seen from Türkiye
seen from United Kingdom
seen from China
seen from United States
seen from Belgium
seen from United States
seen from Brunei
seen from United Kingdom
seen from China
seen from United States
seen from United Kingdom
seen from Japan
seen from China
seen from Netherlands
seen from Belgium
seen from France
seen from United States
seen from Türkiye
seen from Kuwait
seen from China
(Scolding) Xav. *the infamous Signas GLARE!*
Xav shrank in his chair in Signas’ office from where the leader of the (alternate) Maverick Hunters was glaring at him. Sure, he was very banged up and was covered in bandages, but he was alive, wasn’t he?!
…But Signas’ glare was scary. “…”
...Xav, get me some coffee so I can watch.
This man has infinite patience.
Any lesser man would have thrown the organic out the window by now.
The Liash Conflict Prelude pt. 2: Into the Fire
| Part 1: Out of the Frying Pan (Sissel) | Part 3: Murphy’s Law (Sissel) | Part 4: Speak of the Devil (X) |
X Light was famous for the cannon attached to his arm. The X-Buster had gotten the Original Reploid through many wars and countless battles, used both strategically and for sheer devastation.
What most people tended to forget was that the Brigadier General, out of his armor and with his Buster transformed into a humanoid hand, looked exactly like a lanky, baby-faced, 14-year-old human.
People tended to also forget that the Mavericks were not the only source of violence in the world. Human beings had just as much capacity for malice and destruction as any Maverick--and that was virus-free.
Because X had the burden and privilege of high rank, Signas often trusted him with the most impactful missions; because he had the wisdom of eight centuries years of experience, and a pacifist's disposition besides, Signas often trusted him with the most delicate missions...and because despite being internationally famous, only a handful of people on Earth recognized X outside of his armor, causing Signas to trust X with undercover missions. The mission involving the Legacy Society was all three of these.
The Legacy Society was a group of human dissenters who were sick to death of the Maverick Wars devastating the world. They were tired of humanity being the casualties of Reploids battling it out over ideals. They religiously espoused an idea that bloomed in the late 20th century: that all weapons of mass destruction were inherently evil and should never be allowed to exist. And they considered Reploids to be weapons of mass destruction.
On the one hand, X sympathized with the Society's grief over the human death toll over the last few centuries of the Maverick Wars. Those numbers were something that haunted him every day of his life...and that sorrow--along with an expertly-timed act painting himself to be a traumatized teenager whose family had been collateral in a Reploid clash--allowed him to infiltrate the Society seamlessly, adding himself to their roster.
On the other hand, the Society were terrorists. There was no way around that. For all their abhorrence of WMD's, they seemed to enjoy violence quite a lot. They'd spent the last six months executing increasingly skilled strategic strikes against peaceful Reploid settlements, against Reploid factories, and against the scientists who designed new Reploids and Reploid systems. They were murderers, and that was why Signas had sent X to take them out from the inside.
Well, not "take out" as such. Signas knew that it went against every fiber of X's being to strike down a human, no matter how evil an individual might be. The Supreme Commander's orders had been to gain an intricate understanding of the Society's ranks, movements, and plans, and to get as close as possible to their leader and mastermind, Geoffrey Frank. Frank had proven to be the toughest task; the dark-haired man was cold and distant towards almost everyone, trusting little and few. But X had one distinct advantage, even towards the most crotchety of strategists: he was cute. He was adorable, and he knew it. A combination of those Lightbot Eyes and his own natural, genuine charm had proven enough to gain a spark of paternal fondness from Geoffrey.
Which had, in turn, allowed him to obtain every bit of data he needed, and more. When he transmitted his findings to Signas, the Supreme Commander informed him that his mission was complete, that X could slip away from the terrorists, and Signas would deliberate on the best way to end the conflict. X was only too happy to do so. Being disingenuous turned his stomach a little--but these people...these hypocritical, self-righteous, indignant, violent people...they were the kind who gave the rest of humanity a bad name. Mere hours after Signas had given the go-ahead, X was back on base. He'd proceeded with caution and everything, but dear God did he want out of there.
It was strange at first, returning to his normal work as a Brigadier after spending so many months in the role of an emotionally-damaged teenager--oh wait; wasn't he an emotionally damaged teenager 100% of the time anyway? Anyhow, the role he'd been playing was that of an emotionally-damaged teenager who was willing to kill for revenge. It was about as far from who X actually was as could be. But still, it was a little...unbalancing, going from months embodying a construct of lies, and back to the truths of his real life in a day.
Which was why he answered the message so quickly. He felt like he needed to not be cooped up in his office doing paperwork; he needed to get out of Headquarters for a bit, take in the ambiance of the city.
It was Sissel who'd reached out to him: that paranormal private investigator who, apparently, was also a friend of Yen's. X wasn't sure how that whole ghost-thing had resolved itself...All he knew was that inexplicably, Yen was alive now, even though the last time he'd seen the General, he was most decidedly a disembodied spirit. What Sissel had to do with it, X didn't know...but he had a feeling that he owed the man thanks of some sort.
That made two very good reasons to abandon the intimidating pile of paperwork that had accumulated on his desk during his absence; undercover mission or not, some things had slipped past the people covering for him. (Or under the door.) X donned his plainclothes--his clothes, not the ones that had been selected for his acting role in the Society--and headed to his favorite burger joint to meet up with Sissel.
The blond, candle-headed P.I. had called a meeting to ask about something he'd mentioned before: a man named Dimitri Antonov. X didn't know the name at all, but he knew the names of the girls who had hired Sissel to track Antonov down: Hana and Sakura Fiore. Sissel thought that maybe by picking X's brain on his knowledge of the twins--or perhaps by using his rank and high security clearance--he could get information that would lead him to Antonov.
X agreed that it was very fishy how much effort Antonov had gone through to keep himself off the radar. Plus, the twins were friends of his, and had helped him out; helping them out in turn was only natural. He was more than willing to help Sissel with the case.
But X didn't get the chance to do much more than agree to help--because that was when everything went straight to hell.
OOC
((Dammit, I've been reading The Big Sleep again. Now I need a picture of Signas in a hardboiled detective outfit. Fedora included.))
Question
“Alia.”
There was something in Signas’s tone that made Alia look up from her place on the couch. They were both out of their armor, enjoying the evening to themselves. Alia was certainly enjoying it most of all being curled up against his large frame.
He was giving her a serious look. But it wasn’t the serious look he wore when he was getting ready to deliver a lecture to a misbehaving recruit. No, this look had a slightly unsure edge to it.
“What’s wrong Signas?” The female Reploid slides a hand over one of Signas’s, both of them resting on the Cainbot’s knee.
Signas looks away from her a moment, staring out the window of their quarters, but he wasn’t looking at the city, more looking inward. “As you know, we’ve had quite a few changes recently.” His head bows slightly. “Our relationship has grown…and most of all, an inclusion to our circle.”
Alia knew that Signas was talking about Hue, her core quivered slightly at remembering the tiny Cyber-Elf. How helpless and afraid the little child had been, but most of all, how overjoyed Hue had been when they had basically adopted him.
“I know Signas…he needed a family. We were only more than happy to give him one.” She gently rubs at his hand. “But what about that is troubling you?”
Signas looks back at her now, blue eyes filled with something she could not identify. “These things have made me…consider where I am. Where we are.” His free right hand reaches over her shoulders to caress her hair. “Not to mention weighing in on the fates of us in…other timelines.”
Alia stayed silent, she sensed he had a lot more to say.
“We live in troubled times. Times where we can’t even be sure that we’ll be here for another day. It has made me realize that sometimes, we have to seize the chances we get at happiness…no matter how brief they might be.” Signas goes silent for a moment before he leans down, bringing his face closer to hers. “It has led me to know that I must ask this question of you, before I can never ask it again.”
Alia’s voice quavers as she unconsciously leans closer to him as well. “And what question is that?”
His next words were quiet, barely above a whisper but still firm and strong. “That if you will marry me.”
((How Signas typically reacts to EXCEPTIONAL bullshit.))
An example of what the junior Hunters and Navigators do when they think I'm not watching.
▣
"Commander Signas, sir… I always respected you." Xav smiled brightly, though it did not reach his eyes, as he prepared the final blow to the Cainbot’s core. “It’s… just a shame, isn’t it? That it all had to come to this… at least your mind is still your own."
