Chapter 26: Chapter 26: Suspicions of the [ANGEL]

"Today's news, The Cintelli Theocracy has closed their borders after a skirmish broke out between Imperial Legionnaires and Cintelli Templars along a Corporate Alliance trade route. Sources are unsure of what caused the confrontation but casualties have been reported on both sides with neither nation claiming responsibility for the altercation. Ambassadors from both Nation-States have agreed to meet and are scheduled for a summit tomorrow in Neutral Corporate Territory. More news, at 10."-Korriban World News

Chapter 26: Suspicions of the [ANGEL]

 

Two days had passed since Jack woke up in the spacious underwater cave, and in those two days, Lieutenant Belfusa had been teaching Jack various survival techniques.

“Remember, firm grip as you cut, don't be afraid to get rough with it. The skin on RidgeDeer is especially taut at the base of the head so slice, then wrap the knife around the neck.” Lieutenant Eleanor explained as she stood behind Jack, instructing him step by step on how to skin a black-striped four-legged creature. They didn’t have a gambrel or a large enough stick and rope, so the woman had her Massive Mech cupping its black metal hands together to hold the Ridgedeer up as they skinned it.

Blood splattered onto Jack’s bare chest as he stabbed the creature’s skull and started tugging at the fur on the Ridgedeer's neck. The pelt was rough underneath yet smooth on the surface as he tugged hard and sliced into the fleshy bits that were connecting the skin to the skull until finally, the neck was free of the creature's dermis.

“Good now comes the hard part,” Eleanor said, handing Jack a rectangular saw as she collected the pelt. "Time to remove the head."

With some pointers from the Lieutenant, Jack wasted no time and placed the saw against the Ridgedeer's bonewhite spinal cord and began moving back and forth in a rhythmic motion.

After several minutes of cutting Jack was already sore. He sighed, remembering how easily he cut that Hound of Rex's head off using a wind blade, and wishing he could do the same here. Yet without his system he couldn't use the ability and lamented inwardly at its loss.

Flexing his hands, he kept going at it though, allowing it to distract him from his thoughts while Eleanor started a fire and prepared various herbs and spices that Jack had sorted.

Finally, the head gave way, falling to the bloodied cave floor with a thud as Eleanor went and kicked it into a hole.

"Remember to always bury the remains. We don't want to attract predators and Demonspawn. Plus it helps mask the stench of decay."

"Why aren’t we burying the pelt then?"

"These?" Lieutenant Belfusa held up one of the bloody bits of fur. "Ridgedeer fur sells for fifteen grand a pelt."

"Fifteen grand in credits?!" Jack went wide-eyed. He couldn't dream of earning that much money, let alone selling something worth that much all at once.

"More like Imperial Royals, a bit more than Corpo creds. Don't worry, I'll make sure to split it with you once we get out alive. I know a good vendor in Frelia just at the edge of the artisan district. She'll give a fair quote for these."

Jack had money bags in his eyes as he stared at the woman depositing the expensive pelts in some kind of storage device she wore on her wrist.

Jack stood mouth agape as the pelts disappeared into a miniature vortex. He'd never seen anything like it before and immediately inquired about one. He could get one for Jill and she’d never have to worry about going anywhere without extra batteries.

[Jeez, if I didn’t know better I’d think you were a sis-con] Sahaqiel chimed in.

Hush! I didn’t ask for your opinion!

“Specially made, it was a reward from my mother when I joined the Valkyries. Hard to come by and you need a permit for these, though they make going through customs a pain in the ass. I wouldn’t recommend it unless you're a guildie or just don’t visit cities often otherwise you’ll have to empty it out every single time.”

“Ah that sounds annoying and out of my price range.” Jack grumbled. “Wait, is that why you threw away the horn-rabbit furs?”

“Yup. They aren’t worth much on account of how common they are. Anyway, it's getting late, let's finish up here.” Lieutenant Belfusa said, taking the knife from Jack and finishing off the Ridgedeer.

Once the duo finished dressing the four-legged creature, Lieutenant Belfusa washed the meat in the waterfall before teaching Jack how to cut the meat, store, and smoke it. After accidentally overseasoning a few bits of meat with various spices the Jack and Eleanor eventually managed to make a meal of their ridgedeer.

"This is delicious!" Jack exclaimed as steam rose off his body. "Where'd you learn to cook like this?! The best we got on the lower levels were processed potted meat."

The woman showed a rare smile with the flames in the cave painting her in a light orange glow that made her appear rather lovely. "All Mechframe pilots are taught to hunt and cook as part of our SERE training."

"SERE?"

"Survival, Evasion, Resistance, and Escape. Most pilots are non-awakened, so we have to rely on ourselves to survive if our Awakened companions die, or-" She pointed at the hulking Lovelace standing guard in front of the cave. "We get stranded alone behind enemy lines."

"Oh, well that's…" Jack was suddenly distracted by Sahaqiel hovering over the Lieutenant staring at her food.

You're going to get fat if you keep this up.

[Rude. And you mean you'll get fat. Besides, you need all the energy to recover.]

"Useful?" Lieutenant Belfusa offered, snapping Jack from his discussion with the drooling girl.

"Oh, uh. Yea. Sorry I just spaced out, that's all. This meat is very good."

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"Venison."

"What?"

"Ridgedeer meat is called venison. You know like cow meat is referred to as beef? It's a common term in the Empire. Social norms differ a bit from the Corporate Alliance, it's important you know what deer meat is called so you don't embarrass yourself."

"Ah." Jack replied, making a mental note of it before biting down into another piece of tender meat.

Once the pair wrapped up eating they retreated to their respective sleeping areas. With Jack in the blue survival blanket and the Lieutenant in her Mech.

It had been a full day already and Jack's burn scars had healed noticeably.

Another day or two and he'd be ready to go.

[Make it three, just to be safe.]

How exactly am I going to evolve with her here?

[Tomorrow we'll start when she goes scouting again. Right now you have just enough energy not to send you into shock if I turned the system back on, so tomorrow you should be ready and just so you know, it will hurt.]

Yes, I know you’ve told me this multiple times. Jack replied back, tucking himself into the warm reflective blanket. It wasn’t very comfortable, but it kept him warm during the night when they snuffed out the flames. With his belly full, Sahaqiel humming a hymn, and the warmth of the blanket Jack quickly drifted off to sleep with little to no resistance from his body.

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Unbeknownst to Jack, Lieutenant Eleanor Belfusa was watching him through the neon blue glow of her helmet. Completely unaware of the cameras on the back of the Mechframe that had been pointed at his direction. He didn’t know that everytime the Lieutenant left, she had Lovelace on standby, monitoring the teen for any suspicious behaviors or movements.

It didn’t make sense. When Mi’shka had come to her excitedly proclaiming about finally being able to do some research, Eleanor shut the raving man down before pulling up the file on the recruit they were supposed to escort to the Landship.

He was an E grade and not just a regular low level Awakened, but a Grade Zero, the lowest of the low. So low in fact he was being sent to train with regular soldiers. So how was it that he managed to defeat a Nest Guardian and fend off a horde of demonspawn?

To top this all off, the kid was also healing at an incredibly rapid pace that rivaled even an S Grade like Mi’shka. She expected them to be stranded out here for weeks so she had begun teaching the boy trapping and hunting techniques, yet at the rate the kid was recovering they’d be ready to move within days!

Things didn’t add up and after watching the recordings of the teen yelling to himself and talking to what she assumed was an imaginary friend Eleanor was even more confused. A part of her suspected that the teen was a saboteur of some kind sent by the Traditionalists, but his love for his sister was genuine, and from what she’d seen from their brief interactions onboard the landship, it was enough to convince her gut that he wasn’t at fault. Even if he was a little weird.

Still, something was up. What was the reason for him hiding his abilities? And how did he trick the exam? Most people with such capabilities would boast and attempt to get a better bonus, but why not him? Was it a temporary skill? Were there stipulations to how his abilities worked? These were questions that plagued her for the last few days, but the teen seemed content to keep his secrets to himself even when she occasionally prodded him for a response.

Despite wanting to press him hard for answers, Eleanor feared alienating the boy more and needed his help if she wanted to survive. If he was powerful enough to take on a Nest Guardian, then it was only a matter of time before the Matriarch would find him and elevate his status. So getting in his good graces triumphed over her suspicions.

Jack was still a teen, with many years ahead of him, and once it was discovered he’d single handedly took down a Nest Guardian, a lot of Awakened bloodlines would be clamoring over each other in order to take his seed. In fact if he were at the legal age she would have used her privilege as a Valkyrie to rope him in immediately much like she had done with Mi’shka.

Yet she knew that wouldn’t bode over too well and lamented at the loss. At least with training and helping him to survive she would earn a favor or two to cash in for later.

Flickering her attention away from the camera zoomed in on Jack’s sleeping body, Eleanor began paneling through the sensors and cameras she had set up on the fringes of their hideout.

Just beyond the green foliage surrounding their base was a wide area covered in sleet and frozen carcass. Captain Skirita had unleashed a cold winter on the demon horde, flash-freezing hundreds of the hateful creatures to allow the Landship to escape. Unfortunately for Eleanor and Jack, this didn’t kill the monsters, but only kept them frozen in place, with yesterday’s scouting showing that they were already beginning to thaw. It was only a matter of time before the pair would have to flee this area or fight their way out.

"Lovelace, slave controls to my HUD, and get ready to move."

"Understood Lieutenant. Controls are synching to your neuronet."

Eleanor felt the familiar pressure of pins being inserted into the interface around her neck. The helmet beeped, illuminating the cockpit green several times before returning it to its grey drab color. She could feel it, her skin crawling as the sensors on Lovelace connected to her brain, allowing her to become aware of everything around the eight meter tall machine.

The mechframe shuddered lightly as Pilot and Machine became one. Eleanor bit her lip. It was an exhilarating high, like every synapse in her brain being fired all at once in a sea of ecstasy that immediately jolted her awake.

For most, the addictive high of a Class-Three Mech was too much, and many suffered from withdrawals, but for Eleanor, she could take it, and she loved it. That's why she was chosen to be a Valkyrie.

"Neural link established. May I inquire what our mission parameters are, Lieutenant?" Lovelace asked, its voice now echoing in her head as her Heads Up Display lit up with numerous indicators and statuses.

Eleanor smiled.

"We're going hunting Lovelace, time to stretch our legs." Eleanor replied while grabbing hold of the black tipped controls.

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