge and yourself?" I say while sitting in the chair just across from him.
"If that name doesn't sound badass, then I don't know what name is, haha! But name's Randy Orlando!" He says with a smile.
'So he's Randy, huh? Well, then he's exactly as she said he was.'
"So, Randy, who'd you think our soon-to-be comrades are?" I asked while popping my feet up and on the corner of the table while leaning back.
"Well I didn't put much thought into it really, but whoever they are I sure do hope they are some good-looking ladies!" He says with a wide grin.
'Yep, exactly as she said.'
"Guess we'll see…" I sense someone I recognize walking towards the door. They stopped for a moment, then reached to open it.
"Hello, is this the right room?" The woman who I recognize as Elie walks in.
"Well, hello there~" Randy says while staring at her. "Hey there Elie." I wave at her. She looks at Randy then at me, all the while looking confused.
"Shade? You're here to join the Special Support Section?" Elie asks as she sits next to Randy, still looking perplexed.
"Wait, you both know each other?" Randy asks us while glancing at Elie every so often. "Yep, we met on my first day at Crossbell." I answered as Elie stared at me.
"Yes, and you said you were heading towards the CPD for something. I guess this was something, am I right?" She asks which I answered by giving her a thumbs up.
"Guess that means we'll be future coworkers, so I look forward to working with you." She says with a smile as Randy looks between us both while mumbling something under his breath.
We all sat there in silence after that while we waited for the next person to arrive, after five or so minutes I sensed someone who was shorter than me walking towards the door and I already knew who it was.
'Alright Shade, you can handle this, it's just your first time meeting her… I got this!'
The person opened the door and walked in, we all turned to look at the blue haired young girl that walked in, she's wearing a mauve colored dress with a matching cape. She's also wearing long black sleeves and stockings, which with the rest of her outfit possess a gold trim. On her chest is a metal object and on her head is a headband which resembles cat ears.
My eyes go wide once I see her, despite knowing this was coming. I could feel my eyes start to water so I quickly looked away and pretended to rub them.
'S-She's here… she's really here and in front of me… Tio you're alive!'
She looks at me for a second and then walks around the table and sits down in the empty chair next to me. "Hello there, I guess you're also working with us?" Elie asks her.
"That is correct." The girl answers while looking at each one of us.
"So, little lady, what's your name?" Randy asks her while leaning on the table, looking at her with a smile.
"My name Is Tio Plato." She answers in a flat tone.
"So now we wait on the detective, right?" Randy asks us, which I shrugged to.
"Guess so, but I wonder what he'll be like?" Elie says while looking at the door.
I look over to Tio who in turn looks at me and after a bit turns back to looking at the table or door. "Well, my guess is some bright-eyed guy about your age, Elie." I say while sitting up.
"My age? Well if he graduated then that would make sense…" She says while I sensed Sergei walk past the door and not long after come back with somebody that I vaguely recognized.
He walks in and behind him is a young man with short brown hair and eyes, he's wearing khaki pants, dark brown boots, and a yellow-orange shirt which is worn under a CSPD blue and white jacket.
'Well, well there he is… Man, he always did have that baby face of his huh.'
"Oh…" Elie says while staring at him.
"Would ya look at that? Our big star's finally arrived." Randy says with a grin.
"Hey there mate." I say as Tio remained silent next to me.
They both walk in front of the table, where Sergei was the first to speak. "Sorry for the wait, everyone. Here's our last member." He turns to the young man. "Don't just stand there, introduce yourself."
"Ah, right…" He walks forward and looks at each of us while still not saying his name.
"Hey. You got cotton stuck in your ears? It ain't hard, kid. Just give your name and where you're from." Sergei says to the man, which knocks him out from his thoughts.
"S-Sorry. My name is Lloyd Bannings, and I was born in Crossbell until recently, I had been living aboard, but I've decided to return home in pursuit of joining the CPD. I look forward to working with you all." Lloyd says all while looking serious.
'Okay this is going better than I thought, plus I can at least confirm that only me and my brother have memories from the future, so I don't have to worry about any bullshit with that.'
"Oh? So you're the serious type. Yo, I'm Randy. Randy Orlando. My hobbies include flirting with lovely ladies, gamblin', and checkin' out sexy new mags like Hot Shot. Y'know, that kinda stuff. Remind me later, and I'll let you take a peek at some of my prized collections when this is all said and done, yeah?" Lloyd takes a step back in surprise as I hold in a laugh, which Randy noticed.
"Y-Your what?!" Lloyd asks, still stunned.
"Ahem." Elie clears her throat loud enough to gain everyone's attention. "Pleased to meet you. My name is Elie MacDowell. I'm Crossbellen, much like yourself. I look forward to working with you." Elie greets the man, which makes him a bit relieved.
"L-Likewise." He greets back.
'Damn this is better than I thought it would be. Haha!'
"Tio Plato, Leman State. A pleasure to meet you." She greeted him in the same flat tone.
"Yeah, you, too…" He then looks at me.
"Shade Junge here, and I'm from Calvard. Nice to meet ya." I say with a two finger salute, which he simply gives an awkward smile in return.
"Nice to meet you as well…" He then turns to Sergei.
"Um, Chief Sergei?" He asks.
"Hmm, what is it?" Sergei responds.
"I've been wondering… What exactly is the Special Support Section? It's clear as day that everyone here is fairly young, myself included." Lloyd asks while everyone watches.
"Yeah, well, we're in a unique situation here. After all, everyone at this table is a promising newcomer to the police force, just like you." Sergei gives me a quick glance before looking back at Lloyd. "That should calm your nerves, yeah?" He says, while Lloyd still looks a little stunned.
"I-I guess so…" Lloyd says.
"Is this really okay for a police division?" Elie says, looking a little stunned herself.
"Well, I, for one, am extremely grateful we don't have any preachy old-timers bossin' us around." Randy says while looking relieved.
"This is about what I expected from this." I say as Tio remains quiet.
A loud ringing noise comes from Sergei's pockets, where he pulls out an orbment and answers the call. "Sergei here… hmm, that so? Appreciate it." I noticed that some people in the room look confused about what he's talking to. "Yeah, roger that we can handle things from here. All right, greenhorns. Time to perk up. You wanted to know what kind of responsibilities the SSS is going to have, right? I imagine this little mission will give you a good idea. Get ready for a helluva ride."
He motions for us to follow him which we all get up from our seats to do and after leaving the building and heading all the way to Station Street he then turns towards a set of steps and walks down them.
"Down there?" Lloyd asks.
"Why the underside of Station Street? What could possibly be there?" Elie also asks.
"Sounded like he had something lined up for us to do. Don't tell me he's expectin' us to clean this place up or something." Randy says, looking annoyed.
'Do they not know of the Geofront?'
"Well it could be worse I guess." I say while noticing the door at the end of the walkway. We then followed him down, where he stopped in front of said door.
He turns towards us and proceeds to explain. "Behind that door is the Geofront, a vast network of tunnels running underneath Crossbell City. Your mission is to make your way through it." Sergei says with a hint of amusement in his tone.
"What?!" Lloyd yells out.
"You want us to go in there?" Elie asks, looking unsure about all of this.
"Yeah, what's this have to do with anything?" Randy asks, looking more annoyed.
Sergei lets a small sigh escape his mouth before he answers. "For starters, it'll serve as a test to evaluate your combat skills and overall aptitude. The Geofront is home to some pretty weak monsters, it's your job to dispose of them and reach its deepest section." He finishes explaining with a smirk.
"That makes more sense." Elie says, looking more calm now.
"A combat test, huh? Fine by me." Randy states while looking relieved that he doesn't have to clean.
"Monsters? Well, this will be easy then." I state while putting my arms behind my head.
"W-Wait a second! Test or not, why are WE the ones going into an area infested with monsters? Isn't that a job for the Guarding Force?" Lloyd quickly interjects.
"Heh. I'll admit this isn't your typical outing as a detective, but you're members of the SSS, making it a different story altogether." Sergei states.
"Come again?" Lloyd asks, still looking confused.
"We'll talk details later, first thing first." He walks towards us and hands us all a portable device which looks similar to the one he had earlier.
"Would this be…?" Lloyd starts to ask while looking at it in his hands.
"A new tactical battle orbment model, perhaps?" Elie finishes what Lloyd was asking while also staring at it.
"Damn, it's pretty slick. I like it." Randy says while expecting it closely
"It's very neat." I state simply as I hold it in my hand.
"A fifth-generation tactical orbment… The Enigma. Is it finally ready for combat?" Tio states, finally speaking up for the first time.
Sergei turns towards her. "I guess so. The foundation shipped 'em out a couple of days ago, and they've already been adjusted to fit your individual aptitudes. As to how to use them… Tio you're up." He finishes while Tio sighs.
"If I must. Were you also supplied with quartz for this particular model?" She asked him, while I noticed everyone getting slightly confused.
"Yeah, it's not much, but here you go." He hands each of us a quartz of each type, mine being the gray one. "Also, you won't get far without this." He hands Lloyd a key, which I presume is to the door. "Come back to headquarters once you've taken care of the monsters, we'll talk more after that. Oh, right. I better hand these over to you, too." He hands Lloyd two books, both have the CPD logo on them, after that he starts walking away and is stopped by Lloyd.
"W-Wait! You're leaving, Chief?!" Sergei turns around and looks at Lloyd.
"Oh, that reminds me, Lloyd. I'm making you the leader of the team now." Lloyd looks taken aback from this. "Me?" He simply asks.
"You're the only certified detective here, so… Good luck, kids." And with those words he walks up the stairs, leaving behind a stunned Lloyd.
We all turn towards Lloyd as Randy speaks up.
"Haha. Guess you drew the short end of the stick." Randy says while still laughing a little.
"I do find it reassuring to have a proper detective on the team. Pleasure to make your acquaintance, Detective Bannings." Elie says, looking more relieved than before.
"Same…but could we maybe drop the formalities? I think we're about the same age, and we are both still rookies." Lloyd asks us.
"I suppose so. I'm eighteen myself." Elie states.
"I had a feeling. So am I. What about you three?" He asks looking at me, Tio and Randy
"I'm twentyone, but you wouldn't ever catch me caring for formalities. Nice to meet ya, Lloyd. Elie." He says with a grin.
"It's a pleasure." "Yeah, likewise." Both Elie and Lloyd state.
"I suppose that leaves both of you… Would you mind telling us?" Lloyd asks us which I motion for Tio to go first.
"I'm Fourteen. Will that be a problem?" Tio states, which causes some shock.
"No, no. Of course not…F-FOURTEEN!?" Lloyd yells out looking the most surprised out of us all, which almost made me laugh out loud.
'Oh this will be a riot, that's for sure!'
"So you DO have a problem with it. She looks the part, doesn't she?" Randy says, almost laughing as well.
"It's hard to believe you're already a police officer at that age." Elie states.
"No, back up! This doesn't make any sense, no matter how you look at it! You have to be at least sixteen before you can join the police force. How can someone who's barely graduated from Sunday School become a police off-" Before Lloyd can continue speaking, Tio interrupts him.
"Because I am not one, strictly speaking. I was transferred here by the Epstein Foundation for testing purposes." Everyone besides myself looked surprised when she said that.
"Come again?" Lloyd asks, still looking confused.
"Didn't Epstein make these orbments we just got?" Randy asks while pointing at the one in his hand.
"Yep, and they are the main reason we're living in such a world with all of this tech." I state still amused by this all
"Oh, I think I understand. I've heard that Crossbell City has been cooperating with the foundation on a large-scale project for several years." Elie states, which Tio nods.
"Correct. The Orbal Network Project. While I do have some connection to that, the real reason for my transfer is this." She says while pulling out her orbal staff.
'So that's what it looked like…'
"And that's…?" Lloyd asks, staring at the staff.
"A mechanical… staff?" Elie also asks while staring at it.
"It is called an orbal staff. I was transferred to test this weapon's effectiveness in real combat scenarios. Do you understand now, Lloyd?" Tio explains, while Lloyd can only nod slowly.
"Back up just a moment. You're telling me you're going to fight with this thing?" Lloyd asks, still not backing down.
"For a 'certified detective' you are exceptionally slow. I believe I made myself clear. What do you fail to comprehend?" Tio asks him, looking annoyed.
"Umm…" Lloyd can only say before Randy steps up.
C'mon, guys. Bickerin' like this won't get us anywhere. So what about you, Shade?" Randy turns to me as well as everyone else.
"Just turned sixteen, so to save us some trouble lets's save questions for later, shall we?" I state, which Lloyd and everyone else nods to.
"See, that wasn't so hard, but I dunno exactly how dangerous this Geofront thing will be…so how about we come up with a strategy before we head in?" Randy says while looking at Lloyd.
"I'm still not sure how to feel about all of this, but we should focus on our mission." Elie says, while also looking at Lloyd.
"You're right Randy. Arguing is pointless. I'm sorry, Tio. If I offended you in any way, please accept my apologies and you as well. Shade, if I caused you to be offended by the age thing as well." Lloyd looks at both me and Tio while saying this.
"You all good." I simply state.
"It is fine. Your reaction was justified, given the situation. Now, back on topic. As I said, I will be utilizing my orbal staff to fight. What weapons do you four use?" She asks us, which makes me smile.
"My weapon of choice? Well, I specialize in these." He says while pulling out his weapon, which is a pair of Tonfas.
"Some sort of police batons?" Elie says while getting a better look at them.
"Tonfas, eh? That's an Eastern weapon. Heard they're specifically designed for self-defense and suppression, rather than offense." Randy points out while checking them out.
"I see. A fitting choice for a police officer, then." Lloyd nods at Elie when she says that.
"I tried out other weapons, but these felt the most natural. So, what about you, Elie? Randy? Shade?" Lloyd asks us which Elie proceeds to pull out her weapon.
"I'll be using this." She states, holding an older looking orbal gun.
"An orbal gun. It appears to be slightly dated, though." Tio points out while I take a moment to examine it.
'Why does it look familiar?'
"Maybe, but you can't deny its charm." Lloyd says, smiling at Elie.
"It's something I continue to have customized for competitive purposes. It may be an oldie, but its precision is unparalleled." Elie says while putting it away.
"Not bad, not bad. Now, let me introduce you to my partner in crime." Randy says while pulling out a large weapon from his back.
"That's…quite a large weapon." Lloyd says, looking perplexed by it.
"It looks similar to the halberds used by knights during the Middle Ages." Elie points out.
"I have seen them in the foundation's factories. It is equipped with a unit that converts orbal energy into shockwaves." Tio explains, which causes both Lloyd and Elie to nod in understanding.
"Bingo. This baby's called a stun halberd. Its weight can make it difficult to get the hang of, but it's unmatched in terms of raw power." Randy says while putting his weapon away.
"Impressive…" Lloyd says, and then everyone turns towards me.
'My time to shine.'
I pull out my hand guns and hold them out, so they can get a good look at them. "These are my pride and joy, Dawn and Twilight. With them, I can blast anything that gets in our way."
"Another gun user? I would have suspected a melee weapon of some kind." Lloyd says.
"I may use guns, but I also know how to fight without them, so don't worry if monsters get near me." I say putting them away.
"Why name them that if you don't mind answering?" Elie asks me which, I turn towards her.
"It's my favorite parts of the day. Where I feel most comfortable." Elie nods as I turn towards Randy.
"Those guns seem handmade? Your work or…?" Randy asks, which I grinned at him.
"That's right I made them myself, and I can repair all types of weapons, so I don't mind helping out with maintenance if anyone needs it." I state, which everyone nods to.
"While I still don't quite know how Tio's staff works yet… I think, overall, we make a pretty balanced team." Lloyd states, while Elie looks at him and nods.
"I think so, too." She says, which Randy then speaks up.
"That's probably the reason the five of us were put on this team in the first place. The chief may look like a bum, but there's more to him than meets the eye." Randy states with a grin.
"I concur. Before I explain how it is, my orbal staff functions…should I first explain how our tactical orbments work?" Tio asks Lloyd, which he smiles and waves his hand.
"I think we're good. They don't look too different from the ones I'm familiar with."
"Correct. Well, mostly. The only major difference from the older model is an additional function."
"And that would be?" Lloyd asks.
"It is unnecessary for this job, so explaining it would be a waste of time and energy." Tio states, which all of us just looked on as Lloyd looked dumbfounded for a moment before he shook out of it.
"Well, if everyone's ready, let's begin our descent into the Geofront. And remember: safety First!" Lloyd yells out while walking towards the door.
"Of course."
"Roger."
"Let's get this show on the road!"
"This should be fun." Lloyd then unlocks the door, and we all walk in with Lloyd in front, behind him were the girls and after them was me and Randy keeping the rear guarded.
We all get further inside until we get into a wide open area with two doors, one of them red and the other blue. Everyone takes a look around, almost admiring the way the Geofront looks.
"So, this is the Geofront." Lloyd says, while looking down below the platform we're on.
"I've heard rumors about it, but I wasn't expecting something this massive to be under the city…" I lean on one of the railing while Elie looks at the ladder on the wall nearby.
"It is a bit more high-tech than I thought it would be, but I can only wonder what's in this place…" I say knowing most of the darkest areas in this place from my other times in this place, from my time in the future.
"Phew, now that's a relief. I thought we were gonna be trudgin' through some nasty-ass sewage, honestly." Randy states putting his hands over his head.
"According to database records, the Geofront's construction began at approximately the same time Crossbell ventured into large-scale urban planning twenty years ago. The entire system includes waterworks, sewage systems, and a waste disposal plant. It is also used to wire orbal cables and other modern tech." Tio once again explains to everyone.
Lloyd takes a step towards the blue door before turning towards all of us. "Well, it's safe to say that this place isn't at all what I expected it to be. Central Square is directly above us, right?" Lloyd asks while looking at Tio, which she simply nods at.
"It's hard to believe that monsters are roaming around here just under our feet." He says, looking at the ceiling.
"If it makes you feel better, almost all sewage systems from Erebonia to Calvard are like this as well." I state, causing everyone to look at me.
"Oh, and I'm presuming you know this by going down into them yourself?" Tio asks me, I get off the railing and walk closer to the middle of the platform.
"Yep, once I have permission of course, but just like those places this area is most likely locked up, so monsters don't go wild on the public above." I look to see Randy staring at me like he's trying to figure something out, while Tio nods to what I said.
"Yes, the same is true here. However, there have been reports of maintenance workers being assaulted while working down here. Unfortunately, the police seem too busy at the moment to provide the appropriate countermeasures for these incidents." Tio finishes explaining, which causes Lloyd to look down.
"Wow, I had no idea…" I notice a look of hesitation go across his face.
"Could this be one of the reasons why the Special Support Section was created?" Elie asks, putting her hand on her chin.
"I think I'm startin' to see the big picture here." Randy says, looking amused by it all.
Lloyd then looks up at us all with some more determination. "Our mission is clear. Whether this is a detective's job or not, it's a job that needs to be done. You can treat it as a test if you want, but let's get it done properly." Elie and Tio nod at his words, while Randy gives him a big grin.
"Listen to Mr. Formality, here." He says, which causes Lloyd to simply rub his forehead.
"Still, he's right. We should take advantage of this mission to refresh ourselves with the basics, one step at a time." Elie says, smiling at Lloyd, who in turn smiles back.
"Roger." "Aye." Tio and I say in unison.
Before he could open the door in front of us, I reached behind me and grabbed my mask, putting it on along with my hood. "Whoa, lookin' kinda scary there with that mask of yours." Randy points out, which makes everyone turn to look.
"It is quite… menacing to say the least." Elie says, staring at my mask.
"It looks ridiculous, does it serve any function?" I looked over to Tio as she asked that and pointed to my lens on the mask.
"Yep, if there's a connection people can see what I'm looking at through my mask, and it even has a communication device in it…plus it's cool, so it isn't ridiculous alright!" Her expression changed to an unamused one after I said that.
"Can it really do all of that?" Lloyd asks me, which I nod to.
"If I may, can I take a look at it later?" Tio asks me.
"Course, just let me know when." She nodded and after that, Lloyd opened the door, and we all pulled out our weapons in case of a sudden attack.
We took a few steps in and just ahead of us were a small group of monsters that almost looked like rats with spikes coming out of them. "Alright, everyone, keep up your guard!" Lloyd yells out as we move in on the monsters.
'These monsters… they are weak.'
I pointed my guns at one of them and only fired once which killed it instantly making it explode with some Sepith coming out of it, looking over I can see the other's having an easy time killing them, but I wonder if that will change.
"All right, we did it." Lloyd says with a look of relief.
"Better perk up, 'cause those guys are probably at the bottom of the food chain." Randy states with a sly grin.
Elie turned to the group and smiled "That may be, but at least we learned a little about each of our fighting styles. Tio's orbal staff gave quite the surprise at first…" Elie says as we all look over to Tio.
Lloyd steps closer to look at the staff as he speaks. "Yeah, that was crazy. Does the staff fire off some sort of miniaturized arts?"
Tio nods. "Yes, basically. Unlike normal arts, it's possible for the enemy to dodge my attacks, but… It essentially functions as a short-range burst of arts, without the casting time." Tio explained while everyone looked in awe at it.
'Wait until they find out about the other functions it can do, haha.'
"Phew, we could come up with a buncha different tactics with somethin' like that on our side." Tio nods again to what Randy said as I make sore nothing come up to attack us.
'I didn't think they would be this relaxed in this place…'
"That was the goal for this technology. Also, take a look at this breastplate that I'm wearing." Tio asks everyone, making them look at her chest while I glance over.
"This links with the orbal staff's systems and provides me with a protective field, increasing my defense." I see everyone looking somewhat lost as she explains.
"Thanks to that, I'm able to withstand much more than my physique suggests. If you ever need me on the front line, there should be no problems." Tio finishes as Elie is the first to speak up.
"Incredible… I had no idea that orbal technology had advanced that much already, plus with Shade's mask I'm surprised."
"Might as well take advantage of it, eh?" Randy says, looking at me and Tio with a grin.
"Umm, but guys… Wouldn't having a young girl in the vanguard be kind of…" He stops as he sees Tio glaring at him. "Yeah, never mind." He slowly backs away from her
After that discussion we collected the Sepith and moved on making sure to check our surroundings while I just walk ahead without a care knowing if anything was nearby, we go through a set of doors and into another hallway where up ahead I could see more monsters that look like little slimes with something in the middle of them.
"Huh… Looks like we got a couple of jellybeans in our path." Randy points ahead
"I think arts will be more effective than our weapons against these types of monsters." Lloyd starts to say to everyone. "Let's give our Enigmas a whirl during this fight, everyone!" He says pulling out his while Randy and Elie do the same.
"Yes, good idea." Elie says as she starts casting.
"Roger." Tio started casting an art, so I stood back and once it was cast it hit one of the slimes, and took it down I stepped forwards and shot at one, killing it instantly again while everyone took down the rest with arts.
"Man these monsters are weak plus we can get some Sepith from them," Randy says while picking up some of the drops.
"We can use it to upgrade our orbment and to buy some gear later on, so we better save it." Tio states also picking up some drops. Afterwards, we walked through the doors in front of us to encounter a bug-like group of monsters that made some type of deafening soundwave at us the moment it saw us, making everyone reel back in pain.
"Damn my ears! I really hate bugs." I quickly shot them all before the others could ready themselves.
"Thank you Shade. I'm sure they would have attacked before we could recover from that." Elie says with a smile.
"It was nothing. I'm just glad I could shoot straight with the ringing going on in my ears, but is everyone okay?" I ask, turning towards everyone, but looking at Tio.
"Seems like we're fine, but we better be careful to not let that happen again." Lloyd states, with everyone agreeing, Tio being the last to agree as she is still covering her ears.
We picked up any loot and moved on where we all saw bats up ahead which upon smelling us started fleeing wherever they could. "They are…fleeing?" Elie states, making sure to keep them in her sight while aiming at them.
"That's not odd at all." I state, knowing full well it's because of me, since they did the same last time I was here.
After they fled, we moved through the door to see a ladder with the hatch that it leads to being wide open. "This ladder leads to Central Square, right?" Lloyd asks, looking up at the opened hatch.
"Yes, apparently so. For some reason, the database has no record of it." She says, looking slightly confused.
"Why'd they leave it open?" Randy asks while looking around for any monsters.
"Who knows? Perhaps one of the city's maintenance workers forgot to close it. We should report this later after we're done here." Elie states while writing it down in her own little hand book.
"Definitely." Lloyd says as we started moving deeper into the Geofront.
After killing more monsters we came upon an elevator that led down, so we all got on and Tio activated the switch to turn it on, once we got to the bottom we continued moving through the tunnels while taking down any monsters that got in our way while we slowly got used to how each of us fought. It wasn't until we got to a room full of large vents that we stopped from what sounded like a cry somewhere nearby.
"Did you hear that?!" Lloyd quickly asks while looking around, trying to see if anyone was there.
"Listen! Someone's crying…!" Elie yells out, looking around with Lloyd.
"Geez. The hell is goin' on? Ain't this place supposed to be sealed off from the public?" Randy asks, looking at Tio while looking confused.
"No point in complaining to me. As far as I know, the general public should not have access to the Geofront…" She is cut off as Lloyd yells out.
"Save the speculation for later! We need to find the source of that crying, stat!"
"Right!" Elie says as they move closer to an open vent nearby I look up, sensing a child sitting down in the vest just above us, but I remain silent knowing we're going to find them anyway.
"Be careful, it seems we can only fit one at a time here." Lloyd calls out as we enter the large vent, after some walking we could hear the crying just up ahead and what seems like a child wearing a white shirt with a red vest over it sitting down holding his face.
"Hey! Is someone there?!" Lloyd yells out as he gets closer.
"Wh-Who's there?!" The boy calls out and as we get closer we can see that he's shaken up just a little.
"Thank goodness. Someone really was in here. Are you okay? You aren't hurt, are you?" Lloyd reaches out his hand, but the boy cries louder.
"E-Easy there…" Lloyd pulls his hand back, unsure what to do.
"Poor kid." Randy says, looking over Elie's shoulder.
"He can relax now that he's safe. I'll take care of this, Lloyd" She pats him on the shoulder and slides by him.
"O-Okay, go ahead." Lloyd says while rubbing the back of his head.
Elie walks up to the boy and hugs him. "There, there. I know you were scared. Everything is okay now, I promise… We're all here. We'll protect you." The boy calms down and nods his head as Elie comforts him.
"We took care of all the scary monsters outside. It's so dark and cramped in here. How about we head for the exit? Here, I can carry you if you want. Make sure to hold on tight, okay?" We all watch as the boy turns to face her, wiping the tears from his face.
"I-I'm fine. I can walk by myself!" The boy says putting on a brave face.
"You sure? Heehee. You're such a brave boy. What's your name?" She asks him.
"U-Um… it's Anri." The boy says and now getting a closer look at him, I can remember seeing him play in West Street with another boy sometimes.
(Haha… Phew.) Lloyd lets out a breath as Randy pats him on the back.
(Well, ain't this a charmin' sight.) Randy says as we all watch.
(I remember seeing this kid around town a few times, so at least he's okay.) I state as we all started leaving the vents.
Once we left the vents, I remembered the opened hatch back where that ladder is. 'Could he have gotten in through there? But then where's his friend at?'
"Well, then, Anri. Can you tell me how you ended up in a place like this? The Geofront should have been locked, so how did you manage to get inside?" Elie asks as we all turn to face the boy.
"Um, well… We were playing near the big bell in Central Square. When we opened this weird lid on the ground, we found a ladder leading down here… A-And then…" He looks close to tears again as Randy speaks up.
"So, you decided to see where that manhole led, eh?" He says as he rubs the kid's head.
"All the more reason to add that entrance to the database later." Tio points out as I step up to the boy, making sure my mask is lifted where he can see my face.
"So Anri, where's your friend at then?" I say in a calm but cheerful tone once I ask this I can hear the others slightly panic behind me.
"Ryu? Well, he said we were going on an adventure… B-But, when we got down here, we ran into monsters and got separated!" The boy starts crying again, no doubt worried about his friend, so I rub his head to attempt to calm him down.
"So, that's the full story… Lloyd, what should we do?" Elie turns to Lloyd as he puts his hand to his chin.
"Let me think… There's no time to waste. We should start our search for Ryu with Anri alongside us." Lloyd declares as the others look unsure of this.
"Should we not prioritize getting this child to safety?" Tio asks.
"Y'know, we could always split into two teams and go from there." Randy says, holding out his hands.
"We're running out of time. Dividing our strength in half wouldn't be a good call, given our circumstances. Can you keep an eye on Anri for now, Elie?" Lloyd turns to Elie as I let go of the kid's head.
"Yes, leave him to me. If we come across any monsters, I won't let them lay a hand on him." Elie states confidently while smiling at the boy.
"We're going to find your friend, Anri. I promise you. But it's dangerous to stay here alone, so can you be brave and tag along with us? All right?" Lloyd gets low to face Anri and holds out his hand.
"O-Okay. I want to save Ryu, too. Let's do this together!" Anri yells out which makes the others smile besides Tio.
"Good to hear. All right everyone. This is now a rescue mission as well as an escort job. Let's be even more careful from here on out." Lloyd says while looking at all of us.
"Of course!" Elie says walking up to Anri.
"Roger." Tio says, looking over at the boy.
"We'll find your friend in no time!" I state loudly, earning a smile from everyone except Tio.
'I know she said she wasn't… as cheerful when the SSS started, but this is on another level…'
"Well, then, shall we go find our other lil' adventurer?" Randy says while we all start walking deeper into the Geofront.
"Randy we'll stay up front, everyone else will stay on all sides of Anri and keep an eye out for any monsters!" Lloyd calls out which we all quickly got into position with me behind Anri and Elie to the left and Tio on the right with Randy and Lloyd in front of we press on, whenever a monster would appear we would all quickly take it out while leaving behind any dropped loot from it this went on until we came across a large door.
Once we all walked inside, we heard a cry just ahead on the platform. "S-Stay away from me! Somebody! HEEEELP! Please save me! Aidios!" We all stopped and looked ahead, seeing another boy wearing a green hat and sweater surrounded by a dozen of the slimes.
"Ryu!" Anri yells out as Lloyd quickly turns towards us.
"Elie, Shade, try to draw their attention!" Both me and Elie nod in unison.
"Understood!" "Aye!" We both ran up the small stairs in front of us and while Elie shots didn't kill them mine took a few out which by this point all of them are now moving towards us instead of the boy.
"We managed to distract them, at least." Tio says as she runs up next to me.
"All right! Let's take them out!" Lloyd yells out as the monsters get even closer.
I waste no time by moving forward and jumping over them all and landing next to the boy in green to make sure none of the monsters attack him.
"I won't let you hurt them!" Lloyd shouts as he rushes at one and started smacking it multiple times before hopping back and giving it one last charge while screaming. "Tiger Charge!" The few monsters in his way all get knocked back from his attack.
"Shade cover the kid and trust me!" I nod as I step in front of the boy as Randy spins his weapons and charges it up for something and with another spin he unleashes a wave of fire across the monsters taking them all out while also yelling. "Crimson Gale!" I felt the flames for a moment but I brushed them aside, looking back at everyone I saw them taking care of the rest of the monsters.
"Phew…" Lloyd lets out a breath of relief.
"That was more difficult than I thought it would be." Elie says looking tired from all the battles.
"They gave us a bit of a hard time, eh?" Randy jokingly says not looking as tired as the others.
Tio lets out a loud exhausted sigh. "I am exhausted." She says trying to calm her breathing.
"We still got the trip outta here so make sure you're ready for it." I state as the others nod.
"Wh-Whoa. That was a close one!" The boy in green yells out.
"Ryu, are you okay?!" Anri yells out while looking all over Ryu's body.
"Y-Yeah. I could've handled those monsters myself… I'm glad you managed to stay in one piece, too!" I watched on, shaking my head at them but as I did so I could sense something above us so I looked up.
"I remember YOU being the one talking so much about this 'Geofront' or whatever!" Ryu yells out which makes me look back at what's happening.
"B-But I never actually wanted to go inside!" Anri yells back as Lloyd steps in between both of them.
"All right, break it up, you two. No more fighting." Both boys stopped and only Anri looked down in shame.
"S-Sorry…" Anri says while twiddling his thumb.
"Hmm, I haven't seen you guys around town before, besides the guy in the cool mask." Tio and Randy look at me, which I give a thumbs up in response.
"You're crazy strong! Are you rookies or somethin'?" Ryu asks us.
"Huh?" Lloyd looks taken aback from the question while Randy steps up to Ryu.
"Real smooth, kid. But y'know, shouldn't you show us some gratitude before anything else? We did just save your hide." Randy says, looking a little annoyed at the boy.
"Heh, fine. Thanks for the save! They weren't even able to hit me once! You guys are preeetty good." Ryu says with a grin.
"Well, thanks… I can't really tell if this flattery is genuine or not, though." As he says that, Elie gets close to both of them making sure they're both okay.
"I'm glad they're both all right in the end. Shouldn't we hurry out of here while we have the chance?" Elie asks, looking at the exit nearby.
"Yes, we should. I think this is as far as we can go into A Sector. Besides, we have seemingly completed Chief Sergei's mission, too." Tio says as she puts away her weapon.
'Huh, it's a bit early to let down your guard.' I'm about to say something until I notice everyone else put away their weapons as well, making me sigh quietly.
"True." Lloyd says, looking proud.
"Well, no way in hell was I expectin' somethin' like that to go down. After we get these rascals home, we should report back to the police department, yeah?" Randy suggests as the kids get a confused look on their faces, which Lloyd notices.
"Uh, what's wrong?" He asks them.
"Well, I'm just wonderin'...are you guys really rookies?" Ryu's question makes everyone confused.
"Y-Yeah we are. Is it that easy to tell? We aren't required to wear uniforms… I'm impressed you noticed." Lloyd states, which further confuses the boys.
"Huh? Uniforms?" Ryu begins to ask.
"Umm, wait a second… Are you not from the guild?" Anri finishes the question, which makes Lloyd blink in confusion.
"What?" He blinks again, looking confused.
"By guild, you mean the Bracer Guild, right?" Elie asks them.
"What?! Do you honestly think we'd be talkin' about the Fisherman's Guild?! Are you kiddin' me?! You AREN'T Bracers?!" Ryu starts yelling loudly, which causes me to take a step back.
'Dang, he could have those bats beat in terms of deafness… Wait what now?' I sense something again above us and I look up again while covering my ears, but the moment I do it goes away.
"Huuuuh?!" I look down to hear Anri yell out now.
"You're the frickin' police?! No way! Why in the world would cops be patrolling the Geofront?!" Ryu questions Lloyd.
"W-Well, It's sort of an odd situation. While we were on a mission in here, we ran into Anri in a ventilation duct…" He then smiles at both boys that still look at him with shocked looks. "But, what's so strange about the police being involved here?" Both boys look at each other then back at him.
"You've gotta be pullin' my leg! Everyone knows the police are famous for being a bunch of cowards." Ryu states, which catches us all off guard
"Dad's always sayin' that even though they act all high-and-mighty, they never actually help anyone. He told me that in times of need, I should always count on the bracers." Everyone's expressions turn sour when he says that.
"Of course…" Elie looks down at the ground as Anri looks over at his friend.
"R-Ryu don't be rude! Does it matter if they're policemen or not? They're the ones who saved us, after all." Ryu crosses his arms and looks away.
"Yeah, yeah. I know that… I just thought that some new recruits from the guild came to save us, that's all." Randy scratches the back of his head as I walk towards the steps nearby.
"Sounds like people have pretty, uh… passionate feelings about the cops, huh?... Hold up." Randy says as I sensed that thing again, quickly looking up I can see it clearly as it starts dropping down right where I'm standing.
"We got a problem here!" Randy yells out as stare up confused.
'How was it able to keep hidden all this time?!'
"Above us?!" Elie yells out while looking up.
The monster then falls down as I jump back towards everyone, and it lands right where I was standing. The monster is the same type of slime from before, but the core of this one turns from yellow to a blood-red right in front of us.
I aim my guns at it as I notice a red mist surrounding it. I can hear the kids start panicking behind me as the monster growls at us.
"Tch…!" Lloyd pulls out his weapons again and so does everyone else.
"This is the head honcho?!" Randy yells getting in front of the kids.
"I-It's enormous…" Elie says while watching it grow in size.
'Is it absorbing something?!' I took a step closer and that's when I noticed the lingering presence of demonic energy.
"The door behind us is locked. We cannot get away." Tio states as we all back up.
"Damn, at this rate…!" Lloyd says while looking down.
"Hey, what's the plan?! Even if we go all out, we don't stand a chance with our current gear!" Randy yells to Lloyd, making him snap his head up.
"I know that! Listen, I'll draw its attention! You guys take the kids and find a way out!" We all looked at Lloyd in shock at what he suggested, all the while I could sense someone getting closer to us.
"Y-You can't be…!" Elie starts out saying.
"Are you insane?" Tio asks him.
"It's our only option! Randy, Shade, Elie! Take them and run! Do what you have to do-" I jump in front of Lloyd, which surprises him and everyone else.
"Alright, leader, I can understand where you're coming from, but we still got a few options open to us!" I yell out as I step forward towards the monster.
'Damn, I might have to use it, but I'll see what I can do before 'he' can join in.'
"W-Wait, you're going to take it on?!" Lloyd yells at me as the others look as surprised as him.
"Yep, they are insane." Tio says with a sigh.
The slime sends a tentacle at me, which I calmly take a step to my left. It goes right past me and I use this to jump up on it and run up along it while shooting the main body which doesn't almost nothing to it. 'I really need to make that sword!'
"Wait, he's really running on that thing?!" I hear Randy yell out.
It sends another tentacle at me which I dodge by jumping up onto the pipes above, I put my foot between the pipes to hold me in place as I hang upside down while shooting down at it once again. "You know, mister slime, you seem too big to be here!" I yell down at it.
"What in the world…" Elie says while looking up, her jaw wide open.
"He got skills, that's for sure!" Randy says, looking as shocked as Elie.
"Is there anything we can do to help?!" Lloyd says, looking down at the ground for a moment.
The monster sends its tendrils at me, so I quickly dislodge my foot and fall down below until I land on a tentaclel and start running down it while I prepare a power shot. 'Alright, this might kill it or make it angrier.'
I land on its head while aiming at the red core. "Yeah you're annoying." I say as I pull the trigger, causing a small explosion which I use to jump back to the others as smoke fills the area the monster was at. 'Damn, still not dead?!'
"Damn, I didn't expect that from you!" Randy pats me on the back as the others stare at me in awe.
"It's not dead yet! Stay on your toes!" I yell out which makes everyone look back at the smoke and as it clears the monster is still there, but looking hurt and wounded now.
"I have to say I'm both impressed and disappointed. Self-sacrifice is admirable, but don't be eager to meet your grave." We all looked behind the slime to see a man who's staring at Lloyd as he said all of that. 'Arios…'
He then looks at the weakened slime and launches forwards at it with his blade and with a few swift strikes the monster is quickly killed.
"H-Holy crap!" Randy says as the man lands before us.
"That was unbelievable…" Elie says, looking at both me and Arios.
"My eyes could not keep up…" Tio slowly says as she looks at us.
"He took my kill…" I say while lowering my shoulders in mock defeat.
"A-Amazing!" Ryu yells out as both boys run up to Arios to admire him. That was freakin' sweet! You're the best, Arios! Woooohooooo! This is the greatest day of my life!" Ryu yells out as I sigh loudly.
"T-Thank you for saving us, Arios! But, why are you here?" Anri asks him.
"Well, I read a report that mentioned two kids were seen entering Central Square's manhole. So, I decided to look into it. What you did was incredibly foolish. What would you have done if no one showed up to rescue you?" We all watch on as he scolds both boys.
"I-I'm sorry…" "Uh, sorry 'bout that." Both boys say he then rubs their heads.
"Hah. You two are unharmed, so we'll leave it at that. It's late. Let's get you home." Both boys nod, and they start heading towards the exit as we stand there watching, Arios then stops and turns towards us.
"What's the matter? You don't intend to stay down here, do you?" He asks us.
"N-no… No, we aren't. We'll head back with you, if you don't mind." Lloyd states as he turns to look at us all, which we simply nod at him.
"Good. No dawdling, then. Never let your guard down until you're certain everything is over, it seems only one of you is aware of this." He looks over at me and then turns back to the exit and starts walking off.
"What's with that smug old coot? The guy had a strange aura, that's for sure." Randy says looking tired from everything.
"His physical abilities were anything but ordinary, as well, and that goes for Shade here as well." Tio says while looking at me. "Haha…" I simply laugh.
"He must be…" Elie starts saying, which causes everyone to look at her.
"Mademois-Elie, you know that guy?" Randy asks her as I turn to look at him. 'Mademois-Elie?'
"Only by name." She states, then she looks over at Randy. "Also, why are you calling me that? That's not my name." She asks him, which causes him to smile at her.
"Just kinda felt like it. Fancy name for a fancy lady." His expression turns back to one of seriousness. "So, ya gonna spill the beans or what? Who was that guy?" He crosses his arms and stares at her.
"If I'm not mistaken, that was–" She is cut off as Lloyd speaks up.
"Arios MacLaine." We all turn to him as he stares at the door. "I've read about him in the Crossbell Times more times than I can count. He's an A-Rank bracer who operates out of the Bracer Guild's Crossbell branch… He's a man capable of responding to any request and has earned the utmost trust of the citizens. People call him the guardian of Crossbell. The Divine Blade of Wind, Arios MacLaine." He finishes as we all look at the door both in shock and wonder because of this man. 'And yet he still wasn't enough…'
We all started making our way back to the entrance of the Geofront, and we soon quickly caught up to Arios and helped him in escorting the kids as we walked. I hung in the back with my weapons out while being very bored and also wondering why that monster had demonic energy to begin with.
'That thing was way too strong to be lurking in there… No more like something powered it up while it was already living there, but why? Why was there demonic energy to begin with… Huh?' I come out of my thoughts by someone calling my name.
"Shade." I looked over to see it was Tio that was calling out to me.
"Huh? Oh, hey there, Tio." She looks at me with the same flat expression she had on all day.
"You seemed to be deep in thought about something? Is it about Arios taking your spotlight?" I look forward to where Arios was and shake my head.
"Nah, I'll have plenty of time to shine… I was just thinking back to that monster and how weird it was." I look over to her to see her looking back at me.
"I understand what you mean, that monster was far too strong to be in that part of the Geofront, but was there something about it that caught your eye?" She asks me as I look away.
"Eh, not really, I just hope we don't find more like that while on this job. Haha." I laugh a little as Tio goes back to looking ahead of us as we walk past the large door that we first entered earlier.
We then walked up the steps where we saw the way out of this place. Once we left the door we were greeted by the sun setting over the horizon, then we all noticed a young woman with gray short hair, and blue eyes. She's wearing a yellow woman's style coat-dress with long sleeves, triangle tails, and wearing a dark tan green sweater inside the coat, she's wearing light violet pants, light grey-brown boots with tan yellow toe caps and silver goggles with blue lens that rests on her head.
"What's going on?" Lloyd questions as we watch her take photos of Arios in front of us.
"Well, well, well, Arios! Accomplishing yet another astounding feat, are we? Saving these young boys from the jaws of mortal danger, no thanks to our city's sloppy management system? Brilliant! It's the perfect scoop for our next issue!" She rants on, all the while Arios looks annoyed.
"Awesome! Are we going to be in the newspaper?!" Ryu asks the lady as Anri tries to stop him.
"I don't think this will end well for us if our parents find out, Ryu."
"Please don't make a scene, Grace. While I can't deny the city's shoddy facility management, these two children were in the wrong as well. And I don't appreciate biased news stories." Arios states as Grace continues taking photos.
"You have the wrong idea, Arios. I'm merely living up to my readers' lofty expectations!~ My, oh, my. It looks like we have some new contenders entering the ring, too." She walks past Arios and stands in front of us and pulls up her camera. I decided to take off my mask before she could get a good one in.
"The first mission of the team that carries the CPD's future on its back: the Special Support Section! Alas, these fledglings were unable to complete their mission and had to rely, as per usual, on the power of the heroic Bracer Guild! Will this budding team, now aware of their utter lack of experience, be able to overcome the trials in store for them?!" My eye twitches as she talks, and I could see I'm not the only one annoyed.
"Wh-What are you talking about?" Lloyd tries to ask her to be completely ignored.
(Is this chick okay? All I hear is gibberish.) Randy quietly asks us.
(Her demeanor suggests she is a part of the mass media.) Tio answers.
(She must be a journalist with the Crossbell Times, and I think she's almost done… hopefully.) Elie adds in while looking at me with concern.
(I don't care who she belongs to, I just want her to stop.) I plead as I try to block her out.
"I'd appreciate it if you didn't disregard their role in this, Grace. They were the ones who initially saved the children, not me. Though it's true that they failed to see things through to the end." Arios explains.
"Just like I thought. I can already taste the juicy tidbits waiting to grace this article!" She happily cheers, then she turns to look at us. "Don't let the final product get you down, though. Think of it as motivation to improve yourselves!" She then turns around to look at Arios.
"Well, then, Arios. How about an exclusive one-on-one interview? For old times' sake." She asks him which he lets out a small sigh.
"I'll pass. I've already told you I'm not interested." After denying her request he takes the boys up the nearby steps while Grace follows along, most likely to get him to agree.
We all watched them leave from where we stood, wondering what exactly happened. "What just happened?" Both Tio and I say in unison with annoyed expressions.
"Y'know, making us out to be fools really pisses me off. That said, she's definitely my type, quirkiness aside." Randy says, which causes me to loudly facepalm.
"That's not really the issue here." Elie says, then turns towards Lloyd. "So, Lloyd. What do we do next?" Lloyd turns to look at her, still clearly baffled by what just happened.
"Oh, right… Well, we technically accomplished the mission Chief Sergei gave us, so let's head back to the department for now. We'll have to file a report about the kids while we're at it." After he says that, a ringing noise can be heard from his orbment.
"What's that sound?" He asks as Tio points to his Enigma, so he grabs it and brings it up to look at it.
"The new orbment we were given? Do these have communications built in, too? He asks her which she gives him a deadpan stare.
"Is it not obvious? Press the red button to switch to communication mode. That will accept the incoming call, too." She explains as I open mine to see what she's talking about.
He points to the switch she's talking about. "This one right here?" She nods and he flips it.
"Umm. This is Lloyd Bannings. Chief Sergei, is that you?... Oh, the one from this morning. What's up? Is something wrong?" His eyes then go wide. "Th-The vice commissioner?... Alright, we'll be there as soon as we can." He then hangs up and looks at us with a look of dread.
He explains what the call was about, and so we headed for the department as we were filled with dread for this meeting.
Location: CPD headquarters.
We all stood in a line while facing the vice commissioner. "What was going through those thick skulls of yours?!" He slams his table as he yells at us. "How dare you steer the course away from the objective of your mission?! Not to mention, all the credit was claimed by that damn Arios MacLaine!" I glance over to see everyone handling his yelling pretty well besides Tio who's reeling back from it.
"And the worst part about this situation? This little 'mishap' of yours was exposed by the Crossbell Times!" How does he know that? Did she already publish something that quick?'
"W-Well, the thing is–" Another slam is heard as the commissioner stands up from his seat and Lloyd immediately goes quiet.
"If I may interject, we had it handle–" Another slam makes Tio go quiet.
"Keep each and every one of your mouths shut. I don't want to hear your excuses!" He yells at Tio loudly, which makes me almost walk up and grab him, but I notice Tio reeling back again much harder than before, so I decide to stay still to not cause her or anyone any problems while she absentmindedly grabs a hold of my hand and squeezes it.
'Well, I didn't expect that, especially since we just met…'
"I knew I should have been more vocal against the formation of this new division! If only that damned Sergei hadn't tacked on so many conditions! This would have never happened otherwise!" He yells out while sitting back in his chair and fixing his tie.
"Care to elaborate, sir?" Elie asks as the commissioner head snaps to her.
"Silence! This doesn't concern you in any form! D-Damn it all…" He starts whispering something to himself as I feel Tio's hand leave mine. I look down at her to see her staring ahead pretending to not notice my stare, looking back I see him smile and look at us.
"Listen up, maggots. This is for your sake. Decline your assignment to the 'Special Support Section' within the next couple of days." He says in a calmer tone, surprising us all.
"What?" Both me and Lloyd speak at the same time.
"Just a sec, pal. What exactly are you insinuatin'?" Randy asks him.
"How cryptic." Tio states, in her flat tone, seemingly gone back to how she was acting before.
"I don't believe I stuttered, did I? The SSS is sure to fail within half a year. I doubt it'll advance your careers at all. It's quite the opposite, actually. Keep running into trouble, and your resumes will begin to suffer. An utter waste. Do you not agree?" He asks us, which makes everyone go silent.
'Sorry bud, I'm already dead set on staying on this team!'
"Aren't you aiming to become a detective, Lloyd? I'll personally see to it that you are placed within one of our investigative divisions. Not to worry. I intend on assigning you roles more synergistic with your skill set." Lloyd looks up at him with wide eyes.
"I promise you won't regret your decision. Try sleeping on it. You are dismissed." He says to us all with a smile. Afterwards, we left his office and took the elevator down to the main floor where we left it and stopped right in front of it.
"Geez, man… Talk about a hell of a first day on the job." Randy says, as he looks tired. "That guy wants us to refuse our assignment to the SSS?" He finishes saying while looking around at us.
"It's apparent that the CPD has its share of internal conflict, as well… I'd only heard humors, but this confirms it." Elie says, looking upset by it.
"Right. All of this is a bit different than what was originally arranged." Tio states, making Elie and I look at her confused.
"Arranged?" Elie questions, which Tio quickly responds.
"Simply talking to myself. More importantly, where could Chief Sergei be?" She asks no one in particular.
"Yeah, I was wonderin' about that, too." Randy steps forwards and looks around, seeing no one else around. "What's the deal with not hangin' around until we finished the task HE gave us? Instead, we got nagged by that sneerin' jackass of a vice commissioner." Randy finishes while looking annoyed, that is, until he sees Lloyd spacing out.
"What's up, Lloyd? Feelin' down?" Randy asks as everyone turns to look at him.
"I mean, considering what happened, I don't really blame him…" I say while Elie steps towards him.
"Was being told to refuse your assignment that big of a shock?" She asks him, which breaks him out of his thoughts.
He turns towards her and gives a soft smile. "Oh, no. That's not it…" He then gives off an almost tired-defeated look. "It's just, this place is a lot more different than I had imagined…"
Elie looks at him confused as Randy opens his mouth. "Yeah?" He asks as both me and Tio stare on in silence.
'Why do I have the nagging feeling like something isn't right here? Also…' I quickly glance at Tio who in turn looks at me then quickly back at Lloyd. 'Yeah, I'm gonna ask about that later when I can. Fun…'
I then sense a pair of men getting closer, who quickly make their presence known. "Hey there, rookies. Sounds like you've had a tough day." A man with dark-colored hair and a beard walks up to us with another man in tow whose hair is blonde, both are wearing detective looking outfits.
We all turn to look at them as they get closer. "And you are…?" Lloyd asks them.
"Donovan. Chief inspector of the Second Investigative Division." The bearded man now named Donovan says.
"And I'm Raymond, of the same affiliation. Hmm, I'd heard rumors, but you really DO have kids in your squad." He says while looking at both me and Tio.
(Rude.) (Ass.) Tio and Iwhisper while looking annoyed, so he can't hear us.
"Nice to meet you two. I'm Lloyd Bannings." Lloyd says as Elie and Randy follow suit.
"My name is Elie MacDowell." Elie says.
"Yo' Randy Orlando. Nice to meet'cha." Randy finishes as he glances at me and Tio with an amused look.
"Likewise. Welcome to the CPD… I see, so you're his…" Donovan says while staring at Lloyd.
"Huh?" Lloyd looks at him confused.
"Chief inspector…?" Raymond looks over and is also confused.
"Oh, it's nothing." He states avoiding his partner. 'Ah, they must be talking about Guy, at least I think so…'
"Anyway, Sergei likes to come up with some pretty wild ideas. Bidding for the citizens' approval by offering a bunch of rookies like you…" He says.
"Bidding…? What in the world does that mean?" Elie asks them.
"Oh, really? You haven't heard about it yet? Oh, well, oops. Maybe I should have kept my mouth shut." Donovan says while rubbing his beard and looking away.
"Weeell, anyway., You guys unfortunately received the short end of the stick. Can't imagine how tough your job's gonna end up being. If I were you, I would've refused." Raymond states casually while Donovan turns towards him.
"Isn't it about time you grew a backbone, Raymond? Maybe I should hand you over to Sergei's squad, too." Raymond's face goes pale, and he quickly looks at Donovan.
"C-C'mon, Chief inspector… Cut me some slack." Raymond pleads as Donovan shakes his head and turns back towards us.
"Well' I'm sure this is a lot to process, but try to think carefully on whether you want to work under Sergei or not. Just…don't attempt the impossible. If you all wanted, I'd be more than happy to merge the five of you into the Second Division." Donovan suggests to us.
"Th-Thank you, sir…" Lloyd says, rubbing the back of his head awkwardly.
"Well, then, work hard out there. And, Elie, was it? How about we grab a bite to eat sometime? I just discovered this awesome restaurant and–" Donovan looks at Raymond as he's saying this and smacks him upside the head.
"Hey, dumbass. We're leaving!" Donovan loudly says while walking forwards towards the elevator behind us.
"Ouch! I was just trying to be a gentleman!" Raymond yells out while following his partner as we all watch them leave.
Randy sighs loudly before he speaks. "They were sugercoatin' it, but I could tell they weren't kiddin' about our jobs." Randy finishes as I also sigh.
"Why does it feel like everyone in the city knows more about our jobs than we do?" I ask no one as I rub my head.
"In any case, I am concerned about the 'short end of the stick' they mentioned." Tio states.
"Well, let's at least go and hear the chief out. Perhaps someone at the reception desk knows where we can find him?" Elie suggests as she takes a step towards it.
"Yeah, good call." Lloyd says, looking conflicted, while at the same time his Enigma starts ringing.
He grabs it and picks it up. "Hello. Lloyd Bannings speaking… Yeah, that guy's a… No, wait a second! Where in the world are you?! Didn't you tell us to return to the CPD?!... Luggage…? Are you at our dormitory?" He then sighs as I presume it's Sergei on the other end and that he's at that building in Central Square. 'Wait luggage…? Do I have any besides that one bag? But I'm planning on leaving it at the garage, so I guess I don't?'
"Understood. So, where exactly is this dormitory?... Huh?... Wait, it's there?" As Lloyd speaks, I look over at everyone else.
"Yeah, I know where it's at since I saw it while exploring the city awhile back. It's that old building in Central Square." Only Elie nods in understanding.
"I know where that is as well." Elie says as Lloyd finishes the call, and we all proceed to exit the building and made our way over towards the SSS building.
Location: Central Square. Outside of the SSS building.
Once we arrived the sun had already gone down and now the sky was pitch black, the building we were all looking at had all the lights on as we all looked it over while giving our impressions.
"Wasn't this an old office building?" Lloyd says while looking it up and down.
"Looks kinda run-down, doesn't it? Compared to that spiffy department store over there, this place could be from the Middle Ages." Randy states, glancing at said department store.
"From my first impressions, I would say that it was built around thirty years ago. I am surprised it has not been demolished yet." Tio remarks.
"I kinda like the old rustic look it has." I say while getting a better view of it.
"Is the Special Support Section's main office really here?" Elie asks while turning to Lloyd.
"I'm pretty sure. I don't think I made any wrong turns on the way here, anyway…" Lloyd trails off as he stares at the sign above the door.
The door opens as a voice is heard from inside. "Hey, you guys are late." Sergei says while walking out of the building.
"Chief Sergei?" Lloyd asks, slightly confused.
"That's my name. Now get your asses inside. I know you got questions, but don't ask me what the Special Support Section is just yet. Once we sit down, I'll answer any questions you might have. Got it? Good." He says as he turns around and walks back inside, leaving us no choice but to follow.
Once inside I looked around the room and saw two sofas to my right, a set of stairs in front of me and a large table in the middle of the room. We follow Sergei into a nearby room while passing what looks like an orbal computer, inside the room sits a desk with paperwork all over it and behind him is a large bookshelf he walks around the desk and sits down in it while we stand on the other side waiting for him to start explaining.
Somehow during his explanation, which I already knew about, I started daydreaming about how the current events are going and how future events will play out now that I'm here. It wasn't until I heard Lloyd yell is when I started paying attention again.
"Let me get this straight. It's a division that accepts requests from the public and prioritizes the citizens' well-being?!" I look over to see Lloyd shocked at hearing this.
"Right, that's the long and short of this newly-established 'Special Support Section.' To win the hearts of our citizens, a separate division was created. One that can become part of their everyday lives… Heh. Makes sense, doesn't it?" Sergei says while leaning back in his chair.
"H-Hold on, that sounds like…" Lloyd starts saying.
"...We're meant to be an imitation of the Bracer Guild." Elie finishes what Lloyd was saying.
"Smells like plagiarism to me." Tio states in a flat tone.
"What the lil' lady said." Randy agrees with Tio.
"Couldn't come up with anything else, huh?" I ask.
"You're probably already aware of this, but the guild is killing the CPD when it comes to Crossbell's popularity contest. A-Rank bracer, Arios MacLaine… The guy known as the 'Divine Blade of Wind'... He and a bunch of other powerful folk work out of the Crossbell branch of the guild. You starting to understand what that means for all the big shots at the police department?" He asks all of us.
"W-Well…" Lloyd starts, but Elie once again takes over.
"The police and the guild are constantly compared to each other, making our flaws as an organization that much more apparent… Furthermore, that criticism will end up being traced back to the Crossbell government." Elie finishes, looking upset by the news.
'Damn, I bet she's concerned about her granddad…'
"Pieces are startin' to fall into place now. So basically' you're making a risky gamble on us being able to snatch popularity back from the guild." Randy states, looking almost the complete opposite of Elie.
"A bit shameless, is it not?" Tio points out.
"I'm not a gambling man, but I don't know how good our odds are…" I state, looking away.
"Well, to be honest…you're right. However, the police's founding principles are to maintain public order and enforce the laws supplied by our government… Protecting the citizenry has always been their secondary objective." Sergei explains as I stare at him, wondering why this was like this to begin with.
"For that reason' there's a lot of people within the police who aren't looking too kindly on a blatant bid for popularity like this… Let's see… I've heard 'utility workers,' 'bogus bracers,' even 'circus monkeys'... In other words, there's already been a bit of a backlash towards you guys." He finishes, looking a little amused.
Lloyd remains silent as Elie is the first to speak. "So that's the case… This whole situation is starting to make much more sense." Randy shifts around, looking annoyed.
"Oh, boy. So you're tellin' us to join a team where we'll be under fire from everyone?" He asks.
"This is not what I signed up for." Tio states also looking annoyed.
"Well, I already signed up for this, so I might as well stick to it." I say, which earns me a smile from Sergei.
"Now, now, don't start freaking out just yet. I'm sure you've already been told you can refuse this assignment, yeah?" Everyone's expressions shifted into one of surprise as he said that.
"If you're officially assigned here, expect to see all sorts of odd jobs and requests. That includes more monster exterminations like the one you completed today…but there'll also be minor stuff like tracking down lost items and helping out HQ. Anyone who's not up for that wouldn't be a great fit for this position…" He scans over everyone then sighs.
"I'll give you the night to sleep on it. If you end up refusing, don't worry. You'll be reassigned to another unit. On top of that, there'll be no demerits. Ball's in your court, everyone." After he says that, he then dismisses everyone, and we all leave the room and head to claim our rooms.
As we climbed the steps everyone was silent, probably thinking about what just went down, I looked down the hall and noticed there's four rooms on the left and one all the way at the end, so I took the third room down as Lloyd and Randy took their rooms, one and two respectively.
"Well, there's nothing here… Guess I should go out shopping for stuff tomorrow?" I say to myself as I leave my room, seeing Lloyd come out of his.
"Sup, Lloyd." I say as I continue walking past him.
"Shade, can we chat for a bit?" I stopped walking and turned towards him with a smile.
"Sure, tell all of your worries to little old me, and I'll help in any way I can." I say with a thumbs up, surprising him.
"Haha… So you already know what's troubling me, huh? Well it's that, plus I wanted to ask how you get recruited to join this anyway?" Lloyd asks as I lean against the wall.
"Oh that? Well I had some little info about a task force being made that's going to help people here in Crossbell and something told me to join up, so I went to Sergei and asked him." Once I'm done explaining, I see a surprised look on Lloyd's face again.
"T-That's it?" He dumbly asks as I nod.
"Look I have no idea what that gut of yours is telling you so whatever decision you make I'm sure the others will be alright with, okay?" I say as Lloyd looks at me before smiling
"Yeah, thanks for being understanding… also where did you get your info anyway?" He asks, as I knew he would.
"I have contacts around Calvard and I only heard it in passing, so really I took a gamble on this, plus I wanted to get out of Calvard…" I state, remembering the bad memories from there.
"W-Wow, lucky you, huh?" He says as we both laugh a little.
"Yep lucky me… Well anyway I'm heading downstairs to look around so see ya." I say as I state walking down the steps.
"See you later." I hear Lloyd say as I get to the bottom floor, where I see Tio by the orbal computer trying to get it set up.
'Alright time for a one-on-one talk… She seems so different now…'
"Hey there, Tio checking on the computer before bed?" I ask as I walk over to her.
She looks over at me, clearly not expecting me to be here. "Oh, Shade, yes I'm making sure everything is here… Wait, how did you know what I was doing?" She asks me, looking slightly perplexed.
"What I'm not dumb about what the newest tech is, and I have used one before and even put them together which can be annoying, so need a hand?" I offer to her, making her look at me with surprise.
"... Not right now, no, but maybe tomorrow if you don't mind?" She says as I smile.
"You got it!" I state as I sit down in one of the chairs nearby.
"Shade, mind if I ask how you were able to fight like you did? Also, if you don't mind, can I also take a look at your mask tomorrow after we set up the terminal?" She asks me while sitting down across from me.
"Sure thing, and as for how I was able to impress you with my amazing abilities…" I start saying while jokingly flexing, but to only look over to see a dull stare from her. "Haha… W-Well, I learned how to fight from my dad mostly." Her stare shifted to one of surprise.
"Your father? Is he also a talented marksman?" She asks as I put my elbow on the table.
"He was… He was more than just a 'marksman' he could use almost every weapon there was and he taught me how to use plenty while he trained me, but for all of the running around the enemy that was just my own thing." She looks on as I smile from the memories of my time with Vali.
"Was? Does that mean…" I look to see her look down at the floor while trailing off.
"Yep he's gone, a sickness did him in two years ago, but he was a tough old bastard until the end." I smile at her, hoping to cheer her up.
"What was his name?" She asks while putting her hands onto her lap.
"Vali, but he went by Val… While I'm also at it, I also have a brother who's the only family I have, and he should be in Erebonia by now…" I say while thinking of him being in the school.
'I hope I get to see him in a school uniform!'
"What about your mother?" Tio asks me, which makes me lose my smile and I look away from her.
"I-I… I'll tell you another time…" She looks at me surprised but then nods her head.
"Alright, sorry for asking that, but may I ask why you are telling me all of this when we only just met?" She asks me, which puts the smile back on my face. 'If only you knew why…'
"Well… Not really sure, but I guess you seem like a decent person to talk to." She looked surprised once again as I said that.
She looks to the side as if deciding on something before looking back at me. "Are you going to ask about my family?" My eyes widened in surprise, not expecting her to even remotely suggest going into her history.
"Umm, well… No, only if you feel comfortable with it." She nods and goes silent.
"Also that reminds me, during mister asshats scolding you were gripping my-" She glares at me which makes me stop.
"Nothing happened beside him being annoying, understood." She says forcefully, while I put my hands up in defeat.
"Y-Yeah, nothing at all, haha… the glare rules all." I put my hands down and got up from my seat as I heard a soft whisper come from Tio.
(Thank you…) I pretend to not hear it, but smile anyway as I see Lloyd coming downstairs.
"Well if you need me I'll be grabbing a quick snack from the kitchen as well, seeing what we have to cook with." I state to them as I walk through the door and into the kitchen, and once on the other side I let out a heavy sigh.
'Haha… it felt like it did back then, but I have to remember that this Tio isn't 'her'... Yeah, I'm not letting her suffer the same fate!' I put a hand on my chest and smiled as I started looking around at what supplies we have, while I can faintly hear Lloyd and Tio's conversation in the other room.
After making a mental list of what we have I decided to write down a small grocery list, while doing, so I could sense Tio heading upstairs and Lloyd outside paying them no mind I continued to make my list.
"And some milk… there that should cover two weeks worth of dinners and meals!" I state proudly to no one but myself turning to head out, I sensed Lloyd walk back in and a moment later the phone on the wall started ringing.
Walking out the door I see Lloyd look over at me and with a nod he grabbed the phone and answered. "Yes, hello? You've reached the Crossbell Police Department's Special Support Section… wha…? Cecile?!" I lean against the wall, making sure to be quiet.
"Ah, well…nothing's official yet." He lightly smiles before shifting to one of worry. "More importantly, I'm really sorry, Cecile, I was meant to stop by first thing, but…" I raise my eyebrow a little while listening.
"Don't worry–it's fine. I promise, after all, work has you busy, right? We can meet up once you're able to get some time off… Ah, geez… Fine. We'll find a way to make time, somehow. And I'll make sure to go see Uncle Miles and Aunt Leyte tomorrow, too." His smile goes wider as I close my eyes and smile at the cute moment.
"Yeah… I'm home, Cecile, I'll talk when I can, alright…? Great, love you, bye." He then puts the phone back where it was on the wall.
"Sorry for eavesdropping, but was that your girl?" I smirk at him while he shakes his head.
"No, that was Cecile, my one-day sister-in-law." He states while I nod. 'Wait… one day?
"What do you mean by 'one day'?" I asked him, looking confused.
"Oh, well about three years ago my brother Guy was shot, and he almost died… Luckily someone found him in time to call for help, but ever since then he's been in a coma, and he was engaged to Cecile." I nod while he explains, but mentally I'm freaking out.
'Guy's alive?! B-But he died didn't he?!... the slums and now this? Shit, shit, shit! I should've done some research earlier, but I didn't think shit like this would change!'
"Uhh, Shade, you alright?" I look up at Lloyd and notice him staring at me, so I give him a smile.
"O-Oh yeah sorry I was just thinking of something… Say did they ever catch who shot your brother?" I ask him, which makes him look down.
"No, but that's one reason I became a detective, just like he was." I nod while putting a hand on his shoulder.
"I'm sure you will find the truth to his case… No, I'm positive!" I state to him while smiling widely as he does the same.
"Thank you Shade… And I think I know what I will choose now." I tilt my head at him as he shakes his head.
"You'll see, anyway it's getting late, so I'll talk to you tomorrow, alright." He says while walking towards the stairs.
"Well whatever you say, leader." He turns to look at me as I smile at him, afterwards we move to head upstairs where we went into our rooms.
"... I forgot to grab a snack…" I say while sitting down on my bed and looking out the nearby window.
'No way I can sleep with the info I just got… I think I'll head out and check the area where that monster was, I'm still worried about why it had demonic energy.' I got up and headed outside the building, making sure to not make any noise while doing so.
'...? Oh, I see.' I faintly smile as I sense Randy trying to follow me. I headed down the steps leading to the Geofront door and picked the lock with ease, then I went through the Geofront like we did today while avoiding any monsters in the area.
After some walking, I got to the area where the slime monster was at and sensed no demonic energy in the area at all. "Then what powered it up to begin with…? So got any ideas, Red?" I yell out as Randy comes out from the door holding his weapon over his shoulder.
"So you knew I was followin', huh?" He says looking on guard. 'Really… damn it.'
"Since the moment you left your room, what's the deal? I'm not doing anything… Shady HA, get it." He looked at me unamused as he walked onto the platform with me.
"Damn, I thought that was clever…" I let my arms hang in defeat as he sighs before putting his weapon up.
"Look, I can tell you aren't bad, but the Chief wanted me to keep an eye on you just in case." I looked up at him and then sighed.
"I came here to see if there was anything odd to make that monster… go wild, but I see nothing here, so I'm heading back." I state with a wave of my arm as I walk past him.
"Who are you really?" He asked me which I stopped at.
"... Not sure really, but my best guess is someone like you." I say while turning to look at his surprised face.
"What?!" He yells, ready to grab his weapon.
"Not a Jaeger, just a man for hire… also I'm not going to say anything Red, and you can tell this all to Sergei if you want, but I hope this doesn't get in the way of us being teammates and friends." I reach out my hand, and he stares at it before sighing.
"Give me a reason to trust you, and then maybe I won't tell the Chief to give you the boot." He stares at me, waiting for my reply.
"... I'm tired of my old life and the way I did things and most of all there's something I want to protect, and I will protect it no matter the cost and being here in the SSS is the best way." I state while staring him in the eyes, which allowed me to see what type of man he is.
His eyes widened, then he sighs again before looking back at me with a serious but understanding look. "Alright, alright, I'll trust you for now, but I will smack you if you try something, got it?" He says in a serious tone as I approach him.
"Yep, and I'd let you hit me with it since I'll more than likely deserve it, haha." I say while we both reach out and shake hands.
"Well, glad that's over with!" He says while throwing his arm over my shoulder as we made our way out of the Geofront.
"So once we get back, how about we do some good old bonding over some Hot Shot?" I look over at him as he smirks.
"Sorry, but I'll pass, that stuff isn't my thing." His grin widens a little.
"Oh? Is it because there's a lucky lady, maybe?" He nudges me while I sigh.
"Nope, can't say I have had any romantic feelings for someone, but there was someone I did kinda turn down not long ago." After I said that, I felt him pat my back as he shook his head.
"So we got ourselves a grade A ladykiller, huh? Then that's all the more reason to keep my eyes on you, haha." I roll my eyes as we get closer to the exit.
'Love…? Was there ever someone that I could consider that way…?' I shake my head at those thoughts as it didn't matter anymore.
Once outside, I made sure the lock on the door was locked as Randy watched. "Dang, I wondered how you managed to get inside and the fact you left the building without me barely knowin'. What, are you a ninja or somethin'?" I turned to look at Randy before I replied.
"I'm just good at sneaking around without people noticing, so if we ever need to use stealth, I'm the top pick!" He grins as we return to the SSS building and into our own rooms, where while I waited for morning to come I tried drawing to only end up using the last page of my sketch book. 'Guess I have to buy some tomorrow or whenever I can… Guess I should also pay a visit to Casey while I'm at it.'
Since I was the first up in a sense, I made a simple breakfast of egg and bacon and sat them out on the table in the main room just as they started making their way downstairs.
"Mmm, what smells so good?" Elie asks, being the first one down with Randy behind her.
"Morning I just got done cooking, so eat up everyone!" I declare as Tio, Sergei, and Lloyd come down a moment later.
After we ate, Sergei made us gather in his office where we stood in line waiting to hear what he had to say.
"So…you up for it?" He asks us, Randy being the first to respond.
"No objections here. Sides', you're the one who dragged me to the CPD in the first place." Randy finishes, making the other look at him.
"Heh. Sure, you don't want me to recommend you to the First Division? They'd probably really benefit from someone with your combat prowess." Sergei suggests as Randy waves him off.
"Yeeeah, I'll pass. Honestly, I'd rather sign up for the Guardian Force again than do that. Less paperwork, more action." He finishes with a grin while Sergei nods then looks at Elie.
"What about you, Elie?" He asked her, while she simply smiled.
"I will happily accept the position. I'm looking forward to working under you, Chief Sergei." She states with a smile.
"Glad to hear. And, to be frank, I didn't expect someone like you to be here. I guess the higher-ups recommended you to this division with hopes that your calm demeanor would make for the perfect office girl." He states as she nods. "You're well aware that this won't be a bed of roses, right?" She nodded once again.
"Yes. Quite aware, sir. From here on out, I intend to work on things that actually make a difference." She states proudly as Sergei nods.
"Good answer." He looks over at Tio. "Well, Tio. Do I even need to ask?" I look over at her to see her shake her head.
"Not at all. This position is what we agreed on from the start. Though, on a side note, the orbal cables are scheduled to be wired this evening. Would you like me and Shade to set up the terminal, as well?" She asks him as I relax a little.
"Yeah, I was counting on it… Wait, you and Shade?" She nods as Sergei looks over at me.
"Yes, he has offered to help me set it up." She states as Sergei nods, taking a glance at Randy.
"So, Shade?" He simply asks.
"I think I said it last night, but I'll say it again. I'm in." He nods as he takes another glance at Randy, then looks at Lloyd in the middle.
"So… four down, one to go." We all look at Lloyd as Sergei continues. "Lloyd Bannings… A Crossbell Police Academy graduate who earned high marks in both police theory and practice… You took those skills and used them to ace the CPD's detective exam. If you ask me, you're too talented for this team. These guys aren't nearly as qualified as you." Lloyd remains quiet, all the while a slight smile starts tugging his lips.
"A cop like you will find success in whatever division or team he's assigned to. Hell, I bet no one would blame you if you walked right out that door. With that in mind, still have any lingering doubts?" He finishes as we all anticipate the response.
"No, sir. None at all. I'd be happy to join the SSS, Chief Sergei." He states as I smile.
"Haha…" Randy laughs while putting his hands in his pockets. "Lloyd…" Elie looks over at him with a soft smile while putting a hand on her chest. "Knew it." I say while putting my arms behind my head while Tio remains quiet.
"You're a real killjoy, kid. I was hoping that you'd at least show a hint of uncertainty." Sergei jokingly pouts as Lloyd scratches the back of his head.
"C'mon, sir…" Sergei then looks back at us.
"Well, that settles that. You guys have the day off today. From tomorrow onward, you'll be working your asses off." He turns to look at me and Tio. "Tio, Shade? Terminal's all yours." He says with a slight grin.
"Roger." Tio says as I give a thumbs up.
"Oops, I almost forgot… Listen up. Lloyd Bannings." He loudly calls out while looking at Lloyd.
"Sir!" Lloyd stands up straight and salutes.
"Elie MacDowell." He calls outs while looking at her.
"Sir." She follows suit with Lloyd and salutes.
"Randy Orlando." He looks over at him
"'Sup." Randy decides on a three finger salute for him.
"Tio Plato." He looks down towards her.
"Yes." Tio says while doing a normal yet somewhat lazy salute.
Sergei then looks at me and pauses for a second while glancing at Randy again who nods, then he turns his attention back to me before speaking. "Shade Junge." He calls out as I give him a determined smile. "Ready!" I call out while giving him a salute, he gives us his biggest grin yet before speaking.
"As of today, at 9AM, I officially approve and acknowledge your new assignments. Welcome to the Special Support Section. Look forward to the mountain of different jobs I'll be throwing at you." He says with a grin as I lower my hand, determined not only because I made it this far, but because now I have that chance everyone gave me to change the future. 'I'm officially here everyone!'
Well it has now begun I can only wonder how it will go?
So little bit of insight to this chapter! First off I'm using a NG+ file of Zero so I can get events and dialogue and to have fun with it. The next thing is for a little bit of time like maybe 5 minutes I thought of having Lloyd refuse and only have Randy, Elie, Tio and Shade in the SSS but went nah.
Also yeah Guy is alive but in a coma and guess this is a good time to say this but if you think the entire story of both games will be the same well you are wrong but major plot points will still happen in a way so look forward to this mess!
And before I go let me give you the name of the next chapter! The Downtown Blues.
