"By the Six, can you shut up...?" Sigura grumbled.

The sound came from above me, one that was little more than an agitated whisper.

Streiphen stood in the center of the room, the smooth handle of his otherwise hastily constructed spiral nail-like sword in hand, twisted beyond belief. Sweat dripped past the boy's dark grey cheeks. Those that weren't caught by his long white hair dripped to the cold stone floor below.

He stopped swinging his weapon, looking up towards Sigura for a moment to see if she'd been addressing him. The bright green and black edged glowing [Mantle] around him dimmed as his focus was diverted.

The Half Nekari Chimera in question was lying down, holding a thick newspaper above her head. 'Scandian Voice'. A local paper, if I were to guess.

I'd never been one for newspapers, but the only one I'd ever been acquainted with was Alvelotyl Times, a paper from further south. Father had read it every morning before breakfast in the hopes of finding more fruitful work opportunities. He'd told me many Guilds advertised through the papers, and he'd been searching through them for a lucky break.

I was planning on reading through it myself when she was finished with it, if only to get a better sense of the outside world to help ground me, but right now I had other priorities.

She was laying on the deep purple sheets of a long bunk bed. Sigura's curled expression stared up at the pages above her before unfurling to let out a sigh. She lowered the paper, closing her eyes as she laid it to rest over her stomach.

"Not you, shrimp," Sigura replied, not looking away. "Don't worry about it."

This wasn't the first time she'd said something to break the silence. Toya, who lay on the bunk below Sigura's, hadn't even reacted to it this time. He'd grown as used to it as I had.

The night we'd spent here had been shockingly uneventful. We'd gone through some formalities, met a few of the other faces around here, and been shown to our provisional dorms. To my knowledge, we were some of the very few provisionals even using these dorms for anything more than storage or a place to rest after a fight. The others had homes of their own around the city.

While Streiphen trained, Sigura read and Toya lay down with his eyes closed and hands behind his head, I explored.

My mech was laying down on a thick mat at the back of the room, taking up a substantial amount of floor space. I'd slept here, inside my mech. To the room's credit, it was cozier than an abandoned shopping center.

The rest of the choked mat poking out in front of my mech was buried beneath lumps of metal that I'd been experimenting with. I'd already taken the artefacts we'd gathered and filed them away into the drawers next to the two bunk beds. I'd felt lighter doing it, too. The thoughts of them being damaged on the job had been eating away at me, and now I felt peace. Having a space of our own to store our belongings, sparse as they were, had been liberating.

Within the compartment of my mech, I was exploring. Experimenting. Throughout the talks and introductions with the people of the Velvet Star, I'd found myself fiddling with the green metal. The resonance running through it called out to me time and time again. I didn't know much about it yet, but I hadn't wanted to share much about it with the others, especially those beyond our group.

It wasn't that I didn't trust the Velvet Star with the knowledge of having it, but I hadn't wanted to learn more about it, as counterproductive as it sounded. I'd asked about materials and supplies we could have brought to us for service, and concealed my true intentions behind a vague request to learn of magical metals that they could have purchased for our use, should we earn the money.

Lyridium. That's what they'd called it. Even if it had been one name and visual description among many, I'd latched onto it. Having a name to go with the substance helped.

The resonance felt... special, for lack of a better term. Unique. It was receptive to my touch and influence in a way no other substance had been. I'd been told that reading too much about how to learn or use a certain type of magic could subconsciously 'lock' a person into a mindset that mightn't work well for them. Oftentimes, it was better to go with one's gut when trying something new. Advice could always come after. This felt too important to mess up, so I'd decided to keep it a secret. I wanted to go into this blind.

I was glad Sigura had caught on after I'd asked. She'd shot me a glance, but hadn't mentioned it to those we'd met. I haven't even told her why, yet. I just wanted to explore the metal on my own and find out what I could learn about it. About myself.

Even just the act of molding it was enjoyable. The feeling of it through my [Telekinetic Field] sent chills through my body. I wasn't crafting anything with the metal, yet simply holding it and moving it felt oddly therapeutic. There were a number of things I could try and do with the metal, but I first wanted to figure out how it responded to my other abilities. I should discern what it's melting point was, what shapes it was best suited to taking, my limits in-

The golden ring painted on the space above the double doors of our dorm began to glow, accompanied by a gentle 'ping' sound, one that caught the attention of the others.

"Equinox," came a familiar voice from the ring, emanating throughout the room. "It's time for your first mission."

Screen. The Machina [Receptionist's] voice had been the one to draw our attention. I hadn't thought the first mission we'd spoken of would be starting so soon, but city life seemed to move a little faster than that of a village. I couldn't tell whether I thought that was a good thing or a bad thing.

"There's a robbery in progress on Barskarn Street, not far from here," she told us. A pane of golden light appeared in front of the glowing rune, revealing a clear street map. One route was highlighted in white, one that led from a purple star symbol to that of a red circle. Like she'd said, it was only a few streets away.

"The culprit is Trainmech, an independent Caster from another district. He's working with at least one other Caster with an Epithet and a number of unidentified Goons. The Don wants you to repel or capture the pair, and to ensure the public sees you doing it."

The others began to shift from their spaces. Toya's expression seemed conflicted, but I read a begrudging relief in his eyes. He sluggishly picked himself up off the bed, swinging his legs over the sides as he sat up, looking towards the rune.

"He's independent, but the Don still sees value in capturing him as a way to introduce Equinox to the populace."

The bunk beds on the right were both larger than that of those on the left. They'd been designed for people closer to Sigura's size, and Toya had chosen to take the bottom bunk. Even if Sigura almost fit into it, it was still too big, even for her. She folded up the newspaper, swinging her legs over the side as she leapt off the bed, landing easily before beginning to walk towards me.

"He's an Anvil/Sword Caster that uses metal, just like Homebound does, so we ask you to take precautions for that. Commit the map to memory, use the designated exit point while leaving, and... good luck," Screen finished. The map remained above our doors for a few seconds longer before slowly fizzling out into motes of golden light fading into nothingness.

Anvil and Sword? They had both Sigura and my classifications.

Streiphen hooked his 'sword' back onto his back, grinning widely. Despite the clear danger associated with fighting another Caster, he seemed excited. Fareel rolled off of his bed and onto the floor, groaning as he sat up on the hard stone surface. He'd been dozing off even during the announcement.

I felt a pat against my side as Sigura grinned, stepping over the assortment of metal strewn across the floor as she arrived at a spot next to the door. With both hands, she lifted the barrel of clean water we'd taken with us, taking a long drink before planting it back down on the ground with a heavy hand. Drops of water splashed up from the small circular hole she'd drank from, falling to the lavender floor.

None of us needed to get changed. We didn't know when we'd be called, but we knew that one way or another, we'd be doing work today. Most of us had decided to wear similar clothes to what we'd had already, despite having been offered others. Only one person had requested something new. Fareel wore a black wetsuit, one that left his webbed hands and feet uncovered. He yawned, stretching as he climbed to his feet.

I made a quick check of my compartment. I'd filed away everything I wouldn't need for the confrontation. The metal chunks and tools littering the floor rose into the air, flowing into my metallic form. I elected to keep the Lyridium with me, too, in the event that inspiration struck. Magic did have a habit of growing in the midst of danger, and I didn't want to be stuck without it.

"Finally," Sigura murmured to herself with a grin, wiping her mouth clean of water with a lightly furred wrist. Turning back towards us, she raised her voice, "Time to go. Get your shit together and let's move out."

Fareel climbed up a few rungs of the ladder to his bunk, reaching out with webbed fingers for a wide brimmed straw hat. The hat was secured to the head of a mannequin by a white string under the chin. We'd taken the mannequin from Dronrowth shortly before sundown yesterday. As he brought the hat to his head, I remembered to deactivate the heater to my right.

My telepathic grip ran over the collection of metal pipes, blades and plates within me. I felt a pang of nostalgia as I mentally ticked off a checklist. Being in a safe space and having the luxury of double checking my equipment to ensure I hadn't forgotten anything was relaxing. Reassuring. It was just one step among many along the path towards normality. My legs unfurled, and I climbed to my feet.

"[I'm ready,]" I told my team, metal legs tapping on stone as they left the cushioned surface of the mat.

Sigura raised a hand, pressing it against a plastic panel next to the doors. The Velvet Star compound rarely used locks. Instead, those working here were 'attuned' to some of the rooms that they had the clearance to enter. Sigura's sunset coloured Aera flowed through the plastic and to the familiar blue-pink crystal behind it. The Selarium began to glow, and the twin doors moved outwards, allowing us to step out into the room beyond.

I still didn't know what I could do with the Selarium I'd acquired, but I resolved to ask someone and find out who set up this door system. I might be able to learn how to best use that particular tool from them. The last thing I wanted was for it to go to waste, especially since it seemed to have some magical value.

Following Sigura, we briskly walked out of our room, entering a circular lobby. All around us were sets of heavy wooden double doors identical to ours, all with panels of plastic and crystal next to them. We couldn't open other people's dorms, but our provisional room was attuned to all five of us.

Right now, the circular space was empty. We let Sigura lead the way, walking quickly through the hallway after her. She didn't lead us to the front lobby, nor the entrance we'd first come through. Our dorms were on the bottom floor, the same one as the infirmary. We went down a long tunnel we'd been told to use, one that led away from the compound. The long hallway was dark as we turned the corner to it, only for the white lights overhead to activate, illuminating our path.

We weren't supposed to run in these halls, but walking quickly was acceptable. It wasn't something we'd been explicitly told, but the Don seemed to put a lot of weight in this type of thing. We figured it was better to be safe than sorry.

We arrived at a stone staircase, one leading to a ceiling that would look normal to the outside. Sigura's hands pushed at the top, unfolding a secret entrance to the tunnel. Sunlight and a fine snowfall replaced the artificial glow of the corridor's lighting. I felt lighter seeing it, and the spring in the steps of the others told me they might have, too.

We stepped out into an abandoned alleyway. We kept low, waiting until all five of us had climbed out into the alley before closing the door once again. From the outside, it looked like another part of the ground, especially after Sigura nudged some of the surrounding snow back onto it. It had the appearance of pavement, one that didn't even sound different when stepped on. I wondered how much of that had been magically crafted, or was just the result of good architectural design.

"Do we have a plan?" Toya asked, breaking the silence as Sigura transitioned into a light jog, leading us out of the innocuous alleyway and into a sparsely populated side street.

"Yeah, we do," she grinned. "We hit 'em fast and hard. The robot told us there's only two known Casters. If the big guy is an Anvil like Yur, then let her handle him to learn a thing or two. I'll fight the other one and three do damage control."

Toya opened his mouth to speak before thinking differently of it. He nodded, eyes focusing. Both Sigura and Toya were still wearing the same clothes from the day before. Instead of changing into something better for combat, they'd elected to keep their civilian outfits. Sigura didn't want body armor, since it would lower the risk of a fight and hamper her growth and mobility, while Toya claimed that his bodily transformations made bulkier clothing impractical.

Despite the jogging pace, Streiphen kept up with us. He wore the same clothes as the other day, but even though he'd said it was fine, I suspected he'd only chosen not to change because of what Sigura had said about risk. He was eager to prove himself, and... He'd forgone extra protection because of it. It was good that he wished to show what he could do, but he shouldn't be running himself into the ground to do it.

We turned a corner, and I felt my body instinctively tense up as civilians invaded my bubble.

Regular people going about their day that were now being forced to watch as a monster of metal and their companions ran by them. I caught more than a few shocked and frightened looks in our direction as we jogged through a more populated street. My telekinetic grip over the metal within my form hardened me, keeping me grounded. Despite the shivering of my body, I worked to keep my mech stable, hiding the nervous reaction that could have further upset the crowds. I didn't want to be seen as unstable or uncoordinated.

We jogged up a hill and past a number of stunned civilians and murmuring groups. I tried not to focus on them or the storefronts. I needed to keep calm. We were about to enter a combat situation, and I couldn't let my nerves get to me. I wouldn't let them.

Instead, I focused on us. A group of monsters wearing mostly casual clothes running off to stop a Caster from robbing a store. None of us were wearing the Velvet Star's visors. The Don had made it clear that he wanted us to earn a name for ourselves first, before getting reputations as people working for the Star. I figured it was to gauge the public's opinion of us first, but I couldn't be sure.

Sigura's face bore a wild grin dripping with excitement, her mane of hair flapping behind her as she led the way, eyes darting between the people and shops we passed. I was worrying about this city and its people, but... She seemed to have adjusted better than I had. At least one of us knew what they were doing.

Fareel's melancholic boredom had been replaced by joy. He ran alongside our group on all fours, liberally leaping for every puddle of water and wet slush he could on our way through the streets. He got more than a few angry shouts from people he ended up splashing on his way past, but I was glad that the nerves hadn't gotten to him. He just seemed happy to finally get some fresh air.

Toya cringed at every shout directed at Fareel, yelling apologies at the confused and irritated civilians whenever they voiced their anger. His face was a mix of emotions, one that I couldn't possibly decipher, especially not now. He seemed... conflicted, but determined. I needed to get better at reading him.

Streiphen's expression was determined too, but with none of the emotional turmoil beneath. He was smiling, even as the metal nail smacked against the back of his coat with every step. They all had an energy about them, a will to prove themselves. I needed to learn from their example. To keep myself together.

Then, we saw the first part of our mission. Cresting the hill, we began to jog forwards towards the scene of a crime in motion. I felt a pang of melancholy. Unlike the last time I'd stood atop a hill, I couldn't freely look down at the world below. Instead, I followed, letting the world come to me as my bubble stretched to take in everything it could.

Down the hill ahead of us was a wall. A collection of men and women in fur-lined uniforms with insignias of a blue man's head with antlers and a bushy beard barred our path. The 'wall' looked like snow, one that I was sure had been constructed by one of the group's Casters. It wasn't a durable looking wall, nor a very high wall, with civilians peering over and around it at the scene. That my bubble had yet to spot.

Even if the uniforms were different to those I'd seen back home, I could tell who these people were. The City Watch. They yelled at civilians getting too close, waving unsheathed blades as they took uncertain glances over their shoulders, looking towards the same scene that had caught everyone's eyes with apprehension.

"Stop!" one of them roared in our direction, having spotted the five of us running down along the crowded path towards their barricade.

Then I heard the first scream. This was my second time appearing in public, so I felt a bit of reassurance in the knowledge that I'd only caused a person to scream in sheer panic because I'd been running in their direction. The citizens of this city were pretty composed, all things considered. I wanted to feel a sense of reassurance, even though my body tightened in response.

The [Guardsman's] shout of alarm did our job for us. The Watch moved to get the crowd out of the way as we barreled towards the scene.

"Fuck no!" Sigura roared back. She ran to the left, scooping up both Streiphen and Fareel under one arm each.

The group of armed protectors aimed their blades towards us, speaking quickly to themselves in hushed tones as we drew close, their eyes on Sigura and I.

Then, Sigura jumped.

The crowd scrambled away as Sigura soared overhead, landing on the other side of the cobbled together barricade, sandals falling hard on the pavement, a grin on her face. Toya wasn't long following. After a brief look of confusion and uncertainty, his legs extended until they were twice his full body height. With elongated limbs, Toya stepped over the barricade with little issue, even if he wobbled from the change in proportions.

Some of the fear drained out of the crowd as they realised that they weren't our targets. As I approached the barricade, I tried to quickly piece together the best way forward. While I could simply barrel through it, the 'snow' could be a magically constructed substance, or hardened in a way that wouldn't make it as simple as running through. Instead, I took Sigura's approach.

With a combination of four metallic legs pushing against the ground and my [Telekinesis], I jumped. It was a horrifying experience, one I regretted with every fibre of my being after I did it. My legs spread out as my [Telekinesis] worked harder than it ever had, carrying me over the wall.

A massive shadow passed over the stunned Watch, and I briefly wondered what would have happened if I hadn't been able to hold myself up. I could have fallen on them, flattening and killing several innocent people. Why had I done that? I hated my lack of rational thought. Couldn't I have just talked my way through?

I... No, I couldn't. There was a robbery going on. A crisis situation that our quality of life and future safety depended on. Yeah.

I landed hard, metal legs cracking the pavement as I felt my body rattle within the confines of my bronze helmet. My hidden form felt sore from the impact. Sigura was going to be furious if I hurt myself again, so I kept quiet, getting back on my feet as I 'jogged' forward. I ran into the heat of battle, leaving the not-crushed civilians behind.

My bubble expanded, taking in everything I could see as the compartment on my side opened, allowing a small workshop's worth of metal to hover in the air around me, glinting in the bright morning light.

The store in question was 'Barto's Blacksmith', a building with a design drastically different to those around it. Rather than a cube or box, the cream coloured building had a dome shape, with only a single darkly tinted window at the front, next to a door shaped hole. The stone around the hole was cracked, with debris lining the ground between the footpath and the interior.

Sitting down outside the building was a furious looking Dwarven man. I was never good at telling a Dwarf's age, but he looked... middle aged, maybe? I wasn't sure what that would equate to in Dwarf years, but he looked like a fifty year old Human. He had thick, dark grey hair spilling out from beneath a black bandana, and a thick beard that nearly hid his mouth. Amidst the sea of hair I saw teeth grinding together. He looked well built for his profession, but nearly all of that muscle was bound in thick metal wire, leaving him immobile.

A civilian. Probably the owner or an employee of the shop. My first instinct would have been to send metal plates to his aid, if not for the collection of people entering and leaving the store behind him.

The 'Goons' were people of varying races. Most of them seemed to be Darklings, but I saw a few Humans among them, too, if the skin of their forearms were any indication. All of them were wearing black masks over their faces, with holes cut out for their mouths and eyes. Several were carrying burlap sacks full to bursting with a heavy, jangling material. They were stealing metal. Material for their boss' work, I presumed.

Some of the Goons were in combat already, swinging blades and raising shields. Some carried small firearms, but they were in the minority. The Goons engaging in battle wasn't something I'd been expecting after seeing the City Watch keeping civilians away. When I saw who it was they were fighting, my heart sank.

Their opponents were a collection of Orcs in full plate armor, swinging huge weapons and oversized metallic cutlery at some of the armed Goons. There were twelve Orcs in total, and while they could easily overpower the lightly armored Goons, the two Casters with them provided support that the Big Tooth members couldn't break through.

The first was the unidentified Caster that Screen had alluded to, a spindly looking man with dark skin and blond hair spilling out from the edges of a yellow skin tight mask. I could see a pair of nubs sticking up at the sides of his head, pushing up the fabric. They could have been pointed ears or horns, and I was left guessing as to which. Unlike the activated [Mantles] all around, and the basic Spells and Skills of the Goons and Orcs, his powers stood out as being a cut above the rest.

With a puff of golden smoke, I watched as the man vanished, appearing right in front of another Orc. His legs snapped out with a flash of gold light, knocking the fully armored Orc away with a [Release], sending him skidding back along the ground. Another of the Big Tooth members swung a club at the man, only for it to pass completely through him, as though he was a Spirit. Then, he reappeared in the smoke, completely unharmed.

He could teleport.

It wasn't a common ability, nor a particularly easy one to pull off. I didn't know the specifics of how Spatial Magic like that worked, but I knew that it tended to require some Conditions to consistently pull off due to the difficulty. If he was capable of freely teleporting in combat, there was likely some trick to it. Something we could exploit.

The smoky teleporter looked difficult to fight, but he was nothing compared to the leader of the operation. Six Orcs were crowded around a figure that dwarfed even their size.

Trainmech was a towering Caster, one that easily stood head and shoulders above everyone else, roughly 11ft tall. I couldn't see the body beneath, but his entire form was covered by a black metal, one with a light bronze shine along the edges.

The metal titan's arm raised into the air, swinging down in a massive punch, one that gave me a full view of his blocky forearms. They were squarish in shape, larger than the rest of the fist and arm. That same 'blocky' formation was on both of his lower legs, too. I had to assume they were hiding something, or built that way to allow for the suit's stability. At least... that was what I would have done, if I'd designed my mech suit like his.

His head was a cube of dark steel, with two glowing golden eyes and a squarish open 'mouth' with divided bronze teeth. Without any visible holes for ears or a nose, I had to wonder how he could breathe inside it. Screen had described him as an 'Anvil' Caster, which led me to assume that he'd built the suit himself, but looking at him now, I couldn't imagine how a regular person could pilot something like that. There had to be some system to allow oxygen and cold air in without cooking the Caster within.

He was even taller than I was. Suddenly, the plates hovering around me felt tiny and inefficient in comparison. Cobbled together.

The blow connected, sending two of the fully armored Orcs sprawling. The civilians closest to the barricade leaned away from the pair despite the distance between them. The 'protectors' grumbled beneath their breaths, rising to their feet. The armor creaked from the impact, and their eyes focused, taking in a wider view of the street. Now that they were closer to the barricade-

"Him!" one of the Pigfolk roared, a sound that attracted the attention of civilian and enemy alike. "He is the one who raided our warehouse!"

The eyes of the civilians followed the pointing finger of the enraged Orc, which was planted firmly on Toya. Some of the Orcs growled, but those growls seemed to be directed more at the one who'd spoken, rather than our ally.

The Orc who'd pointed dropped a hand down to his partner, helping the man to his feet. Err... hooves. The second Orc scrunched his eyes closed, grumbling to himself before accepting the hand. The two stepped towards our group, the closest 'enemies' to them. Did they have no sense of priority? The people they were supposedly protecting were in danger, and they looked like they were coming after us instead.

Toya looked mortified. His eyes had grown as wide as dinner plates as he looked between the Orcs accusing him and the civilians whose eyes were now locked firmly on him. He shivered, and I saw more than one civ pull out a Vox or Recorder to take a picture of him. Of us.

Before Toya had any chance to retort or defend himself, Sigura raised a hand towards the pair of aggressors, her expression indifferent.

"Step back, small fry. We're here to deal with the real threat. We don't have time to play around here and waste time kicking your asses."

The comment didn't seem to deter either of the Orcs, even as Sigura's [Mantle] activated, suddenly appearing in full force as though she was bursting into flames.

"You are part of the 'real threat', Chimera," the second Orc said, raising a long butcher's knife. A grey, steel-like [Mantle] surrounded the man as he approached alongside his ally. "You do not know what you are doing."

The Orcs held their blades in front of them, swinging as Sigura came into reach. I sent a barrage of plates to back her up, but she moved far faster than they could. Both of her fists slammed into the metal chest plates with a resounding 'gong' sound. The air flashed with sunset light as the [Release] sent both of the armored Orcs skidding back along the ground, weapons flying from their grip before noisily clattering against the road.

"You couldn't beat one of us with several Casters and a ton of your men," Sigura dryly responded, flexing her fingers as her claws snapped out. "Just go back to your pens and leave the 'protecting' to us."

The teleporter looked between Sigura and the two Orcs picking themselves up off the ground. His mouth curled into a frown beneath the mask, his head whipping back towards the Goons.

"Go! Get out of here!"

With a few nods of understanding, the masked thieves turned around, beginning to turn around with their bags of metal. My metal moved to bar their path, flying overhead before hovering in front of them, a wall of jagged steel and blades. One of the Goons stepped forward, their chest inflating before expelling a wave of air. Wind Magic, or a Skill, but nothing I couldn't handle. The metal stood firm, even if I needed to double down on the telekinetic force to keep the ability from knocking my wall apart.

A scream of outrage and shock ripped through the air. One of the Goons brought a knife down on a small insect-like creature biting into the skin of his arm. The insect was familiar, with cartoonishly big yellow eyes, long tendril-like whiskers, and blue fins on the sides of its head. The blade pierced the back of the Familiar, stealing the light from its eyes, but many more had come to take its place as the swarm of creatures began to bite, scratch and hamper the cluster of fleeing Goons.

Streiphen and Fareel ran towards the wall, moving to disarm the thieves as we'd planned. I knew they couldn't do it alone, and I felt a moment of fury when Toya threw a conflicted look between the pair of charging Chimeras and the civilians. What was he thinking? He couldn't just leave Fareel and Streiphen to the Goons alone!

"[Go!]" I heard myself hiss, directing the telepathic message towards him alone.

The Slime-like man jumped, turning as his hands clenched into fists, running after the pair of shorter Chimeras, his arms already beginning to inflate and grow.

"Are you adventurers?" came a deep, bassy voice. The mere sound sent chills through my body, and my attention was directed towards the massive figure. Trainmech. "You should have better things to be doing than this. Leave."

Toya frowned at the comment, but I felt a small mote of relief when he didn't turn or stop like an idiot, instead swinging an enlarged arm towards a Goon.

"No, we're not," Sigura responded, her expression darkening. "We're just here to kick your ass, and that's all that matters."

"Nobody's gonna pay you for stopping a robbery, so don't try to play [Hero]," the teleporter quipped, pointing towards Sigura. "Just leave. If you're here to blow off steam or gain Experience, fight the Pigs instead. They're closer to your level."

The Pigs. Even though they'd attacked Dronrowth, they were still trying to stop a robbery in progress. What was that old saying, again? The enemy of my enemy is my friend?

It only took one look back at the furious faces and huffs of air blowing out of their snouts to remind myself that they definitely weren't my 'friends'. Their priorities seemed to be all over the place, and they were far from 'good', but they were doing something of worth for these people, if nothing else.

"Maybe later," Sigura responded after a moment of earnest consideration. "Right now, we've got better things to do."

Then, she lunged for the teleporter, leaving me to face off against the other Anvil Caster. One that was larger and stronger than I was. My teammates were giving their all, and I needed to do the same.

They weren't attacking us right now, but most of those Big Tooth Orcs had their focus on Trainmech. Part of me wanted to reach out to them, to get them to coordinate with me to beat him, but... Even the thought of it made my skin roll. These were the same people who'd damaged our base.

The Orcs stepped forward, four of them attacking in unison. Four flying blades of coloured light erupted from the tips of their weapon's edges as they swung upwards, a group of four [Releases]. Trainmech's [Mantle], a deep, dark metallic brown colour that was close in hue to black, intensified. The [Releases] barely pierced the metal, yet left deep scratches on the surface.

They scrambled back when Trainmech stepped forward to swing another punch. They didn't move far enough. The Anvil Caster was slow, but he had reach. One of the Orcs caught the full brunt of the blow with his side. I heard metal crumple and bones crack, even though he was protected by a [Mantle]. The Orc dropped his weapon, rolling to a stop on the pavement as he clutched at his wounded arm, coughing and gagging.

Other Orcs worked to surround him, firing [Releases] from their weapons without getting close. If nothing else, they had a rudimentary understanding of tactics. Against an opponent with superior physical force, it was best to slow them down and keep out of their range. Even if they seemed completely inept of executing that plan.

I added my power to theirs, sending clumps of metal at Trainmech, plates and rods of steel slamming into his suit at high speed. I didn't need to be afraid of going all out against him, not with how armored his body was. I had my doubts I was capable of landing anything close to a fatal blow, even if I wanted to.

Unlike every other enemy I'd faced until now, the metal did nothing. The massive man braced himself against the barrage of heavy metal, and it was my attack that crumpled. Steel bent against the blocky forearms of his suit, causing little to no damage. Whatever his suit was made of, it was stronger than my miscellaneous metal.

I felt pressure seep into the metal, attempting to wrench control from me. That same dark colour over his suit began to spread over my metal. The burden of holding the metal dropped, as did my sense of unity and control. With a panicked haste, I pulled my weapons off of his body with [Telekinesis], re-exerting full control.

It had only been for a moment, but the sensation had been clear. After I'd made contact, he'd tried to control my metal. It was the same trick I'd tried to do to the mechanical cheetah of the Dwarven woman in the woods. Even if he was physically strong, his magic wasn't enough to wrestle the steel from my grip. At least not quickly. But why had the colour of his Aera spread over my metal...? Was that his magic's way of exerting control over materials? Or something else?

Trainmech turned, the sound of shifting plates growing louder as he swung a leg forward, striking an Orc with the force and weight of a falling tree.

If I couldn't damage him, I'd need to slow him down. Could I clump metal around his legs or in his joints? No. If he was in contact with my metal too long, he'd take control of it. The last thing we needed was for him to have more material to work with.

Another plate flew forward, striking the mech's face. I could blind him. Even if I couldn't do it for long, I could give the Orcs an opening to-

With enormous fingers, Trainmech crumpled the plate in front of his face as though it were made of paper. With force, he threw it at another Orc. The Pigfolk gripped his battleaxe with both hands, trying to block the strike with the handle. His hoof caught on the curb of the pavement, toppling him.

I couldn't-

In the midst of swinging a punch, Trainmech clipped a street light. The foundation keeping it within the ground cracked as his punch narrowly missed an Orc. It began to fall, toppling towards the makeshift barricade. For a brief moment, time seemed to slow as I watched the massive light begin to fall.

A member of the Watch dropped their weapon, running to the side as a brownish [Mantle] formed around their hands. They lifted their arms, determined to stop the street light from hitting any of the civilians behind them. People were in danger. Instead of feeling fear, I... felt relief. I didn't know what to make of that irrational emotion, but...

This was something I could do.

Metal plates flew in, a collection of steel heavier than the entire street light in total. They gathered beneath the falling pole, stopping its descent. Holding the entire pole was a struggle. The top of the light, which I presumed was enchanted, felt much heavier than the rest. I needed to shift it... redirect the fall. I tilted the plates to the side bringing them closer to the ground. The path of the falling hazard was redirected, clattering against the steel as it rolled and fell harmlessly against the pavement without causing any further damage.

"Leave," Trainmech intoned, eyes glowing and locked on me. "The more you interfere, the more likely you'll get someone hurt. I've ensured that the only people who can stop me have been stalled. You're wasting your time. Everyone's time."

A memory came to mind. The fight against the Dullahan. My last day as a free person. Back then, my opponent had been too tough. Too strong. I hadn't been able to do anything then, and I wasn't able to do anything now. I could save people, but I couldn't deal with the problem. The threat.

All I could do was assist.

I couldn't beat Trainmech. I couldn't even slow him down. I needed to focus on what I could do.

My attention turned, shifting to the right as I watched Sigura in the midst of combat. Two blades of [Hard Light] had formed in her hands, swinging to clash with a pair of scimitars wielded by the teleporter. In terms of sheer power, she had him beat. I thought I'd see her grinning, but she looked irritated. Enraged. Much like me, she was in a position where she couldn't make use of her strengths.

"Fuck!" Sigura roared, a sound drowned out by the scraping of metal against pavement as another Orc was knocked down. "Stand and fight me!"

It was pointless. They were fighting to their strengths. The teleporter was using his strengths, and Sigura wasn't able to use hers. It was a bad matchup.

"I am fighting you, yeah?" the teleporter grinned, swinging one of the swords at Sigura, slashing open her upper arm. Sigura's arm blurred with motion, passing through his ghostly form as he reappeared within the cloud of golden smoke. Her speed and power meant nothing if she couldn't hit him.

Pavement cracked beneath her feet as she lunged for him. I saw a flash of sunset appear from her feet, a [Release] designed to propel her forward. While the golden smoke remained in the same spot, he teleported behind her, stabbing his sword forward. Even before he'd teleported, Sigura's arm snapped around, blade striking blade. She'd predicted him. The sheer force of her strike reverberated through the man's trembling arm, forcing him to drop the sword.

He stumbled backwards, and Sigura kicked the blade further away from him. Her eyes were locked on his, an unspoken challenge.

The masked teleporter rolled his eyes. Without hesitation, he dropped his other scimitar, holding his open palms out to her. His posture told me he wasn't about to surrender. He had a pair of tattoos on his hands, ones that looked like cartoonishly basic golden swords, with a straight 'blade' and short handle. He clapped his hands together, and I saw the glow of the activated tattoo-like runes. Both of the swords teleported, disappearing from the ground in motes of golden smoke before they reappeared in his hands.

Sigura's scowl deepened.

"[Sigura! Swap with me!]" I called out, catching her attention. "[I can't... I can't fight the Anvil Caster. I need you to do it! I can handle him!]"

I couldn't fight Trainmech, but Sigura might have the power to damage him. She couldn't catch the teleporter, but I could. I was confident of it.

Her eyes darted away from her opponent, landing on the metal behemoth making short work of the remaining Big Tooth members. Trainmech had barely been damaged, with only scratches and the occasional shallow dent on his form. An opponent with unmatched physical force, one that had little in the way of mobility. For a moment, an indecisive anger flashed over her eyes. The look vanished as quickly as it had appeared. A toothy grin stretched across Sigura's face as she nodded, leaving her opponent behind.

Trainmech's eyes were locked on me, and I felt the irrational urge to stand and fight. I was seeing a challenge in his 'expression' where there might not have been one. We needed to fight smarter, not harder. Brute force wasn't an Anvil's- wasn't my specialty.

With four metallic legs scratching against the cracked pavement, I scurried away from the titan, approaching the group of far smaller opponents.

Toya and Streiphen seemed reluctant to strike the Goons, but both still held their own. Streiphen was blocking strikes from Goons, and I saw scratches lining his arms where he wasn't fast or strong enough to take the hits, ruining his coat.

Much like him, Toya wasn’t attacking much. Some of the Goons looked as though they'd been punched unconscious, but those were in the minority. Many were trapped, stuck in thick puddles of deep blue slime dotting the battlefield. Unlike a normal Slime's body, his form didn't seem to melt away at skin or clothes. Instead, they acted like a natural cage, and those caught amidst the slime were having a hard time cutting and prying themselves free. Harmlessly neutralised.

The two hadn't been overwhelmed by sheer numbers, both because the Goons seemed more focused on escape than conflict, and because of Fareel's support.

The many bleeding wounds of the Goons had come from the Fishfolk's Familiars, which had grown in number since the start of the battle. They littered the street, both dead and alive, dozens of tiny legs skittering across stone and up the bodies of their opponents. Some of the Familiars were already starting to 'decompose', turning from corpses into motes of blue light. Many of our foes had abandoned their bags, letting the metal and coin they'd stolen spill out onto the ground as they put their all into escaping.

While the battle against Trainmech had been a complete failure, it was looking like the battle against those with far fewer abilities had been going well. My teammates were doing well, even if I couldn't say the same. Yet.

"If you hold back, you'll regret it!" the blond man yelled, sweat dripping down his neck beneath the mask as his head whipped in their direction. "If you pull your punches because he's a kid, you'll get a one-way ticket to prison! Look at him, he ain't normal! He can take it!"

I didn't think many of these Goons were holding back. They were hired help, but they weren't skilled. Many were gasping for breath and panicked. I saw a few of them creating [Mantles] around their arms, but I didn't see a single one with a fully formed [Mantle] over their entire bodies. Against Casters like Toya and Streiphen with full, dense [Mantles], even strikes with their full weight behind them wouldn't hit as hard.

Even if they couldn't hit as hard as my pacifistic allies, I wasn't going to hold back. The Don told us to avoid fatalities, but he said nothing about injury. I wasn't going to let myself be complacent and risk my allies taking needless damage.

Shadows fell over the battlefield as my metal arrived, plates of thick steel slamming into Goon after Goon, thinning out their numbers. Some were knocked off their feet by rods swinging into ankles and the backs of knees, a barrage of sudden attacks that further worked to destabilise their number.

More plates hovered around Streiphen, and the smile on his face from the added backup reassured me that I was making the right decisions. Goons were swept off their feet in droves as I attacked, scooping them up before throwing them with force into the many piles of slime dotting the street.

A body blinked out of existence within my widened awareness. My focus on the Goons broke as a pair of blades cut into my bronze helmet. The teleporter stood on the edge of my mech, both scimitars in his hands held in a reverse grip, plunged down against the metal. He was stronger than his spindly frame suggested, and I felt him draw blood beneath the bronze.

A twisted metal nail flew for his leg, aiming to pierce. It did its job, but the man standing over me dissipated into fog. I saw him reappear further away, phasing into existence within the cloud of golden smoke once again.

"Y-you... fuck..." he seemed to be in the middle of saying something, but he gave up, breathing hard. "The boss'll flatten your friend. You won't-"

Once again, he stopped speaking. His eyes widened behind the mask as he saw his boss meeting his match.

Sigura's arms were different. They weren't just bathed in sunset light. She'd formed what looked like a pair of gauntlets over her hands, ones made of rolling orange and yellow light. With each strike, she left dents in the Anvil's suit that not even my plates flying at full force could. Drops of dark liquid dripped from the point of every impact. I watched one of the boiling drops splash against the ground, changing from that black colour back to a darker bronze. She was slowly melting his suit, one he was augmenting with magic.

"Fuckin' monsters," the blond man groaned, turning back towards me. "S'pose we couldn't give you a little somethin' to look the other way?"

"[We're getting more from this than you can offer,]" I told him firmly. Screen had said they were independent. They lacked infrastructure. There was no reason to let them go.

"Suit yerself," the man told me, vanishing again.

I braced myself, scurrying backwards as though in fear. It was a pointless action. I wasn't afraid of him, but I wanted him to believe that. His sneakers touched down against the front of my mech once again. He swung, raking the blades noisily along the helmet, going for the holes he'd cut through earlier.

"You're in there, ain't'cha? Lucky that I struck gold on the first hit, huh? Know exactly where yer hidin'."

He would have hit me no matter where he pierced. My entire body was beneath the shell. A lance of steel passed through his grinning, fading form. Right into the trap.

Metal plates moved and came together, forming a prison of steel. Not around the space he'd been on my mech, but around the golden cloud.

I didn't know the specifics of his abilities, but when he vanished into fog, he always reappeared in that cloud. It was some sort of anchor for him. If I could capture the cloud-

"Shit!" I heard him yell, voice partially muffled by the cage. "TM, get me outta here!"

The sound of bending steel drowned out his cry for help. Sigura's fist slammed into the Anvil's torso. His colossal arm came down with a force that would have broken an unarmored man's body, but Sigura's speed was far beyond what the Caster could manage. She darted out of the way long before his fist even came close to connecting.

She had the Anvil handled. I needed to focus on-

I saw the teleporter running towards me, blades flashing. I couldn't see the expression behind his mask, but his body language suggested worry. Why hadn't he teleported onto my body directly? Was he changing his tactics?

More blades slammed into his vanishing form. My awareness turned back towards the cage of steel, and now that my focus was on him, I saw his eye poking through a small hole. His teleportation relied on line of sight, then? Another plate arrived, closing off the gap in the cage. Metal raked uselessly against metal as he tried to cut through the thick plates of steel around him. I could feel every impact through my [Telekinesis].

If he planted his blades against my cage for long enough, I could try and pin them in place, wrestling them from his grip. But I didn't. Instead, I focused on adding more metal to the cage's exterior. He was leaving scratches and small holes in the thinner plates, so I made sure there were multiple layers, completely ensuring his escape and inability to teleport out.

"Damn it! We can't stall any longer," came the hollow, droning voice of Trainmech. "Yo-Yo, we're leaving. Get ready to-"

The Anvil Caster stopped, eyes looking around for his companion. He spotted the multi-layered cage of steel, beginning to run towards it as his leg was clobbered by a glowing vambrace of light.

Despite the dent, he pressed on. The man raised a massive arm, and a panel on the front of the blocky forearm section opened. I watched as three spinning gears appeared from within, moving at high speed. I could see why he hadn't used them against regular people. Damage from something like that would be devastating, and it seemed like he was trying to avoid fatalities, too. He brought the arm down, cleaving through the cage of steel as my metal parted.

The golden cloud within had vanished, and the man, Yo-Yo, manually jumped out of the hole left in the side of the floating metal cage.

With a single fist, Sigura landed a blow on the masked Caster for the first time, striking him square in the gut as he rolled onto the pavement, coughing and gagging for air. His arms curled around his stomach as his body clenched up. The catharsis on Sigura's face was palpable.

More panels on Trainmech's suit opened, revealing three thick gears on both forearms and lower legs. He got down on all fours, planting the gears on the ground in an awkward looking pose akin to planking. The spinning gears carved gouges in the pavement as he began to wheel away, moving faster than I'd ever thought he could. There was no way those gears could support that much weight on their own. He had to be using magic to augment it in some way.

"Moonshine!" Sigura roared, pointing in the direction of Trainmech, who was swiftly approaching the makeshift wall of iron plates I'd crafted earlier. Even if they could stop Goons, they couldn't stop someone like him.

Toya's head whipped towards Sigura, then onto the titan of steel and magic swiftly approaching him and Streiphen.

"[Gelatinous Growth]!"

Toya's 'teeth' ground together as his body mass began to shrink. His torso, legs, and head became smaller and skinnier, more like a shriveled corpse than a person. In contrast, his arms swelled to gigantic proportions, each nearly as tall as Sigura and far wider. With wobbling legs that struggled to support him, he aimed both arms towards the barrier.

With expert timing, slime was expelled from his palms in massive quantities, swiftly deflating his limbs as they stuck to the titan's suit. Metal plating within his form was glued together. The gears within his arms and legs were gummed up, grinding to a stop. With his method of movement halted, Trainmech skidded loudly along the ground, crashing into the wall of iron. Even without as much force behind it, his body was incredibly heavy.

Between the sheer amount of slime binding his body together and to the pavement, he was immobilised.

Toya turned before he fell, landing on his back. His body looked like it was melting, with bits of his stick-thin limbs dripping onto the road. He wasn't breathing, and would have looked completely still if not for the trembling throughout his whole body. He looked... exhausted.

Without missing a beat, Streiphen ran to Toya's side, looking up and down his body as my focus shifted, turning towards Sigura.

"[Are you alright?]" I asked her, confident I could leave Toya to Streiphen and Fareel, at least until I caught my breath.

"I'll live," Sigura nodded with a smile. She brought a pair of fingers to a cut on her upper arm, wincing as her magic generated enough heat to cauterise the wound. I wasn't sure how healthy that was, but I said nothing.

The battle was being cleaned up. The teleporter, Yo-Yo, as well as a number of Goons not trapped in piles of goop were being restrained. The Big Tooth members had pulled themselves together, and those that could walk pulled rope from within their armor, roughly tying up the intruders to 'their territory'.

I saw one of them approach the exhausted Toya, brandishing a rope of his own. Streiphen, who'd been picking up globs of goo to place back on the Slime-like man to help replenish his body mass, once again brandished his sword. The hard look in the boy's eyes was something I hadn't expected from him. The Orc was larger and more well equipped, but he didn't falter. Something emerged from his skin, a thin, dark cloud of gas with motes of-

"We bailed you out of looking like complete idiots," Sigura drawled, her eyes half closed and expression unimpressed. "We did your job for you. If you take one step closer to him, I'll break both of your arms."

The Orc huffed, glancing back at Toya for one last moment before turning around, stomping off towards his brethren. Streiphen's expression brightened, and the conjured material he'd been beginning to form faded away. Sigura planted a hand on his head, ruffling the boy's hair.

"Good job, pipsqueak," she told him, grinning. Then, her eyes went to the shivering Slime-like man. "You too, Jiggles. We'll get you back to normal in no time."

His expression oozed fatigue. He was struggling to hold himself together, too tired to even mutter a word. Instead, he nodded.

Behind us, the barrier of snow began to melt away. Instead of becoming water, it simply vanished. It was conjured material then, not physical. The members of the Watch kept their eyes on us and the Big Tooth Orcs. Carrying the Goons underarm, they began to bring some of their captives to the Watch, dumping them at the guards' feet. I still didn't have a full understanding of how this city's systems worked, but the Watch were still in charge of detaining criminals, it seemed.

At least... criminals that weren't holding territory. Big Tooth had attacked me in broad daylight, and were still taking money for 'protection'. They'd attacked Streiphen and Toya. They were still our enemies, and I couldn't let myself forget that.

An elbow nudged the side of my mech, creating a low 'bong' that caught my attention. Sigura's grin, which had lost all the aggression it had earlier, was directed at me.

"They're lookin' at us, Yur. They're not runnin', either."

Her head turned, and my awareness turned with it.

Wagons pulled by Horses came from side streets, all decorated with the same blue head decorating Scander's flags. The criminals were bundled up into the backs with the [Guardsmen] watching intently, weapons drawn to prepare for any magical retaliation.

Big Tooth continued to pry more Goons from their gooey prisons. The hired help didn't resist as they were tied up and brought to the wagons that would surely take them from one prison to another.

But the eyes of the civilians weren't on the wagons. They weren't on the prisoners, nor the Big Tooth Orcs. They weren't even on the angry, squirming form of the trapped metal titan.

Their eyes were on us.

Some carried that same wariness and worry, yet others held curiosity. Gratitude. We weren't adventurers, but these looks were familiar. Not the same, but... They were the looks I'd seen on the faces of those I'd helped to save from a Dullahan. It felt like it had all happened lifetimes ago, but now the memory was fresh in my mind.

I didn't know how they'd react to us. They hadn't... screamed, or started running away, but their looks weren't fully positive, either. Communication with the people of this city had typically not gone well, and... and maybe it was better for us to simply walk away and let our actions speak for themselves. That would-

"C'mon, Yur. We've gotta introduce ourselves," Sigura told me. She took the first step forward, as usual. After a few seconds of silent deliberation... I followed, close behind her.

Members of the Watch turned to look in our direction, far more wary and uncertain than the stunned, mixed civilians were. None of them pointed their blades at us, but I suspected they'd do so if given an excuse. We couldn't afford to mess this up.

I remembered the fight. I remembered the moment the Dullahan died. The shift in attitude from the crowd. The change from uncertain anticipation to single-minded joy and celebration. I remembered the [Hero], Dorian. I thought of his smile, and the joy he must have felt at proving himself in front of his community.

These people weren't the ones I'd been born with. They weren't even the people I'd been forced to adopt as my own after moving to Addersbrook.

But I was trying to build something here. A new life. A new home. Peace. With a new home came a new community. A community I'd need to learn to coexist with if I wanted to truly settle down in this city. The Don wanted us to prove ourselves. Not just to him, but to the people.

I wondered what the joy Dorian had felt was like. As afraid as I was, I wanted to experience it myself.

Introductions had never been my strong suit. My parents had always opted for the cool and professional route. While that was beneficial for a business relationship, it wasn't conducive to cheers and excitement. I knew that I wasn't the type of person to really incite those feelings in others. I wasn't outgoing or exciting. So, instead, I'd need to rely on the lessons I'd learned from someone who did possess those qualities.

I didn't have a winning smile. No shining teeth or flowing hair. My 'armor' was covered with debris and looked more like a Spider than a Humanoid. But I'd have to make do. I took a deep, internal breath to steel my nerves, praying to all the Gods, Goddesses and Higher Beings that were listening that I wouldn't mess this up.

The crowd murmured amongst themselves, taking pictures and video with Recorders and Voxes as we came closer, stopping a respectable distance from them. Nobody had asked anything quite as convenient as 'Hey, who are you?' or 'Hey, girl! What's your name?' This wasn't exactly the same as the situation in Addersbrook, but... I'd have to make the most of what I had.

I raised my right frontal leg, the first movement I'd made since approaching the crowd. The murmuring began to die down, and I felt like an idiot before the motion was even complete. I planted the curved mechanical leg above the front of my bronze shell-like helmet, giving the crowd a mock salute.

"[I... I'm... I am Yuri Scalesmith, Homebound... of... Team Equinox! At your service!]"

I saw Sigura bite her lip to my right. Her mouth twitched, and I could tell she was holding back a laugh. Gee, thanks Sigura. A fountain of support as always. Much appreciated.

"[I-I'm sure none of you know who we are, but... we're a new group in... in this city. I hope our appearances don't...]"

I trailed off as more lights flashed amongst the crowd, pictures and videos being taken at will. Pictures of us, and of the bodies strewn around us. Our victory.

Sigura planted a hand on my side, the other arm going to her hip as she grinned for the crowd.

"I'm Sunburst of Team Equinox. We're a Chimera team, and if you don't like that, tough. We're here to stay, and we're gonna do a lot more around here then take out that scrap heap," she spoke with a confidence I deeply, deeply envied, jerking a thumb over her shoulder towards Trainmech.

"Count yourselves lucky to have seen our debut mission in the flesh," she drawled. "Don't worry though. Even if you arrived late, there'll be a whole lot more where this came from. We're just getting started."

It sounded a little cockier than I would have liked. I came to a choice before I'd even realised it was on my mind.

"[We're... we're happy to be in this city. Thank you for having us,]" I spoke, dropping the salute as I bowed my head.

Maybe Sigura and I were giving mixed messages here, but we hadn't spoken at length about a unified team image or anything. She was improvising just as much as I was. I took a measure of comfort, at that.

I heard a clapping sound. I'd hoped that the sound was coming from the crowd, but instead it was coming from behind us. Streiphen walked up to my side, smiling brightly.

"I'm Stardust of Team Equinox! Those two are Moonshine and Yakamoz! Thank you for having us!"

I felt myself go bright red beneath the helmet. He'd copied my words, and the crowd must have noticed that. I prayed that my gestures hadn't been misinterpreted, that my stuttering words hadn't been viewed as unstable, uncertain weakness.

Once again, I wished that I'd still have access to my [Camouflage] Skill. I couldn't possibly imagine how that [Hero] had kept a straight face while doing this.

I didn't hear any cheers. No clapping or shouts of wild approval. But... But I saw smiles. An ease that had spread amongst the crowd that not even a single speck of my being had expected. It was... I...

"Good job, Yur," Sigura muttered, turning towards me with a grin, eyes bright. "Mission accomplished."