Seeing his scroll go off, Evan rose from his bed to grab it. The young Saiyan was surprised that it was a message from Pietro. The message itself was simple:
Please come to my office as soon as you can
With concern for his friend, Evan left the room without a second thought.
Putting on his uniform the teen rushed down the corridor and halls of the building before making it to Pietro's workshop.
As Evan knocked on the door, he called out to the scientist.
"Pietro, I'm here. Can you let me in?" Evan said aloud.
From inside the room, Evan heard a muffled Pietro reply back, "Yes yes, come in, come in."
Opening the door, Evan walked inside.
"Hey Doc, what is it that-" Evan started to say before he saw the interior of the room.
The room was mostly cleaned up with any and all garbage discarded and thrown away, the blueprints and tools had been put back on the walls again, and numerous computers were buzzing with information. It looked as if everything was back to how it was before Evan had left for Vale.
In the corner of the room was a large tarp covering something large, the object in question being approximately his size from what he could tell. Looking over to Pietro, Evan saw that the older man was busy at work over on the other side of the room at one of his workstations. Turning around, Pietro greeted Evan with a big smile on his face.
"Thank you for coming by so quickly, Evan! I appreciate your punctuality." Pietro exclaimed.
"Pietro…Wh-What happened? I mean it's great to see that you're doing better, but what changed?" Evan questioned.
Moving his walking wheelchair over toward the tarp covered object, Pietro began to explain.
"For so long, I was so full of sorrow and anger. I could tell that things for the world had changed for the worse after Vale was attacked and Beacon Academy had fallen. During the brief moments that I left my workshop, there was this…air of worry and melancholy with those that I saw and interacted with. Even the way they carried themselves in the halls was off. However, that all changed when you saved Mantle from that horde of Grimm. Suddenly, people started talking and acting like their old selves again. It was like we were all suffocating on our own despair, and someone had finally opened a window to let the fresh air in. People were talking about how an Atlesian student, this "Skyward Savior", bravely fought and defeated an army's worth of Grimm in a matter of minutes. Seeing everyone so happy reminds me of simpler times back when Penny…was still with us and how she brightened the moods of those around her…You give us all hope Evan, and that's a precious commodity in short supply nowadays. You helped inspire me to keep on going, to continue to pursue my passion for science…" Pietro elaborated and he grabbed the side of the tarp.
"And that is why, I decided that if you're going to play the role of a protector, then you should look the part!" Pietro stated as he pulled the tarp off the object.
His jaw to the floor, Evan gazed on in amazement at the sight before him. Sat on an armor stand was a set of metallic armor. Decorated in the reds, blues, whites, and silvers of the Ace Ops' outfits, the outfit generally looked similar to an Atlesian knight, albeit it was made to match his specific measurements. In addition to the outfit, Evan saw there was a helmet that was large enough to cover his entire head. Coated in silver, gray, and white paint, the helmet also had a visor made out of black glass, preventing Evan from seeing the inside of the helmet itself.
"Come now, try it on." Pietro said aloud as he gestured Evan to come closer.
"To open the suit up or to close it, you have to press both buttons on the chest of the armor simultaneously." Pietro continued on as he pointed to two small, silver buttons located on the upper chest of the suit.
Doing as he said, Evan pressed down on both buttons, causing the armor to spring open. Stepping inside the armor, Evan's tail soon found a hole in the back of the suit, allowing it to coil around a metal tube that slightly protruded out from around the entire waist of the armor. As Evan situated himself inside the suit, he pressed the buttons again, causing the armor to slowly seal itself up. Walking around, Evan could feel the weight of the outfit slightly press down on his shoulders.
Grabbing the helmet, Pietro tossed it over to Evan. However, before the young Saiyan could reach it, the helmet started to slow down midair and hover up and down. Bending his knee, Evan looked under the device to see what was keeping it flying in the air. On each side of the helmet, he could see two small tubes shooting out purple, gravity dust. As Evan took a step back, he saw the helmet move toward him. Intrigued, Evan kept walking around the room, and the helmet followed along, always within arms reach of him.
"I designed the suit to allow you to use your gauntlets while you wear it. Speaking of which…where are they?" Pietro asked curiously.
"Oh, they…they were destroyed during the Fall of Beacon. They couldn't handle some of my new power…Sorry." Evan replied as he shifted back and scratched his face slightly.
"Well that just won't do. I suppose I'll need to work on a better model then…But that's for another time, now then, where were we?" Pietro said to himself.
"Oh yes! The armor is designed to keep your body temperature stable regardless of the outside climate. It's also made out of some of the finest metal found in Atlas, so it should be able to take a lot of damage from any Grimm that get in your way. The helmet…well, it would be easier to explain once you put it on." Pietro stated.
Grabbing the helmet, Evan slipped it on. As he did so, he could feel the armor shift slightly as the helmet locked into place. Despite the black glass exterior, there was a layer of orange glass on the inside of the visor. Looking out from the visor, the edges of Evan's view were filled with various, small displays and LED screens, showing off his vitals, outside temperature, suit integrity, and many more.
Despite the helmet that encompassed his entire head, Evan continued to hear Pietro speak with perfect clarity.
"I dare say this is some of my finest work yet! The helmet provides you with many different pieces of information that should help you assess any type of situation. I even installed a communicator inside to allow you to speak with any nearby communication towers or Atlesian airships and control centers. You simply have to press the button on your right ear to turn it on. I also made the inside of your visor out of the same glass that I made your goggles from, so you will be able to work any time of day while wearing this suit. Finally, there's a button on your left ear to allow you to unlock and take off the helmet." Pietro explained with excitement in his voice.
Pressing the button on his left ear, Evan felt the armor shift once more as he pulled the helmet off of his head.
Turning to Pietro, Evan had an unsure look painted on his face.
"Pietro…You didn't have to do all this…Don't get me wrong, this is amazing, but…I mean, how am I supposed to pay you back for this?" Evan asked aloud.
Placing a hand on Evan's shoulder, Pietro straightened himself up and looked at Evan with a kind expression.
"Just keep doing the right thing. That's more than enough…" Pietro replied back.
Pressing the buttons again, Evan stepped out of the suit and gave the man a hug.
"Do you think you could have all this shipped over to my room? I have to go train with the Ace Ops pretty soon." Evan inquired as he headed for the door.
"Of course." Pietro stated.
"Thanks. I'll see you around Doc." Evan added as he left the room.
/-/
"Come on! Double or nothing!" Harriet yelled out.
"You know I'm going to win again." Vine stated calmly.
"Well put your money where your mouth is. I'm calling your bluff. No one can guess things like that three times in a row!" Harriet exclaimed.
"Evan will be here in the next…two minutes." Vine said aloud.
Like clockwork, Evan entered the training room almost exactly two minutes later, much to Harriet's shock.
"I can teach you how to do it, if you're curious." Vine continued on.
"The only thing that I'd learn is that you're full of hot air. You won't guess it next time." Harriet said as she pulled the money out of her pocket.
"Then I look forward to getting 80 lien the next time you decide to go for a double or nothing." Vine replied back.
"Hey guys, wait…Where's Winter?" Evan questioned the group.
"She left really early this morning. Apparently the General needs her to investigate some shady stuff happening over in Mistral. I doubt we'll see her for a while." Marrow added.
"That's a shame, cause we're going to be taking things to the next level today, if you couldn't tell by the slight change in scenery." Evan said as he pointed toward the gravity machine.
"Hold on kid, are you sure we're ready for that level of training?" Elm questioned.
"I'd say so, I mean, we've been training for a few weeks now. After our last session with Ki channeling, I can tell that you're all making good progress. Besides, we're only doing two times gravity for today, and if it gets too much, I can always switch it off." Evan said as he showed off the key.
Approaching the machine, Evan began to turn the machine on. As the metal shutter fell down at the training's room entrance, Evan looked at the group.
"Ok, I'm about to turn the machine on. Get ready…" Evan pointed out.
As he twisted the key, he could see the air fill with a light purple tint. Keeping his eyes on the Ace Ops, he could see them briefly buckle under the increased gravity before they managed to continue standing.
"How you guys doing? Be honest with me. If it's too much, just let me know and I'll switch it off." Evan stated.
"I think I can handle it kid. How about you, Vine?" Elm replied back as she turned toward her teammate.
"It is…manageable." Vine added as he continued to mediate midair.
"Woah, this is weird." Marrow said as he slowly walked around, while keeping his arms out to help stabilize himself.
"You're telling me, is this really what you do every day?" Harriet asked as she rotated her left wrist.
"Nah, I usually go with 11 or 12 times Remnant's gravity on most days. At two times gravity, I can barely feel the difference between this and regular gravity." Evan elaborated.
"H-How is that even possible?!" Elm questioned.
"To be fair, my whole race lived on a planet with gravity ten times that of Remnant's, so I'm used to more intense gravity anyway." Evan explained.
Slowly walking toward Evan, Clover stepped forward.
"So what exactly do you want us to do?" Clover asked.
"For right now, just remain standing. With what I'm going to teach you guys today, you shouldn't be doing anything more taxing than that." Evan continued on.
"Interesting, and that is?" Vine inquired as he opened one of his eyes.
"I'm going to teach you how to fire Ki blasts." Evan said with a smile on his face.
Walking away from the Ace Ops, Evan approached the other side of the room.
"Ok, for this exercise, I want you to hold out one hand. Then, you're going to channel some of your Ki into that hand. I want you to create a Ki orb in your palm, like you've all done before, but this time, let the Ki that you've built up begin to separate from the rest of the Ki in your body. Doing so will cause you to fire out a small Ki blast. If you're able to get good enough at it, you can fire out entire barrages of Ki blasts. Also, if ever you want to make a bigger Ki blast, you're going to have to pump more Ki into it before you let it fly." Evan continued.
"Well where are we supposed to launch it? I'm not sure if the walls are strong enough to handle that kind of power? I really don't want my paycheck being rerouted into wall repairs." Harriet added.
"If you're that worried…" Evan began to say before transforming into a Super Saiyan.
"Fire at me. My Super Saiyan State will easily withstand anything that you guys can do." Evan stated as he crossed his arms.
"Plus this'll be some decent training with my Super Saiyan form as I help them through everything." Evan thought to himself.
Holding his hand out, Clover began to charge a yellow Ki blast in his hands.
"Great, now just…let it go!" Evan called out.
"Hah!" Clover shouted out.
Launching the Ki blast, it quickly zoomed across the room before hitting Evan square in the chest, in between where his arms were crossed. However, Evan didn't even flinch when the projectile met its target.
"Decent. Who's next?" Evan asked.
Wiping sweat off himself, Clover let Vine move past him as he proceeded to do the same steps that his leader had done. In his hand, an even larger Ki blast began to grow. Without saying a word, Vine sent the Ki blast forward, with the only effect that the projectile had was creating a small black stain of ash and dust on his shirt.
"Good. How about you Marrow?" Evan asked.
"Oh, uhh…sure. I'll give it a go." Marrow said as he stepped forward.
Charging up a green Ki ball, Marrow let it fly, but right before it hit Evan, the soldier held his hand out.
"Stay!" Marrow yelled out.
The projectile freezing in place, Evan stepped around the Ki blast before proceeding to put his hands around it and causing it to explode.
"Huh, so you can freeze both your own and other people's Ki based attacks. That could be pretty useful in a fight." Evan replied as he stepped toward Marrow.
"Good job." Evan continued on as he and Marrow gave each other a fist bump.
"How about you two? Wanna give it a go?" Evan said as he held his hands up.
Charging up a blue Ki blast in Harriet's hand and a yellow Ki blast in Elm's hand, the two each fired at one of Evan's hands, but the blast did nothing on impact. Beginning to sweat profusely, Harriet leaned on Elm as Harriet started breathing heavier, while Elm helped Harriet stay on her feet. Seeing this, Evan gave the two a firm nod of approval.
"Nice work. I think that should be it for our training today. After doing both Ki and gravity training, I'd say that you've all deserved a good rest." Evan declared as he then exited out of Super Saiyan and approached the gravity machine to turn it off.
When he did so, the Ace Ops looked at themselves in surprise.
"Wow…It feels so…wrong being at regular gravity now. Everything feels a little off now that the world isn't pressing down on my shoulders twice as hard. And you said your race can handle ten times regularly? I can see how you managed to become so strong." Elm said as she helped Harriet stand back on her feet.
"Thanks, and soon enough you'll be in the same boat as I am once you've done enough gravity training." Evan stated.
"Can't wait for it. Say, anyone up for brunch?" Elm questioned the group.
"Count…Count me in." Harriet replied.
"Same here." Evan added.
"Evan, you're always hungry. I think we all knew you were going to come anyway." Marrow said aloud.
"What…you don't know that!" Evan argued back.
"I think we all did." Clover stated.
"Whatever…" Evan said as he rolled his eyes as the young Saiyan walked with the rest of the group out of the training room.
/-/
"Come in." A female voice announced.
Pushing the massive metal door open, a man with slightly tanned skin and green eyes wearing a gray, red, and gold ensemble stepped into the room.
The wide space contained a table made out of some purple crystal. Along the walls were many more of these same crystals, with each one containing a wax candle at the top point of them. In between large pillars of stone walls were tall, glass windows showcasing a red sky with black clouds.
Approaching the table, the man looked out one of the windows as a massive Nevermore soared in the sky.
Sitting down at one of the chairs, the man looked to the figure at the head of the table. Her skin was a deadly pale white with dark purple veins all along her arms and face. Her sclerae were completely black with red irises to contrast against them. Wearing a long black and red dress, she also had many obsidian ornaments in her hair.
"Now, what is it that you wished to tell me? I thought that you were preparing to leave for Mistral and meet up with our informant." The figure questioned.
"Indeed I was ma'am. But, there has been some recent news that has come forth that I thought that you would wish to hear of." The man stated.
Looking to the female figure, the man saw her nod, allowing him to continue speaking.
"Recently, an individual by the name of Evan Anderson, otherwise known as the "Skyward Savior" by the masses, has risen in popularity among the people in Mantle and Atlas. A large part of this is due to him easily slaying the gigantic horde of the Grimm that you had sent to sow further chaos in the continent of Solitas. Reports and images taken of him line up with what Emerald and Mercury had mentioned during our last main meeting. This young faunus appears to have taken on the role of a defender of sorts for the people in Atlas and Mantle. I believe that he will make our efforts in Solitas much more difficult to complete if he is not dealt with." The man explained.
"Is that all?" The female figure asked, a neutral, almost unimpressed look covered her entire face.
"Yes, but aren't you concerned with what I have told you?" The man questioned as he shifted in his seat and absently touched his mustache.
"Watts, I have seen many champions rise and fall over the years. This Evan is just the latest of many. If there's one thing that many people forget, it's that these champions, whether human or faunus, are merely mortal. Humanity, in its darkest times, desperately clings to its heroes for safety and comfort, and when those heroes are effortlessly pulled away from them, humanity crumbles and falls into disrepair. Especially in this day and age, the warriors and champions of this generation cling to aura and semblances in order to hide their shortcomings and weaknesses. Why do you think I have some like Tyrian as a part of my inner circle? His semblance allows him to easily pierce through the aura of his foes, making it quite simple to accomplish the…disposal of any and all threats we face. If anything, this development has given me new ideas to dwell on, regarding our plans for Atlas…" The figure elaborated.
"I see now…Thank you for the clarification. Now, if you'll excuse me, I must finish the preparations for my departure." Watts said as he pushed the chair back and began to walk out of the room.
As Watts reached the door, he heard her voice echo throughout the room.
"Oh, and Watts?" The figure called out.
"Yes, ma'am?" Watts questioned.
"Thank you for informing me about all of this. I do hope that your chat with Leo goes well." The figure continued.
"You're welcome. I am at your service." Watts said as he opened the door and left the room, leaving the figure to think on her plans for the future.
/-/
Hello again! I hope you enjoyed this chapter. I should have the next one released sometime next weekend. Leave a review to let me know your thoughts. If you wish to support me, then please go to
www . P a treon . com (slash) Alist0r
for more details. Even helping me out a little really goes a long way. Regardless of what you do, I'll see you all next time!