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[It is the year 20XX. Breakthroughs in robotic technology have ushered in a new era of peace and prosperity. Violence is confined to the Battle Colosseum, where robot combatants face off in spectacular duels. The sport has become a worldwide favorite, and elite competitors regularly rise to the challenge to garner glory⊠or else fall from favor.
Of all the worldâs combat teams, the Mighty Numbers are recognized as the best of the best. The family was famous worldwide, and often attended exclusive events to defend their status. One such eventâthe Queenâs Tournament in Englandâhad just come to a close. Now, the family was finally on the way home.]
Will: -Sighs as he looks at the folder full of papers- ⊠(I donât like working with sensitive material outside the office, but I should probably at least review some of theseâŠ)
[They had risen through the ranks and claimed their rightful status as champions and victors, but it hadnât come without cost. The final match of the tournament had been held against team Greater Dusk: a notorious gang headed by an assassin.]
Will: -Pauses at the pile of newspaper clippings- (Oh, right⊠they must be interested in the coverage and how pervasive the search isâŠ. I guess Avi put together these for their records.)
[The match had quickly turned from a touted title match to a deadly fight for their lives when most of the opposing team had become overtaken by a bizarre âberserkerâ mode, becoming insanely aggressive and losing their free will to the madness. The situation came to a climax when Dynatron, the electric diva, had been taken hostage by BladeblasterâŠ
âŠwho was subsequently attacked by an inexplicable mysterious visitor.]
Will: -Frowns, flipping past printed copies of notifications from various federal authorities in London and New York, all of which were marked âVOIDâ by Shadeâs Certified Assassins' League stamp- (At least everyone made it out safelyâŠ. Thank God Dynatron is alright. Thereâs no way theyâll ever find Tobias, and Kate is taking care of Jack even as we speakâŠ)
[In truth, the young man who had intervened was not a Xelbot at allâbut rather, a robot from another world entirely!]
Will: (Mikhail said that he had something to tell me about the finals⊠I wonder what it was?)
[For several years up to that point, the Mighty Numbers had been made aware of portals to other worlds. It was on one such fantastic adventure that they met a family of robots (known as âRobot Mastersâ in their native world) and become good friends.]
Will: -Snorts as he comes across these news clippings- (Oh, I remember this night... it's a little less than you TRULY deserve, Graham, so you really should be thankfulânot that you're smart enough to figure out who really did this.)
Will: (At least they didnât get in trouble. Iâm glad Graham didnât even try to pin that on usâŠ)
Will: (Lord knows heâs been willing to do that every time elseâŠ)
[They had seen many adventures together, and it wasnât only the robots who had made friends: the Doctors had, too. For the first time in ages, Dr. William White had made a friendâa human person he could trustâŠ
âŠWell. About as much as he could trust anyone, other than his good friend and colleague, Doctor Soichiro Sanda, at any rate.]
Will: âŠ
Will: (Ah, Kateâs notes! Oh dearâI think these are in codeâŠ) -Squints-
[The events of the Queenâs Finals (as theyâd taken to calling the last four matches, and the championship match in particular) had left a lot of loose ends and many questions. The nature of the infected crosses that had caused the madness remained an uneasy mystery⊠one which had driven another friend of theirs to investigate the matter personally.]
[Unfortunately, he had only fallen into a sleep born of deep sickness, himself.]
Will: ⊠(Still no word of Felix getting better. Oh, Felix⊠I do hope you are alright. Sounds like Jack is doing better, which is a relief. The poor man took a sawblade right to the spine when he stood up to his boss. ButâŠ) -Grips the paper tighter, pressing his mouth into a thin line- (Iâm not sure if this bit about a âproviderâ is codeâŠ. If Bladeblaster was a CherryDyn construct, wouldnât that company be their âproviderâ? Thatâs what it looked like when we investigated, at any rate. AndâŠ) -Narrows his eyes- (I really donât like this bit about Bladeblaster apparently faking his deathâŠ. But of course it would be like Graham to cover his tracks like that, now wouldnât itâŠ)
[Tobias had made a public, international spectacle of himself. The Mighty Numbers had been bombarded with questions from all sides, not the least of which had been uncomfortable inquiries from federal authorities. Thankfully, the teamâs sniperâMighty No. 8: Countershadeâwas himself a member of the Certified Assassinsâ League, and was able to pull some strings to get people to back off. Heâd grown very tired and irritated in the process, though, as heâd been forced to take most of the heat⊠and was, as a result, openly short-tempered and snappy.]
Will: (I wouldnât be surprised if he slept for several days once we get home⊠if it werenât for the fact we have a match immediately after.) -Flips through the notes- ââŠ
Will: -Stops and smiles at a picture of Beckâs birthday-
[The happy days with their friends seemed so far off after several months abroad. But soon they would be back home. They could celebrate missed birthdays, resume the friendly sparsâafter ending off on such a high note, with the exciting matches between Beck vs Echo and Cardinal vs Countershade!âand put all this gloomy mess behind them.]
Will: (I know how much the Mighties have been looking forward to bringing home the trophy, like theyâd promised. Iâm sure the Rebel Angels are excited, tooâŠ.)
DING!
âThis is your captain speaking. If you look out to your left, you can see the lovely New York City skyline as we approachâŠâ
Will: (O-ohâ) -Fumbles for phone- (Mother wanted me to call her as soon as we came stateside, even if it was an odd hourâ) âŠ
Will: -Mutters- Oops⊠forgot to charge, aheh⊠-Scratches head slightly, ruffling his afro- (With all the stress Dynaâs been under, I should have remembered to double check all the devices before landing. Wouldnât be surprised if my laptop was drained as wellâŠ. Iâll have to recharge everything when we get home.)
Will: (Ah well! Weâll be home soon, at last! And thatâs something to celebrate.)
[After all, they were more than a team: they were a family. And nothing could keep the Mighty Numbers down for long.]
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{June 20th, 20XX}
[The Mighty Numbers had spent months abroad.]
â-Whines- Wonât this dumb car go any faaaaaasterrrrr?â
âNot in traffic, it wonât, and you know it.â
[But now, at last, they were home.]
âHey, is someone gonna wake snipebro up, orââ
âAhâ AM awake, ya bunch aâ yappersâŠâ
âTemper, Eight! Donât get snappy at your sister!â
[Theyâd gone out to tournaments time and time again, but the saying held true: âthereâs no place like home.â It was always a relief to come back⊠and this time, more than usual.
After a near solid month of time in recovery dodging questions from the press, INTERPOL, MI6, VIN, and other agencies, everyone was ready to be back in their own beds and eating a home-cooked meal.]
âEEEYYYYY I CAN SEE OUR HOUSE FROM HERE!â
âNo duh, planebrain! Itâs one of the taller buildings in the city!â
[Unfortunately, being cooped up in airplane rides for the past few days and then cramped into a travel vehicle had left them a bitâŠ
âŠrestless.]
Avi: I mean I can see the front door now! :D -Freedommmmmmmâ-
Pyro: Donât open up the roofâ No flying out of the carâ
Avi: D^: Butâbut awwwww, come onnnn! Itâs right over theeeerrrrrreâ only a little hover awayyyâŠ
Bat: We return home as a unit, Six, not in pieces!
Mic: Give Six break. -W- Happy to be home.
Avi: YEEAAAHHH itâs so good to be homeâgosh I canât WAIT to get back to my radio towerâ
Cryo: Iâm sure you have some ICE stories to tell the viewers, kyaha~
Shade: -Growls at the pun-
Avi: DONâT YOU KNOW ITâ
Pyro: Inside voice, Avi.
Avi: âbuuuuut itâs too bad I canât explain what happenedâŠ. Did we, uh, ever decide on a story of what to say if they asked about Toby?
Dyna: -Haughty hairflick- Juszzzt szzay that I fried that naszzty biker to a core. Completely true, after all. They can aszzzume the reszzt. -Sparks briefly-
Shade: -Flinches at this- (Ugh, can ya not while weâre cramped in the car, SisâŠ)
[The smallest of the Mighty Numbers was distracted, pressing his face against the window. It was good to be home: to see the familiar sights, to be where he belongedâŠ
âŠWell, at least when it came to his family. He wasnât much of a fighter, so he always felt out of place. Especially considering Pyro had him benched for the time beingâŠ]
Beck: (I hope sheâs okayâŠ. There werenât any more âaccidents,â so she kept her promise, butâŠ)
Brand: âŠAre you okay there, otouto?
Beck: ! O-oh, yeah, I, uhâŠ
Beck: I-I was just thinking about Tobias. He⊠he was really out of it for a while, huhâŠ
Avi: -Thumbs up- Donât you worry about Toby, bro! Heâs up and running now, and heâll be right as rain! Thatâs what Doc C said, at any rateâŠ
Pyro: ⊠When did you talk to Mikhail? -Confused-
Avi: Oh, just the other day! He was asking about the watch, actually, but I didnât exactly have the instructionsâŠ
Bat: Watch?
Mic: Birthday present. Missed birthday, Shade sent present. E|
Shade: Mnnrgh. âŠGlad it got through.
Cryo: -Poooookes at her little brother with her nozzle arm-
Shade: | [
[The sniper remained in a grumpy mood as they finally pulled into the parking lot of Sanda Enterprises.]
Avi: WOOOOOOOO WEâRE HOME
Cryo: LAST ONE INâS A FROZEN PUDDLE
Shade: Will yâall shut it fer just two minutesâ
Cryo: Oh, stop being such a wash-out, Shadey!
Shade: Ainât in the mood fer punsââm gonna go sleep through Sunday, thank yewâ
Pyro: -Grabs him by the shoulder before he vanishes, keeping a firm grip- Oh no you arenât. Youâre carrying in your luggage, same as everyone else.
Shade: -Grumpy data- -Grumbles about something under his breath-
Pyro: What was that? | /
Shade: âŠAhâ said, all that work anâ this is the thanks Ahâ getâŠ
Cryo: Quit being a drama llama, Shadebro! Weâre home now! -Grabs at luggage, gimme-
Dyna: Ugh, Iâm too fabulouszz for thiszz. -Grinning, obviously not 100% serious- Earthbro iszz more than capable of carrying in everybodyâszz luggage, right~?
Mic: OWO
Shade: âŠWhat she saidâ
Pyro: Enough, you two. <_<
Shade: ⊠-Nah Imma go nap anâ ya canât stop meâ -
Pyro: -Not if my grip has anything to say about it-
Cryo: -Flings herself at Pyro, eager to get in on the conflict- FIGHT MEâ
Brand: Cryoâ! Nowâs not the time!
Shade: Fer Xelâs sake, just give it a restâ
Avi: EYYYYY good oneâ
[The sniper had reached the end of his patience.]
Shade: -DAMMIT Ahâ did NOT mean tâ punâ- Avi, Ahâ swear if thereâs one more pun outta yewâŠ
âYou want a hand with that? BJâ
Shade: !
[The commotion stopped momentarily, with the sniper looking down in surprise.]
[Sure enough, there he was: the one and only songbird. He was grinning up at his taller friend, giving off unfiltered gleeful data.
And just like thatâ]
Shade: -nEVERMIND, NAP CAN WAITâ -
[Cardinal laughed and gave his friend a proper hug. He didnât even care that he was letting someone that close to him, or that he was showing such a strong sign of friendship.]
[It had been a long two months since they had last seen one another, and it had felt like ages. The old prototype Robot Master had done a lot of waiting in his time, but very rarely had he ever felt the sense of separation so poignantly.
Heâd made an effort to drown out his sorrows by keeping busy, and had much to tell them⊠but that could wait.
For now, he was happy just to see his best friend alive and well again.]
Beck: Cardinal! :DDD Youâre here!
[He ran in for a hug, and Cardinal pulled him in. Each of the three of them seemed to be savoring the moment.]
Bat: What are you doing here, Private? Itâs 0400 local!
Cardinal: -Gleeful pings as he messes with Shade, the latter using him as an armrest- I had to come in person, Major! I failed to be up in time to see you offâit took all my self-control not to meet up with you at the airport in New York, instead!
Brand: That would have raised more questions, yes. -.-; Might I suggest that we continue this inside?
Shade: If you say so, ya stick-in-the-mud. B]
Cardinal: B]
[He broke into chuckles at that, though, shoving Shade off before going over to pick up his bags.]
Pyro: -Oh, you were being seriousâ- Thereâs no need for that, Cardinal. Youâre our guest. Shade can carry his own bags in. ÂŹ_ÂŹ
Cardinal: Nah, itâs fineâ watch this!
[Cardinal used SUPER ARM!]
[And just like that, heâd grabbed all of Shadeâs luggage effortlessly. Bat gave a whistle of appreciation.]
Cryo: NICE, Looks like he LIFTS, brosâ
Cardinal: -Laughs- It does come in handy! Câmon, letâs head inside.
[Once all the Mighties were inside, the luggage was put to the side and everyone headed for the kitchen. It may be 4AM local, but they were still suffering from jet lag: it was about lunchtime in London. Even though he was a bit worn out from the travels, Pyro set about to preparing a proper meal for the family.
There was the usual chaos around the kitchen as Cardinal also prepared some coffee for himself and Countershade. When the prototype sat down, however⊠he immediately became subject to questioning.]
Avi: So what have you been up to, Cards? Got any new songs for us?
Cardinal: Ha, I wish⊠-Something of an empty half-smirk as he slides a mug of coffee over to Shade- Itâs all run together a bit for me, actually. It⊠hasnât been easy, to be honest.
Brand: � What do you mean?
[Shade sipped at his coffee silently as his friend explained himself.
Despite the distance and the time differenceânot to mention the risk on Cardinalâs endâthe songbird had kept in touch with him and buzzed in every so often. So he was in the know on most of it.]
Cardinal: WellâŠ
Cardinal: When days donât have any specific value of importance assigned to them, multiple days of memory that are much the same usually cause identical cross-reference creation redundancy, and it becomes difficult to differentiate one day from another. It all becomes a blurâŠ.
Brand: âŠThatâs not the only reason, is it.
Cardinal: Heh.
[He gave something of a wry grin, leaning against the table. The data he gave off was subtly more tired than before⊠and just as tense.]
Cardinal: You noticed, huh? Not much gets by you.
Beck: Nii-san is really good at that!
Cardinal: -Long sip of coffee- Yeah⊠Iâll admit that we didnât take it very well at all, first. And me most of all.
Avi: Aw, we missed you too, buddy!
Bat: You seem to have held up well, soldier. Youâre being too hard on yourself, as usual!
Cardinal: -Shakes his head- I was upset. I stayed Offline for a while, and then, wellâŠ
Cardinal: Tried to busy myself in work. Had to⊠do something, just keep moving forward. -Looks off into the distance- Figured we should make progress with repairs⊠needed certain resources. We had to go out and raid a lot for them: it really was rather hard.
Pyro: That would explain that one series of alerts we gotâŠ
Cardinal: Yeah, theyâd brought more firepower than I had bargained for. I made it out alright, but  I wouldnât want any of you to go to such places, thatâs for sure. There wasnât much to find as it was.
Beck: Sorry I wasnât there to helpâŠ
[Cardinal grinned and patted Beckâs shoulder.]
Cardinal: Nah, we really just needed more of specific metals, and any source of certain energies we could find. I got my hands on more E-tanksâwhich is good, but there still arenât very many. Siaminiâs been trying, but we havenât made that breakthrough just yet. He thinks he might be getting close, having run the search on the database for months now.
Cryo: Uuugh, donât tell me it was all work and no play! -Pbbbtth-
Cardinal: Sorry there, Ice Queen, but without you guys around, we didnât have many people to play with, to be honest. Snow was often off doing his own thing, but heâs the only one who really gets out and about.
Dyna: Well, weâll fix that now that weâre baaack~
Mic: Why need special metals? ?W? Ones Mic and Felix mine not enough?
Cardinal: -Gives a relaxed sigh, running his fingers through his hair- âŠWell, we needed to get samples from stuff related to the Second Generation. The only place that has that is that one old lab thatâs been completely trashed several times over. It was time for us to strip that place to the bone anyway, beforeâ well, before what happened⊠would happen.
Cardinal: Only it DID happen.
Bat: Youâre referring to the WMD that got pointed at you?
Cardinal: -Grim expression- Mmm⊠it was more than that. There was⊠someone a bit like Mic, and definitely someone like Avi⊠though we were shot at long-range from someone like you, Major. The compound was destroyed.
Pyro: -Places some bacon aside- But no one was injured, right?
Cardinal: Most everyone got out of there in time, but I had to draw them off. Needless to say, that place wonât be offering up any more resources, and thatâs one mainframe down. Luckily we have the one in the Meadowâand here, since the two are synched.
Cardinal: Thoughâit would still be putting you in danger to use your mainframe for our own devices. -Looks up- We donât want to subject you to that if it can be helped.
Shade: -Puts his coffee down- Mâ sure Dad would be fahn lettinâ ya use the mainframe if yâall really needed to, Cards.
Beck: Yeah! Weâll all help! ouo
Cardinal: HehâŠ. Thanks, but⊠-Trails off- âŠ
Cardinal: âŠWell, at least we got some important data and schematics.
Brand: ⊠-Raises an eyebrow- Such as?
Cardinal: I know what youâre thinking, Brand, but we didnât find anything related to Shadow in there. Sorry.
[The Xel ninja said nothing, but it wasnât hard to see (by his VISIBLY mildly unamused expression) that he was slightly disappointed to hear this.]
Shade: -Quiet ping of sympathy to his older brother- Ya woulda thought that somethinâ like thatâd be in there.
Cardinal: You'd think a lot of things would be in there, but Iâm pretty sure that Wily must have kept stuff like that written down on notepads, not stored in the RMD.
Beck: Why?
Cardinal: He lost things that were really important to him due to serious problems with the database once, you knowâand he always was really, REALLY old school.
Cardinal: -Leans back in his chair a bit- Maybe it WAS in there once, butâyâknow, itâs been a long time since the end of the Gamma incident. (Like, what⊠nine months or so?) Heâs had time to delete that stuff, and he was really adamant about making sure Shadow was⊠quote-unquote taken care of, if you catch my drift.
[Brand clenched the knife he was holding a bit harder at this.]
Avi: -Aaaaaand distraction timeâ- So⊠what WERE you able to get?
Cardinal: Good question, Avs; we havenât reviewed it in full as of yet. I think it was retrieval of the blueprints for the Second Generation, at least. I know that I went out and managed to get my hands on 020âs data.
Shade: -Nice-
Pyro: -Hopeful data- Thatâs the boxer, correct?
Cardinal: Yup.
Bat: Ha! Good work, soldier! No man left behind!
Beck: That must have been awfully scary, though! ono
Cardinal: -Grins- Well, it wasnât easy! And yeah, it was a pretty big risk. But hopefully itâll be worth it, in the long run.
[His smile fades.]
Cardinal: Tobias, thoughâŠ
[The murmur of conversation died down at that. Avi fidgeted.]
Avi: Mikhail said he was okay, right�
Cardinal: Heâs⊠heâs alright.
[The Robot Master in question had been Offline for quite some time following the scene in the sands. And what a scene it had beenâŠ]
-=-=-=-=-=-=-
SKLLLKTTKRRRSHHHLLLRRRKKTâ
[Oil and cooling fluids spattered all over Bladeblasterâs hands and weapon, as if they were bloodâŠ.]
-=-=-=-=-=-=-
Cardinal: We never did explain what happened, did weâŠ
[He presses a hand to his face and yawns.]
Cardinal: Well, maybe Mikhail can explain it tomorrow or something.
Beck: What is there to explain? :c Heâs⊠heâs okay, right?
Cardinal: Yeah. He was asleep for a while, but thatâs pretty common for any Robot Master after they get sent Offline in a traumatic fashion. Especially if they blame themselves. That data is really difficult to process, you know.
Dyna: -Awww, TobyyyyâŠ-
Beck: Sorry we couldnât help out. D:
Cardinal: You guys had your own worries. We pulled through alright.
Cardinal: Besides, youâve done a lot of good work with those molds you made for us! The new coolant systems make all the difference in the heat of battle.
Shade: -Snorts into his coffee despite himself-
Avi: EEEEYYY nice one :^D
[Cardinal gave a brief soft laugh.]
Cardinal: Itâs good to be like⊠like this again.
Cryo: SOOOOooooo⊠now that you're home⊠what do you want to do next?
Brand: Something that doesn't end up in the headlines. -~-;;
Cardinal: -Laughs at this-
Shade: -Devilish grin, worth it-
Pyro: Are you kidding, Seven? I swear those two could go out for groceries and end up in trouble.
[The two in question snicker at this.]
Brand: -Mildly annoyed glare at Cardinal-
Cardinal: -Amused- You really need to chill out, Sev.
Cardinal: You should try meditation, I hear it works wonders~
Shade: -Almost chokes on his coffee at this-
[Brand narrowed his eyes coldly at his younger brother as the cowboy coughed briefly, grinning as he sat shaking in silent laughter.]
Shade: -Error X04: srs not found, BWAHAHA-
Cardinal: -Just gives a cheeky grin- ~~~
Bat: We could deploy him to Kalos. Maybe some training there will get him to clean up his act!
Shade: -Aw, not you too, broâ Ahâ trusted yaâŠ-
Cardinal: -Laughs a little- Actually, that's not that bad of an idea, Major. I taught Baron some new tricks by utilizing the moves he has in expressive ways.
Pyro: >_>;
Cardinal: Donât suppose you can come with?
Shade: -Pings and sighs, nostalgic about their previous adventures- Ahâd love to, butâ
Pyro: -Brings pancakes over to the table- We have a match tomorrow morning. We have to rest, Iâm afraid.
Cardinal: Aw, come onnnâŠ. Not even for half an hour?
Brand: Cardinal, the last time you and Shade went there, you got chased by a swarm of BEES. -____-;;
Shade: -Pokes at the songbird sharply- Ah' still blame yewâ
Cardinal: That was BARON'S idea, not mine!
Pyro: Alright, alright! Settle down!
Shade: -Fine, fineâŠ-
[Everyone started chowing down as Pyro divvied out the food.]
Cardinal: Iâm just glad you guys are back. We really missed you.
Shade: Sâ good to be back. B]
Avi: By the way, did our gifts ever reach you guysâ
Cardinal: -Cutting designs into his pancakes- Yeah, and Mikhail was very happy you all got him the watch. Just one thing, thoughâŠ
Shade: Hmm?
Cardinal: âŠYou didn't include any instructions, so you're going to have to show him how it works.
Shade: Ah, rightâthere are several functions, hehâŠ
Mic: -Going through an entire stack of pancakes all to himself- How is Felix?
Cardinal: -Smile fades- âŠSick.
Brand: ⊠-Concerned- Sick?
Cardinal: Yeah.
Beck: What happened? D:
Cardinal: As he would put it, âItâs A Long StoryââŠ. Something to do with visions and high energy things. That's what Piers said, anyway.
Dyna: Who iszzz that, again?
Cardinal: Mmm. That would be the captain from Lemuria; heâs Felixâs best friend. He came over to help monitor Felix after he fell ill. Echo probably asked him to do so.
Bat: Any idea as to what caused it? That man is as sturdy as they get. Havenât ever heard of him being under the weather since weâve known him.
[Cardinal lowered his utensils for a moment, frowning.]
Cardinal: He was doing research into what might have happened with those stupid crosses, from what I understand. B/
Pyro: MmmnnnghâŠ
Mic: :c Mic not get it. Felix not a âbot?
Cardinal: He was researching something similar from his world. Pretty dangerous material, from what I understand. He was either careless or else underestimated the potency he could reach by refining the materialâŠ
Beck: But heâll be okay, right? D:
Cardinal: âŠ
Cardinal: -Slowly- Heâs bounced back from worse before. Heâll be fine.
Beck: -WhewâŠ-
Cardinal: Enough about us, though. What about you guys? We barely got to see any of the matchesâ
Avi: NOT TO WORRY, we recorded everything in HD! :^D
Cardinal: Fair enough, but. Tell me about England. -Pours syrup onto more pancakes, only to find Beck had taken most of the syrup already- Tell me about what it was like for you guys.
Shade: HmmâŠ
Shade: It was⊠rainy.
Cardinal: -Snrk-
Cryo: -Flails- Weâve been there before, you know! Came back champs, natch. Those guys couldnât hold a candle or a hose to the team SUPREME!
Brandish: The teams were very good. They were simply outmatched, that is all. Iâm sure Speedy would have enjoyed seeing some of them⊠were you really unable to watch any of the matches?
Cardinal: We picked up a few radio broadcasts, but the only one we got to see was the last one. And we all know how THAT wentâŠ
Shade: Tsk⊠real shame. âleast Avi got the content tâ show after the factâŠ
Cardinal: Oh, dude, Iâd love to marathon watch the whooooole thing. B]
Bat: For your analysis program?
Cardinal: -Smirks- Maaaybe.
Pyro: Heh.
Dyna: -Points and cackles- Donât think you can pull a faszzzt one on uszz, Card-i-nalll~! Analyszzisz didnât help them much, after all~
Cardinal: -Amused- Fair enough point.
[Shade twitched an amused smile, before privately pinging his friend.]
[MNN-008 to DLN-000] //: Youâve got more to say, donât you?
<DLN-000 to MNN-008>: >Letâs just say that you havenât seen what I can really do when Iâm serious.
[His grin faded after a moment, and he gave off tired data again.]
<DLN-000 to MNN-008>: > âŠThough⊠I hope you never have toâŠ
[Shade used what was left of his right arm to swish his cloak a little, brushing it against the short prototype. This served to distract him out of the grim cross-references of recent battlesânot matches, but true clashes of machines of war.]
[MNN-008 to DLN-000] //: Sâok. Things will be fine now.
Cardinal: -Blinks a little bit, coming out of his private thoughts to Aviâs ongoing description of the lunch with the Queen- âŠ
Cardinal: ⊠-Decides to zone back out, focusing on his breakfast-
<DLN-000 to MNN-008>: > What about you, Shade? Did⊠did we make things rather hard for you?
Shade: âŠ
[MNN-008 to DLN-000] //: âŠThe whole thing was a mess. Sâ not yâallâs fault. Got hammered pretty hard with demands from just about every agency you can think of, all wantinâ answers for what Bladeblaster was up toâŠ
<DLN-000 to MNN-008>: > âŠAnd how Tobias got past security?
Shade: | / -Sighs and nods-
<DLN-000 to MNN-008>: > Geez, that sounds rough. What were they expecting, that just because you guys were both assassins that you knew what he was up to?
[MNN-008 to DLN-000] //: Mnn. Somethinâ like that, I guess. More like they expected me specifically tâ have been keepinâ an eye on him⊠since he was a competitive threat and not publicly on good termsâŠ
<DLN-000 to MNN-008>: > âŠ
[MNN-008 to DLN-000] //: Ahâ know, right?
<DLN-000 to MNN-008>: > Man⊠if they were that hard on you, I can only imagine what they put Jack throughâŠ
[MNN-008 to DLN-000] //: Nah, donât worry âbout him. Kateâs got his case.
[Cardinal smiled softly at that.
âKateââalso known as Shadeâs distaff counterpartâhad developed a fast friendship with the unfortunate CherryDyn fighter. It came as little surprise that she had managed to find a backdoor to the system that allowed her to protect the still-recovering victim.]
<DLN-000 to MNN-008>: >Howâd she manage to pull that off?
[MNN-008 to DLN-000] //: Heh heh⊠God only knows; havenât had a chance tâ compare notes yet. She was real careful about not being seen communicating with us much. She kept a tight patrol âround the hospital when she wasnât actinâ as his case handler. She even wrote a report to submit to the CAL: managed to take off with some of my blank documents while I was nappinâ râ somethang, yâknow.
<DLN-000 to MNN-008>: >Well, as long as sheâs looking out for him. Iâve got a bad feeling about what could happen to him nowâŠ. He surely knows too much, and as for his bossâŠ
[MNN-008 to DLN-000] //: Rumor has it that heâs dead.
<DLN-000 to MNN-008>: > âŠ
<DLN-000 to MNN-008>: > What?
[MNN-008 to DLN-000] //: Kate thinks itâs a cover story. Kinda inclined tâ believe her.
<DLN-000 to MNN-008>: > âŠ
<DLN-000 to MNN-008>: > -MnnnNNNnng-
Cardinal: -Pokes at his pancakes, deciding to change to subject-
<DLN-000 to MNN-008>: > How⊠how bad was it, with them asking about Tobias?
[MNN-008 to DLN-000] //: Eh. That was the easy part. Just said that he wasnât a Xelbot Iâd ever seen in the ring before, must be some fan aâ Dynaâs. B]
[Cardinal grins at that, biting down onto his fork.]
<DLN-000 to MNN-008>: > Nice. Technical, misleading truths are my absolute favorite.
[MNN-008 to DLN-000] //: Heh. Figured youâd get a kick outta that. Thankfully, they really didnât press the point, âcause they were havinâ trouble finding him in any of the databases to begin with⊠making it even less likely that a star family like us would know him.
<DLN-000 to MNN-008>: >Yeah⊠thanks for putting him as an Industrial. He really isnât developed for Combat.
[MNN-008 to DLN-000] //: Maybe not, butâ
Shade: -Whistle of appreciation-
[MNN-008 to DLN-000] //: After seeinâ him in action, canât say he wouldnât fit in.
<DLN-000 to MNN-008>: > You could say heâ
[MNN-008 to DLN-000] //: Aw câmon, donâtâ
<DLN-000 to MNN-008>: > âpunched BBâs lights outâ
Shade: -Snickers and thwacks Cardinal with his cape-
Cardinal: -CHEEKIEST GRIN-
Pyro: Whatâs going on down there?
Cardinal: Oh, nothing~
Shade: Just enjoyinâ a jest, heh hehâŠ
[The two share a laugh, and Pyro lets the matter drop. It was good to see Shade back in a good mood again, and neither were out causing trouble, after allâat least, not yet.]
Pyro: (I donât doubt that theyâll find plenty of mischief to do as time goes on.) -Shakes his head slightly- (Truly as âthick as thievesâ, those twoâŠ.)
[Cardinal, for his part, seemed to slip back into a weary melancholy. Heâd stopped just short of finishing off his pancakes.]
Shade: âŠ? Oiâyou full, orâŠ?
Cardinal: Hmm?
[He looked up, coming out of his thoughts. His eyes glowed slightly brighter for a moment before they dulled again: though it was hard to tell behind his sunglasses.]
Cardinal: Oh, IâŠ
Cardinal: -Looks down at his plate- âŠI guess itâs more that I donât want to leave.
Cryo: Whatâs THAT got to do with breakfast?
Cardinal: Well⊠you guys said you have a match tomorrow, and youâll have to sleep most of the day to truly rest while readjusting your internal clocks to fix jet lagâŠ
Cardinal: -Clearly reluctant- I really should get out of your way.
Brand: Nonsense.
Beck: We do have to rest up, but! Maybe Dad will let us have a sleepover!
Cardinal: -Looks up hopefully- You think so?
Bat: Affirmative, provided you donât cause any trouble.
Cardinal: -Gives a slight smile at that- Iâve just returned from active combat, sir. Led my men in battle and brought us all home alive. I have enough thrills from the enemies at my heels; right now I just want some peace and quiet before they carry out the brunt of the storm.
Shade: ⊠(Havenât seen him like this in a long time. Gotta be something I can do tâ help keep him outta that sea of hopelessnessâŠ)
Shade: -Gets a sudden idea- !
Shade: -Slowly grins- Gee. Thatâs too bad.
Cardinal: -Looks up- Iâm sorry, Shade. Iâm just really tired right now. You know how that is.
Shade: Yeah.
Shade: Was just thinkinâ maybeâŠ
Shade: Maybe after spendinâ the night, yâ could come to watch the match tomorrow?
Cardinal: !
[The others immediately chimed in.]
Mic: -Deep PING of approval- ^W^ As Digger say, âyes good!â
Bat: Solid idea!
Beck: Yeah! That would be great!
Avi: Now why didnât I think of that?
Dyna: Yee, youâll get to szzee a FABULOUS diszzplay!
Brand: You really ARE overdue to see a match in personâŠ
Cryo: Hell yeah, [glitches]! Watch us totally DOMINATE those losers!
Pyro: Weâd love to have you come. Why donât you go ask?
Cardinal: -Warm smile- âŠThanks, guys. Youâre the best.
[Beck beamed as the prototype wandered off to go find the Doctors. Best friends, reunited! What a wonderful thing!]
Beck: -Hums a little, licking syrup off his plate while Pyro isnât looking- (I canât slip away tonight, but maybe tomorrow I can go see her, tooâŠ. I should see if I can get extra Xel ready for her. Maybe I could say itâs stuff for the moldsâŠ)
Beck: (I really hope she's been doing well since I leftâI know! I'll make a nice gift for her too, maybe add some chocolateâa gift basket! That'll cheer her up. And maybeâŠ)
Beck: (Maybe after the match, I can finally talk to her about some important thingsâŠ)
<<âPreviousââââââTable of ContentsââââââNextâ>>
//: âŠAhâŠright. I suppose an apology is in order, firstlyâŠitâs been quite some time since Iâve spoken to any of you, and Iâm sorry. Truly. Some of you are angry with me, I know, and it is my fault. I know Iâve been rather reclusive these last few months, andâŠthere is a reason for it. Several, in fact, of which I will now tell you, the people that have made my wretched existenceâŠa little easier. A little moreâŠbrighter.
//: âŠI have been working on several projects--this is what was eating up most of my time. One of which is looking for a more permanent solution for my deteriorating condition, caused by my lack of a central core. I have searched for many, many decades, and with the recently opened rifts that have appeared these last few years--the very same ones that have led me to you all--did bring up some new leadsâŠ
//: âŠBut all I have found areâŠdead ends. EVERYWHERE I look only reminds me that I am cursed, and that nothing can fix me. That I...
//: IâŠIâm running out of time. It grows worse, my horrid curseâŠI am falling apart more rapidly, I must hunt more frequentlyâŠandâŠand the painsâŠ
//: It hurts now. I feel as if I am rotting away from the inside out. It hurtsâŠso much. I cannotâŠhold myself together for longâŠthere is onlyâŠpainâŠhungerâŠpainâŠand hungerâŠ
//: Nghâ!!
//: HungerâŠconsumeâŠfeedâŠ! I canâtâneedâŠmoreâ!!
[âŠThere is silence, it was as if the message was edited and continued much laterâŠdid she mean to send this before the virus had been released?]
//: Hnn...
//: I...I'm fine. I don't know for how long...I...
//: âŠ.Do you see now?
//: IâŠI am not long for this world.
//:âŠThisâŠworldâŠ
//: âŠThis world. This cheap, thrill-seeking world, only caring about their advertised construct battles and those who provide it! As long as humans, the sinful ones, have that to entertain themâŠtheir precious Battle ColosseumâŠtheir so-called heroesâŠ! They care about nothing elseâŠ
//: And itâs all because of them that I am this way. All of it. All of it. ALL OF IT. I would have never resorted to such disgusting ways of survival if it wasnât for them! The NBCA, CherryDyn, and ESPECIALLY HIMâŠ
//: I was doomed! Doomed from the start! Doomed to fall! Doomed to die! I...!
//: ...
//: âŠI refuse to leave this mortal earthâŠfading away in someâŠdark, lonely corner, amongst the filth and the departedâŠby my own handsâŠgod, no. I won't--I can't subject you all to that. I can't let you watch me slowly wither and die when there's nothing to be done, I can't...I can't bear you to that pain.
//: No.
//: If I am to dieâŠIf I am to be sent to the Void, never to returnâŠif I am to burn, burn in hellâŠ
//: Then this world will burn with me. Along with all those who have wronged me. CherryDyn. The Colosseum. Humanity.
//: They will burnâŠthey will pay for their sinsâŠpayâŠin blood, in XelâŠit doesnât matter.
//: ...
//: Donât bother trying to stop me. The rifts are beginning to closeâŠas if the fates already know how this endsâŠas if they knew all along that this was my role to play.
//: âŠAnd no matter what happens, IâŠwill be no moreâŠ
//: I justâŠ
//: âŠ.
//: I canâtâŠtake this anymore. The endless slaughterâŠthe constantâŠfearâŠI canâtâŠthere is nothingâŠI can doâŠI canât be saved, no matter what Beck says. No matter what...God...
//: Cale, my love...
//: âŠCaleb LightâŠmy dauntless rebelâŠI love you so, so much. I gave youâŠeverything I had leftâŠeverything that I amâŠandâŠyou are the bestânoâŠthe greatest thing thatâs ever happened to me. My light in the darknessâŠmy MateâŠIâm so sorry I have to put you through this. I know...I can hear your words now, saying that I shouldn't do this, but you must understand--If I die--the people that made me what I am will go on to hurt countless others. It's not just vengeance, my Light--I want Justice. They need to pay, while I am still the only one alive to remember their sins. PleaseâŠforgive meâŠthis...this isn't how I wanted it to end.
//: I love you.
//: RockâŠMZâŠI give you my blessingsâŠfocus on the future you have now, togetherâŠwhenever you DO get married, eventuallyâŠthat is, if you havenât already. Donât let meâŠruin it with my acts of vengeance. JustâŠstay out of it. Please. This is more than just about me--CherryDyn is far, far more crueler than what I have told you. There are things that they do in the shadows that...
//: I swear, I will make them all pay for what theyâve done⊠As my last sin, as my last willâŠthese humans will all die, like they should, and they will know what happens when they cross a predatorâŠ
//: âŠ
//: IâŠdonât want to cut this short. But the wheels have been set into motion already. Even I couldnât stop them if I wanted to. And even if I couldâŠ
//: ...
//: DaysâŠhoursâŠthatâs all I have leftâŠA week, at most. More if I can starve off the hunger right. If...if you do manage to come here, please be careful.
//: âŠ
//: Iâm sorry. This is probably the last you will hear from me. I...
//: I'm sorry I'm so sick...
//: I'm sorry I'm so broken, I...
//: I'm sorry. I'm sorry...
//: âŠGood-bye.
[END OF MESSAGE.]
-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-
{Titus, CA
Colosseum
June 21st, 20XX
11:40 AM}
[The day started out like any other.
Cardinal was excited. This was going to be his first time seeing the Mighties fight together. Finally, after all the long months of suffering and lonelinessâŠ]
Cardinal: (This is gonna be greatâŠ! Too bad Baron couldnât be here. He loves a good battle royale!)
[It was all he could do to not go down to the locker room right this minute.
Heâd waited all this time to see his friends again. Waiting a few hours longer wasnât going to hurt him.
âŠOr so he thought.]
{MeanwhileâŠ}
âCome ON, Beck! Hurry up, weâre gonna be late!â
âC-Coming, Cryo!â
âWeâve spent enough time walking down memory lane in the trophy room. We have to get to the arena before they call us out for our return debut match.â
âWE KNOW, Pyro. Jeezzz, calm down.â
âI believe he is only excited to be back in familiar stomping grounds. Isnât that right, Bat?â
âTOO RIGHT, Brand!â
âHeh. Weâre ALL glad tâ be home, yeahâŠ. Ahâ look forward tâ givinâ âem all a good show.â
âMAN, I am so stoked for this! Hey, I hope they get my good side, ya know? Course, I look good in ALL angles.â
ââŠAvi not focused.â
âMic is right. Itâs time to get out there. Everyone! PLACES!â
[The team responded enthusiastically in unison.]
âYES SIR NO.1!â
[The crowd burst into cheers as the Mighties took their place on the field.]
Cardinal: -Whistles LOUDLY, pinging with excitement-
âLaaaaadies and gentlebots! Men, women, and children of all ages! Please put your hands together for your returning Queen's Tournament Champions, TEAM MIGHTY NUMâ"
[KSSSSssssstâŠ]
Cardinal: â???
[There was a disquieted murmur amongst the crowd. Cardinal suddenly felt grim.]
<DLN-000>: >Guys, I think something isâŠ
<DLN-000>: > Somethingâs not right over hereâ
[sssKKKKT--]
[MN.1] //: Hnnk...I...I donâtâŠ
[MN.7] //: -Suddenly horribly dizzy, what, what isâ-
[MN.4] //: -MicâMic no like these new voicesâ-
[MN.8] //: -Ah'âCardsâCARDSâ-
<DLN-000>: > ?! -Distressed data, CONCERNâ -
<DLN-000>: > What is it? What's going on, Shade?
[PING!]
[MN.9] //: Guys?! What's going on, are you okayâ?!
[MN.9] //: Why am I getting warnings from myâ
BWAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAANâ
[Chaos began rising as alarms started going off everywhere.]
Cardinal: !
Attention! Attention! This is Code Red! Please evacuate the arena calmly and quickly! This is not a drill! Pleaseâ
[Fights were starting to escalate within the crowd. Cardinal had instinctively shifted into his armor.]
[MN.6] //: nngh ow ow ow ow-
[MN.3] //: -Erractic buzzing and SCREECHINGâ-
[MN.2] //: Can't thinkâabout anythingâ!
[MN.5] //: c-compromised, stand clearâ
Cardinal: Guys?!
[WARNING. WARNING. VIRUS DETECTED IN SERVER. FIREWALL PROGRAMS HAVE FAILED.]
[Someone suddenly grabs at Cardinalâa civilian model, jaw open in a war cry, bathed in violet flames and unrelenting rage.]
Cardinal: !!! -Gives a backhand hit, jumping up high-
[He recognized those flames.
Those were the flames of berserk rage: a sick madness, one that deprives the victim of all reason and most free will.]
[Cardinal used Item-1!]
Cardinal: -Hovers in place, looking down at the sands-
[To his horror, he could see flickers starting to form around the Mighty Numbers.
It had been bad enough to see them amongst the crowd, with the world devolving into chaos.
To see them now, on his friendsâ]
Cardinal: NO!
[It was rapidly turning to the darkness of his absolute /worst nightmares/.]
[MN.1-8 HAVE BEEN INFECTED WITH HARMFUL MALWARE. RUNNING XELFILTER.EXE FOR MN.9]
[The stands were a jumbled mess. The exits were jammed with people trying to escape, with fights and aggressive, infected Xelbots barring the way.]
Bat: Cowards...
Bat: Canât even STAND THEIR GROUND!
Cardinal: [Glitch]â
[WARNING: MN.1-8 HAVE ENTERED FULL COMBAT MODE. RESTRICTIONS: NONE.]
<DLN-000 has entered Non-Lethal Combat Mode.>
[Without another thought, Cardinal swings himself over the barrier and into the sands, his whistle piercing through the airâ]
Shade: -Wincesâ!- Hnnâ! (Too loudâ!)
Beck: â! Cardinalâ!
[BLAM!]
[Cardinalâs shot intercepted Batâs round in a high-blast of plasma cannon fire. This prevented the shot from reaching the crowds, but the round exploded in the air instead. Cardinal had to shield from the shrapnel.]
Cardinal: SHUT DOWN! SHUT DOWN IMMEDIATELY!
Bat: How dare you presume to give orders, you foolhardy DESERTERâ
Cardinal: ! -Staggers back, taking a firmer stance- We can fix this! You need to trust meâ!
Shade: -Pain, fighting off an urge to make him shut up- C-CardsâŠ! GetâŠ
Shade: GET LOST! NOW!
Cardinal: Not in a million lifetimes, Shade!
Brand: Can't you see that we're going OUT OF CONTROL, YOU RECKLESS DEATHSEEKERâ
[And just like that, there were eight sets of eyes trained onto Cardinal.]
[He was surrounded.]
Beck: NOâ!!!
[Things were spiraling out of control too quicklyâthey were all rushing at Cardinal, there was no way he wouldâ]
<DLN-000 has entered Lethal Combat Mode.>
[He abruptly shifted into full armor and dropped to the ground. Pyroâs tackle missed, and he tripped up the team leader with a well-placed low kick before springing back to his feet, blasting away at bits that were trying to swarm him.]
[Cardinal used SUPER ARM!]
[WHAM!]
[Cardinal grabbed Pyro by the ankle before he could get up, and SLAMMED him right into Cryo before she could freeze him solid.
He sprung up in the air and landed right on Batâs shoulder.]
Cardinal: -Aggressive data-
Beck: O~O!!!
[Meanwhile, all Beck could do was back away slowly, eyes darting fearfully from one sibling to another. Why was this happening? Why were they ACTING like thisâ?!]
Brand: Stop showing off and get OUT of here, beforeâ
[There was an insanely mad cackle as Cardinal was lifted right off of the walking WMD, with Dyna coming down from the sky.]
Dyna: Szzo enthusiastic! You must have such intense energy!
Shade: -AaaAAUUGH DYNAâ! DONâTâ!!-
[Cardinal didnât even seem to try and get out of it, just pulled his shield in closer with a grim expression while bits were weaving a web around him.]
Dyna: Whatâszz WRONG, Cardinal? Iszz the birdie unable to fly away from the web?
Beck: NOâ!
[Cardinal abruptly smirked as Dyna loomed in closer. It was a dark smirk, and his eyes glowed red with cruel intent.]
Beck: â!!! (NoâI know that look! That red colorâdon't tell me heâsâ!)
[Cardinal was NOT infected⊠at least, no more than he had once warned long ago.
As a veteran Wilybot and soldier, he didnât give his enemy any warning: not even a gloat of confidence.]
[Cardinal used LEAF SHIELD!]
[There was a piercing SHRIEK of pain on the part of the electric diva as a swarm of razor-sharp, leaf-shaped metal created a cloud of shrapnel around the Robot Master in question. Dyna backed away, giving off glitched scree noises. By this point, several of the other Mighty Numbers had vanished in the turmoil; it was at this point that Dyna herself took her cue to leave.
His victory was short-lived, however, as a red blur shredded the projectile shield into a fine mist, before placing his swords right against the prototypeâs throat.]
((PicâCardinal v Brand))
Brand: -Seethes- How DARE you toy with us at a time like this!
[Cardinal was instantly gone, teleported across the sands to avoid incoming fire from above. Brandish moved quickly as well, but not quite quickly enough to avoid unfriendly fire.]
Avi: Awww, couldnât you have held him a little longer, ninjabro? You know what they sayâ
Shade: -Struggling to retain self-control, even as he starts locking onto Cardinalâs signal- Avi, Ahâ swear if you PUN at a tahm like THISâ
Avi: âA bird in the HAND is worth two in the bush!â
[The sniper gave a cry of frustration and fired off a shot. This action seemed to somehow be a succession, a submissionâcaving in, weakening the resolve.
The shot was dodged easily, due to the interference that offset the sniperâs aim.]
Beck: AVI! BRAND! SHADE! GUYS! S T O P!
Avi: -Ignores Beck entirely- Watch where youâre pointing that thing! And donât you tell ME what to doâ I have plenty to say, and this time, nobodyâs going to stop me!
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{Meanwhile, in EnglandâŠ}
[It was a peaceful evening as Jack and Kate entered the quiet flat.
The siren sniper gave a smile, her eyes hidden by the sunglasses she typically wore in her Civilian form.]
Kate: Anâ here we are! Welcome to yer new digs.
[The recovering newbie fighter awkwardly made his way into the living room, looking around in awe.]
Jack: Man, it sure is nice to be out of the hospitalâŠ
[It was much nicer than any place he had lived before he joined up with Greater Dusk, that was for sure.]
Kate: Rentâs been paid for a couple months, so itâs all yours.
Jack: What? Aw, geez, Miss Eightâyou didnât have to do thatâ
Kate: Aw, maybe not, heh. But yew deserve something nice after all that happened. Give ya some time to let things calm down.
[Since he wasnât sure how to respond to that, he just followed the tall assassin as she gave him a run-down of the place.]
Kate: This hereâs the sitting room, Ahâ guess⊠bedroomâs over that way; careful about the shower, they have it kinda like a large version of a sink sprayer, real easy tâ get water everywhereâŠ
Kate: -Walking into the kitchen- Itâs all pretty smallâbut thatâs standard for somethinâ in Britain.
[Inside the kitchen, there was a large box on the table.]
Jack: ? Uhâwhatâs in there?
Kate: Oh, just a lilâ somethinâ tâ get ya started. -Grins-
[Jack put down his suitcase.
Despite being a member of a (in)famous (and now banned) battle team, he didnât really have many belongings. Only the changes of clothes that had been foisted onto him as part of the contract of being a team member⊠which he hadnât been allowed to read before signing, of course.]
Jack: -Puts such thoughts aside for now- Letâs see what weâve got hereâŠ
[Kate looked on with a relaxed smile, biting down on a dart as the clumsy combatant fumbled with the wrapping paper. She let him figure out a way to open it on his own; she was just enjoying the downtime.
It was something she didnât get very often, with her job. Nor had she ever really had anyone other than family to spend it with. But JackâJack was different than the others.
As the sponsors were wont to say, he was âa goodââand he deserved nice things.]
Jack: Geez, whateverâs in here has some weight to itâ!
[He heaves a large hiking backpack out of the box, looking more than a little surprised.]
Jack: A backpack?
Kate: -Gleeful ping- Yeah, thatâs part of it, fer sure.
Jack: Looks likeâis that a sleeping bag tied at the top?
Kate: Yup!
Jack: -Inspecting the outside- Wow, it comes with a water bottle and a compassâŠ
[He unzips one of the compartments.]
Jack: Man, you really stuffed this to the gills. Poncho, first aid kitâŠ
Jack: â!
[He pulls out something in clear plastic wrapping, with âNighthawk Industriesâ printed on one end.]
Jack: AW SWEET COOL GOGGLES.
Kate: -Amused smile-
[He IMMEDIATELY puts those onâthey fit rather nicely once he adjusted the strapâ]
Jack: Dudeâ
Jack: These are like, perfect fitâ
Kate: David had âem custom made. Theyâve got lotsa functionality. Good for protectinâ âgainst rain anâ wind, aâ courseâŠ
Kate: -Puts her hand to her hip, grinning like crazy- But beyond thatâŠ~
Kate: Go look out the window, why donâcha?
[Jack glanced out the window in the kitchen, and Kate abruptly turned off the lights.]
Jack: !!!
Jack: ...? What's thisâ
Jack: â! OoooooOOHOHO THIS THING HAS NIGHT VISIONâ
Kate: Bingo~
Jack: So THIS is what the world looks like to you at night! (I feel so damn BADASSâ)
Kate: -Turns the light back on- Neat, ainât it? Lady Ky made those for yaâI put her contact info in yer phone in case youâd like another job of hersâŠ
Jack: âŠ? Uh⊠-What phone, we donât have aâ - Wait a minuteâŠ
[He eagerly starts digging through the rest of the backpack, pulling out the stuffing inside it as he went.
The top of the backpack was a nicely pressed set of casual clothes, shrunk to be airtight to pack in as much as possible. Underneath, there was a small bed roll, some blankets, and a travel/camping pillow.]
Jack: Iâm surprised you didnât put a whole tent in here, tooâŠ
Kate: Pupâs still workinâ on something that will fit but be spacious when you pop it out. He says you should just get a Spinarak anâ teach it Secret Power, anâ itâll be even better than a tent.
Jack: HehâŠ
[Going through the pockets, he pulled out some maps, a small radio, a burner phone, and a wallet.]
Jack: ? -Peeks inside the wallet, curious-
Jack: !!! (That isâ! A lot of gift cards! Andâand cash, too?) You⊠-Kind of speechless-
[The sniper strode over and put her hand to his shoulder, giving a reassuring smile.]
Kate: One of these days, youâll get outta here, Jackie. Be ready for a new life, what with GD not around anymore. Thatâs fer you to use tâ get around⊠pick out a nice ride of some kind, maybe, have a bit tâ eat anâ enough fer somewhere to stay⊠just until ya get yer footing. It should be good for a couple months once ya get stateside.
Jack: All this is� (This is for me�)
Kate: Our gift to you. | } Or⊠most of it, anyway. Still one more thing from Felixâhe said it was important, but heâs still asleep⊠though his friend Piers is there tâ look after him. Ya might think of stopping byâitâs an easy shortcut to anâ through the Wilderness between worlds.
Jack: Wow, Miss Eight, IâŠ
Jack: Honestly donât know what to sayâŠ
Jack: -Gestures to the gifts all over the table- This is⊠-Gestures around the living room- All this is⊠man, itâs the nicest thing anyoneâs done for me, ever.
Kate: Aw, itâs the least we can do! Yer a good man, Jack, anâ well-liked. âm only sorry we didnât get all this to ya sooner.
[She walked over to the freezer and pulled out a gallon of ice cream. Jackâs eyes lit up when he saw itâbut even moreso when she opened the fridge and brought out some steak.]
Kate: Letâs forget talkinâ fer a while anâ eat. Mâ starved.
[Jack was more than happy to oblige, and Kate leaned back against the wall as she ate an ice cream cone with her one hand.
It was so nice to see Jack in such good spirits and properly well off after all that heâd been through. Ever since she first got to know him, sheâd wanted to helpâsheâd grown more and more concerned for him the more he talked about Greater Dusk, about the way the team had treated him. Sheâd grown convinced he was in a dangerous situation, but even she couldnât have anticipated what happened next.]
Kate: (HmmmnâŠ. The finalsâŠ. Still donât have a good enough answer on what those crosses were. Malware of some sort, thatâs for sure, butâŠ)
[It was a grim prospect that required further investigation. It may not be her world, but sheâd grown to care for the people in it.]
Kate: (Coding like that could cause a lot of damage.)
[She squinted behind her sunglasses, narrowing her eyes in distrust.]
Kate: (Whatever mysterious âproviderâ Jack said Blade was talking to is -probably- stateside⊠just like Blade is, that damn bastardâŠ)
[Jack had told her that Blade had turned up dead.]
-=-=-=-=-
Jack: They....They sent it back to CherryDyn for them to look over what went wrong with him.
Jack: ....They said they found nothin', so they patched him up and kept him in for observation.
Jack: ....Then...
Jack: .......
Jack: He's dead, man. Dead.
Jack: .......
Jack: I...they told me he was...
Jack: Freakin' torturedâŠ
Jack: ......
Jack: -turns away-
-=-=-=-=-
[âŠKate, however, didnât buy it for a minute.]
Kate: (Thatâs too convenient⊠Something isnât right, hereâŠ)
Kate: -Broods- (That worm isnât going to escape justice THAT easily, no sirâŠ)
[âŠShe was almost tempted to see to it herself, when she did come across him. But noâhe had too much to answer for, and she would have to keep her head high and not sink to his level by turning away from doing the right thing.
Didnât mean she couldnât have the satisfaction of imagining otherwise.]
Kate: âŠ
Kate: -Frowns and sighs internally- (âŠLook at me.)
Kate: (Off of work for once, and saddling myself up with another âcaseâ that needs someone who caresâŠ. Maybe Sis is right. Maybe I am a workaholicâŠ)
Kate: -Finishes off the ice cream- Jackâ do me a favor anâ make another cone, pleaseâŠ
Jack: Yeah, sure thingâ
[She rubbed what was left of her right arm thoughtfully as he prepared seconds for her.]
Kate: (Not even on a job anâ Iâm out there thinking like a killerâŠ. Gotta try to remember not to let myself grow that bitter at the worldâŠ)
Jack: âŠMiss Eight?
Kate: Hmm?
Jack: Iâve been⊠wondering somethingâŠ
Kate: -Accepts the second ice cream cone- Yeah?
Jack: I don't know how to word this right, but...
Jack: ...Stuff like this is kinda your thing, I know, but...why go through all this for me? I meanâI'm not anyone THAT important, and on top of that, I'm a CherryâŠ
Kate: âŠWellâŠ. Ya⊠ya always treated me like a person. Not very many people do. -Looks away in thought- âm just Fighting Mighty Eight to themâ or Artemis, herald of death. Or just a pretty face with lots of money to burn.
Kate: That means something to me.
Jack:  ...Really, huh... (I guess, with what she doesâŠ)
[There was silence for a while as Kate finished off the second ice cream cone. This time, she seemed satisfied.]
Kate: Thanks for the help, Jack. I could do it myself, but itâs awfully messy, hehâŠ
Jack: Oh, no problem.
Kate: -Turns on the faucet to wash her hand- Well, this was a nice evening. It was good to see you settled in.
Jack: Ohâare you headed off?
Kate: Yes.
[She wiped her hand on a dishcloth as best she could.]
Kate: Stateside.
Jack: WhâYou're going back to America? This soon?
Kate: I have some investigating tâ do, JackâŠ. Ahâ donât think this is over yet.
Kate: Things may have died down, but⊠somethinâ is wrong over there, Ahâm sure of it.
Kate: -Turns to face him- Yâ need tâ lay low for a while, too. I hate tâ leave at a tahm like this, but the longer it waits, the colder the trail gets. You should be safe here from any prying eyes of this worldâbut just in caseâŠ
[She walks over and places something on the table.]
Jack: A⊠is that a taser?
Kate: -Momentary twitch of a smile- (âŠFigured youâd just hurt yourself with pepper spray, soâŠ) Between that anâ yer Combat abilities, you should be able tâ hold yer own long enough to call for help. -Points over at the cell phone- Either ping somebody orâcouple aâ contacts in there, just a call away.
Jack: I...um.
Kate: Yes?
Jack: Look, I appreciate the gesture, Miss Eight, justâdo I really need this thing, I mean, it's a little muchâ
[The Mighty Number works her dart over to the other side of her mouth and tilts her head just so, giving the CDN a look that said otherwise.]
Kate: ....
Jack: âŠRight, stupid questionâ
Jack: Thanks, I guess...
Kate: Hmm hmm. Yer welcome. Ah' better git goin' nao.
Kate: Stay safe, Jack Parker.
Kate: Iâll be in touch when I figure things out.
Jack: M'kay. Don't go do anything too crazy, alright?
[She gave a characteristic grin, slowly fading away from sight. There was the rattle of the front door, and then she was gone.
Jack takes another fresh look around his new home, rubbing the back of his head quietly as he sinks down into the couch. He couldn't help but wish Miss Eight would've stuck around a little more, but it wasn't like he could stop her.
She's got her mind set on things for his sake, too.]
Jack: (âŠGuess I better start looking over this stuffâŠ)
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Good evening, dear readers! Today is a special day!
Today is, officially speaking, the beginning of the illustration process for Allies Obstruct.
I am proud to announce that after much consideration following years of desiring it, I have selected @super-tired-robot to be the (commissioned) illustrator for the project.
I have wanted pictures for the story for years, and I now have the means to do so. It took some time to decide, but here we are: at the brink of beauty!
For those unfamiliar with her work, I highly recommend going off and checking it out.
There will be a total of xâ„46 pictures (of various styles and detail) and one comic when all is said and done. The first of these pictures has already been officially negotiated and invoiced.
She is the illustrator of this wonderful piece that has served as my avatar elsewhere for some time now.
I will be reblogging these things as they come along, so expect to see that soon enough.
