2 Days Later

— Grudia, Ranth 12, 8054 —

“Overdrive: Guardian.”

Following his declaration, Spike fabricated a large shield into his hands. He gave it a once-over, inspecting its gleaming metal construction; he then firmly grasped it with both hands, took a deep breath, and attempted to pull it apart with all of his might. His muscles bulged, and his body trembled under the tremendous effort he put into leveraging his superstrength to damage his fabricated shield — effort that would surely have destroyed even the most solidly-built machinery. And yet, his shield refused to break.

After nearly half a minute of attempting to pull it apart, Spike shifted to trying to bend it in half — yet still, he found no success. The shield was fully unbreaking. After nearly a minute straight of unsuccessfully attempting to bend the fabricated object, Spike eventually relented… only to toss the shield into the air and then spike it to the ground with an incredible punch. The force behind the punch instantly slammed the shield into the ground, kicking up a massive cloud of dirt and sand. Reflexively, Spike began to cough and shield his eyes, at which point he began fanning the air to clear the dust. Once it had all settled, he looked to the ground, where his shield laid… still fully intact at the bottom of a small crater.

“Wow. That’s really durable, huh?”

“Sure seems like it…” Spike commented, still staring at the shield as Sky approached his side. He then passed her a glance before quickly scanning their surroundings: the WCU practice fields, sitting under the bright afternoon sun. Other students could be seen using the fields to practice and train, each of them being careful to give each other adequate room — and none of them seemed to care about Spike’s actions so far.

“So this is your Overdrive, huh?” Sky questioned, still staring at the unbroken shield in contemplation. “It makes your shields unbreakable?”

“That’s how it seemed when I first used it,” Spike replied. “Those metal bugs couldn’t eat through my shields after I used my Overdrive.”

“Huh. Are they actually completely unbreakable, though?”

“That’s what I hope to find out. They sure stand up to my strength pretty well, at least. Normally, I can break anythin’ I make easier than rippin’ up tissue paper.”

“That’s nice and all, but have you tried some heat?”

“That is what you’re here for.”

“Awww, and I thought you just wanted your cute girlfriend to watch you train!”

Spike rolled his eyes before taking a couple steps back. “I think you should spend your time trainin’ yourself instead of watchin’ me!”

“Hmph!” Sky turned her nose up at Spike before rolling her shoulder and turning back to the shield. “Well, I’ll show you! Just watch as I turn your shield into molten slag!”

Spike shook his head in exasperation as Sky took a deep breath, both of her hands extended towards the metal shield on the ground. After a moment, she began shooting fire out of her palms, bathing the shield in flames that licked away at its surface. Slowly, she began ramping up the heat, her fire growing in brightness and intensity — until even the sand under the shield began to glaze over. But the moment it did, Sky grimaced and flinched away, immediately ceasing her flames and waving her hands through the air as though she had just touched a hot stove.

“Whoa, whoa!” Spike quickly approached. “You alright?”

Sky sharply inhaled, and then shook herself off. “…Ugh. I think so,” she muttered. “…Damn, that was hot!”

“No shit…” Spike commented, finally turning his attention to the sand that had been melted into silica glass — and the metal shield that remained in pristine condition on top of it. “…You even glassed the sand! I didn’t know you could make fire that hot!”

“Is that hot? What temperature does sand melt at?”

“I mean, I dunno, but it’s pretty fuckin’ hot!”

“Mm…” Sky looked down at her hands again; they appeared to be fine, but she could still feel a twinge of pain across them. “…Well, I’ve never made flames that hot, before. And it hurt to do! I think I’ll stick to my regular fire, from here on out.”

“Fair…” Spike muttered as he carefully reached toward the shield. While it was warm to the touch, Spike’s inherent durability as a Forcetechnic allowed him to pick it up without injury. He looked it over, noting that it was still perfectly formed in both the front and the back. “…Damn. It even stood up to your fire. Maybe these things really are unbreakable.”

“Unbreakable? I find that hard to believe.”

“Hmm…?” Spike and Sky both looked up, immediately catching sight of none other than Karísah crossing the WCU grounds. Upon spotting her, Spike offered a casual wave. “Yo, Karísah! It’s been a while!”

“I guess it has…” Karísah commented, coming to a stop just in front of Spike and Sky.

“Wait, weren’t you in the ACT?” Sky questioned. “Is it over, now?”

“Well… no…” Karísah responded sheepishly. “My team, um… lost.”

“Oh, shit. That sucks,” Spike remarked.

“That’s just how it goes, sometimes,” Karísah replied with a shrug. “At least we made it to the quarterfinals.”

“You’re supposed to be the strongest Chaotic at WCU, though, right?” Sky questioned. “I bet that means whoever took you down must’ve been crazy powerful, right?”

“Ah ha, well… I guess.”

“Alright, Sky, leave the poor woman alone,” Spike insisted. “She clearly doesn’t wanna talk about it.”

“No, it’s fine,” Karísah replied. “The ACT is all public, anyways.”

“Who’d you lose to, then?” Sky eagerly asked.

“Sméthan Leta, from KCC,” Karísah said. “He and I were the first from each of our teams to fight. I actually managed to stall him out, for a timeout. But the rest of his team was better than the rest of mine, sooo…” She smiled in resignation. “Here I am.”

“Sméthan…” Sky mused. “I feel like I’ve heard that name, before.”

“He’s KCC’s member of the Elite Six,” Karísah explained. “I’ve fought him before, actually. But I can never actually beat him…”

“Huh. Well at least you lost to another Elite Six, then,” Spike remarked. “I mean, I’m sure losin’ still sucks, but knowin’ that you lost against the best of the best takes some of the edge off. …I’d think.”

“Yeah, well… it is what it is,” Karísah replied. “At least I’m back in Tresnon, now. I’ve been worried…”

“You ain’t the only one…”

“I’ve just heard so much stuff. Apparently you got Minilas back, and fought Strén? And found out that the Bleeders were workin’ with the SFC? And then they attacked Compound Falnon…?”

“Well, we didn’t do any of that, but, uh… yeah, that’s about what I’ve heard, too.”

“Davídrius and Selind seem pretty on-edge, too…” Sky said. “Do you think the Bleeders will actually attack…?”

“I hope not, but…” Karísah sighed. “…You never know. It’s best to be ready. I was hopin’ to talk to Mark about that, actually. Do you know where he’s gone?”

“He left a couple days ago,” Spike replied. “Right after Creators’ Day.”

“Yeah, there’s a SERRCom thing he had to go deal with,” Sky affirmed.

“Oh…” Karísah’s expression fell. “So he won’t be around to help, then… and I just missed him, too. And Creators’ Day, as well…” She sighed again.

“Well, hey, at least Creators’ Day is a global holiday, right?” Sky remarked. “You were in Riverana, right? What was it like, there?”

“It was nice. Very clean, very colorful, and everything, but… I missed Tresnon,” Karísah replied. “I’m glad to be back. I’m just sad that so many people are gone. Mark, Relia, Kaoné…”

“Yeah, we’ve been in ‘self-study’ for the past couple days…” Spike mused. “Do you know where Kaoné went? She just kinda disappeared…”

“I don’t. I just heard from Selind that she’s gone,” Karísah said. “…Well, I guess I should go look for Davídrius, then. Let him know that I’m back, and everythin’.”

“What, he didn’t meet you at the airport?” Sky questioned incredulously. “Doesn’t he look after you?”

“I am an adult, I can take care of myself,” Karísah countered. “I’m sure he’s just busy. With keepin’ track of the Bleeders, and everythin’.”

“Oh… right…”

“Well, it’s nice to see you, again, at least,” Spike remarked.

Karísah nodded. “Yeah, same.” She then looked down at the shield in his hands, a small smile crossing her face. “…Maybe soon, we can try out just how ‘unbreakable’ that really is.”

“Ha! If you wanna try, be my guest!” Spike replied as he tossed the shield her way.

Karísah deftly caught it, and then grabbed it with both hands in a brief attempt to bend it in half; when it didn’t budge, she gave a satisfied nod.

“I wanted to see if the durability wears off when my Overdrive does, too,” Spike pointed out. “Or if it wears off if the shield gets separated from me. So you testin’ it later would help me out.”

“…Huh. Those are good questions. Well, I’ll see what I can do.” Karísah flashed a smile at Spike and Sky again before tucking the shield under her arm and turning to walk off. “Nice seein’ y’all. ‘Til next time.”

Spike and Sky quietly watched Karísah walk off before Sky turned to give Spike a concerned look. “Even Karísah’s worried…” she muttered.

“Not to write her off, but she’s always struck me as the concerned type,” Spike replied. “But, still… probably best to keep our wits about us goin’ forward. And…” He fabricated another shield into his hands. “…This is as good an excuse as any to get trainin’.”

“I should’ve known you’d say that.”

“Yeah, ‘cause you still need a lot of it.”

Sky rolled her eyes, but nonetheless made to indulge Spike in training for the rest of the afternoon.

---

*

A swift crack and a cloud of sand filled the air, signaling the explosive dash of a Velocitechnic. Immediately after spotting the cloud, Liask braced herself, her knees slightly bent and her arms held out — only for a sudden blow from seemingly nowhere to launch her skywards. While momentarily disorienting, the Mach-speed kick wasn’t enough to injure Liask through her Forcetechnic durability — allowing her to quickly recover and turn her attention downwards, just in time to spot Pierce on the ground below.

In the next instant, Pierce leaped into the air — but Liask was ready. In the split-second it took for him to reach her, she whirled her right arm around and snatched him out of the air by his arm, thereby intercepting the incoming kick. She then chucked him straight at the ground, the raw force behind her throw momentarily slowing her own fall and slamming Pierce into the ground just as quickly as he had left it.

Pierce soon recovered from the blow, however, quickly jumping to his feet — right as Liask landed on the ground nearby. The Velocitechnic immediately dashed in for another kick, but right as Liask moved to intercept, he dodged around her arm and instead slammed his fist into her back, sending her tumbling across the sandy shores of Mirage Lake. Sand and water both were thrown into the air as Liask stumbled into the shallows, barely recovering in time to dodge Pierce’s next kick — though only by a hair. She then slammed her arm into the water around her, creating a virtual explosion of water that masked her position and forced Pierce to back off… leaving him vulnerable as Liask lunged out of the spray, her superstrength powering a speedy bound that caught Pierce by surprise. Within a second, Liask had knocked Pierce to the ground, straddling his chest and pinning his arms.

“Looks like that’s my win,” she remarked with a smirk.

“That only ties it up,” Pierce retorted in kind. “Besides, this is just practice.”

“Practice, sure,” Liask echoed, still smirking as she released Pierce’s arms. Just as he began trying to sit up, though, she leaned forward and quickly pecked him on the lips.

Pierce’s smirk rapidly transformed into bewilderment as Liask pulled away just as quickly as she had moved in, her cheeks tinged with red. “…Well that was unexpected,” Pierce eventually remarked.

“W-was that wrong…?”

“No, no…” Pierce’s smirk slowly found its way back onto his face. “That was perfect timing, I’d say. I just thought you were embarrassed by kissing, that’s all.”

“Well…” Liask took a moment to look around them; while the pair were still within the walls of Compound Tresnon and on the shore of Mirage Lake, they had found a relatively empty area near to the walls with little foot traffic. The Lakefront could still be seen a couple kilometers to the west, but there were no onlookers in their immediate vicinity. “…Relationships are supposed to be a two-way thing, right? And you seem to like kissin’, so, you know… as long as we’re alone—”

Liask’s words were interrupted as Pierce leaned upwards, gently wrapping his arm around her back to pull her in for another, deeper kiss. Her eyes went wide, her cheeks flushing — but she otherwise made no effort to pull away, allowing Pierce to linger on her lips.

Eventually, he pulled away, once again offering Liask a sly smirk. “What, too much?”

“Th-that, um, uh…” Liask tore her gaze away in embarrassment.

“Ha ha… alright, alright, I’m sorry,” Pierce replied with a chuckle, still smiling as he moved his hand to pat Liask on the head. “Didn’t mean to move things too quickly.”

“N-no, it’s, just… not in public?”

Pierce laughed. “You know what? Fair.”

“Good!” Liask then jumped off of Pierce, finally allowing him to climb to his feet. Her gaze remained bashfully diverted as she continued, “b-but otherwise, it, uh… it, uh… was nice…”

“Must’ve been,” Pierce remarked. “I don’t think I’ve ever seen you react this bashfully, before!”

“Sh-shut up!” Liask retorted, though she couldn’t keep herself from smiling, all the same.

“Well, that was enough of a diversion, I’d say,” Pierce commented as he began rolling his shoulders. “You up for another round? Winner takes all.”

“Sure, but I’ve been meanin’ to ask…” Liask turned to give Pierce a curious look. “You ain’t holdin’ back, are you?”

Pierce returned the look. “What do you mean?”

“Well, I mean… you have an Overdrive, right? But you ain’t used it once.”

“Oh…” Pierce’s face fell for a moment, only for him to force an uneasy smile. “…Well, you don’t have an Overdrive, right? So I feel like me using mine would just be an unfair advantage.”

“I guess…”

“Honestly, I feel like us sparring here is already pushing it. The only reason I even agreed is because you’re a Forcetechnic.”

“What? Since when did you care so much about the rules?”

“Hey, I just don’t want to hurt you, that’s all,” Pierce remarked with a smirk.

“Oh, please,” Liask replied as she smirked back. “Your kicks needa be twice as fast ‘fore they can hurt me!”

“That’s quite the boast!” Pierce crouched down, preparing to jump into battle once more. “Let’s see if you can back it up!”

“Same to you,” Liask replied as she readied herself for their final round. “On my count! Three! Two…! …”

When Liask trailed off, Pierce looked up, noting that her attention had drifted to the side — toward the waters of Mirage Lake. Turning to look that way himself, he called out, “hey, is something wrong?”

“There’s… a boat out there,” Liask replied.

“Huh? Is that weird? There’s tons of fishing boats around here.”

“Yeah, but they’re all bigger than this one. And they don’t usually come this close to the shore, this close to the walls.”

Pierce turned to look at the nearby walls of Compound Tresnon. The two-story tall structure stood barely half a kilometer away from Pierce and Liask, and extended into the waters of the lake far enough to prevent attackers from using the shallows to wade or swim around it. He then turned his attention westward; in the distance, he could see the Mirage Lakefront, as well as the numerous fishing boats that berthed there. Many other boats could be seen on the far southern horizon, but true to Liask’s words, none of them strayed close to the Compound walls.

Save for one lone, tiny craft, drifting on the waves barely a half-kilometer out from the shore.

“Huh, weird…” Pierce muttered, squinting and straining his eyes in an effort to get a better look at the small craft. “I can’t see anyone on it, from here… maybe it’s just driftwood, or something.”

“Maybe, but…” Liask frowned uneasily. “Given everythin’ that’s been happenin’, lately, do you think… we should report this?”

Pierce passed her a glance before looking out over the waters again. “…Maybe. But if it’s danger we’re worried about, well… I could check it out, real quick.”

“Really? How?”

“Velocitechnics can run on water, you know.”

“Have you, though?”

“Well… sorta. I mean, worst case, I can still swim.”

“…Alright, if you say so. But be careful…”

“Don’t worry. I’ll be there and back in a second flat!” Pierce declared, offering Liask a confident grin before turning towards the waters and taking off in a cloud of sand. Liask watched from the shore; true to his word, Pierce reached the drifting craft in a split-second. But instead of immediately returning, he ran around the craft to its backside and began to push it towards land; as soon as Liask saw this, trepidation crossed her face, and she rushed out into the shallows to meet Pierce just as he pushed the small craft aground.

“What is it? What’s wrong…?” Liask questioned, but didn’t wait for a response before grabbing the front of the boat and easily pulling it further ashore, such that it wouldn’t get washed away. Now up close, she could see that the craft was a small wooden dinghy, with just a small motor for propulsion… a motor that was scarred by scorch marks and bullet holes, along with the rest of the craft. A small pool of reddish liquid pooled at the bottom of the dinghy, and resting on top of that small pool was a singular individual: a short young woman with naturally tan skin and puffy black hair that extended down just past her shoulders, but frayed all over. Covering her chest was a desert shawl, not unlike those that Tresédians typically wore, if not for the subtle black and purple designs interwoven into the fabric — and the dark red stains that covered it.

Upon realizing who she was looking at, Liask gasped. “Relia…!”

“So it is her,” Pierce responded grimly as he looked down at Relia’s unmoving — but still breathing — body. “She’s still alive, but she’s injured, badly. You stay with her, I’ll go tell the Defense Force, alright?”

“Y-yeah… right,” Liask replied, offering Pierce a quick nod. As soon as he received her acknowledgment, he disappeared, dashing off into the city while Liask turned back to look warily over Relia’s unconscious form.