Ember paced back and forth in front of a rack of various greater and shorter swords on top of the roof of their headquarters. "S.I.O.M mentors taught me Eastern, Western, Northern and Southern sword techniques— techniques from many diverse cultures and societies of age and youth!" Ember informed her siblings.
Artus' eyes displayed his excitement while he eyed a sword he thought fit a man of his size. "Yeah we know— lemme please have that great Claymore, sis!" He asked his sister as he recognized the thrill held in her slight smile.
Ember shifted her eyes in the direction of the sword in question. "Of course, you'd want that one." She replied before she let out a strained chuckle. Artus scratched his head as he shook it. "Sword shaming in twenty-eighteen is wild, sis." He commented while retrieving the sword from her. Lyle surveyed the swords on the rack.
Ember tossed him a sword from the rack. "Roman. Sharp edged. Single handed. I love a hand full and a hand empty for a firearm." She said while impersonating his voice. Lyle swiftly caught it and nodded lightly after swinging it a few times. "Silly and unlike you, Embs." He replied in response to her impersonation. Artus glanced over from the edge of the roof top. "Usually mocks and impersonates us with a ruder tone than this." The oath's sanguine marksman commented with a shocked tone. Lyle's eyes slightly widened. "Take us for easy victims during sparring?" He questioned as he eased into a combat ready stance. Artus shook his head after another glance of her slight grin. "Nah, she's upset that we'll be so easy for her. She's just enjoying us sharing this moment with her though." He opined with his arms crossed.
The blue-stocking blade grabbed herself a bastard sword that was forged with other swords on the rack. "Alright, who'll spearhead the charge?" She questioned while taking up her stance filled with vim. Artus stood tall on his feet with his hulking claymore resting on his pauldrons. "Funny way of just asking who to go first but if that's what you mean— I'll... Spearhead!" He answered.
Ember stared daggers into her brother under her helmet. "I wish this was— someone else." She wished in her head. Artus stretched in silence. "She definitely heard my lack of confidence." He thought to himself. Lyle watched his siblings ease into their combat stances waiting for them to confirm they were ready. "Annnnd... GO!" He shouted as loud as he was capable. Artus swung his claymore as if it were a baseball bat, swung horizontally to the left, their blades scraped as Ember used her lissome nimbleness to dodge and finish the round with a swift strike towards the solar plexus.
Artus was left gaping and baffled. "What the cheeks but that's what I expected, I guess." He commented as he stepped back to his seat. Ember clasped her hands together hip level in front of her. "That was pretty fun— yet you're so slow and clumsy that I get to use quite quixotic techniques and movements but now onto your lil bro, Art." Ember replied as she fixed a devious gaze in her quieter, younger brother's direction, "Lyle's not nearly as skilled as his sister when it came to his swordsmanship, however, he possesses enough skill and knowledge to win a great amount of any duels he may get into with even the best experts the world has to offer." She finished as she raised her bastard sword with him following her lead.
Ember pointed her blade at her brother. "Like our learning days, bro." She commented, exceedingly more vim in her tone than her duel with the sanguine marksman.
Lyle's uninterested face he had under his mask while he was ready annoyed his sister. "Don't hold back, sis." He responded to his sister as he got up and trained his Roman sword toward her.
Ember unsheathed her bastard sword in a tail stance. "Then you should show me how well you've taken in the lessons!" She replied with a confident tone. Artus held his pair of fists near his hips with a beaming grin. "The best student in the ordinary swordsmanship classes against a top five student in the advanced classes?" He questioned with excitement.
Lyle ducked his sister's bastard sword before rolling away and lifting himself in the air. "Except now I'm against family, Art." He replied in his thoughts after landing. The blue-stocking blade stared confidently towards her brother as she held her arms crossed and chin in the sky as he returned a look of uncertainty much like their brother while his guard was high.
—
The Trio heard heavy boots stepping closer behind them. "You are the few Armand hired, huh, few?" Asked the man that the Trio heard from out of nowhere with a heavy accent. They swiftly turned their attention away from each other and instead onto this unfamiliar voice quicker than they could continue the fight.
The Trio turned to their right and espied a man who wore light grey body armor clad in their violet scattered in various parts. Artus was left gaping from the stranger's appearance. "Oof—!?" He shouted, "Are you a sort of ninja, dude??!" He inquired with a thrill in his tone.
The stranger clasped his wrist behind him. "Erm— I guess I am basically except not for Japan but part of Josue's council and the city trio?" He answered the bright-eyed defender, before appearing behind him suddenly. The Trio collectively straightened their postures and performed the three city's salutes as they kept silent.
The stranger backed away as he appeared back in front of the Trio. "No, no— zero necessity to treat me like a superior in the ranks, guys, really." He shouted, "Think of me as a friend, I'm Nathaniel Detayvern, I'm just the head of Josue's city trio's public reputation." He assured the trio of the city's defenders. Artus sighed with relief as his posture worsened though Ember elbowed her brother. "Lady— he gave us the green light to speak." He reminded his sister as the elbow forced his gaze toward her, "Armand made it clear that the council out ranks what we're part of— I think or right guys?" He replied with slight uncertainty, "And we'd rather respect." He added. Lyle nodded to affirm his brother. Nathaniel rested his chin on his hand and another by his solar plexus as he gazed upwards. "Right. I'm the exception of that rule in this case. Talk to me like we're on the exact same social podium." Said the head of the cities' public reputation branch. Artus nodded as he offered to dap up his superior much to his siblings' shock. "Maybe it's too early but from that warming smile— let's get to know each other." He suggested with his own amiable smile. Nathaniel accepted the offer after a brief pause.
Ember made it clear from her very eyes to the rest of her body language to the three others that she held pent up zeal. "Wait a teensy second, I have so many questions for you— could you please answer them?!" She blurted out with excitement and with a hopeful stare.
Nathaniel observed the city's blue-stocking blade after she gathered his attention. "I'm as stoked to share everything I know as you are to learn about it to be honest, ask me anything, I love questions and answers." He informed her before she inched closer towards him.
Artus saw his brother staring at the busy town below from a distance away before ambling to his side. "Bro, is there anything you wanna talk about over here, 'cause It sorta looks like there might be." The sanguine marksman asked with his usual tone. Lyle sighed lowly. "Such a snoopy tone. Absolutely fine, dude." Lyle answered his louder brother in his usual sangfroid tone.
Artus leaned over the roof's banister with his quieter brother. "One day, I'll figure you out, man, then we'll have a talk worth 10 years of words that are unsaid but if you ever feel like talking about that deep homesickness then just let me know." He asserted and stated before he walked back towards the city trio's head of public reputation and the blue-stocking blade.
Ember's glee was filling her voice. "Are you part of the Gen-preservers?" She questioned first, "Me, part of them?" Nathaniel asked before glancing away, "We share a childhood but we don't share those same responsibilities." The city trio's public reputation head answered her.
Ember's flame of curiosity refused to be extinguished as she continued asking excitedly. "How old is Josue?" She questioned next. Nathaniel lightly chuckled as he shut his eyes and rested his chin on his chest. "He has great grandchildren living in the states." He answered in a sincere tone. Artus and Ember's jaws dropped.
Nathaniel slowly shook his head. "Ask me about the cities and their history— anything personal needs to remain unknown because others in this world have proven to be capable of very crafty plots against him so I can't say anything yet." He informed his inferior ranked defenders.
Artus and Ember gasped in sync together after hearing him say the "yet" part and the head of the city trio's public reputation took notice. Nathaniel turned around with his hands clasped behind him. "I am— Josue's successor, he's been tutoring and preparing me to take over for him. When we were children, he'd go a little extra on the political lessons." He informed the Trio. Ember gasped as she swiftly tip-toed closer. "So, it's safe to assume that you're the oldest on the council besides Josue then?" Ember inquired.
Nathaniel grinned in the slightest manner before turning back towards the Trio. "Despite the fairly youthful exterior of mine, I'm pretty possibly one of the oldest men in the world, but nope, I am the youngest of the old man's recruits but I consider myself the oldest since he brought me along first, before any of them." He answered smugly, Ember refused to move her eyes away from him as she gestured for him to continue speaking with a nod, "Alright. Decades stacked on top of decades ago, with the great powers Josue built up centuries before, he set out to throw a coup. He hired mercenaries, assassins, but most of all, those he trusted to help him with this overthrow. That day he was successful, but it was a total massacre, those who still aligned themselves loyally to the evil who ran the city, had to be gotten rid of... So, his men did just that. In the crossfire, however, innocents were massacred as well and in the aftermath... He found me. He adopted me, trained me, and now he's guiding me where I want to be..." Nathaniel enlightened the Duo, Lyle wasn't listening, he instead was bobbing his head listening to his favorite rap music. Ember was staring blankly with watery eyes.
—
"Yeah, yeah, ya big teddy bear!" Nathaniel abruptly yelled out as he patted Artus' back, "Anyway, those boring preservers were testing your regular skills, lemme see your teamwork, think of this as an actual battle, not sparring." Nathaniel apprised the Trio, Lyle opened his eyes and saw Artus and Ember getting into a stance so he deduced some things here and there, then he joined in too.
"Glad you decided to join in too!" Nathaniel commented, Lyle didn't utter a single word as he kept his eyes trained on him while in his boxing stance, "Okay... So, all 3 of you come at me all at once, no holding back at all!" Nathaniel abruptly yelled out as he got in his own stance.
The Trio each looked at one another then all of them sprinted and charged at him, on their way to him, Artus and Ember poofed up their weapons, Artus his usual 2 pistols and Ember her signature Katana while Lyle kept his bare fists as he charged his way.
As the Trio attacked him, they all realized unlike the Gen-preservers who immediately got out a special ability... Nathaniel fought them on his own for a while, he had all the agility of Ember, strength of Artus and hand to hand skill that Lyle has...
While Artus stood in the back shooting and missing bullets shots thanks to Nathaniel dodging, Ember and Lyle were rushing him down with their tenacious attacks, Nathaniel was releasing an invisible pink line with his hands as he moved, invisible to even Artus' eyes.
Ember was so close to slashing him until she was caught by one of these pink lines and became frozen in place, like a spider's web, Lyle thought when he realized this.
"I see the issue here, you guys fight with no Team chemistry, I'm not a professional on team chemistry myself but I get dispatched to fight huge chunks of monsters who do have it sometimes and you guys aren't even close to their level. While most of these chunks aren't even close to your intelligence!" Nathaniel voiced as the battle paused.
"What is this? What'd you do to Ember?" Lyle asked as he stood with great posture yet still battle ready as well, "Another one trick pony ability, of course, especially against even a duo let alone a team since it shatters with the slightest touch to it!" Nathaniel replied
"Heck, Artus blasts any part of the pink!" Nathaniel yelled out to Artus, who blasted a single shot into it and it completely crumbled to bits, Ember was free to move again.
Ember cleaned the pink gunk his ability left behind off of herself before she attempted to get in her slash that she would've got earlier on him, Nathaniel with ease, quickly got in a stance and redirected her blade sending her flying away instead...
"You guys need to get coordinated because a battle might come up where you guys need it, you never know what's gonna pop up that'll take this whole Trio or Gen-oath." Nathaniel told the Trio, "Why are monsters even popping up? I've looked online and this doesn't really happen anywhere else." Ember asked and stated, "I have absolutely no idea, my dad doesn't tell me everything just yet, but I don't even think he knows, and I wouldn't get curious either." Nathaniel replied before he swiped his hand across the pink gunk and it all disappeared.
Lyle's eyes widened a little bit, as did Artus' and Ember's eyes when they seen it all gone instantly.
All of the pink chunks of glass turned to goo, now turned into seemingly nothing.
—
"Now that we've gotten your biggest issue out of the way, why don't we all get back to enjoying some classic conversation?" Nathaniel asked, "Tell me about yourselves or ask about the city, because I'm guessing the others came and fought you guys then left as quick as they came." Said Nathaniel as he sat down on the edge with the others following after him.
Lyle was the only one who didn't go and sit, then thought of a question he'd like to know...
"The others made what they thought clear, why do you care about us or wanna know about us deeper when all you need to know about us, is in an easily accessed file somewhere like the others can get?" Lyle asked and stated curiously as he went to sit with his siblings.
Nathaniel looked down at the folks walking by and gave a noticeable optimistic smile.
"Because doing what you're about to embark into can get lonely even if you have 2 other friends or siblings to cling onto, plus why be work associates when you can easily be great friends, if you gotta work together that can help everyone get stuff done more efficiently, know what I mean?" He answered and asked rhetorically.
Lyle sat with one knee up on the roof to help cover his slightly smiling face, but Aetus was too busy asking questions and Ember was too distracted trying to think of a really good one to ask him.
"How much can you lift?" Artus asked, "On my best day physically, maybe about 5 tons alone but with my Telekinesis, 10 semi-trucks but maybe more?" Nathaniel answered best to his knowledge.
"What's Conyrol's real name?"
"I don't know, I thought it was Conyrol?"
"Who'd win, Josue or the entire city?"
"Josue, undoubtedly, even holding back!"
"Who'd win, You or the entire city?"
"I guess I would?"
"Enough with these stupid questions, Arty!" Ember blurted out as she had her question picked, "What was the day of the coup like?" She asked directly after yelling what she had before...
Nathaniel's eyes widened, he wasn't expecting to be asked that question but more so wasn't prepared for the visions of the day stirring so deeply.
"It was a... slaughter!" He responded but stuttered as he did, "From my perspective?" He rhetorically asked as more memories flooded his brain, "I remember like it was yesterday, extraordinary memory can be a curse, I woke up in dust and rubble after my orphanage was burned to a crisp because of the absolute chaos, men and women were running and screaming and those were the only two things I could hear. The smell smelled like how a burned down orphanage would but the thing that freaked me out the most that day and I'd have to say in my entire life wasn't what would scare an average dude like an entire burned down orphanage falling on you while you were asleep or the men murdering innocents around you, it was the man that looked like he wanted to cry right in front of me, he knelt down and kindly held out his hand to me. I looked up and saw this guy flying above with an angry look in his eye then he shot weird colored energy at us, Josue stopped it with the palm of his hand. The kindest and most compassionate man there was the scariest part of that day, and shoot, I was right to think so, cuz I learned a bit later that he started it with an entire government!" Nathaniel had grief in his voice as he explained to the Trio, then bursted out with a chuckle at the end.
Lyle, Ember and Artus' eyes were locked on Nathaniel even after he was finished with the story, they looked fully immersed and Artus looked like he was in the feels.
"So, how did you guys meet the others?" Ember asked after further staring for 5 minutes straight.
"Thank you for saying 'you guys' because I don't know why but people seem to forget I was the first he took under his wing, the first sidekick if you will and I saw it all!" Nathaniel replied with true appreciation, "Anyhow, for years and years, he was happy with just one city he was trying to make right but, of course, the men behind governments can't just accept they lost control of something, so they sent soldiers to secure the next city over, gave the fools the best gear and weapons they had at the time, thinking Josue would be the greedy one. They played themselves cause Josue was content with one and achieved his dream but when he heard about the disgusting behavior, deeds and mess their soldiers were doing to the innocent lives over there, he was given the same reason to save that city, or more so liberate it. He saved a few other orphans like me and a ... Victim, and with more experience and power now, less loss, higher gain." Nathaniel answered her question with the same emotion in his voice.
"Victim of what?" Ember asked with slight curiosity, Nathaniel was looking at the sunset on top of their roof when she said that, when he heard, he felt too awkward to turn his head so only his eyes turned to look at her, "Did I say victim, nah, I don't have any clue why I said that, I mean we were all victims of something at one point so I guess I'm calling all of us Victims and... Orphans?" Nathaniel nervously replied after a chuckle and a shrug.
Artus' creative juices were refilled and a great question to ask popped up in his head, "Who'd win this battle, Superlative sentinel or Josue?" Artus asked with a smug grin on him.
Nathaniel paused for a moment and stared at Artus until he realized how amazing his question was, "That's actually a perfect question, since Superlative sentinel beats him in strength, he's got a lot of abilities too, flight, x-ray vision, super strength, superspeed, telekinesis, heat and frost breath, energy blasts, but no bias my money's on Josue since he has 100 different other ways he could deal with him." Nathaniel blurted out suddenly in an almost fanboyish tone.
"What's Josue's deeper story, why did he truly decide to take over the city?" Ember asked in her most serious manner, her eyes gazing into Nathaniel's without a blink, Nathaniel stared back unintentionally mimicking her.
"Only Josue himself can give you a legitimate answer on that, but I'm glad to have someone to finally listen to my theory. Based on what he's told me about himself, about his parents, he did it for his younger bro, and the dad he's never met too, the reason he was adopted kind of to begin with... he told me he and his brother were teens when they found some plans, some ideas in Their father's desk. These plans were dark, they were fiendish he said, they were the exact opposite of what he stands for now but he changed them with decades and decades of planning and he achieved his late adoptive father's endgame still, he had control over the city. Except, while he was learning what he left to take over the city, he learned "control" doesn't have an alignment, it's a neutral concept until whoever has it decides its side. In short, his adoptive daddio was a bad, bad dude but he personally credits him since without what he left behind, he couldn't have made his home a better home to make your own." Nathaniel answered with his own thoughts on the question asked...
Nathaniel left Artus and Ember talking amongst themselves after he noticed Lyle sitting by himself again with a face full of thoughts.
Lyle looked over and kept staring at him, Nathaniel formed a spacey green bubble around Both of them.
Lyle placed his right hand on one of his guns which was holstered on the opposite side of Nathaniel, He would have never seen it.
Nathaniel leaned against his bubble and smiled, "I just placed a soundproof forcefield around us, you look like a kid who likes to keep things to himself, which I can respect!" Nathaniel, as calm as ever, responded to Lyle's show of vigilance.
"Ember, I overheard Artus confessing to his friends online about using your toothbrush to clean a stray cat's nails!" Lyle yelled out to test the honesty of Nathaniel's words, the two made no reaction to what he said, "Ember would be furious if she knew that, so yeah, pretty soundless right?" Nathaniel replied to him.
"What would you know about any of us, besides what you'd find on a basic file?" Lyle questioned, "Huh?" Lyle finished.
"Actually, I know zero, zilch, nada about you guys personally, except that I'm glad you guys are here for this place and you call yourselves family but you don't even have a last name for yourselves?" Nathaniel replied with a calm tone.
"Last names are useless, as long as we have one name, that should be enough." Lyle responded in his usual low and calm tone.
"Now that, that's the definition of boring... "Enough", what would life be without total confidence and that person using it to achieve more?" Nathaniel said, "That's what I always say and what helps keep me going in this bizarre world!" Nathaniel finished.
Lyle remained silent through his speech and remained silent after it, staring off into the sunset.
"Listen, all I'm saying is last names represent the bond a family have and it's gone too long since this one had something like it, so, it's your choice, if you agree, it's a decision that could be made by the Trio but here's one that blends in with what I think all of you are to me and the gracious city already, Aluin!" Nathaniel speeches with excitement in his voice then suggested to Lyle while he sat Listening in his usual silence around new people.
Nathaniel then turned around and got off the spot of the edge of the roof he was sitting on next to Lyle and pulled out what looked like a very old and ancient book with a brink pink seal on it.
"I've seen distrust in others cripple lives, cripple relationships, cripple entire organizations that could've done good. All I'm saying is give us a chance to earn that trust and confidence. Ember and Artus were the hands that saved you from the abyss, I'm guessing, let the Gen-oath and the city be the wings that keep you soaring above it." Nathaniel speech further, with the last part forcing his eyes to open.
"That was--" Lyle said with a low tone with a certain look in his eye, "Cheesy... Yeah... Sorry about that, he had me practicing poetry and speaking from the heart, sometimes they blend like I'm from the 16th century." Nathaniel responded with an awkward tone as he cleared his throat.
Nathaniel turned around and vanished the soundless bubble he encased them in and walked up to Lyle's siblings with gifts for them.
The miniature book Lyle Saw earlier grew as he handed it to Ember, "Since you enjoy Being the knowledgeable one in the room, I thought you'd love this, my la fragilité le rappel or my weakness echo diary as I like to call my invention personally." said Nathaniel while Artus was in awe by the name, "Cool name, man!" He commented. "Thanks, I came up with it off the top of my head!" He replied to his comment.
"How's this work, though?" Ember asked, "Just when you Encounter a new creature, open the book and present it's pages to it, it should reveal in deep depth all of Its weaknesses and fears if it has any for later study, the first encounter shall be as Difficult as any but that should make the next easier." He informed her carefully.
"Ooh, how about me, what are ya gonna give me?" Artus asked as he tried to get Nathaniel's attention, "I'm gonna give ya something later that could get you out of a jam, something I know you'd appreciate nicely." Nathaniel replied with a smug smile while he crossed his arms.
A brief moment of silence followed as he thought about what Lyle might be interested in…
"I don't think Mr.stoicism would take anything from me or anyone, so, I gave him advice." He commented as he looked over at lyle still sitting on the edge of the roof alone and stuck by himself considering his unsolicted words of advice.