A Change in Paths
Chapter 0: A Changing Path
"Mrs Mayuzumi, Nigel Battersby is here to see you"
"Send him through please"
The door opened as a male, well into his mid to late teens stepped into the room. He eyed the room around him, taking in the modern vibe within as well as the large glass window looking out over the city below. Walking up to the table, he stretched out his hand in the direction of the woman at the desk. The lady stood up from her chair and did the same.
"Mr Battersby, it's finally a pleasure to meet you. My name is Nagisako Mayuzumi, the editor-in-chief of Infinity Stripes"
"I guess the same can be said to you" he replied, a doubtful tone came out as he spoke.
"No need to be so nervous, take a seat"
"Can you blame me though? It's not everyday that you find out that you're able to pilot an IS"
"True, but nevertheless, we've had our eye on you from the initial rumours made as it seemed like a rare occasion that we see a male compatible with the IS. After the press conference that had been set up by Mr Richard Fletcher to dismiss the claims, we didn't stop as we felt that there was something off about the whole situation, so we saved as many articles we could find online regarding the rumors and claims to see if there were any details that we could piece together, but it was only when we found out through an associate in the UK, is that you were seen boarding the flight to Japan, so we decided to wait for your arrival to offer you an interview"
"Yeah well, I'm not sure whether I regret doing this interview or not. But are you gonna keep to my requirements?"
"That this interview won't be released to the public until a month after?"
"Yes"
"We would usually be against it seeing as it is an exclusive interview, it would be straight off the press, but given the privacy concerns, we're happy to oblige"
"Fine by me, gives me a bit of relief"
"That's good, anyway shall we begin the interview?"
"Sure"
Nagisako placed a tape recorder on the table and set it to play, before grabbing a notepad to begin writing notes.
"We only really have one question, given the circumstances and that is how you ended up in contact with an IS and the aftermath"
Nigel sat for a minute, looking towards the floor as he took a deep breath.
"Right, let's go back to the beginning..."
[-]
Torchester Railway Station
"Alright, let me know what time you're coming back"
Nigel's Grandad said, as Nigel hopped out of the car.
The two had just pulled up into the station car park, just managing to find a space for the short stay.
"I'll probably be back mid-afternoon as I'm gonna get some lunch while up there".
"Ok, I'll see you later".
"Bye Grandad", said Nigel as he closed the door and turned on his heel, walking under the canopy into the station concourse, tickets in hand for his journey
The train journey was uneventful and during that time, he was messaging his friend James, who lived over by the coast.
James, was the son of Richard Fletcher, owner of the Fletcher and Sons IS Company, where he was one of the main IS builders in the UK, aside from the Alcott Corporation. While Richard wanted James to take over the company when he was older, James wanted to study Rail Engineering till then as he was the same as Nigel, having an interest in railways. He and Nigel hit it off on the first day of college, studying together at college and going out trainspotting on their free days. Nigel and James were meeting up at Stowcastle to sign back up and to spend a few hours trainspotting.
'Can't wait to go back to college. Volunteering was fun, but it gets lonely not seeing James and the others' Nigel thought as he stared out of the window, music playing through his ears while the countryside flew by. He removed his glasses so he could reposition his eyepatch as he reminisced the past year. He missed college, the practical lessons of lifting heavy rail and sleepers, the laughs he would have in lessons with his mates and his tutor.
After a while and several songs later, Nigel could see a viaduct in the distance, signifying that he was arriving at his destination.
[-]
Stowcastle Train Station
As his train pulled into the station, he hopped off and after walking over the footbridge because his train was rerouted into another platform due to a signalling fault, he found James waiting for him by the ticket barriers.
"Ya'reet James"
"Aye, am alright. You?"
"Good. Ready to go sign up?"
"Aye, the college has had a few renovations over the summer holidays, so there are more buildings and the signup hall has been changed. Apparently to what's been goin' round, is that the new building being used for enrollment is like a maze".
"This'll be fun".
After walking through the confusing layout of Stowcastle, they reached the college campus. Neither had been to the main campus often, mostly because their course took place on a satellite site. They immediately noticed the new buildings. They both followed the signs into the building and after walking through the doors, they stared in awe at the inside.
"They weren't kiddin' when they said it looked like a maze".
"Yeah, well we're early so we should be able to go straight in".
As they started walking around, they felt their situation get worse. There were no signs for enrollment so there was no other option than to just wander aimlessly around the building, hoping to find some sort of indication of where they were.
"Who the fuck designed this building? There's nothing to point us in the right direction".
Nigel was starting to get irritated. James was starting to feel the annoyance of the building layout as well.
"We're fifteen minutes early and there are no signs whatsoever, not even to which room enrollment is taking place. Even after the summer, the college still isn't organised properly"
"I'm gonna deck whoever's thought of designing this building, that is if we can even find our way back again".
Nigel said this as he opened a set of doors into a hall, standing in the middle was a IS slumped over.
"What's an IS doing here?"
Nigel was puzzled as the entrance exams for the IS Academy were usually held in London.
"From what my dad told me, they have arranged for an entrance exam further north for those who can't go all the way to London".
"Makes sense, but why would they leave something like this out in the open?"
"Search me" James responded, not able to give a definitive answer.
Nigel began walking towards it, the IS towered over him.
"I've never seen an IS up close before".
He places his hand on the smooth metal. As he does, there is a bright light coming from the IS and the door swings open as 3 ladies came in as well as a man. James recognized him instantly.
"Dad?"
"James? what are you doing here?"
"Signing up to Level 3 with Nigel. We got lost and we ended up stumbling across this IS. I take it you have something to do with the entrance exams?"
"Yes, but you can't be here".
"I think we have bigger problems than that"
James pointed his father in the direction of Nigel, his hand still on the IS. The ladies moved over to Nigel and inspected him.
"It's not possible for a Male to use an IS"
"Remove your hand from the IS"
Nigel did so and the light faded away.
"Place your hand back on the IS"
He did so and the bright light returned.
"Incredible, we must inform the academy. Richard, do you know this boy?"
"He is a friend of my son. Why do you ask?"
"May we test the IS on your son, to see if he is compatible?"
"Sure, but they aren't blood related or anything so I don't see why he should be tested as well"
James walked up to the IS and placed his hand on the IS Nigel had tried and nothing happened. Nigel and James looked at each other.
"This is awkward"
Nigel was starting to get nervous. He wasn't one for having the attention so the thought of him being swarmed by reporters made his anxiety level rise.
One of the ladies tapped him on the shoulder.
"Are you able to get in and pilot the IS?"
"Probably yeah, though I might not be able to do as much since I can't see out my left eye"
"Get this suit on and we'll see what we can do"
Nigel grabbed the suit and went behind a few boxes, motioning to James and Richard to come over as he started to remove his clothes.
"I'm fucked aren't I?"
"I guess since you never piloted an IS, but you're probably the first Male to use an IS so consider yourself lucky I guess. What do you think Dad?"
"Well Nigel, at this rate you'll be sent to the IS academy in Japan".
Nigel felt his heart sink within him.
"Are you fucking serious?"
"Sadly, yes. You are a one of a kind and once word gets out, you will be a prime target of large corporations and governments who will want to get their hands on you for testing and god forbid, experimentation. During my time in the IS industry, I've heard of people through contacts that are out there who want to try to re-engineer or rebuild the core from the ground up to make it so that males can try to use the IS. If there's anything that can make cause discussion about the IS go from 0 to 100 real quick, its bringing up genders and their usage"
Nigel could feel the frustration and panic building up in him.
"And there is nothing any of us can do to stop this?"
"No. As much as I want to help you, there is only so much power I have. Governments and militaries have lots of power, but the IS Academy is a neutral zone, meaning that neither the government, military or any organisation can touch you so you will be protected. However, I can do my best to make this experience good. I can get in contact with my staff and have them make a personal IS for you. No doubt the government will help fund it as you're one of a kind"
"So, basically all I can do is just sit back and let it all happen?"
"Sadly yes"
"Shit".
"Yeah, it's a fucked up situation. Trust me, I wouldn't want to be in your situation either"
Nigel walked out from behind the boxes, having finished putting his suit on. It was super stretchy and the only thing exposed was his stomach, which he wasn't comfortable with. He walked over to the IS where one of the three ladies guided him into the IS while the other two walked away to get the instructor.
"The long and short of this is, we'll see if you're capable of defeating the instructor. Regardless of the outcome, you'll be attending the IS Academy for your protection as the Government has now been made aware of your ability so we can put in the appropriate measures to ensure your safety".
Nigel's face formed a mixture of sadness and annoyance as he could feel the IS around him began to encapsulate him as he became a part of the IS. He was relieved that his stomach was covered.
"There is no way I can get out of this now can I?"
"Nope".
"Right, let's get this over with. But first, how do I move this?"
"Just relax and you should start to float. Because this is a training model, the settings have been changed to make sure you keep a safe distance from the ground, but not too much in the sense that you go flying out of control"
"So, I'm able to get to a certain height, but at the same time, I'm being held down towards the ground"
"Yes"
The lady replied, pointing to one of the devices that was set up in the corner of the room.
"And weapons?"
"Training models only have a sword, so it's very limited. Just imagine it in your hand. Also because of the area you won't need to worry about flying too high"
"Right, and anywhere is fair game?"
Nigel never did any research in his own time about the IS, so he was slightly nervous and skeptical about using weapons.
"Yes, the IS is designed to protect it's pilot, but takes away your shield energy so keep that in mind. Just relax and keep your mind focussed on what you want, so let's say the sword. Just think about holding the sword in your hand and it will appear"
"Right…"
Nigel relaxed himself as he closed his eyes, picturing a sword in his mind. Within an instant, there was a light that appeared and as he opened his eyes, within the grasp of the IS was a katana.
"Huh"
"Do you have any more questions?"
"Umm… Not at the moment, I've never delved into how an IS works so anything that I ask will probably happen as this goes on"
"Alright then, the instructor is here"
Nigel looked ahead and instantly felt a terrible gut feeling in his stomach.
"Actually, do the instructors have a similar IS or not?"
"Yes, however it may depend as we have some instructors who represented their country so they are very skilled when it comes to the IS"
"So, chances are my instructor is someone who has previously represented their country with an IS?"
"Correct"
"Oh, that's not good." Nigel mumbled to himself.
"No doubt I will lose so let's just get this over with"
The lady moved away, rejoining her partners while James and Richard watched from where they had been talking. The latter, pulling out his phone and making a phone call to someone. Nigel's first duel had begun.
[-]
Battle started
The instructor launched forward towards Nigel, who was still getting used to controlling it and by sheer luck and clumsiness, managed to dodge out the way.
"Fuckin' hell"
The instructor immediately spun around to face Nigel, preparing another attack. At this point Nigel had managed at least the very basics and felt a little confident that he could do something. As the instructor charged, Nigel managed to dodge again, but this time immediately coming back around and attacking from the back as the instructor turned around to face Nigel.
James and Richard had since moved over to a computer screen and watched as Nigel had made his first strike, the damage appearing on their screen in real time.
"Get in there boyo!"
Nigel made the foolish decision to turn his head to see who was shouting, in which the Instructor stuck Nigel, the damage shocking him as it appeared on his HUD.
"Hang on, What? Fuckin' bullshit!"
Nigel didn't expect the instructor to retaliate so quickly. The battle had only started and after one hit, it dawned upon Nigel that he wasn't going to last long against a profession, especially if they can do double the damage and had already taken down his energy levels by one fifth.
"Not at all, here's a tip: The amount of damage done is based on how much strength and power you are putting in"
Her voice seemed caring, but that was short lived.
"But, judging by the way you are handling this and the strength you are putting in, you won't last much longer"
Nigel could hear the slyness in her voice, the anger and frustration building up inside of him. He had heard something similar before and he wasn't going to hear it again. The instructor charged again, but this time, Nigel was fully prepared, dodging out the way. They both seemed to have the same idea; tire the other one out, but Nigel needed to plan his swings perfectly if he was going to win. Having grasped the way the IS works in terms of movement, began striking again at the instructor with a larger swing than before.
A better strike than before. He knew that he had to use his chances as much as possible, but it was inevitable that he may have to change tactics as he feared that the instructor had already caught onto his idea. His thoughts were either controlling what was happening or that he was good at reading into the future as the instructor changed tactics and began to circle Nigel. The movement alone seemed to make him confused, yet concerned about the next move. He seemed frozen in place, unable to think of another plan.
James could see this from afar and he became concerned.
"Come on Nigel, you can do it!"
The message seemed to fall upon deaf ears as he continued being circled.
"Don't give up! Think of it as Beat Saber!"
Only two words seemed to creep into Nigel's ears; 'Beat Saber'.
'Come on Nigel, think of it as a game. Every swing she takes is a beat'
The concept seemed to clear his mind of the uncertainty, replacing it with a boost of confidence. Now he just had to time his swing right to either block or attack. He suddenly realised that while stuck in his thoughts, the instructor had stopped circling him. He had very few choices, not as if he had many in the first place, but what he did next would decide his fate in the battle. Facing the direction of James, he took a deep breath and steadied himself, keeping both hands on his katana. Looking at James, he had a panicked look on his face. He could obviously see the instructor behind him. James could only watch on as he saw the instructor raising her blade, his eyes widened in response, indirectly giving Nigel the signal that she was about the strike.
Nigel spun around immediately, startling the instructor slightly. They were now pushing against each other, the sound of the katanas against each other was the only sound that filled the room. Nigel began to slowly pull back, while still holding some pressure, giving the instructor an indication that he was beginning to "tire" out.
'The impact of an Is is based on how much force you use'. Those words repeated in his head. 'The instructor doesn't seem to be tiring out any time soon. Maybe I should try to startle them again'. Nigel edged back a little bit further before launching himself forward with as much force as he could use, pushing the instructor back. Before anyone could even react, Nigel struck the instructor again...
And again…
And again.
The battle seemed to reach the halfway point. Nigel began to feel the strain and was slowly becoming tired from the battle. Sweat began dripping from his forehead as he took several deep breaths. He could feel the adrenaline running through him, but he needed a new plan. He didn't exactly think any of this through, not that he could since he was learning as he fought. The instructor stuck Nigel again, but while regaining energy, Nigel stuck as well, albeit with less power, both katanas connecting on either side of their respective units.
Nigel was sent backwards with the force sent from the instructor. As he was looking at his stats, a webcam appeared to his side, James was on the other end.
"How you holdin' up?"
"How do you think I fuckin' feel?" said Nigel, tired and frustrated.
"Well, if it makes you feel better, I've done the math real quick and to win this match, you need to deal four more strikes, each worth 112.5 points"
"Not sure if I can keep doing hits over 100 as it's starting to tire me out"
"If that's the case, try and at least hit 90 points in five strikes"
"Alright"
For now, all Nigel could do is dodge until he was able to regain some strength and compose himself enough to finish the fight.
Time skip
What felt like hours, when in reality it was only 30 minutes, and Nigel was still dodging. The instructor didn't seem to slow down, but was starting to become frustrated herself. James spoke to Nigel again, his tone changing to frustration.
"Nigel, mate, as much as I want you to win, this is taking forever. You're about as slow as my fuckin' pet turtle. We could have gone and gotten something to eat in this time back at the station"
"If it makes you feel better, I think I can finish this fight"
"You better, I'm fucking starving"
Nigel dodged several more times before taking two big swings, both of them connecting, dealing quite a lot of damage combined, James' face lit up at the stats.
"Get in there Nigel! Two more hits like that and your good"
Nigel gave James a thumbs up, another stupid mistake, before he was sent flying across the room as the instructor stole the chance to strike.
Both pilots were dangerously close to losing. Richard was now starting to worry if Nigel would lose at the last minute. It was bad enough having to learn how to use an IS while fighting at the same time, but it was worse when the opponent was an ex-representative contender. Nigel had to act fast if he were to win. Instead of trying to dodge, he'd attempt a previous tactic, going all out. He launched at the instructor, moving out the way, leaving Nigel to fly past, before attempting to strike from behind. The strike was blocked as Nigel spun around, pushing back to send the instructor off balance, giving him the chance to strike, and so he did... twice.
Two more strikes down, one more to go. Before James could say anything, Richard cut him off.
"James, I know you want to give him support, but for the love of god, shut up. He's been sent flying nearly every time you've said something that's distracted him. Go get his things as the battle will be over soon"
James responded by turning off the call between him and Nigel, moving aside to gather Nigel's belongings. Nigel on the other hand was focussed on getting the final strike in, the instructor was making it hard for him, dodging against every strike or blocking as a last resort. The instructor began circling Nigel once again, stopping him in his tracks, as he tried to think process what was going on and come up with a plan at the same time. His brain was starting to melt at this point and could feel the stress building. There could have been a way to go about it, but not this time as he was struck in the back, dealing severe damage to his shield energy.
At this point, there was no way of denying that he was fucked. He had less shield energy than the instructor, only by 25 points, but one more strike and he was done for. It was at this point the instructor spoke again.
"We're nearly done here. Give up while you can, and I might make it less insulting. You can't beat an ex-representative contender"
Nigel was already frustrated by the whole situation, the fight and the cockiness of the instructor, it was becoming too much for him. He just wanted this to end, but it seemed like a never ending nightmare, something that he was familiar with. Nigel just stared blankly at the instructor, not moving an inch with the katana still in both hands.
"Giving up? You should have from the start, you're only making this worse for yourself"
Nigel couldn't take it anymore. He watched as the instructor raised her katana in the air. Nigel seemed to snap out of his trance, raising his katana to block the impending attack and giving a sudden push back, but unlike previous times, he launched at the instructor while she was launched backwards, landing one last strike on her, as he yelled.
"Fuck off!"
Shield energy depleted
Winner: Nigel Battersby
Battle ended
[-]
Nigel had won. There was a collective cheer from everyone in the room, Richard and James being the loudest, as they began walking over to him. Nigel was too tired to respond to anything as he climbed down from the IS.
"That was brilliant Nigel!"
"Cheers... That... was… fuckin'... hard..." Nigel replied, taking deep breaths in between his words.
"Anyway, here are your clothes, we'll need to see what happens next"
Nigel took his clothes out of James' hands and walked back over to the boxes to change back into his clothes. While he was gone, Richard walked over to the instructor, who had grabbed a drink from her bag.
"While I am impressed at both yours and Nigel's performance in that match, there was no need for what you said to him" Richard said, disappointed.
"Well, he seemed to jump between giving up and continue fighting, so I was giving him a choice to quit the match" The instructor explained, attempting to give herself some sort of defence.
"I don't personally agree with your justification, considering I know him on a personal level and some of the things you said don't sit well with him on a deep level"
"I see, should I go apologize?"
"I would say yes, but knowing how he acts, he most likely doesn't want to speak to you. This whole situation with being able to use an IS and the battle has put him in a foul mood. So it would be best for you to stay out of his way, at least until he has calmed down a bit"
Richard walked away, leaving the instructor with her thoughts. He returned to the IS staff, slowly being joined by James and Nigel minutes later. One of the ladies turned to Nigel as Richard made his way towards the doors.
"Well Nigel, looks like you are heading to the IS Academy"
"Not that I had much choice to begin with" Nigel said with disappointment. He knew that even if he won or lost the match, he would end up going regardless.
"Well, don't feel too bad, you defeated an instructor which puts you at a higher level compared to other students"
"Really?" Nigel was slightly puzzled.
"Yes, usually those that have defeated the instructor go on to be sponsored by big corporations or governments. I have no doubt that Richard has done something like that for you"
"I do remember him saying he would have a personal IS made for me"
"Aye, dad made a phone call to the factory and ordered them to start designing your IS during your fight" James explained, jumping into the conversation.
"Huh"
Nigel was still coming to terms with everything so he didn't understand half of what was said. Before he was able to respond, Richard came running back to them.
"Lads, get your gear quick".
The two turned to Richard who had a stern look across his face.
"Someones discovered your secret Nigel and the media is outside. I've just arranged for a helicopter just north of campus. We'll have to make a run for it though".
James and Nigel grabbed their bags and all at once, they charged through the doors, knocking down several reporters as the trio barged their way through the crowd. The reporters weren't able to catch up with them, due to the large number of reporters and camera crew there, all trying to get something, but their luck ran out as all three continued running towards the western outskirts of the city.
They ran for nearly a mile, outrunning the reporters into an open field where they found a helicopter ready to haul them back to the factory. As they hopped in, it took off in the direction of the coast, all of them out of breath and sweaty. Richard took off his coat before turning to Nigel while James pulled up his phone, trying to see how long the media had found out for.
"Right Nigel, now the local news knows about your secret, what are you gonna do?"
Nigel pondered, but it was James that spoke next.
"Uhh, Dad? It's not just the local news now. I've just seen an article posted 7 minutes ago with a statement from the Japanese Government about Nigel".
Nigel could only respond by putting his head in his hands.
"I'm well and truly fucked".
"I'd hate to agree, but it seems to be the case. We have to arrange several things, transport for you and your gear from home to the airport, as well as getting you to the IS Academy".
"So what are we gonna do?"
"Well, once we get down into the factory compound, I'll get on the phone to the head of the IS Academy to talk things out, speaking of which here we are"
Nigel peered out the window, noticing that they were already descending.
"Another thing, since when did you have a helicopter?"
"When you're a well known individual, sometimes you need a mode of transport to get you out of situations quick"
The three stepped out of the helicopter as they were greeted by several designers and scientists, leading them through onto a balcony, where they watched those below working on Nigel's IS, as per Richard's request back at the college.
"As you can see, we're currently in the planning stages of building your personal IS, we'll need to get some details from you as to how you want certain design features and weapons"
"You two head on down, I'm gonna make a phone call to your grandparents"
"Alright"
Nigel and James followed the researcher down a spiral staircase onto the factory floor, where Nigel was given the choices for his IS. He looked through the catalogue of choices, comparing different weapons, trying to figure out which would be the best in terms of usage. Other choices were made as to the overall effectiveness of his IS, but in the end, while being mindful of costs, his IS had the benefit of being under budget, saving the company a handful of money, giving them a good rep in the process.
After an hour of going over details and specifications, the final plans were drawn up and submitted through for the building stage. By that point, Richard had already been finished with his phone call, greeting the two as they entered his office.
"Alright lads, how was it?"
"Tiring, it was more complicated than I thought, turns out different types are incompatible with other features"
Richard chuckled.
"Yeah, the IS is a strange device"
"Have you ever looked into trying to reverse engineering it? Maybe see why males can't use it?"
Richard leaned in on his desk, indicating for the two to move in closer.
"I'll let you in on something, nearly every IS corporation wants to do that, but because there is a limited amount of cores in the world, no one wants to do that out of fear that the core will break if tampered with, and even if they could, the number of cores worldwide are decreasing at a slow rate, but the public won't know that"
"What do you mean by 'decreasing'? Do they have an expiration date after activation?"
"No, sabotage. Either companies will try to send people to sabotage their work to try and get ahead of the competition, or it is just done by external sources with no influence from companies"
"Was the robbery you mentioned ages ago one of those sabotage events?" James butted in.
"I believe so, but there wasn't sufficient evidence to prove it"
"Hang on, I'm confused" Nigel responded, clueless to the event James mentioned.
"You won't understand as I made sure it never made it to the news. Basically, a group of blokes broke into the factory and made off with a bunch of data as well as other bits and pieces. It didn't take too long to find them, as by that point the police had been notified and they didn't get very far from the factory before being stopped. The thing about business Nigel, is that others will try to sabotage to make sure they get the lead. In terms of the IS, all corporations want to be in the lead for developing the next generation, which is what your IS will be, so you will be our guinea pig"
"Right…" Nigel was unsure about everything, he had gotten himself into a deep hole and there didn't seem to be any way to dig himself out of it.
"Moving on, what was that phone call you were on about?"
"Oh right, I called your grandparents to fill them in on what's happening and I've been given permission by them to be your representative, meaning that forms about your enrollment and other bits and pieces before you attend will be handled by me, as I'm sure neither you or your grandparents have much of a clue, do you?"
"Makes sense, when will I be heading enrolling in the academy?"
"The next school year starts in April, so we have plenty of time to work things out"
"April!? Fuck me, thats quite a while"
"Yep, schools in Japan work differently and it is rather confusing as to how they plan out their school terms, but I'm not one to judge"
Nigel considered the amount of time that he had ahead of him. It was only the end of August and he wouldn't be starting before April so that gave him about 6 months.
"At least I'll be able to celebrate Christmas and the New Years before I leave" Nigel commented.
"But don't worry, as I said, we have plenty of time. Also, I was on the phone to the IS academy after the first call, they are aware of your presence and a representative from the Academy will be visiting you sometime between now and next month, they will send me a message as to when they will arrive and I'll relay it onwards to you"
"Alright, looks like I've got a lot ahead of me"
"You gonna be alright?" James asked, knowing that it was gonna be hard for his friend.
"We'll say 50/50"
"Don't forget Nigel, both me and James are available to talk when you want to"
"Cheers, I'm just wanting to go to bed and try to make sense of it all"
"Did the designers on the floor give you the all clear"
"Aye, they did"
"Good. Also, what weapons did you go for in the end?"
Nigel thought for a minute before pulling out a piece of paper from his pocket, with a complete list of weapons and other features.
"Lets see… I have a high caliber machine gun for long range, a set of defensive drones to give me extra breathing room. No doubt I'll need to practise using them. In terms of melee weapons, I went with a polearm in the shape of battleaxes, giving me the ability fight dual-wielding as well as a sword and shield for good measure"
"A decent list, James has shown me your streams on how you play with your VR headset so you will shine with those weapons. I'll arrange some guides on how to use your machine gun and drones as they require lots of concentration. A set of guides and manuals will also be arriving to your address from the IS Academy, which you'll be required to read before the year starts, although with the time that you have, you'll get them finish before the year has begun"
Richard sat for a minute in silence as he thought he was forgetting something, only to realise it's just his age catching up with him.
"Overall, you're more or less done here. James, escort Nigel back to Stowcastle will you?"
"Will do. come on Nigel, lets go" James got up out of his seat and began making his way to the door as he put his backpack on, with Nigel following after him.
"Right ya. Cya Richard"
"Bye lads, also don't worry about the press, I'll handle it"
[-]
James and Nigel left the factory compound bound for the metro, but not before putting on a few extra layers to disguise themselves. Neither wanted to be seen and if the media were to spot them, it would be bad to drag unnecessary attention to them. Nigel dropped his grandad a text message that he was coming home before the two fell silent as the metro departed back to the city centre.
Thankfully for both Nigel and James, the journey back to Stowcastle was uneventful, apart from two blokes arguing at one station, they made it back in one piece. Once on the station concourse, the two made their way to a fast food place and grabbed some food, neither of them had eaten for most of the day so they were both starving.
While they were waiting for their food, Nigel got on his phone and booked himself a new train ticket, seeing as he missed his previously booked train several hours ago.
"You doing alright?" James asked.
"Eh. Booking my ticket back home. Gonna book first class so no one will recognise me. I'll be honest though, I don't have a good feeling in my gut about any of this"
"I would say that you'll be alright, but I'd be lying if I said that. I am worried about it as much as you are. Dad will make sure that you're in the best situation before you leave" James said, attempting to comfort his friend.
"I'm gonna have to re-evaluate what I'm gonna do for the rest of the year 'cause I'm not gonna be able to attend college and study at the same time"
"Well, lighten up though, we've got the wartime gala next month so we can look at going lineside and that should cheer you up"
"I guess. I just need time to think things over" Both James and Nigel stepped forward, collected their food from the counter and made their way back out onto the station concourse.
"Look, if you wanna talk to someone, both me and Dad will be available to talk when you need it. Any questions that you have about the IS, Dad will have an answer for you"
"Cheers" Nigel looks towards the display screen and checks the time.
"My train will be arriving in a minute so I'll see you later"
"Right, take care mate" James finished his sentence as Nigel walked through the open ticket barriers and made his way over the footbridge to the other side of the station. James watched his friend until he was out of sight, before turning on his heel and making his way back towards the metro terminal.
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Nigel continued walking over the footbridge, passing under the stone architecture as he descended the steps and his train pulled into the platform. In an attempt not to be seen, he made a dash for the end of the platform, right to the front of the train where he boarded first class. Despite still being the evening rush hour, first class, at least in his coach was barely populated with only a few people sitting at tables further down towards the center.
Without wanting to seem suspicious, he took a seat at the nearest table, placing down his food and sliding his bag under the table. As he began to get comfortable, he was approached by a stewardess.
"Is there anything you would like?"
"No thanks" Politely declining any service, the stewardess turned on her heel and made her back through the train to attend to other passengers, in which the train set off heading south. Pulling out his phone, he quickly texted his grandad, giving him a notice on his return. Setting down his phone, he began watching videos as he began eating his meal.
'None of this feels right… Why me?' His phone was drowned out by his thoughts as he continued to struggle to comprehend anything. Of all people to be chosen, why him? What made him compatible with a machine that could only be used by females? He tried to dismiss the thoughts by finishing off his meal and to relax for the rest of the journey.
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"We are now arriving into Torchester, please make sure to have all your belongs on you and mind the gap when exiting the train"
Nigel awoke to the announcement over the speakers. He packed up his phone, pulled himself up out of his seat and dragged his bag out from underneath. Making his way into the vestibule, he disposed of the last of his food in the bin as he watched the train pull into the platform. Once completely stopped, he stepped off the train and made his way down to the other end of the station, taking note of the number of passengers stepping off the train, hoping to mix in with the crowd. Moving in alongside the crowd, he managed to slowly move ahead of others towards the ticket barriers, his phone in hand ready to scan the ticket as he stood in the nearest queue.
'Come on, keep moving…' It felt like time started to slow down as the queue kept starting and stopping as people scanned through their tickets.
The queue slowly shortened as he started counting.
'5… 4… 3… 2.. Fucking finally' He was finally at the ticket barrier, his impatience wasn't doing him any favours.
Swiping his ticket over the scanner, he dashed through the ticket barrier and made his way towards the car park. Looking ahead, he could see his grandad waiving at him, to which he waved back, signalling that he's seen him. Nigel made a B-line straight for the car as his grandad got back in and started the engine. Nigel opened the door and shoved his bag in between his legs as he sat down. Once buckled in, his grandad pulled out and drove out of the station, but not before starting the conversation.
"So, how was today?"
"More eventful than I expected"
"How do you feel about the whole ordeal?"
"To be honest, not good. We both know I'm not overly fond of the IS and the idea of having to move to Japan and learn about it, more or less against my will, doesn't sit well with me at all"
"I don't blame you to be honest, did Richie tell you that he called us?"
"Aye, he said that he'll be my representative till I'm enrolled, and that a rep from the IS Academy will be visiting us at some point before the end the year"
"Right, and what did he say about when you will be starting at the academy?"
"The new term starts in March next year, so I have now until February to prepare"
"Reasonable"
"Since I won't be attending college now, I kinda wanna get a shit load of stuff done before I leave"
"Such as? You'll need to make time to learn about the IS, to give yourself a head start"
"I wanna use this to get some more time at Lakes End, to try and get myself passed out as a cleaner, as well as looking into getting my drivers license, although I'm not sure if this…" Nigel pointed to his eyepatch.
"...Will allow me to"
"We'll take a look at the guidelines in a few days. The general rule on being able to drive is that you need at least one functional eye that isn't short-sighted, so there shouldn't be too much of a problem"
"I guess" Eyesight had always been a main problem, which is why he felt that he'd have to look for a similar job to his dream job to at least be able to work in his condition
"Anyway, what you need to do is get some rest and we'll begin plotting what you wanna do. I don't mind making some extra journeys to Lakes End if you wanna do some extra turns to get you passed out, except Wednesdays, you know I love going to do Golf" His grandad said, trying to give some reassurance
Nigel's Granddad finished his sentence as they pulled into the driveway.
"Yeah, I'm gonna head straight to bed"
"You sure you don't want Granny to make you some toast?"
"Nah, it's alright. I ate on the train back so I'm kinda full"
The two walked into the house, Nigel making his way upstairs and began getting ready for bed, while his Granddad sat down in the living room, his Grandmother looked up from her tablet, before the immediate subject came into the conversation.
"So what did he say about the whole thing, Theo?"
"Well, he's not fond about the whole thing, and I don't blame him. I think what we need to do is sorta help him with his independence a bit"
"He's quite well on his own"
"Yes he is, but to move to another country by the end of the year, Ava, not everyone is gonna be alright straight off the bat"
"You have a point. Anything else?"
"He mentioned about looking to take up extra turns to get passed out as a cleaner at Lakes End before he leaves, as well as getting his driving license sorted. I think with his eyepatch, he might have to go with an automatic, which I think was his intended way of driving"
"I see… We'll have to talk with him in the morning"
"That's the plan we set out. For now, lets just watch the news"
Theo switched the channel over to the news, with an evening broadcast about Nigel and the possible ability to use an IS. The two watched as Richard appeared at a press conference and denied all claims that Nigel could use an IS and simply refuted everything by saying that both Nigel and his son were looking for him.
"Richie did say that he was gonna take care of the media, but I didn't expect him to outright deny it"
"It's probably for the best. It does us a few favours in not having to worry about the press coming after Nigel"
"Doesn't stop them from trying though. Next thing we know, there'll be press outside our door asking questions"
"True, but at least from a higher up and respected individual such as Richard, people are bound to listen to him more than us"
"I suppose. I don't like where any of this is going though."
As they continued talking as the press conference ended, Nigel was almost ready for bed. By that point, he had striped out of his clothes and into a light grey underlayer. As he finished brushing his teeth, he looked in the mirror and continued to wonder. None of this was going to go away and it was here to stay.
'These next few months are gonna fly by' he thought, spitting out his toothpaste. Wiping his mouth, he stepped out onto the landing and entered his bedroom, closing the door behind him. He left his phone beside the bed as he climbed in, hoping that tomorrow was a better day and that his new path ahead of him was worth it.
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"And that's about it really, I spent the last few months training on top of becoming a cleaner, taking on a few turns as a trainee fireman as well as gaining my drivers license. All I need now is a car" he chuckled, trying to alleviate some anxiety within him.
"That's nice to hear" Nagisako responded, pleased with the outcome of the interview as she turned off the tape recorder and placed her notes on the table.
"Well, that's the end of the interview. Once again, thank you for doing this interview with us, and don't worry, I'll be locking these away in a safe for the next edition"
"Nice, I suppose you'll be doing the other male IS pilot?"
"If you're referring to Ichika Orimura, we won't be able to at this current point in time. Due to the fact he is the younger brother of one of the strongest IS pilots in the world, he couldn't escape the publicity as much as you and the details of his discovery are already public knowledge, so while we could do an interview, we'd just be covering the same points that the media have already released to the public, maybe later in the year we'd be able to do an interview with him, but until then there isn't anything else that could be considered exclusive news in terms of an interview"
"I see, well it was a pleasure meeting you Nagisako" Nigel said, as he stood up from his chair.
"Same here, what will you do now?"
"Well, I'm gonna return to the hotel as I'll be moving to the academy tomorrow, if all goes to plan. Plus, Richard will be returning from the academy in a few hours so I'll need to be there for the news on what's happening"
"I see, well I wish you the best of luck in your new journey"
"Thanks, have a nice day"
"You too"
Nigel turned and walked over the doors, making his departure from the office, silently walking through the reception, the receptionist preoccupied with her work to notice him leaving, only realising when she heard the elevator doors open. Nigel pulled out his phone as the elevator doors close and descended to the bottom of the building, choosing some music before putting his headphones on from around his neck.
'I guess she wasn't that bad, although I don't appreciate her associates trying to track me down'
As the elevator doors opened, Nigel made a b-line for the door, ignoring everyone around him and keeping his head down. Stepping out into the busy street, he turned off to the right and began making his way back to the airport, that was all that mattered at this point, he can worry another day, all he wanted was to have a nice lie down before Richard returned from the academy...
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Authors Notes:
This is the first chapter in this story that I've made and I'm quite happy with the final outcome after months of rewriting the chapter from just individual sections, to the entire chapter. I haven't really got much else to say other than, I await for your comments and feedback, I'm about 50/50 when it comes to creativity and considering how I didn't do so well in creative writing during my GCSEs, it's no surprise that I've had to rewrite the chapter many times.
Aside from that, I would like to give me gratitude to Xenowishes, creator of "Change My Mind" as he has been a great help proofreading, critiquing my work and making suggestions how to to go about writing sections and helping give more realism as I made my changes, please go and support him and his work. Besides that, I'm overall happy with the first steps I've made writing this story and I hope to improve in the future. For now, I'll leave you with this chapter, I wish you all a Merry Christmas and that 2021 makes a better year than 2020.
20/06/2021:
If you are seeing this story back at the top of the list, allow me to give a quick explanation. To put it simply, there were a few scenes in this story that I felt that didn't have enough clarity or that I thought weren't detailed enough at that moment. It isn't a major remake, but a few scenes have been rewritten to add some extra details. I haven't forgotten about the story, I just haven't had a lot of time as I'm currently in my final week of my final year of college and for the last few months, it has been all hands on deck.
Hopefully I will get back into writing the next chapter as I have the first few scenes written, it's just some ideas I want to throw in, I want to know that I can justify implementing the ideas in hopes that it doesn't become a simple additional OC fanfic. I might ask a few people for some opinions but that's about it on the current situation.
Take care everyone!