Chapter 38: Resonant Hearts
With the morning rolling in, Alain and Naomi were quick to awaken. Life on Arzenal naturally led to them being early risers. The reminder they were still in the DRAGON world was just a bit unwelcome as the two roused themselves from the bed, Alain peering out from the door as some large DRAGONs flew past. It seemed these people were just as quick to get to business as they were.
"So, what do you think they've got planned for us today, hm?" Naomi hummed as she pulled her hair up in its usual manner.
"No idea. My main concern right now is learning where they took the Para-mails. They seem to know something about Wyvern. So I'd like to figure that out," Alain said as Naomi helped in getting his hair into its usual tail herself. "Hopefully they can actually fix it like they said."
"After that much damage? Wyvern needs an overhaul, not repairs," Naomi stated. "Besides… we're also still technically prisoners. I don't know what that Salaman… whatever…girl is planning for us. Plus there were those tests they were running on you."
"Yeah that answer would be a welcome one," Alain said as Naomi finished. He went to the main door and found that a sizable tray was set before it. On it was a tea pot still steaming with fresh contents and a flower for decoration. Alongside the tea set were two sets of clothing, one set blue and the other violet. "Huh… surprisingly accommodating."
"Complete with a change of clothes," Naomi hummed as she picked the set that was clearly for her up. It looked to be the same style that Salamandinay and the other two DRAGON girls wore. "Hmm… well, not much more revealing than the plug suit. Though the part for where the wings would be is gonna be a bit drafty."
"Didn't you say not that different than the plug suit?" Alain laughed as he picked up the set for him. The style was certainly different than what Ikuchi had worn, leading Alain to assume this was in fact typical mens wear for DRAGONs whenever they were in human form. "Well, can't say I don't want to be in my combat gear all the time for our stay."
"Agreed." As the two were getting changed, at some points having to help each other fiddle with the portions clearly designed around the anatomy of the people meant to wear them, a knock on the door drew their attention.
"Do excuse me!" Salmandinay's voice came through. "Sir Alain, Lady Naomi, are you two awake now?"
"Have been for a while!" Alain called back, nodding as he finished securing Naomi's top. "You can come in." The door slid open, and Salamandinay hummed as she entered.
"My, you two actually wear our style of clothing quite well. I do hope you don't consider it rude, but I figured the four of you would rather not be in your combat clothes."
"Its lighter than our usual stuff that's for sure," Naomi stated, tapping her foot to fit the shoes into place. "Though some parts were kind of tricky, considering we don't have wings and a tail."
"Quite so. We did alter the fit a bit to hopefully compensate. Anyway, as for the other two…" Salamandinay looked off when they all heard a commotion. Naomi and Alain sighed while Salamandinay tilted her head. Exiting out into the hall and casually greeting Kaname and Naga along the way, they entered Ange and Tusk's room to find the two in a painfully compromising position and lacking states of dress. "Oh, morning intercourse? Please, forgive us for interrupting!"
"No," Alain flatly said, "These two are just morons."
"Can you not say it like we do this on purpose?!" Ange snapped, shoving Tusk off of her and shooting up. "And what the heck are you two doing trussed up like them huh?"
"Better than wearing the plug suit all the time," Naomi countered. "Just get dressed so we can find out what today is even going to be like."
"G-Good idea…" Tusk muttered, Ange making a point to glare at him as he sat up. Those two have a long way to go, Alain thought, shaking his head with a sigh. But at least it was entertaining to watch.
Ange had been near ardent about not getting into the clothes set out for her and Tusk, but some "gentle" prodding had convinced the girl to do so before they left the rooms. Once they set off, Salamandinay led them to a dining hall with a large set of low tables set across it. One of which was filled end to end in food. At another, Vivian was sitting with her mother and chatting away, yet to Alain's surprise there was no sign of Ikuchi around.
"Vivian?" Ange said, the girl waving over to them with bits of rice plastered across her face.
"Morning-san!" She greeted, Alain raising a brow at the additional part of the phrase. "Mom's been teaching me some 'polite' words since we started talking!"
"Well, you acclimated to using that term quick," Alain mused, trotting over and patting Vivian on the head. "Ugh… but apparently you can't not be a messy eater even then huh?"
"I think her being a bit messy is charming," Lamia said, "It proves Mii has plenty of energy to spare. And my did she have quite the stories to tell. Especially about you, Sir Alain. She really looks up to you."
"Of course I do!" Vivian said proudly. "Big Bro's the best pilot in all of Arzenal! Nobody can beat him!"
"That's a bit of an exaggeration," Alain muttered.
"Not that untrue though," Naomi said, then taking a slight bow to Lamia. "I'm really sorry if she was talking your ear off."
"Not at all. I enjoyed hearing her talk about you and all her other friends," Lamia said, waving the other two down. "Despite the situation I'm just happy to know my daughter met plenty of people who care about her. I have to thank you for that. And for bringing her back to me."
"Then I trust you two rested well last night," Salamaninday stated. Lamia gave a laugh.
"To be honest, we stayed up all night with the stories Mii was telling, but I enjoyed it."
"I'm so tired!" Vivian said, though clearly she wasn't at all. Still, Alain couldn't help but smile himself seeing her enjoy the time she was spending with her mother.
"Blegh…" Ange stuck her tongue out, feeling annoyed that Alain and Ange actually looked touched by Lamia's words to boot. "They're getting way too comfortable here."
"We can hear you, y'know?" Alain remarked.
"We should all sit down as well," Salamaninday said, gesturing to the open table. "Breakfast has been prepared, and I'm sure you all must be starving for some decent food."
"Okay…" Ange couldn't shake her feelings of suspicion as they all took seats at the low table, though trying to get into a comfortable position was trying, as they weren't used to sitting on the floor..
"Please, eat up," Salamandinay gestured. Alain had to admit the spread of food was certainly appetizing. He could see plenty of meats from fish to beef along with rice and different fruit and vegetable dishes and what seemed like light soups. Certainly not what he'd call a usual breakfast. But then again he was used to military-grade food. And Ersha's cooking.
"Then don't mind us," Tusk went first, taking a set of the chopsticks laid out and picking up a strip of the cooked fish. He eyed one of the sauces set out, dipping the fish into it and taking a bite. His eyes lit up as soon as the taste hit his mouth. "W-Wow! This is really good!"
"Well least it's safe," Alain hummed, he and Naomi taking their own bits, to similarly surprised yet pleased reactions.
"I take it you like it?" Salamandinay mused.
"Well, I've been eating emergency rations for so long, honestly anything else is way better-OW!" Tusk yelped when Ange elbowed him, Alain and Naomi pausing as well as the girl glared at all of them.
"How can all of you just eat so casually?!" Ange hissed. "What if it's poisoned?!"
"Ange, if they wanted us dead, they would've done it already," Alain pointed out. Ange though remained unconvinced even after everything that happened the other day. "And don't worry about Vivian. They're not trying to trick her. I can tell that much."
"But what if they're lying?"
"You're gonna say that looking at those two?" Naomi whispered, Ange furrowing her brow. "Ange, I get you don't trust them yet. I don't either. But for now, maybe stop being paranoid and just accept the courtesy." Ange opened her mouth to object, but the sound of her stomach cut her off before she could. Alain snickered while Naomi stifled a laugh, Ange's face flushing as she glared at the two.
"You'll want to eat before it gets cold," Salamandinay said.
"I know, I know!" Ange grumbled as she picked up chopsticks of her own. She was a bit hesitant about it, but eventually took a bite herself. And was pleasantly surprised to find that, yes, it was all in fact quite good. Are they… really trying to actually treat us nicely? She didn't want to think that. Ange felt she just couldn't bring herself to be that trusting of people again. But… well damn her for it, a part of her felt that at the least, the intentions behind this weren't that bad.
But, she wasn't about to take it that easy. There was still more for her to decide on first.
"Going home?" After stepping out onto the main plaza, the declaration from Vivian caught Ange and the others a bit by surprise. Lamia nodded to them as she put her hands on Vivian's shoulders.
"I wanted to show her the home she was born in," The woman said.
"Yeah, I want to see a place like that! It's totally cool isn't it?" Vivan's genuine smile just made all the woes even Ange felt fade at least a bit. "I'll see you guys later! I'll tell you all about it once I'm back!"
"Have fun!" Naomi waved as Lamia flared her wings and took off, Vivian waving back with a toothy grin.
"They're really getting along huh?" Tusk mused. But still Ange seemed a bit bothered. "Ange?"
"I don't like it," Ange said, "Any of it. So? What's the deal?"
"Hmm? You're still suspicious?" Salamandinay asked, Ange giving her a heated gaze. "Even after the other day, hm? Though I suppose you do have your reasons."
"You obviously have a goal!" Ange stated. "So just drop the pretense and get to the point. You already have our machines locked up somewhere. Not to mention you performing some tests on Alain for whatever reason. What do you want out of this?"
"We are the ones who said what happens next is up to you and yours," Alain added. "If there is an end goal might as well just tell us."
"As I said in the tower, I wish for you to spend the next few days here observing our people," Salamandinay said. "First however, to ensure you know what we are doing, I'm going to take you first to the facility where we are storing and repairing your machines. Sir Alain, I want you to see the work our engineers have done so far to the Wyvern and what it is they plan to do with it. After that… well, I want to keep the plan afterwards as a bit of a surprise."
"Well if the first step is making sure our machines are in top order I'm fine with that," Naomi added. "I need to make sure your techies aren't doing anything weird to my Halberd."
"Ugh, fine… I want to see Villkiss's state anyway," Ange relented. "Tusk?"
"I'm just along for the ride at this point," Tusk chuckled.
"As you wish," Salamandinay nodded, turning to the Brig that had arrived some minutes ago. "Well then, shall we depart?"
The flight on the Brig took them in a different direction than the city from before. It wasn't long before the ever-familiar scent of salty sea air hit the group's noses as the Galleon carrying them crested over the mountains of the valley, and once they were beyond it, they couldn't help but marvel at what they saw. What at first seemed like another set of ruins from the distance quickly shifted in perspective as the Brig lowered, making it apparent the facility they were arriving at was far more well maintained than any of the other buildings around it. The sharp, modern lines matched the city they had arrived in to boot, with the entire grounds reeking to Alain of a military complex through and through.
"What the hell kinda place is this?" Alain asked as they climbed down from their willing transport.
"This, Sir Alain, is one of several facilities left behind by our ancestors we have put much work into restoring," answered Salamandinay, "The people of the old world left behind many different facilities we have taken efforts to restore to full functionality in an effort to learn more about what their world was like before the Apocalypse War."
"So, if I had to guess, this would be some kind of production facility for machines like Para-mails, right?" Naomi asked. "Fancy place that's for sure. Puts the stuff the Armorers work with to shame. Mei would flip if she got the chance to do her thing in a place this big."
"I thought you said your people were peaceful," Ange stated, bringing to mind what the DRAGON girl had said the other day. "What business would you have wanting to restore a weapons production facility? Besides the whole Embryo thing."
"Because it is knowledge," Salamandinay said, taking the lead as they made their way into the foyer of the building. "I have something of a vested interest in the history of our world, so I would rather not leave such mysteries to gather dust and ivy while we remain in our homes away from these ruins. Even if their legacy is less than pleasant, they were still a part of our ancestor's culture and should be treated with respect."
"This isn't the only facility that we've restored thanks to Lady Salamandinay's direction," Naga added. "There's several others we have located and restored in different parts of this region."
"It tends to be pretty involved," Kaname chuckled.
"It sounds like all of you keep pretty busy," Tusk mused.
"Hmhm, quite," Salamandinay mused. "Now, as for the reason we brought you all here… Allow me to show you the main floor!" Their hostess pushed open a set of double doors leading in from the foyer area. And before them now was a massive sprawl of something that was both part production facility and part hangar. Along one wall were empty docking bays for Para-mails. Naomi to her relief spotted the Halberd not far off within one of the docks with the Villkiss next to it. Various DRAGON girls, all in various degrees of lab coats or engineering coveralls, milled about the floor as other machinery moved along parts and equipment being rolled out from another end of the building.
"Whoa…" Naomi voiced her awe as they followed Salamandinay to a main platform where a somewhat short girl with silver hair and a rather too large coat was overlooking the display panels set across the large console before her.
"Mio, how's progress looking on our guest's machines?"
"Somewhat frustrating, I would say, Lady Salamandinay," said the engineer, who leaned over to look at the four 'guests', "Meaning you four are the ones they belong too. Nice to meet all of you. I'm Mio. One of our head researchers when it comes to machinery like the Ryushinki alongside Lady Salamandinay."
"Nice to meet you," Alain said, the others giving their own short greetings, "I'll say, this kind of production is actually impressive. Can't imagine getting the resources for all of this is hard for you, huh?"
"It turns out the production capabilities of this facility are quite capable," Wyvern finally spoke up, though it was from the console in front of Mio rather than Alain's terminal. "Process on repairing the damage done to my chasis has been going smoothly since you enabled access to my systems, Alain."
"Yeah thanks for that," Mio said. "Until we were able to actually get into the cockpit there was no way we could run the diagnostics we needed. You brought that fella back in pretty rough shape."
"If you want a bill I'll charge the guy who did it," Alain snarked, Mio chuckling.
"I like this guy already! So, what'd you bring them here for?" The engineer looked back to Salamandinay, who nodded as she began going over some of the data visible on the console.
"I wanted to assure them we were treating their machines with care and that we would lend the aid we promised. Especially in regards to the Wyvern."
"Well if that's it, then I'll happily tell you all the status of your machines," the engineer said as she turned back to her console. "How about we start with the purple one? The one who uses it would be…"
"The Halberd would be mine," Naomi said, stepping over so she could view the data herself. "The damage to it was pretty minor though. All you'd need to fix was some of the armor plating."
"The armor was the least of our concerns," Mio said, turning to Naomi with a lidded look. "I want to know just what the heck you were thinking, running her with that kind of battery. I'm surprised it can handle all of the modifications!"
"Unfortunately, it's not like the Para-mails were designed to be good," Naomi said, Mio raising a brow. "They had to make sure we couldn't use them to escape. So for as much as we can tune the power cores, our higher ups put some hard regulations on what we could do.."
"So I saw," Mio muttered. "They've got your little project set up with some pretty archaic systems. Guess keeping you lot stuck somewhere required it. Still, it's horribly inefficient, especially with what you've done with the frame itself. Is it all custom modifications or is it a standard high performance model?"
"It's pretty much all custom, see…"
"Well looks like she's made a friend," Alain chuckled as Naomi and Mio got lost in their technical chatter, Ange and Tusk shying away as they got lost in the big words and technobabble the two were going off on.
As the two talked, Alain looked off to one of the other bays and found what he was looking for. Laid into another bay was the Wyvern, though in a state Alain had all but never really seen. Every bit of armor was stripped away and discarded, likely for the best. And now it was simply the frame that had sat beneath it. Even the wing thrusters had been removed to leave just the frame and the ND Drives set into their containers. It would figure such a vital structure would be a more direct part of the frame than even the wings.
"Hey there big guy, how you feeling?" Alain said as he walked up.
"An answer that would be more appropriate for another human," The AI observed. "Though I can admit, having my chassis stripped down to the frame alone is a thing I have not had happen for a long time. I have spoken with the engineers about the plans for what they will do to repair the damage. Or rather, I suppose, restore this machine to what it originally was."
"You'd be surprised by the data we found in this place when we discovered it," Mio said as she approached with the others, pocketing her hands into her lab coat as she looked up at the Wyvern. "This place was also where we found the Seiryugo. Or I guess Lindwurm if you want to use its old name."
"So, what is it you're even planning to do with my partner here?" Alain asked.
"As we have said, we're restoring your Wyvern to its former glory. With some extra touch ups thanks to what we developed when Lady Salamandinay was creating the Ryushinki. It'll be more than a simple restoration. You'll be flying an entirely different Varia-mail by the time we're done with this big guy."
"Varia-mail?" Tusk asked, Mio nodding.
"According to the data we found on the two machines, that's what they're called," Mio explained. "Considering what they were made to counter, the name is a bit fitting… and speaking off… blond girl, you're the Ragna-mail's pilot, yeah?"
"My name is Ange, and yes. We call it the Villkiss," Ange stated in annoyance. "What can you do to fix it up?"
"To be honest, not much," Mio admitted. "We can get it up and running, but when it comes to replacing that missing arm is another matter. We could stick an arm for a Ryushinki onto it but then it wouldn't work the same. The Ragna-mails are something we don't really understand that well and tinkering around with it would probably just make the issue worse. At the least, we can fix it up enough to make sure it doesn't blow up on you the next time you fly. Just be glad the Discord Phaser is intact since you didn't lose the whole arm."
"Wait, we've fixed a missing limb before," Ange stated.
"Yeah, because we were able to recover the leg you snapped off in the first place," Alain said, "But this time? Not even a limb to reattach. But… considering what Villkiss can do, honestly, I wouldn't be surprised if you could just bark at the thing and make it fix itself entirely. For all we know it's possible."
"That would be way too convenient," Ange muttered.
"We'll do the best we can. Though admittedly Wyvern is gonna be taking up most of our time," Mio added. "On the other hand, if Miss Naomi wants some modifications to her own machine, we'd be more than happy to give you some overhauls."
"What'd be the payment?" Naomi couldn't help but sound suspicious, Mio laughing as she waved a hand.
"My payment is the fact I get to work on machines from both the False Earth and the Lost One. Also, feel free to drop by when you have free time to tell us more about it. After our little chat I'm even MORE interested in the rest of your modifications now."
"I'll do so then," Naomi mused.
"Glad to see you've all gotten along fine," Salamandinay hummed. "Now, we still have some things to take care of today. There's another place I wish to take you. I hope you'll find it… interesting." Alain and Ange both raised a brow. Salamandinay was clearly getting at something. And there was also the question of why Ikuchi was currently absent from the situation. It wasn't quite a bad feeling the two were having. Alain certainly was just hoping this might be little more than some shenanigans rather than anything potentially scheme worthy. But even then he had to question what the plan even was. Well, who knows, he thought, Maybe it'll be something funny in the end. Or at least not boring.
The next place they were taken to was at a different end of the valley, at some ruins that time had carved out into a cliffside. Well, mostly ruins sans the rather pristine looking building amid them. All they got from it was that there were oversized statues of a bowling ball and pin atop it, and apparently in its time the location was called "Hustle 1" going by the letters over its main entrance.
"What kind of place is this?" Ange asked as they entered the main lobby.
"An ancient arena," Salamandinay stated, though Alain felt somehow that wasn't quite correct. "It is said that many a warrior gathered here to compare against one another."
"Did you restore this place like that factory?" Tusk asked, Salamandinay nodded. "Damn, this gets more impressive by the moment…"
"Oi!" Ange objected, elbowing Tusk.
"Uhm, I hate to potentially break the mood, but is this place seriously for… well, 'warriors'?" Naomi asked, she and Alain currently eyeing a wall mounted listing. "Because the things on this wall are all sports."
"Well, perhaps warriors is an exaggeration," Salamandinay admitted. "Truth be told the idea of athletic sports such as those held in places like this are far from what our society does."
"Ah, so this place is like some Iaria Arena?" Ange asked, getting questioning gazes from the DRAGON girls, "It's a sport from our world. Mana Humans compete in it by riding on sleds. One pilots and the other… y'know what, doesn't matter. What I want to know is why we're here."
"I wish to know if you would be willing to fight alongside us," Salamandinay said, Ange raising an eyebrow in question. "Ikuchi and I have been thinking since our talk in the Tower of Aura. You are correct in the idea that our war need not continue and our own objective is perhaps more of an aid to you than a hindrance. Thus, I wish to propose cooperation between our sides. Because in the end, our enemy is one and the same. As a result, I can see no reason beyond foolishness that we would continue fighting each other."
"It's all good for you to say that," Alain said, "But what about the rest of your Priestesses? They seemed pretty gung-ho about killing us on the spot when we showed up."
"To be honest, we have already brought this idea to the High Priestess." From out of an adjacent hallway, who should appear but Ikuchi.. Was he just here the whole time or something? Alain thought. "However, the council has been preoccupied with awaiting news from Lizardia. She finally made contact last night."
"What?!" Ange gasped. "What kind of news?"
"That we have finally confirmed Aura's general location within your world," Salamandinay continued. "It is why even more than before, Ikuchi and I have decided cooperation may be necessary as we do not know what forces Embryo will have protecting Aura. Fortunately, there is some time before the council plans our next attack. The same amount of time it would take for us to finish restoring and testing the Wyvern as it happens.
"So, you want us to help so your people don't go charging into a suicide mission," Alain stated, Salamandinay nodding affirmative. "From the battle we were in before, after your attack, there's one thing I can tell you. The Mana Humans have developed Para-mails of their own that they can pilot."
"Yes we know," Ikuchi said. "Lizardia fed us information on the production of such machines. However, the variable we are unsure of being able to account for is the Ragna-mails. During that battle you mentioned, did anything unusual happen?"
"I mean it was a rough attack but…" Naomi slowed down as a realization sunk in. One that Alain, Ange, and Tusk clearly reached at the same time. "Oh my god! The reason they were trying to capture pilots! You don't think that…"
"Embryo was looking for Riders for the Ragna-mail," Tusk concluded, the dark realization further sinking in for the four of them. "If he did… it's entirely possible Embryo has Riders for all five remaining machines!"
"Hold on a second," Alain said, "That would mean Embryo would have to convince whoever he captured to side with him first. And…" Alain slowed as an all too unsettling realization sunk in. "No… he probably could convince them… dammit!"
"If such is the case, then would cooperation not be even more imperative?" Salamandinay posed.
"Look, as nice it sounds, we still don't trust the lot of you!" Ange cut in. "It's one thing for us to at least realize what we could be up against whenever we get back. But it's another to just up and ask for our help when we still don't have a reason to give it. Sure I can agree with the idea. But how do I know you're not just trying to swindle us into helping you get Aura back and then backstab us later?"
"She makes a point," Ikuchi noted. "I'd probably think the same were we in their place."
"Glad we can agree on that," Ange bit. "I'm not about to go around being used again. I'm still not convinced all your talk isn't about trying to butter us up to do just that. I'm sure everything you've done so far has all been calculated."
"Yes, actually, it has been," Salamandinay's flat admittance made Ange flinch. "Even kindness can be calculated in its usage. And such sentiments are exactly why I brought you here. After letting you know we were indeed keeping our end of the bargain about your machines, Ange, let us now have a competition."
"We'll make it a 2-on-2," Ikuchi said, looking at Alain, "You may seem the more reasonable one, but you obviously still have doubts of your own."
"And so you decide on some challenge huh?" Alain chuckled. Naomi sighed as she spotted he was obviously letting his competitive edge get the better of him. "Fine then! Name the game and the rules, we'll play!"
"Don't just go deciding for the both of us before we know the deal!" Ange snapped.
"The deal is quite simple," Salamandinay stated, "If we win, you two will have to do whatever we say, regardless of the orders. If you win, you may go where you wish and do what you will. I would even arrange the opening of a Singular so you could return home if that is what you desire."
"Ange…?" Tusk asked.
"'Slavery or Freedom. Seize it with your own hands.'" Ange scoffed as she summed up Salamandinay's words. "Fine then. I'm okay with those terms! Let's do this!" Naomi and Tusk shared a look, stilted smiles coming to their faces as their respective partners fell into their hot-headed natures. It seems it was already well and decided how the rest of their day would be proceeding.
The first sport of choice was one that, admittedly, Alain was actually a bit more familiar with than Ange herself could say. Arzenal had its share of recreational sports Norma could participate in during downtime. And tennis happened to be one of them. What perhaps impressed Alain a bit was the fact of all the things Salamandinay apparently had Ikuchi busy preparing for this was uniforms as well. The boys were in loose t-shirts and shorts, while the girls sleeveless shirts and skirts Alain noted would be far too prone to flaring. Could've at least included some sports shorts under them. He thought.
"So, all we need to do is hit the ball into their square yeah?" Ange asked, balancing her racquet around her palm.
"Well, it needs to bounce twice to count," Alain noted. "Just don't hit the net either."
"The rules are simple, no?" Salamandinay asked, bouncing a tennis ball in one hand.
"Oh, simple indeed," Ange sneered. Me, property? Who does she think I am? Well, I'll just show her! Alain gave Ange a look as the intense feeling of mixed anger and competitiveness let him practically read her mind.
"Lady Salamandinay and Ikuchi, your serve!" Kaname called out from a scoreboard she was seated at. Before Ange or Alain realized it, Salamandinay had whacked the ball hard enough to send it flying right between both of them. Ange missed by a hair as she swung for it, while Alain was just able to hit it, but it wasn't clean enough to be anything more than a soft return. Ikuchi smirked as the ball passed the net, whacking it in return hard enough to echo out. As the ball bounced past Ange and Alain once more at an even faster pace, both stared back at the DRAGONs with tensed eyes.
"They're messing with us…" Alain muttered, Ange rolling her shoulders.
"15 Love, Lady Salamandinay and Ikuchi!" Kaname called, switching the respective score over.
"Oh my, was that a bit too fast for you two?" Salamandinay hummed, bouncing the returned ball in her hand. "How very rude of me!" Another crack of the racquet and the ball flew forward. Alain was a bit quicker to react, Ange glancing at him as he received the serve, popping the ball upwards towards Ange. The girl smirked as she eyed it, already starting to jump.
"Not this time!" Ange yelled as she dashed for the next serve. She scored a clean hit, swinging as hard as she could. Now it was Salamandinay and Ikuchi's turn to be stunned as Ange set the ball too close to Salamandinay to counter, scoring for her and Alain's side as the two Norma bumped a fist in triumph.
"Alright!" Tusk cheered as Naomi clapped.
"15 all," Kaname announced.
"If you want me to deal with a hard serve, get me against Ersha," Alain chuckled, spinning his racquet on his palm.
"Seems going easy isn't on the menu," Ikuchi hummed, and to Alain's surprise he actually had an excited face on.
"Perhaps not," Salamandinay chuckled.
"Bring it! We're just getting warmed up!" Ange said.
At first, Alain would say it was actually fun. But after a point it got tedious. Tedious enough he and Ikuchi bowed out once it got clear Ange and Salamandinay were obviously forgetting it was a 2-on-2 affair.
After the tennis match; they moved on to baseball, racing cars (Alain and Ikuchi bowed out of that one out of sheer absurdity), gold, table tennis, and even an arcade crane machine of all things. Each match had been a draw, every single time.
And now, with Alain and Ikuchi long since having left the two girls to themselves, they were now involved in some game called "Twister." A dial would be spun and depending on the color and segment of the wheel it landed on, whoever's turn it was would have to correspond by placing a hand or foot on said spot on a mat bearing various colored circles, no matter the obstruction. Alain, for all his ability to usually keep his mind out of the gutter after a lifetime of living with the opposite sex to the point of being bereft of shame entirely, could only see this as oddly erotic.
This is kind of dangerous isn't it? Alain had to thank his blasé attitude towards the female form, else he'd say a man of weaker will would be in trouble. What with the fact both competitors were dressed in two-piece, form fitting attire that showed their slender curves off all too well. The strain of having to writhe across and past one another leaving their bodies covered in sweat. Not to mention the groans and pants from the exertion to begin with.
Indeed, Alain was glad he'd been long since tempered against this kind of thing.
"So… at what point is she gonna admit you two were just doing this so we'd get our minds off fighting?" Alain looked to Ikuchi as he posed the question, the DRAGON boy giving a chuckle.
"Not quite sure myself," he replied, "Though… when did you piece our real intent together, hm?"
"About the time we bowed out," Alain confirmed, "It was nice, to be honest… not thinking about what even got us here to begin with for once. In Arzenal, we don't get a lot of time to NOT think about that stuff. Not when we don't know which sortie would be our last."
"Even you thought such things?" Ikuchi wondered, "Even when you have the Wyvern on your side?"
"Even then," Alain nodded. "Everyone knows the Reaper is gonna come for them one day. All I could do at the time was wonder when it'd be my ticket getting punched. But then Ange showed up. And not only did she get Villkiss working, all of a sudden I was making Wyvern do things we didn't even know it could. For the first time in ages, I felt honestly hopeful about what we could do."
"I see. She's something of a spark of hope for you and yours." Ikuchi and Alain grew similarly stilted expressions at watching Ange and Salamandinay continue to writhe about as Tusk and Kaname took turns making calls. "Though right now you wouldn't think people were pinning their hopes on a girl like that!"
"Trust me, even I question it sometimes," Alain sighed.
"You know, this is more than I expected, Ange," Salamandinay commented.
"Is now the time?" Ange grunted.
"I was looking forward to this, somewhat. Until now, I've never really encountered someone at the same level as me aside from Ikuchi so…"
"Lady Salamandinay, left hand, red!" Kaname called.
"...I'm actually enjoying this!" Salamandinay grunted out as she adjusted her placement. Ange grunting as the move caused the latter's rear end to end up a bit too close for Ange's comfort.
"Just shut it!" Ange said, shoving her shoulder to teeter Slamandinay over; only for the girl to use her tail to stop her fall. "Using your tail is just cheating!" Before any of the spectators could weigh in, Ange craned her neck around and bit down on Salamandinay's tail.
"Not that!" Salamandinay cried out in a voice Alain found oddly aroused as she and Ange then tumbled down into a heap on the mat in a tangle of limbs. Yet again, the "match" ended in a draw.
"If using my tail was cheating, then biting it certainly is!" Salamandinay cried, tears actually in the edges of her eyes. Ange sat up with an annoyed face, but it soon broke into amused laughter.
"Well you don't have to cry about it!" Ange laughed, and soon enough, Salamandinay joined in with Ange's laughter.
"Though… sometimes her nicer side peeks through," Alain commented, shaking his head with an amused chuckle. "Just takes a lot to see it."
"The Princess is laughing…" Naga commented, sounding outright bewildered.
"Since when… I don't remember the last time I've seen Salamandinay laugh like that," Ikuchi mused as he folded his arms.
"I wasn't sure she could do that!" Kaname added.
"So uh… I guess we're all done here huh?" Naomi chuckled, Tusk nodding as he looked at Ange with a warm smile on his face. "Alright then! That means it's time to go get cleaned up. Move it laughing ladies, don't wanna end up covered in muck later right?"
"What's with the attitude?" Ange protested as Naomi pulled her and Salamandinay up.
"Let the older one here do the bit alright?" Naomi chuckled. "Besides, it now seems everything's resolved, right?" Ange and Salamandinay looked between each other. And without a word realized that, indeed, whatever animosity had remained before now had just vanished in the wake of their competing with one another. Perhaps full trust still wasn't there, but the two certainly felt they weren't at odds with each other anymore.
I suppose that's the best we can ask for. But as Alain had that thought, he felt a sudden, yet brief, feeling of nausea hit him. He felt a sudden pang in his mind along with it, as if something had just tried to tap into it… or rather, like he was responding to something happening. What the hell? That… can't be good at all. Please don't tell me something is about to happen.