…???
"Wake up, brat."
Marachii felt the prod of a crowbar and quickly lifted his head, opening his eyes. "Huh…? Are we home?"
"Not quite."
Marachii realized where he was, and noticed he and Naito were chained together to a pole inside what appeared to be a messy office. In the center sat a large man, his feet on the desk as he eyed the two.
"I wasn't expecting visitors so soon. It's almost too perfect."
The man stood up, examining Naito and Marachii. "A General and an Elemental. You really brought me a catch, huh, Kikai?"
He gestured to the side of the room, where two bandits were holding Kikai.
"Well," Kikai said. "They weren't for you."
The man laughed. "They are now."
Marachii cleared his throat. "And who are you?"
He leaned in close to Marachii's face. "Me? I'm the King of the Scrap. Call me Taiga. This here is my turf, and you're intruding on it."
"Well, sorry, we didn't mean to intrude," Marachii replied. "Actually, yeah we did! This place is awesome!"
"What he means is we're here to find our colleague," Naito corrected. "His name is Kenshi."
The big man put his hands behind his back, pacing around. "The goofy guy with light blue hair that seems to enjoy his own reflection? Why would he be here?"
"We don't know," Naito said, matter-of-factly. "That is why we're here. Release us."
"You're not very polite, are you?" Taiga remarked. "I'll have to teach you some manners."
He motioned to the bandits. "Take these two outside. I want a word with Kikai."
The bandits picked up Marachii and Naito and dragged them along, escorting them outside the office and through dark hallways. Once Kikai and Taiga were alone, Taiga sat back down.
"Helping outsiders?" Taiga scoffed. "Your creator isn't going to be happy with you, robo-girl."
"Look," she stated. "Just let them go. This has nothing to do with you."
He chuckled. "You ARE in my land now, so I'd say it does. If they want to talk to Lady Sirena, they've gotta go through me."
Kikai rolled her eyes. "Ridiculous."
"Only the most worthy can talk to the Lady. Let's put them through the wringer, shall we? The Trash-Dump's been starving for a challenge."
Kikai's eyes widened. "You wouldn't."
"I would. Don't worry, you'll be watching them! Scrapers! Take her away!"
Masked bandits grabbed Kikai, dragging her out of the office as Taiga laughed.
Soon after…
"This stinks."
Marachii and Naito were dumped into a junkyard, where bandits laughed as they rode off on their motorcycles.
Naito got up, dusting herself off. "They've released us."
"Did they?" Marachii questioned. "Usually, bad people don't let hostages go so easily."
The ground began to rumble, and bandits on motorcycles watched, revving up their bikes. Taiga was in the middle, holding Kikai hostage. "Listen up, junkies! We've decided to hear you out, only if you can survive a Trial by the Scrap!"
"Great," Marachii groaned. "Another Trial."
Taiga revved his bike up. "The goal is simple, if you can survive out here, in this dangerous environment, we'll let you go meet our tinkerer! If you don't…well, you die."
Marachii and Naito looked around, and Marachii scratched his head. "Where's the danger?"
"Oh, buddy, you don't need to look for it. It'll find you."
The bandits laughed and began to drive away, but Kikai broke free from Taiga's grip. "Wait. Let me help them."
Taiga studied her for a moment. "Suit yourself! But if you break, I'm not fixing you."
He sped off, and Kikai approached Marachii and Naito.
"Welcome back…?" Marachii greeted. "Not that I'm sure why you're here."
"I'm here to help you," Kikai answered. "This place is cruel, unforgiving. Be wary."
"And you know this because…?"
"I live here."
Marachii paused. "Fair point."
Suddenly, the ground beneath them began to shift and groan. Marachii barely managed to stay upright, but Naito grabbed his arm.
"I'm assuming that WASN'T just a coincidence?" Marachii worried.
Kikai opened her mouth to speak, but she stopped in her tracks when she looked up. Marachii and Naito turned around and were met with a terrifying sight.
"That is NOT a coincidence!"
A large spider-like creature, made from scrap, towered over them, its red eyes beaming right through Marachii.
"You know," Marachii admitted. "I believed this place was amazing, and trust me, it still is, but I have to admit, THIS IS NOT OKAY!"
"RUN!" Kikai shouted.
The spider lifted its leg in an attempt to crush the 3, but Naito pulled them out of the way, knocking it in the head with one of her fans before sprinting.
"What is that thing?" Marachii asked. "And why is it trying to kill us?"
"It's a Junk-Monster," Kikai explained. "A failed creation by Lady Sirena! She dumps whatever doesn't fit her standards here, where they roam free and wreak crazy amounts of havoc!"
The spider's eyes glowed and fired a red laser at the trio.
"Doesn't seem like much of a failure to me!" Marachii shouted back.
"Wait until you see the other ones!"
"Other ones?"
A large mechanical snake rose from the ground, its fangs glowing with red light. Marachii screamed and nearly fell into Kikai's arms. "That's one big snake!"
The snake lunged and tried to bite them, narrowly missing. As the group continued to run, Taiga and his men watched from afar, laughing as they drank cans of ale.
"This is even better than I thought!" Taiga cheered. "I think I need popcorn!"
A bandit in a weathered mask approached Taiga. "Boss, we scouted the entrance. There's others here."
Taiga lifted an eyebrow. "So the girl brought more folks here. Round 'em up, Hazan! Put 'em all in the Trash-Dump!"
Hazan nodded. "Will do."
He hopped on his bike and rode off, and a small faction followed him. Taiga stared at Marachii. "That scrawny boy really is selling himself short, ain't he? Wonder what's his deal."
Meanwhile…
"And that's the tour! Any questions?"
Sirena walked through her lab, with Fujii by her side, his face frozen in horror. "Nope! No questions!"
Sirena looked him up and down. "You sure? Q&A time is now! I love feedback!"
Fujii shook himself to normal. "I'll pass on that."
She shrugged. "Suit yourself!"
She pressed a button and a metal table and bench appeared, with a coffee machine in the center. Sirena placed her hand on top of the machine, and it poured coffee into a pair of cups. "Here! You must be thirsty."
Fujii sniffed the coffee for a moment before taking it. "Thanks…"
She sat down on the opposite side, her eyes fixated on him. Fujii took a sip of his coffee. "You know, for a Zharian, you don't seem so bad."
"Thanks!" Sirena beamed.
"You kinda remind me of one of my own. She's as eager and bubbly as you, but without the tech angle."
Sirena tapped her chin. "Wonder who that could be."
Fujii waved it off. "Never mind. How long have you been stationed here? This isn't exactly your home."
"I've been working on this project for almost a year!" she explained. "I've had to make it perfect, no faulty designs or quirks! I take pride in my work! Just ask Fido!"
"You made Fido?" Fujii questioned.
Sirena nodded. "I've made a lot of things! Like those protein bars your soldiers ate! The components in them really brings out one's full potential."
"Come again?"
"But…inventing stuff can get a bit lonely, especially since they're all just machines," she confessed. "I do love my machines, though! They're like another part of me!"
Her eyes suddenly flashed purple. "And I'll have to massacre anyone who lays a finger on them."
Fujii gulped. "Noted. Won't touch the tech."
Her face shifted back into a smile. "Aww, you're sweet! The others were wrong about you! You're not some evil villain!"
Fujii finished his coffee. "Evil villain? Who said that?"
Sirena yawned. "Melodar said you've got no morals, Mysteria and Radiux believe you're a deceptive little trickster who stabs his allies in the back, and Vortessia calls you a madman who discards anything he doesn't find interesting. Not to mention all the horrible things Runea said about you!"
"Wow, I am really not popular," Fujii commented. "Well, that's the price of fame."
Sirena suddenly appeared behind him, catching him off guard. "That's why I came to take you! I had to see what made everyone so wary of you!"
Fujii wiped his mouth. "Now that you've seen I'm a charming, and very handsome guy, can I be set free?"
Sirena paused, thinking. "I could…"
Fujii sighed a sigh of relief. "Perfect, I'll get my stuff—-!"
"But I'm not!"
"Worth a shot."
She turned back to him. "I have a much better idea for you! Since you've been such great company, how about I make you better?"
"Make me…better?"
She nodded. "And I know just how to start!"
Her eyes flashed purple, and the last thing Fujii saw was a bright light filling his vision, before it all went dark.
In the Scrap Yard…
"AHH!"
Marachii ran frantically as a giant robotic eagle swooped over his head. "How many animals does she have?"
"Thousands!" Kikai called out. "But don't worry, these are the weaker ones!"
"That makes me feel so much better!"
The eagle stopped in mid-air, opening its beak and unleashing a powerful scream that dropped Marachii and Naito to the ground.
Kikai quickly went over to check on them. "Sorry, I should have told you about its Sonic Scream."
"How are you still standing?" Marachii wondered.
She pointed to her ears. "I don't have eardrums, so sonic attacks can't hurt me."
Marachii stood up. "You robots have it lucky! No flesh and blood limiting you, no human weaknesses in your system!"
Kikai put a hand on her hip. "Your Element is literally Technology."
Marachii folded his arms. "Yeah, but I'm still mortal."
She rolled her eyes. "I mean, you're the perfect counter to enemies such as these. Fighting fire with fire, as they call it."
"You're right!" Marachii realized. "Elemental Weapon, activate!"
Nothing happened. Kikai waited with an impatient expression.
"Elara?" Marachii asked. "I said, Elemental Weapon: Activate!"
"Stress levels too high," Elara reported. "Weapon is currently unable to manifest."
"Oh, come on!"
The bird swooped in again, but Naito jumped onto it and sliced it a few times, causing it to crash into a wall.
"She's good," Kikai admired.
Marachii beat his forehead, and Kikai grabbed his hand. "Fine. If you can't create your mech, try firing an EMP grenade."
"I have that?"
"Duh."
Marachii held out his hand as the spider stalked toward them. "EMP: Go!"
A pulsing grenade fired from his hand cannon, exploding right in the spider's face. The mechanical beast collapsed to the ground, powering off.
"You did it!" Kikai congratulated. "Nice job!"
Marachii kissed his hand cannon. "I am the Tech-Man."
The spider suddenly began to move again, eyes glowing. Kikai slapped her forehead. "You couldn't use a stronger grenade?"
"This was my first time, lady!"
Marachii wrapped his tendrils around the spider and tossed it back, while the snake lunged in for a bite. "You could help, you know?"
Kikai put her hands up. "Hey, I'm just the guide."
Marachii fired his plasma cannon at the snake, stunning it. "These things are tough! What are they made of?"
"Highly advanced nano-metal,"
Kikai confirmed. "They can take a hit."
"Then let's see if they can take a rocket," Marachii suggested. "Elara! Fire rocket launcher!"
"Firing."
A barrage of rockets emerged from Marachii and hit the snake, dropping its body to the ground and tearing it to pieces. "Yes!"
The mechanical spider attempted to fire another laser, but Naito used her fans and quickly diced the spider's legs and head into pieces, causing it to fall to the ground and collapse.
"That's all of them," Naito stated.
Kikai put a hand on her shoulder. "Not…all."
BOOM. BOOM.
A humanoid man made of metal approached them, around the same size as Kikai.
"Who's that?" Marachii asked.
"My brother," Kikai confirmed. "Genesis."
"How do you go from Genesis to Kikai?" Marachii scoffed. "Also, he doesn't look so tough."
"Think again."
The android cracked his neck and pressed a glowing blue button on his chest. His body began to shift, change, and grow. In seconds, the lower half of his body was a giant metal tank, while the top half was an armored soldier holding a rifle.
Marachii slowly backed away. "On second thought, how about you two talk this out?"
Without warning, Genesis pointed his rifle at the trio and fired.
—-