Hey guys. This is Winterbornbree back with a 1-year anniversary chapter! :D
I can't believe it has been one year since I posted this and been here almost two years now! How quickly time flies by, eh?
Anyway, I present you with a new chapter after two months of waiting.
The pod hissed as the energy surge died down. Isis breathed a sigh of relief; the pod operated smoothly and didn't set off an explosion - always a good sign. 'Hopefully the kid's still in one piece,' she thought.
"Ryu, hand me the printouts... Tell the others to get that Medabot and Medal. We're initiating the final phase." Her assistant first handed her a sheet of paper before rounding some technicians.
"You there," she gestured towards the group of medics standing by, "get the boy and make sure he's okay."
"Right away, ma'am," one of them answered and they started to approach the machine. A noise made her glance over her shoulder as she was making her way to a terminal. The medical team opened the door and one of them went inside only to come back out with a limp body.
"What's his condition?" Isis questioned.
"He isn't responding to anything. I'll take him to medical," the man grunted.
Isis nodded curtly before turning back to the monitor, reading the printout, "hmm, there's some interesting activity going on in that head of yours," she murmured.
"Isis? I've got the Medabot and Medal all hooked up and ready to go," her assistant's quiet voice pierced Isis' thoughts.
She glanced up, "thank you, Ryu. I'll see to the rest of the operation now."
Isis found a slot on the computer and slid the paper in. The results loaded on the screen and an image of a Medabot appeared beside the data. "Oh boy, this is going to take some work..."
It took half the day, translating the data into a code, working said code into the Medabot's hard drive, and she still had some unfinished work.
"Alright everyone, take a break!" She called, catching the attention of everyone in the room, "we have a lot of work to do, so don't let me catch anyone loitering around later on when you can be useful."
Relieved sighs and hushed conversation broke out as people filed through the doors.
Isis finally had a good look at the Medabot through a glass tube. Its raven colored armor was reflecting the harsh fluorescent lighting; two gleaming blasters protruded from the top of both its wrists, and the space where the optics should've been was a dead black.
"You'll see the light of day soon," Isis promised as her fingers darted across the keyboard rapidly typing in vital information. Soon, most of her workers came back and continued work on the blank Medal.
Some time later, the young woman crossed her arms with satisfaction; this had to be enough to bring their creation to life. This Medabot was rather different from the others. "Alright, let's give this a shot. If it doesn't work, we'll be back to square one and the boss won't be happy. So cross your fingers this'll work," Isis barked.
Someone handed her the Medal and another lowered the glass. She gingerly turned the lifeless body over and found its hatch. She opened it and set the golden coin in place.
A whir sounded in the small space as the Medal stuggled to power the robot and its systems. Everyone held their breath as they looked at the Medabot powering itself - their life's work hung in the balance.
Then, blue optics shuttered on. It stared at the group uncomprehendingly and just as quickly faded out, ignoring everyone's groans of disappointment.
"After all that work..." One technician complained and shook her head in despair.
"It's perfectly fine," Isis murmured.
The female technician looked at the lead scientist with surprise, "you mean all that progress wasn't a waste, ma'am?"
"The Medabot will be fine. I just need to reboot him-"
"'Him?'"
"It - if you insist on being technically correct," Isis replied dismissively. "I just need to keep working on it, we all figured it wouldn't work on the first try anyway."
She turned toward the main group, "congratulations. We just attempted the impossible and will go down in history for it. The research and progress will be invaluable towards this field. We should look forward at what's to come - who knows what else we'll be capable of, "Isis paused, then added as an afterthought, "you are all dismissed until further notice."
When the last of the personnel streamed out, Isis walked over to the tube and gazed at the Medabot. Something deep inside her was stirring - perhaps a part of her that used to be a decent person.
'It was all for scientific progress, I'm not malicious - the boy will be alright eventually...' Isis felt a sort of prickling in her heart.
She shook her head out in an attempt to clear it. "I need to get out of here more often..."
The odd feelings started to ebb, which relieved her greatly. It was odd.
She hadn't felt guilt like that for a long time.
Ikki furrowed his brow and slowly stirred to the sound of crashing waves.
H e hesitantly opened his eyes and blinked blearily. The sky was a brilliant smattering of stars with a nebula hanging in the background. Ikki could smell salt in the air.
He widened his eyes and sat up quickly, groaning as the sudden movement made his head hurt. He sat still for a moment as a thought immediately hit him.
Was he dead?
It would certainly explain the scene. "So this is the afterlife? Where's everyone else? This is gonna get really boring if I'm the only one here!" Ikki lamented. Agitated, he stared at the uncharted ocean, its lull eventually soothing his nerves.
"Enjoying your stay, so far?"
Ikki didn't flinch in surprise, but answered sullenly, "can't say that I am."
He looked behind him and his face contorted into a perplexed look, "By the way, who're you, again?" Now this was strange, there were certain aspects of the cloaked figure that seemed overwhelmingly familiar, yet almost alien.
The man said nothing but came forward and bent down to Ikki, touching his forehead with his hand. All the memories came back within seconds and Ikki's eyes cleared with recognition and understanding.
"So you're the guy who gave that weird warning? Well, what am I doing here? Am I dead or something?" The man held up a hand and effectively silenced Ikki.
"All will be answered in due time. But, if you want the answer to your last question, then I'll give it to you: your life is hanging by a thread. If your rescuer doesn't fulfill his task, only then will you cease to exist."
"So I failed, then. I couldn't get out and now someone will have to rescue me. Who is it? Metabee?"
The figure shook his head, "no. It will be someone else. Your influence has marked him very heavily, my boy."
"Really? ...I'm not that popular," Ikki replied, rubbing his neck.
"Come. I have something to show you," the figure immediately walked off into the undergrowth and Ikki knew he would be left behind if he didn't make an effort to catch up.
Ikki wondered if he was on some sort of island. However, before he had time to think about it further, he felt sharp pain lace through his foot. He jumped up, swallowing back curses, and hopped on one foot.
When the pain faded, Ikki looked down and saw an aged stone step he stubbed his foot on.
He scratched his head with confusion; he didn't think there was anyone else inhabiting the island. Suddenly, he straightened up and ran into the bushes, knowing the man was leaving him behind, "hey! Wait for me!"
After taking several wrong turns and backtracking, Ikki finally stumbled into what appeared to look like ruins. Or what was left of it. The man silently stood over a pool of still water.
Ikki glanced around as he entered the area.
Tufts of grass grew in the corners of broken walls. There was no ceiling so Ikki could see the dark sky perfectly. Moss covered what was left of the ruins. The moon was full and its light casted shadows around the shattered stones.
Fireflies flew about, their lights dancing and bobbing as they went. In Ikki's perspective, they almost looked like floating lanterns. The entire scene was beautiful, even he could admit.
The figure didn't turn around, even though it was clear he knew Ikki was there, "you have arrived at last."
"No thanks to you," Ikki retorted.
The man ignored Ikki's jibe and said, "come and look in the pool. I'm sure you'll find this most interesting."
Ikki shuffled forward and knelt before the clear pool. "Uh, not to ruin the mystical silence or anything, but isn't it impossible for bodies of water to be completely still? I'm no genius, but I'm pretty sure this is defying some law of physics."
"Look into the pool, Ikki," the man insisted softly.
The boy complied and leaned over. At first, he only saw his reflection staring back at him. Ikki could only say he was surprised at how dirty and scuffed up he looked. The man touched the water and a single ripple gently moved across the surface.
Ikki jumped back in surprise, "the water, it's... glowing?"
Indeed, the pool glowed softly, its hue brightening the surroundings including Ikki and his companion. The glow died down and revealed an image. Ikki did a double take when he recognized what he was seeing.
"Metabee!" The pool showed only the Medabot walking in a random direction, Ikki couldn't see the background beyond. "He can't hear me at all, can he?"
"No, young one, he cannot. This pool is not natural, you see. Its abilities allow you to peek into the other realm, and watch the events in progress. Your friend is looking for you, is he not?" The man asked.
"Well, I guess..." Ikki trailed off, suddenly not knowing what to say.
"Do not worry, this realm will keep you safe for as long as you remain here."
"So basically I'm sitting in the sidelines hoping my team would win against whatever bad guy is behind this?" Ikki stood up abruptly, the pool forgotten. " That stinks! I'm not some stupid damsel! I'm a Medafighter and a darn good one!"
Ikki's irritation and anger resounded around the area, growing quiet when the man didn't answer.
Finally he said, "Ikki, don't be afraid to place your trust in others."
"Oh? This is what it's all about? Trust? Well, guess what? I didn't learn a stupid thing! Is this the part where you show me the door out of this nightmare?" Ikki raged, "I never asked to be kidnapped and experimented on in the first place! All I wanted to do was to have some fun!"
The man shook his head sadly, " I cannot provide a way out for you however much I want to; this is the fate Destiny has laid out for you."
Ikki sat down abruptly, put his chin on his knees, and looked at the stars in the now dark sky. He angrily wiped at his eyes, "what is this place? What's your name? You owe me that much."
"Very well; this place you are staying at is a sort of dream-state. It has no name."
"And what's your name?"
"I would prefer not to give my real name, but I think Lucien will suit me for now."
X_X
I... Hate... Deadlines... *faints*
*revives* I suppose I haven't fully recovered from sleepless nights I've had lately. *shrugs*
Anyway, if you noticed a change in my writing style in describing things, I've listened to soft and sad osts. I can't tell you the awesomeness of having music light half of your inspiration on fire (not in a bad way!), but then again, I suppose most of you readers know what it's like. :)
I hope you'll review and continue to follow this resurrected story as I take it places.
This chapter has been a blast and a pain in the neck to write, but at least I had some fun. Now I'm off to catch some zzz's.
Yours Truly,
Winterbornbree
Edited: 08/08/18