Having the tech to clear out the mechanical monsters was an amazing feat. Most of the continent had simply given up on traveling the ocean or going to the beach. This was a big bargaining chip. I made sure to point that out as we walked by. Kyle and his men glared at me, but I did not care. "And who is this!?" he asked harshly. The clan engineer of Water Clan said "This is Brianne Terri, our guest from Sixteenth Notes Clan." I extended my hand to him. "It's nice to meet you, captain." I said. He just ignored my hand and continued walking along. I let it drop. We also explored the neighborhood for a bit. At the end of the tour, we looped back to the arcade. "And where is the transmission hub?" Kyle asked. The leader said "Unfortunately, the transmission hub is not under this building." Kyle said "I didn't ask if it was here. I asked where it was." The Water Clan members looked really uncomfortable. I got in the middle and said "I'm sure that such sensitive information will come to light with more meetings and future negotiations. Has your major given you any special instructions here!?"
Of course there was. Kyle scoffed at me and said "In fact, there was. I am to ascertain your fighting strength and capabilities. There is no point in backing weaklings." he announced. I looked at the clan engineer. "I'm sure that a competent and resourceful clan engineer has some really nice weapons and tools to show off. Let's see them now." I proposed. They nodded and then looked at the leader. "Should we take them up, or will we bring our guests down to the clan building?" he asked for guidance. It was Kyle that insisted we go down. At that point, it was hard to refuse. We went down and crate upon crate was brought over for Kyle and his men to see. Most of them still had my clan's logo on them. Kyle had a rifle and examined it. Apparently, it shot toxic rounds. There was a dojo that had a shooting range. We all got to test them out there. Kyle could not hid the excitement he had at shooting their guns with his friends. "Very nice. I assume that these can be fabricated and given to the military if asked for, correct!?" I said out loud to the clan leader. She nodded. "Allies share things."
Frustrating the plans of Kyle seemed to be working. He had a plan however. "I was also sent to test out the AEP units of this clan. We can do some drills and some light sparring." he announced. 05-001 and 05-002 were both up to the task and excited to show their skills. They went on a 10 mile run together. Then they exercised on the beach. 125 pushups, sit-ups, squats and crunches were nothing to them. It was then time for the sparring. I was surprised that Kyle and his friends were tossing the AEP units around. They knew martial arts like aikido and judo. After a bit, they were able to adapt and were not thrown so easily. They also were not troubled at all by their devastating submission holds. They could slip out of it using the liquification of their bodies. Kyle was a bit too comfortable going for the face and groin against them. In a real combat scenario, rules went out the window. They were not actually in danger of any lasting damage, but it was the thought that counted. When they were tired of doing what they could get away with, Kyle nodded and said "Alright. I get it now."
Kyle Ulvon
