Esmeralda: Inazuma
A/N: This takes place after Esmeralda Story Quest Act 2.
"All done," Esmeralda said, putting her tools down. She patted Daisy's arm and the robot came to life, hovering in the air. "Let's give it a go. Shield up."
Daisy extended its left arm and, secondary power core glowing, activated its new shield. The compacted plates on the back of its arm opened up and projected a sheen of energy, forming a barrier that would deflect most attacks. Just like a Ruin Defender.
"Power holding steady... field seems stable... Great, everything looks fine. Let's see if we can test it against-" Esmeralda's monologue was interrupted by hurried footsteps. She paused, looking over at the entrance to her laboratory. Or cavern, really.
A group of armored Nobushi had barged in through the main doors, which she had apparently forgotten to lock. They were making a mess of the place, shouting hurriedly at each other.
"Hey! Stop that!" Esmeralda called out, drawing the attention of the Nobushi.
The eight Nobushi and two larger Kairagi - one with red armor and the other, blue - all turned her way at the same time, swords and crossbows in hand. Maybe calling out had not been the best idea, Esmeralda admitted to herself, but then again...
They would make great test subjects. As though reading her mind, Daisy took up a fighting stance behind her.
Esmeralda grinned at the bandits' dumbfounded expressions. "I'm going to have to ask you to stop touching my stuff and leave."
"Get her!" one of the Kairagi yelled. All ten of them moved to attack.
Esmeralda did not usually want to fight, but things had been a little too quiet recently. Even the traveler had not come by for a while, having left for Sumeru some time after that last duel. Maybe she did need to blow off some steam.
Besides, these guys were asking for it.
"Non-lethal, please, Daisy," Esmeralda said, stepping back and allowing it to engage the incoming ronin.
The first two Nobushi who reached the robot were knocked aside before they could even attack. Daisy made sure to do as its master commanded, restraining its strength so that its targets would suffer heavy bruises instead of ruptured organs.
Some of the other, smarter, Nobushi hung back and opened fire upon Daisy with their crossbows, sending Electro-tipped bolts flying at it. Daisy activated its new shield, blocking the arrows, and responded with a flurry of low-yield missiles, deliberately aiming them so as to knock the bandits off their feet.
The Kairagi attacked next, working in unison. The one in red launched a direct attack, landing a flurry of blows that glanced off Daisy's armor. The other dashed to the side, aiming to bypass her guard and attack Esmeralda directly.
Daisy would not allow that. Shrugging off the attacks upon it, it quickly calculated the direction of the purple Kairagi's charge and moved to intercept. Just as he began his charge, Daisy raised its arm. It was too late for the Kairagi to stop himself from slamming into the robot's arm and falling to the ground, unconscious. Daisy then turned back to the red Kairagi, picking him up and hurling him across the cavern.
Getting back onto their feet, the remaining Nobushi opened fire at Esmeralda, creating a barrage of Electro-charged projectiles.
Daisy did not even try to intercept them this time, for it knew that Esmeralda had things under control. She stood unafraid as a Ruin Defender leaped in front of her, arms raised to generate a barrier that absorbed the darts.
It was then that the Nobushi looked around and realized that they had been surrounded by a variety of Ruin Sentinels. They took their common forms - Defenders, Destroyers, Cruisers, and Scouts. The many machines clicked and clattered menacingly.
"Do drop your weapons," Esmeralda said. Her suggestion was followed by a clatter as swords fell to the ground.
That was the scene that General Kujou Sara and her forces walked in on a few minutes later: a group of unarmed Nobushi, surrounded by Ruin Sentinels, watched over by a young fox-eared girl sitting in the palms of a modified Ruin Guard, its eye glowing peacefully yellow.
Esmeralda waved. "Are you here to pick these guys up?" With a few gestures, the Ruin Sentinels moved aside, retreating to the sides of the cavern.
While her troops were still frozen in disbelief, Sara stepped forward. Her bow was in her hand, pointed at the ground. "I am Kujou Sara, General of the Tenryou Commission. Did you do this?" she asked, gesturing at the Nobushi. Trapped between Ruin machines and the Shogunate forces, they dared not to move.
"I did," Esmeralda said, jumping off her seat. Anticipating Sara's next questions, she continued, "I'm Esmeralda. Yes, I control the Ruin Sentinels. No, they won't attack you." To prove her point, the Sentinels powered down, returning to their cubic deactivated state.
"I see," Sara said, then turned to her soldiers. "What are you waiting for? Arrest these Ronin and bring them back to Tenshukaku at once."
"Yes, General!" the soldiers replied, their training overcoming their shock. They moved in to arrest the Nobushi, all while keeping a wary eye on the robotic cubes around the area.
Esmeralda noticed that a group of them had their weapons drawn and aimed at her and Daisy, but she politely choose to ignore them. "So, what brings you here, General?"
Sara walked over to her, leaving her subordinates to handle the Nobushi. "We were tracking this group of bandits. They are wanted for a number of crimes. For subduing them, you have my thanks," she began.
"They were messing up my stuff," Esmeralda remarked. "No worries."
"But now I must ask: what is your purpose here? Why have you taken control of these machines? How have you done so?" Sara demanded.
"Well, one, I'm a researcher. I'm here to study these machines. Two, it's much easier to study something that's not actively trying to kill you, and three, using this device here: the command unit," Esmeralda replied, holding up the device.
"I'm afraid I cannot just accept that," Sara said.
"What? I just want to study them, I promise!" Esmeralda protested. "I didn't even hurt these guys too badly, and they totally deserved it." She gestured at the Nobushi, the last of whom were being led away.
"I understand that you mean no harm," Sara agreed, "But you must understand the danger that these machines pose. You control them now, but no one else has ever done so. As the General of the Tenryou commission, I cannot allow such a threat to remain so near Tenshukaku. You must leave."
Esmeralda thought about it. She could understand Sara's point. As long as she held the command unit, Legacy - which Sara did not yet know about, and Esmeralda planned to keep it that way - would obey her. However, she had already lost control of it once and required Aether to handle that situation for her. Another outbreak like that, while unlikely, was not impossible, and would result in many dead people.
She could always study them somewhere else anyway. Esmeralda nodded, a plan taking shape in her mind. "Alright, I understand. Am I right to assume that you want the Sentinels gone as well?"
"Removed from the island, yes. Preferably destroyed."
Esmeralda almost growled at that. "No. No one is destroying any if this. I can bring them away from the island, but I need some time to find an energy source." At Sara's unspoken query, Esmeralda explained, "The ley lines are particularly active here, which allows so many Sentinels to be powered at once." And to transform into a dragon, she thought. "To relocate them, I need some kind of alternate power source, something portable."
Sara frowned as an idea occurred to her. "There is a way. Still, it is dangerous, and I'm not sure if you can be trusted with such a device."
Esmeralda was certainly curious now. A device capable of generating large amounts of power? "That sounds interesting," she said. "I won't do anything bad to it. Aether can vouch for me."
"Aether? Of course, he knows you." Sara nodded. "Very well. I shall check with him and consult with the other clan heads. In the meantime, ensure that all the Ruin Machines remain within this cave. Is that clear?"
"Fine," Esmeralda grumbled but made no argument.
Sara turned and left, her guards following her. As she exited the cavern, past the heavy doors that were currently hidden, she gestured, ordering a pair of guards to remain at the entrance.
Esmeralda ignored them, returning to her projects - there was much to do. Prepare a general-purpose power adapter and power storage, plan the upgrades, actually do the upgrades, ensure that the control unit does not slip from her grip and fall into the sea, and find somewhere to go.
That last one, at least, was no issue. It was not as though anyone charged rent for an abandoned Ruin Guard factory.
Sara returned almost a full day later. The guards that she had posted had already changed shifts a few times, and even Esmeralda had figured out that they were not tasked with preventing her from leaving. No matter how skilled, no two simple guards could realistically challenge a swarm of Ruin Sentinels. Their task was more that of sentries, who would inform Sara if Esmeralda tried anything.
Fortunately for them, she was too busy to bother them. The guards had very quiet shifts with little to do but watch her work. Which she did, stopping for only a few hours of sleep. Her plan was to store enough power to reform Legacy and fly away from Inazuma, preferably making it back to the factory in Lingju Pass. Once she was back there, she could create a Leyline extractor to power Legacy... but that was a future problem.
Before she knew it, Sara had returned. "Esmeralda," she called out as she entered the cavern.
Esmeralda made some kind of grunt of affirmation in response, too preoccupied with her work. She was almost done.
Sara took that to mean that she was listening. "After consulting with the other heads of clans, I have authorized an escort to bring you to Mikage Furnace on Tatarasuna Island. Are you listening to me?"
With a few more taps, Esmeralda completed her work and turned to face Sara. "Right. Please continue."
"This is Takasaka Izumi," Sara introduced the armored samurai who stepped up beside her. "He will bring a small squad of soldiers to escort you there."
Esmeralda frowned. "I can handle myself."
"I know. They are not for your protection."
"Oh," Esmeralda laughed awkwardly as she realized Sara's meaning, "Oh! But there's no way I'm going alone."
Sara nodded. "I understand. You are permitted at most one Ruin Machine to accompany you, and it is not to leave the sight of the soldiers at any time."
Esmeralda grinned and patted Daisy's arm. The modified machine opened its hand, allowing her to sit atop its palm. "I'm taking this one."
"Very well," Sara said. "In addition, you are to follow and obey Takasaka at all times. He and his men will bring you to Mikage furnace, using a lesser-used path to minimize contact with civilians. Once you are there, use the Furnace's power for whatever it is that you need and return here as soon as possible. Understood?"
"Do what your guys say, charge my battery, and come right back. Got it," Esmeralda confirmed, grinning. "So, when are we going?"
"Now."
The journey was smooth but the terrain was not. As ordered, the soldiers led Esmeralda down the wilder parts of the islands, where few civilians traveled. The dangerous terrain mostly affected the soldiers, as it were - Daisy could float and carry a passenger. By the time they arrived at the furnace controls after a long climb up the mountain, the soldiers were sweating heavily while Esmeralda simply got off her ride.
She quickly found and activated the Mikage Furnace control panel. "Alright. Let's get to work," Esmeralda said, mostly to herself, and did just that.
It took her two minutes to learn the basic controls of Mikage Furnace, another to find its energy output and one more to redirect that into Daisy's improvised battery pack.
All ten seconds passed before Esmeralda realized that there was something deeply wrong with the Furnace. There were significant errors within it that had been covered up - either the work of sabotage or absolute incompetence. Worse, the previous user had not shut it down properly. Given that there was a civil war going on at that time, she supposed it was understandable. Unfortunately, it meant that the furnace had built up a significant amount of energy that, combined with its usual output, was far above what her battery could handle. The sheer amount of energy the Furnace could provide was enough to power Legacy indefinitely; the stored power alone was enough for weeks - far more than she had expected.
Esmeralda initiated the shutdown sequence. The power output began to dip immediately, but it would take too long - Daisy would overload far before the Furnace could safely deactivate. Already, its improvised backpack was thrumming with power. At best, it would cause an explosion that killed her and the guards. At worst, it would destabilize the Mikage Furnace, and Inazuma would soon be missing an island.
Well, that would not be good.
