Argonaut - The Precursor (Prequel)

Chapter 2 - The Strays

Chapter 2 – Strays

14th Oct 8:11 AM

"Give it thirty seconds between pulses," Hephaestus told him, "This is an instrument, not a flashy stick."

"I will," Killian nodded, picking up the device reasserting his grip.

He rested the stock against his shoulder, hands fitting into the handgrips and extending the weapon to its full length, just under five feet. It was a prototype that Hephaestus had been working on for some time, and he'd given Killian the first model to field test. He called it the Omni-purpose Tactical Ordinance Cannon. Killian had taken the liberty of shortening it to Omnicannon. The Omnicannon gave a faint hum as it came to life, the coils set along the barrel crackling slightly. Satisfied, he folded it back down to a portable size and fastening it back to the magnetic holster.

"If you break this, the next weapon you'll get from me will be a rock," Hephaestus warned him, "Your complete disregard for technology is starting to get under my skin. Do you have enough rails?"

"Still have five cases in the hangar," Killian nodded, "I left them in the transport when I came back from my last assignment."

Killian's usual transport was a great deal smaller than normal Archaean jets, a one-man supersonic micro-plane. With his line of work, he didn't need anything larger.

"Suppose you'll be needing a new jet as well..." Hephaestus muttered, "I may have something for your group."

"Something special?"

Hephaestus grunted. "I put together a little something for the Archons not too long ago, a lot of firepower, very intricate. Way too costly for mass production, but a fine piece nonetheless. It's gathering dust in their personal hangar; they never visit Olympus anymore. I'll get you clearance to take it out for a spin."

"Thank you, Hephaestus. I owe you one," Killian said.

"But Captain, if you break this ship, I'll break you. Understood?"

"Yes sir."

At that moment, Maven entered the workspace clad in heavy armour that enhanced her already imposing physique. She gave both men a short nod, moving over to stand behind Killian.

"Thank you for repairing my armour," she said to Hephaestus, twisting around and watching the heavy plates interlock and shift in response, "I didn't think it'd be salvageable when I was brought back."

"Wasn't much left," the old Archaean shrugged, "Had to rebuild most of it from scratch, found a little room for improvement. You should have a little more manoeuvrability now, and I made your shield a little wider as well, should give you a little more cover without increasing the weight."

She flexed one of her forearms, inspecting a large piece of round metal that was built into the armour. With a quick tap onto her wrist with the other hand, plates of the metal extended and clicked together perfectly. In the space of about half a second, it had formed a large shield that covered most of her body.

"Whatever you face'll have a hard time punching through this," he explained, grabbing hold of the ridge of the shield, "It's thin, but shots from Daûtstaves and the biggest human guns will just bounce off."

"Thank you, Hephaestus," Maven gave a warm smile, "I will take good care of it."

"Stick close to her, maybe some of that attitude'll rub off," the old man said, casting a glance to Killian. "Bring him home alive, okay Maven?"

"I will, sir."

"Good. Now, clear off. There's too many people in my workshop, you're liable to break something."