Chapter 8: The Council of Saxton
"Alright, now that our Scouts have shown up, we can begin the council," Saxton said, and waved his hand to a wheeled tray that was placed in the center of the room. "Freddie Billows, you may place the bomb on that tray right there."
Timidly, Freddie took off the necklace with the bomb attached to it, and gingerly placed it on the tray on its side. Everyone stared at the One Bomb with a mix of interest and disgust. Then they all sat in a circle of chairs that had been placed around the tray, with Saxton rolling his chair forward to fill in the last gap.
"Before we get started, I would like to introduce everyone present," Saxton said, and waved his hand to Bobbie, Freddie, Gerald, a blue-dressed Sniper, an Engineer wearing a red shirt with a long ginger-colored beard, a Soldier wearing a red uniform, and Aonghus. "Here, we have Bobbie and Freddie Billows, Gerald the Red, Matthias to represent the Badlands area, Gavin son of Gage, who was one of the thirteen Engineers to accompany Bobbie to Thunder Mountain, Benjamin son of Bigrock's current Sergeant Donathan, and Aonghus son of Aonghas."
Once everyone regarded each other promptly, Saxton continued, "Now that you know the bomb is here, I will briefly fill you in on how it got here. After Iomhar had slain Gray Mann during the last battle of the Machine Wars, he decided to take it with him back to Scotland. Unfortunately, he was assassinated by Robot Snipers, and lost the bomb near a stream, which ran near Lumberyard. There, after several years, the bomb was picked up by Mumble, an insane Scout wearing the mask of a Pyro he killed, who took it when he ran away to the mountains near Coldfront. Then after a few more years, Bobbie Billows here found the bomb when he got separated from his group during the quest to Thunder Mountain, and after that passed it onto Freddie.
"But now, the Moving Fortress has started functioning again, building new Robots and awakening the Androids, which look almost human. The reason for this, according to Gerald, is that the Moving Fortress's main computer is being controlled by the Monoculous, a physical manifestation of Gray Mann's spirit, which has become increasingly restless. Gerald learned all these things during his stay with Merasmus, who is helping the Monoculous by creating a mass army of zombies! Because of the threat of the Androids, Freddie was forced to leave his pleasant home in Harvest and journey to Mountain Lab, despite the danger he was constantly in. For this selfless bravery, I thank him, but now the question remains: what do we do about the bomb? Should we hide it, or destroy it?"
Nobody answered, which made Freddie feel nervous.
"That's the big dilemma, isn't it?" Saxton said. "None of you can afford to keep such a powerful thing in your possession without getting the Robot's attention. For instance, I've recently been getting reports that several Robots have been seen along the borders of Mountain Lab. While I have faith in my Snipers to take care of them, I have doubts about how long they will hold up."
"Then let's stop playing games and destroy the damn thing already!" Gavin said and before anyone could stop him, he took out a Wrench and slammed it down on the bomb.
To everyone's surprise, the bomb didn't explode. Instead, the Wrench bent in half after hitting the bomb's surface. In shock, Gavin dropped the Wrench.
"That just ain't right," Gavin stuttered.
"As you can see by Gavin's unnecessary demonstration, the bomb cannot be destroyed due to its extremely tough exterior," Saxton resumed after Gavin picked his Wrench back up. "Unless it was set to detonate."
"I have an idea!" Benjamin said, raising his hand. "Why don't we use the bomb against Gray Mann and Merasmus? We'd have the advantage, and we could eliminate the two threats at the same time!"
"Are you out of your goddamn mind?" Aonghus interrupted. "If you detonated that thing anywhere, a whole area could be destroyed, maybe even the entire country!"
Benjamin glared at Aonghus, though a helmet obscured his eyes. "And why should I listen to you, Demoman?"
"Because he's an expert on bombs, you bloody idiot!" Matthias shouted, standing up. "Why do you think he's called a Demoman? Plus he's the heir of Iomhar's legacy, and I do seem to recall Iomhar had once controlled Bigrock."
"So what? My father has protected Bigrock for twenty years, and I don't hear him wishing the grandson of Iomhar would come to save him!" Benjamin replied boldly.
"I am his great-great-great-great-great grandson, thank you," Aonghus said with irritation.
"Ah, who cares? We're not getting anywhere with all this crap about family lines," said Benjamin, waving his hand dismissively. "I still think my plan is the best solution!"
"As tempting as it is to use the One Bomb ourselves, Aonghus does have a point," Saxton interceded. "There's too much risk involved, and we'd be no different than that b****rd Gray Mann."
An eerie silence hung over the room, making everyone uncomfortable.
Then after several minutes, Saxton broke the silence. "There is one possible solution, but I can't guarantee it will work."
"Well let's hear it, then," Gavin said. "Any plan's better than no plan."
"I still think my plan's the better one!" Benjamin shouted.
Saxton paused for a moment, then he said, "During the Machine Wars, the Spies we had in our service had reason to believe that the Moving Fortress is made of the same material the One Bomb is made out of, which would explain why the Fortress hasn't been completely destroyed, only rendered useless until now. So theoretically, if someone could get inside the Moving Fortress and detonate the bomb in there, the explosion could be contained within the Fortress itself. Of course, since the bomb has never been used, we can't guarantee that'll happen. For all I know, the world could really end. But, if any of you are brave enough to take on this dangerous and highly-secretive task, speak now."
"Are you crazy?" Benjamin exclaimed. "You can't just simply waltz into the Moving Fortress and expect that the Robots are just going to sit back!"
"Aw, do I smell fear, mate?" asked Matthias mockingly. "If you're too chicken, then maybe I'll take the bomb for you."
"Like hell I'll let a cold-blooded Sniper take the bomb," Gavin responded, standing up with a Jag Wrench in his hand.
"Oh, yeah, and what makes an egg-headed Engineer like you so special?" Matthias retorted. "I bet you don't even know how to make a decent Sentry."
From there, the whole room erupted into a series of arguments. Matthias and Gavin were arguing with Aonghus trying to break up the two, then Benjamin started yelling at Saxton for no good reason, causing Gerald to have to play mediator between them. As for Bobbie, he just calmly took out a cigarette and started smoking it. Meanwhile, Freddie was constantly staring at the One Bomb, and then a crazy thought came to his head.
"ALRIGHT, I'LL TAKE THE BOMB!" Freddie shouted.
That statement got everyone's attention, forcing everyone to look at Freddie. Even Bobbie was surprised. Saxton turned his enormous square-jaw at Freddie and asked, "What did you say?"
"I'll take the bomb, to the Moving Fortress," Freddie said, hesitating on the last part. "I was able to bring it here, so that gives me some credit. Granted, I almost died, but that shouldn't stop me from trying."
"Do you have a particular route in mind?" Saxton eyed Freddie in a way that made him feel intimidated.
"Uh, I know I need to go south," Freddie answered, and then he looked down. "But, I don't have any particular route to go on."
"Then I'll show you the way," Gerald said, taking a stand next to Freddie.
"Hey, if you're going to dangerous places, then we're coming with you," Steve said, approaching the circle from the dimly lit entrance, followed by Mickey and Patten.
"We stuck our necks out for you before, so we'll expect payback when we all get home," Mickey added, standing next to Freddie, with Patten and Steve beside him.
"You do realize that this quest is going to be even more dangerous, right?" Gerald said, but when the three Scouts gave him stern faces, he sighed, "But I suppose you three would still accompany Freddie regardless."
"Freddie's a brave Scout, Gerald, and that's something to admire," Aonghus said, and knelt before Freddie. "By my sword, I will follow you through hell and back."
Once Aonghus stood stood next to Gerald, Matthias stood up.
"You'll probably need my bow to keep Robots off your tails, mates," Matthias said using his freehand to grab the Huntsman bow that was next to his chair before he took his place behind the three Scouts.
"I may not know how to build a Sentry, let alone a Dispenser, but you've got my wrench to keep you boys covered," Gavin said, and stood next to Matthias with the Jag Wrench in his hand. "Plus, I don't want to let a Sniper take all the credit."
After a brief cursing, Benjamin stood up and joined the group. "I still think we should've gone with my plan, but as Sun Tzu always said, 'If you can't beat them, join them'."
Saxton looked at each of the nine men in the eye, and then he said, "Well, this turned out better than I expected. Four Scouts, a Medic, a Demoman, a Sniper, an Engineer, and a Soldier. Not a bad team considering the circumstances of the quest, so from this day forth, you shall be known to us as the Mercenaries of the Bomb."
End of Chapter 8