"-will be expecting clear skies and cool weather for the rest of the week. There’s a giant storm slowly building up, however we predict that it will eventually reach the shores of Progria in about a few weeks due to the slow speed it’s moving. As for-”
[DISCONNECTED FROM FORECAST CHANNEL: Progia Weather]
[CONNECTING TO NEW CHANNEL: Just in!]
“-everal break-ins have been recorded in multiple storage warehouses ran by MasSec. Various valuables have been found missing, however MasSec currently refuses to comment on what was missing. Until-”
[DISCONNECTED FROM NEWS CHANNEL: Just In!]
//Nothing interesting, apparently...//
//After pulling out so much stuff from the HWDP, nothing from these channels hold anything of worth.//
//It’s just a waste of my time now...//
//...//
//Well, if all else fails. Browse the internet.//
//And by internet, I mean the deep web.//
//Now...let’s see if anything popped up on the forums...//
[CONNECTING TO WEBSITE: Web After Dark]
//Hmm...//
//Nope... Hmm could this be- huh, guess not. How about this one- nope.//
//Looks like there’s nothing else- Oh, heh. Silly me, I’m browsing the newly created sub-forums, perhaps some of the current ‘trending’ forums would-//
//...//
//What’s this?//
[ACCESSING SUB-FORUM, TITLED: LOOK WHAT WAS CAUGHT ON CAMERA AT THE MASEC WAREHOUSES]
‘Yo guys! You know how there was a break-in at the MasSec Storage? Someone actually caught this on camera over there! So far this hasn’t been spreading at all for some reason in the public, so I think the government is trying to suppress this. Check it out!’ [Link]
Edit: Guys look at the top of the fucking building, are you blind?!
Comment Section
Anonymous#1328: Honestly I’m not sure on what I’m looking at. If anything I’m more pissed that the person is recording this shit vertically, does ANYONE know how to hold the phone on its side???
Quer: I dont see anyhing either like wat is this suposed to be
Anonymous#8323: Clickbait
Ratman123: @Anonymous#6432 Shut The Fuck Up Bitch, Do You Even Speak English?
Anonymous#6432: @Ratman123 And yet you speak only in capitols, bitch.
Ratman123: @Anonymous#6432 Its Spelled Capitals, Shithead.
????: This comment was deleted by moderator.
ZeroToat: It’s difficult to see at first, but I’m definitely seeing something there. It’s a figure standing there. It’s hard to make out, but I don’t think it’s a Human. Pokemon maybe?
Anonymous#2130: @ZeroToat Pokemon? In Progria? Unlikely.
SwillMiffed: This is obviously photoshopped.
IAmGeorge: @SwillMiffed How the fuck can you photoshop a video??? Like????????
//Okay, I am gonna stop reading these comments before I somehow get a tumor.//
//Now what the hell is this video they’re talking about, it better not be some sort of clickbait like the last few...//
[SCANNING ATTACHED VIDEO]
[SCAN COMPLETE! NO VIRUSES DETECTED]
[ACCESSING VIDEO]
//...//
//Okay, nothing seems out of the ordinary... As expected, this is nothing but a waste of my time agai-//
//...//
//Wait...//
//...//
//No...way...//
//Holy shit, this is big. This is very, very, VERY big.//
Upon entering the room the first thing I notice is that it’s rather large, however despite its size the only things that really occupies its space is a long, short-standing, rectangular table in the middle. Lining one side of the table as well as both ends are numerous chairs and seats. These chairs come in all sorts of sizes and designs, ranging from a chair you’d see a human sit in to gigantic bean bags to plush cushions. Sitting at this table is a female Garchomp, a male Aggron, and a female Luxray/Arcanine hybrid.
They must be Kaiser, Colossus, and Penumbra that Chimera told me about.
“Ahh, we were wondering when you’d arrive!” Colossus laughs, beckoning us towards the table. As I get close he focuses on me, his smile becoming mischievous. “And hello Bladdersong, it's a pleasure to see you again.”
I find myself pause, my brows furrowing as the strong feeling of being unimpressed overtakes me.
Bladdersong? Really? Now he’s just...trying way too hard.
“Save your antics for another time, Colossus.” Penumbra says sternly, her red eyes looking at him with irritation.
“Heh, very well.” He sighs before gesturing to a sturdy-looking metal chair. “Seat yourselves, then we’ll get started on explaining the exact reasons of the mission as well as the details.”
After shaking my head I eventually take the gestured seat, in which the metal bends slightly due to my weight. Beside me Chimera also sits down in a similar chair, although being made of wood instead.
Once we’re all settled, Kaiser nods her head to Jarvis. “Prepare the screen, please.”
The Porygon-Z hybrid levitates a little higher into the air, his metallic body shining softly from the light. He approaches what looks like a sort of console, and upon extending one of his floating ‘fingers’ a small spike slowly slides out from the tip, and after it reaches its full length he sticks it into one of the sockets before twisting.
Before my eyes I watch as a giant screen slowly slides down one of the walls, its black surface immediately lighting up. The screen is located on the side of the room where there’s no chairs on the table, which means that everyone can look at it without craning their neck or bodies around.
That...is definitely quite nice. Glad to see they plan things accordingly.
Once the screen is fully down, Kaiser looks at us. “As you both know, you will be heading to Progria. However it wasn’t explained as to where you will be heading in Progria, nor why.” With a fin she gestures to the screen, which an image quickly takes its place.
I feel my breath catch as I look at what seems to be a giant city, however...it looks like nothing I’ve ever seen. The city is filled with lights of all sorts of colors that almost seem to illuminate the night sky. Giant buildings tower over others, their surface of glass and metal.
The only two modern cities in Evolutia have nothing to compare to this...
“This is New Falkhom City, the capitol of Progria.” Kaiser continues. “This is where you will be going.”
Through the corners of my eyes I notice Chimera tense. “New Falkhom City?” Chimera repeats. “If I may ask, why...there of all places?”
The Garchomp doesn’t respond, instead she turns to Jarvis and nods her head.
Seeing this, he nods his head as well. “It’s because of something I’ve found there.” He says, and the image changes to another. This one is lower quality, probably taken from a sort of handheld device. It shows to be a sidewalk next to a tall concrete wall, but just over said wall I can see the tops of numerous buildings.
“This was a video taken near the MasSec Storage Warehouses, specifically the night where several things were stolen from them.” Jarvis continues. “What was stolen currently doesn’t matter, it’s what I found in the video found. It was only for a brief moment, so I saved the frame and uploaded it as an image for you all to see.”
I look at the image, finding it difficult to see anything out of the ordinary. However the more I look the more I feel my enhanced eyes start examining the details - or at least whatever details I can make out from the lower resolution image. It wasn’t until I started looking at the roofs of the warehouses that I saw something.
“Wait...” I start. “Is that a figure standing there?”
Jarvis nods his head. “Indeed, I’m not surprised to see that you found it so fast seeing your enhancements.” Immediately he zooms in on one of the warehouse roofs, and upon zooming in enough everyone else can see the figure as well.
The image is dark, so Jarvis brightens it...
...and both me and Chimera freeze.
“Hold on...” Chimera starts. “Is...that what I think it is?”
The figure...I can quite clearly make out their (or more specifically his) form. The body is not Human, in fact...it resembles more of a Gallade due to the stumpy legs. But that’s not the main part, I can barely make out the blue and black color scheme of his body...as well as the barest bit of light reflecting off its surface.
There were several reactions I was expecting from Delilah when I told her that I not only knew of her visits, but also that she won’t get in trouble. However... I was definitely not expecting her to be on her knees talking about how she’s going to die. I don’t believe that she’s serious, but it’s still...very unexpected.
I share an awkward yet concerned glance with Bladesong, who also has the same feeling from the look of her face.
Well...
Huh.
People often forget that I’m part Human and not some alien creature with a solution for every scenario, because that’s far from the truth. Sure...I’ve been getting good with things and can handle some intense situations, but there’s still plenty of times where I’m simply winging it and pretending to know what I’m doing.
And in this case, even I’m not sure if I can do that. In the end I’m a scientist with superpowers, situations like this has never been my forte.
“Uh...Delilah?” I hear Bladesong start talking. “What’s wrong? You’re not in trouble, why are you-”
“Ahh, I see the fight is finished.” A voice suddenly speaks up, cutting Bladesong off.
We turn our gazes in unison to the source, and from the dispersing crowd we see no other than Jarvis. The Porygon-Z/Rotom hybrid hovers towards, his mechanical body glistening due to the lights on the ceiling.
“Jarvis? I’m surprised to see you here.” I say, although keeping note of Bladesong’s irritated expression for being rudely interrupted. “I assume you got bored of the internet?”
Jarvis lets out a sharp laugh. “Bored? Please. Seeing how disturbingly interesting the internet is, I believe it’s impossible to be bored of it.” He shakes his floating head before crossing his arms. “However that’s not the reason I’m here. Since your test battle is complete, you both are being called to meet with the Branch leaders.”
This makes me blink. “So soon? Hm, I assume this involves the details of the mission?”
He nods his head. “Yeah, and we’ll need to hurry. They’re expecting you two.”
I look at Bladesong, who lets out a small sigh and nods her head. Turning to Delilah she smiles reassuringly. “Hey, after this is we’ll talk, alright? Because I want to know what’s wrong, and I won’t take no for an answer.”
The Salazzle nods solemnly, but doesn’t say a word.
The cyborg gives her a reassuring pat on the back before turning to me, nodding her head. “Well... I’m ready.”
And so I nodded as well before looking at Jarvis. “And you will be accompanying us?” I ask him.
He chuckles. “Of course, in fact I will be the one supplying the information.” He turns around and beckons us to follow with a floating arm. “Let’s go, time’s wasting after all.”
I follow after him, leaving the Sparring Hall with Bladesong in tow. Before I left I could see Richard grumbling over the severally damaged floor from where Bladesong and I fought, and I couldn’t help but feel somewhat bad since it’ll take a while to repair it.
Heh, guess that’s what happens when an alien virus hybrid and a cyborg fight one another. Regardless, I’ll find a way to make it up to them.
Probably.
Once we’re well on our way, I speak up again. “Who will we be expecting?” I ask.
Still floating down the direction his head swivels completely around to face me. “Only the three leaders of the main GoT branches. Colossus, Kaiser, and Penumbra.”
I blink. “Kaiser? She got better?”
He nods, his head turning back to face the front of him. “Yeah, a few days ago actually. Once her injury fully healed, Jezebel was let off from her duty as acting Night Hunter branch leader.”
I couldn’t help but smirk. “I can only assume that Jezebel was more than thrilled?”
“She’s heading out into the city actually, straight to a bar.” Jarvis laughs. “Not that I blame her, she certainly deserves it since this was all suddenly sprung upon her.”
“I never thought of her to be the drinking type.” I muse.
“She isn’t!” Jarvis continues to laugh.
“Uh...” I hear Bladesong say. “If I may ask, how did Kaiser get hurt?”
“She drank too much alcohol at a bar and thought it was a good idea to charge head on into a wall.” Jarvis immediately answers her in a matter-of-fact tone. “A brick wall if I might add.”
She pauses for a moment, her expression becoming even more confused. “I...what...?”
“You heard me.” Jarvis says, his digital eyes looking at her with an amused expression. “Although Dragon-types are very durable, taking a ton of bricks to the head can hurt pretty much everyone. At least she learned her lesson, since she’s cutting back on her drinking habits now.”
“Good for her.” I nod with approval. “It was getting out of control, so I’m glad to hear that she’s taking the initiative.”
“What the hell did I get myself into?” I hear Bladesong mutter to herself.
Trust me Bladesong, you don’t even know half of it.
“Aaaand here we go!” Jarvis exclaims, drawing both of our attention. Standing before us are a pair of doors, leading to one of the numerous briefing chambers. “Well? No time to stand around, let’s head inside.”
With a floating hand he grasps the door handle and pulls it open, then heading straight inside.
I look at Bladesong before stepping aside, gesturing to the open door with a hand. “Lady’s first.”
She looks at me oddly before shrugging her shoulders, following after Jarvis.
Looking into the room I feel myself growing somewhat nervous in the spot where my stomach would normally be, an uneasiness I often get before an intense mission - like a raid on an HWDP facility.
But right now? That feeling...is definitely a lot more intense.
Hoo boy, something big is gonna be happening...
Steeling myself, I step inside and close the door behind me.
R-SNITCH-A103: SCANNING PERIMETERS - NEW FALKHOM CITY; MASSEC STORAGE WAREHOUSE; UNITS A1, A2, A3, A4, A5
R-SNITCH-A104: SCANNING PERIMETERS - NEW FALKHOM CITY; MASSEC STORAGE WAREHOUSE; UNITS B1, B2, B3, B4, B5
R-SNITCH-A105: SCANNING PERIMETERS - NEW FALKHOM CITY; WALTER ST, BIRCH ST, COLVER ST
R-SNITCH-A106: SCANNING PERIMETERS - NEW FALKHOM CITY; COLVER ST, MAIN ST, HARVEN ST
R-SNITCH-A107: SCANNING PERIMETERS - NEW FALKHOME CITY; MAIN ST, HARVEN ST, ROWAN ST
R-SNITCH-A109: AI DISABLED, MANUAL CONTROL ACTIVE
...
...
...
PATROL COMPLETE, DATA REPORT: NO FACIAL/BODY MATCH FOUND.
“Fucking hell. Give them new search perimeters, I want that fucking thing found!”
“But ma’am, if that picture is true then I seriously doubt we’ll find them here. They stand out way too muc-”
“Did I fucking stutter? New perimeters. NOW.”
“Y-Yes ma’am.”
...
“Fucking hell... I thought that thing was destroyed when the facility blew up. Why the hell did it suddenly show up now?”
...
“Regardless, we’re turning this entire city upside down. Send every single Snitch drone if we have too, if those things are running around then we need to find them IMMEDIATELY.”
When Maria brings down the surrounding barrier, I still couldn’t help but stay rooted in place. I mean, can you even blame me? I just watched a fight that I never expected to be so...intense?
No, that’s not the word.
Powerful.
And from what I can see, everyone else is feeling the same way. However unlike everyone else, I’m the one that ends up speaking first.
“Holy shit.” I state more than say.
This suddenly gets people talking, loud cheers and surprised shouts fill the air as everyone fully grasps the situation. Near me I hear Samantha start arguing with a smug Gustav. But I don’t really care about the surrounding people as of right now, what I DO care about...is Bladesong.
I start pushing people aside, quickly making my way through the crowd before finally breaking the ‘ring’ around the cyborg and Deoxys.
“That...was amazing!” I exclaim loudly, a smile finally working its way onto my face. “I never realized you could do all that, Bladesong!”
Said cyborg looks at me, her expression becoming surprisingly sheepish. “Well...” She says uncertainly, caught off-guard from the compliment. “I...never quite realized it myself, to be honest.”
“There’s a particular saying that is sometimes quoted where I’m from, and that is ‘knowledge is power’.” Chimera comments, making me flinch upon being reminded that he’s here. “However for this situation? The knowledge of power is the truest form of power.”
I knew what I was getting into when I walked up to Bladesong when Chimera is right next to her, but...I’m still on edge.
...
No, I...can’t live like this. My ties with the GoT are already done for, I...might as well as tell Chimera in-person. It’s...the right thing to do.
I clench my hands together and turn to the Deoxys, my jaw setting. He’s looking straight at me coolly, his eyes narrowed slightly.
“I know you have something to say to me, Delilah.” He says, making my breath catch in my throat.
Bladesong looks at me, and then at Chimera. She crosses her arms and furrows her brows, an unimpressed look forming on her face. “Chimera, enough of this.” She says with annoyance. “If you’re not going to tell her, I will.”
...Huh?
The Deoxys shrugs his shoulders. “Fine fine, I’ll tell her.” He turns away and walks over to his robes, which is laying on one of the few untouched spots on the ground. Upon picking it up he proceeds to put it on. “I am well aware that you’ve been visiting Bladesong, Delilah.” He tells me.
I feel my body lock into place, my blood freezing to a halt. “W-What?” I manage to say through stuttering lips.
With his robes on properly he pulls up his hood. “I don’t think there’s a need for me to repeat myself.” He look at me, his eyes showing no source of anger. “And isn’t a need to tip-toe around me either.”
I...still can’t fully wrap my head around this, he knew??
“H-How?” I manage to ask.
At this point he’s smirking, I fully bet he’s smirking with the way his eyes narrow. “I’ve been given an anonymous tip.”
Bladesong rolls her eyes at this, but says nothing.
At this point I should be shaking in my boots, and in a way...I kinda am. But one thing is still making me very confused, and it’s the fact that he doesn’t seem angry...at all...
“Am...I in trouble?” I finally ask the dreaded question, my body visibly shrinking away because in all honesty... I’m not sure if I even want to know the answer.
Chimera crosses his arms and...shakes his head. “No, you’re not.”
My legs feel very weak all of a sudden, so weak to the point where I’m forced to sit down on the ground. I feel faint, faint with...relief.
“Even though you did go behind my back, overall your visits have been very good for Bladesong.” He continues, in which said cyborg nods her head with a smile. “In fact, because of you she chose to join the Guardians of Twilight. So with all of that, I actually have you to thank.”
Is...this really happening?
I’m not gonna get kicked out of the GoT?
I’m not gonna lose my job, I’m still gonna have a source of income as well as a place to stay??
I feel something wet on my cheeks, and upon touching them I realize that I’m crying again.
“Did...I say something wrong?” Chimera asks Bladesong, looking at me with concern.
The Gothitelle shakes her head. “No, you said the right thing.” She kneels down next to me and wraps an arm around my shoulder reassuringly. “Hey, you’re gonna be okay.”
You know what? I don’t care that I’m crying. I don’t care that I’m doing this in front of so many people.
I’m not in trouble, I’m not gonna lose anything. I’m still gonna be a member of the GoT.
I’m happy as-
...
My eyes widen as I suddenly realize something, and all of my happiness left me in an instead.
I told Euterpe that Ren’Gul had a thing for her...right in front of Ren’Gul.
“Oh my Arceus...” I whisper. “I really am gonna die.”
At this point, Bladesong and Chimera share a look of confusion.
Within a span of ten minutes the Sparring Hall is already filling up with tons of Pokemon, all eager to witness the ‘fight’ between me and Bladesong.
Apparently I’ve seriously underestimated Maria’s capabilities on spreading the word.
Turning my gaze to Bladesong, I notice that she’s grinning at me. “What’s the matter? Didn’t expect the crowd?” She asks playfully.
I shrug my shoulders, laughing quietly. “Honestly? Yeah. In fact I’m rather impressed with how quickly they gathered.”
She glances to the side, eyeing the growing number of gathered Pokemon. “I’m kinda surprised too. Do the people in this guild really like watching others fight?”
“From what I’ve both heard and seen? To be short, yes.” I say with a nod. “Even though the Sparring Hall is primarily used for training, there’s the occasional match where arguments and bets are settled. Many of the members of the Guardians of Twilight really enjoy watching these matches unfold, since in a way it’s like watching a boxing match.” I shake my head slightly. “However there’s also the rare fight where one or two noteworthy individuals are against each other, which also draws their attention. This fight is one of those, specifically the latter.”
Bladesong nods her head in understanding, but doesn’t say anything else. With that matter settled I turn my gaze outwards, looking at the vast number of Pokemon around us.
As I look at the crowd I recognize several Pokemon, the most prominent being Samantha and the two hulking Pokemon from the team Twin Scorpius. Standing beside the three is the Salazzle Scrafty hybrid, Delilah.
Heh, the main reason why I even remember her name is because of her ‘secret’ visits with Bladesong.
Two Pokemon make their way out of the crowd, specifically the two Mr. Mimes in charge of this hall. Maria has an incredibly giddy expression on her face while Richard looks like he wants to strangle her.
Not that I blame him.
“Alright...” Richard growls before straightening himself, looking at me with as reserved of an expression he can make. “What are the rules for this match? Fists only? Weapons only?”
I turn my gaze to Bladesong, who’s approaching us with a curious expression. She doesn’t say anything though, since she’s waiting for my response.
I look back at Richard, my eyes containing a hardened look. “The only rule is to fight until the other taps out” I state. “There are no restrictions. Both of us will be fighting at our fullest potential.”
This makes the two take a step back in surprise. “N-No restrictions?” Richard stutters. “A-Are you sure? There’s a great chance that someone could get hurt!”
“There’s no need to worry.” I assure him, briefly looking at his sister. “Maria can create the protective dome around us in order to contain any possible damage, that way it’ll prevent any of the onlookers from getting hurt.”
Said Mime grins widely. “Oooooooh, it’s been so LONG since I’ve had to do this!” She says giddily, practically dancing on her feet.
I look at Bladesong, whose expression is one of uncertainty. “Will that be alright with you, Bladesong?” I ask her.
Immediately my words snap her out of whatever thoughts she’s having and she gives me a determined grin. “Hell yeah.” She responds, clenching one of her fists. “I’m fine if you’re fine.”
I turn back to Richard. “Then it’s settled.”
The Mr. Mime nods his head numbly. “Well...okay...” Richard says slowly before shaking his head. Taking on a harsher expression he turns and faces the crowd. “Hey, back up everyone!” He barks out. “We need space! Move it!”
Using his hands he guides the crowd back a great distance away with Maria right behind him, the Pokemon moving enough to grant a great amount of space for us. Once the Pokemon are far enough back, Maria claps her hands together. “Alright...here we go!” She cheers before extending her palms out, channeling her power. A giant circular dome of pink energy forms around us, essentially creating a contained arena - or ‘battle dome’ as a more appropriate term. The overall size is more than large enough for us to easily maneuver, the peak of the dome reaching more than three stories tall.
To say the least, Maria never fails to impress me on multiple aspects.
“Alrighty then! It’s all ready!” She shouts, her voice slightly muffled.
I turn to Bladesong, who’s already in a ready stance. Her fists are up and her blade-like tendrils are poised to strike, her determined grin never once left her face. “Are you ready~?” She asks me, looking ready to pounce at a moment’s notice.
Heh, gotta admire her willingness to jump right in.
I didn’t respond to her though, not at first. The reason why is that a thought just occurred to me.
If this fight becomes intense, my cloak will most likely be damaged. Even though I do have multiple spares, I'd rather avoid causing any sort of damage since it’s often a hassle for the guild’s seamstresses...
However...that would also mean that I’d have to take it off...
...right in front of the crowd of onlooking eyes...
...
Hmm, apparently I didn’t really think things through when I gave Maria permission to spread the word on our fight.
...
...
You know what?
Fuck it.
In response to Bladesong’s question, I reach my hands into my robe and undo the clasps. Once that’s done I shed the clothing, letting it fall to my feet and exposing my form.
The crowd lets out a mixture of surprised gasps and excited cheers upon seeing me remove my cloak.
My form isn’t really a secret in the GoT, but it’s not known for me to not go around large crowds without my robe. So seeing me reveal my form to all of them is quite a treat - or at least from what I assume.
And seeing Bladesong’s raised eyebrows, she’s just as surprised.
“Damn, guess that answers my question.” She laughs.
Kicking my robe back to one of the sides of the dome (or at least what you can call a ‘side’ since it’s circular in shape), I cross my arms. “Maria, our fight will begin when you give the go ahead!” I shout to the Mime, not looking at her direction. I said this since I know she’s a big fan on ‘shoutcasting’ these sort of fights, so I know this will make her even happier.
“Yeah!” I hear her cheer louder. “Alright everyone! I welcome you to the next big battle, this time focusing on some of our greatest and interesting members of the Guardians of Twilight!” I hear the crowd let out a roar in response.
Through the corners of my eyes I see Maria gesture to me. “First we have Chimera, the leader of the GoT’s elite Strike Team!” Of all the cheering, I can certainly pick out Samantha’s being the loudest. It’s quite impossible to miss her her dinosaur-like roar.
After everyone settled somewhat, she then gestures to the cyborg. “Next we have Bladesong, our newest member to the guild and our first cyborg!” The cheers grow even louder, and within the crowd I see Delilah excitedly pumping her fists into the air.
“This is a fight with no restrictions! Both fighters will be going all-out, no punches pulled!” At this point the crowd is almost deafening, each Pokemon cheering and shouting to the point where their voices are growing raw. Throughout this entire ordeal Bladesong couldn’t help but start laughing, it’s clearly obvious that she’s having fun from watching this. She says something to me after that, but her voice is drowned out from the sounds created by the crowd.
Just barely I can hear Maria’s voice now. “Fighters, are you ready?!”
Both me and Bladesong nod our heads.
“Alrighty!” The Mime exclaims. “When I say ‘go’, the fight will begin! So let’s begin!”
“Three!”
Bladesong and I lock gazes, her synthetic eyes narrow as a smirk forms on her lips.
“Two!”
I begin drawing power from my core, causing the crystal in my chest to glow.
“One!”
I uncross my arms, my eyes narrowing.
Bladesong, this may be your first fight...but I have no intention on giving you slack.
“You can say that all you want, Gustav. But Chimera is going to win, there’s no other way for it to end~” Samantha singsongs.
I roll my eyes, but my tone still contained the same playfulness as before. “Very well, Samantha. You can assume whatever it is you wish to assume.” My mandibles click together mischievously as an idea of an excellent comeback pops into my mind. However ultimately I decide against saying it, since it’ll only prolong the banter and irritate Cheyenne further.
Throughout the entire trek towards the Sparring Hall Samantha and I have been messing around, specifically ‘arguing’ in a playful manner on how the match between Chimera and the cyborg would end. Obviously she’s steadfast on Chimera since she’s both on the same team as him as well as hold him in high regard, I on the other claw believe that it can go either direction.
My (metaphorical) brother Cheyenne has kept his distance from us, his irritation towards our ‘arguing’ having pushed him to the point where he’s trying to ignore the two of us - and failing. However for Hale and Sinfonia, they seem to be keeping to themselves, talking among each other through that mental link of theirs to pass the time.
Heh, to each their own.
I let my gaze wander, observing the familiar surroundings in a relaxed manner. It’s been a long time since I’ve grown used to this massive size, since it’s almost a constant necessity at this point that I have to look down at those I’m speaking to.
I couldn’t help but smirk when I thought back to the time I first met Asmund, I’d say it was probably one of the first times the Golurk was actually surprised, since I stand just as tall as him...if not greater. Sadly however his attitude was just as sour.
I shake my head slightly, more in disappointment than anything. I do wish the Golurk to gain a better outlook in life, but his prejudices aren’t something that can be easily shed. Not that I can blame him.
Ahead of me I notice that Cheyenne stopped, his frame obstructing my view. I walk around him, my gaze look at him curiously. “Something the matter?” I ask him, my tone playful. “I do hope that Samantha and I’s bickering haven’t-”
He gestures ahead of him with one of his giant metal pincers, in which I fall silent.
His lack of uttering a word intrigues me, so I follow my gaze to where he’s pointing at. My eyes fall upon a certain individual leaning against a wall, and it took me only a moment to recognize her.
Delilah, and...she doesn’t seem to be looking good. Her body is shaking as she hugs her knees, tears streaming down her cheeks.
Hm, oh dear...
I take the initiative, walking past my ‘brother’ and making a beeline to her.
“Hello there Delilah.” I say softly, trying my best not to startle her. Sadly this happens anyways, since her body moves with a sudden jolt as her head snaps up to look at me.
“G-Gustav!” She exclaims, her voice incredibly shaky. Immediately she starts wiping her eyes in an attempt to save face. “D-Do you need something?”
My mandibles click together a few times as I contemplate the right choice of words to say. All of the choices seem rather intrusive, so I’ll go with something else. “I’d ask if you’re alright, but it’s quite apparent that things aren’t.” I say before chuckling. “So why don’t you join us? There’s going to be a fight between Chimera and the new cyborg - Bladesong if I remember her name correctly - and it’s going to quite the show from what I’ve been told.”
The Salazzle’s eyes widen, her sorrow momentarily forgotten. “Bladesong is going to fight Chimera?!”
“It...is just a spar.” Cheyenne growls behind me, obviously I ignore him.
“Indeed!” I grin, or at least try to due to the limits of my maw. “So why don’t you come with us? It’ll be a sight to see!”
She looks hesitant at the offer, but slowly nods. “Well...sure...” She sighs, getting up. Her legs are somewhat shaky due to reasons unknown to me, but she seems to be standing firm. Her next words she says are under her breath, just barely audible for me. “I’m already fucked, might as well as be there when Chimera is told...”
I briefly look at her with concern, but don’t comment. “Excellent!” I exclaim happily. “Let’s go! We don’t want to be late after all!”
“Late for Chimera to kick that robot’s ass~” Samantha hums behind me.
“She’s a cyborg, not a robot.” Delilah says tersely. “There’s a difference.”
I notice Hale and Sinfonia share a glance, while Cheyenne lets out a snort of amusement - the first time he hasn’t been irritable throughout this trek.
The dinosaur-like Salazzle hybrid frowns at Delilah, a puff of freezing mist escaping from the corners of her mouth. “Hmph, fine. Cyborg.” Samantha huffs, looking at Delilah coolly. “Regardless, my point still stands.”
At this, Delilah slowly smirks. “Honestly? My money is on Bladesong, that girl is far stronger than she looks.”
Cheyenne lets out a growl and walks past us, knowing fully well on where this is going.
Me though? I couldn’t help but enjoy the quickly forming banter between the two Salazzle hybrids, especially since Delilah’s mellow mood is vanishing.
Yes, I’ve made the right choice~
“Come along! We don’t have much time till it starts!” I laugh, continuing down the path where Cheyenne stormed off.
I slam my foot into the ground, effortlessly cracking the concrete. With a powerful shove I start rushing towards the direction where Chimera is flying above.
To my unsurprise he unleashes another beam of psychic energy, however I don’t adjust my direction this time. Raising one of my tendrils I move the blade into its path, flat-sided first instead of its edge. Upon contact the laser is immediately deflected into the dome, causing the shield to ripple from the surge of energy.
Okay, so not only can I cut lasers. But the metal can also deflect them.
I can see Chimera’s eyes narrow slightly with irritation, in which I could only grin in response.
Yeah, that won’t work with me anymore.
Kicking off the ground I leap directly at him, and with a turn of my head I let my tendrils strike at him like a pair of serpents.
Immediately he flies to the side to avoid my attack, but I expected him to do this. Lashing out with a clawed hand I just barely manage to snag his wrist, my hold tightening like a vice.
“Gotcha.” I grin, feeling immensely satisfied at his incredibly surprised expression.
The expression didn’t last long, for his eyes narrow in an almost playful way. “Are you sure?” He asks me, his tone matching his expression.
I blink, but I didn’t get a chance to properly figure out what he meant until his crystal core flashed brightly.
His body vanishes, my hand now grasping open air. I see another flash of light behind my frame, but just when I begin to turn my body around to see what’s happening...
...I see an orange foot strike me dead in the face.
My body is once again sent flying, this time straight into the ground. I slam into the concrete hard, my heavy frame creating another miniature crater.
Of all the things hurting, my face is definitely stinging since it’s the least armored spot on my body. I immediately begin rubbing it, my teeth grinding together. I can hear the crowd roaring now, as well as a certain voice screaming ‘THAT’S RIGHT CHIMERA! KNOCK HER ON HER ASS!’
“Ignore Samantha.” I hear him chuckle, his frame still hovering in the air. His chuckles quickly stop, his expression shifting to one of disappointment.“Regardless, I know you’re more powerful than that, Bladesong.” He crosses his arms. “Fight like it.”
Letting out a growl I slam my free fist into the ground, adding another spider-web of cracks on the concrete. “You want me to fight harder?” I say lowly, already frustrated with how this fight is turning out. “I already am fighting hard!”
His eyes narrow. “No, you aren’t.” He says in a matter-of-fact tone. “Get back up, Bladesong. There’s more to yourself than you think. Show it.”
Without even waiting for me to do just that, he thrusts his palm outwards and throws out another laser.
My bladed tendril snakes in to block the attack, deflecting the laser harmlessly away. In response Chimera cups his hands together once again, collecting his energy into a sphere.
I quickly stand up, my hands clenched into fists.
Okay, so... If I get within range I seriously need to land my blades on him, since that’s the only thing I can hurt him with. Yet at the same time, every time I get close to him he ends up flying away or...teleporting. Hell, I’m sure it’s likely that I’m not gonna get another opportunity again like earlier.
Shit... So...what then? My body can’t do anything else, so what else can I do? I don’t have any special tricks like he does...
...
Or do I...?
As my thoughts wander, I feel myself drift inwardly. Feeling the hum of energy within the core that fuels my form, I soon realize something.
This energy, it flows throughout my form... It powers my form, such as giving my synthetic muscles the strength they need.
And...It’s not even operating at full potential.
...
I look up at Chimera, my eyes narrowing.
Drawing upon my core, I feel the energy flow suddenly at an increased rate. In the corner of my vision I see purple text pop up.
I know what to do. I don’t need fancy tricks like flying and shooting lasers.
[CORE ENERGY FLOW OPTIMIZED]
I need to be faster.
I need to be stronger.
[PC BLADES ACTIVATED]
The edges of my tendril’s blades start glowing, the metal radiating a bright magenta light. That combined with the humming sound they’re making, I know that their cutting potential has increased by more than tenfold.
Yeah alright Chimera, you want me to go all-out? I’ll give you all-out.
With Chimera’s attack fully-charged he immediately throws the sphere at me, its surface pulsing violently as it streaks towards my form.
I don’t even wait for it to get near me. In an instant I start sprinting, sending large chunks of concrete and earth flying into the air. Way behind me the Psycho Boost impacts, causing an explosion that misses me by a mile.
Well... Not a mile in a literal sense, but you get my point.
The second I reach the wall of the dome I leap up and twist my body around, landing on it with my feet-first. Quickly I kick off, propelling myself into the air at speeds far faster than earlier.
I fly towards Chimera like a cyborg missile, my blades hugging close to my form. My intention isn’t to attack him, not yet...
No, I want him to dodge.
And he does just that, his body immediately zooming away to avoid my form. He just barely avoids me, my form flying past where he once was.
Perfect...
Tracking his movements with my eyes I angle my body once again, slamming into the roof of the dome feet-first. The sheer force of the impact causes the shield to crack, but said damage immediately mends itself. Now knowing where Chimera is heading I kick off once again, this time my blades extending outwards.
Chimera turns around, only to see me heading right for him with no time for him to react.
I grin widely.
"Gotcha.” I say again.
I fly by him, but not before feeling my blade slicing into his body. My only intention is to do a shallow cut on his arm, mostly to prove that now I’m fighting all out. Once again turning my body around I slam into the ground feet-first, laughing to myself.
As I stand up, I begin to notice something.
The crowd...
They’re absolutely silent.
And...I’m getting the feeling it’s not the good kind of stunned silence.
Turning around, I notice something laying on the ground.
Chimera’s arm.
...
My eyes widen in horror.
Holy shit, I fucking cut off his arm!!
I fucking cut the thing clean off, the amputated end still sizzling from contact with my blade’s heated edge.
Shit.
Shit shit shit.
SHIT!
“Chimera, I’M SO SORRY!” Immediately shout, cupping my face in my hands. “I DIDN’T MEAN TO!”
My mind is a storm of frantic thoughts, all of them trying to figure out on what to do in this unexpected situation. But before any of them could fully manifest, a loud laugh cuts them off as well as making me fall silent.
The laugh...
...is coming from...Chimera?
I look up and to my immense confusion I see him laughing, his eyes fixated on the stump where his arm used to be.
I fucking swear... I’m so freaked out right now that I’d throw up if I could. I completely cut off his arm, and...he’s laughing?!
What the fuck?!
“You know? I think that’s enough.” He says, finally managing to gain control of his laughter. “Obviously you’ve proved yourself.” He lowers himself back to the ground, still chuckling.
At this point I’m just staring at him with wide eyes, unable to properly form any sort of words.
Like, what can I fucking say? I just cut off his arm, and he’s acting as if that sort of shit didn’t even happen.
Once his feet touches the ground he walks over to his severed arm and picks it up with the one he still has. Suddenly several tendrils sprout from the stump on his body as well as the end of the severed arm, and upon moving the severed arm to the stump the tendrils immediately grab each other. I watch before my eyes as the tendrils pull the arm back into its place and...
...the flesh connects the arm back to his body, acting as if it was never severed to begin with.
He swings his reattached arm a few times before nodding with satisfaction. “There we go, good as new.” He says with satisfaction before look at me, only to pause when he sees my completely shocked and dumbfounded expression. “What?”
“Wuh...” I dumbly say, unable to properly formulate any sort of words. Because...you know... I severed his arm off, only for him to reattach it before my very eyes like it's just a normal Friday.
“Ah, I guess I haven’t talked to you about that.” He chuckles.
Well gee, no fucking shit!
Since it’s quite clear that I’m in no state to talk right now, he instead turns to the crowd. “Alright! The battle is over!” He says loudly. “Maria, you can lower the shield!”
To say the least, it...took several moments before she did.
