Three figures sit around a fire place. One man and two women. All enjoying the burnt-pine smell instead of Fog. Suddenly there's a pounding of the wood-colored steel door. The man stands up, all relaxation and comfort gone. "Everybody stay back!" As if deliberately disobeying him, both women take out large hammers and step closer to the door. One of them gets close enough to put her hand on the C.O.G. Key Opener. The man, who now was holding a Ice Stick, was not amused, "Stop it, May! We can't afford any more casualties. Leave it to me." Still daunt, May half snickers half snorts and 100% scoffs, "Ha! Ha! Yeah, right. You can stay and be the wussy-cat. I'm a mercenary. I can handle myself thank you very much!" Then, as if to show even more disdain for leadership, she dramatically slams the C.O.G. key Opener so that the door swings open. Five figures burst through. All clambering to get up the stairs leading to the observatory. The man gets up and turns to look at the tripping troupe, "Dr. Meh?" The called doctor replies with one word, "Run!" The man, who's name is known as Mr. Ironheart, turns to see the hired mercenary, May and his, niece Hanna; both bashing away at the now swarming Technomites. "Stand back!!!" he roars. Even May knows to obey now. As soon as the girls are out of the way, he attacks the Automatons with such ferocity that some Technomites' power core spontaneously fitzed out. Leaving a trail of ice-ridden carcasses made of metal. But even his heart of iron can not withstand so much. He's exhausted, he can't fight anymore, and the incoming Whiplasher coming knows it. Suddenly he's dragged by two arms. Wow! This girl is tough! he thinks. He looks back at his rescuer, but does not see May. He sees his niece, whom he never would've thought could lift a potato sack. Much less him. The Whiplasher is now close enough to attack. It does, and one of its electrified tendrils wraps around his feet. He shouts in shock, then passes out. "Great! Now I'm dragging my unconscious uncle.." she says out loud. Then she looks up and sees that the Automaton is coming for her next. Her eyes widen with fear, but she isn't able to move her feet. She's frozen. In shock actually. The Whiplasher had already wrapped its pulsing tendrils around her. Then she feels a burn. Not cold, not hot, the point of burn when neither is relevant. The kind that really make her cringe; not knowing what's coming at you. Her worst fear. Then she realizes it isn't an enemy. Lucky me? She thinks. Then she sees the figure with a flame cane completely annihilating the Automaton and she wonders if she's next. After searing off the already-destroyed Whiplasher's head the rescuer of the rescuer turns around. Here it comes… she thinks. Thankfully, he does not try to kill her or her uncle, who was still unconscious, but picks up her uncle and takes him into the house. Or what's left of it. She's still immobile until he comes again and brings her back to the house as well.
A HALF HOUR LATER>>>
Nine people are now sitting around a coal furnace. One of the last of its kind. Illegal actually, Lucky doesn't want non-Fog energy around Aethasia. Goku Ironheart wonders if it's better somewhere else. "If there is a 'somewhere else'…" someone huddled next to him says. Then he realizes he was "thinking" out loud. "Whatever!" he says. "More importantly, how can we still be soaking in Fog dew after being here for hours?" "We've only been here for about twenty-five minutes. You can't expect to be dry that soon." Hanna says. The doctor, who people knew as Dr. Meh, was scuffling around checking everybody's injuries, "Personally, I warned this was going to happen," he switches to a mocking tone and looks at Lensfun, "but nooooo. We just had to stay and blow up a Fog boiler." Lensfun isn't amused. He was leader for a reason. Power. That's what he wanted, but what he got was a group of Lucky-hating fools, "I already told all of you! We went across No Man's Landing so we wouldn't get caught! It's not my fault we did. You were the one who gave me this team!!!" He looks at the figure who saved the Metal-hearts and points at him, "I'm talking to YOU!" The figure shoots up and grabs Lensfun by his shirt, "I heard you. I didn't recruit the team. I found them before the Automatons did and brought them here! I found you too, trying to use a fake identity pass to go to the Academy Autonomous." he puts the stunned Lensfun down, who mutters something like "we'll see who's laughing later." Everyone is still staring at Xonos, Lensfun is now happy that he's out of that spotlight. Ironheart, who had now regain consciousness, spoke first, "We don't do stuff like that here, Xonos. You don't need to threaten people like that. We're all a team." Xonos looks at him, then at everybody else, "No we're not. We are not a team, or a family, or really anything at all. We just all people that oppose Lucky's reign. That's it! I bring people who want in, you do whatever rebel thing you can think of with them. And guess what? Nothing. We've been doing this for two years, and the most effect on Lucky it has had was when somebody else started a riot and we just joined in. He's exiled now, you know? Name was Lukas. I heard he's slowly going crazy roaming the Boom-lands. Or maybe he's still sneaking in Engine Bay. Building weapons of death, or whatever the 'Great Engineer' used to build centuries ago." Jacoby, who may have been more loyal than any other in the room, begins to speak up, "You know, Xonos, it just take time. We just need more time, we'll get better. Get bigger. We'll take back Aethasia!" he raises a fisted hand triumphantly, but Xonos just shakes his head and looks disapprovingly, "Two years, Jacoby. Two years…" With that, he gets up and leaves. A girls in a grey lab coat, (as not to draw attention), enters. She gestures with her thumb back at the doorway, "Where's the doomsayer-uva-rebel going? Huh?" Xonos hears this before he leaves. He stops by the door, turns, and gives a non-caring smile, "If I was going to come back, then I would tell you." He turns and leaves. With Dr. Meh making a "cuckoo" sign. Mr. Ironheart looks at the doorway, gets up, then closes it. Sneaking a peek to see if Xonos is still there waiting to come running back. Not likely. He thinks. Not likely at all. "You're thinking out loud again," Silverclaw says.
