Page 10
Chapter 3
Inside of a quiet and bleak cave, an unheard waterfall is rushing is down to a river that will travel its way to a sea.
Enid removed her armor to show her casual clothing. She had finally shown herself to the man that hasn't changed his appearance at all. She readied her revolver from the back of her short belt and she never backed down from her powers that will come out of her glove that were never taken off before. She needed those gloves to restrict her untrained powers, her master gave those to her. She never got to ask on how he got those, but there were no more chance to do that anymore.
Enid crossed her arms to see the man that was sitting on a rock and looking down at the ground. She walked casually around him to ask a few questions.
"I heard that you are the one that hunted down my master and myself with your...brilliant skills of technology?"
"Yes." he answered without any movement.
Enid clenched a revolver behind her back, her breathing was even as she kept herself calm for an upcoming attack.
"Have you fought with my master?" Enid asked.
"Many times, yet it was impossible for my strength and my companions combine to defeat him. I collected so many data of him, but he always destroy my works with his goddamn blades."
"Are you going to attack me?" Enid clenched at her gun again.
"...No" he shook his head and waved his hands around.
Enid saw his empty hands. She relaxed herself from letting go of the revolver. She tilted her head in surprised that this man is calmly saying that he will not attack her, so she gave him a frown.
"Why not? I was with my master, for almost 2 decades. Why not take me down as well?" Enid took her gun out from her belt and have it hanged on her hand.
"...You are the only person that will defeat the mastermind."
Enid was even more surprised to hear that. Her hands began to sweat in her gloves, she was used to to it, but the feeling was unpleasant. Those words reminded her on the day when her master decide to die. She wanted to join him, yet she had been ordered to live. She clenched her hands with more force, and she punched the wall that was next to the man's head. She glared at him with her bright golden eyes. Enid saw closely that the man had one golden robot eye from his left side and his right side was dark brown, then she looked away.
"Are you playing games with me?" Enid was no mutated person, but she was a lost human before. She had no memories of her past, but her memories upon being with her master was never forgotten.
"I am not, in fact I opposed to what that person is currently planning, and what he had done to me."
"Prove it, if not, then get ready for a brutal suplex."
Enid let the man stood up to use a watch from his human arm to take out a profile screen that was prior to his previous life. Enid took the screen and she made no surprise on who this man is. He was an expert of engineer. At the age of 17, he was diagnosed with a stroke and was taken in for the Avis project to survive...
"Now you know about me, all this guy wanted was peace, he asked for my help, yet I did not play by his cards."
"!"
Enid looked at him in shock, but she shook her head to keep herself together. "I see, you are an engineer that almost died of a stroke at a rare age of 17."
"I wasn't the good guy back there. I had to keep my stress level even since most of time was boring at work. I had my babe with-" He stopped himself and cleared his throat.
"I see, so why do you oppose the mastermind's plans? I thought you're his partner?"
"I wasn't his partner in the first place. I was a prisoner, I pretty much caused a lot of trouble when I snuck out a few times. I was captured a lot of times, and they made me part of the team. At first, I didn't give a damn since I was a genius and I was strong. I lived in a good life until I had that fucking stroke. They forced me to take in those painful procedures just to stay alive just because they wanted me to live! I didn't give them my consent to use a chainsaw to cut my useless left side to put in this goddamn arm on me and this robotic things on me! Fuck!"
"..."
Enid looked at the man's left arm, it was indeed infected. She did not expect to hear from the man to talk about his personal life, but she remained quiet and let him continue on.
"I've seen Xero many times in person and computer screens. Old, frail, and weakened by his age in order to survive for just you. His appearance may be different, but he was very strong. I was dying at times when he stabbed me with his swords multiple times. He kept on going and going just for you..." he turned to Enid. "You were really special to him."
"..." Enid shook her head at him since he was going off topic, so she sighed at him. "What about the New Order?"
"Oh that's right, my only view from the mastermind is that of course, I've never met the guy, but I do know that he is a very sophisticated on using the Bolverk Squad and the Overseer as puppets. I don't know why he would do this whole event and why he would hunt down "Xero". The sole survivor from the Bolverk squad trained you for his entire youth and the mastermind was aware of you. He's probably hunting for you right now by sending his companions."
"I'm ready for anything. You saw me killed those humans back there and you know how strong I am when I fought with you."
"I know, but I'm just saying that you should be careful since you are..." he peered at Enid's figure.
"Appearance and gender do not matter, I said I'm ready to give them hell."
"Oh don't get the wrong idea lady! I was talking about those powers that were using on me, you almost got us killed back there!"
"...Oh, I apologize for that, I used my powers for emergencies only, but I used these gloves to restrict my powers, my master gave them to me. I am... in an E rank of those powers."
Avis stare at her gloves for a while and he smiled. "Ah! Well I'm starting to like you kid!"
Enid flinched and she sighed heavily to herself.
"I am a human that had been trained by the sole survivor of the Bolverk's Conflict Aftermath. I was entrusted with the two powers that my master trained me for over a decade, so... you do not call me a KID."
Enid said that in a calm and sophisticated way so she will control her temper in front of a stranger that might be plotting something just to make her out of control. She had been holding her anger for a long time and she restrained herself when she clenched her hands.
"All right, all right, no need to get angry. I'll call you Kaylenna for now on, happy?"
"Satisfied, and yours?"
"Avis Grefield, at your service."
"You want to accompany me?"
"Yeah, I'm more interested in this person more than you Kaylenna, I promise that I will not go in your way."
Enid thought that she was going to fulfill the quest alone, but to think that someone else that is involved in her mission.
"If you stay with me any longer, then you will DIE."
"I am well aware of that, now are we done here?"
"Time is wasting, so welcome to my...new Squad."
"Heh, with pleasure."
Avis lift his right hand and they both exchange a handshake and walked out of the blue cave.
As soon as the two people went out of the cave to see the bright sun shining down the rocky place. Avis checked his panel to see a map and he transfer the screen to show it on the outside for Enid to see clearly from her naked eyes.
"Ok, this is where we are," he points to the red dot, "right now, we would like to go here."
"What is this place?"
"This place is called Glenndoa, this headquarter have a computer for finding the location on where the mastermind is. We have to be careful as well, there are very heavy security in there."
"Well, who the hell do you think you're talking to?" Enid smiled at him with confident.
"Ah, finally, you gave me a smile, that's very cute."
"!" Enid blushed when he said that, and she looked away from her red face, "Anyways, I have a question for you!"
"What is it?"
"Why are you helping me?"
Avis put his screen away from his watch and he sighed to himself "I have nowhere to go and I would like to see the mastermind for myself since he never shown himself. I would call for him in my workshop sometimes, but he never came over," he laughed to himself. "Like I said, I wasn't his partner in the goddamn first place."
Avis smiled at Enid and got up from the ground to throw his cube on the ground to transform into a hummer.
"Pretty cool huh? It's nice to be an engineer! You see, engineers these days stopped making those kinds of model and I made this one for myself! Ha!" Avis looked at Enid that was crossing her arms."Maybe you should learn a few things right?"
"No." Enid rolled her eyes and he started the engine without saying anything else...
While Enid was sleeping, she dreamed that she was a little girl again, swinging her sword many times as usual since her master made her do it all day and night. Now it had turned to weeks since she had to learn how to use the sword.
Her hands were blistered and her body was at her limits, however, she kept going to make her master proud. She did complained many times that she was tired and her hands were painful. Her master would yell at her or hit her head with his cane and soon she grew afraid of his painful actions.
"Enid..."
"!"
Enid dropped her wooden sword when she heard his voice and he limped towards her. Her little hands trembled when she stare at his wrinkled face and grey hair. She clenched her blistered hands to keep herself together and she picked up her wooden sword again.
"That is enough."
"But master..."
"It is not a suggestion, now drop it."
"Yes master..."
Enid did as he said and limped closer to her that had her raised her hands over her head.
"I believed I must of did something wrong to hurt you."
"Master?" Enid tilted her head when her master was giving her a soft pat on her hair. She felt the strange heat from and yet, it felt nice and Enid had to smile.
"There we go, now you look beautiful..."
"Master!" Enid hugged him tight and smelled his usual horrible stench from his unwashed body, but she didn't care and she squeezed his broken body.
"All right, now let go of me."
"I apologized master!" Enid stepped back and bowed.
"Enid, you are almost ten years old. I think you are old enough to understand that you should hear my story."
"Really?! A story?" Enid jumped up and down in excitement, but her master gave her a sad expression.
"However, it will not be a story with a happy ending. You see Enid, not all stories have the most happiest endings that can satisfy everyone without the logic on understanding someone's compassion towards themselves or others. We explore and we never stop our journey to honor our imaginations or realism to the fullest, now remember this, keep moving forward until the end. Take your time and develop your life to the fullest and when you are done, you are ready to take any challenges to fulfill when I die..."
"Master..." Enid smiled and she couldn't herself but hug him again. "Master, I will always be loyal to you, no matter what... I'll cherish my story to honor you."
Enid felt the heat from her hair again and she never let go of his broken body.
"Kaylenna? Kaylenna?! Wakey~ Wakey~"
"Achoo!"
Kaylenna felt a tickle from her nose and she had woke up with a sneeze. She was back in the leather car seat and somehow, Avis' face was close to hers, she gave him a frown and pushed his face away.
"Hey! Hey! I was just waking you up!" Avis screamed.
"You ignorant man, what do you want?" Enid said.
"My baby needs some charging after being out there for so long." Avis patted on his car. "This here can charge by the moonlight since it is a full moon. If the sun is up, then the panels will switch back to solar rays automatically when we're still sleeping till noon."
"As expected from an engineer." Enid crossed her arms and she shivered.
"Here."
"!"
Enid was wrapped with a huge strength that clenched on her small body. She gave Avis a frown while he gave her an expression that she had never seen before. He fell asleep right away with Enid trying to struggle. She gave when she never felt this strange heat before, the increased of her temperature was coming from her face, so she patted her face. He must be exhausted after all this. Enid sighed to accept this heat and she fell asleep in an instant.