When Nyr returned, she sat up with one immense yawn and a fierce stretch, nearly letting out a cathartic scream.
Nyr - "Aghh.. I'll never get over how accurate simulated grogginess is.."
After clearing her eyes she takes a good look around, her curious companion was nowhere to be seen.
Nyr - "She must've got back on before me.."
Re-equipping the heavier parts of her gear, she heads out of the tent and packs it up.
Nyr - "Heck.. Well she can't have gone far.."
She raises her hand to the side of her head, the shallow channels on her headgear glow with increased intensity.
Listening in, all the ambient sounds of the forest and hills seem to drown away, and then she picks up a faint whishing sound coming from the direction of the river.
A quick jaunt through the short forest path opens into a riverside clearing where a particular white haired girl can be witnessed casting a crude fishing rod into the slow moving water.
Nyr - "Heyyy!"
Syr - "Took you long enough."
Nyr - "Eheh, sorry, I had some things to take care of.."
Syr - "Huh?"
Nyr - "Ohp- Nothing!"
She rapidly looks around nervously as she approaches and spots something she hadn't noticed before, a pile of fish beside Syr.
Nyr - "H-Have you been out here all day?"
Syr - "Got bored waiting for you.."
Nyr - "Ehh, sorry.."
Nyr - "Soo, did you have a good time getting back in..?"
Syr - "Why do you always phrase things so weird?"
Nyr - "Eheh.. Call it a quirk?"
Syr - "Hmmh..!"
Nyr - "But, really.. Nothing strange like yesterday happen or anything..?"
Syr - "..Not that I'm aware of.."
Nyr - "Okay, good good.. "
Nyr - "And, do youuu maybe remember anything else now..? Any new insights on your situation..?"
Syr - "There's something very suspicious about you right now, but I can't quite place it.."
Nyr - "E-Eheheheh.. I-I'm not really sure what you're talking about, you know!"
Syr - "Well of course you wouldn't admit it."
She shrugs nonchalantly.
Syr - "But anyway, I don't think I remember anything else yet.. I remember yesterday still at least so, I guess that's good? I'm still intrigued, and I don't exactly have anything better to do, what with the whole no memory thing.."
Nyr - "O-Ohh.. That's.. great!"
Nyr ~ Dang it! That's so ambiguous, but I'm too scared to ask directly..!
Syr - "What..? Do you not want me around anymore?"
Nyr ~ Did she really get logged out last night..? Did she realize it's a game and come back just for fun? Or.. Is there really something sinister going on here and she never left..? I-I can't just tell her.. Best case scenario, I sound like a total idiot trying to explain to someone playing a video game that they are indeed, playing a video game..! In the worst case, she freaks out about being trapped here and there's nothing we can do about it anyway! We'd have to contact some kind of authority maybe.. I-I don't want to get wrapped up in this if.. i-if I'm the only one who can do something about it, I can't take this!
In rapid fire her brain piles thought after thought in a runaway attempt to find an answer.
Nyr ~ Aghh.. Calm down, calm down.. Let's remember this is the least likely case.. Yeah.. Of course, the system just logged her out last night when she fell asleep and she figured out the goof afterwards.. At worst she's probably just embarrassed she didn't realize sooner!
Syr - "Nyr..?"
Nyr ~ ..D-Does she realize I didn't tell her about it on purpose..?! N-No way.. It must not have been that much of a shock if she's so calm about it.. Which makes sense because she's obviously an avid gamer! Why else would she have access to high-end VR gear and a hardcore RPG.. Y-Yeah, that's it, I can't believe I was even so worried about something so obvious..!
The sound of the river gently flowing beside them accentuates the prolonging silence, the fisherwoman being abnormally patient with Nyr's thoughts, focused on the line.
Nyr ~ Still, there's no denying there's something very strange about her unusual appearance here and her glitched out character.. Not to mention the memory loss.. Amnesia being triggered by a dive into VR? I've never heard anything like that before.. Still.. she seems to have had no trouble getting in a second time..? Bold of her to even dive again without hesitation after what happened.. Guhh, so then, what if she didn't after all? This whole thing is so-!
Syr - "Uhh, hello..? You okay..?"
Nyr - "Eh..?"
Her brain replays the recording of what Syr had said moments earlier, before her panic of thoughts.
Nyr - "N-No! That's not what I meant! I-I'm sorry.. I just don't handle these situations well.. This is a confusing and weird time for me too.."
Syr - "Ohh so now you're saying you've got it just as bad as the girl with no memory, huh?"
Nyr - "T-That's not-!"
Syr - "Relaxx, I'm just teasing you. Would it kill ya to loosen up a bit? You're more frazzed out about the situation than I am."
Nyr - "A-Aheh.. Yeah, you're right, I'm sorry.."
Syr - "You apologize too much. It's fine."
Nyr - "Ahhh! Y-You're right, dang it..!"
Nyr - "[Sighs..] Thank you, for putting up with me and not just running away because I'm weird..!"
Syr - "Ahahaha~ Well that was almost good~! But then you made it weird again, ironic.. Maybe it's endearing though, at least it's better than over-apologizing~"
Nyr - "Eheh.. heh.."
Nyr - "Sooo, where'd you get a fishing rod..?"
Syr - "Oh, I just found a rather long branch, and made a line from some weird plants I found."
Nyr - "And bait..?"
Syr - "Found some bugs."
To herself
Nyr - 'Very resourceful, and not afraid of bugs. Got it..'
Nyr - "Soo, what's with all the fish..?
Syr - "They looked tasty, so I thought we could eat them."
Nyr - "Ahah.. Still, I don't think we could eat that many fish.."
Syr looks over to the pile of strange fish she had accumulated.
Syr - "Hmm. You were out longer than I thought you'd be. I guess I just was too focused on the fishing."
Nyr - "Well I suppose we could always sell them when we get back to town."
Syr - "What, we're not even going to eat some?!"
Nyr - "I really don't want to waste any time getting to town today, besides there is much better food we can get there."
Syr grumbles to herself over the fish while Nyr shoves all of them into her pouch.
Syr - "Alright, what's going on. I know that pouch is not big enough to hold all those fish. Or the rest of the stuff you're carrying. Wait ew, those fish are touching your stuff.."
Nyr - 'Not afraid of bugs but she draws the line at fish slime..'
Nyr - "Relax, it's just the pouch. It can hold a sizable slew of small items."
Syr - "How the hell does that work?"
Nyr - "Hmmm.. You know, I'm not sure."
Syr - "It sounds pretty special.. Was it expensive?"
Nyr - "Oh, hah, no. Everyone gets one of these."
Syr - "Huh? I don't have one."
Nyr - "But everyone gets one from the-"
Nyr - "Ohh.. You spawned in here all weird huh.. Say, do you have any quests?"
Syr - "Eh, what do you mean?"
Nyr - "Nevermind.. I don't think we can get you a pouch though, nobody actually sells them considering everyone is supposed to just get one."
Syr - "What!? Unfair.."
Nyr - "Yeah, but, it's no big deal. I can just carry your stuff for you!"
Syr - "Hmph."
Nyr - "We could get you a backpack or something..?"
Syr - "..Lame."
Nyr - "Yeah, such large equipment is inconvenient for a hunter.."
Nyr - "Well either way, we should get going."
Syr - "Alrighttt.."
Having stored their piscine cargo, they set off down the long road to town.
⧖
It was a nice bright day out, with a cooling breeze at their backs.
A nice day for a hike.
Syr - "How far is this place anyway?"
Nyr - "Mm, it'll probably take us a few hours to get there."
Syr - "Jeez.. Isn't there a faster way to get around?"
Nyr - "Yeahhh well I'm kinda broke, so that's why I walked out here, heh. Also why I took on this quest no one else wanted. Lucky it turned out it was pretty simple to deal with, pay is way higher than the difficulty."
Syr - "Great.. Starting to regret my choice to join you."
Nyr - "H-Heyy..!"
Syr - "Kidding."
Nyr - "Hmph.. But together we could take on some crazy quests, we'll be rich in no time! And then we could get our own private airship. Uuu we could sail the skies together!"
Syr - "I'm more of a land speed kind of girl, something fast with 2 wheels. But besides, I don't even know how to hunt, especially not the giant robotic creatures here.."
Nyr - "We could probably find something like that at one of the larger cities.. Oh but I can already tell you're a natural born huntress. Once we get you a weapon you'll be slaying in no time! "
Syr - "With what money?"
Nyr - "I.. I have a favor with the weapon smith.. And I already have all the raw materials, so it's not so bad."
Syr - "I don't feel like I can just accept something like that from you though.."
Nyr - "Ohh don't be silly! You'll more than make up for by helping me take out much tougher prey."
Syr - "I suppose that makes sense."
Nyr - "Exactly! So just sit back and enjoy the view until we get there! ..Well, keep walking though.."
⧖
They continue their journey, keeping each other company as slim clouds wisp by overhead.
The occasional bird-like animal soaring across their field of view.
Coming over a small hill, they can see a clearing in the distance with a pack of indistinct animals roaming about grazing by the river.
Nyr - "Oh look! Autonoths!"
Nyr - "See, I told you we'd find some on our way back. C'mon lets get a close look!"
Syr - "Wait but-"
She grabs Syr's hand before she could say anything and breaks into a run towards the herd.
Syr - "Woah!"
Realizing there's no use fighting it, she just runs along with the girl much too eager to see some ugly animals.
Nyr - "Whew..!"
By the time they got there they were both a little out of breath.
Syr - "Was it really necessary to run all the way here.."
Nyr - "I just really wanted to share my ecology knowledge with you!"
Having rested for a brief moment, Syr finally looks up to see the beasts in their full glory.
Syr - "Ohh.. Why do they.. look like that..?"
Nyr - "Haha, I told you they were ugly, didn't I?"
Syr - "I don't think anything you could've told me would've prepared me for.. that.."
Nyr - "Oh come on, they aren't that bad."
Syr - "They're practically mini walking cthulhu demons."
Nyr - "Wellll, when you put it that way.."
Syr - "What are they doing anyway, and why don't they care about us?"
Nyr - "They're doing the only thing they know how to do, eating whatever non-aggressive organic matter they can find. These things are so infested with the corruption, the mechanization has completely taken over their brains. In other words, there's nothing left in there."
Syr - "What the.."
Nyr - "Maybe it's sad.. But either way, these things are mostly just a nuisance, since all they do is eat everything and reproduce. If not kept in check, they'll demolish forests and other habitats. They literally can't even think for themselves anymore, they just follow their dumb programming. They don't even respond to threats, i.e. us. Once they accumulate enough energy, they'll plop out a disgusting cube of corrupted biomass that'll quickly develop into a complete clone of the original creature."
Syr - "That sounds like such a pathetic life.."
Nyr - "Yeah.."
Syr - "What is this 'corruption' you keep talking about?"
Nyr - "It's the stuff that affects most life in this world. It's the thick liquid that spills out of cybeasts when you kill them. It's a nanomachine laden sludge that takes over any organic being it can find its way inside. And if it can't find a way in, it makes one."
Syr - "Ew..! But what about-"
Nyr - "Always quick with the questions with you! But relax, there's no need for you and I to worry about it. All humans are immune to the effects of corruption. It's not entirely clear why, but mostly likely it's because in actuality the nano tech in the corruption was created by humans, and programmed not to attack human cells."
Syr - "Well that's.. vaguely reassuring.."
Nyr - "You still don't want to get this stuff on you, but I probably didn't need to tell you that. It will happen though, occupational hazard, heh.."
Syr - "Does it always turn animals into these weird machine hybrids?"
Nyr - "The nanos somehow have a way of changing their behaviour to seek more metal rich diets. They accumulate that metal and form the various platings you see covering parts of their bodies. They also copy another human technology, field channels, but I'll have to tell you about that later. The stronger the host creature, the more powerful they become from the corruption. And the corruption will also make them more aggressive with all that power. But that, is where we come in, an extraordinary monster slaying huntress duo!"
Syr - "That's so.. metal."
Nyr gasps.
Nyr - "Did you just make a pun?"
Syr - "I don't know if that counts as a pun."
Nyr - "Still, I'm so proud of you.."
Syr - "Either way, how come the fish I caught earlier weren't all mechanized?"
Nyr - "Ahh well, the corruption affects animals on varying levels. Some smaller creatures are almost unaffected. While not specifically immune, fish are mostly unaffected by the corruption as it can't really take hold or replicate in water. Larger aquatic beasts can still find themselves exposed however."
Syr - "What the hell does all this mean for the ecosystem though?"
Nyr - "By now it's basically settled to an equilibrium. Life simply goes on in its new enhanced form. Things have been like this for as long as anyone knows. Though nobody really knows where the corruption came from, how it started, or why anyone would want to do this."
Syr - "Now I feel like there's a mystery to solve or something.."
Nyr - "Eheh, maybe someday we'll find some clues while we're out on an epic hunt!"
Syr - "Well, thanks for the biology lesson, teach'."
Nyr - "Anytime! Now let's get back on the road, this educational detour has gone on long enough!"
⧖
By now they could see the silhouette of the town on the curved horizon, causing them to pick up their pace out of eagerness to get back into town.
Nyr - "Aaah! C'mon! I just wanna show you the weapon shop already!"
Syr - "Jeez! Never a slow day with you is there?!"
Due to the curvature of the world, from a distance away you could practically see the entire town as if looking from above.
They jogged their way through the gates of the large hunting town they've been trekking to get to.
The guards seemed a little weary until they saw exactly who it was galavanting towards them.
Guard - "Welcome back, Miss Nyrelye."
Nyr - "Thanks! Bye!"
Not even stopping, they blaze past the stiff guards.
Syr - "Such a formal greeting, you must be a big deal around here."
Nyr - "Naa, they're like that to everyone. NPC's y'know? But who cares about that, we've got places to be!"
Syr - "Wha-Uwoah!"
Nyr drags her by the arm as they rush into the town.
They finally skid to a stop in what looks like a sort of central square where roads lead in and out of.
Nyr at last takes a small break to think about what they should actually do next now that they're here.
Syr takes the moment to look around them, taking in her foreign surroundings.
The town itself had quite interesting and unfamiliar feeling architecture, or at least Syr thought so.
Various buildings made of wood and stone, with stone paths connecting them all.
Yet much like the rest of the weirdness she'd experienced in this world, it also felt much too futuristic for its own design.
A multifarious assorted bunch of high tech looking machines dotted around the place, with plenty of people engaging with said machines.
The occasional space age looking accents on buildings, and conduits that appeared similar again to Nyr's armor and weaponry with glowing channels running the length of them in an electric blue color.
A handful of sleek airships loitering overhead, some occasionally taking off or coming down to the ground presumably ferrying passengers and things in and out of town.
Syr thought they kind of looked like giant aerial creatures if she squinted her eyes.
Nyr - "Hmm.. Well! As much as I'd like to go straight to the smith, we gotta make a run to the guild first and report that lame encounter we had. And get paaaiid, heheheh.."
Nyr - "And we've also got to stop by the markets to sell our fish. Actually we should do that first, it's on the way to the guild."
Syr - "Sounds good."
Nyr - "Hmhm! Off we go!"
Once again she grabs Syr's hand and off down the streets they go.
Syr - "Wehh!"
But before they could even make it a few steps, Nyr stops again abruptly, causing Syr to bump into her.
Syr - "Oof..!"
Nyr - "Oh I almost forgot! Welcome to Eidolor! The great hunting town home to the great huntress, Nyrelye!"
It feels like Nyr gets even more smug every time she brings this up.
Syr - "Oh, so this is where you're from."
Nyr - "Mm, something like that. This place might not be the largest or most advanced city around, but don't let that deceive you. When it comes to hunting, this place has it all! In fact, the best weapon smith in all of the In-Worlds is here!"
She said looking far too proud for something that isn't even her own business.
Syr - "That statement seems difficult to quantify."
Nyr shrinks a little.
Nyr - "Can you please just let me have this.."
Syr - "Can you please stop dragging me around. I'm more than capable of moving myself."
Nyr - "I-I just don't want you to get lost..! ..Or to get separated.."
Syr - "I'll be right behind you, wherever you go."
Nyr - "Eheh.. Right! Lets go!"
Her last couple of words were stretched out by doppler as she was already darting down the street towards the markets.
Before starting after her:
Syr - "On second thought, maybe I should put a leash on her.."
They moved quickly down a street lined with a diverse assortment of stalls selling bits and bobs of what purpose eluded Syr.
Booths with what look like monster parts, teeth, scales, hide, bones, you name it.
Ones with all kinds of foods ranging from meats in form factors she'd never seen, to plants and things that hardly looked edible.
A few general purpose item sellers here and there.
And of course, some selling technological parts she couldn't imagine a use for.
Nyr stops at a shop peddling fish and engages in a haggle, flopping all of the morning's catch onto the counter.
Nyr - "Alright, whad'ya give me for all these?"
Fish Trader - "100 Zenni."
Nyr - "What?! 150!"
Fish Trader - "120."
Nyr - "Ughh.. Fine! Bye!"
She snatches the money and zips off down the road again.
They turn a few corners before arriving at a somewhat official looking building.
Upon entering, Nyr's demeanor becomes more serious.
Looking around she's startled when a new character calls to her.
??? - "Welcome back, Nyr."
Nyr - "Ah!"
??? - "Were you successful on your quest?"
Nyr - "Sheesh.. Hey Miss Lissly.. Yeahh we took care of it."
Lissly - "Oh? We..?"
Nyr - "Ah right.. This is Syr, a new friend I met along the way. Syr, this is Lissly, she's my.. handler.. She manages my quest stuff and makes sure I don't cause the guild any problems."
Lissly - "Any more problems."
Nyr - "Right.."
Lissly - "Well done however on the completion of your hunt. I was beginning to think nobody would ever take care of that one."
Lissly - "Now if you'll just follow me, we can finalize your report and get this squared away."
They follow her to a desk where they sit down and begin to talk over the events that transpired on the given quest.
Syr zones out a bit while Nyr handles the bureaucracy, observing the room.
It feels different to the rest of the buildings she'd seen so far, this one had glossy metallic floors and strange designs on the walls.
Lissly - "Cause of disturbance?"
Nyr - "Some kind of large chiropteran."
Some terminals with large screens on them were set up around the place with what appeared to be quest listings on them.
Overall this place seemed like it much more closely matched the time period.
Lissly - "Method of resolution?"
Nyr - "Slain."
Lissly - "By you?"
Nyr - "Yes."
A panoply of hunters littered the building as well, all decked out in an impressive variety of strange armors and equipped with weapons the scale of which made Nyr's feel just a tad less impressive.
Lissly - "Collateral damage?"
Nyr - "Uhhmmm.. Maybe just a small teeny weeny hole in a building.."
Syr - "Two holes."
Nyr - "Wh- Dang it Syr.."
Syr - "..."
Lissly - "..I see.. Is that all?"
Nyr - "Yes ma'am.."
Lissly - "Any additional notes you would like to bring to my attention?"
Nyr - "N- Eh.. Yeah, actually.."
She leans in to talk more candidly.
Nyr - "The thing we fought.. It had active camouflage abilities.."
Lissly - "What? You don't mean like-"
Nyr - "Like, optical field manipulation."
Lissly - "Well.. That's certainly unheard of for cybeasts. Do you have any more information on the matter?"
Nyr - "No ma'am.."
Lissy - "I see. Thank you for bringing this to my attention. As it is unclear what this means, I will have to report this up the chain and an investigation will likely be launched into this. Which means, you will probably be called into further questioning by the guild on the details of what you saw."
Nyr - "I understand.."
Lissly - "You wouldn't have happened to keep the body intact, would you?
Nyr - "U-Uhh, no ma'am, I.. sort of cut its head off.."
Lissly - "Unfortunate."
Lissly - "Still, it would be fruitful to send a recovery party out to collect whatever is left. I'd like the precise location data of where you killed it."
Nyr - "Oh, sure.."
Lissly holds out a small gadget face up as if waiting to be given something.
Nyr digs out her own matching item and holds her hand a good few inches over hers, and then a small pulse of blue light beams from her hand and into Lissly's.
They retract their arms from the transaction.
Lissly - "Thank you. Now will that be all?"
Nyr - "Yes ma'am."
Lissly - "Very well then. You are dismissed. Your payment has been cleared, you can collect it at the front desk."
Lissly walks away, presumably to get back to her guild business.
Nyr lets out a prolonged sigh of relief for that interaction finally being over.
Syr - "Do you always have to do that..?"
Nyr - "Nahh.. This was just a special quest so a formal report was requested.."
Syr - "Hmm.. Are you ok? Is there like, an issue between you two?"
Nyr - "..That woman scares me.."
Syr - "She didn't seem that bad."
Nyr - "Aaghhh, she's not bad.. She looks out for me, but I swear sometimes she sapps all the fun out of hunting. Anddd also the last time I caused some trouble for the guild on one of my quests all she said is that if I did something like that again she would do something that I really wouldn't like, and I think she was serious.."
Syr - "I can't imagine you causing trouble.."
She probably missed the sarcasm there.
Nyr - "I know! But sometimes I get a little in over my head and things don't go exactly as planned.."
Nyr - "Anyway, time for payday!"
They walk up to the counter at the front desk, Nyr with a grin on her face.
Receptionist - "You'd like to withdraw your payment, correct?"
Nyr - "Yyep!"
Receptionist - "OK! So it looks like your last quest is.. ten thousand zenni!"
Nyr - "Heheheh.."
Receptionist - "Minus collateral.."
Nyr - "Awhh.."
Receptionist - "Minus the guild's share.."
Nyr - "Dang it.."
Receptionist - "Your total payment is ninety four hundred and sixty seven zenni."
She transfers the payment to Nyr who accepts it greedily.
Nyr - "Thanks!"
Syr - 'Such a specific amount..'
And wasting no time, she dashes out of the guild building, nearly forgetting about Syr who exits much more casually.
Nyr - "Sheesh! Don't you know we're in a hurry?!"
Syr - "Not really."
Nyr - "Sheeeeesh! We are going to get you a weapon!"
And off she went, rushing ahead again.
She stops after some distance, turning to check that Syr is still following her.
Syr is trailing a ways behind, walking with a carefree stride, just taking in the town.
She waits for her to catch up before booming off.
This goes on a couple more times.
Nyr - "Oh c'mon aren't you excited? Don't you want to check out the weapon smith?"
Syr - "Of course I am. But that doesn't mean we need to rush. I'm savouring the moment."
Nyr - "I suppose that's nice.."
It was unclear to Nyr if this was some kind of intentional punishment to her for being so hurriedly all the time.
Syr - "Say, I thought you said some guy gave you that village quest."
Nyr - "Yeah, well he's the one who posted the quest. People can post their chores to the guild board to have a hunter deal with it. Though I did meet with the guy to get more details. The guild system is a convenient way for hunters to get work and for people to hire them. They handle all the technicalities and everyone gets a nice trusted system for dealing with monster issues!"
Syr - "Seems cool. How's this whole guild system work?"
Nyr - "Oh, uhm.. It's not complicated really, you just register with the guild and then you can take on quests depending on your rank. It goes from F rank to A rank, and then there's an S rank reserved for only the absolute best out there.."
Syr - "Hm, and what rank are you?"
Nyr - "..D rank.."
She looked quite ashamed of this.
Nyr - "B-but! That's only because I've been by myself for a while.. With your help, we'll become an S rank duo for sure!"
Syr - "A bit presumptuous that I'd even want to join you.."
Nyr - "W-Wha-?! But y-you said-!"
Syr - "Relaax I'm kiddinggg! I already said I want to join you. You really need to learn when you're being teased~"
Nyr - "Hmph.."
Syr - "Heh.. Maybe we should celebrate our teaming up."
Nyr's eyes light up at this suggestion.
Nyr - "Yeah! That sounds like hecka fun! We'll have a micro party for us to celebrate the formation of the hunting duo that'll go down in history!"
Nyr - "Oh! But this reminds me, we'll have to register you with the guild.. Heck.. We were just there too and I forgot.."
Syr - "It's alright, we can always make our way there again."
Nyr - "Yeah.."
Nyr - "Oh! We're here!"
Upon walking into the shop, Syr is awe struck by the plethora of high tech machinery lining the walls.
It looked like this place was its own mini factory.
Nyr - "Impressive, isn't it?"
Syr - "Woah.."
Nyr - "Heh, this place may not be the most well known around here due to its secluded nature, but it's second to none for those who know what's up!"
??? - "Well.. Look who it is, didn't expect to see you back so soon, Nyr.."
Syr - "Eh..?"
Nyr - "Oh, heyyy, Flux! I-I was just looking to get a new weapon for my new friend and party member here!"
Flux - "Hmph.. You? Friends?"
Nyr - "Heh.. Ohhh come now, don't be so inhospitable.."
Nyr - "Excuse me for a moment, I'll go and explain the situation ok.."
She skips over to the other side of the room to engage in a small argument with the weaponsmith, keeping her tone hushed so that Syr can't really make out what they're talking about.
Syr looks on with a quizzical gaze.
Nyr - "Please please please, don't ruin this for me..! I don't want to look bad in front of her.."
Flux - "You still haven't finished paying me for that work of art you've been prancing around with. Such custom orders aren't cheap you know."
Nyr - "I know.. Oh-"
She takes the money they just got from their quest and plonks it on the counter.
Nyr - "Here, this should cover it, right?"
Flux looks it over, appearing a bit less annoyed momentarily before reverting back.
Flux - "This is all of your money, isn't it."
Nyr simply looks guilty, Flux sighs at her obvious admission.
Nyr - "Please..?"
Flux looks over to the white haired girl who has resorted to perusing the shop's selection of interesting weapons and machines.
Flux - "She's really that important to you? You can't have known her long."
Nyr - "Yeah but.. I can't really explain it now, but I just know there's something unbelievable and mysterious going on with her.. She's an enigma, and I'm going to get to the bottom of it."
He did think there was something strange about the way this new girl looked.
Flux - "I think you just fancy her."
Nyr's face immediately filled with red.
Nyr - "Irrelevant!"
Flux - "Hmph.."
He snatches the money off the counter.
Flux - "Still, you can't afford to go buying weapons for every pretty girl you see."
Nyr - "Please, Flux.. Just this once, I need this.. I'll be able to pay you back and more once we can start taking high rank quests together..!"
Flux - "Ughh.. Remind me why I have a soft spot for you again.."
Nyr - "Then, you'll do it..?!"
Flux - "We are even after this."
Nyr - "I understand.. Thank you so much!"
Flux - "Can she even fight?"
Nyr - "Eheh, well.. I haven't actually seen her fight yet.."
Flux - "You really are easy, huh?"
Nyr - "B-But, I think she- no, I know she's S rank material..!"
Flux - "Well, there must be a reason you feel that way.."
He whistles a sharp note to get Syr's attention and calls her over.
Flux - "Your friend has informed me of your situation. So, any idea what you're looking for? If you can think it, we can make it."
Syr - "Umm, I-I'm not sure.."
Nyr - "I'd bet you've never exactly fought with such strange weapons before huh! Oh, I know!"
She pulls her own weapon from its sheath.
Nyr - "Lemme show you mine, a bit of inspiration! Plus, we need to teach you the special mechanics of these kinds of weapons."
Now finally revealed up close, Syr takes a moment to thoroughly observe her sword.
It was fairly long, not terribly thick, with no taper along its length.
The shape would've been a plain rectangle except for the tip, which had a short angled section.
A luminous channel ran along the backside of the blade, while the dangerous side was sharpened such that it could slice just about anything.
The blade's edge was also darkened, with a strange natural pattern where the colors shifted, presumably this did something for the blade's strength and ability to cut things.
At the tip, the angled edge was actually inlaid with more of the glowing material.
She could see the sword had no crossguard, it made some sense considering the weapon was not meant for fighting off other weapon wielding foes.
Perhaps she thought it would just get in the way.
Nyr - "This is my baby.. Completely custom design, forged from exotic materials you do not want to know how I got my hands on.."
Syr - "It's quite pretty."
Nyr - "Eheh, thanks.."
Flux - "Don't forget who actually made the damn thing."
Nyr - "Right! You're the best!"
Syr - "What's the deal with these glowing lines, I keep seeing them everywhere, even on the animals."
Nyr - "Yes.. The most important part of combat here, field channels.. See, the 'field' as it's known, permeates the entire universe. You can excite and manipulate this field with the right tech and energy. The things you keep seeing, are field channels. They're a technology we use to control the flow of energy and influence the field."
Syr - "So then that would mean.."
Nyr - "Yeah.. The monsters we are going to be up against, the cybeasts, they can use field abilities too. But the field can't do anything, and one can only do so much as is programmed to their tech. For example, the tip of my sword actually has a special device installed, a field projector. It allows to project minor field distortions from the tip of the blade. I mainly use it for creating small barriers on impact, which allows me to deal blunt damage at will! But it can project all sorts of shapes."
Syr - "That sounds quite versatile. A nice design choice, surprising."
Nyr - "What's that supposed to mean?!"
Syr - "I just didn't expect you to be both a great huntress and a strategist~"
Nyr - "O-Oh..! Sheeesh.."
There may have been a hint of sarcasm to that, but it didn't matter to Nyr.
Nyr - "Anyway!! The channel running along the back is dual purpose. It directs energy to the tip, as well as helps accelerate the movement of the blade. Meaning it helps me swing this thing mega fast even though it's quite heavy! It can even break the sound barrier if I overdrive it, though that usually doesn't end well, heh.."
Syr - "Do keep that thing away from me when you do that."
Nyr - "You got it..!"
Nyr - "So, you got any ideas yet..?"
Syr - "I'm still not sure.."
She gives the blade a few test swings and twirls, unimpressed by the dynamics, though in fairness she does not know how to activate its abilities.
Syr - "This isn't really speaking to me.. I think maybe something light and fast. Something that can pierce anything, yet still slice well if need be.. Defense isn't much of a concern, I should be able to remain agile enough to dodge attacks if the weapon is light enough."
Flux - "Hmph, such cocky demands.."
Nyr - "What do you think, Flux? Can you pull something like that off?"
Flux - "Psh, what do you take me for?"
Nyr - "Heh, you never disappoint!"
Flux - "I assume you have the materials?"
Nyr - "Yeahh.."
She pulls out various clumps of refined metal that look remarkably high quality.
Nyr - "It's the last of this stuff that I have.."
Flux - "Well with this, we can make a blade that will never bend or break. It's still technically possible it'll bounce off of something, but it'd have to be insanely hard to stop it. You'll have to make sure to keep it sharp though. As for form factor, how about a field assisted rapier? We can add some interesting abilities and an edge can be put on the blade letting you cut unarmored targets with ease. Not a lot of heft behind it though, don't expect to deal massive damage with any individual strike."
Syr - "It sounds excellent, thank you very much."
Nyr - "Ooooh I can't wait! This thing is gonna be so cool!"
They take the materials and move to a machine in the shop.
The metal is loaded into a hopper and the device activated, after some loud sustained noise and a lot of heat, a long rectangular bar of the metal is produced.
Flux - "This is the only thing that can deal with this kind of metal in its pure form, though doing this destroys all of its special durability properties. Keeping it like this will make it workable for now. Not to worry though, it will regain them when we specially heat treat it. No need to temper it, as that will just ruin it again. This metal is unique for its impossible hardness while not being brittle either. It will shatter however, if met with an unstoppable force. And I do mean shatter, it'll practically explode."
Both the girls were fascinated by everything, yet understood nothing.
You could tell by the way he spoke that he's very passionate about his work.
He takes the elongated bar of metal and moves it to another machine, where he holds it while the machine simultaneously keeps it red hot with field heaters and he controls multiple tools that detail the piece as needed.
The tip is formed more to a point, a slight taper is formed along the length such that the tip is less wide than the base, the tip is brought to a sleek point, one edge of the blade is given an edge to be sharpened later, an intricate yet sparse design is engraved into the blade itself, and finally, a hole is punched through the bottom of the blade.
After moving the blade to what they were assured is a special oven, he moves to another station and begins work on the handle.
Flux - "Nothing terribly unusual about the grip, it should be comfortable though and help you hold onto it while you're thrusting it into some poor bastard's armor."
Syr grimaces at the mental image of this.
Flux then forms some metal into a sort of pommel with a somewhat industrial design, machined to fit something.
It's placed into a machine and some kind of field device is pressed into it.
The guard is masterfully crafted into an ornate ring and implanted with multiple field components.
One last bit of field tech is inserted as the core of the guard.
A fitting sheath for the sword is crafted from an unfamiliar yet sumptuous animal hide and trimmed with metal for strength.
The blade is removed from its hot house and plunged into a bath of mysterious liquid.
After removing it, the blade is polished except for the edge.
Flux - "Just one more finishing touch.."
He places it into a specialized chamber and it is zapped with a pulse of energy.
Upon removal, the blade has a stark gradated sheen of brilliant bronze and deep blue along the length.
The edge is then polished to reveal the bright silver color of the metal, then sharpened to its final state.
Flux assembles all the individual components, the pommel and guard are fitted to the handle.
A thin yet incredibly strong wire is fitted to the hole in the blade.
The other end is attached to the central component of the guard, the excess is then retracted inside automatically.
When complete, the blade is rigidly mounted to the guard.
Now assembled, the sword is truly a sight to behold.
An elegant form capable of gracefully felling any beast.
Flux then presents the finished work to Syr.
Syr - "Wow.. It's beautiful.."
But before she could even reach out to take it, Nyr grabs it up in a rush of excitement.
Nyr - "It's amazing!! I can't believe the things you create, Flux!"
She gives it a few test swings.
Nyr - "Oooh it's so light!"
Flux - "Ahem.."
Syr is looking on with a mildly annoyed but unsurprised look.
Nyr - "Oh.. Right, heh.. Sorry.."
She hands the newly forged rapier to Syr.
Syr - "Well.. It is really light. It feels great in the hand."
Flux - "It ought to with those mats and craftsmanship. Now let's go over its abilities. Firstly, in the pommel I installed a field jet thruster. With it you should be able to propel yourself through the air at high velocities over short distances. A well timed use of this could strike a beast out of the sky like a missile. It could also be used on the ground horizontally to increase thrusting power for a single immensely powerful piercing attack."
Syr - "Alright, that sounds pretty cool actually, but isn't that a bit dangerous?"
Nyr is squealing with anticipation in the background.
Flux - "All weapons are dangerous. It's up to you to figure out how to use it effectively."
Syr - "Fair enough."
Flux - "Next is quite special, several prompt field actuators on the guard allow the blade to move in and out in any direction almost instantaneously. This will give you the ability to execute multiple well placed strikes faster than anyone could ever react. The actuators are incredibly precise and powerful, but take a little while to recharge. So you can only do as many strikes as there are actuators, and I installed 5 of them."
Syr - "Wouldn't that like, break my arm or something?"
Flux - "Hah, I suggest you let go of the weapon momentarily while you activate this. But either way, it won't exert enough force to harm you. At least not seriously.."
Syr - "I see.."
Flux - "Lastly though, the core has a field ejector in it which enables you to launch the blade from the hilt at exceptional speed."
Syr - "Why the hell would I want to do that?"
Flux - "Welll if you'd just let me finish.. There's a strong cable attached to the blade, and it can be retracted as well. It's strong enough to pull you along with it. Launch it into a flying monster and use it to drag them down, or more likely drag you up and mount them. Or just use it for some flashy attack, I don't care."
Syr - "Wouldn't the blade just come out?"
Flux - "Oh yeah, almost forgot. There's field actuated barbs towards the tip of the blade. They fold in and out on command. Don't accidentally use those during normal use."
Syr - "Duly noted."
Nyr - "Uuuu this is soo cool! You've got such cool abilities.. I can't wait to see 'em in action. But.. there's not really any time left today to really give it a good test.."
Flux - "Do not activate any of those abilities in here."
Nyr - "Sheesh.."
Syr promptly sheathes the weapon before any unfortunate mishaps occur.
Nyr - "I guess that's it for us then.. Thank you so much for this, Flux! I cannot thank you enough!"
Flux - "Pff, yeah whatever. You'll still have to pay for this."
Nyr - "Of course..! I promise you'll have that money in no time!"
Nyr - "C'mon Syr!"
Flux - "Wait."
Just as she was turning to leave, Flux tosses a small chunk of the money at Nyr.
Nyr - "Wha-!"
She manages to catch it, but a stray coin smacks her flat on the forehead, sticking for a moment before falling into the half open pouch in her hands.
Flux - "You ladies get something good to eat. Won't be able to use that sword if you die of hunger."
Nyr - "Aghh, I can't possibly thank you any harder than I already have!"
Flux - "Just get outta here."
Nyr - "Righto!"
With that, She grabs Syr's hand yet again and zooms out of the shop.
They stop somewhere nearby to regroup.
Nyr - "Flux sure is a character huh.. Doesn't say much until you get 'em talking about weapons."
Syr - "Yeah, Idunno, He acts tough, but I can tell he's a good person."
Nyr - "Like you."
Syr - "Huh..?"
Nyr - "O-Oh, nothing! Don't mind me! W-We should figure out what we're going to do now!"
Syr - "Right.."
Nyr - "Okay, well, it's gotten a bit late.. We didn't exactly get the earliest start, and it took a good few hours to get here, then we had some stuff to take care of. And of course it took quite a while to make your weapon, you can't rush perfection after all. We could've just left it to him and ran some errands while he was working, but I mean, it's not every day you get to witness such an amazing thing being created firsthand.."
Syr - "I couldn't look away.."
Nyr - "Same, man.. But anyway, the guild is closed by now for sure. We'll have to wait until tomorrow to get you registered and ready to take on some big hunts! For now though, I say we just rent a nice space at the inn, get some tasty food, and celebrate for all the crazy stuff that's happened!"
Syr - "Sounds good to me, if you're buying."
She flashes a cheeky smile.
Nyr - "Hah, of course."
End of chapter three