Seeking Light
By Mardrena
"They are with us in all things. At the end of the battle, it is Roth who stands over the broken ranks of the enemy, but at its middle, it is Witheren who will break their wills and make them waver before our courageous charge."
"Why don't your precious Queens come to your rescue? Surely if they were as righteous as you believe, they would strike me down for my blatant wickedness! It's because they fear me, because they have no power in this place! They've abandoned you, JUST LIKE THEY DID YOUR FATHER!"
"Maybe…the gods really did intervene…"
"Just not our gods."
"I considered myself blessed by Eyurodin that she guided me safely. I considered myself blessed by Witheren, that I was able to free Pegasus, and join the Ronin in their battles. I considered myself blessed by Roth, that against all odds, I prevailed. And now, Ritho has given me a final blessing."
"Ander's coming showed us that Oldworld had survived the nightmare from which we fled…but not until much later would we learn how."
"Roth showed us perseverance; to overcome all threats, no matter the odds. Witheren taught us fuhrhiadore: to 'Fight with full fury'. Eyurodin shared with us the secrets of shaping metal, and helped us reach the stars. Ritho taught us compassion, so that more of our young would mature to become warriors and scientists."
"You ever think it's weird how the Thunthen talk about the Thangien Gods almost as much as the Thangiens themselves?"
"You know how there's the Four Queens, right? Roth, Witheren, Eyurodin, and Ritho? Well…there's actually a fifth goddess. Her name is Phitdaitiarona, Goddess of Wickedness."
"She's way too powerful! She's more powerful than you could possibly imagine!"
"The only reason you got caught in the middle of a pissing match between the Thangiens and Thunthen is because Roth dumped your future wife in your back yard!"
"Watch yourself around them. I have a feeling they're going to pay you all a visit at some point in the future, and the thing is they don't pay anyone a visit unless they want something in return."
"You know, why don't you call to your gods and ask them for a lift?"
"They do not intervene directly."
"The Queen of the Rogue's Moon. She harbors such powerful hatred for you! I've never seen such hate before, not even from myself in the past! She doesn't hate you because you've wronged her somehow, she hates you because you exist! You've ruined her fun for the last time, and now she seeks to destroy you once and for all!"
"That god of theirs...she easily coulda intervened against th' Enemy long ago. She didn't, an' that should tell ye somethin'."
"Well, word going around High Space is you all managed to piss off Phitdaitiarona something fierce and she's gunning for you hard-core."
"Your allies call her the 'Queen of Triumph'. I saw her! At that festival on the other world, face to face. She's real! She-...she's on her way, and-and I think the only reason I'm able to tell you this now is she wants you to know she's on her way!"
"G...G...Greetings, Ronin Warriors. We...We...We have watched you all for quite some time. It is good we are finally able to meet. IN THE FLESH."
The Thangien Gods are real.
Their appearance confirms what we've often been told, and long suspected-but couldn't quite bring ourselves to believe. Beings of incredible power, content to observe from the sidelines, but easily capable of intervening quickly and forcefully when they see fit. Thangiens describe Roth as being both compassionate and cruel, and she demonstrated her might first by nearly killing Kento, then by brutally murdering Bautan in a gruesome display of force.
This changes everything...
It only took a gesture from Witheren to send Talpa fleeing from the Realm entirely. Eyurodin and Ritho might look chill on the outside, but Ritho is historically known to have a mean streak of her own, crushing the Native civilization thousands of years ago in a fit of rage. Eyurodin is no pushover either, since it was her grief that set those events into motion to begin with.
So that begs the question: what do they want with us? They could crush Mal Daggur's ships like tin cans, they could-and have- flatten entire civilizations with little effort. Is it all a game to them? Some sort of divine "tough love"? How many more "gods" are there? If Eyurodin is to be believed, Phitdaitiarona-Thanged's reclusive Goddess of Wickedness-is to blame not just for the spacequake, but a lot of other close calls we've had in the past, such as the Black Unicorn.
As much as Cye seethes at the bad hand we've been dealt regarding fate, we're tied up in this whether we like it or not. The Totalitary did attempt an invasion in the ancient past, centuries ago, and Sehkmet's already confirmed they're still out there, nursing their grudge against humanity. It's not a matter of if Entide will happen, but when. The original Ronin Warriors-our predecessors- staved off catastrophe at a tremendous cost. We must be prepared for the Totalitary's return.
Roth said none of the "Three Wars" had occurred yet…so our war against Dygra, against Talpa and Mal Daggur, our recent war against Beastlord, none of those mattered in the long run? Or did they just serve to hone our skills, strengthen our resolve, draw more allies to our side? The "Third Ally" might be the key to understanding what we're expected to face, but so far, we have yet to see any other signs. Entide might not happen tomorrow or next week, but it will happen in our lifetimes, and with each battle we face, that fated Day of Doom draws closer.
All roads lead to the End Tide.
"Boredboredboredboredbored…" Kento grumbled from where he lay on his stomach along the edge of a roof. His mouth opened wide in a yawn and he smacked his lips and rapped his fingertips against his cheek, his other hand tucked under his chest. "Maaan, there hasn't been any action for over a week. Mal Daggur's been quiet and Talpa got sent packin' by that one war-god-lady. I almost wish she hadn't smashed his fortress to bits. Could do with a bit of excitement around here.
"Although…I have to admit it was pretty funny seeing Roth utterly shred Bautan," the corner of Kento's mouth turned up in that same grin that had so unsettled Tanya. He remembered how his blood boiled at the sight of that smug spirit Bautan, and how Roth had glanced over her shoulder at him, as if reading the grudge written in his blood. "I wanted to tear him apart myself with my bare hands, but I was too weak to transform. It's like that lady read my mind. What am I saying, of course she did. She's a 'god' isn't she? Man. Fighting's gotten so complicated these days. We've got all these enemies and none of them are available for a good fight? Huh?"
Kento blinked and rose up on his elbow slightly when he heard the distant tinkle of glass breaking and a blaring security alarm. He peered down the street and saw a trio of men dash out of a shattered storefront, each holding a laden bag and assorted weapons like crowbars or tire irons. They pelted down the street while an elderly man nursing a bruised arm limped out onto the sidewalk and shouted after the brazen thieves.
"Jewelry heist? Seriously? People still do those these days?" Kento grimaced and scratched his head. "I mean, it's a little out of our jurisdiction…" Ronin Warriors typically dealt with otherworldly-or these days, extraterrestrial- threats against the Mortal Realm they knew and love. Common burglars and lowlife purse-snatchers seemed relatively insignificant in the grand scheme of things. "But what the hey, I'm bored!" Kento grinned and took off along the rooftops in pursuit of the trio.
"That getaway couldn't have been any cleaner if we stuck it in a washin' machine!"
"Yeah! Once we fence this stuff, we'll be set for life!"
"Or at least next week, bwah hahahahah!" The three thieves guffawed as they pelted down the sidewalk, weaving around pedestrians too absorbed in their own goings on to care or notice anything out of the ordinary besides three heavy-set men. The trio ducked down an empty side street, presumably on the way to their hideout to gloat over their ill-obtained spoils. A figure clad in orange and black metallic armor sprang down into their path, and the trio skidded to a halt abruptly.
"Heeeeellllooo, guys! Doing a bit of shopping during the season for that extra-special someone?" Kento grinned and made a show of smacking his fist into his palm and rolling his shoulders.
"CRAP! It's that guy!" one thug squawked and the trio turned tail and ran.
"Heh, I didn't even have to transform for that kinda response," Kento chuckled and gave chase.
The three thieves didn't have the presence of mind to simply abandon their loot, the clinking and jingling of the bags easily giving away their position. The two in the rear yelped when armored hands grabbed them by their collars and yanked them off the ground, while the one in the fore panicked and finally dropped his bag. The armored hand grabbed the bag and lifted it off the ground.
"Okay, you two knuckleheads sit nice and tight here with all the evidence while I go fetch your buddy," Kento said to the two thugs he'd tied up by bending a lamppost in a noodle around them, keeping their arms pinned snugly. He tied the bags together in a knot and left them dangling between the pair, the treasure they coveted so dearly maddeningly just out of reach. He gave them a parting pat on the head before springing down onto the ground. By now the remaining crook had more than enough time to put plenty of distance between them.
Kento decided to cheat a little and use some of his spillover senses from his Avatar form. He tilted his head back and sniffed the air a moment. "Ah, wuss this way," he muttered and took off running. The trail led him to a maintenance shaft with the manhole cover partially askew. "Aww maaan, why do they always have to pick the sewers," Kento grumbled and hung his shoulders before shoving the cover to the side so he could fit. He landed neatly on the floor and turned around to get his bearings, pinching his nose with one hand. "Now if I were a dirty lowlife rat, where would I go...huh?"
Kento lowered his hand and raised an eyebrow when he could see the thief running towards him in the gloom, arms flailing at his sides. "Ah, I see you decided to make things easy for a change and save me the trouble of hunting you down. Suits me just fine! Let's do this!" Kento raised his fists.
Instead of attacking-or even attempting to-the thief rushed right past Kento and scrambled up the ladder, slipping once and banging his chin before whimpering and clambering up the rungs in a panic, running as if he couldn't run fast enough. He babbled and gibbered hysterically and Kento caught whiff of fresher soil than what the sewer housed. Kento turned around and stared up at the opening, confused.
"Um…okaaay…never had that happen before…I...I guess I should go after him…" he muttered to himself. "Huh?!"
Kento whirled around when he heard a sound like heavy metallic footsteps tromping through water. He peered into the darkness, wondering if this is what gave the burglar such a fright. He thought he could hear a faint sound like the whirring of servos and clanking of armor plating. A shape blacker than shadow rounded the corner at the very end of the tunnel. Eyes with bright green irises and black slit-shaped pupils regarded Kento calmly, but they shone clearly in the dark as if backlit.
The end of the tunnel lit up, lights activating on parts of the creature's body. Kento could make out two legs, a long thick tail, a back full of sail-like spines, and silvery metal, but the body itself looked dark gray, almost black, giving it the appearance of a shadow wearing armor. Kento didn't know what to think other than the sight of it gave him the heebie-jeebies.
"Um…Okay...uh...I think...I think I should get going right about now!" Kento gulped nervously and grabbed the highest rung he could reach as the lights turned off abruptly and he heard the splash of rapid footfalls as the shadowy being rushed towards him. All the while he moved to turn around and spring out of the hole he could hear the clank of metal and splash of water as the being closed the distance rapidly, moving faster than anything he'd ever encountered.
Kento recoiled upon coming face-to-snout with the shadowy entity. The brilliant green eyes peered intently at him through the gloom, and he could make out an outline like a dinosaur, from the movie with the dinosaurs that chased people and ate them-especially the fat guy… Something struck his arm away from the ladder and the creature circumvented him, putting itself between him and the ladder. It drew itself up slightly and once more the darkened tunnel lit up from small panels on the metallic armor the creature wore, giving Kento a better look at its appearance.
It appeared to wear a vest of metal that ran from the front of its chest to the base of its tail. Metal covered the top of its wedge-shaped head from the back of the neck to the front of the nose and smaller plates ran along the side down to the jaw. Four distinctive dark purple sail-like spines jutted out through the armor on the back between the shoulders and the hips. A cluster of dark purple crests protruded from the upper back of its head. Thin metal tubes snaked out all over its arms, legs, and tail from the edges of its armor. Metal plates covered its knees and shins with more thin tubes extending down to the toes of its rather large feet which sported three prominent talons and thick spurs on the heels. Small bright purple, green, or blue lights adorned parts of its "armor". A long thick tail trailed out behind it.
"Khagh mui kaak!" the creature spat, opening a mouth lined with small sharp teeth. "Khagh mui kaak!" it hissed and took a step towards Kento, forcing him to back away slightly.
"Whoa! What gives!" On one hand he felt relieved that it didn't immediately attack, on the other it seemed intent on keeping him underground, and that made him feel uneasy.
"Tholg ul emun nyeh kayarr, bekal morindae," Kento blinked, recognizing one word but not following the rest. "Gebit sha ketah, khagh mui kaak!" the creature tossed its head and snapped.
"Look, dude! I don't understand hissing and spitting, okay!" Kento protested and shrugged. The creature reached up with a forearm and clenched its fist, tilting it down to brandish a pair of tubes on the back of its wrist that glowed with green light. "Hey! Watch where you point that thing!" Kento promptly swatted away its arm only for the creature to aim back at his face again. "Knock it off!" Kento squawked, and again the creature raised its wrist. "Stop that!" Kento batted its hand away again, and the creature seemed to relent and stared up at him with its strange back-lit eyes. "I have no idea what you're trying to tell me! Understand? No com-pren-day!" Kento waved at himself. Sheesh, even Danae had less of a freak-out when she first arrived!
The creature reared its head back slightly and cocked it to the side. It tilted its body up and reached for a lit panel on its chest plate, tapping it with a claw. The panel appeared to sink inward and slide to the side and the creature reached inside and pulled out something small. Kento could only stand still and be patient as the creature pinched something between its thumb and index claws and reach up to press something against his forehead. He glanced upward when he heard whirring and beeping, blinking in confusion. The creature leaned close and brought its nose within an inch of Kento's face.
The eyes seem to fix him in place and he stared back, blinking stupidly. All of a sudden it seemed like the irises started to shift and slide around, and it looked as if miniature plates rotated within the eye, changing color until Kento found his own eyes staring back at him for a brief moment before the eyes reconfigured into their original color and shape. The creature reached up with one hand and tapped a set of buttons on the side of the headgear it wore. It seemed to relax and drew itself up once more.
It opened its mouth and Kento only heard more of the same hissing gurgle as before, only this time interspersed with what sounded like coherent words. "I. Am. Asking. You. If. You. Are. One. Of. The. Morind. De. Witheren," the creature spoke jerkily.
"Whoa! How can I understand you all of a sudden?!" Kento stiffened and pointed a finger at it.
"I downloaded your speech patterns," it replied, becoming more accustomed to speaking fluidly, albeit a bit clipped. Kento kept one finger pointed at it and glanced from side to side awkwardly.
"Okay, first off: don't download anything from me, okay? Alot of that is personal, you know, and I don't appreciate a complete stranger rooting around inside my nogg-" The creature raised its wrist weapon again, placing it within an inch from Kento's face. "Hey! Take it easy, dude! No worries! My mind is your mind!" Kento raised both hands and cringed. The creature lowered its arm. The metal covering its brows made it difficult to tell if it scowled or not.
"I am going to ask you a set of simple questions, and you will answer, do you understand?"
"Yes," Kento replied and nodded. All of a sudden the tiny device stuck on his forehead sizzled and popped off completely, landing on the floor sparking and hissing pathetically. The two looked down at it briefly before back at each other. The creature narrowed its eyes and leaned close.
"I strongly recommend against doing that again." Kento gulped and nodded. "If you are a Morindae, you will take me to your leader."
"Oh now that is so cliché. You could at least switch it around some-" Kento began. The creature aimed at his face again. "Hey!-Cut it out!" Kento batted his arm to the side again. "Look, if you need help or something, you're gonna have to mellow out a bit, capiche?" The creature eyed Kento warily and growled softly but kept its arms low and close to its chest. "There, was that so hard? Now, you need to speak to Ryo? You got a name or something?"
"Thurionahliorankalnderalulaktar."
"Okay...you got a short version? You know, something easier for us humans to pronounce?"
"Trankandalaktar."
"No, no, no, I meant a shorter version," Kento argued and pressed his palms together.
"That is the condensed rendition of my name!" the creature narrowed its eyes, baring its teeth.
"Okay! How about something simple, like uh...oh...I dunno…" Kento glanced about and wiggled his fingers for a few moments. "Trakar? That work for you?" he offered and shrugged. The creature said nothing at first and cocked its head from side to side before rearing back slightly.
"That will suffice," Trakar replied.
"Cool, now that's been taken care of, I can teleport us back to base in a jiffy. Just give me a second and I'll-" Trakar aimed his wrist again and hissed.
"No teleportation! No deception! You will take me to your leader with haste!"
"Okay okay okay! We can take the scenic route if you want! Can we just-can we get out of here? Okay, I'm going nose-blind down here," Kento complained. Trakar moved out of the way. Kento sprang out of the opening, followed quickly by Trakar who nimbly leapt out from the darkness and landed on the pavement powerfully enough to send cracks running through the asphalt.
"If you attempt to deceive me, you will be punished."
"I bet you're fun at parties," Kento grumbled and turned around. Above ground lit by street lights, Trakar indeed looked like a dinosaur with a barrel-shaped chest, long tail, and powerful legs. He held himself horizontally unlike the Thunthen who stood proudly with their backs straight. The top of his back came up to roughly the middle of Kento's torso. Instead of scales or wrinkled hide, his skin looked soft and smooth. His dark gray skin seemed to shrug off any light. "Just stick close to me. Hope you can keep up, cuz its a long run back to the Roost-"
"Stay right where you are, Ronin Warrior!" Kento and Trakar stiffened and looked around to see dozens of Thunthen Nobles emerge from the shadows. "You're not going anywhere," a lanky Nobeyl with blood-red beard and head crests stated, aiming a weapon at them.
"You! You-You're…" Kento scowled and waggled a finger. He knew he'd seen this Noble before but he couldn't quite place where as he tried sifting through his memories. He could recall a bloodied Mal Daggur and a second Noble at his side supporting him, vowing retribution.
"Don't bother yourself with recollection: I can already tell your puny brain strains from the effort. You might not know or remember my name, but I know you well enough, Khanto Earthrider," Bru Ranir growled. "You know what this is, do you not?" The Nobeyl held his hand open, displaying the bulky pistol he held in his palm. Kento's breath caught in his throat, recognizing a nerve-deadener. "And I'm sure you remember what it can do! If I so much as see a muscle twitch on your face, I will leave you incontinent for a week! And you wouldn't want that, now would you? You must face justice for the unlawful murder of Plaedarr Bloodhun, but as shocking as it may sound to hear, I am not here for you today." Kento made a face but remained stock still since close to twenty or more heavily-armed Nobles surrounded them.
"Now…" Bru Ranir pointed the nerve-deadener at Trakar. "Did you honestly believe we wouldn't notice or anticipate your arrival? Surely Roth can't be so foolish as to think we wouldn't suspect her hand in all of this. Her edict of non-intervention might prevent her from openly meddling, but it holds no sway over us, and thus we are free to respond with impunity. Come along now, Reptilloid. There is a nice, cozy containment cell waiting for you on the Nsenagvvik."
"Trakar, you don't have to do this! Don't listen to him!" Kento hissed out the side of his mouth.
"Yes he does, Ronin Warrior! Not another word from you!" Bru Ranir aimed the nerve-deadener at him again briefly before bringing it back to bear on Trakar. "You can come quietly in peace or in pieces, the choice is yours." Trakar's nostrils flared under the metal plate above his muzzle.
Man, this bites! I can't transform or summon Armor! Now what do I do? Kento glanced around at the Thunthen. Aside from nerve-deadeners, they wielded phergon rifles and pistols. If they're that worried about me, they could just knock me out and be done with it! Kento's eyes widened in dawning realization and he glanced sideways at Trakar. ...He's the bigger threat to them! They're saving all their firepower for him! Trakar took a step towards the red-bearded Noble.
"That's more like it. Mal Daggur has a lot of questions for you," Bru Ranir taunted as Trakar approached one slow step at a time.
"Trakar! Stop! It doesn't have to end like this!" Kento argued.
"Shut up, Ronin Warrior!" Bru Ranir warned and took aim, but did not pull the trigger. "Easy does it...that's a good little Reptilloid…" Other Nobles approached, forming a loose ring around Trakar.
"Silly Reptilloid; thinking you have a 'culture' of your own," another Nobeyl sneered. Trakar's legs whirred as he moved slowly, as if his legs couldn't quite move on their own power. Now the Nobles had closed in around him, keeping their weapons trained on him. Trakar tucked his arms in and lowered himself to the ground, seemingly in submission. Tiny hatches opened up along his back, sides, and shoulders. "No, wait-!" a Noble cried.
The area lit up as Trakar unleashed an impressive array of weapons to rival WILDCAT. Bru Ranir scrambled for cover as several Nobles got caught by energy blasts point-blank. Globes of blinding white light sprayed up into the air while energy shots peppered the immediate area. Before the rest could recover from the daze, Trakar took off running at incredible speed, his feet stomping into the pavement powerfully. "He's a Sprinter! Watch out!" Nobles shot at him, but he managed to bob and weave as he strafed. While they focused on Trakar, Kento dove behind a parked car and toggled his AnimArmor ring, summoning Ram sub-armor. Bru Ranir spotted him hunkering close to the ground and shot at his position with a phergon pistol, but still didn't use the nerve-deadener. Kento rolled to the side and aimed his clawncher at the red-bearded Noble but recoiled as more phergon fire peppered his cover. The Noble seemed more interested in keeping him pinned than actually harming him.
Trakar, on the other hand, seemed to be giving the Thunthen attackers what for as he sped in a circle around the desperate Nobles. Kento watched amazed as he drew his legs together and moved them simultaneously, bounding like a kangaroo and moving as fast as a bullet train. A hapless Noble cried out as Trakar changed direction suddenly and sped right towards him. Trakar sprang into the air, pulling his feet up while still maintaining his speed, and he slammed into the Noble feet-first, sending his body flying one direction while leaving his shell in place hovering in the air a moment before falling to the ground and rolling about like a hubcap.
"Whoa!" Kento gasped, shocked at the sight. Trakar landed on his feet and skidded sideways, hopping once in place then turning around and gearing up for another charge. He kept his body low so most shots sailed over him entirely, and moved so fast the Nobles-already poor shots compared to Commons- had trouble keeping their weapons trained. Trakar swerved and lashed out with his tail, smashing a Noble in the gut and sending him flying before dashing away and repeating the cycle of circling then executing another charge, managing to pivot quickly on his toes and make shocking on-the-time turns. The remaining Nobles tried aiming ahead of Trakar to catch him off-guard, firing indiscriminately on the surrounding area. Kento had to keep himself flattened against the ground and covered his head with his arms as phergon fire streaked overhead.
Only three Nobles remained standing, and Trakar bowled one over, headbutted the second, and tail-whipped the last. As the fallen Noble groaned and tried to rise, Trakar placed one foot on his chest and kept him pinned down, hissing in warning. Dang! This guy is something else! When we first fought Mal Daggur, he mopped the floor with us, but this guy chewed through thirty Nobles like it was nothing! Kento marveled. He'd been so absorbed in observing the fight he didn't notice movement from a pair of fallen bodies across the street.
Bru Ranir had decided to "play possum" early on and remained still when the corpse of a slain Nobeyl landed close by, the body sizzling from energy blasts. Now that Trakar had his back turned and seemed triumphant, Bru Ranir took aim with the nerve-deadener. Kento noticed movement out the corner of his eye. "Trakar! Watch out-!" Bru Ranir fired, the pulse catching Trakar on the side. Trakar howled and staggered but remained standing. Bru Ranir fired again with the nerve-deadener but also with a phergon pistol, landing multiple shots. Trakar let out a gurgling sigh and toppled onto this side.
"Trakar! Leave him alone!" Kento shot his clawnchers at Bru Ranir's position, blasts striking the pavement and sending asphalt spraying in his face. Bru Ranir recoiled and reeled as a chunk of wall fell loose from the building behind him, striking him in the shoulder and knocking him to the ground. Kento turned his attention to Trakar and ran over to kneel beside him. "Trakar! C'mon, speak to me dude!" Kento fretted and slipped one arm under Trakar's head, cradling it in his elbow. Sparks flew out of a gaping hole in the armor plate along his back and dark-colored blood oozed from a wound on his side. Trakar's eyes remained closed and he let out a weak sigh from the back of his throat.
"Hang in there buddy! I'll get you out of here in one piece, don't you worry!" Kento promised and worked his arms underneath Trakar's limp body. "Eeeeeeaaaasy does it!" Kento hefted Trakar over his shoulders and staggered to his feet. "C'mon, let's get you outta here-whoa!" Kento took a step forward. "Whoa! Whoawhoawhoawhoa!" Kento staggered to and fro a step, having to plant his legs apart to keep steady. Shockingly enough, he could feel his knees wobbling and he huffed and let out a muffled swear. "...Dude! I could lift a bulldozer if I wanted to, and I'm telling you: You're heavy!" Kento grunted. He did not feel this heavy when I picked him up! Trakar's mouth hung open and Kento only heard a dazed sigh in reply. This isn't good: I can't run carrying him like this, but if I set him down to summon Armor, I might not be able to pick him up again! Great, now what do I do?
"Nnnff…" Kento grunted as he had to keep shifting his shoulders to keep Trakar from slipping. Wait a minute! That's it! Kento remembered how much Trakar's fighting style reminded him of WILDCAT. Here goes nothing! "WILDCAT TO THE RESCUE! WILDCAT TO THE RESCUE!" Kento shouted. Please tell me you heard that... Kento glanced around shakily, not sure how many of the fallen Nobles remained alive or if they already called in reinforcements. He couldn't even use his wrist-com since he needed both arms to keep Trakar's body stable. Kento's feet started to sink into the ground from the immense weight. He worried the ground might give way entirely. He glanced about nervously, wondering if any more Thunthen would arrive any second now. He looked to the side and smiled in relief when he heard a distant rapid clanking and saw WILDCAT approaching.
"WILDCAT! Am I glad to see you! Listen up: I need you to carry this guy. He's injured and needs help," Kento warned and moved over to the side of WILDCAT one step at a time. WILDCAT watched him and twitched her ears, confused at first. Kento had to shift sideways so that Trakar slid off and landed on WILDCAT's back. Immediately, WILDCAT's body jolted and servos whined in protest upon having so much weight deposited at once. WILDCAT turned her face towards Kento jerkily, looking at once irritated and flabbergasted. "Yeah yeah, I know! I know! I'll make it up to you later, I promise! A big juicy steak, a gallon of motor oil, you name it!" Kento promised as he pulled the heavy-duty woven straps from the slots near WILDCAT's shoulders and hips and secured Trakar's body. The two looked to the side in alarm upon hearing the distant whine of an approaching Thunthen troopship. "Look, we gotta get going!" Kento argued and the two took off as searchlights roved about the area.
Ryo walked alongside the wall of the main cavern. Bau Daophyn worked further away down the wall, putting his newly-restored arm to use by installing new light fixtures. Ryo paused and raised an eyebrow when he thought he heard someone shouting and turned around, looking in the direction of the exit tunnel. "...makewaymakewaymakewaymakewaymakewaymakewayMAKEWAY!" Kento shouted as he ran inside and came to a stop a few feet away from the giant samurai-helm floor plate. He turned around and planted his feet and leaned forward, raising both palms as if bracing for something.
Ryo watched him, confused, and looked back towards the tunnel when he heard an approaching clank as WILDCAT charged into the main cavern. Instead of stopping-or trying to stop- she nearly collided with Kento, his palms catching her solidly by the shoulders. His heels scraped against the floor, coming to a stop barely an inch from the floor plate. However, WILDCAT herself didn't stop moving as her momentum sent her rear half up off the ground completely. Her dererium chassis creaked and groaned in protest. The straps securing the burden she carried snapped completely, sending something large and both shiny and dark sailing through the air. Ryo's gaze followed the large mass as it careened over the floor before landing squarely in the middle of the floor plate.
The object landed with such force it smashed the plate completely, skidding several feet and pushing up a pile of onyx and gold shards as easily as wet sand on a beach. Bau saw this and his jaw just about hit the floor in horror. His eyes nearly popped out of their sockets upon seeing a huge gouge in the highly polished, meticulously-crafted plate. Tears hung from his eyes like pendulums.
"...That was smooth…" Ryo commented and raised an eyebrow, grimacing.
"Ease off, Ryo! He's heavier than he looks!" Kento protested as he straightened himself and dusted off his arms. Ryo looked to the side and gasped upon seeing WILDCAT collapse onto her belly, sparks flying from her joints and fluid dribbling out onto the floor.
"WILDCAT! What'd you do to her?! Her hydraulics are completely shot! HEY! Can we get a medic over here? Or a vet? Or a shaman! Or an engineer!?" Ryo hollered and knelt beside the limp WILDCAT. Neither of the two thought to ask Bau, who still stared in shock at the damaged floor plate. Ryo glanced about to see if anyone might've heard his shout. He raised his arm to speak into his wrist-com but paused when he saw the form lying in a limp curl amid the ruins of the floor plate. "...What's this?" he asked cautiously and stood up, walking over alongside Kento.
"You got me. Mal Daggur sent his goons to try and capture him, and he put up a pretty good fight, but they got a lucky shot in and he's hurt real bad. His name's Trakar, and he specifically wants to talk to you." Ryo raised an eyebrow and glanced at Kento before returning his gaze to the unconscious form. "They really wanted to stop him from reaching us!"
"You could've just teleported him, you know…" Ryo commented and glanced at the ruined floor.
"And how was I supposed to do that with troopships tailing us all the way from the city, huh? We had to take a shortcut through the forest to shake'em off our tail." By then, other members of the Ronin entered the main cavern, having heard the commotion. Rowen, Sage, Cye, Tanya, and Sehkmet walked over with Sehk kneeling next to the unconscious creature. "You shoulda seen this guy in action! He moves like something else! You know, I got to thinking: Ryo...what if this is the Third Ally?" Kento suggested, drawing a startled glance from Ryo.
"For real?" Ryo raised an eyebrow and glanced back down at the limp Trakar.
"Yeah! You know how that verse went, 'a silver shadow seeking light'? Thinking about it now, when I saw him in the dark for the first time, that's what he looked like."
"Um...you have heard of the Trojan Horse, right?" Rowen remarked.
"Look, if he were an enemy, why'd the Thunthen try so hard to capture him?"
"Probably to give a convincing performance…" While the two argued, Sage studied the limp Trakar. He'd never divulged the details of his own bleak vision of the future: Bak and much of his crew meeting their end aboard a fatally-damaged Argonauth, Raurgoth being shot through and through by an energy weapon, the Apprentices taking to the battlefield alongside other Thangiens and how it made sense now why Ki Ki Crol, Rona and Dhr Aurir had been so conspicuously absent from the battle. Looking upon this creature, he thought of himself standing on the field of battle as shadowy shapes darted past, flooding the field. He could easily imagine hundreds-no-thousands of creatures such as this, and that this being would lead the charge to fight and die to defy the Totalitary on the Day of Doom.
"Cye, you're the one who had the big doomsday-vision! Back me up here!" Kento begged.
"Ehh...I dunno. I never really got a good look at the Third Ally: they were always obscured," Cye offered and rubbed the back of his head, grimacing. Sage glanced at him but remained quiet.
"And Roth wasn't exactly very helpful on that end…" Rowen muttered, scowling.
"Ryo...you need to come take a look at this," Sehkmet called from where he knelt beside Trakar. Ryo walked over and leaned down, seeing where Sehkmet had pinched one of the metal tubes running along Trakar's skin between his thumb and index finger. Sehkmet pulled the tube from one side to the other, and it seemed like the skin pulled with it. He tried lifting the tube away from the skin and the skin remained attached. In fact, upon closer inspection, it looked as if the tubes extended both under and from the skin with the tubes forming Trakar's wrist weapon going inside the arm from the wrist all the way through the radius and ulna. Tubes ran from the armor above his hip along his thigh and under his knees and smaller tubes ran from his ankle into his toes. Thicker tubes ran from the back of Trakar's neck down into the collarbone along the throat. "Certainly a lot more to this guy than meets the eye, wouldn't you say?" Sehkmet commented and glanced up at Ryo.
"If Mal Daggur wanted him alive, maybe Bak knows what this is. Bak, can you come to the main cavern right away?" Ryo spoke into his wrist-com. Again everyone else seemed to forget that Bau Daophyn still remained standing by the wall, mouth agape in shock.
"I'm on my way," Bak Thraplek replied over the line. While they waited, Ryo eyed the tubes poking out from the back of Trakar's hand that looked very much like clawnchers.
"I don't quite like the look of those things…" Ryo muttered and looked around. He spotted his sister standing off to the side idly observing. Her jaw moved from side to side as she chewed. "Hey, sis, gimme your gum," Ryo asked and held out his hand. Tanya flicked a glance at him and scowled.
"What? No."
"This is serious. C'mon, fork it over," Ryo waved his fingers.
"*censored* you!" she snapped. Ryo glanced at Kento. Kento discreetly moved behind Tanya, wrapping his arms around her stomach and pressing his hands against her gut. He squeezed tight briefly, causing her to cough and spit out the wad of gum she'd been so diligently chewing. Ryo reached up and caught it neatly. "Hey! You-that was my last stick!" Tanya whirled around and batted at Kento several times with her palms with Kento shrugging innocently. Ryo rolled his eyes and set to pinching off smaller pieces of gum and tucking them into the mouth of each tube on Trakar's hand. Trakar remained unresponsive giving no indication of waking up anytime soon.
"Yes? What is it?" Ryo looked up when he heard Bak and saw the Thunthen captain approach.
"Hey. Yeah, Kento had a run-in with this guy out on patrol in the city. We were hoping you could tell us if you've seen anything like him before," Ryo asked as Bak walked around those gathered. From where he stood, Ryo and Sehkmet's bodies concealed Trakar lying on the floor. Only when he moved off to the side did he finally get a good view of the unconscious creature lying on the floor.
"TSSSK!" Bak's eyes popped wide and he hissed through his teeth, actually leaving the floor slightly as he skipped back in apparent fright, drawing glances from the others. "It's a Reptilloid!"
"Oh, so you do know what it is…"
"Well I've...heard of them, but never seen one this close before...much less alive!" Bak replied, uneasy upon seeing the limp form. From the tip of his nose to the tip of his tail, Trakar looked slightly longer than Koi Udsarrin stood tall.
"What do you know about these guys? We think he might be the Third Ally." Bak cast an awkward glance at Rowen then back at Trakar. He folded his arms over his chest and inhaled deeply before exhaling powerfully, his lips fluttering over his teeth.
"There is...actually a little known tenth planet in the Thurukian System, one we suspect only recently just arrived from the Vault of Stars, as we only became aware of its existence within the last century or so. We call it Runjen: the Dead World. If our homeworld receives little light, Runjen receives far less. The only reason we discovered it in the first place is from the perturbations it caused in our orbit, which seemed to coincide with increased seismic activity. Decades ago, Sur Daggur dispatched scouting parties to survey this strange world. There is no atmosphere or plant-life to speak of, but the surface is inhabited by creatures such as this: hundreds, thousands...perhaps even millions!
"The scouting party made the ill-advised attempt to...collect specimens...and this stirred a powerful wrath within these creatures. As if the mere thought of subjugation infuriated them, they attacked with a speed and ferocity never before seen. Sur Daggur attempted to bring them under heel only to be thwarted each time. We know not of how they came to be, or where they came from-for it certainly isn't Thuruk-, suffice to say that they've been touched by a strange hand…
"They tend to come in four varieties: Grapplers who specialize in close range melee combat, Sprinters which can move through battle quickly, Technicians who can repair and analyze equipment in a short period of time, and the mighty Silver Spikers, living siege weapons capable of channeling dreadful power. Judging from the implants on this fellow, I'd say he looks like a Sprinter. If they are to be the Third Ally as Roth foretold...this complicates things… There has been nothing but animosity between our two races. For one of them to seek aid here of all places...I can only imagine what sort of desperation motivated him to venture so far from home, such as it is."
"Getting him here was kind of a hassle. The guy's pretty heavy, as I'm sure you've noticed," Kento commented and glanced down at the shallow gouge in the floor.
"Ahh, they do that. Reptilloids are capable of altering their body's density by absorbing ambient matter via their implants. It's a defensive measure apparently intended to deter capture by hostile forces. We've had limited success retrieving even remains for study…"
"You know what, I think I might've actually heard of these guys before...there's a nursery rhyme from Thanged that mentions each of the intelligent races in Thuruk," Rowen began.
"Thangiens have nursery rhymes…?" Tanya commented and made a face. Rowen ignored her and tapped his chin with a fingertip as he tried to remember.
"'Thangien wails and Thunthen tails, Unicorn boys and Reptilloid toys, Feinloran grins and Aguarian fins, Bangukian dreams and Khilioan screams'..."
"WHOA!" Sehkmet's startled exclamation drew the glances of others and he pointed at the wound on Trakar's side. They watched amazed and alarmed as not only the wound in the skin sealed up quickly, but the gaping hole in the metal armor closed shut slowly, metal crawling together until not a scratch remained. "'Touched by a strange hand' indeed…" Sehkmet commented as Ryo stood up and backed away a step. Trakar let out a gurgling wheeze from the back of his throat and twitched slightly.
"Hey! I think he's coming around!" Kento rushed over and knelt down beside him.
"Ahh...I should not be here! He will see me as an enemy!" Bak hissed and scooted back, nervous.
"Bak, that's precisely why you should stay here. So he can know you're our ally too."
"Ryo, your optimism is admirable, but in this situation, I would say misplaced. The concept of diplomacy is as alien to a Reptilloid as we Thunthen are to Humans. Even Ander could not convince them to render aid!" Bak argued. As they spoke, Trakar's eyelids twitched and he opened and shut his mouth slowly, struggling to lift his head. His eyes fluttered open and he could make out various colored blobs as he struggled to focus. His gaze fell first upon Kento kneeling beside him.
"Hey there! Welcome back!" Kento waved cheerfully and grinned. "Glad you're alright. Don't worry, you're safe. This is Ryo, our leader, and he's willing to talk with you whenever you're ready," Kento jerked a thumb over his shoulder. Trakar's gaze roved up to see a man with black hair, blue eyes, and red-and-black armor covering his body from the neck down standing behind Kento with his arms folded over his chest. Ryo nodded curtly and Trakar glanced about at the others surrounding him. He saw another man kneeling beside him with green hair and strange beady-looking eyes and other individuals such as a man with blue hair and a woman with long black ponytails. His gaze snapped toward the middle of the group as he spotted a Thunthen Nobeyl standing at a distance behind them.
"...treachery…" Trakar hissed, his eyes widening.
"Huh?" Kento blinked in confusion when he heard Trakar speak.
"Betrayal!" Trakar narrowed his eyes angrily.
"No-wait!" Kento pleaded as Trakar rolled to the side and pushed himself onto his feet. Sehkmet scrambled to his feet and tried to scoot away as Trakar turned around, swinging his thick tail about. Trakar's mouth hinged open in a hissing scream and he lashed his tail to the side, catching Sehkmet in the gut and sending the Elder Ronin skidding over the floor.
"Whoa!" "Take it easy dude!" "I told you this was a bad idea!" Cye, Rowen, and Bak shouted as Trakar lunged forward, ramming Kento with his shoulder, sending him stumbling and headbutting Sage as he tried to intervene. Trakar tossed his head and screamed again and lunged at Ryo. He raised his wrist, bringing the tubes within an inch of Ryo's face. Ryo recoiled and flinched.
*BZZT* Everyone heard the sound coming from Trakar and the Reptilloid's eyes popped wide in surprise. Trakar blinked several times then tilted his hand up slightly to see the wads of gum clogging the end of his wrist weapon.
"Yeah, we had a feeling you'd spaz out so we took some precautions," Ryo scowled irritably.
"I could have blown my arm off…" Trakar grumbled.
"Well you could've blown my face off, so I'd say the feeling's mutual!" Ryo snapped and raised one hand, pressing a fingertip against Trakar's hand and pushing it away to the side. Trakar lowered his arm and took a step back, sullenly picking at the gum stuck to his weapon. "Look, I get that your people historically have a beef with the Thunthen, but Bak's different. He's a defector, and he's been our friend for many years. If you expect help from us, you have to be willing to accept help from him!" Trakar and Bak eyed each other warily before Trakar looked back to Ryo.
"That may or may not be true, but like all things, we shall see in time…" he said stiffly.
"So you're the Third Ally huh? Roth clued us in that you'd be stopping by for a visit."
"Ahh yes...the geod," Trakar tilted his head up slightly, narrowing his eyes. Ryo raised an eyebrow at the way Trakar said "gi-odd" instead of "god". "She knows many things. It was She who stirred us to action when fragments of Phitdaitiarona's power struck our planet's surface. Yes, we felt echoes of Her malice even on our desolate world. After waiting for so long, the time has finally come for us to seek out the Morind de Witheren, whose powers thwarted the Totalitary in ages past."
"You know about the Totalitary?" Rowen asked.
"We know a great deal about them, given until but a few centuries ago, we served them," Trakar replied, drawing surprised reactions from the Ronin. "It is by their hand that we are so marked," Trakar said and turned himself to the side slightly for all to see the armor covering his body. "So much time has passed, we no longer remember what our lives were before, only that the moment their control slipped during their rout on this world, anger filled our thoughts. We revolted and clawed back our individuality from the cyberlord tasked with keeping us under thrall. Eventually our vengeful savagery overwhelmed their security measures, and they fled like cowards into the Vault of Stars.
"We never saw them again after that fateful battle, but the damage had already been done. Our ruined world drifted aimlessly until Thuruk offered us tenuous refuge, but never again would we be as we were before. We pondered for a long, long time, what sort of Power could give even the Totalitary pause, and resolved to one day seek it out and offer aid, for even we know of the End Tide.
"They remember this world! This was the planet that fought back! Many civilizations had given themselves over willingly to the Totalitary, but not Earth! Earth refused and rejected them! And for that...they had to be punished… Never before had a sentient race declined the 'peace' promised by the Totalitary, and in retaliation, they bent all their will towards quashing these brash upstarts. The forces your people faced, the vast hordes defeated here in the past...was but a mere scouting party." That admission drew incredulous whispers from the Ronin. "Only through the actions of Hau-iyo the Sun Pharaoh, Maidra the Defender, and Ariuan Wrathrider was catastrophe averted that day, and the Totalitary driven from your world. After their defeat, they halted their campaign of conquest to assess their loss, and in doing so showed such weakness that allowed us to rebel. The Totalitary have remained in seclusion throughout the centuries, plotting and consolidating their forces, for when they return, they will bring all their might to bear against this world.
"I have been dispatched to serve as an envoy to the Morind de Witheren. We do not have a government or factions as you do, but we are of all one mind that the Totalitary must be stopped once and for all. When the time comes, you will have the vengeance of our people at your back. Never again will the Totalitary shackle our wills, but never again can we reclaim what was stolen from us.
"Even our young are born with these… 'cyborganic' implants," Trakar lamented and turned his arm over so the Ronin could see the way the tubes entered his skin where veins should be. "Their corruption runs so deep, our race will never be restored. After we regained our free will, we vowed to ensure no other race suffer a similar fate, as I will now demonstrate to you." Trakar tilted his torso up slightly, reaching with both hands to the center seam of the breast plate covering his upper chest. The Ronin watched aghast as Trakar pried the plate open, exposing the entire chest cavity.
Instead of soft wet tissue and bone, they saw metallic ribs and a pulsating bluish blob of a sponge-like material where Trakar's heart should have been. A lattice of tubes and wires and miniature pumps formed the lungs. Tanya recoiled at the sight and buried her face in Kento's shoulder, who patted her on the back reassuringly. Ryo remained speechless. He glanced from the synthetic organs to Trakar's face, and he could see what looked like tears forming under his eyes. Trakar's face-normally bearing an indifferent expression-seemed etched with shame.
"The Totalitary are not of a singular, perfect mind. They are not a hive moving as a cohesive force. They are subject to the same flawed pride as any of the Younger Races they scorn so deeply. They preach salvation through perfection, but in truth, crave absolute subjugation," Trakar explained as he closed the chest plate and resumed his earlier posture. "Before they strike again, they will attempt to seize in secret what they could not take through force, and to achieve this, they will beguile those willing to aid their cause." Cye flicked a worried glance at Rowen. Even though Roth had influenced his dreams, seeing Trakar here and now and what he suffered under the yoke of the Totalitary made Cye wonder if that future vision of Rowen could be averted, or was simply inevitable.
"I will remain on this world to assist as I may and coordinate when needed. If the Morind de Witheren are to be generals in this decisive war, then I am your subordinate," Trakar said and made a curious pose: tucking his arms close to his chest and tilting his entire body forward so his nose almost touched the floor and holding his tail rigid at an upward angle behind him. He remained in this position for several moments. Bak rolled his eyes and let out an irritated snort.
"He expects you to put your hand on his head to acknowledge his service to you," Bak explained. Trakar's eyes remained closed. He heard the rustle of movement and opened an eye a crack and tilted his head sideways, spotting Ryo standing before him with one hand outstretched.
"We call ourselves the Ronin Warriors because we serve no master. Don't think of us as allies: think of us as friends," Ryo offered cheerfully. Trakar pulled his head back slightly and glanced from Ryo's extended hand up to his face several times. He said nothing at first, and Ryo bit his lip, starting to feel a bit uneasy considering Trakar's mouth looked big enough to take his entire hand off at the wrist faster than one could say "snip, snap, snout". Trakar relaxed and slowly raised his arm. Ryo noticed he seemed to be incapable of rotating his wrist a great deal, likely due to the implants permeating his arm. Trakar carefully placed his palm into Ryo's and Ryo shook his hand gently.
"...A curious gesture…" Trakar muttered as they shook hands.
"They are a curious race," Bak interjected with a smile, keeping his hands clasped behind his shell. "One I hope you will come to admire, and appreciate in time." Trakar growled softly in his throat and glanced at him but remained quiet. He looked back at Ryo then leaned up towards him.
"Take it easy, Ryo. He does this. It's how they say hi," Kento advised as Trakar brought his nose within an inch of Ryo's. Their eyes locked and Ryo watched amazed as Trakar's bright green irises broke apart and reconfigured into blue eyes much like Ryo's own. They reverted to their original state and Trakar backed away a step.
"I greet you, Raeo Flamerider. My name is Trankandalaktar, but you may refer to me as Trakar. We can never regain what was stolen from us…" Trakar began and cocked his head to the side. "But perhaps, we can relearn what we've forgotten...and learn new ideas…" As he spoke, no one seemed to notice movement from the cable lifts as something crawled over the floor.
"I thought you looked familiar...it took me awhile to remember," Bak spoke up, drawing a glance from Trakar. "You don't remember me, do you? Of course, how could you? I cowered by the shuttle pissing myself silly while Ander spoke with you…You haven't aged a day…" Bak commented. Trakar looked like he wanted to retort and swished his tail close to the floor but he paused and blinked in surprise. Ryo watched as he turned sideways slightly and swung his tail tip forward slowly.
Ryo flinched awkwardly when he saw little Ryu dangling from the tail tip, clutching it tightly with both tiny hands. Ryu kicked his legs back and forth merrily and eyeing Trakar with excitement.
"Dinoso!" Ryu burbled as Trakar studied him with interest.
"Uhh...yeah, that's my son. I assume you know what a baby is…"
"We lay eggs," Trakar replied curtly and moved his tail closer and lowered his head, bringing his nose close enough for Ryu to see his reflection in the nose plate. Ryu blinked and glanced up at the bright green eyes, and Trakar's irises shifted to match Ryu's emerald eyes. The sight of the many shifting miniature plates made Ryu feel dizzy and his grip on Trakar's tail loosened. Trakar tried to lower him to the ground slowly but Ryo lunged forward and caught Ryu by his bottom before he hit the floor. Ryu's mouth hung open in a daze.
"We've got spare rooms down here if you need a place to stay," Ryo offered as he stood back up, cradling Ryu in his arms.
"We do not sleep or have need of comforts as you do, but accommodations are appreciated," Trakar replied. Ryo glanced at Sehkmet, who nodded understandingly and headed for the residential hall, beckoning for Trakar to follow. Trakar nodded at Ryo before turning to leave.
"Hey! Trakar, hold up a sec!" Kento jogged over, one arm raised and his index finger extended, but Trakar continued walking, seemingly ignoring him.
"No," Trakar said in a deadpan tone, not stopping at all. Kento paused and frowned.
"I...didn't even get to ask what I was going to ask…" he mumbled and lowered his arm, his shoulders drooping. Trakar stopped and turned around slowly, his legs whirring as he moved.
"You were going to ask if I knew of a way to undo your mutation...and the answer is no." Trakar replied softly, drawing a startled look from Kento. "I sensed it in you when we first met...it gives your DNA a peculiar smell." Kento blinked and made a face, scratching the back of his head.
"Um...Okay...did not know that….um…how come?" he asked and frowned. Trakar's head armor made emotion difficult to read with him, but his eyes shifted in such a way that conveyed what Kento could only interpret as sympathy.
"You must understand, Khanto Earthrider: the Totalitary did not leave behind any 'toys' for us to play with….we were their toys," Trakar narrowed his eyes and looked down at his arm, turning it from side to side. "As Ander once tried to explain to us...when 'dealt a bad hand', sometimes it is best to simply 'play the cards you are given'," Trakar explained gently before turning and walking away towards the hall. Kento watched after him and raised an eyebrow.
Huh...I thought Bak said Ander couldn't get through to them? Maybe he did, and it just took until now for them to come around... Kento smiled as he reflected upon this new friend.
"So that's the Third Ally...he makes for a rather interesting addition around here," Sage muttered as the others watched Trakar walk towards the residential hall.
"Yeah, but he's got like no sense of humor. Did you see the look on his face when Ryo tried making small talk? It's like anything nice you say goes in one ear and out the other. Or whatever those metal bits on his head are supposed to be," Cye added and shrugged, rubbing the back of his head.
"You must bear in mind, Ronin Warriors, that Reptilloids are vastly different from Thangiens or even Thunthen," Bak spoke up and walked over to join the group. "They have no culture or storied history of their own, no myths or songs to sing of. Everything they once were, everything they could've been, the Totalitary stripped from them," Bak explained and they watched Trakar enter the hallway, giving no indication of having heard any of them talking about him. "Take a good long look, Ronin Warriors...that is the fate that awaits us all should we fall to the Totalitary," Bak said solemnly. As he entered the hallway, Trakar flicked a glance in their direction and frowned. Tanya folded her arms and cocked her head to the side, biting her lip and rapping her fingertips against her arm.
"Being turned into a bunch of surly robot dinosaurs?" she quipped, drawing awkward looks from the others.
"Alright, time to hit the hay" "Goodnight everyone!" "Sleep tight!" voices rang throughout the main cavern as residents retired to their respective rooms for the night. Bau still remained by the wall in an almost catatonic state, everyone having forgotten about him completely throughout the rest of the evening. A fully-repaired WILDCAT clanked past and paused to look at him, cocking her head to one side. She sat down on the floor and raised one leg to scratch behind her ear briefly before shaking her neck and going on about her way. Lights dimmed in the main cavern, leaving Bau alone in the gloom.
AOD Soundtrack
1. Batting Practice for End Tide-Grind-Stereotronique
2. Blacker Than Shadow-First Contact-Two Steps From Hell
3. Fast as a Bullet Train-PIXL-Astrocat
4. Visions of Entide/Fall of the Argonauth-Wrath of Sea-Two Steps From Hell
5. The Dead World-Wither All Life and Love-Thomas Bergersen
6. What We Lost-Am I Not Human?-Two Steps From Hell
Mia opened the door and blinked in surprise upon seeing Dais and Captain Caroline Wendell standing on the stoop. "Heya Mia, you've met my mother before, right?" Dais jerked a thumb over his shoulder at the elderly space pirate, who waved politely. "Listen, this might sound like an odd question, but did your grandfather happen to know a man by the name of Arthur Halley?"
"That nut?!" Mia recoiled slightly and grimaced.
Captain Caroline Wendell and the Secret of Immortality
Author's Notes
I've been trying to stick to a bi-monthly schedule for Spacequake, but this is a bit of a bonus chapter to close out the spooky Halloween '22 season. Meet Trakar! This dour dino rounds out the Three Allies. When End Tide comes, the Ronin won't just have a bare handful of scrappy allies fighting at their side, they'll have an entire army at their back.
Trakar is one of the oldest of my characters, as old as Tanya or Mal Daggur with some of the earliest artwork for him from all the way back in middle school, but the catch was he couldn't appear until very late in Age of Defiance. His design was inspired by the iconic velociraptors from Jurassic Park but also Cyber-Godzilla as seen in Godzilla: The Animated Series.
I originally planned on introducing him in Spectra since there was a planned scene where he challenges Sage, Cale, and WILDCAT to a race, but I ended up postponing that for the time being. Condensing the timeline freed up a lot of room to consolidate scenes and condense several key events. Trakar actually has a mate who'll be introduced later: Thranctipo, and later on a newly-hatched son Thinctipin who will become a close friend of Ryu.
Reptilloids are a bit of a holdover from the earliest iteration of Age of Defiance. The oldest kernel of the story that would later evolve into this current form had the "Reptilloids" fighting the "War-folk" of "Planet Runjen", the prototype of the Thangiens. In elementary school, we had an assignment called "writing roulette" were we were supposed to each write the first third of a story then pass it around for other students to add on and complete it.
I'd written this deep sprawling epic about the "Reptilloids"-what would later become the Thunthen- fighting the "Runjen", and creating a gigantic weapon capable of destroying their planet-the prototype for the Vyerrdeklagn.
When my story came back to me, someone had written at the end that the Reptilloids dismantled their weapon, bowed their heads, and all together said "We're sorry"….
I learned after that never to trust my creativity with just anyone.