It's over! Finally, the high octane stuff is over!
For now…
Let's have a little intermission with our favorite bad guys!
Jin did his best to keep a straight face. He stood with arms crossed and head tilted back. His gaze traveled up… and up.
Bana sat before him, quite literally, in a rotund bulk of bronze that resembled an enormous egg. The front "face" of it had been hollowed out, the chairman himself perched before a console of various levers and toggles, the high back of his seat a criss-crossing mesh of velvet cushioning. All in all, the esteemed nopon's perch, from top to bottom, was probably taller than Jin was.
But because Bana couldn't do anything half way, he'd added a pair of legs to his special chair. The walking sort of legs, made of the same tawny metal, all tubular lengths and ball socket joints. Jin surmised that the set of arms, with their long, clinking fingers, were thrown in just to complete the look. It would certainly fit someone like Bana to have a veritable assault mech made accidentally for the sake of aesthetics.
The chairman wasn't giving the white haired man much of his attention, his rounded machine turning slowly to scan the area, fists pressed against its "hips." Jin watched as the sizable units mounted to the mobile throne's back spun along with it, at least two separate weapons systems housed in partially collapsed states. He could recognize the multi-missile launcher from similar devices on the Monoceros.
He'd also seen that particular armament in action hardly an hour before, even if the display had been less than stunning. The look on Bana's face said he was still feeling miffed by that joke of an entrance he'd made just as Azurda and his band had departed. Having a rocket you'd sent into the enemy ranks caught in the mitt of some armored hulk and then flung back at you will ruin anyone's day, let alone an egomaniac like the chairman.
"You," the nopon belted, his large mech jabbing one of its many-plated pointers towards a passing storage worker. The muscular man jumped as the finger – and more importantly the retracted barrel of a wrist mounted bolt thrower – were jousted in his direction. His hands full carrying a thick cloth laden with heavy debris, the worker could only stare and wait. "This your fifth pass in two minutes with very much rubble in tow. Appreciate work ethic, Bana approves!"
The stilled man's stance deflated, making a slow, deliberate show of blinking before hobbling back to his task. The chairman hummed, clearly pleased with that little bit of altruism. Jin couldn't fight back the need to pinch his nose, even if it wasn't quite so self soothing through the mask.
Bana's egg shaped cockpit spun around with a steaming hiss, his pillar like legs ever rooted to the ground. "Now, Jin," the chairman worked a few levers, the machine's arms crossing over its front, "have things to discuss, yes?"
Lowering his palm and setting his gaze back on the nopon merchant, Jin intoned, "We need to figure out our next move. Do you think the boy will make his way back?"
The chairman paused as one of his aids tapped her hand against the hull of his craft. Bana shimmied the machine a little to the side as a somewhat mended Hirkham stumbled past, followed closely by an Ardainian footman. Melolo accompanied the two at a further distance, several sheets of check list held in her wings. Bana nodded to his passing subordinates, earning a one handed wave from Hirkham and an eye roll from his fellow nopon.
Not looking at the swordsman, Bana began, "Rex and crew far beyond reach by now. We likely not find them without intensive investigation." At this, the chairman leveled his gaze towards a distant figure. A more standard sized nopon, with a yellow pelt, slim brown jacket, and a little newsboy cap, was actively issuing orders and overseeing relief efforts.
Jin himself turned to eye the guild's "spymaster," noting how Bana clicked his tongue as Niranira tasked one of the chairman's own secretaries to lead a survey team down through the service corridors. Beside the jacketed nopon, the mightily helmed Ardainian captain rallied some of his men to offer aid. The masked man and nopon merchant continued to observe Niranira in silence, Jin's mouth almost falling open when the guild's investigator approached an idling Malos and requested he make use of himself.
The biggest surprise, perhaps, was that Malos actually did something to help: tasking Sever to be of assistance.
Hearing Bana huff dragged Jin back to the conversation, the esteemed nopon continuing, "Highest expectations that Rex will be fine, but cannot count on him in near future. If want to proceed with plans at nearest opportunity, will have to engage alternative resources."
Jin issued a low hum from his throat. His own thoughts spilled forth without warning, "You are confident the boy will be alright?" Upon realizing what he'd said, the man promptly clamped his mouth shut.
But Bana had heard more than enough, quirking a furry brow at the curiosity of his business partner. He regarded the white haired man for a silent minute. "Hmm… have 'interest' in Rex?"
Jin held the nopon's gaze for a bit before his eyes trailed off towards the guild's upper levels. "He's… they're quite something," the swordsman admitted, "I've lived a long life and never seen anything like what they can do. What's their story?"
A short bit of laughter left Bana's mouth. As it was ongoing, his blonde assistant again tapped the forearm of the chairman's robot. The larger than life nopon waved a dismissive wing in the girl's direction, as though shirking off a warning he was already aware of. "Predictable question. Even so, Bana cannot give precise details-"
"Can't or won't?"
"Both," the chairman said, the barest hint of fluster showing on his features.
Jin balked once before an earlier exchange sprang up from memory. The swordsman's stoic visage gave way to distaste. "Your 'arrangement' with Amalthus, it specifically concerns that boy and Blade."
Surprisingly, that got Bana's features twisting even more than Jin's. "Clearly. But… how to say this," the chairman's wings pressed together against his lips, the feathers steepled, "is all… above authority of Bana."
As much as he allowed, Jin looked taken aback. Bana seemed visibly pained to admit as much, his gaze wandering towards a familiar figure. The white haired warrior followed his glare, sighting Niranira in animated conversation with a half attentive Madame Faye, one of her kids jotting notes on a little pad and nodding at a rapid pace.
Airily, Bana finished, "I not one who arranged contract."
The pair bounced back as a metallic crash pounded the floor next to them, the mech's right arm shooting forth as the wrist mounted launcher spat its barrel to full length. The bot's assisted tracking locked and followed the torso sized frying pan clattering across the floor for a full five seconds. As the misplaced bit of cookware settled to a stop, Bana was given perhaps a breath to raise a brow before a collection of pots, pans, and various utensils were hurled across the deck.
"Come on now, honey," Bobobo chided, dodging an iron lid, "let's not play up this 'hard to get' motif."
"Fluffy little shit," Patroka screamed, snatching a crock pot off the counter of a nearby stall, "Perverted fucking hairball!"
The fro'd nopon batted away the heavy cookware not with a spindly thread of stache but rather… with a chain. A chain attached to a collar. A collar that was held taut around Bobobo's afro, the band turning the sphere of hair into two smaller, stacked orbs.
It looked like he had a golden gord on his head.
Patroka slapped another copper coin onto the front desk of the remarkably untouched Just Desserts. Receptionist Penelope deftly passed over a cast iron tray used for baking cookies, palming the currency as she drew back. The group of nopon in charge of the textile shop, Limalima in particular, were making a terrible raucous, cheering on Patroka as they snacked on pastries and shared a jug of ale that had been "dubiously" procured.
Penelope, adept in the art of seizing opportunities, started up a betting pool on just what sort of crockery would inevitably nail the dodgy nopon. Of course, as the record keeper for bets, she would claim a small percentage off the top. And that said nothing of the tide of sweets the rowdy fuzz balls continued to order. Even in the most dire times, Gorg's shop would do excellent business.
The bakery's owner himself was nursing his own frothy mug, resting across the counter from a likewise lackadaisical Perdido. Gorg leveled a curious look towards the pale Blade, the four armed figure simply shrugging his upper shoulders whilst taking a swig from his drink.
"Slander," Bobobo cried, jumping over the tray as it skidded by underneath, "there is no degeneracy in my request! A good boy deserves his walkies!" The bronze coated nopon jangled his chain leash in the air, a tendril of mustache slapping a measuring cup out of the air.
"Careful sweetheart," Gorg piped up, humor on his lips, "he's not housebroken!" Perdido sent a chastising glare his way but the gesture was clearly an obligatory one.
That seemed to send Patroka over the edge, the woman in white making a swift dash for Bobobo. She was brandishing a spatula like a fighting axe. The stacked afro nopon did an instant about-face and began to flee. But rather than terror, an air of giddy joy overtook the fuzz ball as he skipped away, swinging his chain around in a circle. Malos let loose with a full on cackle, the scenario officially funny enough to warrant his attention.
And as the discordant blend of Patroka's rage and Bobobo's childlike laughter spread throughout the ruins of Feast Street, Bana turned to regard the thoroughly expressionless Jin.
"Me thinks, until Bana arranges things with backup party, Jin and company should… make scarce."
Blank faced, Jin nodded.
Malos was not happy with their current arrangements. He'd been bellyaching the entire way on the Monoceros and thought he could actually see the tick-mark pulsing on Jin's brow. Small victories.
He was not happy with the people – really, the guy – Bana had set them up with. The distorted voice thing over comms was annoying enough but not having a "punchable image" – Patroka's words – to match it to was frankly suspect.
The dubious nature of all this was amplified tenfold when their favorite money grubber mentioned outfitting the Maelstrom. As soon as the notion of additional personnel was presented, the faceless machine voice cut the chairman off.
"No need for further logistics. My… people will be more than enough. And your clients can make way with that private vessel of theirs."
Patroka's slow turn towards Jin and her silent mouthing of "What the fuck?" spoke for almost everyone. Bana just rolled his eyes. Once talks were done and a rendezvous was set, one that was far too close to their destination for comfort, Jin rounded on the chairman.
Bana's instantaneous dismissal was disarming. "Bana not surprised. Friends must understand, contacts of chairman are not simple salvagers. Consider themselves experts in 'retrieval' of all sorts."
Malos could read between the lines. Information was something that could be retrieved. Fuck he hated these clandestine types.
And then they actually met this asshole.
It was sunset when they surfaced the Monoceros at the rendezvous point. It had been maybe five minutes, Malos and Patroka just climbing onto the hull of the ship, when something descended out of the overcast sky.
The very sleek airship breaking through the clouds was somewhat smaller than the Monoceros. A dark vessel in the shape of an arrowhead, its back end rounded in a half circle and lines of neon green forming angular patterns across its surface. The width of the craft far overshadowed its height, five dispersed circles of thrumming jade providing thrust to keep it airborne.
What were the chances that two ships designed to run without titans happened to be meeting? Malos clicked his tongue as Sever snickered lightly beside him.
The angular ship got low, real low. And then a port opened just beneath the pointed bow, five figures simply jumping the dozen or so meters down onto the hull of the Monoceros.
Four of the newcomers landed in a heavy crouch, probably the best outcome one could expect from dropping down a few stories. The most discernible thing about them were the heavy thunks of landing that sent tremors over their ship's hull. All of them were full on dressed in dark blue robes trimmed in a lighter hue of cyan, the garbs utterly concealing their bodies.
None of the Tornan crew knew what to make of the headgear they were wearing. Some of the most secured helmets they'd ever seen, looking like they'd been bolted or screwed in place, stared back at them through emerald colored optics of varied designs. Sever was in a staring contest with one on the left who simply had one, gaping lens right in the center of their brow. They all appeared to be made of a similar metal to the ship above, the only organic bits on display being the short stretch of neck running from chin to collar.
"Well, not robots I guess," Patroka whispered as Jin stepped by to stand at the head of their group.
Figure five marked himself as special when they hit the ground and barely had to bend their knees, spryly springing up as though they'd just skipped over a small stone. Once all of them were standing properly, it also became clear that this person was tall, their cohorts more or less the size of the average adult and this front figure at least two heads taller than any of them.
Their robes were far finer, a sleek shade of sapphire with thick trim of glimmering jade. And then there was the fact that this one had an actual… face. His tanned skin looked very weathered, the texture like rough leather. A single, navy blue eye stared out from his right socket.
In the left eye was an optic, the green lens clearly having been implanted deep in the man's skull. The metallic tube that housed it zoomed in and out with a soft whir as his gaze swept from face to face of the Monoceros' crew. The lower part of a gas mask covered his mouth and nostrils, a pair of thick, disc shaped filters fanning out from either cheek.
Considering events of a few days past and their dealings with similar looking people, the members of Torna visibly tensed.
Then Blue Eye spoke up, "Interesting vessel you have… late Tornan design, for the most part, yes?" The man didn't wait for a reply, stepping forward to present his arm towards Jin, "That makes you our employers for this task. I am the one who spoke to you over comms, I am known as Gest."
He didn't have to explain who he was, the second those mechanical tones hit the air Malos knew exactly who this was. And that was his voice, not some distortion provided by his mask. Malos could almost feel the tones rumbling up from his happily shredding vocal chords.
Jin took Gest's hand, noting the oddly segmented feel of his fingers. An image of Saturn's prosthetic formed in the swordsman's mind but something about this felt more… naturally integrated. Advanced, so to speak.
Their masked leader gave Gest's arm a good shake, "Call me Jin. I imagine you have a few questions about what it is we're dredging up."
The way Gest's single eye wrinkled up was evidence of a grin. Malos also scoffed in amusement, Jin's stoic wit a rare but welcome sight. "A bit sharper than you look," the robed man complimented, "But we've no need to go over those details. I trust, also, that Bana explained what we desire in exchange?"
At this the swordsman's eyes hardened, just a fraction. Jin gave nothing verbal, nodding once whilst giving Gest's palm a quick squeeze. Torna would get their "artifact"… and the robed retrievers would claim everything else. The old ship and everything inside, everything that was not their objective.
Fair enough, provided Gest and his people were worth it.
Slipping his hand free of Jin's, Gest turned about and marched through the ranks of his guard. Long tethers ran down from the silent airship hovering above. The one eyed man stuck one foot in the rigid foothold at the bottom of the line, his heavy boots lined in coarse metal. As Gest grasped the hanging cord with one hand, his cohort backing up towards their own tethers, he turned his left side towards Jin and company.
"Proceed to the site at your leisure. Do not worry about speed, you will not lose us."
For an instance, the robed speaker's emerald lens turned yellow. It would have been too swift for a human to catch, but Jin's sight was nothing if not precise. Malos allowed a bit of his feral nature to show at the man's statement. The implicit "you will not escape us" had him and Sever both bubbling with anticipation.
Gest's group mounted their ropes in perfect sync, Patroka flinching at the sudden motion. The one eyed man clicked his tongue and their whole band were quickly pulled back to the vessel above.
Night had nearly fallen. Gest's ship was waiting above when they surfaced, mint colored floodlights cutting through the descending gloom. The Monoceros' surveillance zoomed in on the pointed bow of Gest's craft, the man himself "standing" atop it.
There was something new about him, a notable, rounded bulge on his upper back, covered by his dense robes. A trio of thick, lustrous tendrils reached out from layered slits along his garment's back, the incredibly flexible limbs holding him aloft, his feet a full meter off the vessel's deck.
A fourth tentacle was raised before Gest. The "palm" glowed a soft white, lighting up the robed man's face. Its digits were splayed wide in three triangular plates, like the fronds of a flower. Segments along their length allowed the thick "fingers" to flex with unnatural dexterity.
Malos pushed himself off the console he'd been leaning on, "Someone better head up and get the old man's attention, figure out what the plan is."
The brunette took three steps before Jin piped up with a quick, "Wait."
Gest's glowing palm brightened, an array of diagrams and data streams cast in hues of green appearing before him. His telescopic lens drifted in and out as one of his more-human hands was raised towards the shifting display.
Several short taps and a brief swipe over the holographic array preceded a sudden burst of activity across the airship. Dozens of smaller ports opened along the thin edge of the ship, the emerald interior shining out into the encroaching night.
And out of each of these openings, a plethora of glowing motes spilled out into the darkness. Like a swarm of insects, the blinking green lights began to spiral down to the cloud sea's surface.
"Akhos," Jin started, eyes locked on the monitor, "close in on one of those lights." The short haired brunette nearby pushed up his glasses whilst turning a dial on the console before him.
The emerald mote was a machine of some sort. Malos' mind supplied the term "drone." Like the ship from whence it spawned, its form was quite metallic and angular. The drone's diamond shaped body was vertically inclined, triangular plates separated by dark bands spanning its height and one horizontally across its middle. The source of the machine's green glow was a glass orb in the center, its light glinting off the metal surfaces of the bot's frame.
In quick order the robotic swarm descended into the cloud sea, their jade glow illuminating the grey depths. Gest's airship pulled away silently, itself lowering to the ocean's surface as the light of the sinking drones steadily darkened.
Patroka and Perdido, the latter by obligation, started walking – stomping in Patroka's case – out of the room, the white coated Driver ranting about giving that "almost faceless bastard" a piece of her mind. No one moved to stop her, the irate woman halting all on her own as the dark chamber was abruptly consumed in vibrant green.
The display screen showed that same section of the cloud sea where the drone swarm had descended. The darkened glow had quickly surged to a verdant radiance that pierced the night air. A shadowy shape could be seen rising through the ocean of fog. The shape was massive, more so than both the Monoceros or Gest's flying vessel.
To Jin, it was also a familiar outline.
Aged and tarnished by time and the whim of ocean currents, an old Tornan warship breached the misty surface. All around its sides and base were the few hundred drones. Their spherical "eyes" each beamed a bright ray of emerald light onto the old ship's hull. The green rays, upon striking the vessel's surface, took on a kind of gel-like consistency, spreading over and binding to the ship's frame.
The array of diamond droids hefted the Tornan warship slightly out of the cloud sea before settling the large craft onto the waves. About half the drones left their positions, flittering about the deck of the ruined ship as those holding the bottom continued their efforts.
Malos hummed at the display, some distant corner of his mind running through vast stores of data. Jin watched on impassively, his only response a narrowing of his eyes.
A smaller screen abruptly popped over their feed. Gest stared back at them through the display, errantly tinkering with the half visible hologram floating over the tentacle's palm. His free hand rose into frame, the natural skin of his tanned fingers juxtaposed by the mechanical workings of every joint. The cyborg gave his hand a slow twirl, a look of slight impatience in his right eye.
"Shall we move this along?"
Progress was swift. Malos, Jin, Sever, Gest, and some of the machine man's cohorts made quick work of whatever wildlife had taken residence in the old ship. Their little progression was flanked on either side by a pair of the diamond shaped drones, their height roughly that of a young teen.
The twin droids' central orbs shined bright against the gloom of the structure. The synthetic optics of Gest and his retinue proved a close second in that regard, the interior passages alight with murky jade. Sever advanced near the head of the group alongside some masked guards. This left Jin and Malos in the rear, Patroka electing to stay on the ship's deck with a reserve squadron of Gest's men.
Jin noted the still present bulge on Gest's upper back, hidden under his robes. They had seen his steel tendrils at work whilst clearing the corridors, the mechanical limbs making for formidable weapons. Curiously, neither Gest or his men carried any visible arms of any sort. The swordsman had noticed the odd extendable blade shifting beneath sleeves but the men in blue seemed just as capable with their bare hands against the local fauna.
Useful information for later.
One of Gest's comrades slammed their fist down on the prone aligo in the center of the latest room. Sever seemed torn between satisfaction in contributing to the kill and disappointment in not personally dealing the finishing blow. Malos was starting to get bored whilst Gest and Jin looked quite nonplussed by the lack of action.
The Tornan leader and nearly faceless man moved towards the far side of the chamber. Jin suppressed a groan at the sliding bulkhead before them, the sigil of a flickering flame carved into its surface. He figured Addam would have some failsafes, precisely why he wanted that Leftherian boy.
"Well," Malos spat, his irritation on clear display, "you boys have an answer for this?"
Gest's arm shot up, his fingers issuing a sharp snap. At once the pair of helmet bound guards at he front of the group, ones nearest to Sever, turned and trekked towards the door. One reached a hand to the other, visibly metallic digits brushing the back of the forward man's head. There was a soft click and the light radiating from the front figure's lenses turned a dense scarlet.
"I'd suggest keeping your distance and averting your eyes." Gest may as well have not said anything as he about faced on the bulkhead. The robed guard who'd tampered with his fellow's skull sprang back a considerable distance, the action mirrored by Sever. Jin and Malos likewise stepped back.
The lone faceless by the door pressed his front against the portal. An instant later he exploded. The blast was focused forward, considerable force rocking the body of the decrepit ship.
For the three Torna members, this scenario was eerily familiar.
Gest stalked forward, flanked by his remaining cohorts. The locked portal now had a sizable hole in its base, a smattering of broken debris strewn across the floor. Gest snatched up a scrap of the blown man's robe from a jagged point in the blasted door, pocketing the cloth fragment.
As the band approached, Malos grabbed Sever before nodding at the spark of green jumping off the floor from the passage beyond. Jin stood nearby with arms crossed, waiting in silence.
The robed leader threw out his left arm. At once his cohort froze in place, some balanced mid stride. Gest's synthetic eye panned in and out as he surveyed the layer of energy flowing across the ground. Sweeping his sight upwards revealed a second bulkhead featuring the same flame symbol.
"Obnoxious," breathed Gest, again throwing up his arm and giving two swift snaps. Immediately one of his retinue reanimated, the others relaxing into idle stances. One of the angular robots floated down to the "appointed" grunt, the helmet bound figure swiftly mounting the diamond. Without pause, the duo drifted over to the far door.
Though the strange energy defense was clearly agitated by their presence, it simply didn't have the juice to reach them. The pair reached the closed portal in short order. And, close behind, Gest's extended tendril pressed against the back of the robed guard's skull. Sever marveled at the thing's reach, then laughed lightly as the tell tale click bespoke what was to come.
Jin and Malos hardly flinched as another explosion shortly shook the hall. They did both cut off comms when Patroka started screeching about all these "bullshit explosions" knocking her off balance.
Gest turned back to his employers, his group fanning out to offer them a path forward. "After you," the man gestured, his blue eye sprinkled with mischief.
Malos scoffed before proceeding.
There she was. The thing they'd been searching for all this time. The girl in the glass capsule.
Clad in a skimpy red piece the same hue as her bobcut, eyes closed as though lost in deep sleep, was the Aegis. Her housing held her upright, peach tinted arms crossed over her bulging chest. Flowers, mostly white, covered the floor in front of her resting place, somehow able to bloom in this dank place. And pitched into the ground, its handle aimed skyward, was the compacted, scarlet shape of the Aegis Sword.
Malos spoke for everyone when he failed to hold back a laugh, shortly following with a drawling, "How dramatic."
Gest's men immediately dispersed about the chamber. Jin had reached for his nodachi but the men in blue gave a considerable berth to both the sword and the capsule. The only exception was the drone which drifted right over to the inactive blade. Gest had one of his tentacles poised before him, poking at displays as the robot's mint glow focused on the ancient sword.
"What are you doing," Jin pressed, walking up behind the drone, his hand lightly grasping the hilt of his blade. Malos had oriented himself to the edge of the room, somewhat in Gest's blind spot. Sever was more towards the middle of the chamber, a slight barrier between his crew and the bulk of the helmet squad.
Gest waved the masked man off, both with his free hand and with another tendril sliding free of his back. "Just a data scan. Me and mine find information just as valuable as material resources. Can't build without blueprints."
It was a cool, sensible line of thinking. If anything, it put Jin more on edge. He could see Malos' face screw up at the implication in the cyborg's words. The idea of what these strangers wanted to "build" left a bad taste in both their mouths.
Then Gest and his droid advanced on the casket. Jin sidled up right next to the one eyed man, a hint of aggression in his movements. Gest gave this little concern, continuing to tap away as his drone, hovering out of Jin's reach, cast its scanning ray on the capsule and the girl inside.
Jin did have a bit of a stare off with that second metal tentacle, its fronds curled back, revealing the yellow circle of light within.
"Curious thing you've found," Gest offered softly, his attention clearly on the strings of data streaming across his display. Then the tanned techie started laughing. The sound was rough and sonorous, even accounting for the echoey nature of the hall. This was probably the most genuine emotion Gest had shown since their meeting.
Not a single one of the robed man's retinue deviated from their scavenging.
When Jin tossed a questioning gaze towards the laughing man, the watchful tentacle clicked its curled fronds together, prompting Gest back into a mostly passive state. A bit of mirth remained in his blue eye as the nearly faceless man regarded Jin, "Just… reminded me of something funny that was said… a long time ago."
None of the Tornan members knew what to make of that. They hardly registered when the angular drone retreated, Gest taking one step forwards before his extendable tendrils hoisted him to eye level with the slumbering Aegis.
"So… this is her. To quote an associate, 'The bitch in red'."
Jin was fast, blindingly so. But he just wasn't ready for how quickly Malos crossed the room, Sever's weapon blazing in his grasp. The dark Aegis closed the distance in just over a second, vaulting the remaining three meters up to Gest's back.
In a lustrous flash the "watchful" tentacle jousted outwards. Its palm light flaring saffron, the machine limb slammed into Malos' sternum. The brunette was thrown back, crashing into the planted Aegis Sword and sending both tumbling away.
Sever readied to leap into the fray but froze as several visor/lenses of various makes cast their warm amber sights onto him. The space became hauntingly still, broken only by Malos' motions to right himself and Gest's frankly curious mannerisms.
His mechanical arm retracting, its central light still fixed on the dark Aegis, Gest tilted his head towards Jin. "What, exactly, was all that about?" The masked warrior gave no response, his fingers now tightly wrapped around the handle of his nodachi.
When Malos stood, something fell off his chest. A low, violet glow peered into the shadows, Gest snapping his attention onto the darkly garbed brute.
"Ah," Gest breathed, "that confirms a few theories." The weathered cyborg continued, a touch of joviality in his tone, "You are… heartbroken."
The cold wrath on Malos' face was palpable. Gest smoothly turned away from the cracked gem on his chest, meeting Jin's now frosty gaze.
"You should work on keeping your people under control. I expected more from the Sword of Torna."
Jin lost control, only for an instance. It was enough that the first centimeter of steel was freed from is sheath. The naked question on his masked features was so apparent that Gest couldn't help but answer.
"Of course we knew who you were. And that logically lead our suspicions of who he," the one eyed man nodded to Malos, "would turn out to be. Thank you, by the way, for confirming that for us."
The dark Aegis sunk into a ready stance.
"Guys," Patroka's voice drifted over comms, "their ship is going airborne… and these metal heads are giving me looks."
"Quite the interesting operation you have going on…" Gest mused airily.
The machine man flew into motion as the scarlet mass of the Aegis Sword came twirling in his direction. One of his steel tendrils smacked it out of the air as Jin drew his sword. A sweep of the blade sent a blast of icy shards towards Gest.
His standing tentacles retracted, dropping Gest to the floor. He covered his face with one arm, a speedy ice shard pinging off his limb and tearing through the heavy sleeve of his garb. When he landed on his feet, Gest just stood by inspecting the shredded segment of garment.
At this point Gest's helmet bound guards were in motion. Sever met one in close combat, contorting his strange anatomy around a swift palm thrust. The reptilian Blade slashed his talons across the face of the helmet, carving through metal and scattering bits and bobs all over the place.
There was a quick, sharp report of steel sliding against steel. Sever turned to meet a unique, V-shaped visor glaring back at him. V's right arm was drawn up, a trio of long claws blooming out from between his knuckles. The sight had Sever making his best approximation of a slasher smile.
Jin swung out another barrage of ice shards. This time all four of Gest's synthetic tendrils formed a bulwark between the man and the volley. He was still looking at the tear in his sleeve when Jin stepped in with a downward slash.
Those vine like limbs were made of some sturdy stuff, just one managing to hold off Jin's nodachi. Gest finally turned his inquisitive gaze from his marred arm to the pale swordsman.
"What are… you all doing?" His tone was genuinely curious though any sense of actual hurt regarding the "betrayal" was absent. Jin elected not to respond at all. "Curious how you handle miscommunication."
Gest's left arm shot up, his sleeve rolling back as a black metal barrel slid free of his robes. Three bolts tore out of the wrist mounted weapon, halting Malos' attempt to flank. The sharpened heads of each bolt glowed a sickly olive, the floor partially dissolving at the points of impact.
Jin hopped back as a set of metallic tentacles came winding towards him. The white haired warrior batted down one limb as Gest continued firing at an evasive Malos. The nearly faceless man still had that contemplative look in place.
As Jin swiped and weaved amongst the striking tendrils, Patroka came back over comms, "They're attacking us, Jin! Mikhail surfaced the Monoceros and that damned ship of theirs-" She was cut off by the report of clashing blades and a series of not so distant explosions.
"Hmm," Gest mused, his attention still barely on the building outbreak of violence. His additional limbs seemed to do that part for him, hurling the cyborg back as Jin and Malos closed in. Another almost thoughtless round of corrosive bolts harried the two warriors before they could pursue.
"Could it be… that it was, in fact, always your intention to fell us here?" One of Gest's tentacles lashed out to strike Sever in the back, aiding V in his efforts. The man wasn't even looking as his bolt thrower tracked Jin's movements, one of his snake like limbs glaring at the swordsman through its palm light.
"Do you ever shut up," Malos shouted as he slashed upwards, releasing a cutting arc of wind. Gest's sight again stayed off his opponents, the man simply dropping his left arm and raising his right. His skin tinted palm shot forth, the fingers spread wide and then sliding apart at the joints, showing the artificial frame beneath. A dark blue aura radiated from the mechanical segments, enveloping the hand entirely.
Malos' attack was not blocked. It was erased, fading to nothing as Gest reached his glowing hand towards it. The black clad brute's surprise was almost enough that the helmeted pair charging at his back got the jump on him. Almost.
His extra limbs engaging Jin now, Gest finally allowed his eyes to focus. The robed leader turned his back on the melee, facing the suspended pod and the sleeping girl within. Gest hummed in thought as Jin continued battling against his animated cords.
"I suppose its understandable, predictable even." The blue eyed techie raised his left arm towards Jin, pumping out a few bolts that forced the swordsman to back off some. One of Gest's tentacles presented itself before the man, palm bright and data screen floating above it.
"You're actions are nonetheless insulting," the cyborg grumbled, fingers pecking away at the hologram. He didn't even flinch as Malos was intercepted by one of his guards, the dark Aegis a breath away from slicing into Gest's back.
"And that," Gest slid a digit across his display, "I cannot leave unanswered." With that done, the hologram dissipated and the metallic tendril slammed into the side of the capsule.
"No," Jin roared, starting forward at a run as the blow dislodged the casket from its housing. He mostly ignored Patroka wailing about something the other ship was doing. He took her words much more seriously when a white hot beam cut through the ceiling in the center of the room.
Sever and V split apart from each other, each looking worse for wear with numerous cuts and gouges littering their forms. The white beam boring through the top and bottom of the room slid through the space between them in a pale flash. The screech of metal filled the hall as molten slag dripped from the large gashes torn across the room.
The two combatants stared at the searing gaps, then up at each other. An instant later the white ray carved back through the room, darting swiftly into the opposite wall. Malos dislodged his opponent and flung the metal head into the sweeping beam, his body incinerated in a silent instance.
Jin settled back, scanning the molten cleave that now separated the back and front ends of the chamber. That also separated his group from what remained of Gest's.
And the cyborg was on the half of the room that housed the slumbering Aegis.
Gest smashed the side of the pod once more, knocking it off the wall and onto the floor. As soon as the casket struck the ground, the ship itself shifted. Jin was ready to leap across the gap when the severed sections of the warship fell apart. Malos caught him by the shoulder before the swordsman could fall over.
As V and another two of his robed retinue came to his side, Gest turned to the Tornan crew. Hefted by a pair of tentacles, the Aegis capsule floated overhead.
"Bastard!" Malos' wrath was all consuming, gone beyond the boiling point, "Think we'll let you just walk out of here with her!?"
Wind and rain began to spill through the widening gap between the parted ship. The sound of the Monoceros' missile battery thundered out from beyond, matched by a rhythmic beat of pulsing discharges. The night air flashed with strikes of orange and electric jade.
But the look Gest fixed towards Jin and Malos was the pinnacle of nonplussed. "You think this… pointless doll has value to us?"
Without a hint of thought, Gest spiked the stasis pod down into the depths of the gap. Jin's mouth fell open as Malos almost threw himself in after, halted by a quick grab from his Blade. The cloud sea was already rushing into the fissure, the crashing waves quickly swallowing the capsule.
Whatever kept the old ship's lights running, however dim they were, chose then to blink out. Through the flashes of battle streaking from outside, Jin spotted Gest as his iron tendrils lifted him up through the trench. One of the prehensile limbs was coiled around V, carrying the clawed guardian in the cyborg's wake.
The last significant source of light, the remaining angular drone, floated upwards after. The last two of the metal heads held onto its edges, silhouetted against the bot's emerald glow. Both groups quickly vanished over the top of the split deck.
"Jin! Malos!" Patroka's shrieks were especially desperate now, "The whole thing's going down and those bucket head fucks are taking off, get the hell out of there!"
Malos elbowed Sever right in the maw, growling as he made his way back towards the exit. Before Jin turned to follow, the last thing he saw was the scarlet frame of the Aegis Sword sliding into the gap, down to the crashing currents that took its counterpart.
She strode swiftly through the enormous hall. At her entrance, the hulking guards stationed on the far end of the room began their trek towards her. Their great stature saw them to her in rapid order, their dark cloaks swaying in their wake.
The pair of darkly garbed troopers each sunk to one knee as the mature woman of normal height marched between them. Her silver curls, banded into loose twintails, bounced with every clack of her flat tops on the beige tiles.
Forest green orbs stared ahead, taking in the dancing flames of the firepit and the finely carved furniture around it. In particular, her eyes were drawn to a mahogany couch with velvet cushioning.
More accurately, her sight was drawn to the man seated on it.
There were touches of grey in his blonde hair, his full mane slicked back and pulled into two "wings" that flared out to either side. He wore an even expression with a hint of underlying misery, the predominant lawn of stubble on his chin adding to his dour mood. A scarlet robe with black trim rested over his frame, the open front displaying his pale top and dark slacks. The man's blue eyes rested on the fire before him, his large hands drawn together with fingers laced.
He gave no reaction when the cushion shifted, the silver haired woman taking a seat beside him. After a silent second, she cast her gaze back towards the entrance of the room, noting the pair of black clad juggernauts now resting by the double doors. Even with the superior senses offered by their ever-present rigs, they should be well out of earshot.
She scooted closer to her couchmate.
"Arthur," the woman breathed, one hand resting on his shoulder. The man blinked, breathing deeply for a moment as life returned to his features.
Arthur turned to the woman, sight noting the bronze buttons that trailed up the front of her violet coat. He offered a small smile, "Hey Ingrid, you doing okay?"
The woman stared down at his slouched form, her eyes hard and unblinking. The urge to smile back at how even that tiny grin broadened his already wide features was brutally put down. Instead, her comforting palm left Arthur's shoulder and whapped the man across the scalp.
"Screw off, bucko. I'm always fine, figured you knew that by now." The light abuse only had the blonde smiling wider, a ray of youth shining through. Ingrid scoffed, rolling her eye as she turned away. Arthur still caught the twitch on her lips as she fought back a smile.
"Whatever you say, Ingrid," the man said with playful ease, like going through a routine he'd done hundreds of times before.
Ingrid exhaled, turning back to her seatmate. "Saturn has them on the run."
That got Arthur sitting upright. "Their position?"
"They fled Argentum the day before yesterday. Between Saturn and the auxiliary force, they should be more than able to direct them to the rendezvous point."
Arthur nodded, reaching up to cup his chin. "What's the timetable for our own arrival?"
"Us? Shouldn't take more than a week. Considering position and the most likely route our runners will take, I'd say they'll arrive in maybe double that time."
As Ingrid finished, Arthur's stance relaxed slightly, "Alright then, we'll get moving in the morning." Leaning over the back of the couch, the blonde hollered out, "Make sure our warriors are ready for tomorrow! I'd like a smooth voyage considering the… business to follow."
The goliath soldier on the right bowed to the man's request. But Arthur quirked a brow when both of his guards exited the room, shutting the heavy doors behind them. The man then turned to Ingrid.
His couchmate had her coat drawn open. The pink, near shear gown she wore beneath gladly displayed her svelte form and perky chest. Arthur would have loved to sit and stare, but Ingrid was never terribly patient.
With hardly a word, she threw one leg across his lap, arms locking behind his head and eyes clouded with desire. Arthur accepted her in silence, unable to form the words.
I mentioned last update that I had an idea for a cool moment with Bana. Yeah, it would have involved that mech he 's riding at the start of this chapter. Consider it a prelude to Rosa, of sorts. Will probably have the mechsuit come back in the future… though not necessarily piloted by the chairman.
Niranira makes his first appearance and we see that the esteemed chairman is not a fan of the internal investigator. You've probably already puzzled out how Niranira is particularly important to Rex and Nia's circumstances but we won't be going further into it for the rest of this arc. Put a pin in it people.
One last hurrah for Bobobo. I had an idea for a scene featuring him and Patroka that would have further bulged The Siege of Argentum, figured I'd abridge it here instead. All good boys deserve walkies, until we meet again you glorious, blonde-topped bastard…
So we take a bit of a break from Rex and company. I'd never planned to have the ship recovery happen as it did in canon and thought I'd use this entry to touch on things outside the scope of our protagonists. Just to kind of expand the world a little, show that pieces are moving outside of the main cast.
Jin shows his interest in Rex's group and his distaste for The Praetor. The dynamics between parties is shaping up to be a little complex and I'm sorta torn on which way to take things.
Gest…
So, Gest's name comes from the word "gestalt," which roughly means something considered greater as a whole than the sum of its various parts. A fitting name for a cyborg. When thinking of his organic features, I always imagine The End from Metal Gear Solid: Snake Eater, specifically the rough, weathered skin texture. Of course, adding on those metallic tendrils was a dead reference to Doc Ock, my high from No Way Home was going quite strong at the time. I also love the idea of having an opponent who basically fights on auto-pilot, their synthetics doing the heavy lifting whilst they muse over various conundrums.
You'll note that Gest seems rather at a loss as to what's going on as the situation degenerates. Like he actually has to step back and puzzle out the motivations of his employers in attacking him and he seems to take no stock of how his own mannerisms/actions pushed the Tornan crew to act rashly. Beyond that, the very notion that Jin and Malos would attack seems to catch him utterly off guard, like he'd never considered them enough of a force for an attempt to even be entertained. They're beneath him. And once he figures out that they're flashing their teeth at him regardless of that, he's not dismayed or angered. He's insulted. Enough to do something… very irrational.
Gest and his people are… Well… they're future material. Malos and Jin do note some striking resemblances between them and the fanatics they'd just fought off. What a puzzling connection…
And yeah, I named one V. Was originally gonna have him with a "W" shaped visor to make the Wolverine connection as blatant as possible. But then I hit on this idea and went with that instead. Don't think I'll add mantis blades though, despite how tempting it is.
But let's make a convenient segue back to the main antagonists of this arc.
So, Ingrid and Arthur. More commanders of The Benevolence
In addition to Saturn, all of the named "commanders" are actually based, pretty loosely, on characters from an animated series. Their nature in this story is pretty far removed from how they are in their own show (none of them are really "villains," for one thing) but there are some nods to their "original incarnations" sprinkled here and there. No one even in the first run of this story ever chanced a guess at who they are or what cartoon they're based on. Maybe a broader audience will pick up on it.
The relationship between Ingrid and Arthur here is less reflective of how they are in their home series and more how one of them wishes their relationship could be for most of the run time. There's a hint for you.
Oh yeah, and I guess we should mention that Pyra finally makes an appearance! And then gets promptly dunked into the ocean! Don't worry, she's still in play. Which brings us around to…
Next time: Our crew assembles at last. And just in time for their pursuers to catch up. And there'll be a few surprise faces popping up.