Warning: The second scene of this chapter contains references to human experimentation. It is largely off-screen, but if this sort of thing isn't for you, then skip to the third scene.
Just as they had anticipated, navigating the streets of Tadbir turned out to be something of an annoyance. Unlike Torigoth, where the bulk of the settlement Rex had been able to experience was lined along the harbor, Tadbir's layout was a dense network of narrow streets that seemed to follow no appreciable pattern.
Well, perhaps 'no pattern' was something of an exaggeration. There definitely was some sort of logic put into the streets, but whatever plan they had been following, it had definitely not been a conventional layout. If Rex had to guess, they had probably been working around the original port facilities when the tiers had been built up.
Either way, the group had quickly found themselves relying on directions from the locals as they ascended higher into the city, navigation becoming increasingly difficult as they passed through older and more built-up districts. It was fortunate that their destination was literally the biggest landmark in the city, because it meant that there was abundant signage to ease their passage.
As they ascended, Rex took the time to enjoy the experience. The city was unlike any he had been to before, although he had to admit that it wasn't as if he exactly had a large amount of experience with cities to begin with.
The streets were lined with open-front shops, the stalls of products sprawling out from them, sheltered from the warm midday sun by colorful awnings that spanned between the buildings. The offerings were as varied as they were numerous; exotic foods and spices, or incense and perfumes, their rich aromas filling the streets, were set beside stores selling colorful clothing and fabrics from across Alrest.
He was impressed by the sheer volume of people as well. Tadbir, while certainly bigger than Torigoth, was apparently not considered a particularly large city by the standards of the large countries like Uraya or Mor Ardain, yet the throngs of people, a diverse mix from every country he knew, rivaled the energy and volume of even the busiest times of year back in Argentum.
For someone from a small village such as Rex, it was almost overwhelming just how different of an experience it was from what he was used to. And based on the behavior of his companions, it was clear he wasn't the only one to feel that way.
Poppi seemed to be enjoying the experience as well, probably as a result of her youth. The artificial Blade, despite the large amounts of knowledge Tora had poured into her databases before her awakening, was only two weeks old. To her, just about any experience was a new and exciting one, so it came as no surprise that she navigated the streets with wide eyes and an awestruck expression, her head constantly darting to and fro in an attempt to take in as much of the experience as possible.
Her creator, on the other hand, was not nearly as excited by the crowds. From Rex's understanding, the nopon had once lived in Alba Cavanich, the largest city in the world, for at least a brief period of time. For him, the experience of a bustling city wasn't nearly as novel, and the high density of the narrow street was instead a hazard for someone as short as a nopon to traverse.
Understandably, Dromarch seemed to be of a similar opinion. With how narrow it was, the Blade was having difficulty keeping pace with his Driver, the throngs of shoppers crowding the street difficult for a creature of his size to easily bypass. His only saving grace was that, as a large tiger, he was much more visible than Tora, and those that saw him were far more willing to allow him past.
As for Nia, she seemed surprisingly comfortable with the city. From what Rex knew of her background from the handful of scraps she had shared, he would have thought that the Gormotti girl would be slightly more wary of such a populated place.
Yet, that didn't seem to be the case. Oh, she was certainly keeping an ear out for trouble (quite literally. Both of her ears were frequently flicking about, tracking some sound or another amongst the crowd that he couldn't distinguish), but compared to even their return to Torigoth after making peace with Morag, the girl was surprisingly calm.
Perhaps it helped that, unlike then, she was not the focus of the crowd's attention. Without a standing bounty, there was no reason for anyone to give her a second look.
Thinking about it, that was probably the case. Back in Goldmouth and Dornswell, before they had become embroiled in the whole mess the Consul had set up, the girl hadn't been nervous about being in public. Even on Voltis, her wariness was more the result of the rumors about the Aegis and the possibility of danger from Bana than a particular worry about being identified herself.
Without any such concerns looming over them, Nia seemed much more willing to take in her surroundings. Every so often, the girl would pause to investigate a stall, frequently ones selling fish or pastries, but more than a few times she had eyed the racks displaying local fashion with more than a hint of interest.
He watched out of the corner of his eye as the girl checked out a stall offering incense, apparently imported from Matma. The proprietor, an older-looking man with copper skin and a pair of tiger ears that implied he was from the same Titan as his wares, was politely explaining the different effects of the incense to her.
Nia leaned over, breathing in the smoke of one of the sample sticks, only to recoil sharply upon taking a whiff. Her nose crinkled in a cute manner as she attempted to rid her sinuses of the smell, causing the boy to snort in amusement.
The girl shot him a warning glare in response, as if challenging him to laugh again. Understanding that, under circumstances like this, discretion was the better part of valor, he responded by averting his gaze, adopting a look of cherubic innocence as he did.
It was nice to be able to play around like this. Having to run around and hide on Gormott had worn on him more than he had realized.
He glanced over at a nearby signpost, making sure they were still on the right track to reach the academy. They had finally made it to the uppermost tier, so the walls of the old citadel that marked the boundary of the campus were occasionally visible from the ground. It made it easy for them to determine the appropriate heading, but without knowing the exact path they needed to take through the narrow, winding streets, that was almost detrimental to their progress.
Fortunately, they were still on the right path. As they had gotten closer to the front gates of the academy, the signage directing people toward it had become more and more prevalent. With them only being a handful of blocks away at this point, it was practically impossible to not be led to their destination by the nose.
After a few moments of heated discussion with the shopkeeper, Nia managed to dissuade him sufficiently to disengage and return to the group. Rex noticed that her nose was a little red, most likely as a result of her unpleasant reaction to the incense, but refrained from commenting on it.
"Pushy little…" She grumbled, wiping an arm across her nose. "Show a little interest, and suddenly they think you'll be buying out their whole stock."
"To be fair, my Lady, you did seem quite enamored with the floral incenses." Dromarch noted, padding over to the group. "Even I was beginning to suspect that you were intending to purchase a batch."
She rolled her eyes in response. "And when would I have the chance to enjoy them?" She asked. "Don't get me wrong, the smell was lovely, but while we're traveling like this, they'd just go to waste."
"I suppose so." The tiger agreed, dropping the topic. Instead, he glanced up at Rex with a curious expression. "Master Rex, would I be correct in surmising that you determined what path we need take in order to continue on to the Academy while my Lady was distracted?" He inquired.
Rex pointed at a sign behind the tiger, an eyebrow raised. "Kinda had not too." He replied. "We're only like two blocks from the gates."
"Dromarch, don't tell me you're already beginning to so senile." The Gormotti girl laughed. "Honestly, I figured something would rub off on you after spending so much time with the old man, but I didn't think it would be your mental facilities!"
"Hey now, you can't blame this on me!" Azurda huffed defensively. "I'll have you know that my mind is perfectly sound for a Titan of over a thousand!"
Poppi glanced between the tiger and his Driver, a look of confusion on her face. "Memory loss not transmissible." She stated, tilting her head slightly. "Poppi not sure what friend Nia attempting to imply."
Beside her, Tora patted the artificial Blade on the head. "Poppi not worry. Nia-Nia just make bad attempt at joke."
"You…! Ugh…" The Gormotti girl sighed in annoyance, seeing her joke fall flat. "Forget it. Let's just keep going. We've still got a few hours before the administrative facilities at the academy should be closing, so we can at least get the paperwork started before we start looking for an inn."
"'Get it started'?" Rex asked in confusion as he navigated around a gaggle of Urayan teens wearing what he assumed to be the Academy's uniform. "Shouldn't the Letter of Recommendation Morag gave us let us right though?"
Nia shook her head. "It doesn't work like that." She explained, weaving past a pair of merchants arguing over the exact boundaries of their stalls. "It'll speed things up since they won't need to vet us, but I'd still expect us to have to wait a day or two at least before they'll give us access just due to the paperwork alone."
"Just for the paperwork?" Rex replied incredulously. "You'd think that it wouldn't take that long to fill out a couple of forms… It only took like twenty minutes for the clerk back in Dornswell to fill out my Driver registration…"
"Tora think so slow because Academy use inefficient organizing technique." The nopon stated sagely. "Probably faster if willing to utilize nopon ingenuity to make more efficient."
He paused for a moment, a contemplative look on his face. "Maybe… Maybe willing to hire Tora to make sorting machine?" The nopon pondered. "Tora wallet sad and flat… could be way to get more money to buy parts for Poppi…"
"I hate to ruin your fun, but that's probably not the reason." Nia interrupted him. "The biggest delay'll be them needing to verify the letter isn't a forgery."
The group turned the corner, finding themselves on the main street leading to the gates of the Academy. It was far wider than the one they had been traversing before, almost three times the width. While it was still lined with shops, rather than sprawling their wares out across stalls, these were nicer, fully-enclosed buildings, with their products advertised behind the giant panel windows along their fronts.
Only a handful of peds beyond the shopfronts, spaced just far enough from the walls to allow a grown man between them, towering banners lined the street leading to the gates. They were emblazoned with the heraldry of the Tadbir Academy, the cloth of the banners floating lazily in the calm midday breeze.
Despite being wider, the street was no less busy than the ones they had just left. Great throngs of people, most dressed in the Academy's uniform, milled about the street. Unlike the crowds they had just left, however, there was a clear sense of movement here; these were not window shoppers examining the wares left out in stalls, but students coming and going from their school.
"Not a bad display." Nia commented, looking at the rows of banners approvingly. "A bit much for my preferences, but definitely less ostentatious than the Ardainians would have done."
"I concur." Azurda said, leaning his head out of Rex's helmet. "I dare say their idea of a grand promenade would involve substantially more metal and cannon emplacements." The Titan shook his head. "An intimidating sight, to be sure, but all that metal isn't exactly pleasing to the eye."
Tora frowned in disagreement. "Metal not problem with Ardainian design, plainness is." He insisted. "Ardainians use metal as entirety of decoration, when Tora know is merely canvas. Need much more artfulness to be easy-pleasey on eyes."
He gestured over at Poppi for emphasis. "Friends see? Poppi made entirely of metal, but not lamey-plain like Ardainian 'decoration'!"
Rex laughed at the nopon's heated assessment of Ardainian aesthetics. Personally, he didn't hold a particularly strong opinion in either direction. After all, Leftheria, especially small villages like Fonsett, didn't tend to be the sort of places for ostentatious displays and grand promenades.
Soon enough, the gates of the Academy loomed over them, an ancient arch of sturdy granite, polished to a near-mirror finish, with a gleaming iron portcullis set into the stones above. For the life of him, Rex couldn't tell if it was actually functional or merely a relic of older times, carefully preserved for decorative purposes.
It was such an impressive symbol that it almost felt wrong to walk right through it with such ease. Yet they were met with no challenge beyond the difficulty of squeezing past the crowds of students. In only a handful of steps, they found themselves on the main boulevard of the Academy campus.
Continuing on from the grand promenade that led to the gates, the main street of the campus was a beautifully bricked path lined with banners that led further into the grounds. The perimeter of the campus green, which spread out before them, was delineated by an ancient wall of the same granite stonework as the gatehouse, although nowhere near as brightly polished.
Beyond the green, the large buildings of the Academy's primary facilities lined the pathways leading out of their field of view. Like the wall, they were of granite but of a far more ornate style. Rather than flat stonework, their faces were covered in intricate facades, mimicking the columns of ancient temples. They had sharply steepled roofs tipped with decorative spires, all clad in a delicate copper patina that shimmered in the midday sun.
And at the end of the main boulevard, rising above the other buildings, was a massive central hall that practically screamed, 'I'm important'.
Glancing at an intricate cast-iron signpost tastefully placed at the first intersection on the path, Rex could see that the central building was, indeed, the Academy's administrative office, the exact place they needed to go.
"Well, at least we don't need to hunt around." Nia commented, having also seen the sign. "We should probably get a move on; the earlier we get there, the more of our paperwork they can handle before they close for the day."
Castrofari could hear the man speaking long before reaching the observation room, a nasally, heavily accented voice that he recognized all too well, warning of the man's presence long before the doctor reached the room.
He resisted the urge to sigh in annoyance, instead plastering the genial mask he was so used to using in public onto his face. Of all of the people with access to his secret lab, the man was the last he wished to deal with, especially on a day he had been looking forward to as much as today.
Unfortunately, this was also the only such person that he couldn't afford to not deal with. After all, his work required a substantial amount of funding that he could not obtain through the academy, and the man was the representative of the ones holding the purse strings.
If he wanted to keep receiving funding, he would need to play nice, much as he disliked the thought. As a scientist, he resented the need to waste his time begging for money when he could be doing much more interesting things.
"Jakup!" He greeted as he entered the observation room, plastering a smile that was rather obviously fake, even to the casual observer, on his face. "I wasn't expecting to see you for another week!"
Standing in the middle of the observation room, positioned as though he had been in the middle of a conversation with Lynette, was a man in armor similar to that worn by an Ardainian officer, save for the white color of the jacket. He had removed his helmet, held under one of his arms, in order to better converse with the Indoline woman.
The man turned to look at Castrofari, a haughty look crossing his face as he registered who was speaking. "Why, Doctor, I wouldn't have expected you to! That rather defeats the purpose of a surprise inspection, don't you think?"
Castrofari had to struggle not to cringe as the man spoke, his thick accent mangling the words. It was rather distinct, originating from a small Titan known as Karag, little more than a barren rock that had fallen under Ardainian control well over a century ago.
It rankled him to have to report to a backwater hick like Jakup, but that was the reality of his situation.
"Yes, I suppose you're right." He feigned a polite chuckle, offering a hand to the man. Out of the corner of his eye, he could see Lynette smirking at him, no doubt amused at watching him debase himself like this. "I don't suppose there are any particular concerns that I can dispel, are there?"
Jakup gave him a stern look. "Lindwurm has invested a substantial amount of money into this project, but you have yet to provide us with a single product. I am here to determine why."
Of course that was why he was here. The paymasters wanted results, even though it had only been a few months! Didn't those ignorant, pea-brained morons know that science couldn't be rushed like that!?
"The initial batch is still undergoing quality control." He replied out loud, keeping his rant strictly internal. "Considering the amount of resources we have been provided, we wanted to make sure that the product was as polished as possible."
"'Polished', you say?" The man replied, raising an eyebrow. "And what, exactly, does that mean in this case?"
Castrofari resisted saying something that he would regret, instead giving the man a more literal answer. "It means we wanted to make sure the Blade Eaters we have manufactured are able to properly function. The initial process we were using to create them was rather temperamental, you understand, and required extensive testing to ensure that none of the Blade functionality had been lost during the transplant process."
"Which it was not." Lynette chimed in helpfully. "So far as we can tell, the initial batches still possess all of the capabilities of a standard Blade, but are able to bond with anyone, regardless of whether or not they possess Driver Aptitude.
Jakup glanced over at the woman, giving her a thoughtful look. "I'm pleased to hear that." He said. "In that case, how long until we can expect the first batch to be transferred?"
"In theory, whenever your desire." She responded. "From a purely mechanical standpoint, they are ready for usage."
The Lindwurm agent narrowed his eyes. "If that is the case, then why have you not scheduled for them to be delivered?" He asked heatedly. "Unless you have forgotten, the entire reason that we are funding you is-!"
Doctor Castrofari held up his hands in a placating manner. "Please, calm yourself, Jakup." He soothed. "The reason is because we are still ironing out the means of controlling them."
"Explain." The man said, looking over at the doctor.
"Unlike traditional Blades, which inherit elements of their Driver's morals and ideals, Blade Eaters maintain their original personality, which can make them… difficult to manage." He explained. "For the purposes of our testing, we have been making extensive use of the mind-altering talents Lynette's Blade possesses to keep them pliable, but in order for them to function properly as weapons, a more permanent arrangement is necessary."
His partner picked up from there. "I have been experimenting with biological control techniques the Praetorium inherited from Judicium, but the half-Blade nature of the test subjects makes the use of any technological means of controlling them… problematic.
The Lindwurm agent rolled his eyes at their explanation. "Your 'test subjects' are mere children, are they not?" He asked, a clear tone of annoyance in his voice. "In that case, we will be more than capable of managing them on our own."
"Are you sure?" The doctor asked, raising an eyebrow. "You do understand that the test subjects possess the full range of Blade capabilities… enhanced strength, ether manipulation, regeneration… You're quite sure you are equipped to manage them?"
"Of course." Jakup replied, scoffing at the scientist. "Blade suppression technology is just as effective on them as it is on normal Blades, yes? In that case, we will have no trouble holding them."
Lynette hummed in contemplation. "And for controlling them?" She asked.
"They're children." The Lindwurm agent replied, as if the answer were obvious. "Technology may not be able to control them, but I doubt that they are any less susceptible to traditional indoctrination techniques than a normal child."
He had to admit, the man was probably correct. "Hmm… We had not considered that angle." The doctor allowed, scratching his chin thoughtfully. "Very well. We can arrange for the transfer of the surgical-method test subjects."
Looking over at the Lindwurm agent, he added, "How soon can you have a transport available?"
"I will have to confirm with my superiors." Jakup replied, a pleased look on his face. "But we should be able to pick them up by the end of the week."
"We'll have them ready." Castrofari stated, carefully keeping his annoyance from showing on his face. "Honestly, the sooner you can take them, the better."
The comment drew a curious look from the Lindwurm agent. "Oh?" He asked. "Have they been giving you trouble?"
"Nothing of the sort." The doctor waved off. "However, with the success of the revised procedure, the initial batches are somewhat… outdated. Sending them off with you will allow us to focus on the more practical method."
"Hmm…" Jakup replied. "You've mentioned these 'procedures' before… would you be willing to elaborate?"
Castrofari would rather not, all things considered. While he was proud of the work he was doing here, having to explain it to a layman was not exactly his idea of 'fun'. He wasn't confident the idiot could manage to lace his boots, much less understand the intricacies of the work they were doing there!
Fortunately, Lynette was more than happy to step in and take control of the conversation. "Oh, we can do far better." She said, gesturing toward the window overlooking the surgical theater. "As it just so happens, we were about to begin processing a new batch of test subjects. Perhaps a first-hand demonstration is in order?"
The doctor's eyes widened as he looked over at his partner. Let this idiot remain in the observation room? What was she thinking!? His gaze met that of his Indoline colleague, giving the woman a warning look. How could she possibly think this was a good idea!?
She merely offered him a serene smile in return, a hint of mischief flickering in her yellow eyes.
Ignorant to the silent argument between the two scientists, the Lindwurm agent scratched his chin thoughtfully. "Yes… I suppose that would be acceptable." The man stated. "You did mention in your last report that this method was more scaleable…"
Biting down his annoyance, the doctor took control of the conversation once more. "It is." He said, walking over to the control console for the inducer prototype. He glanced down into the surgical theater, checking the progress of the preparations within.
Delphus was inside, alongside two of his assistants. They were in the middle of strapping the first test subject of the day, a small Osirian boy with fluffy brown hair and a pair of oversized glasses, to the table. The Blade, meanwhile, was in the process of attaching the electrical contacts to the Core Crystal that was to be used in the procedure.
Satisfied with their progress, he turned back to face the agent. "Originally, we were using a surgical method adapted from a procedure that is currently in use by the Indoline Praetorium, but it proved to be too inefficient for the requirements Lindwurm has requested."
"The Indoline method," Lynette explained, "involves cutting out a section of an active Blade's Core Crystal and surgically implanting it onto the Driver. The technique is predominantly used to augment the capabilities of the Praetor's personal guards, but it is occasionally extended to certain VIPs in the event of emergencies."
"Unfortunately, the technique has several shortcomings". The Doctor took over, crossing his arms. "For one, the recipient must be the Driver of the source Blade, which immediately rules out its utility for our purposes."
"It also does not afford the recipient the powers of the source Blade." Lynette added. "There was one case I worked on in which, owing to a strong bond between the Driver and Blade, the recipient was affording a limited degree of control over the form of the Blade's weapon following the procedure, but that was an outlier."
Castrofari nodded. "As such, we made several modifications to the process. For one, rather than transferring a portion of the Core Crystal, we implanted the entire thing." He sighed, glancing back into the surgical theater to check their progress.
"Unfortunately, in order to prevent the Core Crystal from being destroyed in the process, we were required to implant it in sections, which took a great deal of time for each individual procedure." The man laughed, his placid mask slipping slightly as his lips turned up in a cruel smile. "Don't get me wrong, I enjoy getting my hands dirty, but the length of each surgery meant we could functionally only process a single test subject per day."
The Lindwurm agent frowned. "Yes, I can see where that would be problematic…"
"We also never managed to solve the issue of Core Crystal compatability." Lynette spoke up. "Although we experimented with implanting Core Crystals into a subject that was not the Blade's Driver, the results were unfavorable. Most of the subjects rejected the implant, while those that didn't…"
She trailed off, a thoughtful look on her face. "Well, perhaps if Lindwurm requires an alternative to Titan weapons, we can resume that line of inquiry." Under her breath, she muttered, "At least that answers the question of where the Praetor obtained some of his more… exotic forces."
Castrofari had to admit, those 'failed' specimens had been rather impressive, even if their size had meant that they had been forced to dispose of them. Calling those monstrosities a potential replacement for Titan weapons was rather apt.
"The new process, on the other hand, is much more practical for our purposes." He said, glancing back into the theater. Down by the operating table, Delphus was standing calmly, looking up into the window of the observation room. Good, he must be ready. "But rather than explain it, why don't we just demonstrate?"
Jakup nodded slowly. "Of course. I believe it would be worthwhile to ensure that our funding is not being… misallocated."
He rankled at the man's words, managing to keep his reaction schooled to merely a slight twinge of his cheek. "In that case, I would request that you stand to the side."
Looking down into the theater, he pressed a button on the console, activating the surgical room's intercom. "Are we ready to begin?" He asked glancing over at the stoic form of Lynette's Blade.
Delphus inclined his head, taking a step away from the operating table to allow Castrofari's assistants to work unimpeded. The Blade glanced over at one of the undergraduates, a rather meek surgical student named Gavin, and indicated for him to step up to the table.
As he did, Lynette leaned over, grabbing the microphone from the doctor. "Excuse me for a moment." She apologized, before activating the intercom.
"Gavin," she began, her voice causing the boy to jump in place. "Would you be a dear and remove the test subject's shirt? We have a special guest observing the procedure, and we wish to fully demonstrate the process to him." The woman was doing her best to sound maternal, but on the homely Indoline woman it sounded rather disturbing.
It was still quite effective, though; the surgical student immediately went about obeying, grabbing a pair of shears, and hesitantly approaching the test subject. The Osirian boy shivered in fear at the student, desperately thrashing against the restraints on his limbs as his eyes locked on the cutting implement.
Despite his clear discomfort, the student quickly sliced the threadbare shirt away from the boy, leaving his chest clearly visible. Satisfied, Lynette offered a polite reaction to the student. "Thank you, dear." She said. "Please begin the procedure."
Next to them, the Lindwurm agent leaned closer to the glass of the window. "I'm surprised." He admitted. "Here I thought that you would be the ones performing the operation."
Castrofari resisted scoffing at the man. "We are." He explained, gesturing down at the console. "However, this project is non-surgical; it relies entirely on manipulating the functions of the Core Crystal, and the inducer is the device we use to perform that."
Jakup gave the device a skeptical look. "Is it supposed to be that… rough?" He asked. "Your device there looks like it was constructed from scrap."
"It's a prototype." The doctor explained, brushing the man's concerns off. "We're still making constant modifications to the design, so it would be counterproductive to construct a cleaner casing at the moment. Having to dismantle it every time we need to tweak a signal junction or replace a power bus would quickly become tedious."
He watched as Gavin gently picked up the Core Crystal on the side table, careful not to disrupt the wires connected to it. The boy glanced up at the observation room uncertainly, as if asking for further instructions.
"Place it on the test subject's chest." He commanded over the intercom, not even bothering to disguise the patronizing tone in his voice. "You've done this before, Gavin. Do I really need to hold your hand through the entire procedure?"
The doctor sighed in annoyance as he watched the student follow his command. "By the Architect, what do I have to do for competent assistants?" He complained.
"Perhaps you should stop relying on desperate undergraduate students?" Lynette replied in amusement. "I understand that your position at the academy requires you to mentor a certain amount of them per term, but surely you could get away with just having them do your paperwork for you?"
Castrofari ignored her, instead watching the readout on the console. As Gavin placed the Core Crystal on the Osirian boy's chest, taking care to ensure that his thrashing wouldn't knock it to the floor, the signal readout fluctuated slightly.
"Sounding signal received." He noted, his finger hovering down to the first of several large buttons on the console's primary sequence panel. "We're ready to begin."
Lynette turned to their observer. "That means it is in contact with the test subject." She explained to the Lindwurm agent. "Core Crystals are constantly probing for a connection with a biological organism, and when in contact with a viable resonance subject, they send out a sounding connection."
"The resonance process won't begin until the subject accepts the connection, of course." Castrofari noted, pressing the first button. "However, because we cannot guarantee that our subject will do so, we can artificially induce the counter-signal that informs the core that the connection has been accepted."
Down in the surgical theater, the Core Crystal atop the boy's chest began to glow a brilliant gold. In the corner of his eye, he could see the Lindwurm agent shield his eyes against it.
"What reaction is the boy getting?" Lynette asked curiously, her eyes fixed firmly on the glowing Core Crystal.
He glanced at the signal feed. "Connection feedback is steady. It would appear we were correct to place him in the high-Aptitude block." The doctor noted.
"I thought you said Aptitude wasn't an issue with the test subjects?" Jakup said, a hint of disapproval in his voice.
Castrofari shrugged. "It doesn't. Not with this procedure." He admitted, moving to press the next button in the sequence. "It is merely a matter of professional curiosity."
Without fanfare, he pressed the button. "Resonance feedback loop established. Sending mode switch request now." He stated, glancing back at the readout. "Standby for mode switch."
Jakup didn't ask for further clarification, instead pressing his face against the glass. Down below, the Core Crystal glowed so brightly the gold light almost seemed to turn white. The doctor himself couldn't see it, lacking the appropriate degree of ether sensitivity, but he knew from Lynette's description that the connection between the crystal and the test subject would be visible by now.
A chime from the console drew his attention, informing him that the mode switch request had been accepted. "Excellent." He cackled, watching as the test subject squirmed in panic on the operating table.
The Core Crystal suddenly exploded into a cloud of ether, the wires connecting it to the inducer falling to the floor around the table. The console gave a warning buzz, informing them that it was no longer receiving a signal from the core, but he merely pressed the final button on the main sequence panel to silence it. His input was no longer required.
He watched as the shimmering golden cloud hung above the test subject for a brief moment before sinking into his skin. Castrofari grinned at the sight; they had reached the final step of the process, the last point where the test subject could reject the procedure.
"It would surprise you just how long it took for us to work out how to trigger the mode switch." He noted, watching with undisguised glee as the test subject began to convulse on the table.
"'Mode switch'?" The Lindwurm agent muttered, watching the test subject dispassionately. "What sort of mode does it switch to?"
Lynette cleared her throat. "There exists deep within the code that controls the Core Crystals a function that allows them to directly interface with organic matter." She explained. "From what few records exist, nobody who has discovered it has ever managed to figure out why the functionality exists—it is not used at any point during normal operation—but it is what allows for the hybridization of humans and Blades."
"The 'mode switch' command is a means of toggling that functionality on." Castrofari noted, watching as his two assistants held the test subject down. Light began to shimmer on the boy's sternum as his Core Crystal began to form. "But it was difficult to figure out the exact means of triggering it."
"From the research I 'acquired' during my work as a researcher in the Praetorium, Praetor Amalthus once discovered a means of triggering the mode switch." The Indoline woman mused. "Regrettably, none of the records regarding his experiments detail the method he used in order to trigger it." She explained in annoyance. "There were several references to something called the 'Master Driver Protocol', but nothing that actually explained what it was or how it was used in the procedure."
Castrofari nodded. "Fortunately, it was my own research into the Flesh Eater process that ultimately brought us success." He said. "By comparing the data that I collected on the changes a Blade's Core Crystal undergoes during the conversion process with that of the Indoline research on Blade Eaters, I discovered that the Flesh Eater process triggers the latent functionality as well. From there, I was able to isolate the signal trace emitted during the mode switch event, and with Lynette's help…"
"We were able to create a means of manually triggering it." She finished, gently patting the console of the inducer.
Down in the theater, the glow on the test subject's chest condensed. The white glow shifted to bright blue as the ether solidified into a blue crystal, a thin inverted triangle set into the boy's sternum that was clearly visible against his dark skin.
No sooner had it taken shape, when the freshly formed Core Crystal began to glow almost blindingly. The Osirian boy arched his back, howling in agony so loudly that the doctor could almost hear it in the soundproofed observation room, as a tracery of glowing blue lines, impossibly thin but blazing with such power that they were clearly visible, raced from the boy's core and ran across his skin.
The doctor couldn't restrain himself, cackling wildly as he watched. The procedure had worked just as expected; the Core Crystal would not have solidified had it not.
Almost as soon as it began, the boy's nascent ether lines faded, leaving angry red burns in their wake. The test subject slumped to the table, lying still as consciousness faded from him.
Immediately, the two assistants moved to unstrap the boy from the table, but that was hardly interesting to the doctor. Instead, he turned to look at the Lindwurm agent, a satisfied grin on his face. "So, what do you think?"
Jakup glanced back down into the surgical theater, watching as Castrofari's undergraduate assistants carted the boy out of the room. "I believe I have seen everything I need." The man said, giving the pair of scientists an approving look. "I will make the arrangements to have the first batch of Blade Eaters picked up within the week."
There was a ringing of a bell as the party walked through the door to the administrative offices, drawing the attention of the secretary at the front desk. They were hardly the only people present, as there was a moderately-sized waiting room to the side of the front desk, most of the chairs in use, predominantly by students. Fortunately, there was not currently a line at the desk.
As they approached the desk, the secretary, a pretty Ardainian woman, greeted them politely. "Oh, hello! Are you here for admissions?" She glanced over at the filled waiting room with an apologetic look. "I'm afraid it will be something of a wait if you are…"
Before Rex could consider speaking up, Nia stepped in front of him, a smile just as polite as the secretary's on her face. "Nothing of the sort." She said. "We're here to request guest access to the library facilities. Is there a specific office that handles those requests?"
He blinked in surprise as the Gormotti girl took control of the conversation. It wasn't the first time she had done this; Nia had been the one to handle the discussions with the guards back in Dornswell, but he was still surprised by her sudden change in demeanor.
Unaware of his surprise, the secretary nodded, her demeanor lightening at the request. "There is." She replied, pulling out a small stack of forms. The woman glanced over the group briefly, as if counting them, before separating a handful of the sheets out from the stack.
"You'll want the Access Requests office." She explained, handing the forms over to Nia. "It's the third door on the right. I will warn you in advance; the Academy is very strict about handing out access, so it may be some time before you learn whether or not your request has been approved."
Nia smiled at the woman, taking the papers from her. "We were referred here with a letter of recommendation." The Gormotti girl explained. "I do hope that will be sufficient to expedite the proceedings."
"I see!" The secretary replied brightly. "In that case, I wish you the best of luck."
The group walked off from the desk, Nia maintaining her polite demeanor until they rounded the corner. As they left the secretary's line of sight, the Gormotti girl let out a sigh as her shoulders slumped in exhaustion.
"Man, I hate acting formal." She muttered, idly scratching Dromarch on the head with her free hand. "I always feel so fake doing it."
Her Blade glanced up at her. "My Lady, I'm sure that your normal behavior would have been more than acceptable in that situation." He said. "There is no need to force yourself to act so formally."
She scoffed at his words. "In a place like this?" The girl asked skeptically. "The Academy may be open to students of all backgrounds, but enough noble offspring get sent here that the staff will have formed opinions about people, and a lot of that is based on appearance and bearing."
Rex couldn't help but notice a bit of bitterness coloring her words. Had she needed to deal with this sort of thing in the past?
"With how we're dressed, the snobby sort of folk we'll be running into will look down on us if we let them." The Gormotti girl continued, shaking her head. "Better that we put a good foot forward; they'll take us more seriously than if they think we're a bunch of backwater yokels."
"As a backwater yokel, am I supposed to be offended by that?" Rex teased with a slight chuckle. He wasn't, of course—it was pretty obvious to him what she had meant—but it was hard to resist the opportunity to get under the girl's skin.
Nia flushed in embarrassment. "That wasn't… I mean…" She muttered, trailing off as she saw the smirk on his face. "Oh, you know what I meant, Rex!"
"Yeah, I did." He admitted cheerfully, seeing that they were nearly at their destination. "You're not wrong, though, so I'll take a step back and let you handle the talking."
The Gormotti girl groaned in annoyance as he cheerfully handed Morag's letter off to her. "Why do you always choose the worst times to start listening to me?" She groused, coming to a halt as they reached the door.
Stepping inside the office, they found it to be similar to the secretary's desk in the front of the building. Half of the room was walled off, with a handful of service windows cut into it, while the other half was filled with chairs for those waiting in line. Unlike the lobby, however, there were only a handful of people occupying those chairs.
As they looked around, checking to see where they were supposed to be starting, one of the unoccupied clerks spotted them. "I can help you over here." He called out to them dispassionately, the bags under his eyes making it clear that it was most likely due to exhaustion rather than anything else.
Nia schooled her expression, adopting the same placid, polite look that she had worn for the secretary. "Hello." She greeted, walking up to the desk with the rest of the group in tow. "We're here to submit a request for access to the library facilities."
"Another one?" He sighed, leaning his head forward. Not enough to touch the table, but it was clear that the man had to actively work to keep it from doing so. "Understood. Have you filled out the paperwork yet?"
She shook her head, pulling out the forms the secretary had given her. "Not yet." She replied. "I wished to ask about one of the fields on it…"
Rex stood back and watched as the Gormotti girl expertly navigated the conversation with the clerk. He had to admit, it had definitely been a good idea to leave this to her. While he was hardly unfamiliar with this sort of administrative work, having needed to endure a substantial amount of it back when he was getting his guild license, it was clear that Nia was far more adept at it than he was.
He glanced over at Dromarch, who was placidly watching his Driver work, and leaned over to the tiger. "She's pretty good at this." He noted, watching as the Gormotti girl quickly filled out the forms, occasionally asking the clerk for clarification about exactly what one of the fields required.
"This is not a side of her person that my Lady prefers to display." Dromarch replied, somewhat evasively. "But there are always times when it is useful."
He idly nodded in agreement as Nia handed the stack of forms over to the clerk. The man quickly shuffled through them, giving the forms a quick assessment to ensure they had been filled out properly before setting them in a pile within an application box.
"Now, I must warn you; because of the value of the books within, we do insist upon a strict evaluation of all potential applicants." He said, giving the group as serious a look as he could muster in his exhaustion. "We will require references to investigate, and depending on how difficult they are to contact, it may be weeks before you are allowed access."
Nia's smile widened, only just enough to remain polite, as she pulled out the letter from Morag. "We were anticipating that." She said, handing the letter over to the clerk. "And have come under recommendation."
The clerk hesitantly reached over the desk, his eyebrows raising as he saw the imperial seal stamped on the envelope. "What in the…?" He leaned back in his chair as he retrieved the letter, carefully examining it before breaking the seal on the envelope.
As the man's eyes tracked across the page, they widened in surprise. No doubt, he had not been expecting to be reading a letter of recommendation from the Special Inquisitor of Mor Ardain when he woke up that morning, a sentiment that rang all too true at his reaction when he reached the end of the letter.
It wasn't a particularly long document, so it was only a few moments before they were treated to the sight of his jaw dropping as he reached the Special Inquisitor's signature. The man blinked, as if thinking he was mistaken, before furiously rubbing his eyes with his arm to make absolutely sure. Yet the text remained unchanged, still bearing the name of the Ardainian Emperor's right hand.
"Um… this is…" He muttered, looking up at Nia, then the others, before looking back down at the letter. "…You understand that we will need to authenticate the legitimacy of this document, yes?" The man asked with equal parts shock and suspicion. Considering exactly who had issued the letter, it came as no surprise, even to Rex, that the man would suspect it to be a forgery.
"By all means." Nia replied, a smug look slipping past her otherwise polite smile.
"…Right." The clerk mumbled numbly, placing the letter atop the rest of the paperwork. "In that case, we will contact you once this has been verified."
Looking back at them, he added, "We will need a point of contact for you. Have you already arranged lodging?"
Nia shook her head. "We have not." She explained. "We decided it would be best to begin the application process as early as possible, with the understanding that we could secure ourselves rooms in a local inn later."
"I see." He replied, pulling out a notepad. "In that case, I would recommend the Two Tome Inn, just outside the Academy gates." The man quickly scribbled down a note on the top pad of paper before tearing it off and handing it to the girl. "They're Academy-affiliated and keep a certain number of rooms available specifically for people waiting approval for various requests like yours. Give this slip to the secretary at the front desk, and she'll give you a voucher for them."
The girl reached out, grabbing the slip of paper from the clerk. "Thank you very much." She said, stepping away from the desk. "We will leave you to your business."
"Yes." He snorted, glancing down at the pile of documents. "How generous. A good day to you, miss."
Without a further word, the group withdrew from the office. Nia eyed the slip of paper she had been given, quickly checking exactly what the man had written on it.
"I guess that's our lodging handled for the time being." Rex noted, glancing over at the girl. "Anything else we need to handle before we head over there?"
She let out a long sigh in response, leaning her head back in exhaustion. "…Maybe we can see if there's a training ground we can hit up." She said, annoyance coloring her tone. "I could use a proper unwind after that."
Beside them, Tora chuckled at her response. "Nia-Nia not like fancy talk?" He asked knowingly.
"You have no idea." She groaned. "That was barely ten minutes, and I feel like I was trampled by a herd of Ardun."
Rex chuckled at the imagery. "Well, it has been a good week since the last time we did any training." He noted. "It'll probably do us some good to get back into practice."
"Indeed." Azurda chimed in. "Considering the circumstances, it would not be wise to let your combat abilities dull. Should whoever is behind the abductions, or, Architect forbid, Malos, make an appearance, it would be disastrous if you were unprepared for that level of combat."
"That would be pretty bad." Nia agreed. "They should have facilities set aside for combat training; this is a popular school for nobles after all, so they'll be used to accommodating Drivers." She frowned as she spoke. "The only question is whether or not they have any open to the public."
Dromarch nudged her hand with his head. "If they do not, there are doubtlessly sites outside the confines of the Academy that will be available." The tiger consoled. "It may require us to leave the boundaries of the city, but I do not believe that it will be a particular hardship."
She smiled down at her Blade. "You're right." The Gormotti girl said, her spirits bolstering slightly. "Worst comes to worst, we can have a spar on top of the Titan's eyelid or something!"
"Poppi not think best idea." The artificial Blade noted. "Would bring much much attention to friends."
"Quite right." Azurda chuckled. "Perhaps we should ensure there are more official facilities available before we get so creative."
As it turned out, the Academy did not, in fact, allow outsiders to use their Driver training facilities. Indeed, even the access request they had in the works would have been insufficient, as it only pertained to the library facilities and nothing else.
Nia was hardly surprised by that, of course. Really, it was almost expected. After all, not only were the library and the Driver training grounds under the purview of two entirely different departments, the latter was far more likely to be critical of outsiders using their facilities thanks to the disproportionate number of noble children among the student body's Drivers.
Particularly Ardainian ones, seeing as the Empire was one of the last major nations that still denied peerage to those who lacked Driver Aptitude.
Anywhere that had that many noble offspring was naturally going to be under increased scrutiny in order to ensure that no intentional 'accidents' befell the son or daughter of someone particularly important. In a combat training area intended for Drivers? That scrutiny was only going to be greater.
Fortunately, there were other options. After securing rooms in the inn the clerk had recommended, they had asked around for potential places to cut loose. It was hardly an unreasonable request—Drivers, while not exactly commonplace, were hardly rare either, even in a place like this—and unlike many Titans as large as the one the city sat atop, there was little accessible land outside the walls in which they could train safely.
It had taken a little while, and a number of people asked, for them to find a good lead on a place, but eventually they were pointed in the direction of one of the few spots it would be safe for them to cut loose: the island atop the Titan's nose, known locally as 'Goethe Rock'.
They had seen it on their way in—a moderately-sized island at the head of Tadbir's port that was barren save for a lonely lighthouse set atop the highest point. Nia had wondered why it was so empty; after all, it might not be sheltered from the Titan's leading wake, but she would have thought it would at least be a decent spot to place a shore battery to deter anyone from trying to raid the Titan. After all, piracy was still an issue from time to time, and as far as she knew, Tadbir lacked a navy. Shore defenses would go a long way in keeping anyone from getting the idea that the academic Titan was a soft target.
Regardless of the reasoning, which the guard who had pointed them in that direction had not known, the fact that it was largely empty made it a popular spot for the local Drivers that didn't have access to the Academy's facilities to train. Popular enough that, despite the fact that the rock possessed little other interest, there was a dedicated service to ferry visitors across the harbor to it.
Of course, getting there in the first place required them to descend the entire length of the city again, but that wasn't nearly as annoying as climbing had been. Even discounting the obvious part about not fighting gravity, they were unburdened by the need to be constantly checking that they were on the correct path, and Nia had already gotten enough of a feel for the city that she no longer felt the need to examine every stall they passed.
She still might check out a couple, though; their clothing was pretty out-of-place in the Academy, and she had seen a clothier on the third tier specializing in traditional Gormotti outfits. Maybe it would be worthwhile to grab something that would blend in a little more…?
No, she shook her head, discarding the thought the moment it passed her mind. They weren't being actively pursued here; blending in wasn't necessary. That sort of mindset had served her well in the past, but now…
The Gormotti girl glanced out over the side of the small dinghy ferrying them to the rock, watching a small nopon ship, similar in design to the one they had delivered for Umon, glide into port. She had noticed that the smaller ships were coming to dock in the center of the port, while the larger ones had been relegated to the sides. Why was that, she wondered? Wouldn't it make more sense for the infrastructure for the larger ships to be in the center, while the smaller ones that required less effort to unload docked on the periphery?
She had no idea. While the tutors her Dad had hired for her and her sister, back when he could still afford them, had covered a wide range of topics regarding trade and commerce, those had focused more on the economic and administrative aspects of those concerns rather than the practical end.
Maybe Rex knew? He was used to working around port infrastructure. She couldn't imagine that he hadn't picked up something after working out of Goldmouth for as long as he had.
Glancing over at the boy, she considered asking. He wasn't in the middle of anything particularly involved, merely checking that the false Weapon Core Tora had made for his Blade weapon was firmly attached.
On the other hand, their destination was looming over them as they approached, no more than a minute or two out from the little jetty she could see wedged into a small notch in the stoney surface of the Titan's nose. There probably wasn't much point in asking when they were so close.
So, she let the idle question slip from her mind, instead thinking over what she wanted to get out of this practice session. They weren't going to have a lot of time, seeing as it was late afternoon by the time they had climbed into the dinghy, but there should still be a good two or three hours before they needed to head back to the inn.
During the trip to Voltis, they had mostly focused on individual training. Basic combat drills for Tora, ether throughput for Rex, and new Arts for herself. They hadn't been able to do anything more fancy, considering the need to not damage the ship they were delivering.
Maybe a good spar was in order? It would be nice to actually get a chance to test the new Art Azurda taught her in combat, and Tora in particular needed the practice. Not to mention that Rex wouldn't be able to do ether training here…
Their transport slid up to the jetty as she pondered over it, and the group climbed out of the little dinghy. It was a fitting size for the boat, barely ten peds long and maybe half that wide, wedged into the barren, all-but-lifeless rock of the island.
A rough path led away from the jetty, more the result of wear on the stone than anything planned. It took them around the island, away from the larger dock intended to service the lighthouse and toward the slope of the island facing the direction of the Titan's movement.
It was a fairly unremarkable walk. The island only had the barest beginnings of plant life, a thin layer of lichen that was slowly creeping its way up toward the lighthouse, and at this angle there wasn't a particularly good view of the city.
Eventually, they reached the area that was obviously intended for Driver training—a small, flat plain that was scarred with the obvious signs of combat. Patches of the ground were burned or rent, with shattered boulders and jagged fissures from Blade Arts littering the area. She could even see the telltale patterning of erosion along the far side, where a large water attack must have scoured away some of the surface at one point.
They weren't alone, either. There were a handful of other Drivers about, all with common Blades, that were practicing their skills across the area. Several were alone, but there was a group on the far side that seemed to be taking turns sparing with one another.
She grinned at the sight. "Hey, wanna give that a go?" She asked, nodding over at the other group.
Rex gave the other Drivers a considerate look. "Sure, why not?" He matched her grin with one of his own. "Might be a good way to start us off."
He looked down at Tora. "What do you say?" The boy asked. "You up for a spar?"
"Meh heh heh!" The nopon chuckled eagerly. "Tora more than ready! Need show off cool moves taught to Tora by Azurda!"
Nia paced slightly away from the others, unhooking her Twin Rings from her belt. Looking down at Dromarch, she asked, "How about you? Did you want to join in, or just sit aside for now?"
The tiger looked over the other two, who were already drawing weapons of their own. "I believe it would be best if I participated as well." He said, a certain eagerness visible in his eyes. "I would not want to leave my Lady at a disadvantage, now would I?"
Ether filled her weapons as the affinity link between them flared into existence, allowing the Gormotti girl to feel her Blade's emotions. The tiger was looking forward to this just as much as she was, in desperate need of stretching his limbs after almost a week cramped on the ship.
"In that case," she said, beginning to charge an Art even before the start of the spar had been called, "Let's not go too easy on them.
Without so much as a word of warning, Nia rushed forward, Dromarch at her heels, as she charged at Tora with the intention of seeing just how well he was taking to his training.
She intended to make the most of the limited time they had before they needed to head back.
Author's Notes
My first trigger warning! I'm so proud.
It probably wasn't necessary, but considering the subjects involved, I figured it would at least be polite to add. That's the last we'll be seeing of the inside of Castrofari's actual surgical room, since our viewpoint character has been through the procedure now. We will still be seeing the inside of his operations, of course, but no more of the actual medical procedure.
Now, as an announcement, because I am going to be doing a lot of traveling around the Christmas season and won't be able to do much writing, I will not be posting any chapters during December. I will still be releasing a chapter next Tuesday, but that will be the last of the year.