"You're late." Praxis' Driver said, staring at the two Blades in front of him as he put down the shipping manifest he had been amending. There was no reproach in his voice; it was stated as a mere fact.
Perhaps because it was obvious they had been in a fight. While both were in good health, their clothes were dirtied and cut, the latter a sign they hadn't even taken the time to resummon their wardrobe.
As she approached, Praxis opened her affinity link with her Driver, a sigh escaping her as the ether in her body began to churn. She hadn't used quite enough ether on her own to start risking ether flow stagnation, but even the amount she had thrown around during the scuffle had still left her feeling a little nauseous.
She could see Theory staring at the pale-blue link with ill-disguised envy. Not that Praxis could blame her; Theory had used much more ether than she had, but her Driver was off-Titan, so the ice Blade would have to make due with her passive bond to alleviate her.
"Without the target, no doubt." The Driver stated, seeming unsurprised.
Praxis looked at him, eyes wide. "You knew they had separated?"
Her Driver shook his head. "Not when I sent you out, but shortly before you returned, the broker sent out an update that her companions had been encountered without her."
"And he couldn't have sent it out earlier?" Praxis groused, the pale blue affinity link briefly thinning. "We wouldn't have wasted our time with those brats if we had known."
Theory gave her a level stare. "We only fought them because you insisted." She said. "If you recall, my recommendation was to freeze them in place from the start and-"
"Enough." The Driver said with an authoritative tone. "Argue on your own time. Right now, I need answers. Are they affiliated or not?"
The two Blades looked at each other for a moment before Praxis spoke up. "Definitely. She wasn't with them, but the salvager boy was using the Aegis' weapon."
Her Driver nodded. "You're certain of this?"
"It had an emerald weapon core, and he was using light ether with his Arts." She stated. The element itself, while rare, was not proof that the Aegis was involved on its own, but it certainly made sense in context.
"Without her there to provide ether?" He asked, sounding curious.
Praxis grimaced at the reminder. "He wasn't even slowed down." She said. "I don't know how they managed it, but he was fighting like a Driver with a Blade on-hand." The girl paused for a moment before adding, "And before you ask, he definitely didn't have another Blade around either. There wasn't an affinity link running off of him."
The Driver frowned at her report. "That's certainly concerning. My plans for capturing her had involved keeping them separated, but if he can still fight at a Driver's level regardless…" The man trailed off, thinking. "I wonder, though… how is he managing it?"
"I think it was residual ether in his weapon." Praxis replied. "Unless the Aegis can provide as much ether over a passive affinity link as I can over an active one, that's gotta be it, right?"
"Maybe." Theory added, mulling over the events of the battle. "There were some… irregularities during the fight, though."
Praxis looked over at her. "You mean the second barrier, right?"
Theory nodded in response. "Yes. You were likely too close to notice it, but the second barrier was centered on the Aegis' Driver. Under normal circumstances, I would have presumed that beast Blade threw it up, but considering you had just broken his…"
Her sister Blade seemed to catch on. "Now that I think about it, he was guarding with his sword even though the girl's Blade had a barrier up. I didn't really think about it at the time, but…"
"Certain classes of Blade weapons can project their own barrier variants." Her Driver dismissed. "I doubt you would have been even half as surprised if the boy had been using a Shield Hammer."
"Maybe." The water Blade wasn't entirely convinced. She had been in close range with the boy when that barrier went up, and it certainly didn't look like he was using an Art. Still, it was always possible she had been too focused on stabbing him to notice.
"Regardless, if they're traveling separately, we can take them individually without having to contrive something ourselves." The Driver said. "How about the other Driver, the girl? How much of a problem do you expect her to be?"
Theory spoke up. "She's skilled, especially for her estimated age. Both Praxis and I had difficulty fighting her and her Blade on our own, but with a Driver to even the numbers, it should be more manageable."
Praxis' Driver gave her a look. "And you believe you could handle the Aegis' Driver on your own?" He asked, an eyebrow raised.
"Perhaps." Theory replied. "While he was able to match me earlier, I was able to get consistent hits in. All things considered, in a protracted one-on-one, I believe I could best him in a battle of attrition. Even if not, I am confident I would be able to keep him distracted until you and Praxis had finished off the other Driver."
"And if you had help from another Blade?" He offered.
Her face pinched at the thought of exactly which Blade would likely be helping her. "That… would not be necessary." She said diplomatically. "Your new Blade is still… relatively untested. Perhaps she would be better served undergoing additional teamwork training before-"
"She's a creep!" Praxis cut in. "I dunno about you, Theory, but I don't want her anywhere near me!"
"Praxis." Her Driver said with a note of disapproval. "You know better than to disrespect-"
"Disrespect we who have saved them, yes?" A new voice added as another Blade entered the room with a haughty laugh.
"Oh, great." Praxis shuddered, a feeling of dread running down her spine at the sudden appearance of her teammate.
Ignoring her, their Driver spoke up. "Sheba, I assume your mission was a success?"
His newest Blade, her Core Crystal stolen from a shop in Torigoth just a week prior, gave her Driver a malicious smirk. "Indeed, we were!" She declared, flicking one of her blonde twintails over her shoulder. "That loathsome Nopon broker made it difficult to observe, but we were able to trace the courier providing updates back to the Consulate. It would appear you were correct, in that the incompetent oaf of a Consul is indeed our ultimate employer."
Giving the other two Blades in the room a lascivious gaze, she added, "And we even had the time to rescue our lovely…" She paused for a moment, thinking of the appropriate term, "…paramours from those brutish Ardainians."
Stamping down a wave of revulsion toward her fellow Blade, Praxis rebutted, "We didn't need your help, you sexual deviant!" She spat. "We would have gotten out of there just fine on our own!"
Rather than be offended by Praxis' words, Sheba merely looked at her more intensely. "Our dear, how exactly were you planning on dealing with the ether nets those brutes were about to fire at you?" She purred. "Had we not been there, the Special Inquisitor and her lovely Blade would have carted you off."
Her expression darkened. "And we will not allow anyone to poach members from our harem." She practically growled the last few words.
Praxis took a step back, unnerved as ever by the other water Blade. Their Driver, on the other hand, rolled his eyes at Sheba's behavior.
"I see." He said, looking back over the papers on the table. "Good work, Sheba. Feel free to play with some of the captured Blades while I plan our next moves."
The water Blade grinned in delight. "We suppose this will suffice until our paramours reciprocate our advances." She sighed theatrically, conjuring water ether in the shape of a bathtub to carry her along like a palanquin.
"Like hell that will ever happen!" Praxis seethed.
Sheba merely laughed as she rode out of the door. "My lovely, our paramours always come around one way or the other. Some just require a little more… convincing."
Her laughter rang through their base as she departed for the lower caves, leaving two disconcerted Blades in her wake.
Praxis gritted her teeth and looked over at her Driver. "Boss, on what planet were we desperate enough for manpower to awaken a psycho like that!?"
The Driver shrugged, turning back to the papers on the table. "You know there's no way to tell what a Blade is like before they're awakened." He replied. "Besides, her talents are useful in our line of work."
"Of course," Praxis muttered under her breath, "'picking out beautiful women'. What a useful talent! It's so much more useful than-"
"Praxis, enough." Theory stopped her.
Her Driver gave her an unimpressed stare before turning back to his work. "Get some rest." He said, waving them out. "You'll be out looking for those brats come morning. Understood?"
She schooled her expression. "Yes, Boss." She replied sharply, the affinity link between them snapping as she did. Without another word, Praxis stormed out of the room.
Theory made to follow her, but stopped. "You should be aware that the Special Inquisitor is in Torigoth." She said softly. "She is the primary reason we were unable to capture the Aegis' Driver.
"I see." The Gormotti man said, frowning. "This complicates matters, but we should be able to work around it. Thank you for bringing it to my attention."
"Of course." She nodded respectfully. He may not be her Driver, but she held respect for the man; he wasn't nearly as rude as Waldemar could be.
She left the man to his work, chasing after her sister Blade. They had plans to make for how they would handle the Aegis' Driver.
"Think they're still following us?" Nia asked, leaning around the corner. She couldn't hear anyone pursuing them, but considering the local garrison was used to dealing with Gormotti, that wasn't a guarantee they were safe.
"I do not smell anybody nearby, my Lady." Dromarch offered, curling himself up between a pair of worn crates in the corner.
Azurda flitted through the air, pointing at a hole in the ceiling. "I can scout around if you're concerned." He offered. "They'll have a hard time spotting me in this lighting, after all."
"No need for that, Gramps." Rex replied, digging through his satchel. "But we probably shouldn't stay here for more than a few hours, just to be safe."
'Here', of course, being an abandoned storage building at the end of a pier in Torigoth Harbor. After evading Morag's Blade, they had continued on at ground level, desperate to put as much distance between themselves and the Special Inquisitor as possible.
Their path had eventually taken them to the pier, the farthest they could go without entering the Ardainian district. The pier was mostly empty at this time of night, with only a few foot patrols that had been easily avoided as they quickly sought a place to hide.
"I dunno, moving could be risky." Nia countered, carefully closing the door to the storage building. It was important that she not dislodge too much of the dust and cobwebs, least it be obvious to passersby that the building had seen recent use. "There's not a lot of traffic here ever since the Ardainian settlers started monopolizing the local commerce a decade ago. We're probably best off staying here until we can figure a way out of the city."
Rex pulled out a few packs of trail rations, tossing one to the girl. "It could be days before we have the chance, though." Indeed, with how alert the Ardainians were likely to be after their fight, neither of them were confident that they'd be able to escape Torigoth in the immediate future.
If it was just him and Nia, they could probably swim out when the tide rose again. He had a few spare air cylinders, and his spare suit would probably fit the girl. But with Dromarch and Azurda present, that wasn't exactly an option.
"Then we'll wait a few days." Nia shrugged, tearing open the rations. "It'll hardly change anything, after all; the ports outside Torigoth are still closed, and with us on the loose, I doubt that'll change anytime soon."
"So, then what? We just camp out in the wilderness until they give up the search?" Rex responded, handing out food to Azurda and Dromarch.
"Unless the old man here can un-rejuvenate himself, we don't have a lot of options." The girl snarked.
Azurda chuckled. "I'm afraid that's not going to happen in the near future." He replied. "Unless you're willing to camp out for a century or two, that is!"
"We'll pass." Rex replied, giving the Titan a level stare. He took a bite of the food, only to nearly drop the ration bar as a twinge of pain ran through his arm.
Nia didn't miss his slip. "How bad?" She asked, putting down her food to come take a look at his injuries.
He winced again, rubbing his arm. "Not quite as bad as back on the ship, but definitely worse than the last few times." Rex admitted, showing off the angry red tracery across the limb.
Looking over his arm, Nia frowned. "Exactly how much ether did you draw, anyway? Your capacity should be a fair bit higher now than your first fight."
"Ummm…" He scratched his cheek awkwardly. "As much as my body could handle?"
She gave him a look, before closing her eyes and muttering under her breath. "I told him he'd adapt faster the more he used, I can't get mad at him for listening to me. I told him he'd adapt faster-" She repeated to herself, the words barely audible to the boy. They would have been far more reassuring had they not been accompanied by her brow twitching in irritation.
Rex wisely remained silent as she examined the limb as best she could in the dim light, tracing the thickness of the ether burns. After a few minutes of prodding, the girl nodded to herself in satisfaction.
"Well, I can at least tell that your body is adapting." She noted. "Take a look; see how the center of the lines aren't burned?"
Indeed, on closer inspection that appeared to be the case. What had appeared to be solid lines of irritated red tissue, inflamed by the energy flux that had run through it, was instead merely bordering a thin strip of perfectly healthy flesh.
"Huh." He replied, tracing a finger along it with only a slight wince. It was nice to have a visual indication of his progress, yet despite that… "I was kinda hoping it would go faster, to be honest."
"Kids these days." Azurda huffed, taking a bite of the food. "They only want results but don't want to put in the work!"
"Truly, it is a sad situation." Dromarch chuckled.
Nia rolled her eyes, ignoring their commentary. "There's not a lot more you can do to make it go faster while we're not in private, unless you want to blow your cover." She frowned at the thought. "Although considering earlier, I'm not sure how much of one you have left."
He frowned at the barb. "Look, I had to get that Blade off our backs somehow! What's wrong with doing that?"
"It was unnecessarily risky is what it was!" The girl retorted. "You could have blasted her mid-jump with that new Art of yours and gotten the same effect, or just taken out the roof under her feet!"
Rex grumbled at the comment. "She still could have shielded in midair, and I'm not accurate enough with Sword Blast to hit where she'd be landing yet." Crossing his arms, he continued. "Besides, she already saw me block an earlier hit with my barrier."
"Don't even get me started there! You did the same thing with that Praxis girl's last attack too!" Nia all but yelled. "You didn't even try to pretend it was anything else!"
"My Lady-" Dromarch attempted to cut in.
"What else was I supposed to do?" Rex retorted, cutting the tiger off. "Her attack broke through Dromarch's barrier! We'd have gotten hit otherwise!"
Nia shoved her face right into Rex's, glowering at him. "We could have just taken the hit! It wasn't anything I couldn't have healed!"
"And how do you know that? For all you know, it could have killed one of us!" The boy leaned his own head forward, refusing to back down. "You saw exactly how much ether she'd charged up for it!"
"Rex, calm yourself-" Azurda spoke up, only to be interrupted by Nia.
"Then deflect the hit! You didn't seem to have a problem doing that before!"
"And just what do you think I was doing, collecting rocks!? The barrier was me deflecting it!"
"You should have done it in a less blatant way!"
Frustrated, Rex threw his hands in the air. "What's your problem, anyway? So what if it was blatant? The attack needed to be blocked, so I blocked it the most effective way I could!"
"'My problem' is that you're basically screaming 'I'm actually a Blade' to anyone who is actually paying attention!" She lectured angrily. "Bad enough you did it with those Blade criminals, but the Special Inquisitor's Blade? Do you want to have the entire Ardainian Empire after us? Because congratulations, you got your wish!"
"They were already after us! You because of Torna, me because of my sword! It's not like I'm going to be more wanted than if they think I'm the Aegis' Driver!"
Nia raised a hand to his chest, tapping the Aegis Core Crystal hidden under his wetsuit. "You have no idea what this implies, do you!?" She hissed. "They're not just going to throw you in a cell once they figure out you've got this, you know! At best, they'll force you to bond with an Ardainian Driver and fight in their wars for them! And at worst? They'll figure out you're half-human and ship you off to Indol! Do you have any idea what those monsters do to people like us!?"
"How would I know!?" Rex shouted in response. "I haven't even been doing this for a week!"
"Alright you two, this isn't-" Azurda attempted once again.
The girl's eyes hardened. "That's exactly the point! You're barely even know enough to be considered an absolute beginner, yet you're running around like you're an expert! Did you consider for even a moment that, just maybe, I actually know what I'm talking about here!?"
"I have been taking your advice!" He rebutted, knocking her hand away. "You told me to hide my Core, so I did! You told me to stick to Arts, so I did! And you know what happened? The Special Inquisitor walked right over me! So I'm sooo sorry for helping us actually escape when they'd been able to handle everything else I could throw at them!"
"So that's all you've taken from what I've been telling you!?" She sounded almost offended. "Well apparently you've not been listening, or maybe you're just too-!"
"ENOUGH!" Dromarch roared, loud enough to rattle the door of the storehouse.
Both Rex and Nia took a step back, their argument suddenly forgotten as they looked at the tiger Blade in surprise. For Nia in particular, this was an extremely uncommon occurrence. It had been years since the last time she had seen him genuinely angry.
He stalked up to the pair, growling as he did. "Have you two lost your minds?" The Tiger asked. "We are supposed to be hiding, yet you bicker so loudly that the Emperor himself could hear you from Mor Ardain!"
Nia winced at the barb, realizing just how much her indiscretion undermined the argument she had been making. It was rather hypocritical to lecture about not being subtle when she was yelling at him while they needed to be quiet.
"Perhaps it would be best if the two of you took some time to clear your heads." Azurda suggested.
"Sounds like a plan to me." Rex fumed, turning around and marching to the far corner of the room without so much as giving Nia a look.
He dropped down on a crate in the corner, pulling his food back out and aggressively chewing on it as he mulled over the argument.
On the other side of the room, Nia did much the same. She leaped up onto an empty storage rack, nestling herself in a corner where she commanded a clear overview of the room. She leaned her head back against the wall, distracting herself by listening to see if anyone had heard them arguing.
The responsible members of the party merely gave each other mutual looks of resigned suffering and sighed.
"Teenagers." Azurda muttered, plopping down on the tiger's back.
"I wish that I could refute that." The tiger replied, giving his Driver a worried glance. "Regrettably, regarding my Lady your statement is true on both a physical and chronological level."
Azurda snorted in amusement. "At least I can console myself with the knowledge that I am not the only one here responsible for a reckless teenager."
"My friend, if commiseration is how you wish to pass the time, I have an abundance of stories about my Lady." The tiger agreed, settling down in the middle of the room.
It was most of an hour before anyone approached their hiding spot.
During that time, neither Rex nor Nia had moved from their spots, both simmering in their own thoughts, barely giving Azurda and Dromarch notice as the non-human pair exchanged stories about their respective ward's antics.
Eventually, both Nia and her Blade perked up, the latter knocking the diminutive Titan from his perch on the tiger Blade's back. The girl's ears swiveled slightly as she listened in.
Rex noticed their movements, getting up and quietly walking over to the tiger. "What is it?" He asked quietly.
"There's someone moving outside." The Blade replied, crouching down as he looked over at the door. "I don't think it's a soldier, but I cannot guarantee that."
"It's too small, I think." Nia added as she lowered herself to the ground. "Could be a Rott they sent out to track our scent."
"Without a handler?" Azurda asked, giving the girl a look. "I'll admit, it has been a few centuries since I have had to interact with them, but I don't recall ever seeing the Ardainians just letting them loose."
Dromarch nodded in agreement. "Neither have I, Azurda." The tiger said, carefully stalking up to the door. He closed his eyes, listening carefully. "I do not believe it is a Rott, though. The footsteps… sound bipedal."
"How far out is it?" Rex asked, sidling up against the wall near the door. He placed a hand on the hilt of the Aegis Sword, but didn't draw it.
"…Fifty peds, down the hall to the right." Nia replied, her tone more curt than when she had replied to Dromarch.
Azurda flew up to the hole in the ceiling. "I'll go take a look." He said, placing a hand on one of the edges.
Looking up at him, Rex replied, "Are you sure, Gramps? It could be dangerous."
The Titan waved his concerns off. "I'll be fine! It's hardly the first time I've put my body on the line, after all!"
"I'm aware." Rex replied, frowning as he looked over the Titan's larval form. "You'd better not have to rejuvenate yourself again, understood?"
Azurda chuckled. "Don't worry, my boy. If I find trouble, I'll give a holler. The other two will definitely be able to hear it." Without another word, he pulled himself through the hole.
Rex gave a worried stare at the place his Gramps had just been, fingers drumming the hilt of the Aegis Sword nervously. It wasn't like he didn't trust the old Titan to keep himself safe, but…
Large, vicious lances protruded from his body, their polished surfaces gleaming wickedly in the fading sunlight. The Titan's blood, so rich with ether that it glowed blue, seeped from a dozen wounds, each large enough that they could easily be fatal on their own.
His hand shook at the memory. He had come so close to losing the closest thing he had to a father then, and now he was throwing himself back into potential danger!
Looking over at Dromarch and Nia, who were carefully listening to the movement on the other side of the door, he readied himself to move at a moment's notice. If Gramps got into trouble, he wanted as much warning as possible.
A tense silence fell over the room as they waited. Eventually, whatever was outside drew close enough that even Rex himself could hear the faint sound of movement. The steps were slow and methodical, yet carried a soft and almost… springy sound?
His eyes narrowed as he listened. Those footsteps were definitely familiar in some way, but as much as he tried to remember, the only thing that came to mind was…
"It's a Nopon." He muttered, realization coming to him. Of course it was familiar; he dealt with them so frequently in Goldmouth that the sound of them approaching was ingrained in his head.
"What's a Nopon doing out here at this time of night?" Nia responded, ears twitching. "Smuggling pollen orbs?"
"I believe he is looking for us." Azurda replied, sliding himself back through the hole.
"Gramps!" Rex smiled, clearly relieved the Titan had returned safely. "Did you get a good look at who's out there?"
The old Titan nodded in confirmation. "I did. It's that Nopon engineer we met earlier. Tora, I think it was?"
Nia frowned. "The spy? Why is he here? Did that info broker send him to find us again?"
"Your guess is as good as mine." The Titan shrugged. "But at least he looks like he's trying to avoid attention."
Rex tuned them out, focusing on the sound of the Nopon once again. He was getting closer, probably within ten peds of the door by this point.
"How do you wish to proceed, my Lady, master Rex?" Dromarch inquired even as he readied himself to pounce on anything that walked through the door.
"I'm willing to give him the benefit of the doubt if he finds us." The boy replied. "He did help us earlier, after all.
Nia rolled her eyes at the boy. "Of course you would." She muttered, just loud enough for Rex to hear.
Seeing the look Rex shot her in response, Azurda cut in before they could begin arguing again. "Don't even start." He said, giving Nia a warning look.
The girl prepared to speak up regardless, but any words she may have had died as the door slowly began to creak open. She leapt over a nearby box as quietly as she could, ready to jump the Nopon should he prove hostile.
"Friends?" The Nopon asked, poking his head into the room. In the dark, he probably couldn't make out much. "Are friends in here?"
Contrary to Nia's cautiousness, Rex responded by reaching around the open door and pulling the young Nopon into the room.
Tora yelped in alarm at the abrupt motion, only stopped from making an excessive amount of noise by Rex covering the Nopon's mouth.
"Please keep quiet, Tora." The boy all but begged the struggling Nopon. Tora stilled as he realized who had grabbed him, his eyes wide in surprise. "If you can keep your voice down, I'll let you go. Ok?" He asked. The Nopon eagerly nodded in response.
Cautiously, Rex let go of Tora. Almost immediately, the Nopon boy began whispering excitedly at him.
"Rex-Rex and Nia are ok!" He said, respecting the Boy's request to keep his voice down. "Tora was worried when big-big fight broke out!"
"Yeah, we're fine." Rex replied, a small smile working its way onto his face. "We got a bit banged up, but we're managing."
Nia leaned out from behind the box she had used as cover, giving the Nopon a skeptical look. "Why are you here?" She asked bluntly.
Rather than be offended by her tone, the Nopon puffed out his chest in pride. "Tora come to help friends!" He said. "Friends need to leave town but can't because of bully Ardainians, yes? Tora can help!"
"I see." Azurda commented, scratching his chin. "Are you certain you're willing to help us? Unlike before, now the Empire itself actually wants us."
The Nopon waved off his concerns. "That not matter! Helping friends more important!" His demeanor quickly turned more serious. "That said, friends need to move. Bully Ardainians searching docks soon."
"How soon is 'soon', if you do not mind my inquiry?" Dromarch asked. While the tiger wasn't nearly as suspicious as his Driver, it would still be remiss of him to take the Nopon at his word.
"Tora not know for sure." He replied, a little embarrassed. "Saw bully soldiers running searches while returning home, but wasn't until they search Tora's home that Tora realized what happening. Best guess is within hour, unless soldiers in Ardainian district finish first."
Rex frowned. If the Ardainians were searching houses, they would absolutely search abandoned warehouses too. "It definitely sounds like we should move, but we don't exactly have a place to go."
"Friends more than welcome in Tora's home!" The Nopon replied. "Soldiers didn't find hidden corridor in house, so friends have safe place to stay."
"Wait wait wait, hold on a moment." Nia cut in, standing up. "Are you seriously expecting us to take an offer like that at face value?"
The Nopon tilted his head in confusion. "What wrong with offer?" He asked, genuinely confused. "Friends get in trouble if found by Ardainians, Tora would think-"
Behind him, Dromarch cleared his throat. "I believe my Lady is still skeptical about your intentions, my friend." The tiger explained, circling around the Nopon as he took his place at his Driver's side. "And I would be lying if I did not mirror her concerns."
Tora almost seemed to deflate at the Blade's words, his wings drooping in disappointment. "T-Tora understand sentiment." He admitted, scratching the back of his head. "Friends get in big-big trouble not long ago, then Tora just show up at hiding spot."
"How did you find us, anyway?" Rex asked, crossing his arms. "We're not exactly advertising our hiding spot, after all."
Azurda gave him a level stare. "Perhaps he heard you and Nia arguing earlier? I'm not sure that anyone in Torigoth could have missed it."
"I believe I already made that joke, Azurda." Dromarch mumbled.
"That easy part!" Tora chirped. "Abandoned pier farthest point in city from where friends fight without entering Ardainian district! Also has few guards at late time of night, so is obvious place to hide! Friend Nia said was familiar with Torigoth, so Tora knew she would think same way!"
Nia frowned at his explanation. That was the exact line of thought she had used to choose their destination. Was it really such an obvious choice? Had she put them in danger by not putting more thought into it?
Unaware of the girl's thoughts, Tora continued. "Once Tora narrowed down area, just needed investigate in person! Tora not been here in several years, so not remember best hiding places." He glanced over at the door. "Friends choose good spot! Not leave much trail behind, so Tora had to search each and every storehouse before finding!"
Azurda crossed his own arms as he floated around the room. "That is unfortunate. If you were able to check multiple storehouses on your own in such a short amount of time, the Ardainians will be able to do it much faster once they get here."
"That was always a risk." Nia agreed, still frowning. "But if you were able to work out where we went so quickly, how have the Ardainians not found us yet?"
"I believe they are conducting a grid search, based on what Tora has told us." Dromarch offered. "They cannot afford to assume that we fled as far as we did, so they are staring from closest to our last confirmed location and spreading out from there." Looking over at Tora, he asked, "I would assume they have guards posted between districts to ensure we are not slipping back into an area they have already searched?"
"Friend is exactly right!" Tora nodded enthusiastically. "Ardainians searching harbor-side residential district last Tora saw, but have guards along pier to keep friends from slipping by!"
Rex scratched the back of his head. "If that's the case, how are we going to get to your place then?" Nia shot him a withering glare, causing the boy to scoff but still amend his statement. "Assuming we go there, of course."
The Nopon grinned eagerly. "Tora have secret entrance to house near entrance to pier. Can get through Ardainian cordon so long as friends are not spotted beforehand."
Azurda scratched his chin thoughtfully. "That certainly makes the offer more appealing." The Titan conceded, giving Dromarch a look. "I don't suppose you or your Driver have any other insights?"
"I cannot say I do." The tiger admitted, giving his Driver a look. "Our prospects here do not look particularly encouraging. If Tora has a way to bypass the search cordon, I believe it is worth the risk."
Nia crossed her arms, her eyes darting between the assembled people in the room. After a moment of consideration, she relented. "Fine. Dromarch's right, we don't have a lot of other options."
Looking over at Tora, she added, "I still don't trust you fully. The timing of those Blades ambushing us was pretty convenient, but I'll admit it could have been a coincidence too."
"That fair." Tora agreed. "Just mean Tora have to gain friend Nia's trust later!"
"If we're in agreement, we should probably get going." Rex said, grabbing his pack. "The sooner we leave, the better, right?"
"Quite so!" Azurda said, landing on the boy's shoulder. "The last thing we need is for the cordon to contract beyond Tora's secret passage."
Tora jumped up and down excitedly. "Friends not worry! Entrance is not far! Just follow Tora!"
A pair of Ardainian Soldiers marched past a cluster of boxes, scanning the pier for any activity before proceeding on. As they departed, Azurda slipped down from the rafters and landed atop one of the crates.
"They're gone." He whispered, giving a furtive glance around to ensure that there wasn't another patrol coming. "I believe we are clear for the moment."
It hadn't taken the party long to get to the secret entrance to Tora's home. As the Nopon had claimed, the storehouse they had hunkered down in was less than a titanped from the entrance.
Unfortunately, what he hadn't made clear was that it was also at the border between the harbor and residential districts, almost closer to where they had fought the Core Crystal Thieves than to where they were hiding. As such, while the Ardainians hadn't begun to search the harbor yet, the entrance was still within the patrol area of the search cordon.
This had necessitated some creative maneuvering in order to actually reach the entrance, as the frequent guard patrols made movement difficult.
Despite the difficulties, they had managed to get there, only to have to hide once more as yet another patrol made its way past the door. It was fortunate that Azurda was small and able to fly, making him a perfect lookout for incoming patrols.
"Finally." Nia muttered, brushing her jumpsuit off as she came out of hiding. "We'd better get inside quickly before the next patrol comes through."
"Just one moment!" The Nopon stated, running over to a nearby support beam. "Tora will get the door open."
He fiddled with a plank of walling that was just a hair too short to reach the support beam, one of the dexterous 'fingers' on his wing reaching into the gap. There was a subtle click as he disengaged a hidden latch, and the entire wall panel swung inward.
Tora waddled into the newly opened corridor, giving a quick look to make sure nobody had found their way inside before waving the rest of the party in. "This way!" He whispered.
The party followed him, quickly rushing into the corridor before another patrol could spot them. Tora poked his head back out, just to make sure no one had seen them, before he closed the door with a surprisingly soft click.
Rex breathed a sigh of relief as the door closed, watching idly as the Nopon engaged a latch in the corner to stop the door from being opened from the outside. While technically they weren't in the clear yet, the idea that they didn't have to keep looking over their shoulders for the Ardainians was nice; the few hours since the fight had already grated on him.
"Friends come this way." Tora said, heading down the corridor toward another door. "Tora's house just ahead."
They followed along, examining the corridor as they went. It was a strange thing, really. A passage of varying width, seeming to cut through several separate buildings as it winded its way down toward the lowest levels of the residential district.
"Where did this place even come from?" Nia asked, examining a small storeroom that seemed to be cut into two adjacent buildings. "It almost looks like a bunch of random rooms have been connected together… but if that's the case, how did you manage to connect them without anyone noticing?"
"Friend is spot on!" Tora chirped. "This residential block built during post-war boom to house dockworkers, but since work move over to Ardainian district, workers leave and building left mostly abandoned."
He pointed at a seam in the wall, where it looked like the section of the corridor had once extended further into the building but had since been covered up. "When Tora acquire house, needed extra space for project and escape route. Tora spent months carefully sectioning off rooms and removing walls to make perfect escape corridor! Since building abandoned, only needed to work around squatters to make look like corridor not exist!"
As he spoke, the group passed a gap in the outer wall where the corridor was exposed to the open air, concealed only by a series of waterwheels. Azurda gave the Nopon an amused glance. "Yes, so very concealed, I can see."
"T-Tora had to make concessions to fit corridor!" The Nopon stammered. "Entrance inside of house not connect anywhere else!"
Rex glanced out of the grated viewport, giving him a clear view out below the piers of the harbor. Below, the Cloud Sea stretched out into the distance, the normally comforting sight rendered surprisingly sinister by the dark of night.
"Whoa!" He yelped in surprise, backing up against the far wall. "We're really high up, aren't we?" It probably wouldn't have been quite so much of a surprise had it been high tide, but with the clouds so far below them, he couldn't help but be reminded of just how precariously the building was hanging off the side of the Titan.
Tora grinned at his reaction. "Rex-Rex think is nice view? Tora like looking out there when need to think. Cloud Sea very calming for purpose."
Azurda crossed his arms, nodding in agreement. "Tora, my friend, you have exquisite tastes in scenery."
The corridor came to an abrupt end just past the viewpoint. Undeterred, Tora walked up and fiddled with a latch in the corner of the dead end.
"Friends keep latch in mind if want to use corridor." He said. "This let friends lock door from inside if need hide from Ardainians."
"Is the entrance from your house disguised as well?" Dromarch asked.
"Yes." The Nopon replied. Another soft click sounded from the latch as he pulled the door open. "Would not be very good escape route if could be easily found."
Beyond the door was Tora's house, or at least the common area of it. It was surprisingly big, compared to the Nopon dwellings Rex had seen in Goldmouth; those were generally small, single-room affairs, often built into the side of the hull. This, on the other hand, was a human-sized home.
The common room they had entered had a circular table with a pot in the center, a metal frame around it allowing the pot to be suspended above the small stove in the center. The far wall was dominated by a simple kitchen setup, a pile of assorted food components next to it serving as the world's saddest pantry.
Further into the house, an area had been cordoned off with simple dividers, but behind that was a ladder to a loft that could not be properly observed from the ground floor. All in all, it was a rather cozy setup in Rex's opinion.
"Friends make selves at home!" Tora said, indicating toward the 'pantry'. "Not have much food, but feel free to use what have!" Pointing up toward the loft, he added, "Extra bedding up there. Tora not have accommodations for humans, so friends will have to find best place to sleep."
Dromarch cleared his throat. "Perhaps it would be best if we slept in the corridor?" He suggested. "If the Ardainians perform another search, it would prevent us from needing to rush into cover."
"That's not a bad idea." Nia replied, arms crossed behind her head. "There's a couple of alcoves we could bunk in fairly comfortably."
Rex yawned, stretching his arms out over his head. "Sounds like a plan to me; I'm beat." It had been a pretty long day, after all.
"Friends not going to eat first?" Tora asked, pulling a package of tasty sausages out of a cabinet connected to one of his prototype ice element cores.
"I think we all just want some sleep at this point." Azurda replied, drooping over Rex's shoulder. "Unless anyone thinks we have anything else to do?"
Nobody did.
Later that night, Rex found himself staring out across the Cloud Sea from the viewpoint in the corridor.
He had gotten a little sleep, but the events of the night were still bothering him. After an hour of tossing and turning (nearly flattening poor Azurda in the process at least once), the boy had finally elected to just get up and clear his head.
Looking out across the Cloud Sea, he had to agree with Tora and Gramps. It was pretty calming, just watching the cloud forms shift and spin from the motion of Gormott's gradual march around the World Tree.
Had the great Titan ever deviated from its course? In the modern day, the Titans circled the Tree with such unerring regularity that their positions could be calculated by date alone.
But had it always been that way? Had there ever been a time when they followed their own path, rather than merely walking in a perpetual circle? Or was that their chosen path?
Behind him, a muted fluttering sound alerted him to the arrival of Azurda. The old Titan was clearly not intending to hide, having used his wings to fly over rather than the floating ability inherent in all Titans.
"Still awake, I see." Azurda spoke up, landing on Rex's shoulder. "You really should try to get some rest, considering the day you've had."
Rex gave the Titan a weary smile. "I got some, but I couldn't get back to sleep after I woke up."
"Yes," the Titan said, making a show of massaging one of his wings, "I'm well aware. Next time you're rolling around in bed, do try to avoid rolling on me."
"Sorry, Gramps!" The boy chuckled. His humor only lasted for a moment before the smile slipped from his face. They sat there in silence for a few minutes, taking in the details of the clouds, before Rex organized his thoughts enough to speak again.
"Do you…" He paused, trying to think of the best wording. "Do you think I made the right decision?"
Azurda gave him a questioning look. "I'm afraid you'll have to be a bit more specific, Rex." The old Titan replied. "You've made a number of decisions these last few days that you could be referring to."
Rex frowned at the jab but clarified none the less. "Back on the ship, I mean." He held a hand out in front of him, conjuring an orb of glowing light ether above it.
The old Titan watched as his ward flicked a finger around idly, the orb of light trailing behind it. "You mean accepting Mythra's power, yes?" He asked, already confident that was the answer.
He gave a slow nod of confirmation, letting the orb of light loop around in front of him. "I… when she offered it to me, I understood that having it wasn't going to be easy." He began, thinking back to the moment.
Mythra… she had been broken by the weight of that power, by what she had done with it, even with the best of intentions in mind. She had said that he might be able to do more good than she had, but was that really true? What made him a better fit for that power than the one born to wield it?
"But from what you told me about the Aegis War, what that Special Inquisitor lady said… I didn't really understand, did I?" He gave a weary sigh. "I can't help but feel like I just took the offer because it was there, like pulling up a shiny chest without checking to see if it needed to be reinforced and now it's all spilled out."
"You really need some better analogies, Rex." Azurda snorted. "The salvaging comparisons will only get you so far."
Rex stuck his tongue out at the Titan, but his mood remained somber. The old Titan frowned, seeing that his attempt at levity had failed.
"Why did you accept her offer?" Azurda asked the boy after a moment of consideration. There wasn't any judgement in his tone, merely curiosity.
"…When she made the offer, I knew that Jin and Malos were going to kill everyone." He replied, the ball of light hovering just in front of his nose. "I had no way of knowing that Nia would try to stop them, so all I could think about was how none of the others could fight like I can."
Azurda nodded in understanding. "You felt like it was your responsibility to protect them."
"Something like that." Rex agreed. "I was hesitant when she told me that she would be giving me her life force… I understood exactly what that implied, but at the same time, I was so mad at those two…" He trailed off, a look of discomfort on his face, "…But more than anything else, I really didn't want to die."
The ball of light winked out as he looked up at the moon shining overhead. "Does that make me a bad person? That I took her offer because I wanted to live?" There was a crack in his voice as he spoke, a subtle thing, but to Azurda it may as well have had a spotlight pointed at it.
"Hmmm…" The old Titan mused, crossing his arms. "Not necessarily. The desire to live, to survive, is ingrained into all living beings, after all. Even as old as I am, when I was faced with my mortality, I chose to try and live on."
Rex's cheek tightened at the reminder, something the old Titan noticed but didn't say anything.
"But I don't think that is really the question you're asking, is it?" Azurda added, his tone making it clear that it wasn't a question.
The boy bowed his head, his expression hidden from Azurda. "Maybe it's stupid." He said, a somber tone in his voice. "She told me… that she was already dead, or at least might as well have been. But I can't stop thinking about the look she had on her face when she gave me her Core Crystal."
Mythra stood there as his fingers touched her Core Crystal, her face was difficult to make out as the waves of power emanating from her core distorted the air. Fresh tears ran down her cheeks as she gave the boy her last request, her voice filled with sorrow and regret.
His hand brushed against his shirt, where the crystal was covered by the fabric. "She… I don't think she wanted to die in that moment either."
"Rex…" Azurda said softly.
"I know that I would have died if she hadn't given me her Core Crystal, but at the same time…" His breath hitched as he closed his eyes, a small tear running down his cheek. "Why wasn't there a way both of us could have lived?"
There was a somber silence as they sat there. Rex rubbed his eyes, sniffling slightly. On his shoulder, the old Titan leaned against his head, offering what little support his larval body could afford.
"I can't say I know if there was." Azurda eventually said. "Maybe, in another world, there could have been, but that isn't what happened here. Ultimately, Mythra made her choice, to give you a chance so that you could carry on her final wish."
Looking his ward in the eye, he continued. "With that in mind, that the outcome was as much her choice as yours, do you regret taking her offer?"
Rex looked down at his hands resting in his lap. "…No, I don't." He admitted. "Even if Nia was there to save the other salvagers, she would have died if I hadn't taken it. Then Malos would have taken Mythra's power for himself and used it to destroy the world."
"Then there's your answer. No, Rex, I don't think you made a mistake. Perhaps you were hasty in your decision, but considering the circumstances, I don't think you can be faulted for that."
He nodded slowly, not necessarily entirely believing him but willing to at least take his opinion into consideration. "I… Thanks, Gramps." He replied. "I think I've got some stuff to think about now."
A genuine smile curled out across the Titan's face. "Any time, my boy. As much as I give you a hard time, you know I'll always be there for you, correct?"
"Long as you don't run off back to Fonsett." The boy chuckled, his spirits a bit lighter with the uncertainty off his chest. "I wouldn't put it past you to try and get the kids back home to dote on your new appearance."
"Hah! Like you can get rid of me that easily!" Azurda replied, taking off from Rex's shoulder. "Really, though. Get some sleep, Rex. Last thing we need is for you to spend the day wandering around in a fatigued daze."
"Yeah yeah." The boy replied, coming to his feet. "I'm feeling exhausted after that anyway."
They walked back to the alcove they had bunked down in, keeping their voices down to avoid waking Nia and Dromarch. As they passed the other Driver and Blade, neither realized the girl's ears flicked as they tracked the pair, nor that her eyes were cracked open.
Author's Notes
Dromarch and Azurda had a lot of fun interactions in canon, especially in the early chapters of the game where they were the nominal adults in the room. Here, where they've both ended up in a nearly identical role as the non-human parental figure to a half-human teen? They would 100% commiserate over their respective ward's antics.