Chapter 29

Jamal gave no other information or instructions and only repeated his demand before quickly leaving. I was beginning to wonder if I chose the right people to help me. 20 thousand gold was a lot to pay to be ordered around and disrespected.

Assuming what was waiting for me tomorrow at noon was a test of sorts, I went straight to my birth in the hangers and began to clock in some more hours on the simulator. I hadn't been using it as much as I should have lately. For one, I was doing a lot of research and groundwork for my plans in Anarchy city. And two, it wasn’t always available.

Alice used it nearly every single day and clocked in at least 6 hours a day on it. She was training like a fiend. I don’t blame her. The cheapest option for simulators cost a lot to rent by the day. Even then they were a poor imitation of the simulator available in the Calipso. She was probably also concerned that her ability to use it could disappear at any moment. Which, if my guess was correct would happen soon.

Between Markus’s hints and Jamal’s desire to test my ability as a pilot, I guessed that my assumed identity and cover story would involve me being a pilot. A pilot without an armor wasn’t a pilot. So in all likelihood, the Calipso was going with me to retrieve mother and any of my other surviving friends and acquaintances. That was better in my opinion than going without it. With the Calipso and Toby by my side, I would feel more secure outside the city.

Alice usually used the simulator earlier in the day as she had to work evenings at the inn. So I had it to myself for the rest of the night.

She had been inside the cockpit so much recently I could smell her scent lingering inside it. It was a nice change to the reek of my own sweat. I also noticed she seems to have wiped down all of the surfaces and cleaned every nook and cranny inside the cockpit. Girls will be girls. Despite my laziness, uncleanliness, and uncaring attitude about the dirt and grime before, having it spotlessly clean and fresh smelling definitely made staying inside the cockpit for long hours more bearable.

Quickly booting up the system, I ran the gambit and did a little of every type of training before concentrating on close quarters combat. Staying up relatively late into the night I clocked in about 9 hours of last-minute training before I proceeded to go to my room and crash. At this point, sleep would do me better than a few more hours of training. Despite my modified body’s ability to sleep less, my best work would be done while well-rested.

My alarm woke me at 10 am, I ate a small breakfast, showered, and proceeded directly back to my hanger birth. I stopped along the way and used the locker rooms attached to the hanger to change into the battle suit I had purchased in the last few days. It wasn’t as good as the one the late Count Ragnar had used, but it didn’t need to be.

The main functions of the battle suit that I needed were head protection and air filtration. Despite my modified body and more sturdy nature, I couldn’t guarantee every large bump in the Calipso wouldn't give me a concussion or worse. I wasn’t confident that my body could handle and shrug off ever spore, chemical, toxin, poison, radiation dosage and the such either. The helmet would protect my head and the built-in filtration system would protect my lungs. Any pilot that left the city without one of these suits would be considered a fool. Who knew when a possible breach in your armor could happen?

Alice used the Calipso’s simulator almost exclusively earlier in the day and I should have known to warn her I would be using the Calipso today. I hadn't thought of it and as such, when I opened the cockpit I was greeted by a surprised-looking Alice.

“Oh! Hello Caleb. Are you using the Simulator this early today? I noticed you used it a lot last night. The logs show you stayed up pretty late.”

“Hello, Alice. No. Not today. I believe I will be doing something with it today, but I’m not sure of the specifics.”

Alice looked confused.

“You believe? How could you not know?”

The question left me in an awkward position. It was awkward because I should know exactly what I was about to do. The problem was, Jamal seemed to enjoy leaving me to guess what was about to happen. That or he just didn’t care enough to tell me.

Based on the fact that he asked me to show up with my armor and that the location was a training ground, at the very least, he would see what I was able to do. Maybe he would make me pilot around an obstacle course. Maybe he would make me do jumping jacks. Or, maybe he would show up with an armor of his own and see if I could stand in the ring with him for a while without getting the Calipso’s head taken off.

Knowing as little as I did about Jamal beside his surly nature, I couldn’t be sure.

I told Alice a basic outline of the events, excluding names, and my plan to use outside help to retrieve mother and the few friends I had left as well as what transpired yesterday. She thought about the situation for a bit and spoke.

“I would guess he isn’t going to ask you to use the simulator. Otherwise, he would have just connected to it remotely and watched you do a few courses. He didn’t do that. He wanted you at a training field with your armor. You said he was a man of few words and a bit on the surly side? He might be one of those types that don’t believe in results shown through simulation. Something about there being no real exertion or danger in a simulation. Those types believe you can only show what your worth in real physical tests of skill. My dad is like that. He once said that any green pilot can post good results in a simulation, but the stress of real combat usually had most new pilots falling apart at the seams.”

I nodded and agreed with her assessment. Her opinion on the matter closely matched my own.

“Otherwise, there is another reason for him to test you in person and using “real” combat.”

“Hmm? Like what?”

Alice thought for a few seconds before letting out a sigh.

“You said he was surly. A bad attitude right?”

Another nod from me.

“Well, … he might just want to put you in your place. Maybe gain a little respect from you. You’re a young guy with an old-world armor. He probably expects you to be arrogant or have an overly high opinion of your own skill. Maybe he even feels some jealousy at you piloting an old-world armor. It’s not uncommon for that to happen. Sort of like “You wouldn't be crap without that fancy piece of old-world tech.”. It might be that sort of thing.”

“That would be pretty unprofessional. Wouldn't it?”

Alice smiled and shook her head.

“Sure, jealousy would be unprofessional, but putting you in your place, earning respect… not at all.”

Another quizzical look from me prompted Alice to elaborate.

“Look, based on what you have said, this guy is going to be your guide. He will likely be with you through the entire process. So he may want to make sure you understand HE is in charge while on the job. It’s hard to command others without first obtaining their respect. Going outside and operating as a team is very dangerous if a clear line of command is not maintained. It’s nearly suicidal in fact. My mother talks about beating respect into the pilots she commands often enough for me to get the general idea.”

Mulling that over, I had to agree. It’s very possible this would be a little more than a friendly spar.

“Your thinking is flawless. I'll have to watch out. Thank you, Alice.”

Her arrogant little nod as if she was a great teacher looking upon a student didn’t irk me. In fact, it was cute as hell.

“Should I let him win?”

“Why? Caleb, if he notices you let him win, he will not respect you. Not to mention you are a green pilot. You may not even be able to hold your own against him. Just go full out. Be cautious, but show him you have some…” She seemed to want to say another word and her eyes flicked down for a second before she continued. “…fortitude.”

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A lopsided smile tugged its way across my face and I felt the urge to tease her.

“Fortitude? Why does it feel like you were about to say another word? I wonder what it could have been?”

My shit-eating smirk was a step too far I guess because as usual, she fired back with twice the zing.

“You're right. I was about to say BALLS. I just didn’t want to possibly put you in an awkward position. You know, some men do have issues like that. I wouldn’t want to hurt your ego just before you spar.”

I raised my eyebrow and shot her a deadpan look. One that I hoped portrayed that I could prove to her that I didn’t lack balls if it was required. The look seemed to work as she coughed and switched subjects back on track.

“So, like I said, if it becomes a spar, just do your best.”

She proceeded to act like a nanny as I fired up the Calipso and ran a check on all systems. Alice ran down the list of all the faults she could spot in my technique based on the recordings of my simulations. I could tell she wanted to be there and witness whatever was about to happen, but she and I both knew Jamal probably would like it if I brought along an observer. She was able to get me to promise to record whatever happened so she could review it later, however.

After final checks were complete and I had stitched the fuel consumption from unrefined cores to refined ones, I powered the armor and left the hanger bay under the envious look of Alice. I could tell she wished she was the one in the Calipso at the moment. Despite her ability to use the simulator, she felt the lack of her own armor keenly. A pilot without an armor isn't a pilot.

It didn’t take long to reach the training field as they were positioned close to the hangers for ease of use. After about 10 minutes of passing through checkpoints, I arrived at the field to find a single armor standing in a walled-in patch of land about 30 meters wide with a long pole in one of its hands. There were no cameras or sentries posted on the walls. An oddity in this city that almost always had someone watching you while piloting. I guessed that somehow Jamal had pulled some strings.

The armor standing in the center of the field was a little taller than the Calipso. Almost .75 meters taller in fact. Its head wasn’t human-shaped but more squashed. Like a wok. Its “face” was covered in gem-like sensors and cameras. The body was thicker than the Calipso as well. It seemed built to take a beating. There were weapon mounts both under the armpits and on its shoulders.

To my surprise, Toby identified the armor as an old-world model. Jamal hadn't said anything about him also having an old-world armor. The fact that the man assigned to me possessed an old world armor told me that maybe the money I had spent would be considered “cheap” as Jamal said.

“It’s an X-207 Avenger. That one is configured for a heavy load-out. You can tell by the weapon hard-points. They are designed to carry heavy firepower and have a high level of defense. Their maneuverability while fully loaded is lacking, but that was never their purpose. Fire suppression and area of control are their specialties.”

“Thanks, Toby. Show me the specific data on it.”

“Sure thing buddy.”

I watched as data scrolled across the screen and compared it to the Calipso’s data.

The Calipso had the advantage in speed and agility. Its sensor systems were a match for the Calipso. In every other way, this armor outstripped the Calipso. Power output, defense, attack, shield strength. Any thought of my old world armor giving me an unfair advantage evaporated.

“The Avenger is requesting a comlink. Patch it through?”

“Yes.”

The comlink was established and I heard Jamal’s deep voice over the link.

“Are you going to stand there forever?”

More gruff talk…

“Just observing the enemy. Always good to get all the info before you fight, right?”

“You don’t even know what we are doing.”

“You are going to beat some obedience into me right?”

“Oooh. You are smarter than you look.”

“Do we have a problem?”

“No. No problem here. I just want you to understand a few things. Operating outside these walls, as a group, is like being in a pack. There has to be a hierarchy same as in an actual wolf pack. There has to be an alpha. I’m the alpha. It’s nothing personal. Just how it works. I’ve seen young greenie pilots your age. Ones with a very high opinion of their skill. If you hadn't requested to accompany me on this task, we wouldn't have to do this, but since you did… here we are. Plus, I really do wanna see if you have any skill. Don’t take it personally.”

“So what's the plan. Do we take some swings at each other? Any rules?”

“ No blades, no guns. No shields. We use blunted melee weapons. Choose your weapon from there.”

His armor raised one hand to point at a massive rack of training weapons to one side of the field.

“Other than that, no malicious actions. We aren’t trying to cripple the other armor or hurt each-other physically. But I doubt you will need to worry about that. Don’t worry, I know how to not harm you.”

“Hmm. We will see.”

“Yes, words mean nothing. Show me what you got.”

I piloted the Calipso over to the weapon rack and chose a long sword.

“A sword? That’s an odd choice.”

And it was. Usually at least. Most people avoided using swords as a weapon of choice. Most chose axes or polearms like the one Jamal was using. Swords, based on their thin designs and lack of weight, usually lacked killing power and more importantly, became damaged easily. Not to mention their reach was limited.

It was different for me.

“My melee weapon is a beam saber. So I train with a sword.”

“Hoo. A beam saber? That’s good stuff.”

It was. I had checked the price on all of the equipment the Calipso had and found there to be only two other beam sabers for sale in Anarchy city. Both of which were priced at nearly 35 thousand gold. Honestly, besides the Calipso itself, the beam saber was the most expensive piece of equipment I had.

It was a very special piece of equipment. It had an advantage in attack strength. More than that, it was incredibly hard to block. Even if your own melee weapon wasn’t sliced in half, which most equipment would be, you still had to deal with the fact that you couldn’t actually block a beam saber.

The beam would pass right over your own weapon and continue on to slash through your armor if you didn’t take that into account. The beam wasn’t an actual physical blade and couldn’t be stopped so easily as a normal blade. The beam saber also did an insane amount of damage to shields. It cut through them like they were made of paper. It was specifically designed to cut through shields and armor only fared slightly better. In my opinion the close-quarters weapon of choice for the Calipso. With its speed, it could dive in on an enemy and deal a devastating blow with the beam saber.

“Well, no fancy beam saber for you today.”

“True.”

I said it as I stepped into the field and took a position about 5 meters in front of his armor.

“Ready?”

Feeling the now semi-familiar feeling of adrenalin that usually crept up in tense situations and taking a moment to do a last-second check on the Calipso, I answered.

“Ready when you are.”

No sooner than I had finished speaking, the first attack came like lightning.

The Avenger raised its polearm as it took a massive leap forward and attacked from above with one hand holding the polearm.

Shocked at his immediate attack, I raised my sword and blocked with a horizontal guard while keeping my center of gravity low. If I allowed him to, Jamal could pivot the end of his polearm over my blade and thrust down into my cockpit or the head and shoulders of the Calipso.

As our weapons met in mid-air I expected a heavy blow, only to be surprised when instead of putting the weight of his armor behind the strike, he dropped to a lower stance and thrust his armors left palm directly towards the chest of the Calipso.

I had been tricked with the very first move. Deciding I didn’t have the time needed to avoid the blow completely, I pivoted the Calipso while shoving the polearm away and took the palm strike with the shoulder of my armor. I maintained the pivot in an attempt to divert as much of the kinetic energy as possible and achieved limited results.

Barely able to keep the armor standing as it slid backward from the blow, I swung the sword out in an arc to cover my retreat as I fired my forward thrusters in an attempt to create some distance. Jamal had no intention of allowing that, however.

He fired his own rear thrusters and his polearm that I had shoved away did something odd. Instead of stopping the force of my shove and launching another piercing blow, his armors wrist rotated with the direction of the shove and let its grip loosen so that the polearm nearly slide out of its grasp. Now holding the end of the polearm instead of the middle, the rotation continued and the “blade” end of the polearm came around to slash horizontally with a new improved reach that allowed him to strike while out of range of my own desperate slash.

Realizing that I couldn’t pull the blade back fast enough to block, I dropped down and stayed low to avoid it completely. The polearm passed above me, but instantly I realized I had made a mistake. No sooner than I had dropped down, I found that a large metal leg was sweeping up and into my chest.

Only able to bring the Calipso’s left arm to the front in time to cushion the blow, I felt a massive kinetic force slam into me. The Calipso and I were sent tumbling backward in mid-air.

I fired my main thruster when they came around to face my opponent and gained even more elevation while flipping before I cut them and hurdled back towards the ground. Barely able to get my feet under me as I landed, the Calipso skid across the dirt ground and I was forced to drop to one knee and plant a fist on the ground to maintain balance.

As the Calipso came to a halt I shot to a ready stance and prepared for another attack. I was embarrassed to find Jamal and his armor serenely standing 15 meters away with the butt of his polearm planted on the ground as he leaned on it. The stance seemed to say “is that it?”.

He was toying with me. I felt anger before I realized that was what he wanted.

Jamal was a crafty opponent. He hadn't used one straight forward attack yet and I believed even this gesture was meant to make me lose my cool. I couldn’t allow myself to fall into his pace.

I straightened the Calipso before deciding that I wouldn't hold back any advantage in this fight. My will to win was too strong now.

Silently urging the Adrenalin fueled state I was in to greater heights, I also activated the link with the Calipso and watched as my viewpoint switched from my actual eyes to the hundreds of cameras and sensors of the Calipso.

The Avenger armor raised one hand while still leaning on the polearm and gestured for me to come.

I obliged, and the fight was back on.