Disclaimer: I do not own Radiata Stories. It belongs to Tri-Ace.
Chapter 3: The Hecton Squad
The ticking of the clock was the only sound heard within the small house. Jack awoke with a start, unsure of where he was. He then remembered the events of last night. The teen looked around his new home. Garbage was piled along the corners. A spider web with its creator still there hung over the bed. A crate filled with umbrellas swords, and a moai head sat in the corner beside the door. A pair of boots lay next to the crate. Apparently, someone had already lived here and moved. The only object that wasn't junk was the phonograph by the foot of the bed. Jack reminded himself to clean up the place as he headed out the door.
At Theater Vancoor, Thanos was waiting for the new recruit to arrive. Once Jack came in, the receptionist called him over. "All right kid, you're in the Hecton squad. Your sergeant is Jarvis. The locker room is one floor down." Something bugged Jack. "Jarvis? That name sounds familiar…" Thanos tapped his fingers on the desk. "Well? Get going!" Listening to the man, Jack headed down to his locker room.
Downstairs, Jack stood before the locker room door. Jarvis…he heard that name before but where? The teen knocked on the door. A jovial voice answered. "Ah! The new lad! Come in!" When he entered, smoke assaulted his eyes. The room was filled with smoke, beer bottles, and garbage. Sitting alone at the table was a man in plated armor with a helmet adorned with a tiny axe. The two made eye contact almost immediately.
As they were staring at each other, the gears in their heads were working. Didn't he see this guy before? Two eyebrows were raised. Two looks of surprise. Both Jack and Jarvis backed away in shock. "The shrimp!" Jarvis announced. "The old wino!" Jack yelled while pointing. Jarvis banged his head against the table. "Oh! Why did I have to get stuck with you!" he whined. Jack shared his disappointment as well. "Jarvis…I knew I heard that name somewhere. Great. I have a wino for a boss…" The man pounded his fist against the table. "I should be the one complaining! Well…come on. We're going off to the training ground." Interest appeared on Jack's face. "Why? You want another rematch?" A grimace graced Jarvis' features. "The kid still has a big mouth…" He left without another word.
Out on the training ground, Jarvis and Jack were watching a fighter practice on a dummy. "Daniel! Over here boy!" The fighter, a round teen in brown armor, turned around with axe in hand. The Hecton squad sergeant directed Jack over to introduce the young man. "This is Daniel, the second-in-command in the Hecton squad…then again, there were only two of us…" He shoved Jack toward the other fighter. "You two are going to battle it out to see who is going to become corporeal. Will you command…or be private? Well? Go at it!"
A hand was extended to Daniel. "Hi, I'm Jack. Looks like we're going to be fighting. Let's keep it friendly, all right?" The reaction was something Jack didn't want. "No way! I'm gonna grind your bones into dust!" An idea came to Jack. He then decided to antagonize the axe fighter further. "Oh yeah? I'd like to see that!" Daniel began stomping the ground, exhibiting a bad tantrum. "That's right! Get angry! That's something I wanna see!" Jack taunted. Red colored the axe fighter's cheeks. He was furious and embarrassed. How dare this new recruit taunt him like that! With a loud battle cry, Daniel charged in.
To the teen, this battle was easy. Not only did Daniel rush in without thinking, his axe prevented quick strikes. Remembering his fight with Ridley, Jack jumped out of the way whenever Daniel swung and retaliated with a quick slash. Eventually, the axe fighter fell and Jack came out of it with no scratches. Jack decided to taunt Daniel some more. "Man…you're really bad at this, aren't you? How in the world did you get into Theater Vancoor?" Jarvis came over with a jovial smile. "Well done! Jack, you are now corporeal. Daniel…you're private." A feeling of accomplishment washed over the teen. "Thanks but…maybe I should be private. I mean Daniel has been here longer than I have…"
Silence. Jarvis punched Jack on the head, causing him to fall onto his face. "IDIOT! In Theater Vancoor, ability is all that matters! You're not supposed to feel sorry for someone! Daniel…you need to train harder. We will start our next mission at three. But for now…you're dismissed…except you Jack." A confused expression appeared on Jack's face as Daniel left. "Now that you're corporeal, I need to teach you a few things." Jack smiled cockily. "I hope it's not fighting. I wiped the floor with you on that." Jarvis stamped his foot. "Look kid, I wasn't in the best shape. You probably saw…twenty percent of my strength. Now pay attention you idiot. When the squad is not receiving missions, you can go on solo missions with your own group of warriors. But the squad comes first. You need to know how to give out commands." Jack only listened to half of the lecture, taking his time staring at Radiata Castle in the distance. When Jarvis figured the teen wasn't listening, he gave him another punch.
Downstairs, Jack saw Felix standing by the reception desk. "Hey Felix. What are you doing here?" The mage finished signing a piece of paper attached to a clipboard before talking to Jack. "Hi Jack. I was just signing up for your friend list. If you need me, I'll be in the institute. Bye." The mage left, leaving Jack confused by what he said. "Uh…what? I have a friend list?" Thanos pointed to the clipboard. "See this? This is your friend list. All the people you recruit to fight with you go right here." Jack stared at the list. The only name he saw on there was Felix's name. "You don't have many friends, do ya? In fact, your only friend was that guy that looked like a chick", Thanos said smugly. "You're my friend right?" Jack asked the receptionist. Thanos frowned. "What! No! I barely know you! Listen…if you want more friends, you got to talk to people. See that guy pounding the table? Watch that guy going into the bathroom every day. Talk to them, solve their problems…it'll work like a charm. Sometimes, some people won't even give you the time of day. You have to earn their trust…you understand?" Jack stared at Thanos. "Okay. Will you be my friend now?" "No! Damn country kids…don't know anything!"
At three in the afternoon, Jack entered the Hecton Squad locker room, ready for his first mission. Jarvis and Daniel were already awaiting his arrival. "Good! We're all here! Now then…" Jarvis started. "Our mission comes from Anastasia of the Olacion Order. She requires the skin of a crocogator. Honestly, I don't know why." Out of the corner of his eye, Jack noticed the axe fighter panic. "Y-you don't mean…" The sergeant eyed Daniel suspiciously. "What? You know something?" "Crocogator skin is for making purses. All the rich ladies want it." "Excellent! With a professional on the subject, we can—
Daniel stood up, interrupting Jarvis. "No! I'll never kill a crocogator! What would Isabella think?" Jarvis pounded the table. "What is wrong with you boy?" The axe fighter ran out the door, proclaiming his refusal. "Who is Isabella?" Jack leaned back in his chair. "Beats me. Well…looks like it's just the two of us." With a resigned sigh, Jarvis got up and headed upstairs with Jack close behind. A thought came to Jack. "Hey Sarge…where do crocogators live anyway?" The sergeant answered with a pause. "If I remember…they live in the elf region."
After a long trek through the Tria and Cuatour region, Jarvis and Jack arrived at their destination by nightfall. The sounds of crickets and frogs filled the air as the Hecton Squad made their way to a small river. To their great fortune, a crocogator was lying in wait for its next meal. Unfortunately, the next meal to the crocogator was Hecton Squad steaks. Jarvis commanded Jack to go behind the beast while he distracted it. The battle began.
With his two-handed sword Fathmil, Jarvis did a great job of keeping the crocogator occupied while Jack lined up a rear attack. On the other side of the beast, Jack wasn't having much luck. The thrashing tail kept Jack from going any further and the fact his Iron Edge didn't have much length to it didn't help. Unfortunately, the situation grew worse. Fed up with the sergeant, the crocogator turned around and made a beeline for Jack. Jarvis began to panic. "Do something!" He rushed after the crocogator to save his corporeal.
It wasn't looking good. Jack backed away quickly as the beast closed in. This was the first time he was truly in danger of dying. Those fights with Ridley, Gerald, that crazy guy near the Beast Pit, Jarvis, and Daniel didn't matter now. As a last stand, Jack gathered up his courage and charged in. As he dashed toward the beast, he felt a strange sensation. It was as if he could do anything. Holding on to that feeling, Jack prepared himself for an attack.
To his surprise, a fiery aura surrounded him. It was similar to Ridley and Gerald's aura. It signaled a powerful strike. Maybe…it was his turn to strike, not receive a beating from it. But…what attack was this? The gap between him and the crocogator was closing fast. Finally, it came to him. "Limit Break!" The flaming aura flared up considerably. It was as if time stopped. The crocogator was now sitting there, ready to be sliced into oblivion. "Here goes!" Jack unleashed an intense flurry of slashes, ending in a powerful uppercut with the blade.
Jarvis patted Jack on the back as they stared at the now skinned crocogator. "Good job kid." "Hey Sarge…you know what I just did right now?" "That? It's a powerful attack called a volty blast. Only the most accomplished fighters can use that...or at least someone with a mastery of their weapon. No two volties are the same. I guess you could say it's your trump card. Don't use it too much. It takes a lot of energy." Jack smiled and gave a solute. "Yes sir!" "Finally! Some respect!"
While walking past a large crevice, Jarvis noticed a statue of a pig sitting at the side of the road. "Excellent!" Jack was confused. "It's a statue…" The sergeant shook his head at Jack's ignorance. "It's not just a statue. It's a journey pig. Touch this and you can warp instantly to your destination", Jarvis explained. "Cool! Let's use this and warp to Anastasia's place!" A frown appeared on the sergeant's face. "It's not that convenient. It can only warp to places where there are other journey pigs. Now go touch it and take us back to Radiata." Jack kicked the journey pig, warping the two back to Radiata. "Don't kick the journey pig!" Jarvis scolded once they were outside Lupus Gate.
The Olacion Order chapel was even more grandiose up close. Jack gawked at the structure before being dragged in by his sergeant. Inside the chapel, monks, priests, and nuns were sitting in seats, listening to the high priest standing at the pulpit. The Hecton Squad members rushed quickly to their client's room and knocked. It wasn't long before someone answered.
A silver-haired young woman appeared, trying to look superior to the warriors. "This is the chamber of Lady Anastasia of the Olacion Order. What do you want?" "We're here about the crocogator", Jarvis explained. The girl went back in for a minute before coming back about with a sullen expression. "Enter." The second Jack entered the room, he felt his stomach lurch.
Sitting in the splendid chair was a large woman. She was not attractive to put it lightly. Her lips seemed too big for her face, her red hair was placed in a strange style, and her neck was barely visible. She smiled with her teeth showing, causing Jack to cringe. The girl, Elena, glared at Jack. Jarvis handed Anastasia the crocogator skin and waited. "What's she doing?" Jack asked. "She's appraising the skin", Elena replied. "Elena", Anastasia commanded. The girl went over to the woman and whispered amongst themselves. Elena handed Jack a small package consisting of a hundred dagols. "What's this?" he asked. "Your pay", Anastasia answered. Jarvis was disappointed. "That's all?" "Dear, this is a skin of poor quality." This caused Jack to snap. "What! After all that time we spent getting for you!" Elena glared back in a haughty manner. "Then do it right in the first place. It looks like standards are slipping…" Growling angrily, Jack left the room.
Outside, Jack plopped himself down onto a bench. He was so frustrated. He nearly died and that woman had the guts to say she didn't like it. His anger was near the breaking point. "Gah! That ugly woman! She makes me so mad!" Jack punched the bench, causing it to crack. Nearby, a man with spiky hair and wearing monk clothes was training. He noticed the angry teen crack the bench. Impressed by that show of strength, he went over to talk.
"Hey there. I saw you crack the bench…that's really good." Jack, trying to ignore the throbbing pain in his fist, grinned. "You think? Thanks." "The name's Cosmo. I'm a monk of the Olacion Order." "I'm Jack of Theater Vancoor. I'm not really thrilled with you Olacion people. That Anastasia woman just…gah!" Cosmo folded his arms. "I know what you mean. She values money over everything. Master Fernando is not really fond of her. The Olacion Order is split into two because of their conflicting views. The high priest Lord Kain is hoping the two factions would unite but…" Jack sighed. "That's too bad…would you be my friend?" This puzzled Cosmo. "What? What are you talking about?" "Thanos said I should get more friends." "Um…okay…"
Back at Theater Vancoor, Jarvis and Jack saw Daniel waiting outside. The sergeant marched over to the axe fighter, angry about the impromptu departure hours ago. "Daniel! How dare you run off on a squad mission like that!" "I-I'm sorry Sergeant Jarvis but…I couldn't…I promised I would never kill a crocogator! If Isabella heard about it…" Jarvis made a puzzled face. "Who in the world is Isabella?" "She's my pet crocogator", Daniel answered. The other two Hecton Squad members were shocked. "I don't think…that's safe…" Jack mumbled. The sergeant regained his composure. "Well…the mission is done. Hecton Squad…dismissed! And Jack…buy some armor and a new weapon." "…Yes sir."
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