With each step Christian took, the aged steps moaned in agony and
immediately sighed in relief; not being used to the weight being applied to
them since it'd been at least a good ten years since having to endure such
strain. Clad in a white button-up shirt and a loose-fitting pair of black
jeans, formerly of his father Vega's ownership, Christian made the descent
back downstairs. Visually it seemed the shower hadn't helped much in terms
of clearing his complexion or the look of fatigue on his face.
The girl Raiden had mentioned went by the name of Rika sat silently at the kitchen table, entertaining herself with a bowl of cereal while her short, little legs dangled mindlessly over the floor in their bent position.
"Your head doesn't look like a fish anymore." She commented, spying Christian a look as he stepped away from the flight of stairs.
"Huh?" He responded with a cocked eyebrow.
"How long are you gonna be staying in my house?" Rika went on, not giving the young man the courtesy to expand on her previous topic.
"You know... I used to live here..." He shot back, not taking at all well to the girl's attitude.
"Finder's keeper's. My house now." The little girl fired right back.
"Whatever." Chris sighed, turning to head out of the kitchen; leaving the girl to her lonesome once more. "She's gonna turn some poor boy gay when she gets older..." he muttered carelessly.
Stepping past the crackling screen door, Christian found himself outside once again. After a quick sigh, took to sit down on the front porch. A gust of wind whipped up from the west causing his still-damp hair to stick to his skin, which provoked him to grab at his blue locks and tuck as many of them behind his ears as would fit. That's when his eyes spied Daemon Kopf wandering up to him in the awkward little way that the misshapen Zoid moved.
"Daemon... is... glad... to... see... Christian... again..." the Demonshead grumbled, leaning back beside Christian into as much of a seated position as its super-structure would allow.
Chris couldn't help but smile at the statement, unlike humans, Zoids were much, much more true to their feelings... most pilots could understand that fact easy enough. But when they could talk, just made it all the better... "I never spent much time with you guys, did I?" Christian asked, laying a gentle hand on top of Daemon's large cranium.
"It... okay... Raiden... tell... Daemon.... that... humans... busy... busy..."
"God he's so adorable! Lemme hug him!" Melissa squealed from her niche in the back of Christian's mind, "Pleeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeease!" she continued, not giving her brother the opportunity to object.
"Fine, fine." He mumbled, standing back up. Daemon watched curiously as the man he called master stood up from the porch, circled around and sat beside him. A hint of red mist spewed from the left side of his back, bringing forth Christian's orange-colored wing; the projection inhabited by Melissa's soul... the visage of the girl's upper-body appeared from the bulk of the wing as she gleefully threw her arms around the lug of a chimera.
Daemon Kopf's optics grew dim and a low rumble could be heard from his vocalizer, one might liken it to a cat purring.
Inside the kitchen, Rika had finished nursing her cereal and was now situated atop a step-stool as she carefully washed her bowl and spoon in the sink. Raiden sputtered in, turning the corner from the guest bedroom into the kitchen, "Mistress Rika... has Master Christian finished with his shower?"
"The fish-head went outside." Rika answered absent-mindedly, stepping down to the floor.
"Fish-head?" Raiden asked, confused.
"When he came into my house first, his hair looked like a blowed-up blow fish." She professed, picking up the step-stool; carrying it to a corner of the room so it'd be out of the way.
"I... see... Thank you, Mistress. If you'll excuse me." Raiden finished politely, turning to head to the front-door. "WAIT!" Rika screamed, running up behind the Diploguns, "...Ray-Ray... do you like fish-head better than me?"
"What makes you ask such a thing?"
"Ever since fish-head showed up, you've wanted to spend more time with him than me!" The girl pouted, on the verge of tears as she wrapped her arms around Raiden as best she could. Causing the Diploguns to sigh, "Mistress... please try to understand. I have not seen Master Christian in quite some time, and as he's still my owner it is my duty to assist to him to the best of my abilities, and see to his well-being."
"Okay..." Rika sniffled, drying her eyes on her thin arms, following behind Raiden as he floated toward the front-door. The pair exited their home and quickly came upon Daemon Kopf and Christian sitting together. Rika immediately changed her tone, so as not to show a sign of weakness to her presently sworn enemy, "Daemon! Come play with me!" she hollered, jumping the porch steps and running toward the fields. The Demonshead roared and followed after the girl as fast as his squat legs could manage.
"This certainly brings up an interesting debate... are Zoids better care- takers than human parents?" Christian joked as he sat up, wiping the dirt off his jeans.
"I'd think the natural birth-givers would be better suited." Raiden responded.
"You'd be surprised..." Christian smirked, leaning against the wooden frame around the porch, "Humans have limited patience... even with ones they themselves created. Kids don't always act the way their parents want and vice versa, it's an endurance trial."
"I see."
"I'd forgotten how nice it is up here..." Chris lamented, stealing a look to the crystal blue sky above.
"Quite. Master, if I may... what were you planning on doing with yourself now? Are you to be staying with Mistress Rika?"
"Even if she wasn't here, I'd be saying no, Raiden. I need to get off Zi..."
"Master?"
"It's a feeling I've had for a while... I don't belong here anymore, Raiden. I need to get away, find somewhere else to go."
"I'm afraid I don't entirely understand your situation, but rest-assured that you have my sympathies."
"Thanks..." Christian sighed, his eyes following Rika who'd taken to riding atop Daemon off in the distance.
"How were you planning to... leave Zi?" Raiden asked, almost timidly.
"To tell you the truth, I'm not entirely sure myself. I'd planned on sneaking into McGunigale Corp HQ in Twilight City to see if the company had ever invested into the creation of a space program. I'm pretty much riding on a whim and a hope..." confessed the young man.
"I see. So what brings you out here, then?"
"...was poking around the old base a few days ago, when Mel mentioned she sent you guys and my Zoids out here before the... incident went down. But, I haven't seen them around anywhere."
"Mmm... the Mistress' words are true; Daemon and I accompanied your Glacier Fox, Geno Breaker, Konig Wolf, and Blade Liger here aboard one of the Whale King's. Upon our initial surveys of the area we happened across an old underground storage facility not far from here. We presume it belonged to your father as there were a number of parts and equipment suitable for a Berserk Fuhrer strewn about the facility. But, that is where they currently reside."
"I never knew dad kept anything like that around here..." Christian mumbled.
"All due respect Master, but I do believe humans lack the ability to detect the emissions of electronic equipment through solid ground."
"True enough... so, are they still functional?"
"Indeed, I perform regular maintenance on all the units; mostly as a precautionary measure."
"Mostly?"
"Well... Master, I must admit that I had always harbored a small degree of hope that one day either you or Mistress Melissa would return for them and us as well."
"Aww... that's so sweet...." Mel swooned, re-appearing from the bulk of her feathery confines as she'd done moments before.
"Thank you, Mistress." Raiden nodded politely.
"Raiden, how long would it take to put Glacier back into full-battle condition?" Christian asked, interrupting the sappy little moment.
"...six to eight hours, assuming you plan to assist with the workload as well as fine-tune his settings to your liking."
"That sounds good; I wasn't in much of a rush anyway..."
"When had you planned on departing, if I may ask?"
"Sometime tomorrow... probably late. I need to get some sleep before I lose what's left of my mind."
"Master, if you don't mind me asking; would it not be more efficient to simply fly there yourself?"
"...I'm trying to keep a relatively low-profile, and as you well know, humans aren't prone to flying on their own... I was lucky when I went to Delpoi to look for Vykk and Kane but luck runs out. Besides, flying between Continents is tiring... and I'm gonna need to save some strength in case I run into resistance and need to make a quick get-away."
"Understood. I'll begin work on the Glacier Fox's restoration after Mistress Rika goes to sleep for the night."
"If I could, I'd nominate you for saint-hood, for putting up with that girl, Raiden..."
"I think she's cute." Mel protested.
"...I think she's a sniveling brat..." Danius broke in.
The afternoon pressed on, slowly giving way to the onset of nightfall. Christian, Rika, and Raiden retreated to the interior of the house while Daemon Kopf remained outside, slumbering lightly in front of the screen door in an act of playing guard dog. Both Christian and Rika squared off over a tense dinner-setting, Raiden constantly floating at the end of the table between the two humans... delegated to the role of referee for the course of the meal. Christian was eventually ejected from the table for flinging noodles into Rika's hair and was forced to finish his meal in the living room.
After finishing off a mighty bowl of Macaroni & Cheese, Rika flew upstairs accompanied by her beloved Diploguns and made the preparations for another night's sleep; which included a quick bath, brushing of her teeth and adorning a nighty that she'd found in the old clothes dresser in Melissa's former bedroom. Tucking-in duties completed, Raiden made his way back downstairs and out the door where he found Daemon and Christian sitting together on the porch similar as before.
"The Mistress has turned in for the night; I'll take my leave now to begin preparing the Glacier Fox." Raiden informed the pair.
Christian let out a mighty yawn, leaning back as he rubbed his weary ruby eyes, "Okay... I'll meet up with you in the morning for the final adjustments..."
"Very well Master. I've left a portable tracking device on the kitchen table that's keyed into my communications frequency. Following the beacon will lead you to the storage facility." With that, the Diploguns turned and took flight to the north-west and was out of eye-sight within moments.
"Well... night Daemon..." Christian spat out amidst another yawn, heading back into the cabin; leaving the Demonshead to his lonesome, "Good... night..." the beast called back.
Two steps inside brought Christian to a musty, nappy, old looking couch that under normal circumstances wouldn't look at all comfortable, but in his sleep-deprived state; was more appealing and enticing than all the women on Zi, the blue-haired mess of a human smiled to himself; then left his body to the mercy of gravity as he came crashing down on the rickety piece of furniture. The couch could've broken into a billion pieces and a loose plank of wood stabbed him through the heart and he wouldn't have known... Chris was out cold before he hit the cushion. Fortunately for his heart... no such breakage occurred. Though, that didn't stop the couch from covering him in the dust that'd built up on it.
The girl Raiden had mentioned went by the name of Rika sat silently at the kitchen table, entertaining herself with a bowl of cereal while her short, little legs dangled mindlessly over the floor in their bent position.
"Your head doesn't look like a fish anymore." She commented, spying Christian a look as he stepped away from the flight of stairs.
"Huh?" He responded with a cocked eyebrow.
"How long are you gonna be staying in my house?" Rika went on, not giving the young man the courtesy to expand on her previous topic.
"You know... I used to live here..." He shot back, not taking at all well to the girl's attitude.
"Finder's keeper's. My house now." The little girl fired right back.
"Whatever." Chris sighed, turning to head out of the kitchen; leaving the girl to her lonesome once more. "She's gonna turn some poor boy gay when she gets older..." he muttered carelessly.
Stepping past the crackling screen door, Christian found himself outside once again. After a quick sigh, took to sit down on the front porch. A gust of wind whipped up from the west causing his still-damp hair to stick to his skin, which provoked him to grab at his blue locks and tuck as many of them behind his ears as would fit. That's when his eyes spied Daemon Kopf wandering up to him in the awkward little way that the misshapen Zoid moved.
"Daemon... is... glad... to... see... Christian... again..." the Demonshead grumbled, leaning back beside Christian into as much of a seated position as its super-structure would allow.
Chris couldn't help but smile at the statement, unlike humans, Zoids were much, much more true to their feelings... most pilots could understand that fact easy enough. But when they could talk, just made it all the better... "I never spent much time with you guys, did I?" Christian asked, laying a gentle hand on top of Daemon's large cranium.
"It... okay... Raiden... tell... Daemon.... that... humans... busy... busy..."
"God he's so adorable! Lemme hug him!" Melissa squealed from her niche in the back of Christian's mind, "Pleeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeease!" she continued, not giving her brother the opportunity to object.
"Fine, fine." He mumbled, standing back up. Daemon watched curiously as the man he called master stood up from the porch, circled around and sat beside him. A hint of red mist spewed from the left side of his back, bringing forth Christian's orange-colored wing; the projection inhabited by Melissa's soul... the visage of the girl's upper-body appeared from the bulk of the wing as she gleefully threw her arms around the lug of a chimera.
Daemon Kopf's optics grew dim and a low rumble could be heard from his vocalizer, one might liken it to a cat purring.
Inside the kitchen, Rika had finished nursing her cereal and was now situated atop a step-stool as she carefully washed her bowl and spoon in the sink. Raiden sputtered in, turning the corner from the guest bedroom into the kitchen, "Mistress Rika... has Master Christian finished with his shower?"
"The fish-head went outside." Rika answered absent-mindedly, stepping down to the floor.
"Fish-head?" Raiden asked, confused.
"When he came into my house first, his hair looked like a blowed-up blow fish." She professed, picking up the step-stool; carrying it to a corner of the room so it'd be out of the way.
"I... see... Thank you, Mistress. If you'll excuse me." Raiden finished politely, turning to head to the front-door. "WAIT!" Rika screamed, running up behind the Diploguns, "...Ray-Ray... do you like fish-head better than me?"
"What makes you ask such a thing?"
"Ever since fish-head showed up, you've wanted to spend more time with him than me!" The girl pouted, on the verge of tears as she wrapped her arms around Raiden as best she could. Causing the Diploguns to sigh, "Mistress... please try to understand. I have not seen Master Christian in quite some time, and as he's still my owner it is my duty to assist to him to the best of my abilities, and see to his well-being."
"Okay..." Rika sniffled, drying her eyes on her thin arms, following behind Raiden as he floated toward the front-door. The pair exited their home and quickly came upon Daemon Kopf and Christian sitting together. Rika immediately changed her tone, so as not to show a sign of weakness to her presently sworn enemy, "Daemon! Come play with me!" she hollered, jumping the porch steps and running toward the fields. The Demonshead roared and followed after the girl as fast as his squat legs could manage.
"This certainly brings up an interesting debate... are Zoids better care- takers than human parents?" Christian joked as he sat up, wiping the dirt off his jeans.
"I'd think the natural birth-givers would be better suited." Raiden responded.
"You'd be surprised..." Christian smirked, leaning against the wooden frame around the porch, "Humans have limited patience... even with ones they themselves created. Kids don't always act the way their parents want and vice versa, it's an endurance trial."
"I see."
"I'd forgotten how nice it is up here..." Chris lamented, stealing a look to the crystal blue sky above.
"Quite. Master, if I may... what were you planning on doing with yourself now? Are you to be staying with Mistress Rika?"
"Even if she wasn't here, I'd be saying no, Raiden. I need to get off Zi..."
"Master?"
"It's a feeling I've had for a while... I don't belong here anymore, Raiden. I need to get away, find somewhere else to go."
"I'm afraid I don't entirely understand your situation, but rest-assured that you have my sympathies."
"Thanks..." Christian sighed, his eyes following Rika who'd taken to riding atop Daemon off in the distance.
"How were you planning to... leave Zi?" Raiden asked, almost timidly.
"To tell you the truth, I'm not entirely sure myself. I'd planned on sneaking into McGunigale Corp HQ in Twilight City to see if the company had ever invested into the creation of a space program. I'm pretty much riding on a whim and a hope..." confessed the young man.
"I see. So what brings you out here, then?"
"...was poking around the old base a few days ago, when Mel mentioned she sent you guys and my Zoids out here before the... incident went down. But, I haven't seen them around anywhere."
"Mmm... the Mistress' words are true; Daemon and I accompanied your Glacier Fox, Geno Breaker, Konig Wolf, and Blade Liger here aboard one of the Whale King's. Upon our initial surveys of the area we happened across an old underground storage facility not far from here. We presume it belonged to your father as there were a number of parts and equipment suitable for a Berserk Fuhrer strewn about the facility. But, that is where they currently reside."
"I never knew dad kept anything like that around here..." Christian mumbled.
"All due respect Master, but I do believe humans lack the ability to detect the emissions of electronic equipment through solid ground."
"True enough... so, are they still functional?"
"Indeed, I perform regular maintenance on all the units; mostly as a precautionary measure."
"Mostly?"
"Well... Master, I must admit that I had always harbored a small degree of hope that one day either you or Mistress Melissa would return for them and us as well."
"Aww... that's so sweet...." Mel swooned, re-appearing from the bulk of her feathery confines as she'd done moments before.
"Thank you, Mistress." Raiden nodded politely.
"Raiden, how long would it take to put Glacier back into full-battle condition?" Christian asked, interrupting the sappy little moment.
"...six to eight hours, assuming you plan to assist with the workload as well as fine-tune his settings to your liking."
"That sounds good; I wasn't in much of a rush anyway..."
"When had you planned on departing, if I may ask?"
"Sometime tomorrow... probably late. I need to get some sleep before I lose what's left of my mind."
"Master, if you don't mind me asking; would it not be more efficient to simply fly there yourself?"
"...I'm trying to keep a relatively low-profile, and as you well know, humans aren't prone to flying on their own... I was lucky when I went to Delpoi to look for Vykk and Kane but luck runs out. Besides, flying between Continents is tiring... and I'm gonna need to save some strength in case I run into resistance and need to make a quick get-away."
"Understood. I'll begin work on the Glacier Fox's restoration after Mistress Rika goes to sleep for the night."
"If I could, I'd nominate you for saint-hood, for putting up with that girl, Raiden..."
"I think she's cute." Mel protested.
"...I think she's a sniveling brat..." Danius broke in.
The afternoon pressed on, slowly giving way to the onset of nightfall. Christian, Rika, and Raiden retreated to the interior of the house while Daemon Kopf remained outside, slumbering lightly in front of the screen door in an act of playing guard dog. Both Christian and Rika squared off over a tense dinner-setting, Raiden constantly floating at the end of the table between the two humans... delegated to the role of referee for the course of the meal. Christian was eventually ejected from the table for flinging noodles into Rika's hair and was forced to finish his meal in the living room.
After finishing off a mighty bowl of Macaroni & Cheese, Rika flew upstairs accompanied by her beloved Diploguns and made the preparations for another night's sleep; which included a quick bath, brushing of her teeth and adorning a nighty that she'd found in the old clothes dresser in Melissa's former bedroom. Tucking-in duties completed, Raiden made his way back downstairs and out the door where he found Daemon and Christian sitting together on the porch similar as before.
"The Mistress has turned in for the night; I'll take my leave now to begin preparing the Glacier Fox." Raiden informed the pair.
Christian let out a mighty yawn, leaning back as he rubbed his weary ruby eyes, "Okay... I'll meet up with you in the morning for the final adjustments..."
"Very well Master. I've left a portable tracking device on the kitchen table that's keyed into my communications frequency. Following the beacon will lead you to the storage facility." With that, the Diploguns turned and took flight to the north-west and was out of eye-sight within moments.
"Well... night Daemon..." Christian spat out amidst another yawn, heading back into the cabin; leaving the Demonshead to his lonesome, "Good... night..." the beast called back.
Two steps inside brought Christian to a musty, nappy, old looking couch that under normal circumstances wouldn't look at all comfortable, but in his sleep-deprived state; was more appealing and enticing than all the women on Zi, the blue-haired mess of a human smiled to himself; then left his body to the mercy of gravity as he came crashing down on the rickety piece of furniture. The couch could've broken into a billion pieces and a loose plank of wood stabbed him through the heart and he wouldn't have known... Chris was out cold before he hit the cushion. Fortunately for his heart... no such breakage occurred. Though, that didn't stop the couch from covering him in the dust that'd built up on it.