“Wow! So pretty! Why don’t you wear crop tops more often? You’re really toned.” Lucia immedietly bombarded me when I stepped out of the changing room. She circled me like a vulture spotting carrion, approaching closer and closer.
“…” I uncomfortably crossed my arms over my bared stomach. We were supposed to be shopping for her… but when she looked up with puppy eyes and held up an item, I had a hard time telling her no.
Besides, I needed more white clothes for Moon anyway. Crop tops? Definetely not it. It would be a way different style from Nyx, though… no- they were too uncomfortable. Having my stomach exposed like this just didn’t feel right. For one, it was way too cold.
Usually, I didn’t have the best grasp on time. It was an unfortunate side-effect of certain circumstances. Here and now though? I felt every ticking second with unerring precision. I counted down the minutes until we could leave, mentally making several dozen notes in my mind to never come shopping with Lucia again. She was like a demon, bringing me one out fit after another.
”What about. You?” I struggled to keep my composure as she held up fishnets. Absolutely no way were those going on me.
Her silver eyes confidently met mine, almost daring me to refuse. I quickly looked away, feeling my willpower slowly melting away. ”Oh! I’m figuring out what I want by seeing it!”
“…!” That- that didn’t make sense at all! I erratically waved my hand, backing up into the changing room-
Ding!
Saved by the bell, literally. The demoness backed away from me and pulled out her glass. Her shoulders slumped, and a heavy sigh broke out of her like she was just some lonely girl. Her eyes though- they couldn’t hide their predatory look when she stared at the pile of clothes I had yet to try. “Clover is ready for us. Get changed back… we’ll continue this another time.”
Over my dead body would we continue this another time! I slammed the door shut and quickly changed back into my normal attire, feeling much more relaxed with my nice, safe, protective, warm, not-a-crop-top hoodie covering me once more.
— — —
“It’s the Thorn Briar’s Fragment!” Clover exclaimed as soon as we entered her workshop. She lightly threw her hand into a V, waving the crystal around our faces.
”…?”
”Who?” Thankfully, I wasn’t the only one confused by her excitement.
“No idea! A world called-“ She bounced back to her terminal, “Velthor. Anyway, the Thorn Briar, from what I could pierce together, was a mythical knight there. He was known for his Thorn Bow. This is the myth of him protecting his lord from danger.”
”…?” I was so deeply confused. Was she saying the fragment was a solidified myth? Was that what they were? So all this time I saw Wardens with their fancy equipment, I was actually seeing fractured myths that’d been forged into equipment… Wicked. And also batshit insane. Who ever came up with this? How’d it work in the first place?
”Anyway… what do you want? I’ve got all sorts of good ideas with this fragment. High compatibility too!” She couldn’t keep still, bobbing from side to side. Her long lop-ears followed the motion like a set of wind shield wipers.
“…” I threw my shoulders back into a shrug. There wasn’t anything I specifically wanted with the Fragment. Maybe I should just sell it after all?
The rabbitkin picked up a notepad and a pen, tapping the latter against her bottom lip. ”What role then?”
“Va-“ Right, I was Moon right now. “Control Anchor. Ranged.”
Her expression lit up. She rapidly sketched out what looked like… I had no idea. It was too messy to figure out. “Then I’ll make something to help with that. Give me your number? I’ll send you a message when it's done in a couple days. If you don’t like it, I’ll buy it back based on its grade.”
“...” I pulled out my Throne Glass and showed her my number. After a moment, a long contract came back.
Clover tossed her Glass onto a nearby work table. ”That’s just legal protection for me. It’s pretty standard for Mytheks. Wouldn’t scam a friend of the boss, so don’t worry.”
”I’m not your employer anymore, Clover.” Lucia shook her head.
”You’re always the boss in my heart! I was so sad when I heard you died.” Her eyes welled up with unspilled tears. She grabbed Lucia’s hands tightly with her own, pulling their clasped hands to her heart. “You getting the gang back together? Done listening to those stooges on the board?”
Lucia’s jaw clenched tightly. She carefully extracted her hands from Clover and put on a tight smile. ”Maybe… You’ll be the first I call once everything is settled.”
“Promise?” Clover leaned in, her breath catching in her throat. “I can’t keeping staying here in dad’s shop. My cousins and siblings, all fifty-three of them, haven’t stopped poking fun of me since! Wah- being the youngest is so hard!”
“Promise.” Lucia backed away from the rabbitkin and moved next to me as if I would protect her. I wasn’t touching that with a ten foot pole. Fifty-three relatives? I knew people who lived for centuries who didn’t even have that many, let alone all in one generation.
“Then I’ll eagerly await your call, boss!” She moved back to one of her work tables and snatched her sketch pad. She plopped down into the chair and got to work sketching something.
“Cya.” Lucia called out to the rabbitkin and made for the door.
“Oh!” Clover leaned back, head dangling over the backrest. Her ears flopped around, looking like normal rabbit ears with her head upside down. “Want me to keep it a secret you’re back?”
“If you would.” Lucia motioned to me. “You ready to go, Moon?”
If she wanted to spend more time with her friend, I could go get some noodles or something and wait out front. With the other guards. The noodles did smell quite appetizing. “When. You are.”
“I don’t think I have anything else I need to do except work…” Lucia ran a hand through her hair, pulling at the golden strands. “Back to the apartment?”
”…!” I stopped just at the door leading back out to the noodle shop as I remembered something. “Guns?”
Clover twirled around in her chair, still drawing away. “A few… what for?”
I motioned to Lucia. “Rift.”
“What-“ Her breath caught in her throat. A moment later, she broke into a squeal. “You mean?!”
”Yep.”
“Yes! Do we have a third? Or is it just you and me?” She practically vibrated in place. Seriously, where did these two get the energy? If I could set up a ritual to drain it, I’d never get tired again.
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[Nighteye eyes you suspiciously. What are you trying to do to them?]
Um- that sounded bad? It was a saying from back home, I swear. What would be the equivalent here? Maybe… if I could borrow it? Take it?
[Nighteye suggests ‘if I could bottle it, I’d become rich’.]
Why would I bother bottling it though? The point was to get some of their energy- look, did this really matter? It so wasn’t the point of what I was trying to say… I think. It was an offhand comment. One in my head at that. A space that should be private, snoopy cat.
“So?” Lucia called out to me, drawing my attention.
”Just us.” I didn't exactly have anyone else I could trust to go into a rift with Lucia. Maybe Kali? She was the most trustworthy, but she was out tonight. Besides, the rift I had planned would be pretty easy.
”What role are you? What role am I?!” She tilted her head to the side, her eyes rapidly swishing around. “Probably a Striker? I don’t have any Skills, so I guess it doesn’t matter.”
”Vanguard. Anchor.” I’d be doing both. The rift I picked out for us was simple enough anyway. No way I’d take her into something I wasn’t confident in solo clearing in my sleep.
“Then that makes me a Striker?!” She bounced in place, bobbing on her toes. “I always wanted to do that! Heh- I’ll be the next Delete!”
Delete… the name sounded familiar? Couldn’t quite place it though. Probably some Warden or another.
“Then you’ll need some good stuff, boss.” Clover hit a button on the far side of the room. A wall covered in terminals slid down, revealing a small armory of stuff. “Take whatever you want. I’d have more, but I had to sell a bunch of stuff to keep a float recently.”
I eyed the armory. Most of the stuff practically radiated ether. They weren’t just simple items that could be found anywhere on the streets. Everything from daggers to what looked like a grenade launcher sat scattered around the shelves. The Mythek even had a set of power armor with rabbit ears just hanging out in the back.
Lucia looked back to me before reaching out, a question evident in her eyes. It made me feel a bit warm that she looked to me for guidance on weapon selection before anyone else. Heh- I guess I was just that trustworthy, yep?
I carefully inspected the weapons displayed. Most of them were impractical given our situation. They were also all marked with lop-eared bunny motifs, which looked a little odd on the heavier guns. A bit on the nose, to be honest.
The grenade launchers and stuff were automatically out. Didn’t exactly have time to run her through explosive ranges, timings, and all that. Should probably keep her on something simple, yep?
Lucia said a gun when I asked last time, so the melee weapons and bows were out. That, and it would reassure me if she wasn’t in a melee off the get go. She obviously hadn’t been trained much, so expecting her to go in sword waving was a horrible idea. Guns blazing was much better.
I’d done a little bit of research on Bastion’s guns in my free time, so I had a better idea of what I was looking at. Clover had SMGs, ARs, a few sniper rifles, and dozens of sidearms. I was leaning towards the sidearms so Lucia would be able to keep it concealed and on her at all times. An SMG wouldn’t be bad though… an AR would have more umph.
I pointed out the group of weapons to the eagerly watching Mythek. No one better to ask than the one that made them. “Suggestions?”
She hopped over, pulling off a bunch of guns from the armory. She eyed them for a moment before putting a few back and taking the rest to a table. “What rank?”
“Feeble.”
“Then we should keep it simple…” Clover removed all the ARs, leaving just the pistols and SMGs. “You have gun training, boss?”
”I know the basics. Shot pistols a few times.” She scratched the back of her head. “Don’t point it at anyone, and never put my finger on the trigger unless I’m sure I want to shoot.”
“Hmm…” Clover bit her lip and glanced at me. She practically had to crane her neck considering our size difference. “You’ll go over it with her in the rift?”
“…!” Of course I would. Who did she think I was? Although… this was technically our first time meeting. And I didn’t have much gun training. It’d probably be fine? They couldn’t be that different from steam guns, yep?
She removed most of the weapons except for an SMG and a few pistols. She picked up a revolver and twirled it around her finger. “A primary and backup, then. How’s your ether control?”
”Alright?” Lucia took a step back and wrung her hands together. “I never really practiced.”
The rabbitkin tilted her head for a moment before tossing the revolver back to the rack. Instead, she pulled up a normal mag fed handgun. Probably for the best. No telling how well her composure would wind up when facing actual combat. Revolvers required a steadier hand to reload.
“Then take this. Feeble stuff won’t be an issue.” The rabbitkin spun the pistol again and handed it to Lucia. She then picked up a different gun. “And this is an Arcanite SMG mark five, based on an Arbite Arm’s SMG. Lots of kick, so only fire it in bursts. It’ll work up to Disruptive.”
“Thank you, Clover! You’re the best!” Lucia threw her arms around the Mythek. I looked away and stuffed my hands into my pockets.
“Heh- heh.” Clover fully leaned into the hug like a rabbit wanting cuddles. How… irritating. I usually loved rabbits, but now?
I coughed lightly. “Arcanite?”
“Oh!” She moved to the side, pulling out a bunch of mags and a pouch of dark-blue tipped bullets. She also grabbed a bunch of auxiliary equipment. ”They’re specialty rounds. Basically, they can take ether and ‘charge’ up to do more damage than a normal bullet. They blow through most ether shrouds, so they’re required when lighter calibers start falling off at D-rank.”
Ugh- and here I was thinking I was invincible against firearms with my combo of Etheric Reinforcement and Ebonshroud. Of course Bastion had developed something to pierce ether by now. At least they were specialty. Not every thug would have an Arcanite weapon. Or maybe they would? This city was weird…
Take for instance the fact that we were on the crisp of extinction, and all of us were tied to one city. Not a single person seemed to be worried about it… part of that might have to do with the culture Throne cultivated though. They did a killer job with their propaganda. I’d only been here for a year, and even I was half-convinced that the city would never fall and everything would be alright…
Lucia took the offered ammo, straps, and holster. “Thanks, Clover.”
”I’d hate to see you defenseless, boss. Take this too.” She pulled a set of lightweight ballistic armor off the wall and handed it over.
”…” I stared at the ballistic vest. Nothing would get past me to Lucia in the first place, but the added protection was nice.
“I’m so excited!” Lucia couldn’t keep still as she threw on the ballistic armor and equipment. She looked every bit the Warden now with weapons strapped to her like that. “When are we going?”
I checked the time on my Glass. “Tonight? Soon?”
”Really? Then why are we hanging around here?! Let’s go!!!” She practically dragged me out of the room by my hand. There was a certain petty sense of delight in watching Clover’s expression twist when Lucia didn’t even offer a goodbye.
— — —
“Ugh- I thought this would be way more exciting.” Lucia groaned and collapsed her head onto the table.
We sat at a coffee shop not far from the rift. Her momentum had long faded, leaving her running on fumes. The teenager idly toyed with her Oculus, working even now.
”It is.” Coffee was always exciting. I breathed in the scent, feeling my entire body relax significantly. We’d already stopped by the apartment so I could ‘gather my weapons’. A short sword sat at my waist, and a shield was strapped to my back.
Lucia just looked at me for several long moments. I adjusted the aviators and glanced out the window. I could feel her practically bore a hole through me with her eyes. “If you say so… how much longer?”
Heh. She really seemed like a kid right now. It was a fresh look for her, one that seemed much more natural than the overly positive or formal looks I’d seen so far. I kind of wished she would act more her age without all the stress weighing her down. Rather, I wished she had the opportunity too… I should try to read more and get a better understanding of corporations to help her out.
I checked my Glass once more, as I had every minute since we got here. “Couple minutes.”
“That’s what you said five minutes ago!” Lucia groaned once more. She idly reached for her own cup of coffee and sipped at it. It was a caramel something or another.
”Seven minutes. Then.”
”Ugh- what are we waiting again?”
I checked my Glass again. “To close.”
Across the street, a fireteam of Wardens appeared from inside of a fenced off area, absolutely covered in blood. Most of the people on the street didn’t even spare a glance. Not like it was a rare sight.
A few civilians rushed forward. Their glasses waved around, taking pictures and grouping around the Wardens like they were celebrities. Hmm… guess they could be? Almost everyone famous in Bastion was a Warden of some kind.
My charge sighed deeply. ”Can’t you make it go faster?”
“Sleep?” I didn’t have power over time, unfortunately.
We were breaking the law by entering the rift through Pursius’s connections. I was worried about Cernobog seeing Lucia was still alive if we went through a legal rift and had to scan our SIGILs. It was likewise why she hadn’t spent any Nytes since coming back to the city. Although her Glass and oculus’s records were hidden, the same couldn’t be said for her SIGIL.
”This sucks.” She muttered under her breath and slurped on her coffee.
Ring!
A few minutes later, my Glass went off. Faster than even I could react, Lucia was on her feat, tugging on my hand. “Let’s go, let’s go, let’s go!!!”
I chuckled and allowed her to pull me along. Ysron Caves, here we come. Honestly, I was more worried about the monsters than anything. With her levels of enthusiasm? They stood no chance.
