The Two Squads (Discontinued)

[White-Jet]

Learning to Trust - Part 4

Ryuta opens the door to a dark room void of everything except a window and a perfectly fit, Japanese sleeping mat. He stares at the room a minute before taking Hajime off his shoulder and throwing him to the floor, causing bits of dust to fly up from the impact.

Hajime trembles in pain as Ryuta bends down behind him, grabbing the back of his violet poncho and yanking it up, revealing a dome-shaped, titanium device with a light blue boarder surrounding the edges strapped to his back.

There were a couple of dents surrounding the device due to the pounding it recieved earlier. Ryuta could also see a white, long sleeve shirt and black pants hidden under the poncho, but he paid little attention to it as he grabs the device and tears it off Hajime's shoulders. He then gets up and heads out of the room, shutting the door behind him as Atsushi stood in the middle of the living room, hiding a curious face.

"Why did you spare him?" the aloof ronin asked, "Weren't you the one most eager to repay him for what he did to you a few months ago."

"Because he's just another sorry victim of this piece of junk," Ryuta growls, clutching the half-full firebomb he pried off Hajime's hand earlier, "Even those who seek to destroy Supra-Force Metal are sucked into its curse! The entire family stopped being human and reduced themselves to drones, doing nothing but collect Supra-Force Metal and destroy facilities that try to duplicate them. It makes me sick just thinking about it!" he finishes by crushing the firebomb in his hand, causing a small explosion that obliterated the SFM inside.

"So, what are you planning to do with Scorpio Reaper?" Atsushi asked.

"There's a human trapped inside that jumble of emotions representing his being," Ryuta said, "A human who's hands could perform miracles rather than distruction. And I'm going to reach in there and pull him out, even if it means getting burned in the process."

-----------------------

Hajime sat in the corner of the empty room, his arms laying limp on the floor, his head drooping towards his chest, and his knees bent, resting against each other. He wasn't sure how long he had been stuck in this so-called "prison" and, with his energy slowly fading in the wake of his wailing stomach, he no longer cared.

He regrets not bringing any spare E-Cans with him when he left the Vanallia Desert. And he was most certain the occupants in this house would rather let him dwindle to nothing than do something about it.

After what seemed like an eternity in Hajime's case, the door swings open with a loud, wood-creaking sound. Lifting his head, he saw Ryuta standing near the doorframe, holding a two-foot high, metal tray. A bowl of curry, a loaf of French bread, and a glass of water sat on the tray, the aroma once again toying with his nose.

Ryuta had the same face that has begun haunting Hajime since the day he found out he was Scorpio Reaper. Those frowning brows and that slightly curled lip; he probably brought his food into the room just to watch him squirm and beg for a bite.

The ronin continues to stand near the door, holding the tray a minute before walking over and placing it down a few feet from the weakened captor. Hajime stares at the delicacies seconds before scrambling from his spot and attacking the tray, stuffing spoons full of curry into his mouth while tearing chunks off the loaf of bread. Tears were spilling out of his eyes as if he feared this would be the last meal he'd ever have the pleasure of feasting on.

Ryuta could only look on in more disgust. He can hardly believe this...thing was once a human; bright, smart, willing to do what was sanely good to keep this planet alive and well. Unable to stand the sight, he turns around and walks out of the room, shutting the door behind him and leaving Hajime to sabotage his meal.

-----------------------

Night quickly approaches. Though Khemri is the nation of heat and fire, this night was blessed by a cold shower. The temperature in Draconis reached near freezing and most people taking refuge inside broken down houses did everything they could to stay warm and dry.

Ryuta opens the door to the once empty room, holding a rolled up blanket under his arm. The tray stood near the corner of the room, bread crumbs and sploches of curry scattered everywhere, along with another fine mess that wasn't there before; rice grains, reminding him of what he gave Hajime to eat for dinner. They were few in numbers, however, indicating that he was slowly returning to normality.

Gaze then shifts to Hajime himself. He laid on the sleeping mat, curled up inside his poncho and shivering from the freezing temperature caused by the cold rain. The poncho did little to keep him warm as the holes became an unfortunate opening for the unwanted cold.

Ryuta takes the blanket and flaps it open, crouching down beside Hajime and slipping it over his body. It took a few seconds before he slowly stopped shivering, uncurling his body as his tormented face loosens up to a peaceful slumber.

His spirit, which had been riddled with various emotions, had all but vanished from the white flame that represented his innocent humanity. Ryuta continues to study Hajime before turning and heading out of the room, shutting the door behind him.

[White-Jet]

Learning to Trust - Part 5

Hajime shifts as the warm ray of the morning sun crept through the windows of the near empty room and washed over his face. He turns to his left before snapping his eyes open and stumbling onto his hands, shaken by what has happened in the day since he was confined to this room.

His father had feared sleep ever since the day they started hunting for Supra-Force Metal, claiming it to be a distraction from disallowing the blind and desperate to find ways of extending the quantity of this cursed power booster. By his orders, the entire family was no longer permitted to do any activities that wastes energetic strength, nor consume anything but reploid replenishments to induce insomnia.

Hajime hadn't slept in nearly two millennia; there was no telling how long he had been unconscious, or if his kidnappers ever had any thoughts of rousing him out of his slumber. The fact he even passed out at all was scary enough as it was. He didn't like it. It was wasting his time and allowing others oblivious to the notion of SFM to collect and use them for their own purposes. He needed to get back to his family before they start worrying about him.

Hajime attempts to look for a way out only to gaze at one of his most annoying sights: food. This time, it was a large, blueberry waffle and a glass of apple juice; neither had enough ingredients to keep him active for more than eight hours. But just seeing it was making his stomach whine for nourishment.

He grits his teeth, wanting to ignore the food and focus on a way out, but his stomach refused to be ignored and continued to pester and sap his strength. Sighing in defeat, Hajime crawls over to the tray and positions himself on his knees, picking up a fork and knife and cutting into the waffle.

After eating away one quarter of the waffle, Hajime inadvertently glances down at his violet poncho, realizing there were splotches of dried blood clinging to parts of its torn fabric. He drops his utensils and stumbles to his feet, freaked by how long he had been carting the stains around. It was a miracle no one else in Draconis immediately associated him with Scorpio Reaper...then again, half the city wouldn't give a damn if he was connected to the wipe out in the Shadow Civilization.

Frantic, Hajime looks around the empty room before spotting the window, which was the only source of light he had nowadays. He runs over to the window, trying to pry it open only to feel it jolt several times before finally pushing outwards. Keeping his hand on the window, Hajime squeezes through the slightly narrow opening and lands on the partly grassy ground in the back of the rundown house.

The faint sound of rushing water came to his ears. He looks up to see a bayou half a mile from the house, stretching nearly 4ft wide and leads to a wide stream blocking a safe passage to a tropical forest.

Hajime removes his poncho, taking another look at it, before jogging over to the bayou and checking out the saltwater contents. The moment he looks over the surface, however, he notices his reflection faintly representing his current appearance. Though wobbly due to the small ripples of the current, Hajime became bewildered at how little he changed compared to the two millennia he spent wide awake and wandering around like a savage monster thinking of nothing but the destruction of Supra-Force Metal.

Crouching down for a closer look at his reflection, he began thinking about how the rest of his family had changed since that day. The only one who actually had more than a body upgrade was his father; who mysteriously grew out his hair and blinded himself from years of dryiness due to his inability to blink. The rest of the family appeared sane...or so he thought.

"Those who stray from the group begin to understand more about themselves than they were led to believe." said a voice that startled Hajime. He whips around to see who it was only to accidentally lose his footing and topple into the bayou.

Hajime scrambles to the surface, the added weight of his reploid parts nearly dragging him back down as he swung his arms in a circular motion to stay afloat. He soon looks towards the shore to see Ryuta standing near the embankment, holding something behind his left shoulder. The ronin had ribbons tied around his shoulders and a new, red band on his left arm bearing a star-like design and the Japanese kanji for "blazing fire" written vertically along the center.

"You managed to find a way out," Ryuta said, not showing any sign of surprise or aggression, "But you couldn't bring youself to run out on us and go back to your family to at least let them know you're still alive."

Hajime hestitates, "Wh-what!? I only stuck around here to...!" he suddenly trails off upon seeing his poncho drift towards the stream behind him. Panicked, he tries to swim after it only to feel his head jerk seconds before being yanked out of the bayou and sent skidding across the embankment.

"That oversize rag isn't worth drowning over," Ryuta said as he dropped the hand he used to pull Hajime out, "You could barely stay afloat this far from the stream. What makes you think you could last in the heart of it?"

Hajime stumbles to his hands and knees, staring at his poncho as it reaches the stream and gets swept down its deadly path. He then glares at Ryuta, shivering more from the angst of what his family will think than the temperature of the bayou he was yanked out of.

"Is this your idea of payback!?" he complains, "Tear me from my family and give them the impression that I'm dead!?"

"You said you wanted alternatives from the mauling you were forced to do," Ryuta said, eyeing Hajime with a tightened frown, "I'm just giving you a head start."

"By locking me in some one square room and making me do nothing but eat and sleep!? Do you honestly think I'm some sick creature that'll warm up to you if you give it food and a place to sleep!?"

Ryuta snorts and turns his back on Hajime, crossing his arms while hiding the object he once held over his left shoulder, "You just answered your own question." Hajime's eyes widen as the shaking increased, "Your entire immortal life, spent on nothing but Supra-Force Metal hunting and reploid food, and you still have the tenacity to call yourself a human? You really are a sorry piece of junk!"

Hajime clenches his fists, pulling up clumps of dirt in the process, as Ryuta turns his head to look at him, "You should be damn lucky I was the one who unmasked you! If it was anyone else, especially Hayato, you wouldn't even be conscious right now! Hell, you could be in some desolate wasteland, torn to shreds and waiting centuries to regenerate! Be thankful you got someone who's willing to put aside his grudge to help you get what you want!"

"What could you possibly give me that would benifit our cause?" Hajime growled. Ryuta continued to stare at him before turning around and tossing an identical, black, gakuran trench coat towards him. Hajime scrambled to his feet as he caught the coat, staring at it in bewilderment.

"I'm getting ready to teach it to Atsushi," Ryuta said, tossing some colored bags in his hand, "You can participate in this training IF you're willing to trust what I have to teach you."

Hajime looks between him and the coat before tossing the latter around his shoulders. The front of his white shirt looked like a typical business shirt with pockets on both breasts. Ryuta notices a patch glued to the left pocket; a red "T" with light blue trimmings and wings near the top, each one bearing an illistration of a Force Metal.

"Tanaka...." Ryuta muttered, grabbing Haijime's attention as he looks up to him while pulling his arms through the sleeves of his new coat, "There was once a bright research team that could uncover over 300 types of Force Metal and find ways of reducing erosion by using other items to construct them." Hajime compresses his lips as he pulls the flaps of his coat close and buttons them up, "Hard to believe they suddenly went postal and began destroying facilities that specialize in Supra-Force Metal research."

"My dad seemed to be the most traumatized of the rest of the family," Hajime mutters, adjusting the collar on his coat, "Since he was the one who pointed out the dangers of SFM, he may have witnessed the onslaught that led to the destruction of Giga City and most major cities in Neo Arcadia before the researcher responsible was stopped by the X-Guardians. The SFM was destroyed and X ruled it as another Maverick raid matching that of Sigma's rebellion."

Hajime looks down at his left chest where the patch is, "When Dad heard the news, he flipped. Didn't bother gathering evidence, nor try to claim that Supra-Force Metal was involved. He just flat out called Neo Arcadia brash and vowed to have all SFM destroyed before it reached their base. We became part machine in order to prevent ourselves from dying of natural causes and set out to search and destroy everything linked to SFM. The life we were meant to have seemed to stop at that point, waiting for the day we finish our task and return to the family we were once proud to call ourselves."

Ryuta hums a bit as he turns to face the side of the house, "Maybe if you learn this technique, you can finally convince them there are other ways of putting an end to tenative devices that don't involve using brute force as a message."

Hajime watches as Ryuta heads for the side of the house, then follows after him, seeming curious as to what kind of technique he would gain.

[White-Jet]

To Be the Teacher

Hajime and Atsushi stood in the middle of the near empty room, watching as Ryuta puts up several, cup-shaped stands around the corners.

"What's all this for?" Atsushi asked.

"This is how the old man taught us the method of seeing spirits," Ryuta said while piling some sticks into the stands taking up the four corners of the room, "This is more of an imitation of how he displayed the various emotions you'll soon be able to see."

"Did you get those sticks from Halanos?" Atsushi asks again, "The Water Civilization still hasn't resurfaced since the HE and Titan wars. All routes leading to and from it should still be closed."

"To the public eye, Vi'lal would very well have been washed off the face of this planet," Ryuta said, clapping some colored dust from his hand, "But Shinta managed to uncover some shortcuts during the time we were still serving under Giza. Shortcuts that could only be reached through personal transportation."

"Personal...?" Hajime mutters, "You mean you swam all the way to Halanos!? It could've taken you a month to get to and from there at the most!"

"When you're modified for strength and stamina, a simple journey through the rough sea is almost like taking laps in a public pool," Ryuta said, "I also used Utopia as a quick pit stop to rest, and shorten the time it would've taken me to get to Halanos had I continued by sea."

He soon turns to face Atsushi and Hajime, "Anyway, enough about how I got the materials. The sooner we get through this training, the sooner you both will be able to see and understand the flow of one's spirit."

The two look towards each other before taking a sitting position on their knees, waiting for Ryuta to begin the lesson. The destined leader took a moment to sigh and recollect his thoughts.

"So," he began tossing a firebomb in his right hand, "Let's start with the basics. Emotion is a common trait used by all animate beings on the planet. Many would reveal their feelings through facial expressions, tone of voice, or bodily action. However, there are those who either try to hide what they're thinking through false facial expressions, or have little to no way of showing their emotions."

Ryuta clutches the firebomb after tossing it in the air for the twelfth time, "The only way to see what's really floating in their minds is by studying their spiritual flow. There are four primary signs of inner emotion, each with their own color and meaning."

He chucks the firebomb towards one of the kindle-filled stands, causing it to explode into a bluish blaze of fire that took up the entire bowl. Atsushi and Hajime stare at the burning stand in surprise.

"This flame represents sorrow," Ryuta continues, glancing to the fire expressionlessly, "Fueled by saddness and angst of losing something important to them."

He tosses another firebomb into the next kindle-filled stand, causing it to burst into a reddish-yellow flame, "And this represents fury; anger and rage that would normally be seen burning through one about to seek vengeance out of envy or anguish of losing what they fought so hard to achieve."

Ryuta tosses a third firebomb into another kindle-filled stand, causing it to explode into a black and purple blaze. The minute Hajime glances towards the flame, he began shuddering in fright.

"Darkness...." he mutters, grabbing Ryuta and Atsushi's attention as they turn to glance at him, "Insanity.... Lust for control...." he quickly shakes his head and rubs his temples, "I don't know why, but when I stared into it, I could barely see my dad staring into it...like he was getting ready to jump in."

"Once you're fully aware of your spiritual senses, you may be able to uncover more about him than what your eyes could make out," Ryuta said as he tosses one more firebomb into the last stand full of kindle. It explodes into a bright, white flame with a light blue center.

"Light," Atsushi immediately said, "Innocence, will to act without fear or selfishness."

"It's also as dangerous as darkness," Ryuta said, "Light is the fork in the road for children, animals, and creatures lacking in religion or belief. Like a canvas, cults, tribes, nations, coalitions, even our own families will spatter whatever color they see fit onto its white surface, turning it into something that can be desired or hated."

"Families...." Hajime mutters, looking down at his clutched fists resting on his knees, "If that's true...then my dad must be one sloppy painter...."

"You were a mess of emotions," Ryuta said, "Your anger and saddness obscured your vision and made you believe everything your father put you through. The rest of your family are no different; their anger and sorrow brought about by restlessness and fear. If I was able to wash away those emotions and bring about the human within you, there's a possibility we can break them free from this nightmare."

"I wanna see for myself," Hajime said, looking up to Ryuta, "I wanna see what kind of emotions my dad jammed into our brains when he started this whole journey!"

"We'll get to that soon enough," Ryuta said, "Right now, I need to show you the mixture of these primary emotions. Trust me, it's for your own good."

Hajime compresses his lips as Ryuta began going around the room, picking up one of the kindles and placing them in the empty cups surrounding the central walls. Each flame inserted into the cups lit into a different blend of colors.

"This is the variety of emotions you'll encounter once you gain your awareness," Ryuta began, "Some may be hard to figure out, some may not. It only depends on how well you can decipher the combination of colors." he then holds up one of his hands each gap between his fingers held a kindle containing the flame of a primary emotion, "There's one emotion you need to look out for however."

He walks towards the stand near the door and tosses all four kindles into the fire, causing a burst of pitch black flames to erupt from it. Each spark showed a random glow of color. Atsushi and Hajime glance towards the remaining combination of fire, Atsushi remaining neutral while Hajime's face twitches at the sight of it.

"This is what happens when all four of the primary emotions burn in equal intensity," Ryuta continues, "This is the purest of insanity; insanity so strong, just glancing at it will either drain you of your energy or kill you all together. I've only got a glimpse few glimpses of this, but it's enough to give me a headache." he looks over to his two pupils, "Make sure you don't study it too long."

"All that emotion compressed into one...." Atsushi mutters, "Ferm would most likely be a nightmare for us if we try to venture into there."

"I know," Ryuta said, looking towards the jumble of flames within the last cup, "Then again, venturing into Ferm is enough to drive us all insane. Not even the bravest of warriors would go in there, knowing they won't be the same as they were when they manage to escape.... A prime hiding place for those scheming to bend the planet to their will."

He then looks back towards Atsushi and Hajime, "But lets forget about that for the time being. Now we focus on training part of this session. In order to prepare ensure your spiritual sight and sensation, you need to be in a meditative state, focusing your mind on nothing but the beat of your heart."

Atsushi and Hajime listened in before moving to cross their legs, indian-style, and close their eyes. Ryuta continues as they concentrate their minds into their hearts. "If you start feeling an array of emotions flow though you, it means you've managed to connect with the spirits. Maintain your meditative state until you've gathered all of the spiritual emotions necessary to understand the flow of a person's feelings."

Ryuta watches as Atsushi and Hajime continued to sit in their meditative state. Nothing seems to happen at first. Suddenly, he noticed sparks flying out of the tips of each fire burning within the cups of the stands, trailing towards them and seeping into their chests. The two's face began to twitch as each spark settled in.

This was the first time he saw the process of obtaining ones spiritual awareness. He does nothing, however, as he already knew what was going on within their minds. He continues to stand before them, monitoring their progress and seeing what they will do next.

[White-Jet]

The Trap is Set - Part 1

Hajime twitches as he pushes himself from his position on his side to his stomach, using his arms as crutches to push himself to his knees. Atsushi laid beside him, though seeming to be in a peaceful slumber, it was obvious he had succumbed to the effects of the flow of emotions burning through his body.

Hajime's entire body felt like jello, wobbly and numb. His head throbbed while his heart raced as though it were about to burst. Groaning, he placed one hand on his head, barely managing to keep his position against the other. Atsushi eventually stirs and sits up, grabbing his head in the same sensation as his colleague.

"Try to relax a bit," Ryuta said, "You'll be able to regain your strength faster."

Hajime and Atsushi glance over to Ryuta, seeing him engulfed in a monstrous, transparent blaze of pinkish-white fire. The two yelp in shock and stumble to a propped position on their elbows; Hajime pointing at Ryuta.

"You're on fire!" he yells in hysteria. Ryuta blinks in surprise before sighing a chuckle and placing his hands behind his back.

"Take it easy," he said, "This is how you'll be able to see spirits. It'll go away in a few minutes."

"You...you mean...." Atsushi mutters before Ryuta nods in answer.

"With enough concentration, you should be able to know what the person is thinking through the flow of his spirit," he said, "This sense can also be used as a radar when something obscures your vision or you're in places that bares little light."

"Dad...." Hajime mutters. Ryuta and Atsushi look towards him as he sits up and shuts his eyes, going into deep concentration.

Three minutes into the trance, Hajime's eyes shot open in fear as his body shook in pain and fright. He yells, throwing his hands on his ears and dropping to a fetal position.

"M...Make it stop!" he screams, "Make it stop!"

Ryuta and Atsushi stare in shock as Hajime collapses to his side, his voice slowly waning to weakened slurs, then stops. Ryuta moves up to Hajime, blinking in shock upon seeing puddles of mixed blood leaking out of his ears, eyes, nose and mouth. Hajime's eyes were wide with fear as his mouth hung open a few inches.

Atsushi places a hand on Hajime's chest, frowning in confusion, "He's dead...." he looks over to Ryuta, "Is his family really that mad?"

Ryuta frowns as he crosses his arms and closes his eyes, searching around for spirits that bared Hajime's familiarity. He eventually locks onto four spirits a great distance from Draconis. Three of them burned with saddness, anger and pure-hearted will to do what they can to help out. This is most likely the spirits of Hajime's mother, brother and sister.

Focus then turns to the fourth spirit; his father. In the split second that his mind locked onto him, a rush of emotions crammed into his brain like a vacuum out of control. Mixures of anger, sorrow, helplessness and insanity cammered around him along with random thoughts concerning his eldest son.

Defective....

Craves what we have....

Will destroy us all....

Must rewind....

Must save....

Ryuta's eyebrow twitches as he grits his teeth upon feeling his head implode. He quickly cuts off his concentration, collapsing to his hands and knees.

"Ryuta?" Atsushi asks in hesitant curiosity.

"He's gone...." Ryuta groans, placing a hand on his temples and massaging them, "Whatever he saw during that onslaught in Giga City...must've driven him even further from reality than we were led to believe."

"I knew he was crazy...when he started this whole operation...." slurred a weakened voice, "B...but I never thought...he was th...this crazy...."

Ryuta lifts his head to see Hajime still limp on his side, heaving labored sighs; his eyes barely open.

"Look's like your life support system's kicked on," Ryuta said, pushing himself to his knees, "I hope you don't mind you just became a guinea pig to see what would happen if we sensed someone burning a combination of all known emotions."

"I pretty much expected I would...." Hajime slurred, "I...just wanted to see for myself...what my family's really thinking...."

He then glances towards the puddle of blood formed from his hemorrhage. Ryuta senses an increased bout of fear flickering in Hajime's weakened spirit as he struggles to move away from the puddle, only succeeding in trembling his numbed body.

Ryuta walks over to Hajime and pushes him onto the sleeping mat, pulling the blanket up to his neck.

"How'll I be able to save them now...?" Hajime slurrs some more, "If my family really has slipped this far from reality...just getting them to listen to me will be a field day...."

Ryuta remained silent a moment before standing up, "Get some rest, Hajime. We'll come up with something in the morning."

He heads out of the room with Atsushi following after him, neither were aware of the tears spilling out of Hajime's eyes, drenching the pillow around him.

--------------------------

Somewhere in the city of Lux stood an arena full of blood and corpses, both human and reploid. The arena momentarily was voided except for one person standing near a 3ft space at one area of the bleachers.

His hair is a straight blond, hanging close to his waist, wearing a white bandana around his forehead. He wore a blue uniform, the coat bearing gold trimmings on the sleeves and zippers; the sleeves each had foot-long arrow pointing towards the elbow. He also wore green, reploid boots that reached his knees and had boosters on the sole for added speed and higher jumping capabilities.

Wrapped on his right arm is a white band with a shield-like symbol bearing an "EN" within a large "O" and a leaf like crown surrounding the bottom. The left side of his coat and both sides of his neck bore the same symbol.

A young boy, with hazel-brown, straight hair that reached the top of his shoulders, walked up to him as he was surveying the area around him. He wore an identical outfit, except his green reploid boots reached his calf and only had weak built boosters for a slight increase in speed. A band stuck out the bottom of his hazel-brown hair with an antenna sticking out the right side, most likely belonging to a pair of headphones.

He carried a large, blue chest with gold borders around the corners. The chest's weight kept him hunched over, indicating that whatever's inside most likely weighs a ton. He drops the chest onto a two foot stand, then turns to the blond-haired man.

"Are you sure this is a good idea, Hayato?" the boy asked, "What if he knows its a trap?"

"It wouldn't matter if he did," Hayato said, eyeing the boy, "Once he finds out what's in that chest, he'll do whatever he thinks is feasable to get his hands on it."

"Why're we even bothering with this guy? We're not under Giza's command anymore."

"No, but this is a request that Utopia stuck onto me during another one of his raids yesterday. I don't particularly care for those going pieces of metal, but if it's such a big deal that he would terrorize the entire world just to keep it all to himself, it's more of a reason to get involved and slice Scorpio Reaper off the face of this planet."

[White-Jet]

The Trap is Set - Part 2

The next morning, Ryuta and Atsushi sat around the coffee table, staring at three bags of gold sitting in the center. Their attempts at making money through selling smokebombs were doing little to help them make more than designs for the squad's appearance.

"Maybe we should look for something else to add to the trade stand," Ryuta muttered, "Selling smokebombs alone isn't going to get our plan off the ground."

"What else can we sell?" Atsushi asked, "The only product we could sell without blowing the money we earned so far are the smokebombs you have little use for." he looks over to Ryuta, "Maybe we should try another area of trade. Most of the visitors in Draconis are Drakens that have little interest in weapons that couldn't even harm the leaves of a tree."

Hajime skulks into the living room, dry tears streaking his cheeks and ears. He appeared nauseated and tired from his frightening ordeal following the training of his spiritual senses. Ryuta heard the door creak open and looks over to the slowly recovering, former Maverick.

"You're awake," he said, "How're you feeling?"

"I'm okay...." Hajime mutters, walking over to a beanie mattress and flopping down on it, "What's going on? You both look agitated."

"We're having a bit of a prosperity problem," Ryuta said, staring at the three bags of gold on the coffee table, "We're barely making enough to put food on the table, and the cost for those magic kindles took too much off our tight budget."

Hajime looks between the two friends, then the bags of gold, and finally his torn arsenal pack, which had been tossed like a piece of trash against the kitchen counter. After a few seconds, he gets up and walks over to the mechanical backpack, opening one of the panels and pressing some buttons inside.

The second he closes the panel, a jar beams down beside him, containing several different types of Force Metal. Ryuta and Atsushi stare at the jar in surprise as Hajime picks it up and walks over to them, placing it on the coffee table near the three bags of gold.

"Lux is one of the few nations that rely on mechaniloids to fortify their forces and construct their cities," Hajime said, "Their trades will pay a high profit for status boosting Force Metal, particularly the Power, Speed and Protection types."

"Most of the Force Metal are of a higher grade of performance," Atsushi mutters, "How were you able to obtain this much?"

"Actually...." Hajime mutters, scratching his cheek in hesitation, "It wasn't that hard to obtain them."

"What do you mean?" Ryuta asked. Hajime compresses his lips, trying to figure out what to say before reaching into the jar and pulling out a Power+10, Protect+10, and Speed+10 Force Metal, clutching it in one hand. He then reaches into his pocket and pulls out a large Energy Crystal, clutching it in his other hand.

He glances towards the two a few seconds before cupping his hands together and closes his eyes, going into deep concentration. Throughout the process, a red, blue bordered cross glowed through the back of his gloves as light flashed from the gaps in his fingers.

A couple minutes pass before Hajime uncups his hands, revealing a glowing ball of light, which slowly begins to fade, revealing one piece of Force Metal floating within. Ryuta and Atsushi stare at the piece of metal in surprise as it drops onto the coffee table in front of them.

"So that generator can do more than repair machines?" Ryuta asked as he picks up the Force Metal and examines it.

"It wouldn't be called a Force Metal Generator if it only heals machines," Hajime said, "With a high amount of Force Metal Energy, I can combine any item that matches the recipe needed to create Force Metal. The recent manufacturing of reploid replenishments gave me new ways of creating powerful Force Metal with a great reduction of FME and erosion; particularly when including Energy Crystals in place of certain devices used to regenerate machines."

"The question now is," Atsushi said, "How're we going to travel to Lux? We barely have the money to rent a boat, and swimming there would be daunting for most of us."

"We don't have to do either," Hajime said, "I have a transportation Mechaniloid that can get us to Lux in less than an hour."

He gets up and heads out of the house. Ryuta and Atsushi look towards each other in curiosity before following after the former Maverick, watching him head to the back of the house. Upon reaching the open field, they see Hajime poking thin air seconds before the scene in front of him bends and distorts.

A giant, black and red, stingray-like mechaniloid appeared in front of the trio, a hatch on its side opening to reveal a lab within it. The three walk inside, Atsushi and Ryuta glancing around at the high-tech lab surrounding the body of the mechaniloid.

"How long have you had this mechaniloid?" Ryuta asked.

"A few decades, I think," Hajime said as he sat down on a large chair in the center of the mechaniloid's head, "I found this old model in a ruin somewhere in Giga City and referbished it into an aerial mech-lab that I retreat to when I need some time alone." he had a remorsed look on his face, "I guess you can say this was one of the reasons I wasn't as crazed as the rest of my family."

Ryuta and Atsushi looked over to Hajime, noticing his burning remorse.

"We'll find a way to get your family out of that predicament," Ryuta said.

"I know...." Hajime sighs as he presses some buttons on the armrest of his chair. A holographic map appears in front of him, showing the recent changes of the seven continents. He taps his finger off the coast of Ferm, causing the mechaniloid to lift off the ground and fly away from Draconis.

-----------------------

An hour later, the mechaniloid appears near the dock of Lux. The three squad members step out and saunder into the all but unfamiliar city, Hajime holding the jar of Force Metal under his left arm.

"This is the first time I've been to Lux," Atsushi said, "Where do you think we should sell the jar of Force Metal?"

Ryuta hums a bit, about to think of something when he felt someone brush past him.

"One side, monkey!" grunts a voice. Ryuta glares at a dark purple scaled Draken marching past him and into the city. He had bulky muscles and wore a loincloth made of lion skin; the mane used as a pair of shorts. His hair stood up like a cockatoo with a short beard covering his chin.

They sensed another being walking after the Draken and turned to see who it was. They blinked in surprise, seeing a moderate-looking human walk past them without so much as a glance. His blond mohawk is whole, with a short beard covering his lower chin. Aside from a loincloth made of gorilla fur, he had a dark purple skinsuit covering him from the neck down with silver bands strapped around his wrists, and purple boots with claws covering his feet, seeming to identify him as a BioCPU.

They sensed several more powerful spirits wandering through Lux, heading to one area of the city.

"Whad'yda think's going on?" Hajime asks, "I heard there was an arena in Lux, but I've never seen this many warriors enter it."

"I dunno," Ryuta mutters, "But I have a feeling it has something to do with Supra-Force Metal."

"Supra-Force Metal?" Atsushi asked.

"I don't know why, but everytime I sense the eagerness of some of these warriors, the thought of Supra-Force Metal keeps jumping into my head."

Hajime furrows his eyebrows nervously, "Shimatta! If SFM is involved in this gathering of warriors, Xylbian'll catch wind of it and storm the place to confiscate it! Not to mention my family will eventually find out about it and tear Lux apart to find it."

The three look towards each other before Ryuta sighs and crosses his arms.

"We have no choice," he said, "We're going to have to enter this tournament and get to the SFM before Xylbian or the rest of the Tanaka research team get their hands on it."

"It's most likely a trap," Atsushi said, "I can sense anger towards Scorpio Reaper burning within the organizer's mind." he looks over to Ryuta, "If he finds out that Hajime is Scorpio Reaper, he could announce it to the entire arena and get us into trouble."

"No...." Ryuta mutters, "I have a feeling his reason for drawing out Scorpio Reaper has nothing to do with publicly exposing his identity. He probably wants to draw out Scorpio Reaper so he can have his vengeance for himself, regardless of who finds out afterwards."

Hajime grits his teeth worriedly, "What'll I do!? If I use my arsenal pack, they could associate me to Scorpio Reaper and kill me before I have a chance to get to the SFM!"

Ryuta muffles a half-sigh, half-growl before noticing a weapon stand deep within the city. He heads off to the stand, talks to the man in charge and returns with an eight chained, morning star.

"Use this for now," he said, handing Hajime the morning star, "This'll keep the blood from splattering onto you."

Hajime takes the morning star an examines it, seeming a bit unsure of his substitute weapon.

"We should hurry, Ryuta," Atsushi said, "The longer we stand out here, the sooner those higher oppositions will catch wind of what's going on at the arena and make plans to put a stop to it."

"You're right, let's hurry!" Ryuta said as he heads off to the arena with Atsushi and Hajime following after him.