Despite trying to keep Walker's condition on the down low, people still found out and were quick to rush to the medical platform. Dozens, if not hundreds, of people had tried to see him but were kept at bay by the Gears. The BSS had donated some of their most advanced medical equipment to the Gears and everyone couldn't see his body inside the pod he was in.
They all tried to follow as he was quickly and carefully transported to a private platform and taken inside. As much as he didn't want to when he was conscious, people had managed to get another platform to be built for worship. Although, it was something that happened while he was away, and it was more or less for the individuals obsessed with technology.
It held somewhat of a church-like appearance to it, but was mixed with machinery as well. At the front entrance was two pillars that were carved into a Gear and a BSS agent holding up Remnant together. Beneath their feet were dead Locust and Grimm, creating an ominous yet hopeful feel to it. The large metal doors had the design of a metallic skull inside of a cog wheel.
Inside was quiet and rows of people in blue robes moved to the sides when Walker's pod was rolled into the interior. They helped the medical staff carefully put him inside the life support mechanism. Some of the BSS were in awe at the advanced system and looked over it while he was being hooked up to the machine.
A special helmet was placed over his head and a tube was slid down his throat to provide him with nutrients. The helmet had several tubes connecting to the front of it, two were located on the side, and a final one was located at the back of it. Tubes were placed inside his arms and legs as they carefully lowered him into another pod filled with a fluid that was somewhat blue.
He bobbed up and down slowly and dozens of screens were seen on the side, monitoring his vitals. His heartbeat was steady as was his breathing, meaning they at least got him stabilized. There was no telling how long he'd be in this pod, but no one said anything and didn't dare to.
Dozens of Skull-Drones floated around the room, tending to various tasks while the occupants kept an eye on him. He would heal in time, but it was best to keep a realistic approach to this situation. Thinking that he would heal within a day was out of a fantasy book.
As much as they tried to avoid it, the Gears decided to let people inside and see his current state. It was a devastating sight to look at, to see him in injured like this. From what they heard, a powerful Locust was the one to do this to him. Not only did it cause several dozen to hold the Locust with more contempt, but it also caused several more people to become Gears.
Some believed that this was the universe's way of forcing him to rest. He carried the weight of the world on his shoulders and it finally knocked him down after so long. Every battle he fought, the people he saved, and the Locust he killed, it finally caught up with him. They were aware he wasn't invincible, but he was one of the toughest people they had ever met.
Michael entered the place along with Theresa and Abigail, his grip slackened and his eyes widened when he saw Walker. He saw the man that had saved him and his daughter in more ways than one, floating in that tank. The man that he respected and could call a friend was at death's doorstep.
Theresa just stared and looked at all the people that offered their silent prayers. Not only had Walker allowed the BSS to continue standing, but also do more than what they thought they were capable of. He listened to their troubles and would often provide support when needed, he saw them as close allies and more often than not, he was always there to help them through their struggles.
"Dad..." Abigail looked at Michael.
"He's alright." He reassured, his voice didn't sound too sure though. He's seen Walker injured before, but he's never seen him injured to the point where merely pushing him would end his life.
"Are you sure?" She asked.
"He'll make it through." Theresa reassured. She gave Abigail's shoulders a few pats before her eyes widened when she was hugged suddenly. She looked at Michael and he looked at his daughter then back at her.
The two of them could understand why she was upset. When she wanted to be a frontline Gear like Blake, Walker was the one to talk her out of it. He had showed her what she would be dealing with and she was horrified. So instead, he offered her an alternative and encouraged something that she didn't even know she was good at.
He had her learning from more experienced people on cybersecurity, and she found it oddly enjoyable. Sure there were some days where the work was tedious, but she was further than what she would've been had she been a frontline Gear. In other words, she prevented her dad from losing another part of his life and saved her from meeting a grisly end from genocidal monsters.
Countless people were grateful for what he did for them and in turn, it caused them to follow him to the ends of Remnant. By the time everyone was notified, sixty percent of the people were outside, waiting for their turn to enter and give him their prayer. They saw the Onyx and Obsidian Guards standing still as statues, guarding his body from whatever threatened to harm him.
Whispers were heard, but the place remained otherwise quiet. It was as if speaking too loud would disturb the peace. People of all ages came and would either offer their prayers verbally or silently. They would leave soon after and the next group would do the same thing, offering prayers then leaving shortly after. Some did it out of respect or loyalty while others did it out of fanatical views they held of Walker. The latter he would scold for their blind following.
For the next seven hours, people came and went before the building. They had collectively labeled it the Metal Throne, it was more or less the place that held Walker's massive cybernetic life support pod. When night fell, the only people that were left were the Obsidian Guards, who surrounded the pod out of a sense of duty.
They perked up and raised their weapons a bit when the doors opened, but lowered them when they saw Jaune, Blake, and Red enter. It was quiet and they left the three alone, standing outside and constantly looking around.
Blake went up to the tank and put her hand on the glass, then leaned forward and put her head on it. She closed her eyes and just thought about when times were simpler. Back when her and him would enjoy their meals at a nearby food stand, thinking about how to get more supplies or their next job. She missed those days when the only thing they had to worry about was Grimm and bandits.
Red walked up next to her and did the same thing. She still blamed herself for the most part, but she knew that all he would do was scold her for letting herself fall victim to that trap then forgive her right after. He always was a strange individual.
Both of them just kept their heads against the glass while Jaune offered his silent prayers and left. He knew that they would be the most affected and decided to go talk to his family for a bit. Seeing them and venting a little bit would probably do him some good, plus he hasn't seen or talked to them in a while.
The two of them could faintly hear his heartbeat through the glass. It was a peaceful sound, a steady rhythm of lub-dubs from his heartbeat that made them feel a sense of ease. It was so quiet in the location that they were in, that it was possible to hear him. To know that he was here instead of inside a casket or an urn was a miracle on its own. Neither one were religious in any way, but this moment made them thank whatever was up there for once.
Eventually, they left after wishing him a good night and the Obsidian Guards came back inside. They stood in front of the pod like statues and continued to constantly remain vigilant.
They all should have known Walker would've had plans in case something like this happened. He was always a man that had several plans on top of the first one, and his instructions were clear. The rules were to stay the same, but the only difference was to not antagonize the former soldiers from Atlas. It was bad enough that their leaders had failed them and they lost people, there was no reason to cause anymore trouble.
Another thing he had written was for people not to worship him like some god. While he wasn't necessarily against religious practices, he certainly didn't want fanatical people causing trouble around their home.
People continued to visit the Metal Throne and offer their prayers. Children from the elementary and middle schools drew him pictures or wrote him letters, while the students from the high school did the same. On the dozens of steps were countless trinkets and candles from the various people that came to visit him.
While Gears were waging war on the Locust on the mainland, the ones at base were recovering and finding new ways to defeat the Locust more effectively. The BSS handled the relief effort and would frequently do combat missions with the Gears, but the latter's main focus were the Locust and the Glowies.
The new threat was practically another enemy that they had to fight on numerous occasions. They would continuously spread the plague amongst the Grimm population, adding to their numbers. At this point, there were starting to be more Glowies than Grimm, and there would come a time when everyone knew they'd have to deal with them and the Locust.
Jaune sat in Walker's office and did paperwork, papers were seen stacked haphazardly and it felt like his eyes were becoming swirls. He's had to do paperwork before, but he never realized how much work Walker put into managing all of this. With all the training, exercising, and managing that he did for days on end, it was a miracle that he was even still functioning properly
The door opened up and Blake came in, setting a stack of papers on the desk before noticing the state of the office. It was clear that Jaune was trying to imitate Walker to the best of his ability, but was falling short. They were two different people, and they always would be despite their similarities.
"Jaune, when was the last time you slept?" She asked.
"Last night. I crashed earlier and I'm behind." Jaune said as he scratched his head at a particularly confusing document.
"You've been working too hard." She sighed and helped him organize some of the documents.
"This is hard work." He laughed stressfully.
"Jaune, you're not Walker, alright?" She asked.
"I know..." He responded quietly. No matter how much he tried, he would always be reminded that he wasn't the one person he looked up to the most.
"There's no shame in having some of the staff members take some of the load off of you. I've done it and Walker started to do it too before he-" She stopped herself and tugged at the collar of her shirt.
"Yeah." Jaune nodded in understanding. Neither one of them wanted to think about his condition but it was hard. They were so used to seeing him get back from the other platforms and heading to his office shortly after. Seeing him gone was like a huge chunk of their lives missing.
"You should visit him today." She said.
"I did before I came here. By the way, where's Red?" He asked.
"Cooking." She answered.
"Red? Cooking something other than a cut of meat?" He raised an eyebrow.
"She's been practicing for a while now apparently. Her crockpot recipes are actually decent." She said.
"I'll have to try it." He said and finished another paper.
"Try not to work too hard, okay?" She asked as she gave his shoulder a few pats and left the office.
"I'll try." Jaune murmured and continued to do paperwork. Blake was always more of a sister to him than a few of his actual siblings, he often talked to her more than he talked to his sisters because he knew she'd understand.
He sighed and finished the necessary amount of paperwork before he shut everything down and locked it up securely. The hallway was quiet and he took the elevator down, waiting for it to descend to the ground level and the doors opened up. Dozens of staff members walked through the lobby and towards their destinations, giving him a brief wave before continuing to walk.
The sky was partly cloudy and he shielded his eyes when the sun glared at him, making him squint a bit. He walked to his own car and got in, but just sat there for the next few minutes, letting his thoughts run a bit. A buzz on his scroll made him look to see a message from his dad, and he was half tempted to ignore it but decided to look at it.
It wasn't anything special, just inviting him for dinner and he decided to indulge them and show up. He sent his dad a message and told him that he'd show up, but he first needed to do some things first. Exercising was the first, then he needed to buy some groceries for his own apartment, the final thing was to talk to Pyrrha and finally get over her.
There was so much to do and he decided to just go visit his family now before he forgot. Not to mention, dinner was almost ready anyways so he's already wasted enough time. He put the car in reverse then started to drive down the bridge, taking another one to one of the residential platforms. While he was driving, he just turned on the music and listened to it before switching to the radio station.
It was just the news station updating people on the status of the war and what has been happening in the base. Despite it being relatively safe, people always found a way to cause trouble and it resulted in the security staff to handle the situation. Nobody really messed with the security staff members half the time because they were just as experienced as Gears; in fact, a good chunk of them were previously frontline Gears.
They chose to maintain the peace at their home and were often on top of enforcing, but not abusing, the rules. Each one was required to go through at least one battle with the Locust before they were eligible for the position. This was to ensure that the members knew the difference between a regular person and a genocidal monster.
One incident got so bad that the Onyx Guards took control of the situation. Jaune had never seen a situation like that handled so fast and it scared him a bit sometimes. He half expected to see or hear about a group of dead bodies from the work of them, but was surprised to hear that the people surrendered almost instantly.
When people saw the black armor of the group and the glowing blue eyes, they knew things had escalated out of control. It meant that the situation was not only a danger to the people in the immediate vicinity, but to the whole base as well.
The Onyx Guard often helped the security staff and would teach them on how to properly deal with situations of all kinds. Civilians respected them as much as they respected the regular Gear.
Jaune drove for the next several minutes before eventually heading into the residential district and he parked his car in one of the many spots near the apartment complex his family was at. He looked down the street and saw the orphanage. A few repairmen were busy fixing a window that was accidentally broken by one of the children.
From what he's heard, a few of the children were rowdy and were undisciplined to the extreme, so much that the caretakers had trouble. Walker had apparently gone to the place and spoke to the children, walking out shortly after and people noticed that they were more polite.
"You know, mom and dad are gonna get worried if you show up late." A voice met his ears and he turned to see his sister, Saphron, standing next to him.
"I bet." He said and rubbed the back of his neck.
"Come on, goof." She said and led him inside the apartment complex. Like her oldest sister and wife, she wasn't bothered by the fact that they were shoved into apartments. In fact, she considered them luxury apartments because it was clear how much work and care went into designing them. Sure, it was a little disheartening to hear that nearly every apartment was the same, but it was better to be here than at their estate.
The two made their way through the main lobby area and took the elevator to the fourth floor. They walked down the hallway and took tenth room on the right before she knocked a few times. There was the sound of laughter inside and the door opened up. She quickly moved to the side when something was flicked across the room and the object hit Jaune's prosthetic leg.
A sharp ring echoed across the room and they all looked at him, seeing his lack of reaction made them remember that it was his fake leg. It was times like these that they internally scolded themselves for forgetting that he lost a piece of him during E-Day.
"That didn't hurt?" Jeannette asked.
"Nah. Nothing really hurts that part anyways. It's more or less annoying trying to constantly swap it out for a more comfortable one." Jaune dismissed with a wave and closed the door behind him. They just stared at him but avoided saying anything.
There were times when they had to remember that Jaune was the only one missing a limb and sometimes he was self-conscious about it. A literal piece of him was missing and they had to watch what they said. He was the most physically healthy one out of them too and had a strict diet. Compared to two years ago, it was almost impossible to remember him when he was skinny.
"So how have you been?" Saphron asked.
"About as good as the war's been going." He mused. Nobody laughed at his joke and he had to remember that they didn't know what it was like out there. The constant scent and sight of death, the sound of explosions and gunfire, to even feeling the despair from everyone affected by it.
"Jaune..." His mother sighed. She cared about him too much and didn't wish to hear about the war, it was the only thing everyone here ever talked about. To see that her only son was constantly fighting was a worry on its own.
"Bad joke." He apologized and rubbed the back of his neck.
"Is that a new injury?" Jeannette asked as she looked at his forehead.
"Oh this? Yeah, a Ticker exploded and a piece of the shrapnel grazed my head." He answered.
"A Ticker?" One of his sisters asked.
"They're kind of like, living land mines. They make this really loud ticking noise as they scuttle across the ground." He tapped the table with his fingers to emphasize his point.
"No war talk at the dinner table." His dad said as he put a plate of food on the table. It was bad enough his son was already fighting a war, he didn't need him to talk about it while they were eating as well.
"Alright." Jaune said and grabbed a plate.
"Hey, Jaune." Jeannette called out.
"Yeah?" He asked as he got his plate full of food. It was a lot, and every single one of them noticed the amount.
"How long are you going to stay?" She asked.
"For dinner or at base?" He asked back.
"At the base." She clarified.
"Maybe a couple of weeks." He answered.
"That's it? I thought you were going to stay longer?" She asked.
"It really depends." He rubbed the back of his neck as he tore into his food. While it was good, delicious even, he was so used to cooking on his own or eating Walker's food, that there was something off about this. Maybe it was the way everyone stared at him or how much he actually got.
He didn't really know, but all he knew was that it was somewhat awkward and it didn't really feel all that enjoyable.
The Metal Throne was practically silent as a few people entered and gave their prayers before leaving a small gift. People had to stop giving such large gifts because it was taking up space and wasting resources. On every step was a little trinket, drawing, or letter for Walker.
Candles dimply lit the room on several of the steps and the Onyx and Obsidian Guards stood still as statues while protecting his body. The former would leave and do their other duties while the latter just stayed by his side, only leaving when they were relieved or had to go off and train to prepare to go into war again.
Dozens of Skull-Drones floated nearby and tended to the tasks programmed into them. Some cleaned, others provided light, and some even acted as additional security. The People that entered were to be scanned and cleared to avoid someone entering with the intent to harm Walker in his injured state. His mere presence was enough to draw respect from the citizens at the base and they revered him to unknown extents.
Brock and Simon walked in the building and looked at the sheer scale of the place. It was large, but they knew that Walker wouldn't approve of it and would call it a waste of resources. Whatever didn't contribute to the war, he didn't bother with it. However, this place was actually a huge contributor to the war. It was where the Gears and even a few of the BSS would train their minds.
"Oh jeez..." Brock said as he walked up the steps followed by Simon. Both of them had heard the news and didn't come the first day because they knew it would be crowded and people would just trample them. So they waited patiently until the crowd calmed down and dispersed before they entered shortly after. Which meant a few days after since people were still flooding in.
It was a painful sight to look at. Neither one wasted any time and simply put a small chest near the tank and departed shortly after. The silence was almost welcoming at this point. Several Skull-Drones flew through the air, a couple going up to his tank and tending to it carefully before backing away shortly after.
Everyone had gone their separate ways for now, Jaune was busy dealing with Walker's work along with a few others, Red visited Walker frequently and would clean around their apartments, and Blake went back to Menagerie to deal with some legal issues. Something she quickly regretted, because as soon as she got there, there were several problems.
Informing the Scarlatina family was a hassle on its own and she had to explain to them that he was alive, but in critical condition. He was making a slow, but steady recovery and it would be a while before he woke up. She didn't even try to stop them as they took the first flight back to base to check up on him.
Right now, she was in her father's study and was sitting on the couch with a stack of papers in her hands. A few more stacks were to the side and her Skull-Drone assisted her in lessening the workload. Whenever she got done with some paperwork, she'd hand the documents to it and it would scan them before sorting them out neatly. It made that ominous binary noise.
"We have company, you two." Kali called from the other side of the room and they looked at one another. They looked at one another before taking a break from their work and heading outside the door. She barely looked up from her paperwork and the drone followed close behind her as the two entered the entrance hall.
There was the sound of commotion at the front door and Ghira quickly opened it, seeing the Gears stationed outside aiming their weapons at Sienna, Adam, and Ilia. The Onyx Guards didn't flinch nor back down as the group started to hold onto their weapons.
Despite trying to say they were fine, Blake insisted that they had some protection and had two Onyx Guards keep her parents safe. It proved to be a good call because they prevented three assassins from ending her parents' lives.
Blake merely raised her hand and snapped her fingers once, making the two guards lower their weapons and stand still. Everyone blinked at her and she barely reacted to their stares before she walked back in the house. She seemed to let her feet carry her back to Ghira's study and the others followed her.
Once they arrived, they all sat down in silence while she continued her work. The documents weren't considered classified, mainly requests for something and many of which she denied since they were a waste of resources. One of which was the request for an amusement park.
"Blake, do you want anything?" Kali asked.
"Anything is fine." She responded evenly and accepted a written request.
Kali left the room in silence and the others turned their eyes back to Blake, noticing a small change in her. Ghira noticed that she was a bit more distant than before and whenever someone brought up Mantle's fall, she grew more aggressive. She was more drawn into her work than before and interrupting her was an easy way to put her in a foul mood.
After several minutes, Kali returned with some sandwiches and tea and set it on the table for everyone. Her feline ears flattened when she noticed that Blake wasn't eating and continued with her work, not even attempting to listen to the conversation the others had among themselves.
Blake on the other hand, knew that they were talking about her. She wasn't deaf and always listened to whatever was happening in the background all the time, it was a useful skill when it came to information gathering. She wasn't hungry since she ate beforehand and tea didn't sound too appealing right now.
Deciding that nothing was needed from her, she started to pack her things and put them neatly in her folder, shoving it in her back shortly after. For some reason, she didn't feel like she was home and was merely at another place she was at. Everything felt numb and she didn't know why, it was like she was an anomaly now.
"You're leaving?" Ghira asked.
"Yeah, I'll finish the rest of it in my office." She answered and started to walk out of the room. She didn't notice her parents' slightly hurt expressions as she continued to walk out of the room and down the hall. Her ears flicked when she heard a pair of footsteps behind her and stopped when she reached the entrance hall.
"So you're just going to leave?" Adam asked.
"I'm going to my office." She answered.
"To throw yourself into more work?" He asked.
"Why do you care?" She asked suddenly and he stopped. The silence was tense in between them and she stared at the person she used to consider a brother.
"I don't know." He sighed quietly.
"Just leave me alone, Adam..." She whispered and turned away from him. After leaving the White Fang and becoming a Gear, she kept trying to get Adam to leave the White Fang. Each and every time she saw him though, he was still continuing to be Sienna's lap dog. Every time a situation involved him, she was there to lessen his punishment because she believed that he could still turn a new leaf.
"Sienna wants to talk to you, Ilia too." He said.
"I don't care about either of them. You know every time you all get in trouble, it's me who has to mitigate your punishment? You know why?" She turned to him and asked.
"No." He answered.
"Because that childish part of me truly believed that you could be saved, that you could turn a new leaf and be a better person. Now I see that I simply wasted my effort because it's clear you won't change." She explained and turned away from him.
With all the more prominent problems such as the Locust and Glowies, the last thing she needed to worry about was saving her adoptive brother. Menagerie didn't feel like home all that much anymore. That would be the case as long as the war raged on.