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"... devan ..."
The haze of sleep drifted through Devan's mind, a voice drawing him closer to the surface of the water.
"... Devan ..."
He stirred, the phantasmal fingers picking at his mind being a most unwelcome intrusion.
"... Blademaster Devan, I NEED you!! "
Devan jolted up in bed, gripping the hilt of the silver dirk he kept beneath his pillow. Soft moonlight soaked through between the crack in the curtains.
His senses slowly sank back into his body as he assessed the empty room, eventually falling back onto the pillows with a soft huff, pulse jittering through his veins.
"Devan."
He leapt back up again, heart pounding up another furious tattoo.
Fuck this, he was way too tired to be messed about with, but something about the phantom voice was familiar...
"Don't be alarmed. It is only me."
In the sliver of moonlight against the wall, Devan's gaze settled on a set of curved horns cast in shadow.
Of course that voice was familiar.
"Mi-, Lord Minos? What are you doing here at this hour? Like... this ?" Devan would be lying if he didn't admit that his ethereal manner of approach had pissed him off.
"I am sorry for the intrusion," the edge of Minos's silhouette seemed hazy, "I need your help, and quickly."
"What with? What's happened?" He placed the knife down as he swept the duvet off to dress.
"I cannot find Jiro."
"What?!" Devan was taken aback; was something like this even possible? Wasn't Minos directly connected to him?
"I cannot find him here . I know where he is, but... I fear he- we are in danger."
Devan seized the clothes he had been wearing the previous day, cast onto the chair by the window,
"Tell me what happened."
He couldn't mistake the shivers that seized his hands as he tried to button his shirt.
Minos's form stretched across the walls, distorted and unnerving; he didn't look right ,
"I was in my library, within the Core. Nothing unusual as I was finishing logging new books to be copied to a digital database. Everything felt normal."
"You can feel how he feels, right?" Devan swept his hair back, holding it in place with a band.
"Yes. As I was working, I felt such a strange... numbness flood through me. I knew something was wrong but I felt weakened. Significantly."
Devan snatched the knife up from the bed, slipping it into a sheath in the lining of his boot,
"Why don't you go to him? Find out where he is?"
"I cannot," Minos shook his head, "it is like a compass, I can detect the direction but if I were to return then I would have no knowledge of how to get there. It is instantaneous, plus I am greatly weakened by whatever happened as well as an extended absence from him."
"Can't you be away from him for four days?" Devan swept on his coat, simple and black that swept the top of his boots, absent of the Jibral insignia.
"That is the problem, I have been away for three, I was due to return shortly after I was afflicted. I am weak and running out of time before I am called back by force."
"Why come to me? Why not the King? Can't you speak to Qilin?" Devan's fingers closed around the handle to his bedchamber, only just leaving the whirlwind of adrenaline and sleep.
"I fear the repercussions of rallying too large a force," Minos appeared on the door before him, his silhouette swallowing up Devan's, "we must be swift in a way only one can do."
Devan nodded. It felt so strange to be called on by such a powerful figure; he knew so well the respect and authority Minos held within the castle.
Then again, he'd be ready to defend anyone in this position, and if someone like him was calling for help, only the cruel would refuse.
The corridor beyond his room felt especially cold as he stepped out, only a skeleton crew of guards standing watch in the small hours. Everything was bathed in a navy haze, the cool lights putting everything it bathed into an eerie stasis.
Even though he couldn't directly see him, Devan felt Minos's presence in his periphery. It was imposing, yet comforting at the same time. Whether that was related to Minos's nature or Devan's feelings was difficult to decide.
His form was just ever so slightly different from the conventional darkness, an irregularity that irresistibly drew his gaze in.
It followed him through the halls and down past the kitchens, opening out into the stables near to the rear entrance.
Devan reached out to a dappled silver horse, feeling their soft breath snort against his hand as he drew them out to saddle up.
Minos watched from the shadows, a strangely comforting presence amidst the fear and uncertainty swirling in Devan's gut.
How had Jiro just disappeared?? It was unlike him to just up and vanish, but then again he did work late in the labs at times.
However, midnight was a very unnatural time to be off researching in the wilds.
Minos's presence fell over him, a subtle warmth tingling his bare skin.
"Open your satchel," his voice echoed through the quiet of the stables, "so I can get in."
Devan was slightly amused at the idea of such an imposing creature like Minos squeezing into a bag, and he watched as a shadow darker than its brethren swept from the wall and into the satchel.
"This is easier for me." He rumbled from its depths.
He didn't have to constantly fluctuate his form like this, likely granting him a bit more time. A well which Devan felt was quickly running dry.
He spurred his horse on out of the castle ground and beyond the walls, the world opening up in a fuzzy haze of tree outlines and the rise and fall of the horizon. It was eerily quiet, not even the rumble of monsters disturbing their flight.
As he rode through the darkness, Minos's feather light touch nudged Devan's hands to direct them through the gloom.
The light of a brilliant moon illuminated their way, trees and foliage whipping past Devan's face as they swept like a wraith through the shadows.
"The lack of monsters, is that your doing?" Devan breathed, to which Minos let out a low chuckle,
"Simple repulsion, nothing to brag about."
"Are we close?" He ducked low as the trees thickened.
"Yes." Minos replied, his simplicity sending adrenaline shivering through Devan's veins.
They broke through the undergrowth, the mouth of a dark cave looming before them. Jagged metal stuck from the rock face like teeth, paving the way on an iron tongue down into the earth.
Devan's shadow stretched out as Minos shrouded himself within, his horns framing the maw,
"In here. It appears to be Ancient ruins; you best be on your guard."
"You don't need to tell me twice." Devan drew his sword, drawing in a deep breath as he stepped forward and allowed himself to be swallowed by the earth.
The air was much cooler in the depths, Minos providing a tiny orb of light to float overhead. Such a minute action yet, in his position, it meant everything. The melding of metal into stone was only indicated by the shift in the echo Devan's boots made on the floor. Steadily, the soft crunch of earth turned to the cold rapping of steel as the tunnel broke through into a desolate facility. Blank lights hung overhead, the glow from the orb of light casting stark shapes across the walls as it flickered and shrank further. It was a mosaic of sheet metal and great chunks of stone and earth that had buckled the facility beneath its wake.
It was cold, silent, and creepy as hell.
"Not long now." Devan felt that he should whisper in the heavy gloom. Minos let out a soft laugh, the edge tinged with a weak echo,
"I know..."
It was humbling, holding on to such a being. Minos was admired for his studies in the castle, feared for being a creature of magic, and respected for the calm authority he conducted. Now he was a shade, phantom breath wheezing from his lungs as he held on with white knuckles and tenacity.
"There..." he breathed, pointing through winding corridors and archways.
"What was this place..?" Devan whispered, senses suddenly igniting across the back of his neck. He slipped back into the shadows, motionless as a sentry scanner floated past, glowing red eye casting a cone of prickling light across the shapes strewn through the corridor. It hovered for a moment, gaze sweeping in a horizontal arc before disappearing around the corner.
"I'm not surprised there's security." He finally exhaled, releasing his grip on his sword, "not as heavy as I thought, thankfully."
"Yes... that's good." Minos breathed, "you know... he talks about you... a lot."
"What do you mean?" Devan glanced to both ends of the corridor before rising to continue.
"Jiro... he speaks with me about you... he is afraid he messed up... but I know that's not true. He is... fond of you."
Devan thought back to the first time they'd gone out together. Just the memory made him cringe.
It had been far too fast and it had left both of them prickling with sunburn and feeling the sting. They'd talked afterwards, but only in passing; Jiro always seemed too busy to chat and Devan knew he probably had a lot on his plate. No time for catching up, and somehow not a single opportunity had risen during the past few months.
And now he regretted it.
"It isn't his fault." He swallowed his own doubts before any could force their way free, "I moved too fast, it's on me."
"There is no blame in this." Minos continued, "you learn more from mistakes than first victories."
Devan suddenly stopped, glancing back to allow Minos to catch up.
"Why does he like me?" Devan dared impose a little selfishness, "what does a guy like him see in some soldier like me?"
Minos let out a laugh, amusement tickling through its hollow echo, "you are... kind despite it all. You... tease yet understand... when it is too much. You have kindness in you... and you listen for hours when he... he talks. No mocking, just listening... and you are quite handsome too."
Devan's body rushed with searing heat, a heat that was incredibly obvious considering Minos's echoing laughter. He placed a translucent hand on Devan's shoulder, coming into form for the first time.
He looked ghastly. The red of his eyes was a sour milk pink. The gold of his bracers was pallid, only a mere breath of shine remaining as he bowed overhead, unable to decide if two or three dimensions would grant him a little more time.
"You're so close," he wheezed, "Go left, then straight then... go ..."
He froze, form turning inky black as it melted into the floor and vanished.
Devan's fingers swept through ethereal shadow as he reached for him on sheer impulse.
Minos was gone.
He gripped the hilt of his sword, and sucked in a breath before carving onwards through the scarce light that flickered through the subterranean labyrinth.
The silence filled his ears with a deafening ringing, heart thumping like lead in the cage of his chest. He had to keep going, but fear weighed heavily on each limb.
He was the captain of the Blademasters. He would endure. He had to endure.
The silence was broken by faint sound ebbing from the dark, Devan instantly doubling back on his path to pursue.
"... you can't even prove this machine will do that, Lotus."
"Ah, such doubts I will be happy to quash, my friend."
Humans? Here? They were probably just monsters, likely ghosts or something.
A crack of light shone like a blade through the dark, drawing Devan in.
Ventilation and tubing ran from its crown, light blooming through dusty portholes as he hugged the wall and inched closer to the sliver in the doorway.
"You had better. This was a huge risk, Lotus. If you fail and those magicians realise what we have attempted, they will not see reason."
"They simply don't understand what we are trying to do for them, for the good of the world."
Devan dared to peek into the room, pupils shrinking down as they adjusted to the shock of the light.
Machines hummed with life, soft amber light threading across the wall of the heart of the complex, pulsing with glowing energy. At least four or five people stood in the centre of the room around a large white table.
The whole thing stank of clinical purity.
"I look forward to your demonstration, Dr Lotus." A sharp looking woman in all black spoke back to whom Devan could only assume was this 'Lotus' person.
"As do I. I have studied for countless hours the capabilities of this complex, and thanks to the Ancients I have made a breakthrough."
Devan's eyes flitted between the figures; they all had an air of wealth to them that was unmistakable.
And disgusting.
"We have a lot to thank the Ancients for." A stout person with cropped white hair clinked a glass of something bubbly with their tall dark friend, "it is only with their gifts that we are able to attempt the purification."
Purification?
Devan's eyes had fully adjusted to the shocking brightness, and they settled on the apparatus at the far end of the room. A large cylinder rested at an angle, glass fringed with dust and scratches of an age long gone. A glass coffin holding unmistakable cargo within its stomach.
"Jiro..." Devan breathed. His heart swelled and twisted all in one, a maelstrom of feelings clashing with the ones already roiling within the hollow of his chest.
His heart jolted, an alarm suddenly shrieking right into his ear.
Devan leapt back and punted the hover patroller down the corridor, its cry echoing away into the darkness.
But the damage was done.
The door slid open, fixing him with an accusing spotlight as two mecha sentinels trained their cannons upon him.
"Fuck..." he breathed as they seized his upper arms and threw him into the light.
"An unexpected guest?" A woman with thick bottle glasses gazed down at him, condescending amusement playing on her orange lips as the sentinels hauled him to his feet. One wrenched his sword from its scabbard, snapping the blade in two within its clenched fist.
Devan could only watch as it clattered to the floor. It was just a sword, but it had done him so well.
"Well, well, well..." Doctor Lotus stepped forward. He seemed in his late thirties, salt and pepper hair swept back out of his eyes, accompanied by immaculate facial hair. His clothes were simple yet had a certain air that reminded Devan of the pictures he'd seen of the Ancients, both as murals and photographs.
Lotus waved a hand to the mecha sentinels, who released their grip on Devan and paced back to standing either side of the doorway. They looked like patchwork, colours streaking across their bodies as their limbs varied in a chimera of different mecha models. Wires poked haphazardly from their joints and a thick red cable snaked from their necks to attach to the sides of their heads with lamprey teeth, a bright green light pulsing.
"We weren't expecting anyone else." He held out a gloved hand to Devan, "I am Doctor Elm Lotus."
He was completely taken aback, heart ricocheting off of his ribcage with every passing second.
Lotus regarded his glare, shaking his head softly,
"Pardon the... intensity of our security. I trust you understand why we must be so strict? I hope I can get your name as well, ser."
"Theseus." He buckled; playing on their terms had to be strategic, "And might I say I do not appreciate this kind of greeting."
He gave his hand a firm shake, Lotus giving his arm a pat with a smile.
"A pleasure, Mr Theseus. Apologies for such a... forward welcome, I'm sure you can understand that we have to take security so seriously. But not to worry, we will be beginning the demonstration soon."
"What demonstration might that be, Doctor?" Devan dared an inquiry.
"Surely you were told, Mr Theseus," he tutted, "it is of my latest discovery!"
His tone was mirthful yet Devan felt a chill rush over his skin, drawing up goosebumps.
He was very much aware of the eyes watching him over the top of their glasses, the silent blades of judgement itching at his throat.
"This will aid those infected by magic with a way to banish the demons that have possessed them."
Devan's blood ran cold, and he nodded along to Lotus's monologue.
"I firmly believe that the technology the Ancients left was a way to purify those who have been cursed by the thing we call magic. It is unnatural to manipulate such powers. It will only lead to ruin, which is what those dark creatures want. They want to raze the world and rebuild it with humans as their puppets, as they lack corporeal forms. This is why I gathered us all here, to demonstrate my newest discovery and banish the Demon within this poor soul."
He gestured to the tube, to Jiro, everyone's attention turning to it. Like he was a scientific display. A specimen.
Devan stepped over perhaps a little too eagerly, breath fogging the glass. Through the dust and dirt he watched Jiro's chest rise and fall, unconscious but alive.
It was of little comfort, but comfort he was starkly short of currently so he decided to take what he could.
"This is fascinating ," he turned to the group, heart thumping a heavy tattoo, "I am astounded by your research into the Ancients, Doctor Lotus. What led you here in the first place?"
Attention turned to Lotus as he talked, but Devan wasn't really listening; the voices in his head were far too loud.
If he kept them talking, maybe it would give him enough time...
"... It has been a task that us of the Morning Star have endeavoured to achieve since the very beginning. Something I'm sure you can agree with?"
He snapped back to reality as Lotus gazed at him, deep blue eyes expectant.
"Of course, why else would I be here?"
Lotus chuckled into his glass, taking a slow sip,
"Indeed, why else would you be here? Come, my friend."
He took Devan's arm, fingers digging in as he led him to the side of the vessel. A console sat like a half melted marshmallow, buttons humming with light and energy, itching to be commanded.
"I think it's best to give Mr Theseus the honour of cementing this pivotal moment. Being the first to activate my machine." Lotus placed a hand upon Devan's shoulder, leather gloves creaking as he gave it a squeeze.
"I am truly honoured, Doctor," Devan turned out of his grasp, "but I'm curious; if I would be the first to use this technology, then how do you know it actually does what you say it does?"
Murmurs broke out in the group, Lotus shaking his head,
"Mr Theseus, do you not trust my process? I simply said I had not tested it on an infected person. Of course I have activated the machine prior to this demonstration."
"I'm simply looking out for the good of the world," Devan couldn't resist a smile, "to ensure the trust of these people is correctly placed."
"So you won't say no when I ask you to activate it for us?" Dr Lotus smiled softly, metal whirring as the gaze of the sentinels fixed upon Devan.
He glanced up to the pod, swallowing softly. He prayed that he had granted Minos enough time.
"Go to hell, you delusional prick."
He seized the knife from the sheath in his boot, plunging it into the heart of the control panel.
A spray of sparks danced into the air, bright pops sending sunspots drifting across everyone's vision as the lights of the room snapped and flashed. With a hiss the cover of the pod opened, a fine mist drifting from the vessel.
Lotus snapped his fingers, the sentinels aiming their cannons at Devan.
A familiar rush swept past his cheek, and an almighty roar sent the lights of the dome flickering.
The sentinels opened fire, bullets spraying towards him in a web of metal.
A frosted wall rose before him, the bullets thudding into its ethereal form to stop dead in midair.
The crowd gasped and the shattering of a glass broke the silence left behind.
Devan stared up in awe at Jiro stood on the lip of the pod, arm raised and brow furrowed.
His composure in such a situation was admir-
"YOU DARE ASSUME, BECAUSE I HEAL, I AM WEAK??" Jiro's voice pierced the air, sharp and hard and furious .
Minos bowed overhead, arm stretched out as a mirror to Jiro's. His eyes were rich garnet against cerulean blue, horns a crescent crown upon his head, energy thrumming through his veins once more.
Devan stared in awe at him, speechless not from the display of power, but that this was the only time he'd ever truly seen Jiro angry.
His gaze was alight with vengeful sparks, body taught and ready to command absolutely everything under his control. Pure, genuine emotion channelled into physical form.
It was beautiful .
Lotus stepped back to the crowd, a clear cylinder descending from the ceiling around them, cutting them off from the machines. He snapped his fingers,
"Kill them."
The floor beneath them rose in a disc, sending the elevator upwards and away into the complex.
Panels along the walls slid open, mecha robos stepping out and filling the room as more and more funnelled down the pipes through the facility.
Jiro raised a hand, an orb of light swirling like mercury in his palm. With a snap of his fingers, it burst into glittering shards as Minos rose up, lowering his hand to the ground and tracing a circle of light around them. A phantom wall rose, grinding into existence and immediately being filled with bullets and shrapnel from the army surrounding them.
"What the hell are you doing here?!" Jiro leapt down from the pod, grabbing Devan's shoulders.
"I could ask you the same question!" He retorted. The sound around them was close, the consistent barrage from beyond the wall muffled to a background drone.
Jiro hesitated, confusion and a hint of fear flickering through his eyes.
" How the hell did you know to come here?" He reiterated.
"Minos came to find me." Devan carefully dislodged his grip from his shoulders, moving to pick up the shattered hilt of his sword. Nothing that couldn't be reforged, "He led me here."
Jiro's brow furrowed, then he hastily turned to face the robo army beyond the wall. Devan could have sworn he saw pink flood through the bridge of his nose.
"He's smart." He finally announced, turning back to Devan, "I hate to say it, but I am indebted to you."
"I... see." Devan felt his gut twist at the cold formality.
"N-No, not like that. I just don't want it to be a bother to you."
"You can talk later," Minos suddenly interjected, "but we are still weak and this barrier won't hold."
The fringes of the wall were flickering, pixels jolting and warping as they slowly began to wink out of existence.
Jiro nodded, raising both hands in front of himself, thrumming with invisible energy. His palms cupped a delicate flower of magic, petals minute and glassy yet flickering like they couldn't decide which dimension to settle in. His lips parted in a soft breath, the flower suddenly folding inwards onto itself as he swept his arms apart. The wall swelled outwards, bullets returning to sender as they ripped and tore through steadfast bodies, sending the mecha robos crumpling to the ground in a sea of sparks and shrieking metal.
The silence was deafening, Devan's pulse drumming in his veins. He trusted both Minos and Jiro with his life, but fuck could magic be scary sometimes.
"Come on, let's go before-" Jiro suddenly stumbled, dragging a powerful inhalation into his lungs as he grasped at Devan's arm.
Devan held on to his hand, attention suddenly diverted up as the eyes of a mecha sentinel flickered to life.
Before it could even raise its cannon, Devan had seized the remains of his sword and was sprinting towards it, vaulting over its head and jamming his scabbard into the exposed gap in its throat to snap its neck skywards, forcing its reticle up and away. Though broken, his blade remained sharp as he latched on to the red cable running to its temple, using his body weight to slam down and slice through. Sparks flew from the severed connection and the machine jolted and spasmed until going silent, eyes turning back to lifeless black rectangles.
Jiro staggered to his feet, breath steadying out as he screwed his eyes shut and forced his body to comply.
"Are you-?" Devan was immediately at his side.
"I'm FINE." His voice rang a bit louder than he'd expected, and he swallowed, "I'm fine. I just... its taken more out of me than I expected."
Devan slid off his gloves and carefully placed his fingers against his neck. The sudden intimacy bloomed warmth between them, and he hurriedly moved to take Jiro's hand instead, placing two fingers down to search for his pulse.
It drummed a tense tattoo, but nothing irregular. Accompanying that beat was a minute tingle that hummed in tune to his heart. If that wasn't magic running through his veins then he was a fool.
"You seem okay." he ignored Jiro's protests as he assessed his vitals; as captain of the Blademasters he had to be trained in at least the basics of first aid.
"Yes, I'm fine. Don't worry about me." Devan watched Jiro set his jaw in a surprisingly petulant manner, it was almost funny.
"Okay, let's rewind; I'm woken up at midnight by a magical being telling me that you've essentially been kidnapped and you're telling me not to worry about you?"
Jiro folded his arms, but it predictably couldn't hide the pink flush across his face,
"... Well when you put it that way..."
"AND," Devan continued, "you almost lost said Shadow to some sort of weird Ancient tech pod thingy."
"I was never in any danger from that!" He cast Devan a dark scowl, "it's just a stasis pod that's used to accelerate the body's natural healing properties! It's got NOTHING to do with sealing OR removing Shadows!"
"What, seriously?" Devan was taken aback; amused, angry, and incredulous all at once.
"Yes! Minos told me. Now can we PLEASE stop rubbing in how I fucked up!?"
He stalked off out of the battered door and into the dark, Devan scrambling over the machine corpses,
"Y- What? You think I'm-... Are we going the right way?"
Jiro stopped to turn to Devan, pressing a finger to his chest and flicking out a glassy orb of magic. Within, two diamonds rotated around in parallel, one red and the other blue. A compass.
"Minos."
Devan nodded, before falling into step beside him,
"You didn't fuck up. This isn't the kind of situation where you can fuck up."
Jiro turned to face him, stopping in the middle of the corridor,
"If I'd been more vigilant then this wouldn't have happened. If the security in the lab had been better, if Minos had been with me I'd have noticed anything suspicious. If there had been-"
"If, could've, should've whatever!" Devan cut in, "if you're trying to count every possibility then you'll be here forever! You need to relax! This isn't your fault."
"But it is my responsibility!" He snapped, "as a Shadow wielder, I have to be strong. If I'm not capable, then who will be?!"
Silence hung tense between them, Jiro's breath burning with frustration. He muttered something, placing a hand on his forehead,
"Devan, I'm sorry I-"
"Look, I get that you have powers others don't... like, a crazy amount of power,"
The ease of which the bullets had ripped back into the mecha robos rung on the inside of his head, "but that doesn't mean you have more responsibility than them."
"But if I don't-"
"Then someone else will." Devan placed his hands upon his shoulders, "Didn't you say that you're Minos?"
"Well, yeah... kinda. It's complicated." Jiro shrugged, gaze awkward and refusing to meet Devan's.
"Minos is also you, and that's human. You were human before Minos and the others came along, yeah? You're like... a baby magic user!"
"I'm not a baby." His brow furrowed, Devan tapping his foot in frustration,
"Yeah, bad phrasing. What I meant was that you're totally new to this magic stuff, in the grand scheme of things. And you're already piling yourself high with demands. You're gonna burn out from the expectations of no one but yourself. So please," he couldn't resist giving his shoulder a gentle squeeze, feelings snaking as a current beneath the surface, "take care of yourself. If not for yourself, then for me."
Jiro let out a soft breath, finally meeting Devan's gaze,
"Okay... thank you." He took Devan's hands in his own, "Look, last time we met was..."
"A bit quick?" Devan set them going down the corridor again.
Jiro nodded, "I'm sorry, I got excited and rushed in to things and-"
"No ones at fault here," Minos's words echoed in his ears, "but I'm glad we can both agree it was a bit too quick."
"So... just friends? For now?" Jiro released his hand, casting him a nervous smile.
Devan would be lying to say that that didnt leave a hollow in his chest, but the possibility of 'for now' kept hope alight in his heart.
"Yeah, alright," he smirked, "I'm guessing I'm not ready to meet your Shadow yet then, hm?"
Jiro looked incredulous, then let out a burst of laughter he quickly stifled lest more machines be drawn in,
"What?! That's ridiculous. You're ridiculous."
"I try." He grinned, "let me know if you feel faint, then I'll catch you all dramatic."
"I am NOT going to faint." Jiro let out a huff, but a slight smile lingered.
The darkness of the tunnel slowly ebbed away to fresh golden light, the light of dawn reaching her gentle caress to warm their faces.
"So," Devan couldn't resist, "you think I'm handsome, hm?"
A maelstrom of emotions crossed Jiro's face, all four stages of grief passing in a split second,
"MINOS!!!"
His shadow warped into the minotaur silhouette,
"... Jiro... I am weak..."
"Like HELL you are! Explain yourself!"
"I... am so weak... I cannot..."
Jiro's face remained flushed red, barely able to so much as look towards Devan, ignoring his bellows of laughter.
"Didn't know ya could shout like that, sprout!"
Devan's hand instinctively gripped the hilt of his sword, scanning the environment bathed in the blinding light of dawn.
His horse stood beneath a tree far off, lazily chewing on grass and fallen fruit beneath its boughs. Atop their back, sat a figure swathed in a dappled cloak, near invisible from a distance.
"Who the hell-?" Devan began, before a harsh coughing fit from Jiro snapped his attention away.
"Oof, what happened here?" The figure was suddenly next to them, Devan recoiling in shock as he gazed into the hollow eyes of a jack o' lantern. Their body creaked with clockwork joints and innards, a hefty rifle slung across their back. They seemed far too literate to be a simple monster.
"S'okay, Devan," Jiro rasped, sucking in lungfuls of air, "that's... Jack."
Jack cast Devan a jagged grin as he lowered the blade at his throat with a single metallic finger.
"Pleasure, Mr Blademaster."
Their cloak faded from dappled khaki to rich indigo, revealing a budding flame encapsulated in the glass caress of a golden lamp, nestled in their whirring chest.
"You're Szabo's shadow, right?" Devan sheathed his sword as the guardian of Monster Town bowed low; their spindly arms and almost acrobatic demeanour a far cry from the stoic mecha general he'd seen in passing.
Devan turned his attention back to Jiro, who waved a hand dismissively,
"I'm fine..." he swallowed, Jack gazing down at them, carved face unreadable.
"Jack," Devan turned to them, "what do you know of the Morning Star?"
Now that caused a flicker of emotion, and their brow furrowed, "depends who's askin'."
"They're the ones who took Jiro." Devan continued, "And they seem like a nasty piece of work. Do you know anything about-?"
"I'll stop ya there." They raised a finger, "it's probably yes, but now ain't the time to chat. We've gotta get your friend to the med bay."
Devan nodded, ignoring Jiro's protests as he slung his arm over his shoulder,
"I said I'm fine."
"And I said I'd help you." Devan retorted, "Jack, let Szabo know what happened, and then Qilin. This must be kept quiet. If our security has been compromised, I don't want anyone else finding the weak points."
"Gotcha." Jack slung their rifle from their back, "but first, I've gotta deal with this lil' cave."
Devan and Jiro stepped away from the mouth, watching Jack take lazy aim from the hip, a blast erupting from the slender barrel of surprising intensity. The wall crumbled, closing the cave mouth beneath a pile of rubble and grit, preventing anyone else from wandering in by mistake.
"I'll send you guys to the castle," Jack sheathed their rifle, "then go to the Core Hospital. I'll make sure your horse gets back safe and sound too."
"Thank you, Jack." Jiro said, allowing Jack to lean down from their teetering height.
Their fingers elongated and closed around them both in a dome, energy dancing between their digits as their magic awoke the warp core hanging from around Jiro's neck. A familiar green light cocooned them, before the gyroscopic light faded and they were gone.
Jack gazed up at the light of dawn, allowing their cloak to fade back to dappled leaves as they vanished back into the undergrowth.
This was quite something to get up to; the Morning Star had become a threat overnight.
Qilin would be shocked, and Taab would be delighted at the opportunity to tear them apart in her own special way.
But for now, he had to play the messenger, whispering into the ear of the king that a new threat was afoot.