Fantasy Stellar ARMOR Satellizer (Ranix Aurus & Admiral19)

[Ranix Aurus]

The lab was a simple white hall filled with research instruments. Rows of tanks filled with strange liquid, most of them empty, lined the far back of the room. The researchers shot a questioning glance at Rui, but they quickly returned to their duties when they saw Alfred coming right beside them. The self-proclaimed butler brought them toward a corner of the laboratory, where stood a huge metal box filled with dials and displays.

"This will sting a bit," Alfred said unceremoniously before pricking a thin needle into Rui's arm. He quickly placed the drop of blood on its tip into the box's petri dish, and then pressed the button. The box whirled into life as it performed numerous measurements on their blood.

"We have to calculate the dosage accordingly. Your body had absorbed but a tiny part of the Jotunn serum. If we gave you too little or too much of the other strains, they would overpower the C-strain in your body, and we would be back to square one. This machine will give us the exact amount necessary for the procedure."

It didn't take long before the analysis was completed with a ding. The result was delivered straight into another researcher's computer, which she promptly took to the distiller. The researchers busied themselves with the machines until they finally came over to Rui and Alfred with two syringes on hand.

"Strain B first, then strain A. We'll have B in slightly higher amount, as it's the least stable of them all. Are you ready? This might not feel too great in your body," Alfred turned to Rui, although it was hard to discern whether he was asking for consent or simply stating the fact.

 

[Admiral19]

"Go on ahead." There wouldn't be any point worrying about safety; if this had to be done multiple times, then it was probably safe.

As the dosage was being prepared, Rui thought a little more about the results...and about Alfred. "Say, Alfred. How long have you been working with the Kaiserin? Were you always a researcher, or what?"

Alfred was always this enigma to Rui...actually, to ALL of the Holders. There wasn't much that they knew about him, not about his occupation, or his relation to the Kaiserin beyond head scientist. A part of Rui didn't want to know, but...well, while they were here, they might as well ask.

 

[Ranix Aurus]

A female researcher helped preparing the syringe before placing the tip on Rui's arm. Two other researchers stood behind them, as if waiting for something. They had seen this before, after all. Injecting a Jotunn serum into a human's body... was never a pleasant sight to behold. And that's just one strain. According to their previous experiments, injecting all three strains together would be...

"I have been working with the Kaiserin from the start. The Kaiserin is a wonderful person. A human with such insight and passion... it is a rarity among rarities. I am fascinated with her, and the potential that she has."

Alfred replied without any sign of emotion, as if recounting a text book.

"All these researches, this facility, our power... it was all thanks to the Kaiserin's effort. As for me... I'm merely giving her the help that she needed. Our interests aligned in the right way. I... am anything that she, or my goal, needed me to be. A researcher, an assistant... and if need be..."

The researcher pushed the plunger as gently as she could. Slowly, drop by drop, the B-strain serum inside of the syringe flowed into them, like a beast unleashed into a flock of sheeps.

"...A monster," Alfred concluded, his piercing gaze staring at Rui without blinking.

 

[Admiral19]

The moment Alfred finished speaking, pain began throbbing through Rui's body, setting every muscle on fire, blinding them with a white-hot agony. They hugged their arms close, dug their nails into their skin, sat, and waited. It was about as bad as they expected, but at the same time exactly as painful as they expected. The whole while they wanted to get whatever hellfire this was in their veins out, out, good fucking lord, get it out, but they sat still, waited, endured, looked forward at Alfred's unblinking stare.

It felt wrong, that stare. "Stop looking at me like that," they wanted to say. They wanted to scream at him, to lunge at him and tear at his chest, anything that they thought would relieve them of this awful, awful feeling.

"And—" They forced down an angry growl. "And what do you know about the Kaiserin, beyond what the three of us know?"

 

[Ranix Aurus]

The two male researchers moved forward to hold Rui in place. That was only the first injection. They've witnessed the amount of pain experienced by a test subject after the third injection, and that's on a person who had fully turned into a Jotunn. For this person to be able to keep their human form intact... the medallion holders were truly different than normal humans.

"I... don't know," Alfred promptly replied. It was easy to dismiss it as a lie, but the certain way he spoke, so detached from emotions, was proving to be too convincing to deny. After all, Alfred might hide things, but he hadn't uttered a lie. Yet.

"The Kaiserin is the Kaiserin. Who she really was beyond that point... was that really necessary?" He added. "Do you yourself think that it is necessary to know?"

"This is the third injection, please endure it..." The female researcher nervously took the third syringe, and then once again injected the content into Rui's vein.

 

[Admiral19]

"I'll be fine..." Rui whispered to the researcher, though that was far more directed towards themselves.

They didn't need to know. That was a good point. A good dog didn't need to know the life of its owner, did it? Beyond what the Kaiserin did for them, they didn't need to know anything about her, and she didn't have to say anything about herself to them, or any of the Holders.

She saved them from a life of solitude and shame. They owed her. That's all they needed to know. And yet...

The third injection was somehow, against all logical thought, worse. Their body felt hot, then cold, then hot and cold again, and all the while a thundering, terrible ache kept shaking their body. They felt violent, felt new thoughts and dusty memories resurface with all the anger, hate, and torment that flooded their mind. They wanted nothing more but to shove away these infernal people and begin tearing up the room, scattering notebooks and files and gripping whatever glass may shatter so their skin could bleed and this awful poison could leak out of them.

They were screaming. But it was like they could barely hear themselves.

But just like the last injection...just like when they visited Leo...just like when they were younger, wanting nothing more but to scream at any damnable god who would listen and beg them for salvation...

They sat as still as they could. They waited. They endured.

 

[Ranix Aurus]

"Impressive. To be able to withstand the serum's attempt to reconstruct your body... is it thanks to the ARMOR system strengthening your physique? Or is it because of the medallion? I'll need to shift through the data after this session is over."

Alfred muttered out loud, more like for himself. His words denoted interest, but his expression was severely lacking of its trace. No... there was even disappointment mixed within? He looked at Rui with eyes filled with pity. Not for the pain they were enduring, but for something else. A missed opportunity.

"If only you are not a medallion holder... perhaps you would've become the first Eldrian. A shame..." He whispered in a voice so low that the researchers weren't able to hear them, followed by a deep sigh.

"Head?" The female researcher timidly called out to Alfred.

"We will conclude the experiment for today. Get some rest. We will continue testing the Overdrive system tomorrow. With the data that we have gathered so far, it should be possible to create a prototype. Contact the manufacturing department at once."

Without the slightest sign of concern, Alfred walked out of the lab, leaving Rui with the other researchers who were at a loss for what to do. The female researcher smiled at them with sympathy.

 

[Admiral19]

Eventually(it felt like hours rather than minutes) the pain slowed, then stopped completely. Alfred was gone by then, so Rui couldn't say anything more to him, but it didn't matter. Their body felt more numb than anything, a hollow, cold thing that occasionally tingled each time it moved.

"I'm..." They spoke to the researchers around them, specifically the one who gave them that soft smile. It felt weird for them to use their voice. "I'm sorry if I caused you trouble."

They didn't have to be sorry; the serum would have pulled that reaction out of anyone. But they felt bad, felt like they were inconveniencing the researchers more than anything. Softhearted Rui...that's gonna get them killed someday.

 

[Ranix Aurus]

"N-No, no, you're not causing any trouble, not at all!" The researchers gave them an awkward laugh before going back to their duties. Sympathy for the kid was one thing, but the head researcher would have them chug down the next batch of prototypes if they were caught slacking off on the job!

"Would you need help to go back to your room?" The female researcher, perhaps feeling a bit sorry for this youngster, offered to escort them back.

---

Another morning came with Hotaru practically glued to Kanae's side during last night's sleep. She was being particularly clingy this time. That feeling from their time in the aquarium was surging within her nonstop, constantly breaking her calm. Only when she feel Kanae's presence nearby could she finally relax. In the end, she didn't want to let go, addicted to this pleasant feeling.

When Akira walked into the lab, Seiichiro was there, still at the very same spot they had left him yesterday. This guy... didn't seem like he had any sleep at all.

"Oh, it's you," Seiichiro waved his hand, beckoning Akira to come closer. "Say, let me tell you something, but please don't tell miss Saitou or your sister. I don't want them to freak out."

"...Great, now I feel like I want to freak out as well," Akira sighed. "What is it?"

"I've been testing so many different variations of mixtures. My primary goal is to break down this mysterious serum that caused the monster transformation. Arsenic seems to work, as well as mercury, but from what miss Saitou told me, it ended up causing the monster to rampage instead. That's when I tried something different. You see, I tried taking a sample of your sister's blood that still has a trace contamination of the serum. It turns out... that her blood is effective in suppressing the serum. A tiny drop was enough to hamper the serum extracted from Mochizuki boy."

"In short...?" Akira felt a headache incoming from his long explanation.

"I'm saying that perhaps... extract from one monster could be used to fight against another monster!" Seiichiro concluded.

 

[Admiral19]

Kanae, perfectly content with sleeping away the entire day like this, was very rudely woken up by her phone's ringtone. "Mnaaaah...fuck. Hold on..."

She grabbed her phone from beside her, turning so that her body was facing Hotaru's...then cried out in panic as she saw who was calling. "Firefly!" She shook Hotaru awake. "Sorry, I gotta take this, it's my dad!"

Running to the other side of the room, Kanae tried her best to put herself together before picking up the call.

"Hey there! Yeah, I'm fine...Okay, listen, don't go back to the house. ...No, I'm fine! I'm just somewhere else right now...No, I haven't been kidnapped! Look, I'll send you the address. I know how this sounds, but I need you both to trust me. Dad, I'll especially need your help, so please. ...Okay, good! Good, good, good. No, I promise I'm fine, I'm in very good hands. Again, trust me. Alright, I'll see you guys soon."

Kanae breathed a sigh once she hung up, then looked back at Hotaru. "Hey, so my folks are coming here..."

 

[Ranix Aurus]

Hotaru, who was still floating in clouds made out of Kanae, was abruptly brought back to the ground by a violent shaking. When her mind finally returned to reality, all she could see was Kanae frantically explaining stuff to someone else at the other side of the call.

"Kanae's parents...?" Hotaru murmured. Truth be told, neither Akira nor her had much impression of them. They've only met her parents in rare occasion like the new year's, since they seemed to be busy with their work.

"Hmm... do you need me to do anything?" Maybe she should buy them fruits as gift? Ah, but Akira was the one holding the wallet...

 

[Admiral19]

"Well, ah," she said, "I'd like it if you and the others were there to help me...y'know, get everything out to them. They're not gonna believe a word, surely." Ugh, she could imagine the looks her parents would be giving her...sheer disbelief would be prominent, but so would fear, and maybe some anger...gods, it was gonna be rough.

She ran a head through her hair. "I gave them the address to the lab. They'll be here in...a couple hours, so just get yourself together before then. I'll need you to be with me now more than...possibly ever."

 

[Ranix Aurus]

"Alright..." Hotaru yawned. She crawled on the bed, reaching out to the bedside drawer for a change of clothes. She couldn't meet Kanae's parents in plain t-shirt, could she?

"Maybe you should tell brother and Uncle as well. I... guess brother will be fine," Seiichiro was the one she worried about. That guy seemed like the type who would perform every kinds of faux pas in a single conversation. Maybe they needed a rehearsal just in case.

 

[Admiral19]

"I plan to, don't worry." Ah, that was the thing, too. Seiichiro was the most knowledgeable about this ARMOR stuff...but he was also the most suspicious guy this side of the country. He's post OLYMPUS too, though, so if no one else, Dad might believe him...? "We just gotta lay everything out and hope they'll understand."

Unfortunately, that'd probably take a little bit of work. Especially since she left her room and saw that Seiichiro was...worse for wear.

"So, uh," she started, scratching the back of her neck, "my folks are coming over. Uncle, I'm gonna need you to clean up so that you don't look like a monstrosity, and Akira, we need to prepare our explanation."

 

[Ranix Aurus]

"Your parents is coming over? Like, here? Don't worry, I'll properly explain to them about what happened-"

Seiichiro stood up from his seat, only for Akira to raise his hand to stop him.

"Uncle, shave your beard, wash your face, try to massage those bags under your eyes, you look like a national treasure. Also maybe get a new set to wear. I can... smell it from here."

"Oh. Oh," Seiichiro took a sniff at his own arm. Ah, as expected, wearing the same lab coat for three straight days was a bit... he could smell butane and ammonia.

While Seiichiro went back to his room to (hopefully) clean up, Akira turned his attention to the more pressing matter: how to tell a parents that their daughter and her childhood friend had become heroes of justice? Like, literally. "Hello, Aunt, Uncle, remember those tapes in your warehouse? The ones with silly theme song and coreography? Yeah we're one of them now. In real life-"

"Do you... have a plan? Concrete plan?" Akira rubbed his temple. No matter how he tried to think of an explanation, all of them sounded wrong.

 

[Admiral19]

Kanae breathed in. "I think we oughta start with the medallion I have and how I got it to work. We should bring up Rui and that group they're with last. That's the most vague thing, and it's gonna be the hardest to talk about."

The gravity and reality of the situation hit her with full force right then and there. She was, with 100% honesty, going to explain how she got caught up in a potential conquest scheme involving suits of unknown material. She was gonna explain the pass week as if it were the synopsis of the very shows they all thought were fake.

She didn't know whether to laugh or cry.

 

[Ranix Aurus]

Akira patted his good friend's shoulder, trying to reassure her. "It'll be fine. I'm sure your parents will under...stand?" Actually, if they were normal parents, would they believe this farce in the first place? "Hmm, if nothing else work, how about calling my pops? Your dad would surely believe it if it's my old man."

---

Come noon, a press conference would be held at an open venue downtown. Even though it was a bit early, many news vans had already gathered around the vicinity, eager to catch the latest scoop faster than their rivals. It was going to be a big story, after all, it was a new invention that would revolutionize law enforcement. There were whispers that the military had commissioned a version that could be used in actual battlefield as well.

The unveiling of OLYMPUS's P.A.S. was bound to raise the company's valuation even more in the coming days.

A certain person was looking down at the venue from a nearby hotel room. He had just had a light breakfast delivered with a glass of wine. Thinking about the speech that he was going to give in a few hours time, a frown appeared on his weary face.

The wrong word would destroy their projected profit. He would need to choose each of them carefully.

"Did you call for me, Sir?" The hotel's concierge politely entered the room.

"Prepare for my suit," The man ordered. First impression is important. He would make a speech that would be burned in everyone's memories for years to come.

 

[Admiral19]

The unveiling would make major headlines, and therefore many, many broadcast stations and journalists and article writers were swarming about. But amidst the flocks of information sheep were wolves, agents slipping through the crowd and gaining access to places they clearly shouldn't be.

And amongst the wolves was Aina, dressed as inconspicuously as could be. When one was dressed the right way and walked with enough confidence, no one cared if you were supposed to be there, only that you were one of their own. Aina took advantage of this, waiting for the agents she was meant to watch over to snatch away their target from the hotel nearby.

This man was one of the first Alfred wanted snatched up...hm. An understandable choice, but also one that was risky. If they decided to make their move during the activities, that would place unwanted attention upon them. Hence why they were trying to steal him away now...but that would also be tough, seeing as there were very few unguarded exits in the hotel, all of them knowing that there was a high-profile attendee staying there. They'd have to be quick, but careful.

And once they secured the target, that would leave the harder part; making sure Leo was completely unawares.

 

[Ranix Aurus]

Shiori had made it a habit to arrive early every day with a bag of breakfast in her hands. It was none other for that research-addicted man holing up in her laboratory. Senior Amamiya... if she didn't take care of his food, she was sure that he would go on three days and three nights fueled only by raw passion and energy drink. Chuckling to herself, she slid the door open, only to see everyone already huddling over inside, deep in apparent depression.

"Good... morning?" She squeaked. "What happened to you?"

"Oh, Shiori... Miss Saitou's parents are coming over to pay a visit," Seiichiro replied.

"Owh. That's... nice of them? What's the problem? If you're worried about the accomodation, I can go buy some snacks-"

"No no, the place is fine. Our problem is explaining about this," Akira lifted his wrist to show her his ARMOR wristband. That, and all the other crazy stuff that had happened in just the span of a few days.

"...I see," Shiori sighed. "Do you... need my help, Miss Saitou? I'm part of Mochizuki Industries, I think I can give them some crecedence."

 

[Admiral19]

"Any credence would be greatly appreciated, Miss Shiori." Credence was gonna be the major thing that would make their story believable; Kanae's parents might not completely understand right away, but they would at least have reason to be wary of whatever OLYMPUS or whoever was planning.

The wait was agonizing. Kanae's stomach twisted the whole time, not unlike how it would if one was anxiously waiting to explain a not-so-great report card to their parents. They'd be coming right in; Shiori would have told security to expect family members to arrive.

This was probably the most nervous Kanae's ever been. Out of a need for comfort more than anything, she leaned up against Hotaru.

---

Soon enough, there was a knock at the door. "Hello?" A gruff-sounding voice spoke behind it. "It's Saitou Aisuke."

That was him. Kanae exhaled. "Come in."

The moment the door opened, Kanae's mother ran in and hugged her tightly, tight enough that Kanae could feel her ribs getting squeezed.

"Kanae..." Her mother's voice had that mother-typical worrisome quality to it. "Oh, gods, what on earth happened? What did you do to get yourself here?"

Kanae gently pushed her mother away. "Well, before anything..." She gestured at Seiichiro and Shiori. "This is Miss Shiori and..." She turned to Seiichiro. "I've been calling you Uncle this whole time...did you ever tell me your name?"

Kanae's father gave an...aware nod to Seiichiro. "Senior Seiichiro. Good to see you still look as messy as ever."

"Seiichiro...?" Kanae was more surprised at that; she expected her father to at least be aware of Seiichiro's existence, considering he was a part of OLYMPUS for a time. But...she's been calling him Uncle this whole time-

You're getting off track. Focus.

"Now." Kanae inhaled. "I'm gonna start telling you all this. Please, please, try to keep an open mind."

 

[Ranix Aurus]

Everyone let Kanae did most of the talking, while they confirmed or added stuffs alongside her explanation. Starting from Seiichiro crashing into the cafe they were visiting, the attacks of the monsters and suspicious people in suits sent by the enemies, until the point where even they themselves had fallen victim to the enemy's evil machinations, like what had happened to Mochizuki Mamoru.

Hotaru mostly stayed silent the entire time, even refraining herself from clinging to Kanae as usual. She still hovered closely by her side, however.

"I understand if it's hard to believe, but everything that we've said are true," Akira said to Kanae's father. "Uncle, I'm sorry for getting Kanae into this trouble."

"Don't be sorry, Mr. Tanaka. Miss Saitou is the only one compatible with the Leo medallion, if it's not for her, we would've all died-"

""You're the one responsible the most for this trouble!!!"" Both Akira and Mikawa yelled at him in tandem, causing Seiichiro to shrink down in shame.

"I... My name is Mochizuki Shiori. I'm in charge of Mochizuki Industries's research department," Shiori bowed down to Kanae's parents. "I know that you must be worried about Miss Kanae, but it's really not her fault. The circumstances were beyond our control. As unreliable as I would be, I'm- no, Mochizuki Industries is willing to provide any assistance that we could give."

 

[Admiral19]

Kanae's father and mother were quiet through most of the explanation, and it was clear in their faces that they were trying to process everything. After everyone had said their piece, Kanae's father sighed.

"Kanae..." He sounded neither disappointed nor upset. "You always did have a habit of helping people. I'll let your mother speak first."

That was a good sign. Maybe.

Worry and concern was present all over her mother's face. "This is all...no way. Even if this were all true, letting my child go out and beat back monsters...I can't let you risk yourself like that, Kanae!"

Something about what she said...even forgetting that Kanae was one of the only people able to fight the monsters, something about what her mother said rubbed her wrong.

She briefly remembered video calls from overseas, calls made whenever she felt alone, calls made asking when she might see them again, calls made wondering why the both of them had to be there. Sure, she saw her folks then, could confirm that they were there, but...

"Now, Yuna..." Kanae's father tried to calm her mother down. "It's not like those other holders she talked about are doing anything about them."

"Even still! What if one comes along that's too much for her to handle?! I couldn't bear her dying and leaving us alone!"

"Oh, like you left me alone for most of my childhood?!"

All eyes suddenly turned to Kanae. Without anyone realizing—not even her—she had tightened her fists and started glaring daggers at her mother.

"Suit up." Her ARMOR was on her in a second. "You have no right to be worrying about me after you've been off overseas with Dad all this time! Dad I can understand; he has work. You...Mom, you had no fucking reason to be him!"

Kanae's father got between the two. "Kanae, settle down!"

 

[Ranix Aurus]

"Kanae!" ""Miss Saitou!"" Everyone immediately stood up and tried to stop her from doing anything rash. Err, wait, that was her own mother, what kind of rash thing she could do anyway? But still, whipping out the ARMOR suit right then and there might be a bit too much?

"Your mother is just worried about you, Miss Saitou! Don't blame her!" Shiori tried to cool the situation off. Her mother had somehow hit on Kanae's sore spot without noticing. Shiori didn't have the ability to interfere as she was merely strangers to them, but at least she had to stop things from escalating any further.

"T-There, there, how about we take a break for a bit?" Mikawa turned on the television set in the laboratory, hoping that some ambient sound might help. Maybe a music channel, or a variety show... but as luck would had it, the moment the display came to life, a news broadcast was on air.

"Something unprecedented had happened today at OLYMPUS's press conference. We've gained insider reports that the spokeperson of today's event, the Vice President of Research of Olympus, Mr. Fujita Hiroshi, had disappeared from his hotel room. Our reporters are at the scene trying to find more information. The police-"

Ah, crap. Mikawa and his bad luck.

 

[Admiral19]

Kanae couldn't hurt her mother. She wouldn't dream of it, no matter how mad she got her. But she couldn't act like she was worried about Kanae when she spent the latter half of her childhood away, for no apparent reason!

Or maybe there was a reason. If there was, her mother sure wasn't fast about saying it.

"Kanae, please." Her father placed a hand on her shoulder. "We'll talk about that later. There's something I need to say first-"

The news broadcast interrupted all of their thoughts. Someone went missing at the unveiling? That was...concerning. "Do I need to—"

Kanae was promptly held back by her father. "No one knows why he disappeared. If you all are being chased down by OLYMPUS...hell, even if you aren't, that might be what they want. You could be being brought into a trap."

Ah, fuck, he was right...

 

[Ranix Aurus]

"Mr. Mikawa, please turn off the TV," Shiori said, a bit miffed. "It's too distracting."

"Oh. Right, right," Mikawa promptly turned off the television right when the newscaster was telling the latest information. "It seemed that the kidnappers had been disguising as hotel workers before taking Mr. Fujita away-"

"Now, Miss Saitou, how about we all sit down and let your father say what's in his mind, okay?" Shiori tried once again to mediate. "If you still don't like it, then we'll do whatever that you want. But at least let him explain everything first."

"..."

"...What?" She glanced at Seiichiro, who watching her intently. It gave her goosebumps.

"Nothing, it's just... our Shiori had grown up, huh..." Seiichiro said fondly with the tone of a parent talking to their child.

"...Senior, you're older than me! Get yourself together!" She retorted, followed by a loud slap on his back.