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Taka,
AlteredTundra
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She'll be fine~ She's just a young, anxious girl walking alone in a bad part of town at night. Nothing dangerous.
Gavin is accepted.
Ace watched Trisean dash out of the room with a less than bemused expression. He had never seen someone backpedal out of an argument so quickly in his life. He turned back to Rika, who was currently being measured by Shizuka with a ruler, apparently Shizuka wanted to give her one of their cloaks as soon as possible. It was never necessary to wear a cloak, however they were useful for the more discreet missions they took on. "Undermine us on principle, huh?" Ace whispered to himself. He had to ask himself, would someone truly sympathetic to their cause sabotage them out of spite? Ace did not know this woman, and he did not often place much stock in first impressions, however, Rika was painting a rather bold colored picture of herself. He could tell she wasn't a member of the Empire, however, he highly doubted she gave a single damn about the Unbound Hearts. She had an ego the size of Hollow Bastion's castle, and was proud of it. He closed his eyes and took a deep breath, opening them once again as if he were attempting to refresh his view of Rika. "You've made your point, Rika, I'll contact the leader and fill him in on your terms, and see if he'll fill you in." Ace left the room, passing a group of medics that stormed the room to tend to the injured. This left Rika with Shizuka.
"You'll have to excuse Ace, he... Well." She stopped herself, realizing she was about to say more than she had the right to. "The Empire's taken a lot from him, is all." She said, running her fingers across the flexible material in her hands. Her ability had breed a hobby of collecting objects made of different materials, and in turn she had developed a fixation on feeling different textures in things. Her hands glossed over, mimicking the plastic ruler. Knowing this might seem a little odd to Rika, she looked to her and grinned. "I'm sure you've seen stranger things, right?" She asked. "Hey, if you tell me know you made it past Ace without him noticing, I'll tell show you something really cool."
"Save it for later." Ace entered the room again, holding what looked like a silver dinner plate from a cheap science fiction movie. Recognizing the device, Shizuka stepped back, giving him room to place it on the ground. A red light came from the edges of the disk, it moved up and down the room as it scanned everything and everyone inside. Next, a blue light sprouted from the center of the disk, and a hologram of a man appeared. The man was middle aged, tall, and had a head of alabaster hair. He looked down at Rika, and then glanced at the mess around him.
"I wouldn't call this 'in one piece' Acesto." He said with a deep, boisterous voice.
"It's relative.." Ace responded.
"Anyway." The man said, turning his attention back to Rika. "This is quite the interesting situation you've placed yourself in, young lady. I've seen people do some rash things to try and join us, but this takes the cake. Now, I'm quite busy at the moment so I'll make this quick. Acesto here tells me that you may have something to offer us, what we're looking for is any data concerning those infernal factories being built on world after world. If you can help in this endeavor, you will be handsomely rewarded. Though I do hope you understand the importance of our resistance..." The leader stopped talking for a moment, as his attention was turned to something none of them could see. "That's all the time I have, good luck." The feed cut off, and the silver plate powered down.
"Well there it is." Ace said. "So, how much are you charging for your help any....way?" Ace's voice trailed off as his badge beeped, he held it up to his ear, and heard Trisean speak on the other line. "It's on fire?... I was the last one to leave, and when I did, it was fine. Did you see who did it?..."
"That gear head's wolves were the only things there, and not that much time has passed, do you think he did it?"
"Nomis?... Well he was perfectly content with killing his comrades to create those filthy machinations of his, I wouldn't put it past him. But why in the hell would he do that?"
"You'll have to excuse Ace, he... Well." She stopped herself, realizing she was about to say more than she had the right to. "The Empire's taken a lot from him, is all." She said, running her fingers across the flexible material in her hands. Her ability had breed a hobby of collecting objects made of different materials, and in turn she had developed a fixation on feeling different textures in things. Her hands glossed over, mimicking the plastic ruler. Knowing this might seem a little odd to Rika, she looked to her and grinned. "I'm sure you've seen stranger things, right?" She asked. "Hey, if you tell me know you made it past Ace without him noticing, I'll tell show you something really cool."
"Save it for later." Ace entered the room again, holding what looked like a silver dinner plate from a cheap science fiction movie. Recognizing the device, Shizuka stepped back, giving him room to place it on the ground. A red light came from the edges of the disk, it moved up and down the room as it scanned everything and everyone inside. Next, a blue light sprouted from the center of the disk, and a hologram of a man appeared. The man was middle aged, tall, and had a head of alabaster hair. He looked down at Rika, and then glanced at the mess around him.
"I wouldn't call this 'in one piece' Acesto." He said with a deep, boisterous voice.
"It's relative.." Ace responded.
"Anyway." The man said, turning his attention back to Rika. "This is quite the interesting situation you've placed yourself in, young lady. I've seen people do some rash things to try and join us, but this takes the cake. Now, I'm quite busy at the moment so I'll make this quick. Acesto here tells me that you may have something to offer us, what we're looking for is any data concerning those infernal factories being built on world after world. If you can help in this endeavor, you will be handsomely rewarded. Though I do hope you understand the importance of our resistance..." The leader stopped talking for a moment, as his attention was turned to something none of them could see. "That's all the time I have, good luck." The feed cut off, and the silver plate powered down.
"Well there it is." Ace said. "So, how much are you charging for your help any....way?" Ace's voice trailed off as his badge beeped, he held it up to his ear, and heard Trisean speak on the other line. "It's on fire?... I was the last one to leave, and when I did, it was fine. Did you see who did it?..."
"That gear head's wolves were the only things there, and not that much time has passed, do you think he did it?"
"Nomis?... Well he was perfectly content with killing his comrades to create those filthy machinations of his, I wouldn't put it past him. But why in the hell would he do that?"
Coriander the highlander is accepted.
An unfamiliar voice sounded from behind Acesto, it was a female's voice, and a sultry one at that. He turned around, and laid his eyes on a young blond woman. "Ace? I thought you were guarding the portal, where did she come from?" Shizuka asked. He obviously did not know, his perception allowed him to identify anything close to him, so he should have caught a person of all things passing him. The only explanation he could think of was that she possessed some sort of ability that hid her presence. Whoever she was, she was clearly comfortable where she was sitting, as she saw fit to speak in a casual, joking manner and drink in front of them. Ace glared at Trisean, before his eyes went back to the woman, he should have picked his words more carefully. It was hard to keep a straight face when looking at her, she had unzipped her jacket, revealing more skin than was necessary, he could tell it was a deliberate act.
"You want to work for us?" Ace said, walking a bit closer to the woman, just enough that she was inside his domain. It was a subtle movement, and considering she had no clue about his ability there was no hint of threatening body language on his part. "So, you're asking us to trust you this much, and you haven't even told us your name?" The blond either had one hell of a poker face, or she was telling the truth. He wasn't sure what to believe, the data on the computer was missing, and those men had been killed by someone swift and deadly. She had slipped past him, so it was no shot in the dark to imagine she could have done the deed. Even if she was lying, what was he going to do, kill her? That wasn't how they operated. What was he going to do?
"Welcome to the Unbound Hearts! Here's a badge, it'll let you communicate with me, Ace, and our leader. I'm Shizuka by the way, and he's Acesto." Shizuka had already moved while he was deep in thought, honestly, he should have seen it coming.
"Shizuka, what the hell!?" Ace yelled, she only smiled back at him.
"Hey, I know a good girl when I see one, we can trust her, right... uhh," She looked to the blond with a inquisitive expression. "What's your name again?"
_________
The castle in Hollow Bastion was an impressive sight, with dark, metal spires that pierced the sky and an imposing position looming over the city below. Yet, Ryoko despised the place. Impressive and beautiful were two very different things in her mind, this place was all function and no fashion. The room she was staying in was large, and well furnished, however it had the color pallet of a can of beans. Everything was so damn rustic and brown, the feng shui was completely thrown out of whack. From her window she could see a pyre of flame rising from where the Imperial storehouse should be, reports said it was the doing of the Unbound Hearts. She was not having a good day, not at all.
"The storehouse has been destroyed, you say?" A deep, distorted voice spoke, emanating from a mirror above the desk she was seated in. The mirror's reflective surface was clouded by swirling dark fog, appearing very much like a bucket of milk with shredded coal mixed into it.
"Yes, Lord Emperor..." Ryoko responded with disinterest, an elbow on the desk and her hand on her chin. She was gazing outside the window, looking as if she wanted to jump out of it.
"There was very important information stored there, was it secured?"
"I couldn't say..."
"... Then you know what to do, this takes top priority."
"Yes, Emperor." With one final lackadaisical response from Ryoko, the mirror cleared up, and her chat with the Emperor ended. Moments later, the door to her room opened, and in stepped Catherine with Salforge in tow. Her personal maid didn't speak, only closed the door behind Salforge and stood by with a grimace on her face. Ryoko let out a yawn and stood from her seat, stretching her arms like a tired feline. "Hello Tin Man, you and me have got a job to do, we need to head to the factory and secure it, there's a possibility it could come under attack soon." She snapped her fingers, and an oval portal of dark opened between them. "Let's go."
"You want to work for us?" Ace said, walking a bit closer to the woman, just enough that she was inside his domain. It was a subtle movement, and considering she had no clue about his ability there was no hint of threatening body language on his part. "So, you're asking us to trust you this much, and you haven't even told us your name?" The blond either had one hell of a poker face, or she was telling the truth. He wasn't sure what to believe, the data on the computer was missing, and those men had been killed by someone swift and deadly. She had slipped past him, so it was no shot in the dark to imagine she could have done the deed. Even if she was lying, what was he going to do, kill her? That wasn't how they operated. What was he going to do?
"Welcome to the Unbound Hearts! Here's a badge, it'll let you communicate with me, Ace, and our leader. I'm Shizuka by the way, and he's Acesto." Shizuka had already moved while he was deep in thought, honestly, he should have seen it coming.
"Shizuka, what the hell!?" Ace yelled, she only smiled back at him.
"Hey, I know a good girl when I see one, we can trust her, right... uhh," She looked to the blond with a inquisitive expression. "What's your name again?"
The castle in Hollow Bastion was an impressive sight, with dark, metal spires that pierced the sky and an imposing position looming over the city below. Yet, Ryoko despised the place. Impressive and beautiful were two very different things in her mind, this place was all function and no fashion. The room she was staying in was large, and well furnished, however it had the color pallet of a can of beans. Everything was so damn rustic and brown, the feng shui was completely thrown out of whack. From her window she could see a pyre of flame rising from where the Imperial storehouse should be, reports said it was the doing of the Unbound Hearts. She was not having a good day, not at all.
"The storehouse has been destroyed, you say?" A deep, distorted voice spoke, emanating from a mirror above the desk she was seated in. The mirror's reflective surface was clouded by swirling dark fog, appearing very much like a bucket of milk with shredded coal mixed into it.
"Yes, Lord Emperor..." Ryoko responded with disinterest, an elbow on the desk and her hand on her chin. She was gazing outside the window, looking as if she wanted to jump out of it.
"There was very important information stored there, was it secured?"
"I couldn't say..."
"... Then you know what to do, this takes top priority."
"Yes, Emperor." With one final lackadaisical response from Ryoko, the mirror cleared up, and her chat with the Emperor ended. Moments later, the door to her room opened, and in stepped Catherine with Salforge in tow. Her personal maid didn't speak, only closed the door behind Salforge and stood by with a grimace on her face. Ryoko let out a yawn and stood from her seat, stretching her arms like a tired feline. "Hello Tin Man, you and me have got a job to do, we need to head to the factory and secure it, there's a possibility it could come under attack soon." She snapped her fingers, and an oval portal of dark opened between them. "Let's go."
"This is getting a little out of hand..." Ace tightened the grip on his blade as he scanned the storehouse for possible escapes. The front entrance was blocked by one of the giant metal wolves, he figured he and Shizuka could deal with it, however, they had already wasted enough time. The original plan the Unbound Hearts had devised was useless now, it was time they tried plan B. Ace turned to Shizuka, who was fanning in front of her face, he was trying not to think of the stench produced by the wolves himself. "We're switching to the other plan, try to hold those things off while I get it ready." Shizuka nodded, and he sprinted towards the large metal shelves containing the things they had come for.
"Alright!" Shizuka yelled, slapping her cheeks to psyche herself up. She really did hate fighting, so she wanted to get this over with as quickly as possible. The metal wolf was busy dealing with other members of the UH, she tried not to think about how many of her comrades had died, she needed to focus. A pile of steel beams was sitting nearby, she decided to them. "Let's see if these dogs..." She said, easily picking up a beam after hardening her arms. "Like to play fetch!" She launched the slab of metal right at the wolf guarding the entrance, then she picked up another and threw it as well, repeating this until she had thrown all five of them.
Running up to a panel on the warehouse wall, Ace flipped a switch, this caused the crates on the metal shelves to be unhinged from their resting places. He then ran in between the two large shelves. He reached into his pockets and took out a spherical silver device. With a twist, the device opened up into what looked like a dumbbell. Ace quickly sat the device on the ground, and ran over to Shizuka. "It's ready, let's get out of here." He said.
"What about the others? I can't see Trisean anywhere." Shizuka stated with worry.
"He'll be fine, once it opens he should know what to do anyway." Ace said, and just as he did the entire storehouse shook violently. The silver device exploded, and in it's place a dark vortex opened. It was a dark portal similar to what agents of the Empire used, only it was hardly as stable. It grew to the size of a van, and began to suck in the loosened crates, transporting them. It didn't take long for all of the the crates to be moved, and the members of the UH began to leap through the portal. The metal wolves would be too large to fit through, and thanks to Nomis there weren't any Empire troops to try and follow them. Shizuka ran into the portal, Ace stayed behind to make sure they were not followed, he didn't want Nomis sneaking any of his machinations through. The portal began to destabilize, his cue to hurry and get through it as well.
It took a great deal of effort to not stumble through a dark portal, so it was not a shock to anyone when Ace fell through like a ragdoll. "Whoa. Ace, you okay?" He looked up, seeing Shizuka look down on him. He stood up, brushing off his baggy clothing.
"I'm fine... I think." He took a look around the large room, it was a mess. Many of the crates containing the food and weapons had broken open, and there were many injured scattered about, trying to get themselves together. This place was located on the outskirts of Hollow Bastion, and was the Unbound Heart's own supply bunker. "Once we get things sorted, I'll contact the base."
"Alright!" Shizuka yelled, slapping her cheeks to psyche herself up. She really did hate fighting, so she wanted to get this over with as quickly as possible. The metal wolf was busy dealing with other members of the UH, she tried not to think about how many of her comrades had died, she needed to focus. A pile of steel beams was sitting nearby, she decided to them. "Let's see if these dogs..." She said, easily picking up a beam after hardening her arms. "Like to play fetch!" She launched the slab of metal right at the wolf guarding the entrance, then she picked up another and threw it as well, repeating this until she had thrown all five of them.
Running up to a panel on the warehouse wall, Ace flipped a switch, this caused the crates on the metal shelves to be unhinged from their resting places. He then ran in between the two large shelves. He reached into his pockets and took out a spherical silver device. With a twist, the device opened up into what looked like a dumbbell. Ace quickly sat the device on the ground, and ran over to Shizuka. "It's ready, let's get out of here." He said.
"What about the others? I can't see Trisean anywhere." Shizuka stated with worry.
"He'll be fine, once it opens he should know what to do anyway." Ace said, and just as he did the entire storehouse shook violently. The silver device exploded, and in it's place a dark vortex opened. It was a dark portal similar to what agents of the Empire used, only it was hardly as stable. It grew to the size of a van, and began to suck in the loosened crates, transporting them. It didn't take long for all of the the crates to be moved, and the members of the UH began to leap through the portal. The metal wolves would be too large to fit through, and thanks to Nomis there weren't any Empire troops to try and follow them. Shizuka ran into the portal, Ace stayed behind to make sure they were not followed, he didn't want Nomis sneaking any of his machinations through. The portal began to destabilize, his cue to hurry and get through it as well.
It took a great deal of effort to not stumble through a dark portal, so it was not a shock to anyone when Ace fell through like a ragdoll. "Whoa. Ace, you okay?" He looked up, seeing Shizuka look down on him. He stood up, brushing off his baggy clothing.
"I'm fine... I think." He took a look around the large room, it was a mess. Many of the crates containing the food and weapons had broken open, and there were many injured scattered about, trying to get themselves together. This place was located on the outskirts of Hollow Bastion, and was the Unbound Heart's own supply bunker. "Once we get things sorted, I'll contact the base."
Anorgos, Rika should be invisible right now, and therefore out of sight of the metal werewolf.
Cerden's accepted.
"Intel, Trisean, we need to find a computer and-" The sound of guns going off alerted Ace, though he knew immediately no pieces of lead were headed his way, as none had entered his 'domain.' He turned around to see five soldiers, each posed to shoot. Their captain singled Shizuka out, threatening her specifically, her eyes widened and she pointed to herself in astonishment.
"What? What did I do?" She asked, looking like a child that had been falsely accused of stealing from the cookie jar. She turned to Ace, sticking her thumb out at him. "He's the one that blew up your gate!"
"Well you destroyed their tank..." Ace retorted, averting his eyes.
"H-hey, they didn't need to know that!" Shizuka shook Ace's shoulder, but the both of them fell silent as they noticed the presence behind the empire soldiers. Whatever it was, it was picking the soldiers off like a monster in a horror movie. The sounds of desperate gunfire died down, leaving an unsettling absence of noise. Metallic shuffling could then be heard, with sinister violet light staring them down like prey. A loud clank was heard as one of the metallic beasts leaped onto a member of the UH, before his jugular could be ripped open Shizuka sprinted over and kicked the wolf in it's head, shattering it and spilling it's gears on the ground like the organs of a giant watch. "This is..." She picked up one of the tainted pieces of metal, she had it's sensation before, she could never forget a substance like this. she yelled out to Ace. "It's the gear head! Run ahead, I'll hold him off here!" They still had an important objective to complete, they couldn't afford to be stalled here for too long.
Ace understood, he began to run for a door exiting into a hallway. Two wolves jumped into his path, growling with a sound that reminded him of the screeching on chalkboards. His pace did not slow down, the beasts leaped for him, and Ace drew his blade, his sword cleaved through the metal flesh, sparking as it passed through them. The would be hunters clanked to the ground, and he rushed into the halls. An alarm was blaring, likely alerting the entire block that something was going on here. The halls were empty for now, as the storehouse's security was surprisingly lax. After barging into multiple rooms he found what he was looking for, a computer, but something was wrong. There were multiple dead men in this room, each clearly killed swiftly and with little to no resistance. As far as he knew, no other UH members had been here yet. Clenching his teeth in irritation he quickly accessed the database and searched for any valuable information, but there was none. "The hell?... There should be at least something here. Did they know we were coming and wiped the data?... No, that's not possible." He looked back to the bodies on the ground, they had been beaten here. After a minute of searching the computer's files in futility he slammed his fist on the keyboard, and left the room. If they couldn't get any intel, they could at least get the supplies in the storehouse. He made is way back, only to find that Shizuka had taken care of the pack of wolves, destroying them with her bare hands. But there was still the issue of the man that had created them. Before they could take the supplies, he needed to be dealt with.
"What? What did I do?" She asked, looking like a child that had been falsely accused of stealing from the cookie jar. She turned to Ace, sticking her thumb out at him. "He's the one that blew up your gate!"
"Well you destroyed their tank..." Ace retorted, averting his eyes.
"H-hey, they didn't need to know that!" Shizuka shook Ace's shoulder, but the both of them fell silent as they noticed the presence behind the empire soldiers. Whatever it was, it was picking the soldiers off like a monster in a horror movie. The sounds of desperate gunfire died down, leaving an unsettling absence of noise. Metallic shuffling could then be heard, with sinister violet light staring them down like prey. A loud clank was heard as one of the metallic beasts leaped onto a member of the UH, before his jugular could be ripped open Shizuka sprinted over and kicked the wolf in it's head, shattering it and spilling it's gears on the ground like the organs of a giant watch. "This is..." She picked up one of the tainted pieces of metal, she had it's sensation before, she could never forget a substance like this. she yelled out to Ace. "It's the gear head! Run ahead, I'll hold him off here!" They still had an important objective to complete, they couldn't afford to be stalled here for too long.
Ace understood, he began to run for a door exiting into a hallway. Two wolves jumped into his path, growling with a sound that reminded him of the screeching on chalkboards. His pace did not slow down, the beasts leaped for him, and Ace drew his blade, his sword cleaved through the metal flesh, sparking as it passed through them. The would be hunters clanked to the ground, and he rushed into the halls. An alarm was blaring, likely alerting the entire block that something was going on here. The halls were empty for now, as the storehouse's security was surprisingly lax. After barging into multiple rooms he found what he was looking for, a computer, but something was wrong. There were multiple dead men in this room, each clearly killed swiftly and with little to no resistance. As far as he knew, no other UH members had been here yet. Clenching his teeth in irritation he quickly accessed the database and searched for any valuable information, but there was none. "The hell?... There should be at least something here. Did they know we were coming and wiped the data?... No, that's not possible." He looked back to the bodies on the ground, they had been beaten here. After a minute of searching the computer's files in futility he slammed his fist on the keyboard, and left the room. If they couldn't get any intel, they could at least get the supplies in the storehouse. He made is way back, only to find that Shizuka had taken care of the pack of wolves, destroying them with her bare hands. But there was still the issue of the man that had created them. Before they could take the supplies, he needed to be dealt with.
I wouldn't say it's outside the realm of possibility for a member of the Empire to know him. My character Ryoko should know him, for one, she doesn't forget traitors.
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