A boy with glasses- ooh, an intellectual- hobbled over to Est and proceeded to humor his request. The soldier studiously trained his eyes on his pistol, waiting and watching for the smallest sign of metal corrosion until it finally dawned on him that nothing was going to happen. The soldier didnât even notice the new damp splotch on his shoulder courtesy of Inadi. With a glum sigh, he returned the gun to its holster and faced the humans. Apparently he and Breeze had one, two, three-
âWow, your hair is really pretty! Can I touch it!? I donât know about any other human abilities, but dayum look at that âdo!â Est answered Lesleyâs joke nonetheless while reaching out with his free hand to hesitantly pat the tall human. Ohhh heavenly beans, this was the life! âWhat shampoo do you use? Breeze, Breeeeezeeeee, Bwee- I mean, Breeze! His hair is reaaaaallly sooooooft! Why does everyone have nice hair?â The nobody stepped back and cheerfully beamed down at the humans while his companion introduced herself. Since they all linked arms with each other it was like talking to a whole line of friendly soldiers, and Est assumed that the lovey dovey couple Lesley called out to was the pale girl and the smart-looking boy. Speaking of whichâŠ.
âHey, none of you told me your names!â Est exclaimed quite loudly, drawing stares from the passersby. He was, after all, a grown man in a military outfit hollering at a group of people who seemed to be in a younger demographic. âYâall donât want me to call you nicknames right? Like Slagathor, Krackmanchucka, Gliceptha⊠Yeah, so better tell me what to call you with or else!â He adopted a half-hearted frown but dropped it after a few seconds, âgeez, canât believe yâall forgot something as important as that! I guess humans donât all have photographic memory, huh?â
They were supposed to go to the shooting range because that was what the majority of the Lost Souls suggested. Frankly, Est didnât mind it that much. He didnât notice the terrified glances his opponents showered upon him whenever it was time for firing practice, nor the way everyone seemed to want to be on his team when they were all divided for a match. Ah well, whatâs fun is fun! Although it was a bit late, Est decided to throw his lot in an attempt to further convince the humans. âYeah, paintballing for the wiiiiiin, thereâs different colors of paint and swirlies- whatâs a bea? I mean, a bae? Bweeze, you sure do know a lot of terms,â The blond nobody stared at the merchant who was now pleading with the humans. Japhet suddenly called him and Est straightened up, giving the other guide a salute before replying, âYeah sure. Appreciate it if you will, bro. See ya!â
âAnyway, you, Mr. Whatever-Yo-Name-Is. You sure you want to come with that leg of yours? We can take it easy and just stroll around. Or we can have you patched up in a MedRite clinic! Or, even better, we can get you a synth to carry you around! Your pick! But, whatever it is, we best get out of the museum,â Est jerked his thumb towards a tour guide who was escorting a bunch of nobodies towards the first exhibit, âitâs going to get real noisy soon and trust me, yâall donât wanna hear about the Old Age. Boring crap, all war and politics. Frightfully sleep-inducing save for their machines. Now thatâs something they did right!â He suddenly clapped his hands and led the humans out of the museum and into the streets below.
"Don't worry, you won't have the same problems with us. It must be really amazing, living here. Do you have flying cars and giant robots too?"
âOh I hope not, kiddo. You saw Lieutenant, right? Story goes she tore some poor monsterâs heart out just by glaring at it! Donât want her to do that to me in case anything happens to you kids!â Est chirped back good-humoredly and moved away from a gigantic brass robot trudging by in the middle of the street. The boy followed up with another question and he was only happy to answer. âOh geebus! What sort of sorry place doesnât have those!? Yâknow, itâs really amazing, theyâve even got this new form of energy working out. Apparently you can utilize it with steam, but itâs more efficient if you use the Keyneâs motor- pretty new and you canât trust it all that yet, lemme tell ya- but the results are great! Iâve seen a skycar run for twelve hours on a half liter of coral fuel! Legendary!â It was obvious from the way he talked that Est held a deep adoration for all things mechanical, and he continued explaining various other things as they moved on to the next street.
âBy the way, Glasses. How you holding up? Just tell me if you need an- Ooomph!â The soldier turned around to address Inadi and therefore fell over a lump of metal in the middle of the sidewalk. While he tried to compose himself, the heap unfolded and formed the shape of a Labrador, steam hissing out from its copper joints as it sent a curious bark towards the gangâs way.
