Archive of Our Own ^beta

Chapter Text

It was a pretty pleasant day. Things were peaceful, the weather was nice and clear, and Jack Van Burace and Rudy Roughknight were content to lay in the grass under their favorite tree in the city of Adlehyde. The wind-mouse Hanpan was curled up on Jack’s chest, Jack’s hat resting on his face as he dozed.

Footsteps caught their attention and Rudy sat up on his elbows, looking up at the woman approaching them.

“Hey, guys.” Dr. Emma Hetfield grinned down at them, her hands resting on her hips. “You busy today?”

“As you can see, we have a very full schedule of doing absolutely nothing.” Jack tipped his hat up a bit, looking up at her. “Unless you have a job for us?”

“Well, not exactly.” She smirked a bit and looked at Rudy. “We found Ahnen Erbe.”

Rudy’s eyes widened and he got up and Jack sat up, Hanpan rolling onto his lap as he did. “What?” Jack asked, confused.

“Ahnen Erbe.” Emma repeated. “It’s where Old Man Zepet found Rudy?” She clarified.

“Ohhh.” Jack got up and stretched, Hanpan hopping up onto his shoulder. “Yeah, that’s worth giving up a day of lazing around. So, what about it?”

“I figured you guys would want to come see it. We can go get the Queen, too.” Emma grinned.

“You don’t think she’ll be too busy being royalty?” Jack asked, looking towards Adlehyde Castle.

“Trust me, that girl has a Dream Chaser’s spirit.” Emma assured him. “On that note, maybe we can pick up Jane, too! I’m sure she’d love to learn more about Rudy!”

Rudy nodded, then walked towards the castle.

“I guess we’re going.” Jack shrugged and followed him, Emma right behind him.

–

Queen Cecilia Lynne Adlehyde was, as expected, bored on her throne. So bored, in fact, she was considering getting up and going to the kitchen to find something to occupy her stomach, if not her mind. To her delight, a distraction came in the way of her best friends in the whole wide world coming in with Dr. Emma.

“Oh, thank the Guardians. What do you have for me?” She said, sitting up straighter in her seat, ignoring the long-suffering look Minister Johan gave her.

“We’re going to Ahnen Erbe!” Jack declared. “Wanna come?”

“Absolutely!” Cecilia got off her throne. “That’s where Old Man Zepet found Rudy, right? I’m SO in! Let me go get into something more comfortable!” She picked up her stuffy skirts and hurried off. “I can’t believe you finally found it!”

“I suppose I’m taking care of Adlehyde in her absence again.” Minister Johan said, watching her go.

“We shouldn’t be gone as long, this time.” Jack assured him.

“That’s right! The world isn’t exactly at stake!” Hanpan chimed in.

Rudy nodded, looking a bit excited at the thought of going to his found-place.

After waiting a bit, Cecilia came back down in her old adventuring outfit, her long hair tied back into a braid to keep it out of the way. “Alright, let’s go! Right now!”

“First, we’re going to drop by Court Seim.” Emma informed her. “Jane will want to see this, for sure. And then, well, we’ve got to do a bit of hiking.” She pulled out a map and showed it to them. “See this right here? It’s too small for the Gullwing to get in, so we have to walk from the beach to our destination.”

“We can handle a hike!” Cecilia assured her. “Let’s get going!”

“Alright, let’s head out!” Jack said, pumping his fist into the air.

They walked out of the castle together, leaving Minister Johan behind as he let out a heavy sigh.

“Be safe on your journey, Your Majesty.” He called after them. “I pray you will not find danger there.”

–

Jane Maxwell, of course, was on-board with the idea of going to see where Rudy was found and eagerly walked into their flying craft, the Gullwing, without so much as a blown kiss to her father on her way out.

“So, do you think we’re going to find out more about Rudy there?” Jane asked as she looked out the window, watching the landscape move past at a quick pace.

“We can hope! Zepet didn’t say much about the place, just that it was some kind of factory.” Emma said, looking at her.

“Well, maybe Rudy was made in that factory?” Cecilia asked. “There were supposedly more like him, at one time, right?”

“According to what little we have found on the matter, there were eight Holmcross built for each golem, but that’s as far as our research has gotten us.” Emma informed her. “Everything else has been lost to time, so all we can do is guess. That skeleton we put on display at the Exhibition Gallery was once thought to be one of the demon skeletons, but ever since we found out about Rudy, I’ve thought that it might actually be one of the older Holmcross.”

“One of Rudy’s predecessors, huh?” Jack looked at him. “Wouldn’t that be something, if true?”

Rudy nodded, focusing his gaze on the skies ahead as he piloted the Gullwing.

Soon, they reached the beach they would be hiking from and slowly set down. It was a bit of a tight fit, but they managed it. Then they got out and looked up at the trail that had long grown over.

“Right…” Emma sighed. “I guess it has been nearly eighteen years, hasn’t it, kid?” She looked at Rudy.

“No one’s maintained it, so it’s all overgrown.” Jack pulled out his sword and sliced at some foliage in the way. “Sure you want to come, Jane?” He looked at her.

“Excuse me?” She scoffed and walked forward. “I’m Calamity Jane, remember? I’m not going to be stopped from finding any kind of treasure!” She pulled out a knife and cut through the plants before walking on.

“Let’s get going.” Jack looked at the others and then they followed her.

–

Rudy would be lying if he said he wasn’t feeling a little apprehensive. On the one hand, they could find out more about him. On the other, this could end up leading to nothing and he’d still have nothing but questions as to his origins. And if he did find anything, he could find out something horrible about himself, worse than “you’re actually secretly an artificially-created human with the body of a demon”, which earned him disdain from both the Elw and the Guardians. Not to mention the humans that already didn’t like him just because he was unnaturally strong. What if he found out he was created to destroy the human race, actually? He couldn’t bear the thought.

But, the uncertainty had been secretly eating at him, and he’d gone to the Sealed Library with Cecilia’s help many times trying to find anything, any clue, any sign that he was human, despite it all, that he wasn’t a demon in actuality.

Though he never told her why he was looking. He wondered if she had told Emma, and so Emma decided to find Ahnen Erbe for him. He didn’t mean to cause them any inconvenience.

The hike was nice, at least. The day was good for it, and even if he didn’t find anything he could at least say that he had a good time with his friends exploring a new location.

They reached the top of the hill and walked on, their hands on their weapons for any sign of monsters. A Balloon appeared and was quickly dispatched and then they walked on.

“So, what are we looking for?” Cecilia asked, looking around.

“We saw it from overhead, didn’t we? There was a building.” Jack reminded her.

“I honestly didn’t notice.” She admitted. “I was distracted by the conversation.”

“Well, we’ve got a bit to go yet.” Jack assured her. “Rudy, how you holding up?”

“I’m okay.” He said quietly, nodding.

“Good. You nervous? Excited?” Jack prompted.

Rudy appreciated his efforts. He had been trying to get Rudy to talk more for the past few years, ever since they met, but he still barely spoke unless it was necessary. So, Jack would do this thing where he tried to get him to engage in small-talk in ways he couldn’t just nod or shake his head in response to.

“Both.” Rudy admitted.

“Any special reason why you picked both?” Jack asked, clearly not letting him out of the conversation that easily.

“I’m excited to see where I was found…but nervous about what else we might find there.” Rudy admitted.

“That’s understandable.” Jack nodded. “Could find another sealed demon, like we found on Malduke.”

“It’s too bad we can’t go back up there.” Cecilia sighed.

“Yeah. That place is a technological marvel that I’d love to study further, but we just don’t have the technology required to rebuild Ka Dingel anymore.” Emma looked up at the second moon hovering in the sky, the defunct colony abandoned a thousand years ago after the demons took it over.

“What if we found some more blueprints?” Jane asked eagerly. “You could revive some old technology, like you did with the Gullwing!”

“Well, we can hope!” Emma smiled at her.

–

Soon, they stopped at the top of a path going down and saw the ruins in the distance. “Not much farther now!” Cecilia said, looking at Rudy.

He nodded, smiling. She smiled and took his hand before releasing it and walking down the narrow trail.

“I wonder if they had other ways of getting here before?” Emma asked as they walked. “Maybe this hill used to be flat ground a thousand years ago.”

“Maybe.” Jack shrugged.

They stepped off the trail and spread out a little more as they walked towards the ruins.

“The door’s been blasted off.” Jane remarked as they walked past a dented door mostly buried in the ground. “And not recently.”

“Zepet’s doing?” Jack asked.

“No, I think it’s much, much older.” Emma said, kneeling to look at the door, then got up and looked at the building. “This building has taken some serious damage.”

“Well, let’s go in. Zepet went in, so it must be stable.” Cecilia suggested.

“Well, that’s not one-hundred percent true. I mean, Lolithia’s Tomb wasn’t the most stable of places.” Jack reminded her as they walked in.

As they walked in, they could see signs of some kind of fight. Tiny holes in the wall, damaged doors, skeletons lying around dressed in some tattered old clothing that was barely recognizable as clothes anymore. A silver necklace dangled off the neck of the nearest skeleton and Jack knelt down to take it off the corpse.

“That has to be disrespectful.” Cecilia commented.

Jack looked at the engraving on the silver. “Hm…I don’t know this language. It looks kind of like some of the stuff in the Sealed Library we can’t read.”

“So, it’s from a long time ago, then.” Jane said, stepping away from the dead body.

“Guess so.” Jack showed it to Hanpan. “Any idea what it says?”

Hanpan looked at it, his nose twitching a bit. “Hm…it’s a name. I think this is an old military tag, used for identification long ago.”

“So, this guy is military?” Jack asked.

“Yeah.” Hanpan nodded. “Seems so. I’m not sure if they were attacking or defending this place, but he died fighting here.”

“He’s pointed in.” Rudy spoke up quietly, catching everyone off-guard by his choosing to speak without prompting. “He was attacking.” He walked towards another corpse on the ground. “This guy, too.”

“Who, or what, were they fighting?” Jack asked.

“They were shot,” Rudy knelt down next to a body, “by an ARM. But, these weapons here aren’t ARMs.” He picked up one of their fallen weapons, opening it. “It looks like some kind of Elw power source, like the Kizim Fire, but it’s drained of power.”

“The ARMs were seen as dangerous for a long time, but I’ve never heard of this other type.” Emma admitted, walking over to look at it. “Maybe you could take it to the Elw Dimension, see if anyone recognizes it?”

“Maybe.” Rudy nodded, then turned and walked on, passing by the rest of the corpses.

“You’d think Zepet would’ve mentioned all the dead bodies.” Jack said as they walked through. “This is like a warzone. I’ve never seen so many bodies, not since…well, since we stopped the demons once and for all.”

“A lot of unburied dead.” Cecilia said, frowning. “You’d expect ghosts, wouldn’t you?”

“Don’t jinx it.” Jack cringed.

They walked on until they reached the end of the trail of bodies, where they saw another skeleton resting against a wall next to a door. Jack walked forward and tried to open it, but it wouldn’t budge.

“What’s the deal?” He frowned, kicking it.

Rudy walked forward and placed his hand on Jack’s shoulder, then pointed up. There was some kind of square device next to the door, and Rudy reached up to place his hand against it. It glowed green and then the door opened, revealing a room with ARMs cases inside.

“This is it.” Emma said, walking over to look at an open ARMs case big enough to hold a human baby. “This must be where he found you.”

“Oh…you must’ve been so small…” Jane walked over to look at it as well, then checked one of the other cases. “These have weapons in them, but he didn’t take them?”

“Why take weapons when he found something much more interesting?” Emma looked at her.

Rudy looked over at the side wall and frowned, walking towards it. There was a room beyond it, barely noticeable, and the wall was actually rubble but not from anything inside. It seemed like someone tried to destroy the place from above, but failed and only caused the wall to come loose here. He could see a bit of sunlight shining in. He equipped his Power Glove and slammed it into the wall, breaking it open.

“Whoa!” Jack said as they looked over. “What’s up?”

Rudy walked inside the room beyond, seeing a larger ARMs case resting alone, the sun shining down on it through cracks in the wall.

“What…is it?” Cecilia asked, walking over to look at it with Jack.

Rudy walked over and placed his hand on the ARMs case, mentally syncing with it just like the door, and it unlocked as all the ARMs cases he’d unlocked had done. Then he opened it and stopped short, his eyes widening.

There was no gun inside, but a young man that was curled up in a fetal position. He had long, light-blue hair and pale skin, and he was dressed in clothes for light weather, a white long-sleeved shirt and matching green (as well as some orange and brown pattern like autumn leaves) pants, vest and scarf. His feet and hands were concealed with black boots and brown gloves. He seemed to be asleep, but he didn’t see any sign of the stranger breathing.

“Hanpan.” He looked at him.

Hanpan hopped up and moved closer. “Hm…looks like another dead body, but it’s perfectly preserved.” He remarked. “I could check for some ID, maybe we could give him a proper burial?”

“Are we going to bury the guys out there?” Jack asked.

Rudy felt bad for this young man. Someone had clearly intended to keep him safe, locking him in an ARMs case, but they weren’t intended for humans. It was a wonder that he was preserved at all. He reached out to place his hand on the stranger’s shoulder and was hit with a strange jolt of energy. A question appeared in his mind, some kind of mental prompt:

[Reactivate System H-08, Y/N?]

‘Uh…Yes?’ He thought, then gasped as the body started to breathe under his hand.

–

[System restart…]

That was impossible; there was no one alive to awaken him now. But, still, he could feel himself being pulled from the grips of what he intended to be an eternal stasis, distant voices reaching his ears. And cold…why was it so cold…?

“Hey, he’s alive after all!” Another man’s voice cried in surprise. “Rudy, what did you do?”

“Nothing…I just touched his shoulder.” A boy’s voice replied, his voice almost a whisper.

“Are you the one who woke me?” Lips unused for what felt like decades said, as the man curled up in the human-size ARMs case slowly uncurled and sat up. Green eyes gazed into orange ones as the light-blue-haired man in the box looked up at a blue-haired teenager, who had to be no older than eighteen. He looked at his shoulder, which the teenager had his hand resting on, and then back at the stranger before him.

“Why?” He asked, reaching up to move his hand. The teenager grew flustered and moved it himself, his other arm grasping that one awkwardly once it was back at his side. There was a large gauntlet on the hand that had been resting on his shoulder.

Now that he was standing up straight, the man in the box could get a better look at him. He had short, blue hair, brown-orange eyes and pale skin, with a red vest over a white t-shirt, both of which had seen better days. His jeans, also damaged, were blue and he wore brown gloves and boots. He also wore a red bandana, and the man in the box was hit with a pang of grief as he thought of another he knew that had a similar style. He had a holstered gun at his side.

“You ask ‘why’, but we honestly didn’t know you were alive!” A woman's voice said, and he looked to the side to see a blonde woman that looked around twenty with green eyes standing near the box. She was dressed in a blue jacket that had a red hood over a light-brown corset and a black shirt with a mini-skirt that matched her jacket. Her legs were covered with maroon-and-black striped leggings with brown ankle boots that had green socks visible over the leggings a little. Her long, blonde hair was tied back into a braid tied with a red ribbon that matched her red headband. She carried some kind of pole with a round top that had some strange design in her pale hands, and the man vaguely recognized it as a magic staff.

'A mage?' He thought. 'Great.'

“When we saw you inside, we thought this was a grave!” She went on, unaware of his silent disdain.

“It was intended to be.” The man replied shortly. “Why have you awakened me? Are the Demons back?”

“We don’t even know who the heck you are!” A man said, walking over. “Why would we intentionally wake you up? We thought this was a treasure chest! Anyway, sorry, but the Demons are all dead. Have been for a few years.”

This stranger was the oldest of the trio, maybe in his thirties, a blond man with long hair tied back into a ponytail. He was also pale, though not as pale as the other two, and wore a brown trench-coat over a white shirt and blue jeans that were tucked into brown boots. He carried a sword at his side and looked at him with wary, brown eyes. He carried himself like a warrior.

“Dead…?” The man in the box breathed, realizing what he'd said. “All of them? Even Alhazad?”

The blond man frowned. “Yeah. You seem shocked.”

“I had been trying to kill him for years before his sealing.” The man in the box said, slowly standing up. “Who sent you?”

“No one ‘sent’ us, we were just exploring these ruins, that’s all.” The blond man said. “As I said, we didn’t even realize you were alive and had full intention to bury you somewhere after we found your…identifying thingie.”

The young man reached into his shirt and pulled out a silver necklace with dog-tags as the centerpiece. “You mean these?” He asked flatly.

“Yeah, those things!” He nodded.

“Were you in the military, too?” The girl asked.

“Yes.” He dropped the chain, letting the tags rest on his vest. “Who are you people?”

“I’m Jack,” the blond man said, “This girl is Cecilia, and the one who apparently woke you is Rudy. Who are you?”

“…I am H-08: Wesson.” He looked at Rudy. “…You can use the ARM, can’t you? And not like other humans.”

Rudy shook his head.

“Rudy’s…not a human.” Cecilia explained. “He’s a Holmcross, or so we were told, a man-made humanoid.”

“I know what a Holmcross is.” Wesson said curtly, getting out of the box and reaching in to pick up a book, goggles and a revolver before he shut the lid. “I also know exactly who ‘Rudy’ is.” He looked at him, his expression softening. “I knew the one that your appearance was based on, I knew you when you were created. I deactivated you and put you in an ARMs case to protect you. You’re H-09; the last Holmcross ever built.”

He then looked at the others. “You resemble the Queen of Adlehyde I once knew. Queen Amelia?”

“Well, I’m the current Queen of Adlehyde.” Cecilia brought her hand to her necklace, the Tear Drop passed down along her family line. “So, she must’ve been my ancestor.”

“It’s been one thousand years since the great Demon War.” Jack informed him. “You’ve…been asleep a long time.”

“Clearly.” Wesson said dryly. “So, what rank do you hold?”

“I’m a Dream Chaser, I hold no rank.” Jack grinned. “I go where treasure is found and money is flowing!”

“What’s the difference between a Dream Chaser and a run-of-the-mill treasure hunter?” Wesson asked, raising an eyebrow.

“Uhm…same thing, different name?” Jack shrugged. “Anyways, as we said, the demons are gone. They came back three years ago, but we took care of them.”

“Huh. That’s a relief. I’m going to guess that they didn’t have their full forces, though, if you managed it with minimal casualties.” Wesson shielded his eyes from the sun shining in from a damaged wall.

Jack flinched, clenching his fits as he thought about what he’d lost. “‘Minimal’…” He muttered, trying to keep himself from lashing out. He didn’t know, he shouldn’t lash out, he was better than this…

“Oh, well…it wasn’t…we had casualties.” Cecilia said quietly. “We…my father…and the Kingdom of Arctica, it was hit first, and…well…”

He looked at her, lowering his hand. “...I’m sorry. That was insensitive of me to say. Still, it’s good that they’re no longer a threat. I’m sure Amelia would be proud of you, Shaman.”

“What happened here?” Hanpan asked. “There were a lot of bodies on the way in here.”

“Oh. I put those there.” Wesson replied. “Well, I didn’t do it alone, but…yeah.” He sighed. “They were trying to kill us, so we killed them. But, they just kept coming, and we were cornered…we couldn’t keep running. So, mom…told me to lock little 9 - Rudy - and myself into these cases, where no one that can’t use an ARM could get to us. After all…no one that uses an ARM was on their side.”

“What happened?” Rudy asked gently.

“...It’s…a long story.” Wesson sighed and turned to him. “What do you know about what happened to the Holmcross?”

“Honestly…nothing. I didn’t even know I was one until…well..” He clutched at his arm. “We were fighting Zeikfried…he tried to pull me into the Gate with him…I had to shoot off my arm to get free, and…I barely remember what happened next. I mean…one moment I think I’m human, the next, I just cut off my arm and what’s sticking out isn’t bone but…metal. Cold, sparking metal. I…kind of shut down?” Rudy chuckled nervously. “Started going into a panic attack. And then…well, I was brought to meet an Elw named Vassim, who fixed my arm and told me what I was.”

“Vassim…” Wesson’s gaze darkened a bit, and then he shook his head. “No…it wasn’t his fault what happened.” He took a deep breath, then smiled. “I’m glad he’s still alive. And his sister, Mariel, do you know her?”

“We do! She’s the one that introduced us!” Cecilia nodded.

“What’s going on in here?” A young woman’s voice said as two people came into the room.

“Who are you?!” Wesson said, aiming his revolver at them.

“It’s okay, they’re friends!” Jack said as Rudy moved between Wesson’s ARM and the newcomers.

“...You trust them?” Wesson asked.

Rudy nodded. “This is Emma, an ARMsmeister, and this is Jane, who uses the ARM.”

Jane was a peachy-skinned girl with long, wavy blonde hair and brown eyes wearing a fancy orange and white dress and brown boots that came in with a gun in her hand. Emma, on the other hand, was an older, bespectacled woman that had pale skin and blue eyes with green hair cut into a bob, and she was wearing a green dress with a slit that went up too high for Wesson's liking with yellow accents with a pink over-shirt over it. On her feet were sheer, black tights and green shoes that matched her dress and she also carried a gun, though this gun had a fist attached.

“...You use the ARM, so you’re trustworthy.” Wesson nodded, slipping his gun into a holster on his belt. Then he glanced at what Rudy was holding in his other hand. “Why do you have that?”

“We picked it up off a corpse.” Jack explained.

“Destroy it.” Wesson said firmly. “That’s a Vuarnet gun. It’s too powerful to exist. Anyone can use one, and it’s as strong as an ARM.”

Rudy aimed the gun at the wall and pulled the trigger. When nothing happened, he handed it over and Wesson accepted it.

“The Blemil Stone…it’s dark.” Wesson murmured. “Do these things…expire?” He looked it over, then dropped the weapon with disdain. “Well, good riddance to that.”

“So…who is this guy?” Jane asked.

“We found him in a box!” Jack gestured to it.

“I am called H-08: Wesson.” Wesson brought his now-free hand to his chest. “I am the eighth Holmcross created by the United Nations to battle the demon army.”

“Whooooa. You mean, you’re a living, breathing, original Holmcross?!” Emma ran over and grabbed his arm, earning a yelp of alarm. “This is amazing! Just like Rudy, you can’t tell that you’re not flesh-and-blood human! And these muscles, wow, you work out, don’t you? I bet you’ve been in so many battles! Is it true you rode a Golem?”

“Ugh, a fanatic! Get off!” Wesson jerked his arm away from her.

“You have to understand, there is virtually nothing on you!” Emma said excitedly. “All we’ve had are old books that barely mentioned the Holmcross and it was only once Rudy found out he was one that we realized, we might have found a Holmcross skeleton! But, of course, it’d be better for an expert to confirm–”

“Do you ever stop talking?” Wesson asked bluntly.

Emma stopped mid-sentence and looked a bit sheepish. “I’m sorry, you just woke up after a thousand years and I’m overwhelming you. We can discuss that later! What’s your story? How did you end up here? What happened to the Holmcross?”

“...The war happened.” He said, his gaze distant, as if he was seeing shadows of his past. “And…after the war, they didn’t need us anymore, so they…those of us left….well, when you don’t need a tool anymore, you put it away, right? But…we couldn’t just be…put away.”

He sighed and turned away from them, clutching the book and goggles close to his chest. “As far as my memories go, it was eight years ago when things started to go downhill. I was ten years old, the youngest of eight Holmcross to match the eight Golems.” He turned back to them, then walked over and sat on the now-closed box.

“Okay, so let’s give you a refresher on what you may or may not have heard before.” He said, adjusting himself to get comfortable. “One hundred years before my time, and a thousand-and-one-hundred years before yours, give or take a few decades, strange creatures came to Filgaia in a ship that crashed down in the Kingdom of Arctica. Before people even knew they had arrived, they had already sent out their forces to attack the people of Filgaia.”

“The Photosphere.” Cecilia nodded. “We’ve been there.”

“Well, they had another ship, too, that was up above and too big to land. So, the Photosphere was basically a stronghold but most of their forces were actually in space.” Wesson informed her.

“We’ve been to Demon Gate, too.” Jack chimed in.

“Okay, so you know all that. Moving on to what you don’t know.” Wesson waved his hand dismissively. “The people of Filgaia, of course, fought back, but it wasn’t easy. These creatures were like nothing they’d ever fought and were similar to ancient legends of the Abyss long forgotten, so they called them ‘Demons’ after the ancient legends.”

He leaned forward a bit. “After years of fighting with loads of casualties and trial and error, the people of Filgaia finally made something that could stand up to the Demons - the ARM. As you know, they’re powerful enough to take out a weaker demon in only a few shots, only one if the ARM is tuned up enough, and the only issue is that because the ARM’s strength came from the willpower of the human mind, so only certain people could use it. So, people were tested, young and old, and if they could use an ARM they were sent out to fight while those that couldn’t were focused on making sure civilians were safe and they ran messages back and forth, staying away from the battle itself. Regular, non-ARM guns barely made a dent, especially on the more powerful Demons, and took a lot more ammo.”

“You never see non-ARM guns anymore, aside from in exhibits.” Jane remarked. “I guess there wasn’t much point to making more when ARMs were so powerful. So, if the ARMs were so powerful, why did they struggle?”

“Well, as I said, not many people could actually use the ARM, and they tended to be picky about their wielders.” Wesson shrugged. “So, fifty years after the invasion started, they decided to build something big enough to defend a city and capable of following orders. They made mechanical giants called ‘Golems’, each with their own abilities, and they were assigned to handle large groups of demons or to guard important cities. But…they were huge. Too big, too unwieldy, too difficult to move around and they couldn’t safely go into town and fight without massive damage. So, they downsized. They made smaller golems, human-sized but much more powerful and faster, that could automatically sync with ARMs and could handle themselves in a fight one on a hundred. Each smaller golem would be able to take the place of one hundred men on the battlefield, even if disarmed. And they called us ‘Holmcross’.”

“Holmcross.” Rudy nodded. “So, we’re small golems?”

“Yep.” Wesson nodded. “Except we were made with Living Metal created from Illusion magic and Life magic and little bits of demon anatomy from studying them. And they built eight in total, to match with the golems. And we were, uh, expensive to make and only the military knew what we were….at first. Most people thought we were enhanced humans, until they found out the truth. But, we’ll get to that.”

He hopped off the box and started to pace a bit as he spoke.

“We all had our specific ARMs that we synched with best.” He went on. “There was H-01: Benelli, who used a shotgun. H-02: Jaivan, used a handcannon; even gave it a name like a weirdo. H-03: Koch used a submachine gun. H-04: Luger used a pistol, while H-05: Springfield could sync easily with anything, though he preferred a musket. By the way, we’ll be getting back to his ability to sync with anything later.”

He leaned back on the box a bit. “H-06: Colt, who you were based on appearance-wise, used a rifle, Rudy. Then there was H-07: Nils; my best friend and brother, who used bombs and a rocket launcher. And me?” He pulled out his revolver. “Well, as you can see, I use a revolver. I used two, before, but…I lost one.” He slipped it back into its holster.

He climbed up and sat on the box, pulling one knee up to his chest. “We served the United Nations under the command of General Arthur Lennox, and were brought into the world by an Elw named Dr. Alana Sylvestre and a human named Dr. Albert Tiggs, and later his daughter Dr. Jessica Tiggs.”

“What’s the United Nations?” Cecilia asked.

“...Okay, I know that it’s been a thousand years, but don’t you study your history?” Wesson looked at her.

“History class is kind of…boring to listen to?” She said, smiling awkwardly.

“You’re a Queen. Do better.” He said flatly.

“Okay, okay, so the truth is that history is just kind of…not talked about.” Cecilia admitted. “In fact, the truth is, even the Guardians were all but forgotten, until the demons attacked again. The demon war was a scary story you tell your kids at bedtime and…yeah.”

“...Okay, then.” Wesson nodded. “The United Nations were an alliance of all the nations of Filgaia. Adlehyde, Arctica, Slayheim, Guild Galad, Heralda, Desperado and the Elw Union.” He explained. “Over the course of the war, we lost most of the Nations to the demons. Guild Galad was destroyed when I was eight years old, Heralda was destroyed when I was nine, Desperado was barely hanging in there when I was twelve and Slayheim was destroyed when I was thirteen. After that, the Elw started to leave and it was down to Aldehyde and Arctica to handle the demons with the Guardians, us Holmcross, the Golems and whoever else was left. Princess, later Queen, Amelia was…really struggling those last few years.”

“That's…wow.” Cecilia breathed. “That's a lot. So…what happened? I mean…how did you seal the demons? You said things went downhill when you were ten years old?”

Wesson nodded. “Yeah.” He sighed, closing his eyes. “I guess a good place to start is Harvey's Corner. That's when we started to fracture. It was a routine mission; go in, fight the demons, save the citizens, get out. It should've been an easy mission, but…people made mistakes. Specifically, Colt and Springfield made some big mistakes. Colt had stopped a truck taking away citizens, but blown it up in the process causing a lot of people to be badly injured. And Springfield accidentally caused a cave-in, which crushed a lot of people trying to escape the mines. It was a mess of a mission, but at that time, all we cared about was that we got the job done.” He clutched at the book tightly. “We were so naive, back then…”

*****

Chapter Text

“H-04! A lovely day, isn’t it?” A man said as he came out to swab the deck of the ship. 

The person in question was a young man with pale-yellow skin standing at the railing of the ship. He had sandy-blond hair that reached to just past his shoulders and was dressed in a steel-gray jacket that zipped up to the middle of his neck and matching pants tucked into black combat boots. On his hands were black gloves with a black strap around the cuffs of his jacket to tighten it and on his arm was a silver patch in the shape of a shield that had [0-4] printed on it. The wind blew through his hair and he reached up a hand to brush a stray strand behind his ear before turning his violet eyes towards the sailor.

“Yes, it is.” The man looked towards the deck-swabber, the pistol ARM at his side bumping against his hip as he turned. “And, it’s alright to call me ‘Luger’, you know. I rarely go by my number unless I’m talking to a senior officer.”

The man laughed. “Alright, I’m sorry. I’m still getting used to it, I suppose. Well then, Luger, are you glad to be going home?”

“This ship IS my home, but I am glad to be returning to Adlehyde. I have missed the castle and its library.” Luger admitted.

“And the young princess, no doubt?” The man grinned. “You seem so fond of her.”

“I won’t deny that she’s one of the reasons I enjoy visiting the castle.” Luger smiled fondly. “We all have grown rather fond of her, even though some of us try to deny it. She has that air about her that makes you feel at ease with her.”

“Perhaps because of the Guardian Shaman training she has been doing?” The man asked. “How old is she now?”

“She is fifteen years old and already looks as regal as her mother.” Luger nodded, then walked over to open the door to the cabin. “I pray to the Guardians that she will be just as strong as her.”

“Don’t we all?” The man remarked as Luger passed through the doorway. “The Queen isn’t looking her best lately.”

Luger shut the door behind him and ran his hand through his hair with a grim expression. It was true, the war had been taking its toll on Queen Eleanor’s health, as it did her mother and grandmother before her. Being the Shaman of the guardians was taxing on the body and mind, from what he understood.

But, such thoughts were not his to concern himself over. He had his role in this world and he would fulfill his duty to the best of his ability.

Speaking of duties, two people had managed to both succeed and fail their mission at the same time, and that would have to be dealt with.

Ahead of him, as if summoned by his thoughts, were two teenage boys with light skin and green eyes, though the similarities stopped there. One had blue hair, a red headband and a purple winter scarf tied around his neck over his uniform t-shirt and green pants with brown boots and gloves, while his companion had long, red hair tied into a braid and was dressed in similar clothes to the blue-haired boy, but with a green jacket over his shirt and black boots with no gloves, but a book in his hands that he was very focused on. Both their jackets, though the one with blue hair wore his wrapped around his waist, bore a shield insignia on the sleeve reading [H-05] and [H-06] respectively, and both wore dog-tags with the same numbers engraved on them - not that you could see 06’s tags properly through his regulation-defying scarf.

“Hey, Luger.” The blue-haired teenager grinned, leaning against the hallway wall. “Me and Springfield were gonna find Wesson and Nils, get some lunch. Join us?”

“You sure are acting rather relaxed, considering your blunder.” Luger frowned. “Imagine what Jaivan will do when he hears, Colt.”

Colt flinched a bit, then forced a smile. “I did fine.” He waved it off and walked down the hall with his hands tucked into his pockets. His red-haired companion followed quietly, a book in his hands.

“We’ll see.” Luger said, walking after them. “Where ARE the two troublemakers?"

“Oh, most likely making a mess of things trying to kill each other.” Colt said, grinning. “Aren’t they just adorable that way?”

“I’m pretty sure it’s all Nils trying to kill Wesson for something miniscule.” Springfield said, not looking up from his book. “Wesson doesn’t really have the capacity to try to kill someone he’s close to. He adores him too much, something we can’t really comprehend.”

“You’re gonna hit someone.” Colt remarked, and then quickly dodged as a blur of blue and camo ran past him, slamming into Springfield. “Whoa!”

“Owww!” The blur had hit the ground at the same time as Springfield did.

The blur, once halted in its movement, was a young boy with  light blue hair in a ponytail just past his shoulders with bangs parted at the front and held in place by a green headscarf over the top of his head. He was wearing a smaller version of Colt and Springfield's green and white outfit with longer sleeves and a vest in place of the jacket as well as a pair of sturdy brown gloves. He didn't wear the shield-shaped insignia, but like the others he was wearing dog-tags on a chain around his neck – his reading [H-08].

“Oops! Sorry, Springfield!” He looked up with bright green eyes.

“…It’s fine.” Springfield said, picking up his book and standing. “I had a bookmark already in place.”

“What were you running from?” Luger asked, an amused smile on his face like he already knew.

A moment later, that question was answered when an annoyed-looking preteen stepped out of a room. The kid had a medium dark complexion and narrow eyes hidden behind a pair of goggles he'd pulled over his face. He was wearing brown cargo pants and black boots, a thick jacket equally covered in pockets with a shield reading [H-07], well-worn fingerless gloves, and a theoretically white t-shirt covered in soot. His thick, coily hair was almost the same color as the soot and it grew in a wide manner over his shoulders. His furious dark brown eyes focused on Wesson, who was looking like a deer in headlights.

“Ah. Hello, Nils. We’re going to go eat. Join us?” Luger asked pleasantly.

Nils lifted the dirty goggles to his head, shook soot off himself and scowled. “I’m already having a Wesson sandwich!”

“What did he do this time?” Luger asked, moving to block Nils’ path to Wesson.

“I accidentally screwed up a mixture he was making in the munitions lab.” Wesson said sheepishly. “Read something wrong, put in the wrong thing and it poofed into smoke.”

“Well, get yourself cleaned up, Nils, and start over after lunch. It’s an easy mistake.” Luger assured him. “We’ll be back in Adlehyde by tonight, so let’s try to be intact enough to report on the mission.”

Wesson looked down glumly. “Poor Harvey’s Corner.”

Nils looked ready to strangle someone, but relented and left to go get cleaned up. Luger sighed. “Wesson? Next time, don’t help. You don’t have a head for munitions.”

“Yes, sir…” Wesson said, sheepishly, rubbing at the back of his head as he bowed it.

–

After Nils cleaned up and rejoined them, they went to the cafeteria. Inside, the other soldiers were talking amongst themselves, but it all stopped short and silent when Colt kicked the door open and walked in, the others behind him. “Springfield, can you secure our table? I’m gonna escort the kids to get food.”

“I can get my own food!” Wesson insisted, heading for the line. “I’m ten years old, I’m a big boy!”

Springfield looked at Colt who shrugged before laughing, then turned to “secure their table” as Colt suggested. “Ten years is not as wise as one might think.” He remarked, sitting down and continuing to read.

“All he DOES is read.” Colt remarked, watching him from the lunch line.

“It’s a good practice. It might do YOU some good to read, Colt.” Luger said, smirking a bit. “Maybe cool your head a little.”

“Psh. I prefer being active in the gym to reading. I’m no good with sitting around.” Colt stretched his arms out, yawning. “Just being in this line bores me!”

“How the hell do you manage to stand at attention then?” Nils muttered, holding out his tray for a plate of mashed potatoes to be placed on it.

“He’s Colt; he can manage a lot if he bothers.” Wesson giggled, picking up one of the bottles of juice and walking on down the line.

“You brats talking about me behind my back?” Colt smirked as he put down two trays to be filled. “I’ll get you for that later.”

“No, we’re talking about you in FRONT of you!” Wesson grinned back towards him, and then went off to their table.

Luger chuckled. “Same old Wesson.” He picked up his tray once it had the juice on it and then went towards the table.

“You ever notice how whenever we walk in, the place goes dead silent?” Colt asked, once they’d all sat down.

“It’s because of your grand entrance, Colt.” Springfield said, closing his book and eating the food that Colt had brought him. “Kicking the door open, no matter how well it swings, is kind of an aggressive move.”

“Oh.” Colt looked towards the door. “Fine, I’ll stop.” He looked at his food and began to eat. “Since you think it’s aggressive, Springfield.”

“Thank you.” Springfield nodded towards him.

“Why do you only care if he thinks it’s aggressive?” A man muttered at a nearby table. Colt just stuck out his tongue at him before going back to his food.

“Don’t forget; you two are going to report your mistake.” Luger said calmly. “I’m not going to do it for you; you have to face your own blunders.”

“We know.” Springfield said, nodding before he forked some of his food and took a bite.

Colt sighed heavily. “I did nothing wrong!” He glared at Luger. “I did as ordered and got the Demons out of there! What ‘blunder’ did I do?”

Wesson shrank into the table, trying to pretend he wasn’t there. “Guys, do you have to argue in here? Right now?” He asked quietly.

“We will discuss this matter with the General.” Luger said calmly. “He’s right; right now is not the best time.”

“We will discuss this NOW!” Colt snapped, standing up and banging his hands on the table. “What the hell did I do wrong?! I did the damn mission, for Guardians’ sake!”

“Colt.” Colt froze and looked towards Springfield, who had set his fork down. “Now is not a good time. We’re trying to eat, the other soldiers are trying to eat, and you’re making a scene. Stop it.”

Colt cringed and sat down, sighing. “…Fine. I’ll wait until we talk to the General.”

Luger sighed softly. “Thank you, Springfield. You’ve always been able to talk sense into him better than I.”

“You’re welcome.” Springfield smiled and continued eating.

–

The air was tense between Luger and Colt for the rest of the trip and Wesson decided to avoid the whole thing, as well as Nils, by climbing up to the Crow’s Nest.

“Not your shift right now.” The sailor already up there remarked.

Wesson sighed. “I know. I just…I needed a place to sit for a bit.” He sat down and curled up next to the man.

“Okay.” The sailor shrugged. “Everything alright, little 8?”

“Well…I don’t know.” Wesson admitted. “Colt knows he hurt people, but he still says he didn’t do anything wrong.”

“Ah, denial can be rough.” The sailor looked through his binoculars. “He’s never hurt people like that before, and he might be in shock about it. It doesn’t change what happened, or that he’s going to be punished for it, but he’s trying to pretend everything is okay to cope with it.”

“What’s going to happen to him?” Wesson looked up at him.

“I dunno, kid. Anyone else, a normal soldier, would be facing a court martial or something, I think. But, you kids aren’t normal soldiers.” The sailor glanced at him. “No offense.”

“No, it’s fine. So, what will happen to them?” Wesson asked earnestly.

“Like I said, I don’t really know.” The sailor shrugged. “But, I doubt they’ll do anything serious. I mean, they gotta have you guys ready to go on the next mission at any time, so you gotta stay in top shape, right? He might just get a reprimand, or be reassigned to Arctica, where he can go crazy on the demons there without risk of hurting civilians.”

“Arctica.” Wesson nodded. “I’ve never been.”

“Well, it’s not exactly a tourist attraction. That’s where the demons have their main army, you know?” He reached down and rubbed his head a bit. “Count yourself lucky that you’re not being sent there, kid. You’re still too young to be facing down that kind of nightmare. Most of the cities in Arctica have been evacuated to the Capital, because they kept being attacked. It is by Aru Sulato’s grace that the Capital still stands, as well as the Arctican army.” He moved his hand back up to his binoculars.

“Doesn’t Adlehyde also have a Guardian protecting it?” Wesson asked.

“Right you are; the Castle Guardian, Zeldukes.” The sailor smiled. “But, even the Guardians are only as strong as their Shaman; never forget that.”

“So, isn’t Aru Sulato’s power also connected to the Shaman?” Wesson asked, getting up.

“Unfortunately, yes. Let us hope that Queen Eleanor holds out until the princess is ready to succeed her.” The sailor nodded grimly.

“Wesson! Get down here!” Luger called. “We’re making landfall soon!”

“Coming!” Wesson called, walking over and climbing down the ladder to rejoin him.

“Go make yourself presentable.” Luger said, adjusting Wesson’s headscarf. “And make sure your report is ready.”

“Yes, sir!” He saluted and headed inside.

He passed by Colt on his way to his room and glanced at him with concern. Was it healthy to be so full of denial that you pretend you did nothing wrong, even when everyone is telling you that you messed up?

“Hey, kid.” Colt greeted, turning to him. “We’re making landfall soon. Try not to piss off Nils just before we arrive, hm?”

Wesson nodded, then turned to him. “Uhm…Colt…you know what happened at Harvey’s Corner was…bad, right?”

Colt pursed his lips. “We were told to stop the demons and save the citizens, so we stopped the demons and saved the citizens. So what if a few of them ended up with broken bones in the process? They’re alive, aren’t they? They’re free, aren’t they? I did nothing wrong!” He turned and stormed off to his room.

Wesson watched him go, rubbing at the back of his neck. “I…hope the General agrees with you, Colt. I really do.”

–

As the S.S. Lucadia pulled in at the port of Adlehyde, a blonde, fair skinned teenager in a delicate blue and white dress stood on the pier waiting, her hands clasped together in front of her abdomen. The sea breeze stung her eyes which were the same shade of blue as the tear-shaped jewel hanging on a chain around her neck  As the ramp lowered and connected with the dock, she bobbed on her feet before walking closer.


“Luger! Welcome back!” She said, smiling brightly.

“Princess!” Luger looked surprised as he walked off the ramp onto the dock. “I thought you had lessons!”

“I’ve finished them for the day, silly!” She smiled and walked up close to him. “I missed you. How was your mission?”

Luger glanced to the side. “…It…could’ve been better. We have evacuees on the ship.”

She nodded. “Let’s make sure they safely get to the encampments prepared.” She made a delicate motion with her hand for him to move on and turned to go.

“Hey, Amelia!” Colt ran on down the ramp, grinning. “How you been, girl?”

“Colt!” She ran forward and hugged him. “I missed you, too!”

“I missed you too, Ames.” He said, hugging her tightly before releasing her. “So, tell me–”

“H-06: Colt! Have some sense of decorum!” 

Colt and Amelia jolted in surprise and Luger saluted as a man walked over to them.

“General Lennox.” Colt said, standing at attention and saluting.

General Arthur Lennox, despite his narrow build, was an imposing man. He wore the steel-blue uniform of Adlehyde's army like it was made for him. The epaulets on his shoulders and the medals on his chest were hardly needed to convey the reputation he'd built over a lifelong military career. His brown hair was cropped short at both the nape and at the front well above his hazel eyes. His one touch of whimsy was a long, thin curling mustache that still somehow evoked authority.

“Princess, I’ll take it from here.” General Lennox told her, stopping in front of them. Behind the duo, Wesson and Nils came down the ramp and stood at attention to salute as well.

“But, General Lennox—” She began to protest.

“Go on, you’ve worried your family enough by taking off without warning.” General Lennox gestured to two guards that had come up. “They will escort you back. And don’t do this again. What if a Demon had attacked you?”

“…Yes, General.” She looked down sadly and turned to Luger. “I’ll see you in the castle, then?”

“After we debrief.” Luger nodded with a smile. She nodded and skipped off to the guards, walking away with them.

General Lennox turned to Luger. “So? How did the mission fare?”

Luger sighed. “I’ll explain in your office, sir. All of us will.” He shot Colt a sharp look, which he cringed in response to.

–

After they had all gathered in General Lennox’s office, he sat down at his desk and laced his fingers together in a thoughtful position. “Report.”

Luger stood at attention. “Yes, sir. We arrived at Harvey’s Corner at 0700 hours as planned, and the situation was worse than we had thought. The Demons had taken over the town, and were using the human inhabitants as slaves to mine the nearby caverns for something. We set to work straight away, first killing the slave-drivers and freeing people in cages that were going to be sent somewhere else.” He paused. “Then, while I challenged the Demon General stationed there, Break, I assigned Colt and the others to rescue the rest of the humans and get them safely onboard.” 

He turned to Colt. “I’ll let Colt explain what happened next.”

Colt sighed. “The situation was pure pandemonium, sir. The citizens we’d already freed were running rampant and not heading for the boat but to what they must’ve thought were the safety of their own homes. The demons had already set up there, so we had to save them AGAIN—“

“Which was fine until Colt shot a truck full of civilians that a Demon was ‘jacking and accidentally blew it up.” Nils cut in. “Thing must’ve been full of dynamite! Kaboom - flying in the air! Er–”

There was a long, stifling silence then, and then the General rose to his feet. “You fired on a vehicle full of civilians?”

“It was being stolen!” Colt insisted. “I couldn’t let him take it!”

“So, fire on the Demon, not the truck!” The General raised his voice, causing Colt to flinch back. “You chose to fire on the truck and injured, possibly KILLED, those civilians with your mistake in judgment!”

“No one died, and I didn’t intend t—” Colt tried to reply, but was firmly cut off by “SILENCE!” and went silent, looking down.

The General sighed and sat down in his chair again. “Continue with the report.”

“Yes, sir.” Springfield stepped forward. “I regret to say, I also ended up harming civilians in my attempt to free them, and I do not know yet how many of them survived their injuries. While battling with the demon keeping me from the miners, I missed hitting him with one of my shots due to him dodging just in time and struck a particular stalactite above, causing a cave-in. It was a grave mistake I could have avoided, and I am willing to accept my punishment.” He looked down solemnly.

“As right you should be.” General Lennox turned to Luger. “Other than the mistakes just mentioned, did everything go well?”

“Yes, sir. General Break was chased off, and the surviving civilians are onboard the ship. I apologize for not killing General Break.” Luger said, looking a bit glum.

General Lennox sighed. “I doubt you could’ve killed him on your own, H-04. That I can forgive. However, H-05 and H-06 will be suspended to their quarters and their ARMs confiscated until further word on their punishments.” He stood up. “They are not to leave their room on the ship for any reason, is that understood?”

“But, sir!” Colt protested.

“Is. That. Under. Stood?” General Lennox repeated firmly, narrowing his eyes at the teen.

“…Yes, sir.” Colt sighed heavily.

“Good. You are all dismissed. Good work to the rest of you, you may now wander around the city as you please. Stay out of trouble.” He sat down and began to rifle through papers on his desk. “Luger, I want you to escort H-05 and H-06 to their quarters and secure their door.”

“Yes, sir.” Luger saluted and then nudged Colt and Springfield out of the room, their hands behind their backs. Wesson and Nils saluted before following.

“Suspended…you ask me, this is the worst punishment ever.” Colt grumbled as they were led to their room.

“Colt, try to take this time to relax.” Springfield said softly.

“We’re here. Hand over your ARMs.” Luger said, holding out his hands for them.

Springfield gave away his musket without trouble, but Colt was very reluctant to hand over his and had to be nudged by Springfield before he handed over his rifle. “Remind me to go to the shooting range and practice once I get that back.” Colt said as Luger took it away.

“I, as well.” Springfield agreed, walking into the room with Colt. The door was closed and locked behind them, and Colt sighed heavily before flopping onto his bed. “Colt, please try to make the most of this. We’re not in the brig.” Springfield said as he sat on his bed and opened his book.

“Yet.” Colt closed his eyes. “I HATE being confined...”

Chapter Text

*****

“What’s a truck?” Emma cut into the story.

“What?” Wesson looked startled by the question. “It’s…It’s a transportation vehicle.” He explained. “Trucks, cars, buses, planes, boats, bikes, motorcycles, and several other types were used to transport people from place to place at fast speeds.”

“Ohh.” Emma nodded, her eyes shining with the thought of learning about all of those.

“This particular truck was one like a big box on wheels, used for carrying cargo. Or, in this case, captured humans.” Wesson clarified. “They were trapped inside unable to get away themselves when Colt fired on the truck.”

“Okay…so, who is ‘General Break’?” Jack asked.

“Wow, you guys really don’t know your history, do you?” Wesson asked, crossing his arms over his chest. “General Break was one of the four Quarter Knights, the Demon Mother’s leading men. While Berserk focused on getting things done as efficiently as possible and Zeikfried rarely got personally involved in fights if he could help it, both Break and Alhazad liked to ‘play with their food’, so to speak. If there was a demon attack, you usually got Berserk or Break leading it – sometimes both, if you were really unlucky.”

“I guess it makes sense there had to have been a Quarter Knight before Elmina was transformed into a demon by Alhazad.” Jack said grimly.

“Yeah…but, the keyword is ‘was’.” Wesson sighed. “May I continue?”

“Oh, right, yeah.” Jack nodded.

“We’re very sorry for interrupting your story.” Cecilia smiled.

“I get the feeling it won’t be the only time.” Wesson smiled wryly, then sighed, uncrossing his arms to rest his hands in his lap, clutching at the goggles and book. “It’s fine. I don’t mind answering your questions, this is your history, after all. Probably the most interesting history class you’ve ever been in, right?”

Cecilia giggled sheepishly at his reminder of her earlier statement. “Yeah…”

“Besides, Guardians know that I was always bugging people with my questions.” Wesson smirked a bit, holding up the goggles with a wistful gaze in his eyes.

*****

“So, what’re we going to do, Nils?” Wesson asked the next day, trailing behind him as they walked through Adlehyde. “I’m bored, let’s go shoot stuff at the range, or find a monster to kill!”

“I need to get materials to replace the ones I lost. You know; the ones you blew up?” Nils shot him a look. “I don’t care what you do; you can go do that if you want.” He walked into the castle.

“Aw, you still on that?” Wesson asked as he followed him. “I said it was an accident!”

“Accidents got Colt and Springfield suspended, remember? And one in the lab can get us killed!” Nils reminded him. “Why are you still following me?” He turned and walked down a hall. “Go find Ben, or Jai, or Lu. Go bother someone else.”

“Nooo, they’re boring and mean!” Wesson wailed, following him down the hall and into a room. “I wanna spend time with my brother!”

“What brother? I’m not your brother! We’re ALL your ‘brothers’!” Nils sighed, walking through the room with a desk and entering the armory. “Why me in particular?”

“You understand me.” Wesson said, walking in after him and looking around. “So many ARMs…I wonder if they had this many before we were made. Hey, Nils, what does ARM stand for again?”

Nils looked at him with a “really” look and shook his head. “How could you forget that? It’s covered in basic training!”

“Well, I forgot! Meanings of names don’t really matter as much as the thing itself!” Wesson pouted.

“Alright, fine. But you better listen this time.” Nils picked up one of the weapons on the wall. “A.R.M., better known as ARM, stands for ‘Artificially Rebirthed Matricide Machine’. Most people cut out the last M though when abbreviating, since A.R.M.M. would be ARMM.” He made an “mm” sound when he finished the word, which made Wesson giggle. “See? Not very impressive, is it?”

“True. Okay, so what does ‘matricide’ mean? Is it a tech word for something?” Wesson asked, looking over his own revolver.

“No. You need to look in the dictionary, kid.” Nils sighed. “I will NOT be your walking encyclopedia all the time. ‘Matricide’ is the act of killing a mother, and the Demons’ leader is…?”

“Oh! The Mother!” Wesson pounded the side of his fist into his palm pointed up. “I understand now! Thanks, Nils! You know a lot!”

“Mmhm. Hm, they don’t seem to have what I need here. I’ll check the other room.” Nils walked out, Wesson following.

“So, how come you don’t use an ARM like the rest of us, Nils?” Wesson asked.

“I do, sometimes. My rocket launcher. And, anyways, explosives are easier to move around with, so I throw grenades and plant mines. They don’t usually put me in live combat zones anyway, unless they need extra hands like that last mission.” Nils entered another room and began to rifle through a large box, half his body sticking out.

“Hm…” Wesson looked thoughtful, and then he grinned and pushed Nils’ legs in, (earning an undignified “WHA?!”) and shut the lid. Then he stood back giggling, his giggles slowly turning to nervous chuckles as the lid opened with Nils looking murderous. “Uhhh…”

“I’m gonna KILL YOU!” Nils jumped out, Wesson already out the door when he landed. “Get back here, you little—agh!” He wiped smoke out of his face and scowled. “Oh, he did NOT just steal my smoke-bombs.” He stalked after him.

“U-Uh oh!” Wesson dashed past a few people in the hall and went up the stairs, throwing another smoke bomb behind him to slow Nils down. “Sorry!”

“If you’re sorry, then stay still so I can kill you!” Nils yelled, running up the stairs after him.

–

Outside on the castle roof, a large, stoic man was standing and watching the city, the wind blowing by him. Luger stood next to him, enjoying the view as well, and then he looked over as they heard yelling. “Oh, dear. Sounds like we need to cool something down again.”

“You are dead, hear me!? D.E.A.Dead!” They heard Nils roar as Wesson came bolting out the door and slammed it shut. Luger raised an eyebrow as Wesson looked around before ducking around the corner of the stairwell’s exterior.

Nils came out a bit later, growling. “Where is he?”

“Boys, really?” Luger walked over to Nils. “Whatever he did, it can’t be that bad. Let it go, for Guardians’ sake. Look, you’re disturbing Benelli.” He gestured to the man still standing by the edge.

Benelli was hard to read. His expression was often neutral, in fact he rarely displayed emotion at all. He had short brown hair, a long nose and jaw and grey eyes that sometimes seemed to be watching a world no one else could see. He was wearing the same steel-blue uniform today as Luger save for a dark turtleneck under the jacket, and he had a shotgun strapped to his back. The patch on his sleeve read [H-01].

Wesson peeked around the corner to see if Benelli was actually perturbed; the most he did was softly sigh. Luger looked at Nils. “See? You’ve disturbed him.”

“I don’t… think he gets disturbed.” Nils said skeptically.

“Well, I want you two to stop running around. I don’t care if you have youthful energy and pent up aggression, you’re going to—“

“The sky.” Benelli suddenly spoke in a deep voice. “It’s cracking.”

“What?” Luger looked up at the sky. Sure enough, in the center of the blue sky above Adlehyde, there was a purple crack forming. As they watched, it got bigger, and Luger looked alarmed. “We need to tell the King.” He turned and ran out.

Wesson came out of hiding. “Benelli, what is it?”

“Hey—You—Doooh!” Nils looked at Wesson.

“An aerial assault.” Benelli explained, reaching around to pull his shotgun out of its scabbard. “Go, there will be landing parties.”

Wesson nodded and dashed out, Nils following. As they got outside the castle grounds, they saw boulders landing all over town. “…What in the Guardians’ names are those?” Wesson asked, walking over to one.

“Wesson, don’t!” Nils suddenly grabbed Wesson and pulled him back. “That thing is pulsating!”

“What?!” Wesson yelped, jumping back. “I thought it was just a boulder!”

The boulder continued to pulsate until there was a flash of light that almost blinded the two. Then they heard screams as the light cleared and there was a monster coming out of the boulder, which was revealed to be some kind of pod used for travel. Wesson quickly drew his revolver and fired on it, killing it after three shots. “We need to get the townspeople to safety!” He looked at Nils.

“Already on it!” Nils called, running off. Wesson could see Luger and Benelli running out as well, weapons drawn and firing at demons, and he nodded firmly and ran off to fight demons off from the hospital.

"Is this all the great Adlehyde has to offer?" A high voice said as he reached the city. "Pitiful! Absolutely pitiful!"

The speaker, the illustrious Demon General Break, was a tall, slender, humanoid demon with paper-white skin and wild, white hair. He wore a long coat buttoned up to his neck by golden buttons that was split into two colors vertically all the way down. One half was white with a short sleeve and the other was purple with a long one. He also wore golden pants and silver boots and half his face was concealed by a purple half-mask that was forever displaying a look of despair through which one of his golden eyes glowed. He held a rapier in his hands, long, sharp and deadly. Wesson once heard it was poison-tipped, but he hadn't had the displeasure of finding out himself. 

"Hooooo-ho-ho!" The large demon beside him guffawed. "We'll have this place captured in no time!"

The second demon was Berserk, another Demon General. He carried a massive chained morning star and was wearing metal armor that protected his body from most attacks. Unlike his slender and elegant companion, he was large, bulky and resembled an ugly, dirty-green lizard with long white hair and a large forehead crest over small beady eyes. He liked to get things done as quickly and messily as possible, but apparently would never turn down a challenge to a duel.

“Break!” Luger ran over to them. “It’s you again!”

“Well! Here for another dance, pretty boy?” Break grinned, baring sharp teeth on the side not covered by his mask. “Shall we begin, then? Un, deux, TROIS!” He moved towards him, stabbing with his rapier.

“Agh! Benelli, take Berserk! We need to force them out!” Luger said, picking up a fallen sword from a wrecked antiques shop. “Very well, Break, if you wish to battle this way then we will. En garde!”

Wesson frowned, seeing them struggling. “There’s no way we’ll be able to get them out with just one against each one. They have the advantage in close range.” He looked towards the ship. “We need Colt.” He turned and dashed off, leaving the battlefield and headed for the port.

–

Springfield sat quietly reading as Colt paced their room, then sighed and looked up from his book. “Colt, you’re going to exhaust yourself. And the pacing is very distracting, so please stop.”

“Why? Not like I can do much—“ Colt froze and ran to the window, listening. “I hear screams…and there’s smoke. Is Adlehyde under attack?”

Springfield looked out and then sighed, shaking his head. “I understand how you feel, but we’ve been disarmed and taken off active duty. We can’t go help, Colt. Why don’t you sit down and draw, distract yourself?”

“As if I could distract myself when this is going on?! I’m gonna try getting out there, anyway!” Colt went to the door and banged on it. “Hey, let us out! We can help!” His calls were met with only silence, and he sighed and flopped back onto his bed. “I HATE this! Adlehyde is under attack, and I can’t help! What if Amy–”

“Colt, you need to accept the fact that you can’t go and—“ The sound of the door clicking cut him off and they both looked over to see it opening. “Huh. Perhaps they heard you.”

Wesson peeked into the room. “I just unlocked your door from the security room down the hall. Let’s go, hurry! We need long range!”

“I need my rifle.” Colt said, running out.

Springfield followed, looking at Wesson with a puzzled expression. “Wesson, how did you get to the security panel past the guards?”

“Oh…uhm…I…stole a few of Nils’ bombs earlier, and among them was one full of knock-out gas.” He admitted. “Anyways, let’s quickly head to the armory!”

“Wesson, you’re getting smarter and smarter!” Colt grinned. “Let’s get our gear then chase those demons out!”

They dashed through the hall and ducked around corners waiting for guards to pass by before they approached the armory. Colt looked at Wesson. “Any more of that gas?” Wesson shook his head. “Alright, then it’s time to do this Jaivan-style.” 

They opened the door and before the guard realized they’d entered, Colt was swinging a fist into his face. The guard fell hard and Springfield knelt to check on him while Colt got their confiscated weapons. “He’s just unconscious. Be careful, though, we have more strength than they have physical endurance.” He took his musket as Colt handed it over.

“Yeah, yeah. I know. Sorry.” Colt sighed as he and Springfield ran out with Wesson trailing behind.

–

Out in town, Luger realized that flying demons were converging on the castle roof and turned to Benelli. “Sorry, I have to go!” He then ran off, leaving his sword on the battlefield.

“Oh, leaving so soon?” Break began to go after him, but a sharp pain in his shoulder made him let out a cat-like hiss and look over to see who had fired. Springfield was standing across from him, the barrel of his musket smoking. “So, someone else wants to be my dance partner? Bring it, boy!” He beckoned him closer and twirled his rapier. “Let’s dance.”

“Very well. I will oblige your fancies.” Springfield said, holstering his musket and picking up the sword Luger abandoned on the ground. “I will ‘dance’ with you, Demon General.”

Break grinned. “Well then, Un, deux, TROIS!” He stabbed at him, forcing Springfield to move back and then moving back himself to dodge the red-head’s next blow. “Well, you’re not so shabby a dancer! Not as good as the last one, but not so shabby!”

Benelli noticed a glimpse of blue darting towards a tower, then sidestepped to avoid Berserk’s mace. Wesson ran up and pointed his gun at Berserk. “Everyone’s evacuated, Benelli, we just need to chase them off!”

“Oh, I wouldn’t say ‘everyone’.” Berserk chortled. “After all, we still have brave—foolish—youths right here!” He swung his mace and slammed it down towards Wesson and Benelli.

Wesson and Benelli quickly dodged and Wesson glanced at the tower before firing on the large demon with Benelli.

–

Up on the tower, Colt was setting up at one of the windows built for just what he needed. ‘I need them to give me a clear shot…’ He thought. ‘I need the two Generals to line up, like dominos. Then I can make them fall together!’

–

Springfield knew the plan, but was finding it difficult to force Break to line up with Berserk when he kept moving around like he was. Unlike Berserk, he wasn’t staying in one place, so it was proving a challenge. And he wasn’t using magic, either. To top it all off, Springfield wasn’t the best with a sword, but was grateful for the few lessons he’d taken from Luger who enjoyed learning about archaic things.

‘Archaic…’ He thought, ducking to avoid a blow. ‘Not when it’s Break you’re up against. When is Colt going to be ready?’

Something whistled through the air and then Break let out a cry of pain as Berserk did the same. Break’s chest had a hole straight through it to the other side and the bullet that created it was now embedded deeply into Berserk’s back. Berserk reached over his shoulder on reflex and turned around trying to grasp the injury. Benelli jumped to avoid his tail as it swished wildly left and right. Break on the other hand seemed to be stunned by the injury. He gasped and wheezed for air through the punctured lung. Springfield stepped back as Break threatened to fall. Break pressed a hidden device to send a signal and a green light enveloped both Generals.

Berserk growled in frustration and attempted a last swing towards Benelli before he and Break both lifted into the air. His feet left the ground and made him miss by an inch. In a second they were gone and the rest of the monsters and demons they’d brought disappeared in another flash of light shortly after. As they watched, the sky began to repair itself, like it had never been broken. Within moments, it was entirely blue.

“…What was their aim?” Wesson asked, looking over as Nils came over to them. “Nils, you okay?”

“I’m fine. Are they gone?” Nils said, looking up where the crack had been.

“Looks like.” Springfield murmured. “We should make sure everyone is accounted for.”

Nils looked at Springfield. “…Why are you out here?”

Before Springfield could answer, Colt had run over with a grin. “Alright, two in one shot! Am I good or what?!”

Nils looked at Colt. “Weren’t you suspended?”

“Psh. Nothing they can punish me with will faze me. I got to shoot two Generals in one blow, man! I was awesome!” He did a victory dance.

“Awesomely in trouble.” A cool voice said, stopping Colt short with wide eyes full of fear, and then they looked over to see a man walking over.

The man was in his mid twenties. He was lean with a light tanned complexion and boxer's physique. The sleeves of his tan shirt were rolled up to the elbows and the top couple buttons were undone while his brown slacks were tucked into his tall boots. His gold-blond hair was slicked back and his fists were balled up inside his two-toned gloves as he approached like a man on a mission. His insignia, marking him as [H-02] was patched onto a bomber jacket he'd left behind at the moment. He stopped in front of Colt with a vicious gleam in his ice-blue eyes.

“Hello, Colt. Getting in trouble right away, are we?” He asked with a cold smirk on his face.

“…Jaivan.” Colt frowned, stepping back a bit as he turned to him.

“Well, luckily for you, we have more important things to worry about. For instance, the Queen has just died.” Jaivan turned to the others. “Despite our best efforts, the stress of the situation has aggravated her illness and now she’s dead.”

"Dead?" Colt breathed, his eyes widening in shock.

Benelli closed his eyes and sighed. Wesson and Nils looked at each other, and then Wesson turned to the castle.

"Deceased! Passed on! Pushing up the posies!" Jaivan rolled his eyes and threw his hands up almost in a manic way. “She has joined the choir invisi-!”

“Jaivan.” Benelli interrupted.

Jaivan sighed deeply and threw his head back, brushing a few stray hairs back in the process.

"...And Amy?" Colt asked anxiously.

"The princess is fine." Jaivan said dismissively. “ Your sentence will wait until after the funeral, since the General will be too busy attending it to punish you.” He turned to Colt again. “In the meantime, I’m to escort you back to the ship. In fact, Luger will be joining me shortly to talk with all three involved in your breakout.”

Wesson cringed and curled in on himself a bit behind Springfield.

As they spoke, Luger came down the road to meet them. “Enough talk, Jaivan. Let’s go.” He said on arrival, looking solemn. “I’m afraid that, despite the reason, disobeying direct orders is something I will not condone. Nils, you may return to whatever you were doing before the attack – before Wesson annoyed you.” He turned to Benelli. “I apologize for running off. They needed assistance in the castle.”

“I understand.” Benelli nodded and turned to return to the castle himself.

Luger turned back to the others. “Let’s get going.” He nodded towards the ship.

At his prompting, Colt, Springfield and Wesson headed for the ship with Luger and Jaivan right behind.

–

Colt stumbled into the hallway near his room, pushed by Jaivan. “Okay, enough pushing! I can freakin’ WALK for Guardians’ sake!” He turned to Jaivan and Luger, the younger of which had Wesson by the shoulder. Springfield rubbed his head as he recovered from bumping into the wall when Jaivan pushed him alongside Colt.

“Now that we’re back where you BELONG, it’s time to talk.” Jaivan said, cracking his knuckles. “Colt, you’ve been nothing but uncooperative, and I doubt you would’ve waited for a crisis to get out if you could. You’re much too active.” He stepped up close to Colt, looking down on him. “In fact, the past few times you’ve gotten in trouble you’ve gotten off far too easy. I think it’s time to change that.”

“Puh. You said yourself that General Lennox can’t punish me until after the funeral! I’m not being punished until then!” Colt challenged.“Oh, really?” Jaivan gave a cold smile and Colt noticed Luger gripping Wesson’s shoulder tighter, holding him there. “If that’s going to be your attitude about it, I suppose it’s time to take things into my own hands.” He pushed Colt to the ground. Springfield gasped and ducked out of the way to avoid being hit.

“Hey, knock it off!” Colt yelled as he sat up, his legs curled up to his chest as he did.

“I don’t think you’re striking the right tone here, Colt.” Jaivan looked down at him cooly, and then gave a sadistic smile, reaching down and gripping Colt’s hair roughly. 

“Ow, ow, ow, ow, ow!” Colt protested as he was pulled up to rest against the wall, his legs still bent a little, but straighter.

“Maybe you’d like all your punishments right now?” Jaivan suddenly slammed his foot down on Colt’s knee as hard as he could, and they barely heard an audible CRACK over Colt’s scream of agony. Wesson whimpered and closed his eyes and Springfield’s eyes widened as they heard another CRACK accompanied with cries of pain. When Jaivan stepped back, Colt was lying on the ground with his legs limp, his body trembling in pain. “What was that you were saying about walking? Looks like you’ll have to stay in for a while. Pity.”

“You…bastard…” Colt said through teeth clenched in pain, his hands gripping his legs.

“Alright, you can let Wesson go. I think he’s learned his lesson on what rule-breaking leads to.” Jaivan nodded to Luger and then turned to Springfield, who stiffened up. “Take this sludge back to your room. And don’t disobey orders again.” He turned and walked off, leaving Colt on the floor.

Wesson knelt next to Colt as soon as Luger released him and walked off with Jaivan. “Colt…? You okay…?”

“I hate him…” Colt whispered, his eyes squeezed tightly shut.

Springfield slowly got up and then knelt to pick Colt up with both arms, cradling his broken body. “I’m sorry, Colt…”

“Don’t be. You didn’t do it.” Colt tried to smile, but the pain was too unbearable and it came out more like a grimace.

Wesson sighed, watching as Springfield carried him and shut the door, then looked at where Jaivan and Luger had walked off to. “...But…we need to be ready for a mission at any time…right?” He asked quietly, his brow furrowed.

*****

“How could he do that?!” Cecilia blurted out. “After Colt turned the tide in the battle and everything?!”

“I know, I agree with you, it was terrible.” Wesson nodded. “And I think that, considering the results of the breakout, the General and the King would’ve commended us for it. But, Jaivan has never liked how Colt refuses to be broken, no matter how rough he treated him. They’d been at odds since Colt was little; he was too free-spirited. And Luger, well, he often followed Jaivan’s lead. They were really close; went on a lot of missions when Luger was growing up, and he was basically his partner ever since Koch was sent off to Arctica to fight on the Front Lines.”

“Well, did he get punished for it?” Jane asked. “You know, once the General found out what he did?”

“With the death of the Queen and Shaman, there were more important things to worry about.” Wesson shook his head. “Colt would heal over time. Our bones may be metal, but they mend like any others. Besides, they wouldn’t be in that room long. While we didn’t know it at the time, the United Army was working on a new weapon, and Springfield, as I said, could sync with anything.”

“What were they working on?” Cecilia asked.

Wesson sighed. “...Have you ever heard of the Guardian Blade?”

A chill fell over the room at his question, and Wesson took that as his cue to move on, opening the book he had been holding onto so tightly.

“According to Springfield’s personal logs, he was released from suspension after four days and taken to his new assignment.” He said, paraphrasing what was on the first page. “There, he met the head of the project, Vassim, and his younger sister Mariel.”

“Oh, we know them!” Cecilia smiled.

“You told me.” Wesson said patiently, then continued on.

*****

Chapter Text

The Queen’s death had brought grief from Adlehyde to the other Kingdoms, as she was most loved by many people of the world. She was a skilled Shaman of the Guardians and a devoted Queen, so the loss of her was too painful for some to bear. The funeral procession was lined with flowers and people that wished her well on the other side. The King of Adlehyde and Amelia stood in the forefront with young Prince Lionel holding his father’s hand, crying. As they approached the gravesite, the princess gripped the sacred Tear Drop, the family heirloom, and began to pray to the Guardians for them to protect her people and to care for her mother’s body. 

“Oh, Zeldukes, please care for my mother, as she rests in your care.” She said, her hands clasped around the Tear Drop and her head bowed over her hands. “Grudiev, care for her as she rests in your earth. I will try to do as she did, and protect the world with your power. Please, grant me your power to protect the people of this world she loved.”

The King, Prince and guards knelt with her and then, once she was done praying, the procession continued and watched as the coffin was lowered into the ground, a choir softly singing her away.

–

Colt and Springfield spent the day of the funeral in their room, while Wesson, Nils, Jaivan, Benelli, and Luger sat in the conference hall away from it all. Wesson looked down at his hands resting on the table glumly and kicked his legs absently. “Jaivan…I don’t think you needed to use lethal force on Colt.”

“It was hardly lethal. He wouldn’t learn anything dead.” Jaivan said simply. “He’s much like the animal that shares his name; young, stubborn, and stupid. And the only way to teach someone like that is to break a bone or two.”

“But, he’ll be confined to a wheelchair even after his suspension! It takes a while to repair his legs! Shouldn’t he see a doctor?” Wesson insisted.

“He’ll be fine.” Jaivan waved it off.

Luger looked at Benelli. “Do you have any thoughts on this, Benelli?”

“Jaivan knows how to handle Colt best, most of the time. And it is true that, if not bridled, Colt will run wild.” Benelli said flatly. “Maybe this will teach him humility and patience, something he has needed to learn.”

Luger sighed. “Humility and patience…you’d think just being in this army would teach him that…” He looked at Nils. “Nils, what are you working on?”

“The lab is closed, so I’m designing schematics for a new bomb.” Nils explained. “Hey, why are we here anyway? Why not send us back to the ship?”

“It’s closer, if they want us.” Luger said, nodding. 

Wesson stood up. “Well, I don’t like that Colt was reduced to that! And calling him ‘sludge’ was too much, Jaivan! Why are you always so mean?!”

“Wesson, please. Enough about Colt.” Luger sighed. “He’s received his punishment, which is better than what he would’ve gotten. Please sit down and stop antagonizing Jaivan.”

Wesson clenched his fists, but complied with a huff.

–

After the funeral, a guard came in and told those without current assignments to return to the ship, and that they would be called on when General Lennox needed them to be. The group walked out, Wesson shooting Jaivan a look before he went down the opposite direction with Nils.

Luger, on the other hand, went to see Princess Amelia, who was sitting in the castle garden on a bench.

“Amelia.” He said gently.

She wiped at her eyes and looked up at him. “Luger…I missed you at the funeral.”

“We were ordered to stay out of the way.” He said, walking over to sit next to her on the bench. “But, once we were allowed to, I came to find you.”

She smiled sadly. “You’re so sweet.” She sighed, then looked up. “I have to be strong, though. My mother’s death has weakened the Guardian’s ability to assist the people, and I have to take her place as soon as possible.”

“You’re only fifteen; it’s too soon.” He said grimly.

“I don’t have a choice.” She clutched at the Tear Drop. “Just as you don’t have a choice, Luger.”

He sighed and nodded. “...You’re right.”

She clasped her hands around the Tear Drop. “I only hope the Demons give us time to recover, and for me to connect with the Guardians.”

“Let’s not jinx it.” He stood up. “Why don’t we go for a walk? Sitting around is only going to make you restless.”

She nodded. “Is Colt alright? I heard he was punished for something on the latest mission.”

“He will recover.” Luger assured her.

“I’d like to see him.” She stood up.

“He’s confined to his room.” Luger shook his head. “I’m not sure if we can get even you clearance to go see him, Your Highness.”

“Well…it’s worth a shot, right?” Amelia pleaded.

“...Okay, we’ll see if we can get you in to see him.” He said, turning to go inside with her.

She smiled and followed him in.

–

The next day, a wheelchair was brought in for Colt to be able to leave his bed, and a doctor came and put his legs in casts. “It’ll be a few months, but they will repair. Hang in there, and don’t forget to take your pain medication.” The doctor rubbed the teen’s shoulder reassuringly, and then left, leaving Colt to stare out the window from his wheelchair.

“…Right.” Colt mumbled. “Thanks.”

Springfield walked over and brought Colt his food. “Here. Eat up. You need strength to heal.” He said softly, setting it in front of Colt’s hands which were folded on his lap. “Colt, please. You’re still alive. You can recover. Don’t do this to yourself.”

Colt looked up at him. “…I said that being kept in one room was the worst punishment? I take that back. Being confined to one chair for months is the worst punishment ever.”

“Colt…” Springfield gently brushed Colt’s hair out of his face and smiled. “You have to try to think of other things. Being like this isn’t good for you. Please, eat. Do you want me to bring you your sketchbook after you’re done?”

Colt looked down at his food. “…Not so sure I can, right now.”

“You have working arms, and a working digestive system.” Springfield said, sighing. “I’m not spoon-feeding you, so stop acting like an infant and feed yourself.”

“I don’t have the appetite.” Colt argued. “I’ll just throw it all up if I do!"

The door opened and Springfield looked up and saluted, straightening up. “General Lennox, sir!”

“At ease, H-05.” General Lennox said, walking in. “I have good news for you. As of today, H-05: Springfield, you’re being taken off suspension.”

“But, sir, it’s only been four days.” Springfield looked confused. “I was told we’d be in here for two months. Why are you letting us out early?”

“Not both of you, just you. We need you for a mission.” General Lennox said calmly. “Colt will remain here until otherwise ordered. We have your ARM, so gear up and let’s go.” He nodded to a guard, who brought Springfield his gear.

Springfield took his gear and began to pull on his jacket and strap on his holster, holstering his gun for the finishing touch. “Where am I going, sir?”

Colt looked up in alarm, and General Lennox shook his head. “That’s classified, H-05. H-06 isn’t to know of it. We’ll tell you when you’ve left this room.”

“Wait—you’re taking Springfield?!” Colt set his plate to the side and wheeled his chair over. “Why?!”

“We have something that requires one of his particular skills.” General Lennox said calmly. “That’s all you’ll hear on the matter. Good day.” He turned and led Springfield out. Springfield gave an apologetic smile before walking out after him, the door shutting in Colt’s face.

Springfield looked over his shoulder as they walked. “Sir…Colt really does try his best. He just can’t seem to control himself.”

“Well, he needs to learn to. This might teach him.” General Lennox said firmly, walking down the hall.

–

They rode a military truck to Adlehyde Castle, where they approached the King of Adlehyde and an Elw scientist, who they both saluted to. “Your Majesty, I have brought H-05.”

King William Clive Adelhyde was a man of noble stature, who wore a blue and white suit with a short steel-blue cape that complimented his straight light-brown hair and blue eyes. He wore a silver circlet in place of a more formal crown. He was accompanied by two guards who stood at a distance.

The Elw Scientist with him was Dr. Alana Sylvestre, referred to by many as the "father" of the Holmcross Project since it was he who shared the alchemic knowledge needed to create Living Metal. He often corrected them, saying he is merely the lead scientist in charge of their production after the passing of his partner, Dr. Albert Tiggs.

Dr. Sylvestre had brown skin, dark-brown hair and gray eyes. He wore a white lab-coat over a grass-green turtleneck and navy-blue jeans and wore black work-boots on his feet. The most distinctive thing about him, though, was the trait he shared with the rest of his species: long, furry ears like rabbits that stuck out to the sides and drooped a little.

The Elw are an ancient race. They looked much like humans except for their ears and most have a proclivity for old style hand-crafted fashions which are no longer common in their human neighbors. It's said they were the original inhabitants of Filgaia long before the humans arrived from the sea of stars and that they welcomed their new brothers with open arms. Though their relations are amicable, they live separate from humans for the most part.  They welcome those who want to live closely with nature as stewards of the land like they do. And yet they possess advanced technologies far beyond their human companions that they're reluctant to share for fear it would be abused.

They keep the secrets of alchemy close to their chest only sharing it with a select few as Sylvestre did.

“Ah, good. H-05: Springfield, you’re to accompany Dr. Sylvestre and myself to a secret location, which you are to tell no one of. Are you ready?” King William asked calmly.

“Your Majesty, I was created ready to do my duty.” Springfield assured him.

“Good answer.” The King smiled and led them down a hall, where Slyvester opened a door and led the way into an elevator. 

“We have our transport prepared, so we’ll have no delays. Springfield, have you ever been underwater before?” Sylvestre looked at the red-head.

“No, sir.” Springfield shook his head, looking around in awe as the elevator opened and they found themselves in a cavern that had some kind of structure on the water that surrounded the small island they were on. “What is this place?”

“This is the subterranean dock.” Sylvestre explained. “I find it’s faster and safer to go where we need to go by submarine, so enjoy the ride.” He smiled and led them to the structure, a ramp lowering for them to climb in without trouble.

“Impressive.” Springfield said as they walked up the ramp and into the submarine. Then he was motioned to a seat by General Lennox and took it, looking out the window. “Is this really going to go underwater?”

“That’s right.” Sylvestre smiled. “Let’s be going.” A few buttons and levers were pushed and pulled and they felt the structure move around them. The water around them rose until the world around Springfield was completely enveloped in blue-green. Then the door ahead of them opened and the submarine went out into the ocean.

What a sight. From the fish swimming around them to the coral and underwater islands, Springfield was fascinated by everything he was seeing. He chuckled a bit as a school of fish swam by his window, and General Lennox looked over to see what was so funny before continuing his quiet conversation with the King.

–

Though the ride lasted several hours, it was done before Springfield even realized they were approaching their destination. The submarine surfaced and the door opened, indicating everyone should step out. When he did, Springfield found himself in another cavern, this one full of people and machines everywhere, buildings built into it like some underground city.

“Ah, Vassim!” Sylvestre called. “Come over here and meet Springfield!”

Springfield looked over where he was calling to and saw another Elw approaching. 

He was an adult man with a young looking face, though the naturally long lives of Elw made it hard to guess his age on appearance. He was wearing a blue and white tunic with a geometric pattern on the front and another one on the sleeves and a broad yellow belt. His long hair, the same shade of brown as the fur on his ears, was held in place with a matching blue headband. The expression in his dark brown eyes looked approachable if a little sleep deprived.

He didn’t seem to have any military rank, but Springfield gave a salute anyway, just in case. “Good day, sir. H-05: Springfield reporting for duty.” 

“Oh, yes.” The Elw, Vassim, was a little startled by this reaction. He extended a hand, which Springfield shook. “Springfield…was it? No need to be so formal. I’m just a manufacturer.”

“Vassim here is head of the operation.” The King said, smiling. “He’s the one you’ll be assisting here, Springfield.”

“I see.” Springfield nodded. “Then, I will assist you to the best of my ability.”

“What exactly are you doing here, Vassim?” Sylvestre asked. “It’s been so hush-hush at the castle, but I thought I might learn on the way here.”

“Oh, just more ARMs production.” Vassim said dismissively, waving it off.

‘So, it’s still hush-hush, even now.’ Sylvestre thought. ‘Fine. I’ll find out from Springfield later, he can’t keep things from me!’

“I hope you don’t mind staying for the long haul.” Vassim continued. “We’ve got a lot of work to cover and, until now, we haven’t had the expertise to do it.”

“I understand. As long as the mission demands, I will be here.” Springfield assured him. “Do you have a place for the Doctor and I to stay for the duration?”

“Unfortunately, no.” He chuckled. “We usually hire locally at the plant. You’ll be staying with my family until proper arrangements can be made.”

“Do you have spare rooms?” Sylvestre asked. “I understand you have a sister…”

“Of course you won’t be staying with her.” Vassim replied with a shake of the head. “We have one bedroom that hasn’t been used in a long while. You’ll have to share a bed, but if that isn’t a problem…”

“We’ll…make do.” Sylvestre said.

“I can just sleep on a blanket on the floor. I’ve done a few missions where there were no lodgings, so I’m fine with it.” Springfield offered. “And it’s rather warm down here, I’ve noticed, so I may not even need a cover.”

Sylvestre looked at Springfield in surprise. “Well, if you’re sure, Springfield…”

Springfield smiled. “I’m sure. I don’t need a bed to be comfortable.”

“Well, I actually live above ground.” Vassim corrected. “But it’s rarely all that cold around here. It should be alright. All the same, I’ll see what I can do for a more permanent solution. Shall we go?” He motioned toward a main street which they followed down

Despite the lack of natural light, the cavernous city was well lit. Soft lights hung from every doorway and street corner and warm firelight emanated from the windows. Moss and other subterranean plants grew thick on the stone walls, dulling the thrum of voices bouncing off the walls and ceiling of the cave. Transport pads sitting at key intersections produced a cool green glow and led Elw citizens to their destinations above.

Springfield looked around as they walked. He noticed that the King and General Lennox had stayed behind, while Vassim led him and Sylvestre. “I’ve never been to an Elw Terminal.” He admitted. “It’s a lot different than what I imagined from reports.”

Sylvestre chuckled. “It’s quite the experience. We use the Leyline to transfer us from one location to another, but only ones connected to the one we’re currently on. It beats walking.”

“Why not just take one to go here, then?” Springfield asked. “Why take the submarine?”

“Well, there’s no Elw Terminal near Adlehyde.” Sylvestre admitted. “And anyways, I like my submarine.”

“It is an impressive invention.” Springfield agreed. “As is the Elw Terminal.”

“Well, you’re about to experience it.” Sylvestre said as they stepped onto a green orb embedded in the floor. 

A flash of light surrounded the trio and then they were being whisked up into the air, far, far up above Filgaia. Then, in seconds, they bounced against a specialized satellite and came back down, landing in another location as the light dissipated. 

Springfield was speechless; his body was trembling a bit. Sylvestre was concerned he’d been broken before Springfield finally spoke again. “That…was…beautiful.” He breathed; his eyes wide. “I’ve never seen anything like that…”

“Elw Terminal travel is one of the fastest ways, but the Terminal Points can only be at certain points in the world, where the Leyline points connect.” Sylvestre said, relieved that he seemed fine. “So, it’s not the most efficient.”

Springfield turned to Vassim. “Well…shall we continue on?” He smiled.

Vassim nodded and led them off the pad, heading out of the Elw Terminal building. Outside it, an Elw girl was carrying a basket. She was blonde with green eyes that matched her striped dress. Her hair was pulled back into twin plaits under a red cap, and she had a woven bag over one shoulder.

“Oh, brother Vassim! Are you coming home already? I’ve brought you a lunch!” She said with a smile, holding up the basket.

“Miss Mariel!” Sylvestre looked surprised to see her. “You’ve left your garden!”

Springfield blinked. “Dr. Vassim, who is this?”

“I’d like you to meet my sister, Mariel.” Vassim gestured to her. “Mariel, you remember Alana, and this is Springfield.” He gestured first to Sylvestre, then Springfield. “He’ll be helping me on my project.”

“Hello.” Mariel smiled shyly and extended a hand for Springfield to take. “It’s not often we see humans in our encampment.”

“Oh, I-I’m not human.” Springfield admitted, shaking her hand. “I’m a Holmcross.”

“Oh! Well, you’re LIKE a human, either way.” She said, her hand gripping the basket she held again.

“Not quite, but I guess you’re right.” Springfield chuckled a bit. “It’s a pleasure to meet you, Miss Mariel.”

“It’s a pleasure to meet you, Mister Springfield.” She giggled a bit. “Oh! Are you coming home, brother? I can make more food for your guests for dinner, if you’d like.”

“Actually, I was thinking of heading down to the research lab, but it IS looking pretty late.” Vassim said as he looked to the darkening sky. “We’ll go ahead and have dinner, and head out tomorrow morning; if it’s not too much trouble.”

“Oh, it’s no trouble at all!” She beamed. “I always get lonely when you’re working, so having more people for dinner makes me really happy!” She turned and walked off towards a cabin, swinging the basket as she walked.

“She’s energetic.” Springfield remarked, following with the two Elw men. “Lonely…” He glanced to the side. “I bet Colt is lonely.” He said softly.

Sylvestre glanced at him. “H-06 is fine. A little distance will do him good, perhaps make him less clingy.” He said sharply. “Stop dwelling on his pathetic state and look to the future, Springfield!”

“The future…” Springfield looked towards where Mariel had gone.

*****

“Wait, wait, Mariel never said she had a Holmcross boyfriend!” Cecilia blurted out.

“Guardians, you have no self-control.” Wesson said, looking up at her. “And just because he calls her ‘pretty’, it doesn’t mean he liked her that way! Honestly, they just met!”

“But, he said he ‘might enjoy her company’.” Emma pointed out.

“Look, this thing was a slog to get through the first time I read it and it’s not going to be any easier doing it again if you guys keep interrupting!” Wesson waved the book a bit. “Besides, when it comes to Springfield and his love life, he had his hands full with one really crazy woman, which you will hear about if you just. Shut. Up!”

He was interrupted by his stomach gurgling. Rudy cleared his throat, then set down his pack before pulling out a sandwich and handing it over.

“Thanks.” Wesson accepted the sandwich and took a bite. “Honestly, I know you’re excited to learn about this stuff, but you gotta let me actually tell you the story, you know?”

“Sorry!” Cecilia giggled sheepishly. “But, seriously, Mariel never mentioned him!”

“Probably because the memories are too painful.” Wesson sighed. “They were…really close, dating or not, and the way we lost him…” He sighed and adjusted the book. “May I continue?”

“Right. Sorry. Yes.” Cecilia nodded. “So…what happened to Colt?”

“Well, shortly after Springfield was taken on his mission, Colt got a visit from mom - Uh, Dr. Jessica Tiggs, with her own agenda for Colt.” Wesson explained. “It was the first step to her designing a new Holmcross, but it was a project she was working on in secret.”

“...Me?” Rudy pointed to himself.

“Yeah.” Wesson nodded. “This was when she started to build the concept for your design, Rudy. To be honest, though, I only know what Colt and mom told me. Some details have been lost to time, but I know one thing that wasn’t. While he was there, they found out about the demons’ new weapon.”

“New weapon?” Cecilia asked.

“I’ll get to that.” Wesson assured her.

*****