Again, the room was entirely painted with crimson from sheer viscera. The space-grade steel walls and doors, all completely covered. A large food hall, once used for comrades to bond and reward themselves were now showered in the blood that cascaded from the lights and the walls. The rooms were filled with the sound of steel clashing and screeching. The lights were all torn out, it was almost pitch black. But yet, it wasn't. Under this final light sat a giant, mechanical beast made of twisted black metal and adorned scarlet. This weapon raised two arm-like appendages high as it delved into another, unrecognisable mass. A geyser ripped itself from a tear in what appeared to be an alloy, which the beast ripped into further before rushing it's fists deeper and deeper until it went clean through. The Weapon stood up tall and grabbed the mass by what could only be guessed as a face, witch sharp knife-like fingers. It raised the mass high as it twitched, carmine cascaded down its claw-like arms and pooled below itself. It was extremely similar to the blood embellished beast, save the fact this monster no longer had any legs, and instead wore a giant gash over its chest. The standing beast then suddenly extended some appendage from around its right forearm, launching a blade through it's 'head' clean through. Just as the beast began to fall to the ground, exhausted from the attack, the remaining giant, grabbed the carcass from the gash in its chest and used it to launch the beast across the beast. Crimson splattered across the wall as it stood still, almost heaving. Inside the beast sat a girl inside an extremely small cockpit. Exhausted, sweating and with death in her eyes. In her head, an incessant whine. A scream to kill more and more. A rage that had yet to be fulfilled. A tickle on her back and she ripped herself around, firing some sort of shotgun she swiped up from a nearby corpse and blowing a hole into the wall, revealing bloodsoaked corridors. It was just a trickle of blood, a soft waterfall from another corpse, impaled above her on the ceiling. Then, she turned to the left, where she came from and paused for a few seconds. Only the sound of a distant fire and the soft waterfall of viscera, maybe even a distant siren once or twice. She fired and in the brief flash she saw one more creature. Except it was no creature, it was a mech, the exact same model as she was. There was a cry out in pain as Lex shot through the air, and drove her knee into the other mech. It staggered back, and as Lex slammed it into the nearest wall the lights activated.
Another room, full of the weapons and viscera; this room, however, was some sort of command centre, with computers all flaunting "DISTRESS" rotating around as sirens blared louder. She fired at the mech's arm, launching it across the room instantly. As the victim held its arm out in fear, or for some semblance of protection; Lex took the opportunity to completely dislocate the arm in a single pull. The arm fell, completely unusable. She planted the shotgun directly against the main chest piece of the mech and fired; being showered in viscera. She fired again and again and again and again and again until her gun could fire no more. The victim stopped moving all together after the first shot. Finally, silence. A true, true silence. A man watched, hiding under a table. he had been knocked out when the invader broke through the secure defence doors and the 20-inch thick steel door launched a table into the man's head. He struggled out in pain, under the weight of the table, the simple table proved too heavy for him and yet he was relentless in his escape. The mech, around 35 feet tall quickly twisted its head toward the man, two thin vermillion rectangular lights acted as eyes, studying the man. Lex actually took a few seconds before decorating the walls of the command centre with more blood.
Lex awoke, sweating even more intensely than she did that day; however she awoke in a soft bed in the early hours of the day. Her face was puffy with tears, her mocha eyes quivered wide. She lifted up her pale white covers close to her, moving the short brown hair stuck to her face. Her breath shook a little as she tried to take control of her breathing, as she finally began to take control. She forced herself up and she stretched out, trying to avoid the dirty clothes that littered the floor. Posters of bands, weapons and mech suits adorned the walls of her very, very small square apartment. Not that you can see much of anything, as she always had her blinds firmly shut. The only light came from several humming neon screens and equipment; She only knew it was 4 am because her large 3d wall monitor displayed the time in some holographic alarm clock, floating a few feet from the screen. All the different bounties, news, updates and her alarm itself all were lit in different shades of purple and blue. Her apartment was a single room, The standard for the Bellua sure, but there's only so much luxury in living in the universes slum. She reached for some pink energy drink that sat on the desk of a PC and slammed down the flat drink. It at least woke her up a little. She reached into some closet, it was hard to see anything in the room but she was so used to it she could visualise her way through.
She picked up this textured black shirt, with red roses lightly dotted around, and left the top few buttons undone. She suddenly spoke, "Tangora, Camera."
Her voice was scratchy and rough, and when the camera turned on and she couldn't see anything she sighed and then said "Tangora, Lights."
She sounded as if she has swallowed knives, yet there was a hint of sweetness in the undertone. She raised her arm to block out the brightness, and when she lowered it she examined her face. A long, harsh, cragged scar ran across a closed eye. Various blemishes decorated her body, but none was as noticeable as what runs over her eye. The girl reached for her desk, and on it sat an eyepatch. A nice soft hazel leather eyepatch, with a deep cerise heart sewn into it. She placed it carefully over her head and took time to move her hair out of the way to make sure it didn't get in her way or look weird with the patch on. She slowly placed the shirt on too, being particularly delicate with the embroiderings as they scratched her skin, and then placed some high black socks and tall black combat boots. Finally, sitting on a peg by her door, sat a rather huge, dark garnet velvet overcoat. All the gold and brass buttons, and the specific details embroidered around her wrists. She got herself wrapped up, tied up her boots, and finally placed in a single earing that let out a cute noise and it's single blue 'jewel' flashed once, before finally setting off and hiding it behind her hair.
She used a Keycard with the number 1103, and the door split in half horizontally; as one side lifted up and the other shrunk; closing as she stepped out. Instantly, she was hit by the smell of the Slum Colony Bellua. Her boots clinked against the mesh-like balcony as she looked out onto the colony. A massive district of bright lights, different neon signs of magenta and sapphire blared out, all trying to outdo each other. The smell of fish, fried foods and sweets all hit her at once; with the occasional hint of rot and sewage as she lived a little too close to the even worse area of the colony. The sea of markets, all advertising something different all blared music, screams and laughter. She walked along slowly, eventually making her way to a spiral staircase as the elevator had been out for years. She stepped into the streets, not without first passing a couple Druggos just outside the small complex. These apartment complexes towered over the short marketplace, its signs spanning endlessly upwards, however, it becomes too dense to even understand the higher signs. The small little wooden stalls, small shops and genuine building were lit only by the overly bright lights 24/7. Lex passed swarms of people, in suits or children, some soldiers too. There was a noticeable lack of Hunters. She kept walking alone, keeping her hands firmly in her pockets to avoid any pickpocketers, it was now even easier to steal as she was very aware. She kept to herself, waving at a Cybernetic Chef, selling fried fish she frequents; or the Android Bar she wasted herself in a few weeks ago. The emotionless red eyes of the keep seeped through the thin, tattered cloth that acted as some sort of door to the establishment. The bustle became overbearing, the constant sounds of screaming and laughing and the unending cascade of conversation flooded her thoughts, she just followed the same path she always takes. As she walked on and on, the clothes shops and stalls began to start closing, not because it was late but this district was much much too old to keep going. As she delved further she passed the last active old shop, tailors for out of fashion clothing; and kept trudging on. There was no more passerby walking along yet the bright neon kept stretching on for a small while until even the packed, overdense street signs began to die out too. Finally, one building.
Completely indistinguishable from the rest of the broke, run-down buildings and stalls, even it's door had started to rot and its wooden exterior began to darken due to the hidden smog of oil and soot blanketed the slum. Above the wonky door sat an old board, with "YTYKM" painted elegantly with a mix of black ink and motor oil. It certainly smelt that way. Lex quietly entered, and the quiet, unlit place didn't look or stir in any way. She could only see with the few candles lit around and the almost completely faded neon sign that sat in the barkeeper's area. Maybe a dozen people sat, at various broken or chipped tables, that or the set of 3 or 4 stools that have stood the test of time and are somehow usable. The Barkeep was barely a man, he was a mess of mechanics and flesh mostly hid under some plain white t-shirt. It was hard to see if he even had hair and a complexion similar to Lex, his resting scowl faded when he met eyes with Lex. "Vydar, Lex." His voice was gruff and guttural, not scratchy just low.
"Vydar." She replied, in that guttural accent before leaning against the counter; "I need good luck."
The man laughed a little, "That's all you have here."
As her voice returned to her typical scratchiness, his voice remained accented. She replied cooly with an "It's all I have."
The two laughed, but Lex couldn't help notice the others in the bar. Hunters, all staring. Some dressed in leathers, with big hats, badges and guns proudly sitting on the tables or their belts. Men and Women alike scowled at the girl. All of them with a blue star around their chest. Lex stared at them unblinkingly. Each and every one until they all backed down. She enjoyed her almost luminescent blue drink and wiped her mouth with. "And fucking what."
She hissed at one of the stragglers and turned to leave. "I'll see you later to pay, Garland." To which the man nodded, and cleaned her glass.
"Hisz."
After leaving YTYKM, she stared up the street of broken stores and markets. The electronic glow burned into her eyes a little less after the nice drink. She headed through, eventually more and more civilians joined her in her walk. Two school children playing around with hyper-advanced technology. One of them was using the camera to tap signs and change their colours, or select monsters or characters. She rolled her eyes as she passed through, looking up and seeing all these flying fish, dragons and planes with banners or advertisements attached one way or the other. She watched as the child pressed a Character, a fish in the sky changed into that character, with that advertisement still fully attached. They all looked the same to her at this point. She reached an intersection, completely surrounded by various tech shops; long, long lines for certain streetside food. She headed left and scanned around for a decent place to eat. Each stall was barely a meter wide, space was cheap here so it was extremely cramped, however, she found a small chef by himself, with little to no customers. She took a seat at the stall, a rare find in the market place. The Chef was but a boy, struggling to handle the boxes. Her very presence seemed to stress the boy out as he speeded up to try and serve her fast. "Easy there little guy, take your time."
He sighed and organised some boxes before going to the lady. She gestured the 10 piece, the boy set out to work, making 10 small fried balls filled with some sort of strange, alien fish. "Here's 50 Credits." She smiled, but the boy didn't react.
"Hello?" She startled him, but when she repeated that he simply cocked his head to the side as if he doesn't understand.
"Vydar? Hrushi? Hilkar?" She went through all the different ways she knew how to say hello until "Yukai" seemed to have an effect, to which he replied too with "Yukai.".
"Juho d 50 fride." And the boy's eyes opened wide, profusely refusing, but she insisted. She replied with "It's yours." In his language and he was very grateful for it, seeming as the 10 piece was only 5 Credits anyway. She passed through the streets, two chopsticks with 5 and 4 small, warm balls sat between her index, middle and fourth finger. The food by far was the best part of this district. She kept walking and found herself out of the market, instead now at a small park. She waltzed through it, the trees clunk if you tap on them and the grass are paper strips, various giant grates and vents stuck out from the fake grass completely ruining the immersion. But then again what park has a ceiling only a few hundred feet above. She enjoyed the sentiment nonetheless.
The orange glow of the engines and overworking machinery reminded her of the orange lamps from home, as did the heat of being so close to both the engines of the ship and the bustle of the market. She finally reached a bannister and a sheep drop. It was a lookout point for the rest of the Bellua. The Ship really was shaped like a whale, looking out you can see the ship's width increase near the centre and then begin to close up around the head. The Stomach was adorned with large skyscrapers for apartments, hundreds and hundreds of housing districts, pretty looking trees, large shops, but yet there was no giant neon advertisements. Only the soft light teal glow of the street lamps. She knew what the Bellua really was, she where 99% of the population really lived, the Stomach was really a ghost town. Only some people could even afford to live there, and yet the money they earn is enough to keep the Citadel running themselves. She sat and enjoyed the view of the sea, of all these teal lights, and spotted two moving objects, seemingly miles apart. Cars or trucks maybe, it was too far to make out.
She finished off her food and put the chopsticks into and inside pocket. From there she checked around her uncomfortably, watching some couple pass and whispered "Tangora, Time."
On her right arm, just on the back of her hand, a hologram projected out a small blue clock icon, with the time digitally next to it. 4:42 AM; the exact same blue as the stars of the hunters. Showtime. She quickly closed it and made sure no one saw the hologram and began to walk toward the stomach. She stepped down these faux-stone steps while holding onto the metal bannister, being careful of the colossal drop that housed the main vents for the engines. She reached the bottom and was met with roads, formed into grids and devoid of cars. She walked to a nearby Train Station where more people awaited. She knew her train was at 5 am, she took a second to explore the unnaturally quiet streets. She sat down for at a bench at some crossroads. Something about the synthetic concrete, synthetic tarmac. Nothing was genuine on the Bellua, all just cosmetics. Lex stretched out and enjoyed the warmth, the engines roared a few hundred feet away and she sat just by the main vent, evenly distributing a warm breeze. The soft teal lights seemed to go on forever, as the smell of the burning engine filled the air. She smiled and kicked her legs around, enjoying the quiet. Pretending that this wide-open city didn't have a ceiling mere miles above her head. She finally felt a soft vibration on her hand and turned to go to the station.
The station was particularly silent. The train hovered along its tracks, before slowly but silently stopping. It let out a hiss as the great doors opened up. Inside was full of civilians, and as she passed and shuffled through the density she reached a much, much less populated area and sat down. The only people surrounding her here were hunters, indicated by the blue star. All minding their own business or using their AR Tech. She stayed silent, and waited for her stop, examining the bright ads and yellow and black tape that sectioned of areas. She sat alone and just stared out the window. Hundreds of houses passed, all this room for life and yet they were all perfectly uniform and unchanging. She stepped off and entered another large area. This, however, was bustling too. There were fewer people than the market but it was still loud, not just from conversations but loud booming engines. Small ships slowly taxi's through the air, leading to the only noticeable feature. A massive hole in the citadel. It was this soft blue window to outer space where more floating guidance and various other ships and points of interest hovered silently jut outside. Ships passed through easily. There were a few different holes, all different sizes and all with different traffic. Massive, hulking ships known as Leviathan Class extremely slowly waltzed on through one at a time; while smaller freight ships or speed ships had their own paths; and then finally, her route. Mechanical Human-Shaped vehicles glided through the air.
She walked through several platforms, one or two mechanics noticing her and giving her a little wave as she made her way to her ship. Ship parts, placed on hovering trolleys automatically drifted between people; as well as various Bounty Hunters, Shipping Companies, Racers and so many other groups. She was very comfortable calling out "Tangora, Contacts." for once, and as she carefully avoided other pedestrians, flicked through a long long list before coming to "Agent #495" before tapping them. She placed something in her ear, before connecting the two and selecting Call from the menu. While the tone rang out she weaved through the crowd, coughing at the sheer smell of motor oil and general sweatiness.
"Hello?" She called when she noticed the tone had stopped.
"Hello, is this Hunter Lex Tetra?" A cute sounding, young girl asked; interrupted by Lex' gruff
"Yes, is this..." Lex quickly went to Tangora's notes and found "Cecilia?"
"Confirmed! Alright, let me find your bounty...."
Lex could very audibly hear her shuffle through paper, along with a few "Damn it's" as she struggled.
"It should be at the front of your file?" Lex suggested, quickly quieting the girl as she coughs.
"It's an ex-military from Tokira, 32K Bounty. Located near the Hidua Desert, apparently hiding out with their broken Osseus. Should be an easy target, right?"
This story has been stolen from Royal Road. If you read it on Amazon, please report it
Lex just "Hmm'd" along.
"Listen," Lex added,"I need to get into my Osseus first, I'll only be a few minutes. Can you stream the location to my AR Device?"
Cecilia seemed to stutter a little at saying "I, uh, don't exactly have an AR Device yet."
Lex just rolled her eyes, "Look I need to get my Osseus ready. Wait a few minutes." Cecilia happily obliged.
Lex now came across a rather massive building, lining the wall of the Beluga; housing about 5,000 Units. She climbed up many mesh stairs, she felt they would break at any second. She finally came across Plot 337. She was face to face with a normal-sized door, and then a much much larger shutter, however, there was a harsh drop. This complex was a Bee Hive, all these self-sustaining units, which have these vehicles emerging out and taking flight. She unlocked hers and stepped in, closing it behind her. The coolness of the Room instantly washed her in relief. She flicked the light on and examined the room. Standard, had a small Laptop and a desk by the door, along with a wardrobe she used to keep weapons, along with a few notebooks and big equipment for her mech. Speaking of, there it Knelt. Amdusias. It had a massive cord attached to a hole in its back to supply it with power, behind the mechanical behemoth sat an array of weapons, all larger than the girl herself.
An Onyx beast sat in front of her. The titan stood about 20 feet tall, its armour was bulky, the frame was thin yet the armour was heavy hunks of metal chiselled to fit like a muscle, or the sharp pyramid that sat where the head should be. Its chest was made out the same harsh, black metal that contoured its twisted face. Between the chest and hips was a ball joint, and Its hips were harsh diamonds, thin legs held thick armour that was several meters thick, the entire shape was extremely large and overbearing. It was a Heavy Vanguard Class Osseus. A Vintage model sure, heavier and sturdier than most contemporary Osseus, but she loved it all the same. She held her hand out to it, and sheets of steel began to unfold and shift out of the way, forming where the cockpit sat. She quickly tapped away on her PC, as robotic arms shifted the Weapons behind the Osseus around and placed them automatically through this interface. She picked an MXG-12 Automatic Shotgun and an MXG-V45 Assault Rifle.
With a press of a button, Amdusias stood up, the thick armour surrounding its right leg opened, revealing a cube, which twisted and spun fast until it twisted its way into the shape of a rather boxy rifle, with some fancy magazine and sight enhancements. Amdusias assumed a specific form and the rifles placed itself gently into its hand, before it lifted itself, spun back into its compact cube and reinserted itself into the armour. And Again, with the left leg. This time, a shotgun with a drum barrel, which folded up rather neatly into its leg. The Beast fell down to one knee as she began to clamber up the beast. She leapt into the interior and there was a simple, comfy seat, filled with empty cans, maps, CDs; weird things that smelled nice or half-eaten food. She reached above her for two handles, which pulled down and closed the cockpit doors. She felt Amdusias stand up as the darkness in front of her became replaced by a Calibration Sequence. She quickly called Cecilia, as she was setting Amdusias up.
"Lex!" Cecilia very excitedly cried, much to the girl's dismay.
"Were you expecting me to not answer?" Lex scoffed, setting up the controls. Two joysticks sat at about arm's length, however, it was moving each individual joystick back and forth that gave her perfect control over each arm, which she tested out joyfully.
"Well, I've had some hunters die before this point." Cecilia admitted, making Lex pause.
"At the Osseus Boarding stage?" Lex asked, making the girl let out a few "Uhm" and "Uhhs."
"You don't know the stages do you?" Lex added, to Cecilia's frustration.
"I used to, I just uh..." Lex laughed at this, "Oh this is gonna fucking suck." Shutting the poor girl up.
The Calibration sequence ended, and ahead of her was cameras on Amdusias' eyes, so she could see. The viewport was this massive window. She pushed forward on the left joystick, and Amdusias began to walk forward, she briefly tested the right joystick and its ability to tilt and look around. Lex internally called, "Tangora, Osseus Door." Which opened the door. She pushed both sticks in, and they both clicked as Amdusias gently lifted off. A notification appeared on her HUD, "Switching to Flight Mode," As the controls altered to fit flight. She hovered outside, turned and asked Tangora to close the door. She slowly began to head toward the osseus-sized window.
"So uhh..." Cecilia suddenly spoke up. "How's your day been?"
Lex shook her head, "You make small talk with all your clients?"
Cecilia answered honestly, "I try to, I like to think it helps calm their nerves a little."
Lex scoffed at the girl, "Listen, girl. I've been bounty hunting for half a fuckin decade. I think I can handle myself."
Amdusias slowly began to exit the Bellua, and as she reached the threshold, everything around her began to float. "Tangora, Gravity." Lex quickly said, and just like that everything fell to where it all was.
Outside the Bellua, neon signs sat free-floating for various market shops and clothing stores, as well as a particularly large and bright "THANK YOU FOR VISITING THE BELLUA!" She passed space debris, and entered the Bellua Outskirts, a collection of pit stops, restaurants and expensive hotels. She passed one particularly big villa, with big expensive Osseus' parked in the lot outside. Lex quickly turned around, she had about a meter of space in the cockpit, and searched around this brown box, full of cd boxes until she found a blank cd. She ejected whatever was in the small radio to her left and placed her CD in and hit play, smiling as she floated through the small area.
"Is that Desiree?" Cecilia suddenly spoke up.
Lex replied "Sure is. Didn't think you would know, isn't it a little old for you?" to which Cecilia replied, "I'm only 22!"
Lex sighed making the girl laugh, "You're only 4 years older, it's not like we're different."
Suddenly, Tokira came into view. It was this huge orange orb, mixed in with various browns, blacks and greys like some massive mix. It never failed to impress her.
"You see this Cecilia?" Lex asked, but the girl just responded "No? How can I?"
Lex asked her to "Hold on for a sec," as she added "Tangora, Send video feed A-25 to Cecilia. Here, it should appear on the call."
There was a few seconds of silence as Amdusias slowly strolled toward the planet before there was this gasp."It's so much prettier than I thought!" A small notification appeared on the viewport that read
"You are now out of Bellua Airspace, speed limit revoked." Amdusias seemed to brace for a second before launching at breakneck speed toward the planet in one quick burst of speed. The lack of gravity provided her with the rest of the momentum she needed to get across.
"Target is Vincent Eclaire, a well-known Bandit. He raided an IPKM stronghold and stole munitions, the last few hits have left him injured. One of the weapons he stole was tracked, an IPKM agent has been in communications about his current location. We just need his identity chip and we're all set." Cecilia explained. "The IPKM have strongholds on Tokira? Why?"
Lex asked, to which she responded "Well, the Interplanetary Militia Force needed Tokira for its resources, and when the Tokiran Liberation Front weren't happy they were prepared for war. Plus, Tokira is just the place they hold their weapons and infantry." Lex just huffed, "Fucking Peace Keepers."
"Are you upset with their presence?" Cecilia asked, to which Lex replied,
"My father was Hyperstorm, we created the TLF to fight against shit like the IPKM. They should let us keep our planet and they can have the fuckin systems they've already indoctrinated."
Cecilia shouted with surprise, "You're Ivan Tetra's daughter! I knew it I just didn't want to assume anything." Her smile was audible, but Lex just seemed depressed by that.
"How the fuck do you know Hyperstorm?" Cecilia excitedly expressed "Yes! Oh my gosh, you were the High Raid Champion! You were with the Dragons, you were the best bounty hunters in the universe! You fought that beast on Dragex, oh oh and the Hyerin Army! You had whole systems you conquered, you were so so strong!"
Cecilia went on and on, cooing and reminiscing. Lex solemnly held her tongue, and just agreed with a scowl across her face. "You sound too sweet to be knowing about PMCs."
Lex called "Tengora, Gravity" as they began entering the atmosphere. Amdusias began to activate protection protocols to stop it from Burning up, and slowly glided through the clouds and the sky. "Hyperstorm is common knowledge," Cecilia added, making Lex roll her eyes. The clouds were bizarre shades of white grey and brown, where the dust had entered the sky and sat in its atmospheres. She pushed through them all, eventually flicking a switch above her and dramatically stopping her acceleration, turning into a glide or freefall. They burst through the clouds and found the surface.
Tokira was a dust bowl, full of bandits and outlaws hiding in apocalyptic cities. Only very few towns and one major city have prevailed through its turbulent history; it's incredibly harsh and unforgiving environment playing a surprisingly lacking part. Amdusias descended through clouds of vapour and dust, the speed of the descent and now the wind began to rattle Amdusias vigorously. The howling could be heard even from within the 6-inch thick armour. Amdusias expelled jet streams from its shins after stabilising itself feet down. on the rust-coloured sands. The winds had stopped and now was replaced by an overbearing heat, as two suns sat in the sky, one significantly closer while the other hid away at the horizon. Inside Amdusais, Lex very quickly began to sweat.
"Ooooooookay!" Cecilia chimed in, the fidelity of the audio dropped dramatically. "Target is 8 Klicks North-North-East of the Hurox Desert. Confirming visual in 60. Thruster speed?"
Lex replied "66 Miles per Second."
Cecilia added, "ETA will be 9 minutes."
Amdusias took a second to brace before it's shin thrusters forced it up a little off the ground and then again launching the Mech forward as it gently traced along the ground. It's geometric feet shifted into two pairs of wheels that effortlessly glided, and danced along the uneven terrain. She was inside a massive crater, only ancient corpses of shrubbery and dusty dirt remained, however north revealed a crack in its walls, the way forward. Lex sighed, the rattling of her Osseus was beginning to bore her.
"You know what Ceci, a talkative Agent isn't too bad. I can't say I've ever had a notable agent." The girl replied, "You think I'm notable?"
Lex added, "I think in the last half an hour we've spoken about music, Tokiran History and War Crimes;
Yes I consider this Notable."
"Operator Visual? Target should be in Optical Range." Cecilia noted as Amdusias passed between the dip in the crater and into another empty vista. Lex opened some menus and went through some windows to finally have a small, zoomed-in viewport, eventually scanning the horizon and finding a shape. A small hut, completely in the middle of nowhere, with a bright red Vanguard Osseus outside. The Osseus was much more slender than Amdusias, but just as tall. It had an intimidating four-eyed gaze.
"Diag?" Lex asked as Cecilia began to run scans. "Unknown Manufacturer, Vanguard Class. Outlawed MX-32 Dual-Blades and an 0FH Burst Fire. MX's will not penetrate armour, the FH Grade bullets will." Lex adjusted her weapons,"So Short Range it is," but Cecilia replied
"Actually, No. The MX will not penetrate but still will cause damage, and while the FH Bullets will Penetrate your JX400 Shells will eviscerate faster than it can fire. Dodge the first burst and gain the advantage, hot-swap to your AR and aim for the Pilot."
Lex was taken aback. "Holy shit okay, I haven't had an Agent evaluate a situation as fast as you." Cecilia did not reply. Soon, Amdusias came into visual range of the target, Lec didn't need any optics to see the resting Osseus.
A man shakily lifted up his wrench and put down a plastic water bottle, he carefully placed the wrench onto the bolt of a joint in his Osseus' leg, painstakingly fighting through the overpowering smell of overheated machinery and sweat. He sat in front of a decrepit old, ruined hut. Completely empty aside from some rotted furniture. On the porch sat a toolkit, a weapon, some laptop and some various other parts. The Outlaw ran his hands over his bald head and sighed, dropping the Wrench and looking at the oncoming Osseus. Amdusias leapt up a little, shifted his feet back to normal and glided along the ground before halting, and waiting. The man locked eyes with Amdusias, who didn't move.
Suddenly a voice rang out, "Get in your Osseus." Lex shouted out of its speakers. The man still, did not move. He was a native, he had a similar drawl to Garland.
"You found me, hunter. You have me," He said in an almost congratulatory tone.
"I'm out of money, I'm out of Ammo. I barely have the fuel to live even if I did beat you. The bounty doesn't pay for Captures." He tapped at his own wrist, "Only my ID chip. Just take me down, I have said my goodbyes. I have no regret for my actions, I accept my fate. I only request you make it quick. I have no world-"
Amdusias again, spoke "I will not strike you down, you will not die sitting down. You have little ammo and little fuel. You will not win this fight, yet you still have a choice. I will not let you make another bad choice. What is your name Outlaw?"
He scoffed, "You know my name you read the contract." She remained silent. The man stood up and sized up Amdusias, wiping his hands and head with some cloth.
"I am Vincent Eclaire. This is Nero."
Amdusais responded, "My name is Alexis Tetra. Vincent Eclaire, under Act 343 I am placing you under arrest. Your crimes are Theft of Peacekeeper arsenal, murder, and multiple acts of petty thievery. How do you plead?"
Nero opened up its cockpit and allowed it's pilot inside. It's four eyes lit up purple, Amdusias waited for it to calibrate. "With Combat." The man replied.
Nero burst forward, it's calves releasing a stream of steam and launching his leg into Amdusias, narrowly dodging it. Amdusias fired back with the Automated Shotgun which Nero narrowly dodged with short bursts of propulsion. Amdusias swung the butt of her weapon, but again Nero dodged back' completely annihilating the hut. Nero revealed its own gun but was quickly shot away from Amdusias, as he was a close enough range. Nero staggered back, and Amdusias launched his gun toward the Man. Nero carefully ducked yet did not anticipate Amdusias' charge, kicking the man skyward. Nero was caught completely off balance and flailed around as Amdusias quickly swapped to the AR. Amdusias fired and held down the trigger, perfectly juggling the osseus. It twitched and convulsed, it spasmed with every stray shot but still, Amdusias stayed on target. Finally, Nero's torso gave way and split from the main body. Amdusias let the man fall when suddenly it latched onto his neck. Amdusias struggled to keep the hands of his neck but Nero held tighter and tighter and tighter. Amdusias pulled and pulled but nothing worked, one of the shots has severely pierced Nero's face, leaving one of the four eyes damaged. Amdusias grappled until finally Amdusias took his hands and placed them around Nero's neck. Amdusias lifted Nero further off the ground and hauled what remained over his shoulder. Amdusias shot up a short amount to put all of its strength into the throw before landing on Nero and raising his hands. He clasped them into a fist and smashed down, deeper and deeper he dented into the chest cavity.
Nero did not stir. Lex waited a few seconds, taking her Shotgun and holding it at the man. Yet still, Nero did not stir. Lex disembarked, and staggered back a few feet away from the two titans with her head in her hands, staring at Amdusias' hands plunged deep into the other's skull. Amdusias shifted his gaze toward Lex, inquisitively. "Lex?" Cecilia's soft voice called out of Amdusias, blood flicked onto his face. "C-Ceci?" Lex quivered, her eyes wide. "Lex what's wrong? Are you okay? Do you need a medical?"
Cecilia cried out. "No, I'm okay..." Lex breathlessly responded.
"So you won?" Cecilia asked.
Lex ran her hands through her hair and tried to catch her breath. "Uh... Yes I think you can call that winning."
Ceci's voice lightened "So you're alive still! We actually did it!" She laughed so softly as Amdusias began to raise his hands from the carcass. "Yes, Cecilia why is this so funny to you?"
"No, no it's not funny it's just I've never had a successful mission before." Lex sat in the dust.
"You've never had anyone get out alive?"
Cecilia giggled a little, "Well when you say it like that it seems worse than it actually is."
Lex caught her breath, she was okay. "Alright fuck it, drinks on me. Can you make it to the Bellua anytime soon?"
Amdusias tore open the cockpit doors, and sure enough, the man was inside. His chest completely mangled and smelt foul in the sweltering heat. Lex lifted the man's arm. She pulled out a knife and sliced across the man's wrist, reaching in and taking out a small chip, and playfully flicking it up and catching it. As she was about to leave, one last thing caught her eye. A small tattoo, on a mangled part of flesh. A rainbow-coloured dragon sat on his forearm. She studied the symbol for a few seconds with shaking eyes before leaping out of the Mech and vomiting.