The Frontier Spark
Episode 7: The Circus
-EURPOEAN WILDERNESS-
"This is delicious!" Agatha exclaimed joyfully as she tasted the venison Burke had successfully cooked. The pilot himself smirked under his visor as Agatha took her time enjoying the fruits of his labor. "My compliments to the chef." The girl complimented her comrade after she finished the food.
"Well thanks." Burke said with his ego growing ever slightly. "Now let's get moving again, we haven't got all day."
"I couldn't agree more." Agatha said with a content smile on her face.
"Yeah, yeah, let's go." Krosp said dismissively as chomped on the mouse he'd caught.
On that note, the three travelers began moving again along the trails through the forest that seemed to stretch on as far as the eye could see. Burke listened to the sight and sounds of nature as the group walked on. He couldn't help admiring the beauty of the land around him, despite the unknown threats that lurked deeper within the woods and beyond them in this alternate universe. But the pilot was roused from his inner thoughts when he heard the sound of someone sobbing in a nearby tree, a child from the tone of the sobbing.
"Did you two hear that?" Burke said as he looked to Agatha and Krosp.
"I did." Agatha replied.
"Yes." The talking cat answered.
The three of them then look over to a nearby tree and see a young boy sitting on a branch, all alone and crying. The young child's hair was blonde, he carried a leather satchel, wore a tan jacket, brown pants, and a red hat.
"Are you alright up there, kid?!" Burke shouted to the scared child.
"Aah!" The child jumped slightly in surprise.
"Relax we're not going to hurt you." Agatha said in an attempt to calm the boy down. "Where are your parents?"
"I… I don't know! I was playing and now I can't find my way back!"
"Really, well our search for provisions might be over." Krosp thought with a devious smile. At that second an extremely irked Burke thumped the cat on the head with his fist. The force of the hit knocked the feline to the ground and caused him to see stars.
"Listen pussy cat, I catch you thinking like that about anyone again, including the kid, I'll pulverize you, punch you into fuzz, I'll pound you to pieces!" Burke lifted up Krosp by the scruff of his neck and snapped at the intelligent cat. "That's what I'll do next time, pound you to pieces, just like that!"
"Both of you stop it! We're supposed to be the good guys, remember?!" Agatha snapped at the two feuding allies, although inwardly she smirked at Burke's punishing Krosp.
"He started it!" The cat and pilot shouted as they pointed at each other.
"Hey I didn't know you were show people!" The little kid shouted.
"Show people?" Burke and Agatha looked at each other.
"Yeah, those are great slapstick and talking cat acts!" The little boy said with a big smile on his face. "Hit him again mister!"
"I like the way you think kid!" The pilot grinned.
"Hey!" Krosp snapped.
"Are your parents show people?" Agatha asked the child.
"Yep, master Payne's circus of adventure, tell your friends!" The kid said happily.
"So, you don't live around here?" The heterodyne heir tilted her head in confusion.
"Nope, just passing through like cheap beer!" The little boy joked.
"You've got a good sense of humor!" Burke grinned.
"Burke!" Agatha snapped.
"What? It's how my Da raised me." The pilot shrugged, unaware of his wrongdoing in Agatha's opinion.
"He let you drink?!" The heterodyne heir gasped.
"No! My old man just taught me how to get those kinds of jokes! And whiskey… or some other form of alcohol, for him on occasion." Burke retorted defensively and trailed off sheepishly.
"Sounds like a great dad." Agatha remarked sarcastically.
"Oi, my old man is a great guy, he saves on a daily basis!" The pilot defended his father.
"Doing what?" Agatha inquired.
"He uses 'heavy equipment' to help put out fires, in short, he's a firefighter." Burke shot back with a smug grin.
"Is that right?" Agatha threw him a skeptical look.
"Yes, it is. Anyway, let's stop arguing and focus on the wee lad here." Burke ended the argument by shifting the conversation towards the little boy. "He needs our help getting back to his Ma and Da, right boyo?"
"Mmmhmm. You can meet my dad when you help take me home!" The young boy replied happily.
"Um, we'll try." Agatha said with a lack of confidence.
"I smell campfires, and horses, and people." Krosp said coolly as he pointed further along the trail. "Over that way, kid."
"Ok, let's get you back to your folks." Agatha said warmly to the boy with a smile on her face.
"Huzzah!" The little boy said with glee.
"Hey! No people remember?!" Krosp hissed.
"We're not going to send him by himself." Agatha hushed the cat.
"Why not?! He got here by himself!" Krosp griped.
"I'd listen to the lady, furball." The pilot rolled up his sleeve, revealing a muscular arm as a show of force.
"That is the greatest cat ever!" The boy beamed happily as he followed the wandering group of misfits. After that event, the group moved through the woods at a comfy pace to reach the campsite, with Krosp leading the way. The cat wasn't one to shy away from being smug about his natural advantages over his human comrades. Burke rolled his eyes at that while Agatha shook her head at the feud between them mimicking that of a dog and a cat. They eventually reached the campsite after a short walk through the forest, revealing a clearing filled with strange old-timey contraptions, wagons, and house like structures. The pilot tilted his head at just how odd it all looked, but he quickly stood up straight again. In his mind it was just another odd thing about the timeline that didn't make sense, and he'd have to accept it. He then took off his helmet for a brief moment so as to avoid anyone being suspicious of him, just in case.
"This must be it." Agatha said as she observed the camp while Burke stayed silent.
"Yeah, that's our wagon!" The child shouted and pointed to a single wagon out of the bunch of other wagons and odd contraptions.
Not even a moment sooner, a woman with brown hair and dressed in a red robe, the young boy's mother it seemed, spotted the group and rushed towards them. "Balthazar!" She shouted in relief at the sight of her missing child.
"Mama, I got lost!" Balthazar yelled in reply as he rushed to hug his mother.
"He's yours then, good." Agatha said coolly.
"Yes, thank you! I was so worried!" The eager mother said gratefully.
"Your welcome, ma'am. It was no trouble helping the lad get home." Burke said with a bit of Irish charm in his voice.
"We found him sitting in a tree. I'm Agatha Clay, this my friend Thomas Burke." Agatha gave her an idea of Balthazar's last location and then gestured to herself and the pilot beside her.
"Trish Belloptrix!" The grateful mother replied as she held her son.
"They're nice Mama! They're show people!" Balthazar said as he pointed to the group of misfits.
"Show people?" Trish cocked an eyebrow.
"Yeah, they've got a great talking cat and comedy act." Balthazar explained.
"Cat act?" Trish tilted her head in confusion as she looked down at her son.
"Hey, how's it going?" Krosp said to the woman.
"That's your act, is it?" The cat said casually.
"Err… he called it an act not me." Agatha said as the cat made a fool of himself by singing and dancing earning a few snickers from Burke.
"Hold on there a second, I guess you could say if I wanted to, I could be a genuine acrobat." The pilot said smugly as he boasted of his skills, which wasn't too far from the truth.
"Is that so? Well anyway the cat's cute, I bet the townies must love him." Trish said with a smirk. "Why don't you all come with me? We were about to have breakfast when I missed Balthazar." She offered.
"We don't want to be a bother-" Agatha started to say.
"C'mon Agatha, it'd be rude to refuse." Burke interrupted his orange haired associate. "Thank you for your hospitality ma'am, we'd be glad have a meal with ya."
"Your welcome, a meal is the least I could do." Trish replied.
"Food, yeah food is always good, and at least somebody realizes I'm cute." Krosp said coolly with a subtle jab at his comrades, which Burke flat out ignored.
"Where's the rest of your party?" Trish asked curiously.
"Um, it's just us." Agatha answered.
"You've all been walking the wastelands alone?" Trish said in astonishment.
"We were in an airship but it crashed, and I have Thomas to help out." Agatha explained and pointed to her friend.
"So, you're both some kind of adventurers. Why then it must be luck that brought you here." Trish said with a smile.
"…That's one way of looking at it, ma'am." Burke said as he twiddled his thumbs.
"Enough with that, just call me Trish." Trish scolded the young man.
"You got it, Trish. It's just that my old man and my mother taught me to be a respectful gentleman." Burke replied with a salute and, avoiding his military training/experience, explained his reason for the formality around civilians, which was a half-truth.
"Then you have good parents." Trish remarked.
"Eh, it was something of a hit and miss to be honest. Anyway, maybe it was luck that got us here, or probably something else entirely." Burke scratched his head.
"Yes! For here you will find the greatest dissemblance of heroes in all of Europe!"
"What?" Krosp asked suspiciously.
"That's assemblage dear." The mother corrected her child.
"Right." Balthazar replied.
"It's a traveling heterodyne show." Agatha surmised.
"A what?" Burke tilted his head in confusion.
"Heterodyne?!" Krosp hissed in worry.
"Sure it's… Oh my." Agatha started to say but her mood dropped like a stone in water as she realized the implications of the situation.
"Am I missing something here besides… the obvious from what you said? It's a show about certain people famous people, that erm well…" Burke said in a hushed tone as he and the group chatted amongst themselves for a brief moment only to be interrupted by the arrival of another member of the traveling show.
"This is miss Agatha Clay, and mister Thomas Burke. Both of you, this is Abner, master Payne's assistant." Trish introduced them to the ringmaster's assistant.
"Where did they come from?" Abner asked curiously.
"They brought Balthazar back." Trish explained.
"Ah." Abner replied.
"We'll figure this out later, whatever the problem is here." Burke hissed to his comrades.
"You know it's a show about-!" Agatha whispered back.
"Yeah, but we should play it cool for now. No one knows the truth, and let's keep it that way as long as we can." The pilot replied.
"Alright, if you say so Thomas." The Heterodyne heir accepted her partner's plan.
"I promised them a meal, but master Payne might let them join up, if only because they're traveling solo." Trish told her colleague.
"Solo?! In the wastelands?!" Abner shouted in surprise.
"It wasn't either of our ideas, our airship crashed." Agatha timidly replied.
"From what I can see, you'll all fit right in around here then." Abner said casually.
"We'll see… Abner, was it?" Burke asked curiously.
"Yeah." The ringmaster's assistant answered.
"The name's Burke, pleasure to meet you, and if you're wondering we we're the only ones on the airship. It was a pretty small one to be honest." Th pilot stuck his hand out and the two of them shook.
"An airship crewed by two and a half? That's a small craft for out here." Abner replied with a concerned look. "Where were you coming from?"
"Is it important?" Burke deflected.
"Could be, I saw a Wulfenbach sigil on that pack you're carrying. I know Castle Wulfenbach is around these parts, folks were talking about it the last town. So, I'm guessing you're off the castle. You work for the Baron?" Abner said suspiciously.
"She did temporarily, and I was… given an offer… but I refused." Burke said half truthfully.
"Is that right?" Abner said skeptically.
"We didn't-" Agatha started to say but Burke stopped her.
"*sigh* Let's tell them the truth Agatha." Burke gave a decisive sigh. "Her parents came around to help us escape, …they didn't make it. One of the Baron's goons…" The pilot explained with a stoic expression.
"...It, it was horrible, we escaped in the confusion, I still can't believe they're dead." Agatha grieved for her deceased caretakers.
"They'll be looking for the two of you." A woman with orange hair and a pinkish dress added. "When did this happen?" She asked Agatha.
"Yesterday, it was only yesterday. I still can't believe-" The heterodyne girl was still in some shock.
"I don't know what to say Agatha, but for what it's worth, I do know they loved you." Burke patted her on the back and gave a comforting look, his actions akin to that of an older brother.
"Thanks Thomas." Agatha said as she looked him in the eye and smiled.
"Hey, don't worry, you know I've got your back." Burke said confidently with a proud look and thumb's up to reassure her.
"You, poor kid, I'm sure-" Abner started to say but the orange haired woman interrupted him.
"Don't you say another word." The woman growled.
"What?" Abner said in confusion.
"It's master Payne's decision, not yours." She said strictly.
"I was just-" Abner was interrupted.
"About to say something stupid!" The woman snarled as she got in his face. "Get master Payne!" she ordered.
"We don't mean any trouble for you folks." Agatha tried to diffuse the situation.
"Don't worry about it, those two have been like that since Pix joined up. I'm Zeetha, here eat up." A green haired girl said as she strolled over to the two of them with food in hand.
"Thanks, I'm Agatha and this is Thomas." Agatha gestured to herself and Burke.
"Call me Burke." The pilot said bluntly.
"You two really escaped from castle Wulfenbach?" The girl now known as Zeetha asked curiously.
"We had had some help and Burke was trying to get out on his own until we ran into each other." Agatha explained.
"*Cough*Agatha…" Burke coughed and elbowed her in attempt to prevent her from sharing something that was a secret.
"Well good, you're tougher than you look and he's probably a decent fighter from what I can see." Zeetha sized coolly, apparently sizing up the two of them.
"I hold my own in a fight." Burke replied bluntly.
"You know my people have a saying…" Zeetha started to say something about her people and Agatha made a connection to them. Zeetha reacted and got in Agatha's face, to which Burke barked at her to back off, and got between them. Zeetha growled at the pilot to step, aside but Burke refused and said in a cold voice that she could ask Agatha anything from where she was standing. The Heterodyne girl tried to diffuse the situation by stating that her uncle had told her stories about Zeetha's homeland Skifander. Zeetha asked through her gritted teeth, about the whereabouts of Agatha's uncle, to which she replied that he'd disappeared years ago. That set Zeetha off, causing her to slice up several objects in a tantrum, nearly cutting Burke until he blocked a strike from her blades with his combat knife and data knife. The warrior girl tried to overpower the pilot, but he was surprisingly strong in comparison to herself. She struggled against Burke and he still held her back, but not without a considerable amount of effort on his part.
Several other people from the caravan came around to see what the commotion was and were surprised to see someone in a fight with Zeetha. Agatha quickly explained to someone who asked her that it was a misunderstanding and something of an accident. Agatha was then informed of Zeetha's origins while still watching the trial of strength between the two warriors. Burke eventually decided to back down and broke free of the struggle, he jumped backwards and flipped in air, drawing lots of attention from onlookers. He landed in a crouch position, panting heavily from his efforts, and ready to go for another round of fighting.
Without missing a beat, the two rushed each other in a blitz of blade clashes. Burke did his best to match her strikes with his knives, but the short weapons weren't exactly meant to counter swords. Zeetha kept him on his toes as she rapidly swiped at where ever he stood as their battle raged on. The pilot slid under her swords and time seemed to slow as he stood back up and landed an uppercut to her jaw. The sheer force behind the swift blow knocked the warrior girl into the air, causing her to flip and land on her belly. Zeetha gritted her teeth and rushed at Burke, who only smiled confidently as he sidestepped her charge and signaled with his fist for her to come at him. She growled and stared him right in eye, both fighters hadn't moved an inch at that point. The stillness of the moment was a clear sign that it had become something akin to a battle between masters, though if Burke was honest about it, he was still an apprentice in CQC.
Agatha was watching Burke in action again and now she was watching him fight even better than before. If she hadn't gotten to know him as well as she had in the past few days, which still wasn't too much, she'd assume he was going all out. But in truth there were signs that he was holding back as it was just a case of self-defense on his part. The heterodyne heir could hear the blades clashing and see their accompanying sparks, but for her eyes it was like watching blurs as the two fighters struck at each other. She watched Burke leap over Zeetha in a display of acrobatic skill he'd bragged about earlier. The crowd was surprised to see such an act performed in that manner and little Balthazar was in awe.
The pilot touched down on the ground and then rushed at Zeetha in a charge of his own. The warrior attempted to anticipate him but was surprised to see him stop short and stand on one hand. He then spun and tried to kick her but she reacted swiftly enough, managing to block his powerful kick with her arm. She used that momentary halt and grabbed Burke by his leg making the pilot go wide eyed as she did so. Without thinking, she had swung him around and flung him towards a nearby wagon. Once he was in the air, she then took on a look of irritation and slapped herself as she had thrown him in the wrong direction. The pilot breathed and felt time slow again, he then took in the situation, and with a quick burst from his jump kit, positioned himself to land. Instead of shattering the wagon to pieces, and to everyone's surprise, Burke had landed and started running along the wall before jumping off. He skidded to a stop and was covered in dust from his brief slide across the soil.
"That… was… awesome!" Balthazar shouted with glee and a big smile on his face.
"Is that *huff* all you got?" The pilot said in between breaths as he stood up, covered in dirt and muck.
"What *wheeze* about you? I can keep going, *huff* I am a warrior of skifander!" Zeetha shouted as she looked him straight in the eye, her swords at the ready.
"Then bring it on!" Burke shot back as he got into a fighting stance again, having recovered his stamina.
"That's quite enough fighting!" An authoritative voice shouted, drawing the attention of the crowd and fighters. The voice belonged to an older man in a dark blue robe adorned with a pattern of white stars, he wore a pair of glasses and bore a head of auburn hair as well as a long beard. "Zeetha what is the meaning of this?!"
"Master Payne, oh uh?" Zeetha knew she was in trouble.
"She picked the fight with me, if that's what you're wondering, sir. Just chalk it up to a big misunderstanding." Burke answered for her, standing down and stretching since it was clear Zeetha was in trouble and he would wear out his group's welcome if he continued.
"Is that true?" The older man asked as he looked in Zeetha's direction.
"Well…" The warrior girl trailed off with a guilty look. As the discussion began and explanations were made, Pix and Agatha left the area for a brief few minutes. The actress knew it would take a few minutes before everyone would have a level head to talk. Some of the show members had gone back to their packing and other chores as things settled down. Back with the two fighters and the ringmaster, Burke was still sour with Zeetha and she felt the same about him. Payne inquired about the cause of the fight but Burke refused to say much until his friend came back around as it wouldn't be the full story unless she was there to shed some more light. Eventually Agatha and Pix returned after having enjoyed a nice chat, as well as Agatha helping fix a problem, and the whole incident was resolved. After that the two, three counting Krosp, of them explained their story except for bits that Burke and Agatha would rather not share.
"…And that's the long and short of it." Burke said stoically to the ringmaster.
"Zeetha's actions aside, and your friend has done us a favor as well it seems, but I'm afraid neither of you can travel with us." Master Payne said with an unhappy tone. "You both are on the run from castle Wulfenbach, ordinary townsfolk would be punished simply for aiding either of you, and we have concerns of our own. We don't want any trouble from the baron. Mister Burke, Miss Clay, the best we can do is to forget we ever saw you and wish you both good luck."
"*Sigh*I figured as much sir." Burke sighed and turned to his friend. "C'mon Agatha, Cat, we've got a long road ahead of us."
"That's for sure, we'd best leave right away then. Goodbye Pix, Abner, I wish- never mind." Agatha said in a determined and slightly dejected tone as she turned and followed Burke and Krosp down the trail once more. The both of them didn't look back, but they did hear several voices arguing, Pix's being the loudest.
-SEVERAL MINUTES LATER-
Even with the pleasant ambience of the majestic European woods surrounding the trio of weary travelers an air of sadness hung over one of them. The group had walked in a depressing silence for some time, Agatha feeling the worst. Burke wasn't exactly sure what to say to her about what happened but he knew he had no taste for a dour mood. Krosp decided it was up to him to break the silence since it was clear that neither of his companions were going to speak up.
"Well that could have gone better." Krosp said to no one in particular.
"Oh ya think?" Burke remarked sarcastically as he briefly inspected his rifle while they walked on. "But then again we should have expected that."
"And why is that?" Agatha inquired.
"The cat said it himself, and I think you know it too." Burke replied.
"People take care of their own." Agatha surmised.
"Exactly, but hey, at least we've got each other." The pilot said in an attempt at camaraderie.
"You won't be around forever Thomas." Agatha said dejectedly.
"…True, I've got a life to get back to in the future on my home planet. But if you want, maybe you could come with me for a little bit." The pilot tried to cheer up his friend.
"To the future?!" Agatha perked up like it was Christmas.
"I won't promise anything since it'd be up to my superiors-" Burke stuck up a finger.
"You mean it?!" Agatha rushed over to him with a smile.
"Like I said, no promises but I'll see what I can do." Burke shrugged nervously.
"Thank you!" Agatha hugged him.
"Hey that's what friends are for right?" Burke said sheepishly.
*RHHHHEE*
"What in the-?!" The pilot turned his head to where the screech had come from.
"They're in trouble!" Agatha shouted in dismay.
"Now that's not good." Krosp said as he watched the carnage.
"Understatement of the year my feline friend." Burke growled as he clenched his fist angrily.
"Don't they have any defenses? They're scattering like geese!" Krosp hissed.
"I'm going down there." The future soldier said with a determined look in his eye.
"What?" Agatha asked in confusion.
"I said I'm going down there." Burke clarified.
"What are you going to do?" Krosp asked the pilot.
"What I was trained to do, I am a soldier after all. Stay safe you two." Burke said as he slapped on his helmet and gave his friends a two finger salute. The pilot then jumped down from the cliff with his kit active to cushion the fall. He then ran towards the giant crab-machine, firing his rifle to get its attention. "Hey ugly!" Burke yelled at the menacing clank as he fired at its laser eye. The beast of a machine turned its attention towards him and fired a beam that managed to dodge. The pilot leapt over the massive clank's claw as it attempted to crush him like a bug. With his teeth gritted in concentration, Burke grappled onto the monstrous machine's hull and held on while tried to throw him off. With a rapid swipe the clank threw its claw over its back to swat the pilot off. Burke ducked under it and fired his rifle into rusted open holes the dotted the crab clank's hull in an attempt to hit a weak spot. The rounds ricocheted inside the metal beast but didn't have much of an effect as it continued to rampage through the camp. Burke tossed a grenade into another open hole, quickly jumping off as it detonated and blew a hole in the clank's back.
The clank seemed to be angered as it shot another beam at the pilot who grappled away to a nearby tree. Burke leapt rapidly from branch to branch in his efforts to avoid being vaporized by the clank's laser. He cursed under his breath that he hadn't brought an archer rocket when he traveled to this dimension. The crab clank managed to anticipate Burke's next jump and fired a beam that eradicated his next landing spot. The pilot growling in frustration, immediately fired his grapple line, hooking it to the ground. He then used the momentum to sling shot himself at the metal monster and hopefully onto its back again. But the clank had other ideas as it managed to swat Burke with its steel claw and knock him flat onto the ground. The pilot rolled for a brief moment and coughed as he stood back up, it was the first time he'd been hit with that much force. He narrowed his eyes under his visor as the clank's eye glowed in preparation to fry him. He stuck his hand up and made a finger gun, leveling it at the clank's eye.
At that moment a blue beam struck the clank, and Burke smiled as he knew where that came from. He turned his head in her direction and he could see she was mad for him ditching her like that. He knew he owed her one now and just grinned under his visor since he couldn't really complain. Then Burke started to get a static filled signal through his helmet's radio. He slapped the side of his helmet as he figured it was just a malfunction until audible words started to take shape in the hissing. He could hear Agatha yelling at him too, which he figured he deserved, but it was drowned out by the chaos and radio static. "Lieutenant- are- receiving?!" A familiar voice said in broken chatter.
"Doc, is that you?"
"Can- hear me?"
"I read you!"
"Yes, but- broken- *HISS* barely hear-!"
"Doc, I need VX now!"
"Are you in danger?"
"Just send him now!" Burke roared, and just like that the connection was cut. The pilot cursed his luck and struggled to move as he summoned his strength and charge back into the fight. He fired his rifle at the clank again to draw its attention like before. The crab-bot-behemoth fired another laser beam at him, blowing a large crater in the ground beside him as he leapt aside and rolled. He tossed a grenade at it and ran for his life to distract it from killing the innocent civilians of the performing troupe. Another beam of light whizzed by him and sent him flying from the resulting explosion. He cloaked and briefly disappeared, unaware that the civilians were watching his battle with utter astonishment at his seemingly magical ability. Burke reappeared and ran up the clank's arm, tossing an arc grenade at its eye in the process. He then jumped away again and skidded through the dirt and mud with a steely gaze on his face.
Suddenly a bright swirling vortex appeared in the sky and Burke couldn't help but grin as he looked up. Then a melodious simulated voice rang in his ears over the radio. "Pilot, stand by for Titanfall." VX said just before he dropped from the glowing portal high above the forest soil. With a loud boom the titan hit the ground and a bright blue dome shield encapsulated the mighty warmachine of tomorrow. Agatha briefly stood still and stared at the new machine that had appeared from the sky. The crab clank turned to face the machine and fired its laser at the glowing shield dome. What surprised the many onlookers was that the laser blast was deflected by the shield.
Agatha then shouted at Burke. "What is that?!"
"My partner." Burke said coolly and ran toward the new machine. With what appeared to be a flawlessly executed move as they pilot hatch opened up and seated himself inside. "Good to see you again VEX."
"Welcome back pilot." VX said as he equipped the X016 chaingun and aimed it at the crab clank.
-END CHAPTER-