*KER-CHANG*!
...
*KER-CHANG*!
...
*KER-CHANG*!
The sounds of grinding gears echoed often at the steady beat through the hallowed halls of the Imperial Palace, as they often did. The Vector, was, without exception, the most technologically, (and soon to be magically) advanced kingdom in the entire world. They had already conquered the entirety of the Southern Continent.
Down one of the main halls of the Imperial palace walked a woman without fear, and few could make such a claim. Going down past the walls of steel, slightly rusted from the passage of time, this pale-skinned blonde-haired woman had nothing to fear. After all, she was one of the Generals of Vector; serving directly under Emperor Gestahl.
Imperial Soldiers that aligned the hallway she took stood at attention as she passed by, holding their spears high in salute for a moment.
She gave them little mind, however, although not because she was above thinking of others. Even if in her life she was raised to be a general, she still didn’t let it go to her head. No, today she had heard a rather interesting rumor. It had been from two off-duty soldiers on a pub in the civilian residence and business zoning around the Imperial palace. Two guards that were talking about the drudgery of palace duty...
...And having to transport an Esper found right on the outskirts of their very kingdom? On the doorsteps of the Vector no less.
So she was obviously intrigued, and wanting to find out more about this Esper, but without being obvious or arousing the Emperor’s attention.
The Emperor had an appetite for power, and to him Espers where the main entrée. Their very essence was the focus of this entire war that the Gestahl Empire had been waging for the past few years. And if he heard that one of his generals was trying to get too close to one of his precious cornerstones to complete victory... Paranoia tended to make even great people do strange things.
Hmm... Four guards were posted right by the doors of the palace that lead directly to the MagiTek Factory. Something big HAD to be going on. General Celes squared her shoulders and walked towards the guards, her sword resting easily from her belt and her cape billowing behind her.
The four guards stood at attention as soon as she came near. Two stayed close to the entrance and crossed their spears before the set of thick steel doors while the other two took a step closer, saluting their superior. “Afternoon, General Chere,” the four soldiers greeted in sync.
“Afternoon, gentlemen,” Celes greeted the guards formally as she walked by them as casually as possible, as if this was a routine visit from her.
“Begging your pardon, General,” the soldier closest to the blonde in green and white spoke up. “What business brings you to the MagiTek Facility? Our orders were to let no one in or out for the next twenty-four hours.”
Celes stopped walking and turned to regard the soldier. “I wasn’t aware of such orders. Who gave them?”
“Straight from Emperor Gestahl himself,” the Imperial soldier said. “Processing a new ‘specimen’. The damned thing is tougher than our plate-mail armor and took down a whole squadron of troops.” He motioned towards the doors. “They actually have GUARDIAN Armor on the factory floors instead of regular troops today. Not safe for anyone until the damned things are deactivated.”
It was definitely something known throughout the entire Empire. NOTHING beat Guardian Armor. Damned machinations were as slow as hell, but then something didn’t need speed when it could pick off a target from a distance and withstand any offensive force directed against its thick armored plating.
Slowly, Celes nodded her head. “I see. That does bring out a problem, however. I have business to attend to inside the Facility.”
The soldiers looked back and forth with each other. Their orders had come from Emperor Gestahl himself, but Celes was STILL a high ranking officer. Higher than them, anyway.
So, hesitantly, the two soldiers closest to Celes stood out of her way, as the two Imperial aoldiers by the doors slowly opened them causing a nasty grinding of metal against metal. “Go in at your own risk, General,” the Soldier who had been talking continued. “But please, do be careful.”
“Be at ease, gentlemen,” Celes said as she walked past them, smiling faintly at the soldiers and trying to ease their tension. She didn’t know that a beauty of her magnitude, unattainable for such men, made them tense even more.
And so, the woman, who’s soul was that of purest snow, made her way into the factory as the doors were closed behind her. It was an amazing sight to behold. The factory assembly lines were still going, processing and refining the interior skeletons of what would later become MagiTek riding armor... But all around, as far as Celes could look into the place, were Guardian Armors. Guardian Armor everywhere on every floor! She didn’t think the Empire had managed to make this many!
Somehow she knew it brought the empire great power, but it also repulsed her. It was a tool of war. No. A weapon of might. It was no ‘guardian’ but a harbinger of death and destructions for whoever it was aimed at.
But at least Celes had something going for her. The fact that they’d be cramped in this place, not to mention that they were already hindered by limited mobility... And she herself was a rather athletic woman anyway... And even if they did set off to attack, most of their weapons were magic-based, something that would work in her favor.
So all she had to do was... RUN!
Immediately, she was crossing into and leaving the field of vision of many of the armors, surprisingly, leaving a lot of them in the dust before their weapons sensors even activated. But still... Where she had to get through to Cid’s lab, the lab she knew the Espers were kept, one Guardian Armor was posted directly before the entrance. She could see that from her vantage point while moving.
Still... There had to be something she could do. Some way to avoid detection but still get a look at that Esper...
From her spot behind two Guardian Armors, Celes found her possible answer from viewing. A lot of the chains and hooks attached to trays with assorted small parts were still moving, and there a trail of those chains going up a wall and then across the ceiling, near where she needed to get to was close by.
A smile forming on her features, she made her way towards those chains, careful to keep well away of the sensors of the Guardian Armors . No sense in being careful before, only to be found out and demolished now.
So, with that in mind, it was no hard going for the General. A little bit of crossing distance, literally atop of the armors, and she had her way across the floor and to the wall. As a chain was rising up from the floor and close to her, she grabbed hold with one arm, and quickly placed a foot onto the steel basket connected to the hook. She had to balance herself carefully, but the chain was supporting her weight and carrying her up along the wall, and then across the ceiling, over the various weapons scattered across the factory floor.
Celes looked down and took every detail of the factory to memory. You never knew when knowing the terrain could become valuable later on. Hmm... More chains, conveyor belts, ladders that lead to platforms... Looked like she could walk through some of those tubes, they were so wide...
But wait! She was going to pass her stop if she didn’t concentrate. So as she got closer, the woman started to sway her body, getting the chain to swing. It could almost be considered fun, if she didn’t know a mistake here would mean certain death.
Oh well, not having a childhood sometimes did things to people.
Soon, the arc of the swinging chain went far enough. As it went as far as it would go towards the destination, Celes let go, using the moment to hurl herself forward...
...And even in high-heeled boots, she managed to land in the very back of the Guardian Armor, behind its sensor. THAT was cutting it a little close, but she managed it. And that brought her so much closer to her objective now. The set of doors right before her.
Carefully, Celes got off of the armor and placed her hands on the doors, pushing them open as silently as she could, a feat that was impossible thanks to the wear and tear the factory had suffered over the years. The blonde general stepped past the doors, grimacing at the noise but knowing nothing could've made it this far.
Fortunately, nothing reacted as far as she could tell. And looking in, the blonde woman could see the darkness of the room, whose only illumination was that of large upright tubes and tanks, all filled with ‘specimens’. She didn’t bother to close the doors behind her as she made her way into the eerily illuminated room.
She involuntarily shuddered slightly at the image portrayed by some of the Espers in the tubes. She knew perfectly well how she came to be how she was, and felt for these beings. If she could change things... But she couldn’t. That was the problem. She was just another gear in the machine which WAS the problem.
So all these Espers here, veritable prisoners, floated in their tubes, slowly being drained of their essence.
Yet, the General didn’t have much time to dwell on it as something snuck up on her in the mostly dark lab. “Fancy seeing you hear...” Came a low, husky voice, followed by a cold, clammy hand grasping at her ass, thanks to the fact her one-piece was a thong in the back. The even more revolting greeting was followed by the feel of a wet tongue licking her neck, violating her personal space further.
Celes shuddered in anger and elbowed her assailant in the solar plexus hard. “How dare you!?” She demanded angrily.
The form that was struck let go near-instantaneous with being hit harshly with an elbow; stumbling back and hunching over, coughing violently. “Hack, cough, COUGH, hack! S-stupid bitch!” The assailant cursed.
“Don’t touch me, you depraved pervert!” Celes snapped angrily. Obviously there was no love lost between these two.
“Puh-pervert?” The man sputtered as he slowly stood, his numerous earrings and necklaces jingling. “Pervert!?” He asked again, standing up, his billowy shoulder padding and raised collar adding to a frame which was obviously rather lithe underneath the bright and gaudy clothing. “I am no pervert, my dear...”
“Well excuse me,” Celes said sarcastically as she squared her shoulders and placed her hand on the hilt of her sword.
Kefka Palazzo, ‘advisor’ of Emperor Gestahl and the first, (and failed) MagiTek Knight, just smiled as he watched the woman. “You know, I wonder what our dear Emperor would think to one of his Generals snooping around in a currently restricted zone...”
“The same could be said about you,” Celes returned. “What are you doing here, Kefka?”
“Orders, my dear General...” The way he said her title had the hint of venom to it. Obviously, Kefka was a self-serving narcissist and the fact that Celes, a WOMAN, was of much higher ranking than him irked the crazed clown. “I am working on a special project...” He chuckled darkly. “Something that doesn’t mind if I grab her ass... Unlike some other prudes I can think of.”
The woman’s eyes narrowed dangerously. “Anything would mind being touched by you.”
That just made the pale pink, nearly white-skinned man smile, his bright rid lips widening to show off yellowed teeth. “She doesn’t...” Kefka said with a tone of voice that had an air of ‘I know something you don’t know’.
That tone of voice almost made Celes punch Kefka in the face. The only thing that stopped her was that it would be useless. “Whatever,” she said indifferently and turned to regard the Espers that surrounded them. “I see the specimens are being drained a lot faster than usual. Is the Emperor intending to prepare more Generals?”
“Oh, no no no no noo~Oooooo...: Kefka said as he tip-toed closer, standing behind Celes. He brought hid hand to her hair, lifting it up so he could whisper into her ear in a conspiratorial manner. “Besides dealing with a new Esper, Cid’s making a new, upgraded version of the MagiTek Ride Armor for MY special little pet... If you thought the MagiTek Laser with its three Elemental modes were something, wait until you see a MagiTek Missle!”
Celes made a face of disgust at Kefka’s proximity, yet she did nothing as the best way to get information out of him was to allow the creep to boast to his heart’s content. “Those things are hard enough to pilot as it is, Kefka.”
Smile widening, Kefka chuckled with a dark joy. “Oh no, this is a special version; slightly smaller and lighter plating than our regular MagiTek ride-armors. Allowing for greater speed and advanced mobility. Two more mock-ones are being made up as we speak, with the traditional MagiTek powers and piloting schematics. Imagine, three troops with MagiTek Armors fast enough to cross greater distances in less time and small enough to get into tight city streets or caverns...” He licked his lips. “Mine-shafts...”
Celes narrowed her eyes in thought. “Narshe... You’re going to Narshe.”
“Oh, I'm not...” Kefka chuckled darkly. “YOU’LL be taking them to the Northern Continent and allow those three to make their way North to Narshe...” He continued his whisper in a an even softer tone. “War on the North Continent is finally upon us... That simpering softie, Leo Damascus has already been dispatched to Doma. Intelligence has confirmed that they ARE supporters of those thrice-damned Returners...” He smiled widely, hand going down to grope her ass once more. “We’re going to unite this world under the banner of the Gestahl Empire completely.”
Celes frowned at that. Kefka wasn’t talking about uniting the world. He was talking about beating it into submission. “Are we strong enough to divide our forces that much?”
“Of course!” Kefka said, hand slipping up to grab the top part of Celes’ outfit that was the thong, gently tugging it up. “We have allies up North, you know. The ruler of the Desert Kingdom Figaro is allied with Emperor Gestahl, not to mentions our spies in South Figaro. And there’s more Espers to be captured up there, we just need to take them,” he chuckled. “And as soon as the Emperor is done with me in the Vector, I will be heading North as well... Who knows. Maybe we could spend a night or two contemplating war plans and other things as we conquer those poor and pathetic kingdoms and towns that don’t yet know what’s good for them...” He gently started to pull back and up on her outfit, allowing him a glimpse of the small of Celes’ back.
Celes leaned forward and whispered in Kefka’s ear. “Kefka...”
Eyes blinking at the sudden change in attitude, Kefka smiled widely. “Yes, General Chere?”
The General traced a delicate hand down to his crotch and took a hold of a certain part of his anatomy. “About your offer...” She started to squeeze hard, her voice cold as ice. “If you ever touch me or come onto me again, I’ll rip this off. Do we have an understanding?” She usually never got angry like this, but the clown manhandling her just had that effect on her.
The repulsive advisor of the Emperor took a sharp intake of pained breath. “C-cold as ice,” he managed to gasp out, letting go of her outfit and causing it to lightly snap back into place.
Celes let go of Kefka and backhanded him violently. She also decided to burn the glove she was wearing and wash her hand thoroughly.
With the force of the strike, Kefka stumbled a bit, crashing against a bolted table and leaning over it. Slowly he stood up, turning to look over his shoulder, body twitching violently. “You... Little...”
“What’s going on here?” Came a voice of an older man, followed by the screeching of metal as another set of doors opened, letting more light into the room, and casting the shadow which was something akin to a cone, thanks to the rubber and latex outfit the man wore.
Celes schooled her features. It wouldn’t do to have the newcomer see her so furious.
Coming into the room, the older man looked around. He was quite humorous, looking like a banana, but it was this man with a bushy brown mustache that Celes knew well. “Celes?” He asked in surprise and pleased tone... But then frowned as soon as he saw who else was with her. “Kefka...”
”Cid...” Kefka said in passing, before turning to leave. “Sorry to say, I have important work from the Emperor that needs to be done!” And with a flourish of his green cape, he was already walking out.
Cid shook his head gently, and took a step closer to Celes. When he knew the freakish clown was out of ear-shot, he mumbled, “Fruitcake...”
The blonde general smiled faintly at that. She always did like the old man. “It’s good to see you in good health.”
“Thank you, Celes...” He managed a small smile. “What brings you here? Want me to take time to upgrade your ice elemental magic powers, my dear princess of snow?” He managed to give her a small smile. He’d known Celes since she’d been born, and had always been looking out for her since the very beginning.
“If there was a way to do it without draining the Espers...” Celes said a little sadly.
Cid shook his head slowly. “Not that I know of. And the Emperor is going to be upset to hear out latest acquired specimen is a ‘dud’...”
Celes blinked her eyes at that. “You mean the new Esper?”
Cid nodded his head. “It’s got magic in it, most certainly but... I can’t extract it. It’s like the creature’s running on an entirely different form of magic altogether. And I can’t do a physical test either...” He looked down and blushed. “I can't seem to make an incisions with my tools, nor drill into its skin to put certain IV’s and other tubes...”
“Is it that different from other Espers, then?” The general asked, now truly interested.
Cid nodded. “I’m beginning to doubt that the thing really is an Esper at all... But...” He was hesitant. “Besides an Esper, I don’t know what kind of creature is that magically enhanced, nor containing of such magic. It’s like he’s an entirely new species...”
“Is there any chance I might see it?” Celes now definitely had to meet this creature, her curiosity piqued.
Read the comments on this episode
See other episodes by Red Priest of the 17th Order
(Posted Tue, 20 Jun 2006 20:43)
Questions? Problems? Suggestions?
Send a mail to addventure@bast-enterprises.de
or use the contact form.
らんま1/2 © Rumiko Takahashi
All other series and their characters are © by their respective creators or owners. No claims of ownership of these characters are implied by the authors of this Addventure, or should be inferred.
The Anime Addventure is a non-profit site.