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thescarletnargacuga · 5 months ago

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THE UNSEEN

A Harlequin AU oneshot ft. my OC

AU and ART credit: @tadc-harlequin-au @iamespecter

WARNING: heavy swearing, intense violence, blood, death

~~~

"Well, that was a fucking bore." Pomni flicked the charm into the air and caught it as she walked with her Caine-mandated blimp companion, Bubble. She had been sent on a mission by Ragatha to retrieve the charm, and she was sorely disappointed to find it unguarded by anything. She could just take it and leave. Yawn.

Caine's voice crackled through on Bubble's speaker. "I know, I'm sorry you didn't get the fight you wanted. If it's any consolation, we can spar when you get back."

Pomni rolled her eyes and pocketed the charm. "It's not the same, I need something I can tear apart with my bare hands." She clenched her mechanical hand tightly, and the metal creaked under the pressure of her grip.

"...You can tear me apart for your own sick enjoyment." Caine mumbled under his breath.

"What?" Pomni wasn't sure she heard him correctly.

"He said-" Bubble started to say before Caine cut him off.

"NOTHING IMPORTANT! I'm just disappointed for you, my dear, that's all."

Pomni took a deep breath and surveyed her surroundings. She kept her head on a swivel, especially when things were quiet. The lands outside the city were barren and vast. Scattered war ruins were half buried by time and the elements. The wind blew loose dust in wisps at her feet. The horizon was most often empty of anything particularly interesting, but today something unusual caught her attention.

"Hey, Bubble. Can you get a read on that?" She pointed to the anomaly in the distance.

Bubble hovered higher into the air, and with a mechanical click, a telescope stuck out from his capsule. "Hmmm, looks like smoke."

"Smoke?" Pomni repeated and squinted. "Were there is smoke, there is fire, and were there is fire, there is action!" She took off at a full sprint towards the smoke.

Bubble puttered along behind her and his speaker came to life with Caine's voice again. "Wait, what? Bubble, what's happening?"

"She found some action, boss." Bubble reported with a smile.

"Wonderful." Caine sarcastically replied. "What did she find?"

"Black smoke."

"Black smoke..? Is something on fire?"

"Not that I saw." Bubble would shrug if he had shoulders.

"Wait..." Caine thought outloud. "POMNI! STOP!" His warning came through in time for her to skid to a stop a few hundred feet from what she thought was smoke. She saw no fire. No puppets. Only thick black mist that didn't burn away under the bright mid-day sun. It held fast like a barrier around a wide area of the abandoned landscape, and she could just see the top of an old ruin towering over the mist at the center.

She groaned at Caine's interference, and was even more annoyed with herself that she actually listened. "WHAT, Caine?"

"Pomni, I'm going to need you to describe exactly what you're seeing."

"Uh...it's some weird mist? Pitch black, super thick. Can't see through it at all. Do you know what the fuck this is?"

Caine's voice came through clear and serious. Every word held weight. "Listen to me very carefully. Do NOT go near that mist. It's extremely dangerous, even for someone like you."

Her interest was peaked. "You don't say? What's in there?"

He could hear the smile in her voice. "This is serious! There is an unbound construct in there that uses the mist as a cover. The locals call it The Unseen, but I think a more appropriate name is The Bladed Beast of Steel and Shadow."

"You know what is looks like?" She was sceptical.

"Vaguely, I was busy running for my life, but I am the only person that has encountered it and lived."

Pomni laughed. "Well, if you can say hello and walk away, it can't be THAT strong, now can it?"

"THIS IS NO TIME TO ATTACK MY EGO!" His voice cracked with desperation. "The point is, under NO circumstances should you seek out and try to fight what's in there! It WILL kill you! It's not like anything you have fought before!"

"So, what you're saying is, seek out and fight what's in there because it's not like anything I've seen before? Fuck yeah, I'm sold." She unsheethed her sword and advanced towards the mist.

"POMNI, NO!!"

"Pomni, yes." She grinned and licked her teeth. If this creature was half as epic as Caine made it sound, this was about to be a good day.

"POMNI! POMNI!!" Caine kept calling but she didn't respond.

"She's gone, boss." Bubble said as he watched her disappear into the veil.

"DAMN IT ALL!" A crashing sound in the background suggested that Caine had thrown something in frustration. "Stay right where you are, Bubble. I'm on my way. DON'T GO IN THAT MIST!"

"You got it, boss." Bubble lowered himself to the ground to conserve power for his tracking beacon.

Day became moonless night the moment Pomni fully entered the mist. The air reeked of unknown chemicals, her nose burned as she breathed. She tucked in her bell and pulled out some scrap cloth she kept for emergency bandages. She tied the cloth around her face, it helped some, but the air still felt corrosive. Her eyes watered on top of not being able to see more than a foot in front of her face.

She smiled under her impromptu mask. "Finally, a challenge." The uneven ground threatened to crunch under her footfalls, but her light step was just enough to maintain stealth.

She listened intently for any movement. Silence was all that greeted her as she slowly made her way through the abyss. She froze when something came into view. It looked like a puppet. It laid face down motionless on the ground, or, at least, half of it was. The other half was missing. As she continued, she found more bodies. Parts and pieces of varying puppets scattered the landscape. She stepped slowly and carefully over them.

She came to a wall of the ruin she had seen the top of. It was covered in claw marks as thick as her arm. Large dart looking projectiles were stuck in random patterns, some pinning unfortunate puppets to the wall. Her heart thrummed with anticipation, her body bristled on high alert. She gripped her sword tighter and clenched her mechanical fist.

A small piece of crumbling wall gave way and she looked to her right. Two pinprick lights looked at her from the darkness. "Ha!" She lunged and her sword struck right between the lights. She pulled back and the head of a pawn rolled towards her. It was already dead, the lights were on a helmet that has some power left in it. All she accomplished was give away her position. "Fuck."

Something unseen struck her with the force of a battering ram from behind and she went flying. She ragdolled into a pile of bodies and got up fast. The ground shook under the weight of a large obscured creature charging her. She saw two lights again, but this time, they were MUCH higher up and glowed like molten gold. As it approached, the golden glow spread to large fanned blades on either side of the creature's front legs. It pounced and she dodged the first strike. Followed immediately by a second strike she diverted with her sword, but only just, the force of the hit nearly tore her sword clean out of her grasp.

The creature kept her on her back foot, dodging a strike from a giant, razor sharp beak-like maw. She punched its face with her mechanical arm, and it reared back with an ear splitting, screeching roar. This gave her the precious seconds she needed to make distance between her and it. She held out her mechanical arm at what she could see of the creature, and her arm transformed into the barrel of a large gun. "Z says, eat shit!" She braced against the blast of the canon she had for an arm. An explosive incendiary round hit the creature in the shoulder. The air pressure from the explosion dispersed the mist around it, letting in some sunlight, and she finally got a good look at it.

It was horrific. An enormous quadrupedal metal construct covered in dried oil and rust bared its glowing blades at her. Slanted spikes covered its back to a heavy woven chain tail with a flared, spikey end. Black mist poured from its maw and chest, cloaking the area in shadow. It's eyes once again being all she saw.

"Holy. Shit." Pomni was THRILLED. This thing was everything Caine said it would be and more. She readied herself as she stared down the creature. "Come on, you motherfucker! Show me what you got!"

The creature roared and lunged. Its speed made the light of it's eyes streak in the darkness. It lashed out with its blades, she dodged. As it passed her, it swung it's tail, which has no glowing parts to warn her. It struck Pomni in the stomach, a single spike going clean through her abdomen and out her back. The creature whipped around and she ripped off the spike and flew into the ruin wall. The wall crumbled from impact and she fell with the rubble to the ground. She barely had time to get up before it was on her again, bringing down its claws. She rolled away and shot at it again with her arm. She was closer to the creature this time and made her own ears ring from the explosion but it got the thing to back off.

She got up and ran into the ruins. She tore off her mask to spit out the blood collecting in her throat. Pain racked her body and she braced herself against the furthest wall from the opening. She checked the hole in her abdomen, and she stuffed it with her old mask to stop the bleeding. "Fuck, that hurt."

A sudden shake knocked pieces of the ceiling loose and she jumped out of the way. The creature repeatedly slammed its body against the ruins, reaching inside to claw at her. There were broken stairs going up. She transformed her mechanical arm back into a hand and used its grappling hook feature to get herself up to the next floor. The creature dug desperately into the ruins on the second floor as well, so she went higher.

Looking out of a broken gap in the wall, she could see the glowing parts of the creature trying to break through the wall. Her knees started to shake. "What the fuck?" Her sword arm was trembling. "Knock it off!" She growled at herself. "Come on, think! There's got to be something..."

Talking to herself was helping subdue the shakes. "There were no spikes on the back of the creature's neck. So if I aim for the head, I may save myself from being skewered a second time. ...this is still a crazy idea." She jumped.

She came down on top of the creature's head and held on for dear life. The creature thrashed and tried to claw at her. It got in one solid slash in her leg but she held on. She plunged her sword into one of the creature's eyes. Glowing gold fluid spewed out and the creature yowled in agony. The fluid slicked her grasp and she let go before she got flung off uncontrollably.

She tucked and rolled away as the creature pawed at it's damaged eye. She took the opportunity to transform her arm back into a gun and take aim. The leaking flow made the creature easier to target, it poured down the neck and over the chest. She could see partially exposed mechanics from her previous close range shot. The core inside the creature was the source of the golden hour glow. "Gotcha." She fired her third round.

The creature was struck square in the chest, shrapnel exploded in every direction. Pomni covered her face as flying bits of metal cut at her body. The creature screeched and screamed and fell to the ground, gold fluid pooling around it.

Pomni kept her gun on the creature as she caught her breath. She took a few cautious steps forward. The creature didn't move. She grinned. "Fuck, yeah! Take THAT! Some creature of legend, you were! I've have worse fights with Bubble!" She laughed.

A blue flash of light next to her made her swing her gun around and she was looking at Caine. "Hey, you!" She greeted smugly and lowered her gun arm. "You're too late to join the party. I've already killed it."

Caine was out of breath. He had used a large amount of his blink ability to get here as fast as possible. He looked from the bleeding Pomni in front of him to the broken creature. "You...you what? No. That's impossible."

"Look at it and weep, tooth man. I should have made a bet with you." She transformed her arm and sheathed her sword.

Caine examined the surroundings. The mist wasn't clearing, it still emanated from the half glowing creature. The fluid around it stopped flowing out. He grabbed Pomni by her upper sword arm. "No... You didn't kill it. You just pissed it off."

The creature got up suddenly and charged the both of them. Caine blinked with Pomni to the far side of the ruins behind the creature. He took a knee. Between the travel to get to her and then blinking with her, he was feeling a bit drained.

"It was playing dead!? That bitch!" Pomni brought her weapons back out.

"Never trust anything is dead until you're holding it's heart in your hand, Pomni." Caine advised as he strategized. "How many rounds you got left?"

"Two" She cocked her gun arm. "And I took out one of it's eyes."

"What is it with you and eyes? First ragatha and now this?"

"Focus!" Pomni hissed. She watched for the creature. She could see it's faded glow searching for them.

"You have the charm?" Caine asked.

"Yeah." Pomni took it out of her pocket and handed it to him.

He took out a tool Pomni didn't recognize and used it to attach the charm to a metal band. He clamped it on her wrist and she felt a rush of energy.

"There. That'll help." He put his tool away.

"What is this?"

"Ragatha didn't say? It's a stamina charm. You could run laps around that thing now."

Pomni grinned. "Let's test it out then." She vaulted over the low wall they were hiding behind and followed the dim glow away from the ruin. Caine snuck out behind her and kept back a bit. Pomni kept low and quiet as she aimed at the glow. Caine readied his strings to either use against the creature or pull Pomni back. He wanted to avoid using his blink, as taking a passenger took a lot of energy and could render him unconscious if he overused it. Pomni stopped and so did Caine. She fired and hit what she was aiming for.

The target exploded into dust, but it was just that. Dust. She'd hit a rock with the creature's life blood smeared on it. They realized too late it was a trap.

The creature rushed Pomni and clamped it's sharp maw on her gun arm. Pomni was lifted into the air and thrashed like a toy. Caine activated his strings and the near invisible strands of energy connected to the creature. He struggled to hold it. "Drop her!" He commanded and the creature barely opened its maw. "I. Said. DROP! HER!" He shouted and forced the strings with all his might. The creature slowly opened its maw and Pomni fell.

She landed on her feet and rushed away. Caine couldn't hold any longer and the creature broke free. It went after Caine. He dove out of the way of it's deadly blades. Pomni took aim but realized her gun was bent to shit and would explode if she tried to use it. "Fuck!" She tried transforming it, but the bent metal refused. "GOD FUCKING DAMN IT!!" She released the dead weight of her useless gun and it detached from her shoulder.

Caine was dodging for his life, trying to stay in the creature's blind spot. He used his cane to stop a claw attack and cracks formed along its shaft. That's when Pomni came running up a pile of puppets to a broken wall and then launching herself at the creature. She aimed for its other eye, but the creature slashed at her and it's blades found purchase. She was carved navel to nose right up the front. She slammed to the ground and didn't get up.

"POMNI!" Caine signaled Bubble and the little blimp came down to his location. Bubble dropped small bombs on the creature whilst taunting it, giving Caine enough time to pick up Pomni and emergency blink as far as he could.

He collapsed to his knees from energy exhaustion and nearly dropped Pomni, but held her tight to his chest. She hung limply in his arms. "Pomni? Pomni, dear, say something." He opened her clothes and checked her wounds. The creature's blades had cut deep, all the way to her heart chamber. Her heart barely glowed with life. "No, no, no, stay with me. You're going to be okay, you hear me? You cling to life like the stubborn warrior I know you are!" He blinked away tears as he frantically dug for tools in his pockets. He was woefully unprepared. He hadn't expected things to go this bad this quick.

Bubble couldn't keep the creature distracted long. He ran out of bombs and flew away when the creature whipped it's tail and shot spikes at him. "Watch out, boss! The angry scrap pile is coming!"

Caine heard Bubble over his com and picked up Pomni. He had to find more cover. Even being surrounded by shadow, it's likely that thing could see through its own cloak. He ran as fast as could with her to a divet in the ground covered by victims of the creature. He slid inside the hiding spot and held Pomni close as he heard the creature roar. The ground rumbled as it grew closer. He held his breath.

The creature slowed, scanning the area. Fluid slowly dripped from its eye and chest. It growled with frustration, Caine could feel the bassy resonance in his chest. After a tense moment of the creature lurking near the hide away, it moved on.

Caine exhaled sharply and peeked out to see the glow of the creature fade into the blackness. He turned his attention to Pomni and held her cheek gently. She'd look like she was sleeping if it wasn't for all the blood. He brushed her hair from her face with his thumb. "I'm going to get you out of here. I promise." On an emotional whim, he gently kissed her forehead. Then he set to work on trying to stabilize her. He used his tool to remove a part of his own heart. It was excruciating, but he got it done and attached it to her damaged heart. The glow to her heart increased. "Atta girl." He smiled.

Caine racked his brain for ideas. They could try sneaking out, but without knowing the creature's location, that was very risky. He could try blinking them all the way out of the mist, but that would knock him out for sure and they would be easy pickings for the creature. He could try fighting it himself, but he knew he was no match alone. He whispered into his com. "Bubble? You still out there?"

"Yeah, boss. Just hanging out at the top of the ruin. You should see this view, so many war remnants."

"That's nice, Bubble. Listen, I need you to get help. Get everyone! Bring them back to this location and warn them of what's inside! Make sure they're prepared!"

"Sure thing, boss! Be back in a jiffy!" Bubble flew off out of mobile radio range.

Caine and Pomni pomni were left in the dark, eerily silent mist. He muffled a cough from the toxic air. Pomni stirred in his arms.

"Caine..?" Her voice was weak.

"Shhh, save your strength, my dear. We're safe for now but we have to be quiet. That thing could come back around at any time."

She could barely move, her whole body felt like it was made of lead. "I heard you..."

"What?"

"You said to hold on..."

Caine's eyes were soft. "And I'm so glad you did. Who would be a pain in my ass if you weren't around?"

She smiled weakly and closed her eyes to rest. He settled himself as best her could and tried to get some rest as well, who knows how long it would be before help arrived.

"Caine!? Caine! Can you hear me!"

Caine woke with a start to a woman's voice on his radio. He fumbled with his com and answered. "Ragatha! I can't tell you how good it is to hear your voice!"

"Is Pomni okay!?"

"She's alive! Weak, but alive! Where are you?"

"We're just outside the mist. Bubble said there was, uh...angry trash attacking you?"

Caine facepalmed. "Yes, but not entirely accurate. You've heard of the Unseen?"

"THE- WHAT!? WHY ARE YOU EVEN IN THERE??"

"Feel free to ask a certain combat harlequin when she wakes up." Caine said dryly.

"Figures." Ragatha said with exasperation. "What should we do, Caine? I have Z, Kingr and Jax with me."

"Jax? Really?"

"Yeah, he- HEY!"

Jax's voice came over the radio. "Sup, gums. Heard you needed backup... and I was promised payment. So, were is the little beastie?"

"Somewhere in the mist. DO NOT underestimate it. It's fast for it's size and intelligent. Pomni took out its right eye, use that to your advantage, and it's chest is heavily damaged. Go for the core!"

"Sounds easy enough." Jax's dismissiveness made Caine's skin crawl but he didn't say anything.

Ragatha's voice came back. "Give- give it here! Sorry, about that. Okay, Z, Kingr and Jax will go find the creature and I will follow Bubble to your location. I brought your tool kit!"

"You're a saint, Ragatha." Caine sighed with relief.

"I know." She said cheerily and Caine chuckled. He caressed Pomni's face. "Did you hear that? We're getting out of here." She continued to rest.

After fifteen minutes, the creature's roar mingled with shouting. Caine carefully looked out and saw flashes of gold from an intense battle not too far from where he was hiding. The familiar puttering sound of a blimp propeller brought Ragatha to him and she held Pomni as he got to work on Pomni's heart.

Jax somersaulted through the air and brought his hammer down on the creature's head. It's maw left an indent in the ground and cracked from the force of the blow. It lashed out but the agile rabbit animatronic easily weaved out of the way. "Too slow, sucker!"

His distraction gave Kinger a chance to grab the beast. His large mechanical hands grabbed it's front legs, forcing the creature to stand on its hind legs. It's underbelly exposed, Z came in and pile-drived the creature. The force of the blow knocked the creature out of Kingr's hands and it retreated.

"Aw, come on! You running from this fight, you coward!?" Jax called after it.

Kingr and Z did not let their guard down. Even more black mist filled the space. "The Unseen is getting desperate." Said Kingr, back to back with Z. "Watch yourselves."

A flash of gold slashed in front of Kingr. One of his arms was cut, but still usable. The creature disappeared back into the mist before he could retaliate. Another flash of gold, this time slashing Z's leg. They didn't even react, they stayed focused. The next time the creature came in for a strike, they brought both of their fists down in front of them. They timed it just right to smash one of the creature's fanned blades. It screeched and ran off again. "There...that should give us a second." They said flatly.

It was only just. The creature came back, again and again. Tearing one of Z's smaller arms off. Slashing Kingr across the front. Snapping the handle of Jax's hammer.

"This isn't working!" Jax yelled and threw his broken hammer. He kept close to Kingr.

Kinger was locked in. He figured out the creature's pattern. He was next and he knew where it was coming from. The creature lunged and he got it by the neck with his good hand. He used its momentum to flip it end over end and slam it to the ground belly up. Z was on top of it immediately. They started prying open the chest cavity to expose the creature's core. It thrashed and clawed at Z but they powered through and reached for the creature's core. The creature used its back legs to throw Z off of and clawed Kingr's arm until he was forced to let go. Heavily wounded, the creature ran off and didn't come back. A trail of gold liquid in it's wake.

The three fighters caught their breath and Jax had to have the final word. "Aaaand stay away!" He gasped. He was glad that was over, for now. They carefully made their way to the others. Jax jumped in the hold while Kingr and Z stood guard.

"Hey, you done in here yet? We're done with the monster." Jax laid back, doing his best to look unimpressed, despite the marks on him.

"You killed it??" Ragatha asked, shocked.

"Well, not exactly, but it won't be bothering us anymore."

"If it's not dead. We're not done here." Caine said as he focused on his work.

"Caine-" Ragatha tried.

"I don't want to hear it. I want to display it's core in my study." He said with cold determination. He found renewed strength in knowing for certain that Pomni was going to be fine. Now, he wanted that thing dead.

"You trophy hunting now?" Jax asked.

Caine didn't get a chance to answer. Pomni was waking up.

"What I do..?" Pomni opened her eyes to see Ragatha holding her, Caine wrist deep in her chest and Jax lounging in the background. "Wha..?"

Ragatha smiled down at Pomni. "Hey there, sleepy head. Heard you picked a nasty fight."

"Yeah...it was awesome."

Ragatha giggled. "I bet you were."

"She was." Caine said. "And she still is, thanks to you." He finished and carefully closed Pomni's chest.

"And you. You're the one that really knows your way around the tools. I'm still learning."

"Quite the learning experience." He huffed.

"Oh yeah, she really puts us through it." Ragatha shook her head.

"Tell me about it." Caine finished packing up his tools.

"Can you two stop talking like I'm not right here?" Pomni said with a bit more clarity in her voice.

Caine and Ragatha look at each other. "Nah." They said in unison.

Jax gagged loudly. "If you three are done being weird, the creature awaits."

Pomni sat up. She ached all over, but she'd power through it. "Where's my sword?" She asked.

"Oh, I brought your spare." Ragatha handed it to Pomni. "Figured you might have lost the first in the fight when you...when you...lost." She awkwardly finished.

Pomni held it in her remaining arm. "Let's kill that motherfucker."

"Hell, yeah!" Jax cheered, only to be shushed by the others. Even Pomni.

"Can you not give away our location!?" Ragatha hissed.

"Wait? I said it's not coming back. It ran off scared. You'll have to find it."

"No, I won't." Pomni stood and climbed out of the hole. "That thing is a hunter. Hunters don't let prey get away." She looked into the darkness with steeled determination. She saw the trail the creature left when it fled, and started following it. Caine and Ragatha at her sides. The others followed closely behind.

Pomni walked as though she could see into the darkness ahead. She was in tune with the fellow hunter, now that she understood what she was up against. She stopped. They were close to the center ruin, whose top disappeared above the darkness. She looked up in time to see the creature leap from the fourth story.

"MOVE!" She shouts and everyone scattered.

The creature landed with a heavy boom than broke the ground. It furiously swiped at anyone within reach. Kinger being the slowest, he was slashed, but he grabbed the creature by the tail and pulled until he tore it off. Ragatha threw her spear and stuck it in the creature's neck. Z tackled the beast head on, holding the unbent blade wing out of reach. The creature snapped wildly, but Jax jumped on it's head and double stomped repeatedly. "Come on, Pomni! Get this over with already!" He shouted incredulously as he dug his heels into the creature's skull.

Pomni ran forward and attacked the core directly. Her sword piece a few tubes, letting loss a cascade of gold fluid, and the creature howled in pain and desperation. She heard Caine whistle. She looked to see him on the third floor. He held out his hand and made a gesture as though he were puppeteering. She nodded. "Get that thing on it's back!" She shouted and jumped with all her might.

Between Z and Kingr, the creature was laid out. Jax and Ragatha stayed clear.

Pomni felt herself go higher than she could naturally jump. She flipped in the air and dove straight for the creature's chest sword first. She and the creature locked eyes the second before impact.

"I win." She smirked and plunged her whole sword into the creature's core.

With a final gutteral groan, The Unseen died.

The black mist faded away to reveal the sky in twilight. Stars pinpricked the sky amongst deep shades of purple and red. The golden sun setting it's final farewell. The mist cleared the creature's hunting grounds, it looked like a warzone with the amount of bodies piled and strewn about.

Pomni pulled her sword free of the core and started hacking away at the neck. She decapitated it and unsuccessfully attempted to drag the head along with her, but Kingr got it for her. "To the victor go the spoils." He pronounced.

"That fucker's head is going over the mantle." Pomni said as she cleaned her blade.

Caine blinked over from the building and immediately started examining the creature's core. "Fascinating. Z, would you mind carrying this back? Not the whole thing. Just the core."

Z shrugged and pulled the core free of the creature's chest cavity. At the very center, still faintly humming, was a gold crystal.

"I very much look forward to studying this." Caine rubbed his hands together.

"Good for you, where's my pay?" Demanded Jax.

"Oh, I forgot you were here." Caine deadpanned. "We'll talk at the manor."

Ragatha went over to check on Pomni. "You feeling okay?"

"Yeah. A bit stiff, but I'll live. And thanks...things would've ended badly if you and the others hadn't shown up." She tried to be nonchalant, but her voice quivered ever so slightly.

Ragatha put her hand on Pomni's shoulder and smiled. "Hey, I'll always come when you call. No matter what. You can count on me."

Pomni gave her a reserved smile in return and put her hand on Ragatha's.

Later that evening, Pomni laid on the table in Caine's workshop. He was putting the final repairs on her body, new arm and heart. The piece of himself he used as an emergency replacement stood out amongst the rest he debated what to do with it. It was fine where it was and he could make himself a new part, but...what if she found it and didn't want it there? Found it violating? It wouldn't be right to keep it from her. His gentleman's code wouldn't let him. He woke her up.

Pomni looked down at her still exposed heart. "Uh...you done?"

"No. I wanted to ask you something." He pointed to the mismatched piece on her heart. "When you were...dying. I used a part of my own heart to keep you alive." He pointed to his own, a piece obviously missing. "It was an emergency, and I didn't know what else to do and I understand if it's weird to you that it's there but it does it's job so-"

"Caine."

He stopped talking, looking away.

"It's fine."

"Are you sure?"

She sat up and gently held his chin so he'd look at her. "Yeah, you gave up a literal part of yourself to save my life. I can respect that."

"I'd give up anything for you." It slipped out before he could stop himself. "Uh, except drinking. I won't do that." He tried to play it off as a joke but the look she was giving him told him she saw right through it.

She leaned in and kissed his bottom teeth. "Thank you."

The kiss left a shockwave of chills all the way to his toes. It was short, sweet, simple and he loved absolutely everything about it. He could barely form a response. "Anytime."

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thescarletnargacuga · 2 months ago

Text

I AM SEEN

PART 5 OF THE UNSEEN SERIES: A HARLEQUIN AU FANFICTION

AU credit @iamespecter @tadc-harlequin-au

Shadowblade is my OC and NOT CANON

MOTSI by @paper-fowl

WARNING: some angst, swearing

~~~

"Welcome back." Caine smiled at the slowly waking Shadowblade. "And congratulations. I saw you break free."

Shadowblade lowly rumbled and leaned into his kind touch, still feeling the stressing fear of her dreamlike experience. For the first time, she noticed the warmth of his hand. It was so subtle, barely noticeable against her thick hide, but there. Comfort.

Caine was slid sideways from Shadowblade nuzzling against him. He steadied himself and gave her an empathetic look. "I'm sorry. For everything I ever said about your creators. I never realized... I should have been more thorough when we first brought you back, I was so wrapped up in how different you were that I didn't stop to ask why. Can you ever forgive me?" He looks directly into Shadowblade's bright gold eyes, seeing vines of black on the edges. A large dark spot formed a slitted pupil, the illusion of a real eye.

Shadowblade closed her eyes and nuzzled against Caine a little harder. He had no way of knowing who she was, she barely understood it now with all the memories swimming around in her head.

Caine laughed, trying to push back against the overpowering affection. "Okay, okay, thank you for being so underst-"

Shadowblade opened her maw and a large black tongue dragged up Caine's front, leaving a trail of strangely yellow saliva. She shook her head happily, flopping her tongue all over the place. There was a sense of taste again. Her own mouth tastes of metal and grime but it was nice to have the sensation back.

Caine stood stunned by the unexpected tongue attack. "Well, uh, I'm glad you're excited." He wiped his face.

Pomni stood watch outside with Jax, Gangle and their newest marionette addition: MOTSI, the snake-like bullet train. The train sat coiled around a smaller building across the street, waiting patiently for instructions on it's next destination. Pomni kept a vigilante eye out for hostile marionettes but the area was as quiet as ever. The charm on her right hand came to life with a soft glow, mixed feelings of fear and relief growing into happiness. "Shadowblade!" She gasped and rushed inside.

Pomni walked in on Caine being nearly slurped off his feet by Shadowblade. "Woah! Since when have you had one of those?" Pointing to the tongue lolling out the side of Shadowblade's maw. She barely had time to react as Shadowblade lunged at her. "Hey! No! Shadowblade! Down!" But it was too late, she got tongued. Her hair stuck out sideways from the thick saliva. "....thanks." She grumbled, but couldn't hold her sour face with Shadowblade nuzzling against her aggressively. "Good to see you too."

Shadowblade calmed and rumbled against Pomni, who leaned her forehead against Shadowblade's face in return.

Caine held out a handkerchief to Pomni. "I did what I could to get Shadowblade walking again, but there's nothing I can do for the wing until we get back to the manor."

Pomni accepted the handkerchief and wiped her face. "Good thing we have another mode of transportation waiting outside. The center cars of the MOTSI are quite large. I think we could make Shadowblade fit."

"I'm ready to get out of here if you are. This place gives me the creeps." Caine shuddered dramatically.

"And you didn't even see the basement."

"The what now?"

"It wasn't this warehouse, but we found the basement Shadowblade came from. We think. We were attacked before we could really make heads or tails of the place."

"Show me."

Shadowblade followed Caine and Pomni to the warehouse where the showdown with the silver beast began. The roof was completely collapsed, but Shadowblade made short work of the debris blocking the basement. Unhindered by confusing memories, she marched ahead of Caine and Pomni into the depths.

The wide spiralling stairs led down to a decrepit laboratory. Much of the equipment was destroyed beyond recognition. Shrapnel of multi colored crystals littered the floor. The dark, lonely basement was lit my Shadowblade's blazing eyes scanning the surroundings.

Caine whistles lowly. "The son did a number on this place."

"That's the second time you've mentions a son. What are you talking about?" Pomni asked.

"Back at the manor, I tapped into the void and found the soul responsible for all of this. He mentioned one other like Shadowblade. Called him the 'traitorous son'. I can only assume, but the Master- Don't give me that look. His words, not mine. Anyway, after the success of Shadowblade, the Master used his own son to create another, but somehow lost control."

"The silver beast."

"Yep."

"That thing was insane. Shots energy beams and everything."

"Energy beams? ....if the Master wasn't such a raging piece of shit, I'd say he was a man after my own heart."

"Don't get any ideas. Shadowblade needs time away from cutting tools and invasive procedures."

"I wasn't. Besides, I don't think there anything salvageable down here." Caine kicked a small piece of debris.

Shadowblade moved slowly through the lab. The place looked entirely different but it felt the same: claustrophobic, violating, painful. Towards the back, there were two excessively large rooms with thick metal doors. A name plate was on each: Silverwind and Warshroud.

The name Warshroud brought back the memories of the lab. Being trapped, torn apart, disoriented and isolated. The undeniable directive to obey.

Shadowblade bared her blades on her undamaged wing and lashed at the door. In a shower of sparks, a huge slash mark crossed out the name of Warshroud.

The MOTSI train slithered towards the City of Circuits at top speed. It's belly was nearly frictionless against the ground as energy surged with it's movements. Jax rode atop the train's head, thoroughly enjoying himself. Gangle preferred to stay in the control car, she could see the world zipping by just fine through the window.

Caine and Pomni rode in one of the cargo cars with Shadowblade. The dragonesque puppet was a tight fit, but they made it work.

"Jax says we could be back in the City of Circuits in as little as an hour. Man, we should've grabbed one of these snake trains sooner." Caine leaned against the wall, crossing his legs.

Pomni gave a non-committal hum to Caine's comment. She was focused on Shadowblade, reaching out through the connection. "What's your real name?"

Shadowblade didn't have an answer. She shook her head.

"Do you remember everything about your last life?"

Shadowblade titled their head side to side in an unsure gesture.

Caine added his own question. "So you want to remain a dragon? I'm quite the puppet builder. I could make you a new body."

Shadowblade looked down, eyes moving with thought. She shook.

"Really?" Caine said, somewhat surprised. "I mean, I respect your decision, but can I ask why?"

Shadowblade thought again, then shook.

Pomni smiled. "She says you're rude for asking."

"She did not." Caine huffed defensively. "It was a legitimate question. Communication is pretty limited like this."

"Seems to be working so far." Pomni shrugged. "Maybe you're not listening enough."

"Like you would know anything about that." Caine muttered under his breath.

"Oh, I listen. I just don't care."

"Dismissing what other people have to say is just as bad." Caine argued.

"Doing my own thing has gotten me this far. It'll keep getting me where I need to be." Pomni moved closer to Caine.

"I had hoped you'd understand the meaning of teamwork at this point. I'm sorry to say I'm sorely disappointed." Caine didn't budge, not letting the Harlequin intimidate him.

"I'm not here for your approval." Pomni would've turned away, but she stumbled right into Caine. Sharowblade had batted her from behind. Feelings of smug satisfaction came through the connection.

Caine caught Pomni as she fell into him. Their faces close, Caine smirks. "We really should stop meeting like this."

Pomni stood up straight with a flustered huff. "I'm going to check on Gangle." She slid open the door leading to the forward car and left.

"Thanks." Caine rubbed his neck. "Sometimes we get caught up in our own egos, but there's rarely any real malice behind it all."

Shadowblade sent a feeling through the connection with Pomni that could be summed up as "I know your secrets."

The MOTSI parked itself around the border wall of the manor. Their long body easily goes around the entire property, their head and tail almost touching near the gate. The train doors open to let out the passengers, but Shadowblade's struggles to get out as much as they did to get it.

She claws at the ground, metal grinding against metal as she slowly squeezes out. With a thunk, she flies forward and scorpions on the ground outside the train.

Caine walks out behind her, chuckling. "Smooth."

Shadowblade snorts at him as she gets up.

Jax slides off MOTSI's head. "This is your new station. Stay here." The snake powered down it's eyes, going into sleep mode until another trip was required.

Gangle gracefully exited the train, happy to be in safer territory again. "You simply must tell me how you learned to operate these, Sir Jax."

"Not like it hard." He shrugged. "Most of it's voice command. Say, why don't you come with me," He put an arm over her shoulders. "And I'll teach you."

"Just me?" Gangle asked shyly.

"Well, I'm not inviting Pomni. She doesn't take commands very well." He led her off towards the manor, but called out to Caine as they passed. "Hey, I'll be expecting my payment soon."

Caine rolled his eyes. He'd actually almost forgotten. Of course Jax wouldn't.

Pomni joined Caine with Shadowblade to the barn. He looked around, it wasn't a bad place but it wasn't befitting a person. "I'll talk to Z about getting this place upgraded. You may have to sleep in specialized quarters, but that doesn't mean you should be stuck with the dirt. Yet another thing I feel inclined to apologize for."

Pomni avoided eye contact with Shadowblade, but the emotion came through loud and clear in the connection. Guilt. She's treated Shadowblade like an animal at best, a tool at worst. Regret stabbed at the back of her mind.

Shadowblade looked from one to the other, and using a single claw, wrote in the dirt. "F-R-I-E-N-D"

"I'm glad you consider us friends, even after everything." Caine felt like he could breathe easier. "You've been through so much to get to this point. You know what that calls for? A celebration!"

"A party? Now?" Pomni and the others had been up for over twenty four hours. There was no way anyone was in the mood to party.

"No, no, tomorrow! It should be a whole day dedicated to celebrating the enlightenment of our newest member. Especially since we didn't even know it was possible."

"....you just want to drink all day."

"No! I-"

Shadowblade gave him the same look as Pomni.

Caine sighed, defeated. "I just want to drink. Can you blame me? I have some new guilt to suppress. And who knows, maybe Shadowblade can drink too. Worth a try, I'd say. Anyway, you should rest, Shadowblade. I'll be out to fix your wing later. Pomni, a word?"

Pomni gave Shadowblade's one last look before leaving with Caine. A feeling of calm resolve sent through. She followed Caine as he walked out of earshot of everyone, towards the edge of the woods filling the manor grounds.

"Pomni, are you alright? You mentioned encountering HIM."

"I'm fine... He didn't touch me." She remembered the oppressive force of the Patriarch's soul. The fear it instilled in her was unmatched and unnatural. She hated herself for being such a coward in his presence.

"I know, but he doesn't need to in order to affect you."

Pomni crossed her arms in an attempt to appear stoic, but the subconscious self soothing motion made it obvious she was uncomfortable. "He took the core of the silver beast and the journal of information connected to project Warshroud. He's planning something. Something big. We need to be more careful going forward."

Caine was shocked. "Be more careful? From you?"

"Yeah....well, he could've killed me or taken Shadowblade or both, but he didn't. Maybe he thought that would be too easy. Look, I've met death a lot over in my time with you, and I've never feared it, but being around the Patriarch...makes me afraid. I don't know what he's capable of, but something tells me I wouldn't even see the void if he ended me."

Caine gently took Pomni's hands, uncrossing them from her chest. His thumbs caressed her knuckles soothingly. "That won't happen."

Pomni didn't have the energy to argue or pull away, not that she wanted to. Not this time. She quietly reveled in his comfort. "How can you be so sure?"

"Because I won't let him take you away from me."

"You're such a sap." Pomni tried to sound harsh but her voice carried no such tone.

"You have no idea." He said quietly. "No plans for tomorrow aside from getting drunk. Rest as much as you need."

"You really care, don't you?" Her gaze softened.

"I do." His hands gently squeezed hers.

"Simp."

Caine snorted and bust out laughing, Pomni with him.

Shadowblade sat in the barn entrance, gazing at the stars. Their wings in one piece, freshly mended by Caine, she flexed them while taking in the night sky. The memories were still a lot to take in. Coming to the forefront of her mind in bursts. Sometimes she was a child. Sometimes an adult. Sometimes joyous. Sometimes afraid. Sometimes full of sorrow. A lifetime condensed into one D.I.E. How did it ever hold it all?

Lights from the manor gradually dimmed as the residents went to bed. Even Kingr retreated to his single quarters next to the barn for the night. The only one that remained was Z. They never slept.

Shadowblade wasn't tired in the slightest. In fact, she had energy. She wanted to go somewhere. She stepped fully out of the barn and stretched her wings. The night was young, the air was fresh and the wind was calm. Perfect conditions. She jumped up into the air and beat her wings for a vertical launch. The oversized manor below became small as she gained more and more altitude quickly, reaching for the stars themselves.

She grazed the underside of a thin cloud before changing to an outward glide. She flew high over the City of Circuits. The dark city is illuminated by only the moonlight. The rush of the wind washed away all that plagued her below. Up here, she was truly free. No Masters. No cages. No saddles.

Shadowblade roared with elation. The buildings below echo back the joyous noise. She flew higher. Tucking her wings in as she punched through the clouds, coming face to face with the moon. She reached out, as though to touch it, and fell back first through the clouds again. She turned to nose dive at the ground. Air rushing past faster, and faster. The City beckoned to her, but she denied it. She opens her wings and swooped over the highest building by mere feet. She weaved between and around the taller structures, and under a wide bridge. She couldn't be stopped. She was free!

She flew all the way out of the city limits, to the rocky formations that lay in the lands between cities. Shadowblade landed gracefully on the highest point, only slipping a little as she settled. Her systems vented hard from the flight as she surveyed her surroundings. The world was still beautiful in its own way. Quiet. Peaceful.

Her mind wandered to the plethora of unprocessed memories. A repeated word came to her in many of them.

Badorman.

Miss Badorman.

People with faces she did not know said that name over and over, until the woman she met in her dream came to mind. Mother did not call her Badorman. In memories of simple joy and harshest sorrow, she heard "Scarlet."

"My beautiful Scarlet."

Shadowblade whimpered. A tear of black fluid escaped her mechanical eye.

"I wish we had more time."

Shadowblade tried to speak, but her unfamiliar tongue lulled weirdly in her inhuman mouth. All that came out was mechanical whirring and screeching from the shredder in the back of her throat. She stomped, quaking the rock she sat upon and growled.

"Scarlet...be good for me."

Shadowblade kept hearing the voice of her mother. Memories playing in her head like a broken film. She was in a room that smelled of medicine and flowers, holding mother's hand. Mother was in bed. She was frail, but not from age. Disease had ravaged her body.

"I wish there was more I could leave you, but the war has taken everything...at least you found yourself a good station. I will rest well knowing my daughter is not on the street."

Shadowblade whined and screeched, more black tears fell.

"I love you."

Shadowblade went still. Mother's hand went limp; gone silently into that good night. The last person to love her was gone. Black tears stained the stone below.

The following memories rushed by in a blur. Servitude. Forced obedience. War. The blood of hundreds. Silence. Left in the dark. Suspended alone. Eternal. Then a break in the stone that held. A voice that demanded battle.

"Take THAT! Some creature of legend you were! I've had worse fights with Bubble!" The woman's voice taunted.

Shadowblade looked in the direction of the manor, seeing a few pin prick lights still lit.

"You can't just give up!" "Get up! I know there's more in you than that!!" "Come on!"

Pomni the combat harlequin spoke truth, even to her enemies. There was more in Shadowblade, and Pomni saw it from the beginning. She broke the bonds. She opened the cage. Shadowblade just had to be brave enough to step through. No, not Shadowblade.

Scarlet Badorman. Born a servant, remade a weapon, reborn a puppet. More powerful than she's ever been.

Scarlet raised her wings high, gold energy surging through the blades. She roared triumphant to the sky, gold energy mixing with streaks of dark mist in her maw. The ball of energy released like a firework high into the sky and exploded with the percussive force of a large bomb. Gold sparks rained down and disappeared into the night.

Scarlet felt more connected to herself than ever before. She knew who she was. She could accept what she became. No matter what name the world tried to put on her, she was Scarlet.

She took off into the night, taking a few more laps around the city to the manor. She landed as quietly as she could outside the walls, entering the gated property by Z's post.

"Have a nice flight?" Z asked, with light interest edging their voice.

Scarlet nodded and held out her front paw. Between her toes she held a smooth rock she found on the cliff she sat on to do her thinking. She wanted to give it to Z, as they were always one to sit back and think about life.

"Uh..?" Z said as they took the smooth stone.

Scarlet scratched into the earth next to Z. G-I-F-T. She sat up proudly and rumbled.

"I see. Thanks." Z held the stone in one of their smaller hands, saving it for display in their home later, and rolling with the fact that "Shadowblade" was communicating like a coherent person.

Scarlet scratched another message: J-O-I-N-?

"Yeah, sure. You can stay out here if you want. I can't tell you what to do."

Scarlet shuffled her feet excitedly and settled next to Z. They sat in silence, listening to the night.

Morning rolled in slowly. The crisp late autumn air left a light layer of frost on the grass. Scarlet and Z's large cores kept them warm, their metal frames steaming lightly. Kingr was first up to jovially wish the night insects a good rest.

"Good morning, you two." Kingr pat Scarlet on the head.

Scarlet accepted the pat. Even if he knew she was human, she would still appreciate the affection.

"Anything to report?" Kinger asked.

"Nope. Another quiet night." Z drolled.

"Probably because you had this one standing guard with you. No one would want to mess with a duo like you two. Well, I'm off to study my strategies. Do let me know if I'm needed." Kingr slid away towards the woods.

A few hours later, Caine came out with Bubble. The butler blimp set up chairs in the garden as Caine laid out small crates of bottles full of what could only be assumed at liquor. Scarlet came over, careful not to step on any of the delicate plant life and greeted him with a chuff.

"Morning! Hope last night wasn't too cold for you."

Scarlet gestured towards the barn.

"I'll talk to Z about renovations today and get the ball rolling, don't worry-"

Scarlet gripped his sleeve with her maw and pulled him along gently.

"Oh-! You want to show me something?"

In the packed dirt of the barn Scarlet scratched: S-C-A-R-L-E-T B-A-D-O-R-M-A-N

Caine's eyes widened. "SB...You remember?"

Scarlet nodded.

"Incredible....and somewhat tragic. Reliving everything. How do you feel about being called Shadowblade?"

N-I-C-K-N-A-M-E

"That's a pretty badass nickname, but I'd understand if you wouldn't be comfortable with Pomni continuing to be your rider."

F-U-N

"Heh, depends on your definition of fun. I'll have to see if I can come up with a new way of communication for you. Because of your unique construction, I'm not sure where I'd even install a voice box." Caine tapped his chin.

Scarlet shrugged. She was still getting used to the very concept of regaining her humanity, and it was already overwhelming. So many emotions and sensations and memories to process.

"But we don't have to worry about all that today. Today, is about you being fully introduced to everyone as a puppet. Not just some stray marionette."

Scarlet bumped her maw against Caine's arm. Grateful that he was so supportive.

Caine rested a hand on her face the way he always did. "You're awfully affectionate. That's a refreshing change of pace. Many puppets are adverse to touch when they first start enlightening. The new sensations are quite scary and overstimulating. Maybe your size works in your favor here. Kingr's probably the only one that could give you a proper hug."

Scarlet snuggled against him, scooping him up and sliding him down her neck to her unsaddled back.

"Woah! Haha! Playful too. Looking back on your behavior patterns, It's a wonder I didn't see this sooner."

Everyone else eventually made their way outside to enjoy the nice weather and join Caine for his announcement. He filled everyone in on who Shadowblade really was, including her real name. He raised a taste for her and immediately got to drinking. Scarlet tried to join, awkwardly picking up a bottle and pouring it over her new flesh. The earthy bitterness of the liquor made her cringe. Her whole body shuddered and some black mist involuntarily puffed out of her vents.

Ragatha was the closest she's ever been to Scarlet. She's always been too nervous of the beastial puppet. Even with everything she knew now, it was still hard for her to not be intimidated. "Hello, I'm Ragatha. Nice to meet you, properly." She moved away as Scarlet tried to interact. "Sorry, I-"

Scarlet backed off. Trying not to make things awkward. It was too late.

Gangle saved the moment by bringing out the charm formerly used to control Scarlet. "Caine had to remake it for a ritual, but it's useless now. You deserve the honor of breaking it permanently, Miss Scarlet."

Scarlet looked closely at the cursed charm. A familiar energy radiated from it, making her spikes raise defensively. She opened her mouth and her tongue grabbed the charm. With an unceremonious crack, the stone was destroyed by her shredder. Then she washed down the dusty taste with more earthy liquor.

"Do you want to destroy this one too?" Pomni held up the connection charm attached to her right hand.

Scarlet could feel Pomni's trepidation to even ask. She didn't want the connection to be lost. Neither did Scarlet. Scarlet shook her head before affectionately rubbing against Pomni's face.

Pomni pushed away the large maw. "Yeah, yeah, not in front of everyone." She grumbled.

Scarlet narrowed her eyes mischievously and brought her whole open maw down on Pomni. The harlequin fit inside up to her knees without getting too close to the inactive shredder. She picked up Pomni, holding the small puppet in her mouth smugly.

"WHAT THE FUCK!? LET GO! PUT ME DOWN!" Pomni struggled, unable to unsheathe her sword.

Scarlet's antics got a few laughs, which was enough for her. She was about to put Pomni down gently when the sound of a charging gun came from inside.

"Put. Me. Down." Pomni had transformed her mechanical arm and had it aimed down Scarlet's throat. "Or you're about to have the worst case of indigestion."

Scarlet released Pomni immediately from her sitting height, roughly twelve feet, back into her chair.

Pomni was visibly annoyed, but she always sort of looked like that.

"You okay?" Ragatha tries to hold in a laugh, failing miserably.

"I'm fine. This bitch needs a reminder who she's messing with, apparently." Pomni transformed her hand back.

Scarlet huffed challengingly. Feeling the playful edge to Pomni's words.

"Oh, you want round two? I cracked you open like a walnut the first time we met, have you forgotten that?"

Scarlet took a playful stance, snapping her maw at Pomni, but not too close.

Pomni downed her drink and unsheathed her sword. "LETS GO!" She charged Scarlet, who ran out onto the lawn where they had plenty of open space to spare.

Jax went to bother Caine again about his payment, but a small item flew at his face before he said anything. He caught it, finding it to be a skeleton key of some kind. "What's this?"

"That is a Universal Key. It's a specialized lock pick that should work on just about anything, EXCEPT my workshop door. Don't even try."

"You're no fun, but thanks anyway. I can make use of this." Jax spun the key around a few times before pocketing it.

As the day went on; spares where matched, drinks were had, questions were answered. Gangle was especially helpful, being able to see into Scarlet's core and have more visual reference to the limited yes or no answers. Scarlet was surrounded by those who would accept her as she was. Friends. Or frenemies, in Jax's case. Regardless, she felt...happy.

It was almost too much. Black tears teasing the edges of her eyes. She tried to wipe them away but only smacked herself in the face with her paw.

"Ha! Have too much to drink? Bit of a lightweight for your size." Jax teased.

Scarlet snorted at him. She had felt the slightest tingle from the crate of alcohol she consumed, she was nowhere near intoxicated. Not like Caine and Pomni, who couldn't even stand straight anymore.

"Hey! Scarlet-blade!" Pomni slurred out. "Slack jaw over here thinks you can't do a backflip! Prove him wronged!" She tried to push Caine to the side, but he grabbed her arm and they both stumbled over each other. Caine held on to a small tree to steady them both.

"I only said I've never sheen them do it!" Caine giggled back, still holding on to Pomni. "Sheeeee's capabitable, I'm sure."

Scarlet had never thought about it. Maybe she's done one once, but couldn't really recall. Willing to try, she stepped away from the others for space and crouched. She adjusted her stance and pushed hard off the ground. She rotated backwards, landing on her front paws again, but she didn't have enough momentum and he heavy tail dragged her back to the ground. She flopped down on her back with a thud that shook the grounds, earning a chorus of laughter from everyone.

Pomni laughed so hard, she forgot who she was against and held to Caine's chest with uproarious glee.

Scarlet rolled over to right herself, wanting to try again. Zooble stopped her. "You'll have to try that elsewhere or you'll shake the structural integrity out of every building on the property."

Scarlet huffed indignantly, but didn't try again. A strange feeling came through the connection as Scarlet shook the dirt from her body. Desire. She looked over to Pomni, seeing her face to face with Caine. Scarlet didn't want to interrupt their moment, but also didn't know how to shut out the connection and this felt...private.

Scarlet tried to push her embarrassment through and get Pomni's attention, but the alcohol seemed to have done its job and numbed the harlequin to the world around her. The others seemed preoccupied with conversation, paying to mind Caine and Pomni. Ruining the moment it was.

Scarlet went to the fountain in front of the manor and scooped up a mouthful of water. She stomped over to Pomni and dumped the load on both her and Caine. The force of the water knocked them both off their feet.

Pomni unleashed a string of angry, incoherent curses at Scarlet. Caine stayed down, still glowing at the very idea of Pomni being that willingly close to him. Scarlet was relieved the connection felt normal again.

"Seems a bit much." Ragatha commented.

Scarlet nodded. It was much, but MUCH was what was often needed when dealing with Pomni.

With the early setting sun bringing colder air again, the soaked duo retreated inside. They were followed gradually by the others. Kingr wished Scarlet a goodnight and went on his humble abode. Z went to their typical sentry post.

Scarlet nodded a goodnight to Z and went to her barn. With the door closed, she felt cozy and safe. Caine may have felt bad about leaving her in the dirt, but she found it rather comfortable. A few digging scratches to upturn it a bit, few circled paces and she's curled up in a tight ball. Comfy.

While her face wasn't quite capable of smiling, she was certainly smiling on the inside. To be found by this rag tag group of puppets and welcomed by them made her feel so very lucky. Pomni broke her bonds, Caine gave her wings, Kingr showed her there's beauty in all things, Ragatha helped her discover her past, Jax saved her life at great risk to his own, Gangle told her story, and Zooble showed her subtle respect in silence.

One more tear was shed that night. This one she let flow. She has not just found friends...but family.

Far away, deep in the heart of the City of Power, machines hummed and hiss. The active factory thrummed with red energy, powered by the one rolling a large D.I.E in his fingers. A crystal was being shaped before him, cut to his specifications.

The Patriarch flipped through the journal pages idly. The cypher was far too easy to crack. Humans were never as clever as they made themselves out to be. Especially those as arrogant as this self proclaimed "Master". How laughable.

He snapped the journal shut as the crystal cutter completed. The bright red crystal stood nine in feet in height and nearly as around. It was ready for implantation. He held the D.I.E against the crystal and surged his energy into it. Flames billowed from his hand, melting the crystal as he forced the D.I.E inside.

He could feel the soul in his hand crying out in agony. Good. Pain was necessary for this to work. He pushed the D.I.E into the center, liquified crystal burning his arm and suit. Once it was in place, the Patriarch pulled his arm free quickly. The imbued energy resolidified the crystal, sealing the D.I.E inside.

The Patriarch shook his hand lightly, shards of crystal rained down from his ruined sleeve. He turned to the mostly constructed, gargantuan beast hanging from thick chains. "Almost ready."

~~~

To be continued...