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Alonzo Balthazar

"Stop right there- I'm in."

0 · 577 views · located in Elysium

a character in “The Edge of Darkness”, as played by FallenSeraphim37

Description

Image



Image
Name || Alonzo Balthazar

Age || 18

Gender || Male

Occupation || Cyber Edge

Station || Lethe

Physical Description || Standing at 5'7", Alonzo isn't much to look at in all truth. With his medium-length black hair and emerald eyes, Alonzo has a fairly youthful appearance, making many believe that he's the obligatory youngster of the Lethe guards- which, given his position, could actually be true. He possesses a fairly athletic build thanks to the training as a Cyber Edge.

Alonzo's uniform is always on point- his black coat is always properly buttoned up, and most of the time, even when he's not on duty, he's wearing white gloves. He wears the standard suit and armor worn by the guards for protection when out on actual missions against the Ventrus. In colder weather, Alonzo is seen wearing a large hat and the uniform cape.

Rarely is Alonzo seen without a pouch in which he keeps a few notes about the Ventrus, gathered from his observations. A running gag among the guards is the fact that he seems to carry way too many pens in his pocket.

Theme (optional)|| Hiroyuki Sawano - KABANERI OF THE IRON FORTRESS





ImagePersonality || Alonzo seems to be rather brave- for a guard. He is a highly curious and studious, always jotting down notes about the Ventrus whenever he has the chance to. Most of the time, he is rather polite to his superiors, but isn't afraid to ask questions about how things work- this has landed him a little more knowledge than he's supposed to have given his position. A greenhorn by nature, some of his peers still deem him a little too sensitive.

Alonzo isn't afraid to experiment- due to his observations of the Ventrus, he had come up with a few crazy ideas of his own for Edge Tech that was "safer". Up to this point in time though, no one had bothered to listen to Alonzo's supposedly insane ideas and due to this he doesn't mention it too often to people he doesn't know, and only brings it up when asked.

Abilities/Equipment || Alonzo doesn't have much to boast about when it comes to abilities. His psionic strength is only enough to maintain his blade's energy, but aside from that it's not much to go off on.

His blade is a standard-issue blade based off a sabre- the overall blade length 33", and with a handle amounts to a length of only 37", and Alonzo can use it with one hand. Alonzo's swordsmanship can only be described as average, as well. It's enough to let him live through a few encounters with the scouting Ventrus machines. What Alonzo excels in is the use of the rifle- while the rifle had been forgotten by the masses due to ordinary guns being ineffective against the Ventrus, Alonzo took up a rifle upon seeing that he was much more skilled at the use of ranged weapons than melee ones.

This rifle has become his weapon when on patrol duty, considering the fact that while bullets cannot pierce the Ventrisite, they can still pierce humans. His skill at the rifle has made him think mostly of ideas of projectile-type Edge Techs- a project that he hopes will come to life someday in the future.

Overall, Alonzo can only be described as an average fighter and guard, more suited for anti-personnel than anti-machinery.




Image

History || Born and raised in Lethe for the majority of his life, Alonzo grew up in the middle-class Balthazar family with two younger siblings and a mother and father. Due to the state of the world, Alonzo had always been a studious and hardworking little boy, taking his classes and studies seriously and always dreaming of creating the perfect weapon to wipe out the Ventrus from the world permanently. It was a big dream for a little boy- but really, who listened to a little boy's musings? His parents mostly bypassed his little sketches of big cannons blasting away several mechanical monsters away from the earth as a dream that would soon begone from his mind.

Months passed. Soon, the citizens of Lethe were tested for the psionic energy needed to become one. To the Balthazar family's dismay, Alonzo tested positive to apply as a Cyber Edge. Seeing a chance to make his dreams come true, Alonzo practically begged his parents to let him go- even though he could have easily just become an Edge Smith if he had wanted to make his projectile Edge Tech dreams come true. Due to the determination of the little boy, his parents finally allowed him to be enrolled into the program.

Of course, this meant a lot of changes- Alonzo found many things different, much more different from the school he used to be in. Out of sheer will and hard work, Alonzo managed to readjust himself to the hardships of Cyber Edge training. After years of training in the program, as the fortress around Lethe was being built, Alonzo finally graduated. Sent off to Acheron to bring a few goods, Alonzo was greatly surprised at the treatment of Cyber Edges and the Lethe guards that were there. Being a curious fellow, Alonzo had always questioned as to why the Acheron Cyber Edges were the ones doing the work and not the Lethe guards, though most of his questions were mostly brushed off.

Determined to know more about this confusing ordeal, Alonzo decided to join with the local guard stationed there, where- while he was still treated as an actual guard and not any worse, he found that there were cowards among the guards stationed there. This caused even more confusion- he was raised to think Cyber Edges were heroes of the now failing world, and Lethe was his home. Why were these Lethe guards hiding like cowards and using other Cyber Edges as scapegoats?

Alonzo was away when the Acheron guards took over the Charon outpost, though when he heard plans of the group of guards to go to the main city of the Ventrus, he found a chance to observe the Ventrus at its very best. So packing up his notes and everything he has, Alonzo set out to join the group in their quest.

So begins...

Alonzo Balthazar's Story

Setting

Characters Present

Character Portrait: Hayato Akiyama Character Portrait: Alonzo Balthazar Character Portrait: Gaff Bonebrand Character Portrait: Angela Liborum Character Portrait: Ascelina von Ritter
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"Everyone, hear me, for there is little time left! Charon has fallen and the Lethe guards have retreated back to their sanctuary. All that remains of us, the Charon Guards, are those that stand beside you. Without our defenses, I fear we may not last long enough to see another sun. But--! I will not stand idly by, doing nothing and just waiting for the darkness to take us. As long as I live and breathe, I'm not giving up on this god-forsaken place!

So I ask you, my fellow warriors! Accompany me to Machine City! It is our only chance of rebuilding what is left of this land we've had to abandon twice! We've all been scurrying at the edge of the Ventrus' shadow for so long...Now, let's take the fight to them! Let's kick this expedition to overdrive!"



Ascelina got up from her troubled sleep with a light groan. She's been dreaming again. Ever since she's arrived at Styx, she's been thinking about what lies ahead, what she was about to get themselves into. The closest encounter with the devil. Closest to hell they're ever going to be. She rubbed her temples. Long distance traveling didn't seem like something she can easily adapt to.

She remembered giving out some long, drawn-out speech about courage. She remembered reciting it as if she's always known it all her life. Now, she barely remembers a damn word she said. Still, it didn't mean that her conviction's been shaken. They're still heading to Machine City, one way or the other. Taking a couple of pills, she got up and got dressed. There was still much to plan.

"You look like a mess you know?" A young man addresses her as she made her way outside the room she was given to use for the night. His brown hair was a little unkempt and his glasses looked like they've seen better days. Then again, so did she. Ascelina chuckled at this.

"So does everyone else spending several nights away from home, heh! So, where were we?" Ascelina asked, feeling a little better as the disorienting effects of sleep started to slowly slip away.

"Well, we'll have to talk to the leader of the Raiders in order to let us on board. With you on the front end on the negotiation table, I don't think it would be too difficult though seeing that we're just tagging along for the ride, both in and out."

"Okay. Long shot but, if you guys think it would pay off, then we're taking it. What about equipment and personnel? Aside from us and the Raiders, who do we got? What would we need?" Ascelina continued to ask, planning ahead for any unexpected circumstances.

"We don't know who the Raiders' taking with them yet. Aside from us though, we've only got one outsider. Anti-personnel, from Lethe. I'm sure you've seen him a couple times. Worked as a runner between the two joints." Rex explained.

"Ah, right. It's that Balthazar guy." Ascelina recalls the name, scratching the back of her head as she does.

"You sure you alright? You've been getting nothing but headaches and short term memory loss since we got here."

"It's just the exhaustion from traveling, nothing serious." Ascelina tries to brush off Rex's concerns. "So what you're saying is we're all a bunch of meatheads who only know how to fight?"

"Yep. We're not infiltrating Machine city on guts and willpower alone. We'll need people with brains and expertise. We'll also need a smith who can take care of our gear. Most importantly, we'll need someone to drive that bucket of bolts and operate them old machines." Rex tries to list down the kind of personnel they'll be needing.

"That's quite a tall order. Do we have anybody we know? Anybody in mind?" Ascelina tries to recall any old associates of the Lethe Guard Unit. Well, anybody who still has the balls to do business.

"Our regulars haven't responded to our messages. So I put up a general recruitment notice with the government's permission. Hopefully, anyone else finds the idea as enticing as we do...Just in case we get any volunteers with us, how do you plan on paying them off? We can't just hold them on honor and valor alone. These guys aren't Acheron." Rex asked, a little concerned.

"We've got some assets we "liberated" from the Lethe guards we routed. That should be enough. We don't need to recruit a lot. Just enough to help us get the job done. Besides, its much easier to look after them that way."

"Very well."


Having finished preparations, Ascelina made her way towards the meeting place, where she was supposed to talk to the assigned representative. Most of the Raider's recruits would be coming to meet her as well. For a while, she wondered if the Raiders would help her pay these guys. Nonetheless, she did prepare for the other scenario. She glanced up at the sky; the typical, monotonous gray firmament.

It looked like it was going to rain.

Setting

Characters Present

Character Portrait: Hayato Akiyama Character Portrait: Alonzo Balthazar Character Portrait: Gaff Bonebrand Character Portrait: Angela Liborum Character Portrait: Ascelina von Ritter
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Ascelina listened in attentively to the words of the recruited parties. Technically, they do have a say in the matter, especially the girl who introduced herself as Angela. They need her and she could've easily swayed the Raiders to give her a bigger share. Instead though, she proposed an equal split for the sake of unity. The armored man, who introduced himself as Gaffe, echoes the sentiment as well.

"Well, this negotiation seems to have gone to our favor..." Ascelina wondered, paying close attention to the Raiders' murmuring. Clearly not all of them would be happy with the exchange and they weren't quiet about it either. The remark towards the skill of the Cyber Edges she led kind of got under her skin. They were the Charon guards, the first line of defense. If anything, they have fought against far more Ventrus than the younger members of the Raiders. They didn't survive just on luck alone.

"Very well--Miss Liborum raises a fair point- I will agree to this idea, if only to minimize losses. We need all the Cyber Edges that we can get if we want to enter Machine City, as it is the most dangerous place, crawling with Ventrus. And what about your side, Miss von Ritter? What have you to say about this idea?"

"I'd be lying if I say I'm not pleased with this setup. Very well then, I believe we now have a deal." Ascelina stood up and took a slight bow before the Raider's leader. "I believe we should depart early, tomorrow morning perhaps." She turned to look at the two outstanding recruits: the operator named Angela and Gaff, the Edgesmith. "You two should get ready by then. It's just a formality but, you would still need to declare under whom are you working for, us or the Raiders. Given the 50-50 split, any differences between the two parties are moot."

With that, Ascelina turned to leave as the meeting was now concluded.



Back at their assigned quarters, Ascelina took a quick glance around the surroundings, taking care not to be overheard by any roaming guards as she met with Rex, her trusted right-hand man.

"Well? How did it go?"

"Somewhat favorable. We did manage to get some backup from the recruited parties. The operator speaking up helped a lot."

"Well, yeah...considering no one's getting anywhere if the train won't move. But still--I believe you do have your doubts?"

"Just on the whole combined front." Ascelina tucked away some strands of her hair behind her ear as she continued to report on the day's events. "Despite the agreement between me and their leader, I highly doubt all of the Raiders would be too happy about this whole joint. I mean, 50-50 may look fair but, the Raiders are the ones who own the train. They'll also be shouldering all of the maintenance and repair costs, not to mention logistics. With the work they put in, they deserve a 70 at least."

"But we can't compromise our own side either. We're not exactly in good shape as well."

"I know. It's just that we've all experienced this before remember? Back at Charon? We work longer hours and take on more difficult jobs and in the end, our pay's the same as those lazy-ass guards from Lethe. Management says it's all for the sake of equality and trust. Well--where's the equality in that?"

"Haha! That's a fair point. Yeah, I guess I can still recall that."

"Attaining unity ain't easy." Ascelina's gaze wondered off into the distance, seemingly searching for her answer somewhere up ahead the empty space. "Ventrus came out of nowhere and attacked mankind. forcing us to flee and live our lives forever in shanties. Perfect common enemy right there. Perfect catalyst for man to rise up and fight as one again. But then--you get events like Acheron. And now, Charon. Even in the face of a common enemy, men do not easily put aside their hatred and contempt for the other. It's not always like it is in the books." Ascelina sadly recalled.



(OOC: I'll generally do this in order to move things along as mod. Time has been forwarded to our day of take off. Also, please stop by the OOC every now and then. Kind of lonely if it's just me posting T_T It's here if anyone's wondering.)

Standing by the car that would serve as their meeting room, Ascelina waited for the others to board. Rex has been sent to take care of things in their own car while she meets with the representatives. Once everyone had arrived, she started.

"Alright, I'll start this meeting if no one minds. Machine City is very far. Even along the Oceanus Line, we would probably take over a week just to get there. We'll probably encounter a lot of Ventrus along the way and we cannot really delay. What I'm just trying to say is, we should choose our paths wisely. There may be circumstances when it's better to blitz through a more dangerous route than take a safer but longer route. Ascelina spoke with a degree of confidence. As leader, she was used to this kind of briefings before.

"I say this now because...I would like to bring up the issue of our initial route--the one that would lead us to our first stop: the resupply station at the Water Gate. From our position, there's two paths we can take to get there. We could go down the tunnel in the Old Iron Mountain or make a round trip back around Phlegeton and shift over to the River Railway." Ascelina brings up the map in their array and zooms in on both paths.

"The mountain tunnel is closer, but the rail goes uphill after a few kilometers, making it difficult to traverse. The tunnel is also a little dark and cramped. Scouts have shown Crawlers have a habit of foraging around the place for scraps so expect to encounter them along the way."

"On the other hand, getting to the River Railway may take slightly longer but once we're past Phlegeton, the road goes a little downhill, making our travel faster. Unfortunately, it runs parallel to the river, in a forested area with minimal cover. Swarms of Ventrus Scouts are said to roam the airspace often and our presence may agitate them and force them to attack."

Having finished relaying the routes they can choose from, Ascelina turns to face everyone concerned: Gaffe, Angela and the Raiders' Leader. A fighter, a smith and a navigator...different occupations with different point of views. The whole setup allows them a better perspective, Ascelina believed. "So...what do you guys think? Which one should we take?"

Setting

Characters Present

Character Portrait: Hayato Akiyama Character Portrait: Alonzo Balthazar Character Portrait: Gaff Bonebrand Character Portrait: Angela Liborum Character Portrait: Ascelina von Ritter
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"Alright, I'll start this meeting if no one minds. Machine City is very far. Even along the Oceanus Line, we would probably take over a week just to get there. We'll probably encounter a lot of Ventrus along the way and we cannot really delay. What I'm just trying to say is, we should choose our paths wisely. There may be circumstances when it's better to blitz through a more dangerous route than take a safer but longer route..."
Alonzo was almost too ready. The words of the Charon leader Ascelina almost became a blur to the young Lethe guard as he glanced around the room. New faces, of course- they were on Styx's train after all. He pulled his hat down almost on instinct as he took another good look around the room, keeping quiet.

Ascelina had offered them two choices- wow, this early and they already had to decide on a route split. Alonzo was fairly surprised. A shorter route through a tunnel, or a trip around Phlegethon...what? "Through Phlegethon? Really?" He glanced up almost in shock but decided that it would be better not to look rude and pulled at his hat again.

"I know time is an essence on this mission, but I don't think we have a strong enough force to risk the path through the mountain. I also don't trust the integrity of this train to be able to bear the stress, no offense Raiders. One of our uhm, patrols had reported a heavier presence near Old Iron Mountain, but we have managed to keep the area near River Railway relatively under control. However I am not the mission lead so you can all voice your own concerns as well."
Someone spoke up- a girl with red hair. He hadn't heard fully about what the recruits could do and who they were, so he was left a little baffled. The next to speak after was a tall, silver-armored man. Alonzo tried to keep his gaze straight- the masked man seemed to give off a stronger feeling of aura overall, and the Edge Tech at his side could obviously be much stronger than Alonzo's own flimsy, standard-issued blade.

"I think we should go with the route around Phlegethon. Unlike the Crawlers, if we manage to keep the Ventrus Scouts away enough, the train will bear less stress than it would fighting against Crawlers. I'm still open for any other suggestions that want to take the mountain route, however." The man- Hayato, Alonzo had heard someone speak earlier before the meeting- gave his decision. He seemed to have the status of the train in mind- considering it seemed a little more beat up than trains Alonzo had seen in very old books. But how could they be so sure that Scouts were going to be the only Ventrus units they would be dealing with?

"I, ah...I think we should go for the mountain route." The Lethe guard slowly spoke, keeping his voice a little softer. He was literally an outsider to these people- both the Raiders and the Charon guards, and now he was disagreeing with what seemed to be the most supported route. "Unlike Scouts, Crawlers may be faster than us but since the tunnel, as you said is cramped, I doubt they would be fighting against us with their massive numbers. We might be able to expect at least..." He thought back to his notes. "...Five, at best, or less when it comes to traveling through the tunnels. We just have to be on the best of our guard so that the train doesn't take too much damage."

He paused. "I, ah--I'm just making a suggestion, so take it any way you want."

Setting

Characters Present

Character Portrait: Hayato Akiyama Character Portrait: Alonzo Balthazar Character Portrait: Gaff Bonebrand Character Portrait: Angela Liborum Character Portrait: Ascelina von Ritter
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Gaff was very unsure on how to deal with this large amount of decision making. He supposed he was hired to simply watch over the equipment and blast away any Ventrus that became a little to curious.

He didn't posses much will to venture out among the scrapyards since he would need to attend this second meeting anyway

Thus most of his time was spent relaxing in town, Far off as to not gain too many interesting gazes. He also spotted the young mechanic seemingly taking a casual stroll around the city, so far he had taken a liking to her. She seemed more.. "reasonable" than most people you would encounter nowadays.

Upon his arrival to the second meeting he really doubted that the train would not carry them. It might look beaten up and scratched, but it was still a mass of hulking metal able to mow down most things in the way, actually it was quite reminiscent of Gaff'so armor. The choice they were presented was nonetheless quite simple. Gaff didn't care much for the opinions that were voiced

His tactical view was quite simply. As long as they stopped any Ventrus then the train would keep going. Crawlers was a favorable enemy for Gaff, scouts would waste too many bullets. And if the Crawlers could be placed in a choke-point then he could quickly dispatch of them. Thus he simply pointed on the holographic map displaying the Mountain tunnel, releasing a small grunt.

Setting

Characters Present

Character Portrait: Hayato Akiyama Character Portrait: Alonzo Balthazar Character Portrait: Gaff Bonebrand Character Portrait: Angela Liborum Character Portrait: Ascelina von Ritter
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Ascelina listened in attentively to everyone's opinion regarding their route. Either way, they are expected to fight something. Question is, which one? There are certain pros and cons involved with each path and so they have to choose wisely.

Angela voted to take the longer route around Phlegeton, citing that Scout presence around the River Railway has been lessened as of late plus, there was the issue of the train not being able to withstand the stress of diving headlong into the cramped mountain space. Likewise, the Raider leader also chose the River Railway path though he did mention that they'd have to keep the scouts at bay from a range: a feat that is rather difficult to achieve.

On the other hand, only Gaff voted for the mountain path. Makes sense considering his bulk would help in tackling Crawlers head on. But, Ascelina already got her decision.

"Alright, we'll make for the river at full speed. The journey towards Phlegeton may also help us detect any mechanical problems beforehand and allow us to make repairs from a place of safety. In the meantime, we'll just have to deal with the scouts that would be coming at us from range. Sir Gaff, I think your gun would greatly help in that charge. You don't need to hit all of them; blanketing them with fire is good enough plus, we need to ration our bullets well." With the route chosen, Ascelina passed on the word to the rest of the crew. It wasn't going to be an easy ride through given the tensions between them but hopefully, the river air would do everyone good.

"I, ah...I think we should go for the mountain route." Someone suddenly spoke up from her side. Ascelina turned around and saw the Lethe guard Alonzo standing by the car's entrance. He explained how to deal with the Crawlers, as well as some general characteristics they exhibit.

"Right. I heard something about the guards calling this guy an egghead or something. Supposedly interested in how the Ventrus work..." Ascelina tries to recall what little she knows about the young man. In her eyes, he was either crazy or downright insane when he asked to accompany them in their little raid. The things some people would do for the sake of knowledge. Then again, his knowledge may come in handy somewhere along the line.

"Well, jury has decided so there's no going back now. Let's see..." Ascelina thought of a station to recommend him to, in order to make full use of his expertise. "Ah! Sir Gaff, would you mind taking in this man as an assistant? He's rather knowledgeable about the Ventrus so he might sit well around the engineering car." Ascelina asks the armored Edge Smith. Turning back to Alonzo, she continued. "Well, you seem to be knowledgeable enough. Make sure you keep our equipment up to date then." She gave him a slight smile before walking away, motioning for Angela to start the train.

They were heading to the borders surrounding Phlegeton.



The first few hours of the ride were a little uneventful, given that they're still within the confines of humanity's last stronghold. Otherwise, most of the surrounding residential areas and ghettos looked beat up. The Ventrus have been ransacking town again, it seems.

"Hey Ascelina, look!" Ever at Ascelina's side was Rex, her trusted accomplice. He pointed out to what appears to be smoke rising from a Scrapyard ahead.

"Ms. Angela, stop for a moment." Ascelina called out through their communications panel. They need to see what happened and to do that, they'll have to investigate the wreckage. Which also means they'll have to alight the train.

"We're still in Raider territory but we're pretty close to the border...What could cause this much damage?" Rex wondered as he inspected the remains of a shattered steel wall. It looked as if it was pierced by a sharp point and blown up from the inside.

"Alonzo, contact the Raiders and tell them they need to see this. This is their territory after all." Ascelina continued to look around in the meantime. The damages looked too calculated and precise for it to be done with the usual Ventrus they've been fighting. She walked on ahead, heading into an area walled off by debris piles. From within the empty husks of metal though, eyes watched.

"Ascelina, watch out!"

Heeding the warning, Ascelina jumped out of the way in time just as large fangs suddenly swept down, missing the girl by a large margin. Drawing out her sword, Ascelina confronted a gigantic, quadrupedal snake-like Ventrus, sliding down the clusters of debris littered around it.

Despite its lack of visible eyes, the machine's gaze felt like it had some deadly sentience working behind it. It's Ventrisite body seemed to be damage somehow but from what, Ascelina doesn't know. "Was it waiting around here in order to ambush us? Did it know we were going to pass through?"

She could only wonder what would've happened if this creature suddenly attacked their train while it was moving. It wasn't very large but it did seem to pack enough power to at least, derail their engine. The creature roared in anger. The battle begins now.

Setting

Characters Present

Character Portrait: Hayato Akiyama Character Portrait: Alonzo Balthazar Character Portrait: Gaff Bonebrand Character Portrait: Angela Liborum Character Portrait: Ascelina von Ritter
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#, as written by Kirsche
Angela nodded to Hayato in acknowledgement of his support; she had some doubts about the likelihood all of them would survive if the Scouts attacked, but it seemed far more equitable than facing a horde of Crawlers. Being closer to home and having the option of bailing if the train ride was cut short was a comforting feeling as well, through Angela was sure that she would wish she had died if she didn't fulfill her mission. The Raider's decision seemed to solidify the route, and only the large armored man, Gaff or something like that, had voted for the mountain route. As she was readying to leave the car and start up the train, another Cyber Edge from Charon spoke up in favor of the mountain route. A flash of malice passed through Angela's eyes as she glared at the unimpressive Cyber Edge, but she quickly calmed down. Ascelina's decision to take the river route had setteled the matter anyways, and Angela began walking out. As she walked out, she paused briefly next to Gaff and looked up at him(or what she could see of him) and quietly muttered, " Thank you for earlier by the way. It's nice to have some f-friends here." .

The startup process of the train was straightforward albeit frustrating; while the model and make was similar to the one used by Phlegeton, it was far less well maintained and lacked the upgrades that Cocytus had tacked on over the past few years. It took her a few minutes of fiddling with controls and cursing before the train lurched and she heard the engine roar to life. Nodding to herself, Angela took off her mask filter and quickly replaced it with a fresh one; there were a precious few seconds where she couldn't breathe when she swapped them out, so it was best to do it now before she was forced to swap during combat. As the train pulled clear of Styx, Angela began slowly pushing the trains output to its maximum and looked for any final glitches or warnings, and thankfully found none. Satisfied that the train wouldn't explode in the next few minutes, Angela ducked into the next car where Chamber was currently charging and on standby mode. The train had enough supplies to keep Chamber stocked for the estimated duration of the trip, through she would have to rely on external storage and whatever Chamber could carry once they made it into the Machine City. While she didn't expect any trouble on the way to the Machine City, at least not yet, Angela decided to turn on the sensor array of Chamber and connected it to her goggles. There was never any harm in being on the safe side. She quickly returned to the front of the train and monitored the readouts and prayed it didn't blow up like she was expecting it to.


After several hours of nothing happening and the barren wasteland wasting by, Angela began relaxing; there was no imminent threat to her life. So far it seemed she would fulfill her mission and contract with minimal risks at this rate. As she rummaged through her satchel bag for a snack bar, Chamber began displaying warning signals about objects ahead. Angela opened a window and stuck her head outside; there was smoke rising from the Scrapyard and she cursed. So much for a safe and relaxing journey. When Ascelina gave the order to stop the train, Angela was already halfway done with the process and she began walking towards Chamber. She racked the slide of her heavy pistol and slid it back in its holder, expecting the worst. Suddenly she heard a loud shout and crash, and she dove into Chamber and began activation. She shoved her key into the master control panel and the screens lit up, displaying the logo of a long forgotten corporation and country.

"Welcome back Angela. It has been 23 days since you have last used this unit, do you require any assistance?" The programmed voice cheerfully greeted her as Chamber booted up. It was unsettling, but the voice warnings it gave proved to be helpful most of the time.

"No, begin combat program load." Angela snapped at the computer; so far it hadn't been compromised by the Ventrus thanks to long dead Cocytus researchers, and hopefully today wouldn't change that. After a brief pause the screens began displaying combat information and the status of Chamber, as well as images via cameras of the outside world. The fan began roaring to life as the computer began heating up from the combat processes, and Chamber came online.

Angela opened the side door of the train and leaped out, and she gave a sound of disgust at the large Ventrus attacking Ascelina. So much for only fighting Scouts on the way. She considered loading the energy rounds into the primary gun but decided that they were too valuable to use right now; instead she pumped two shots into the large target and rushed over to Ascelina and her lackey. As she put the shield up between Ascelina and the Ventrus she saw that the Ventrus had already been damaged before.

"Orders, Lady Ascelina?"

Setting

Characters Present

Character Portrait: Hayato Akiyama Character Portrait: Alonzo Balthazar Character Portrait: Gaff Bonebrand Character Portrait: Angela Liborum Character Portrait: Ascelina von Ritter
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Gaff didn't mind the fact that his newly acquired companions sided against him, They all decided based on their own reasons. Gaff was simply thinking about the route that would maximise his chance of surivival. A bad habit from his many years in the wastes... Still he started slowly evaluating his companions. How useful are they? Wich one would be able to handle themself if a fight turns bad? The two Cyber Edge's would certainly be able to fight, To what extent remains to be proven. And then the other Girl approached him "Thank you for earlier by the way. It's nice to have some f-friends here". Gaff simply turned his head to her, Not answearing. He could think about her words later. This Girl.. Angela, Who was she? The only visible weaponry on her was that pistol along with an ordinary knife... Gaff supposed she would bring something more.. "Reliable". Perhaps she will only work as an driver... But that would mean that she would need to be protected...

Gaff was slowly zoning out, Observing his companions behind the thick helmet his eyes glowing intensely. Evaluating their weaponry along with any additional tactics that might be used. He only first reacted upon the second mention of his name, "-Sir Gaff, would you mind taking in this man as an assistant? He's rather knowledgeable about the Ventrus so he might sit well around the engineering car." Gaff thus switched his attention to the other Cyber Edge. Upon looking at the boys appearance Gaff suddenly realized: Everyone was seemingly so damn young! The large masked one seemed to be the only one to have atleast reached the age of 20. This almost made Gaff chuckle, Almost.

Now In a much better mood than usual, Gaff quickly entered the cart located at the furthest end of the train. The Engineering cart. The equipment here was more than Gaff was used to, Wich also worked to improve his mood. He didn't look back to see if the young man was following him. If he truly wished to pay him company then he would need to do so on his own.

It did not take long for Gaff to get himself familiar with the small room. He had taken rest in much worse places after all. He left the side located against the door for Alonzo setting up his small amount of equipment against the wall. Then while happily tinkering with his Chaingun, Ignoring most things happening around him.

Thus he was not very happy about the sudden stop of the train. They had not traveled near enough distance to reach their destination. Something was very much wrong. He leaned gently forward, Carefuly opening one of the armored windows only to see a burning town. He sighed gently, So it really was trouble. Then I just that moment a yell rung out, breaking the small amount of tranquility Gaff had gained. "Ascelina, watch out!" followed with a large crash. Yep, It was time. Thus Gaff suddenly swinged his Chaingun upon his shoulder bursting out of the Engineering cart. He looked slightly to the side of the cart, Seeing the back of his comrades.. With a large Ventrus located directly infront of them! He would not be too effective if he joined them directly. So instead he, With a suprising amount of speed moved to the roof of the train, Slowly moving to the side of the Ventrus, watching it intently as his Chaingun started charging. He would wait, Either for him to receive an order to attack.. or for the Ventrus to make the first move.