They knew it was their new home.
It stood so tall and brave under the shadows of the titan, tucked in a dimly lit room— yet it projected itself with pride.
Matte black finish that pierced the light, sleek red lines ran along the walls of the ship. It was truly a testament to it's name. But as the boys took a closer look. It appeared to have no real method of flight. It looked the part, but it's functionalities weren't there.
They inched closer, and a sensor beeped—
KZZT
"PLEASE STATE YOUR NAME AND -KZZT- IDENTIFICATION. IF YOU ARE A NEW COLLECTOR, PLEASE STEP FORWARD TO REGISTER YOUR FACIAL BIOMETRICS."
The brothers both took a light step forward.
A beam of light projected— scanning their face as they try to keep a calm demeanor.
"CROWE MESSMER REGISTERED"
"ARCHIE MESSMER REGISTERED"
Crowe and Archie stared at each other for a second, unsure of what to do. After a short moment of silence, Crowe stepped up and placed his hand on the semi-transparent screen, and a loud clicking sound could be heard.
The door shuddered and slid open, along with a loudspeaker saying, "Welcome to G8."
A bright room lit up with pearl-like light sources floating in the middle of the air. Archie curiously reached out his hand for one. He waved his hand, expecting to touch it, but it passed through. Archie walked up to Crowe, seemingly waiting for an answer, but Crowe didn't seem to have a clue about what was going on.
Loud clashing noises could be heard down the hallway, urging them to come forward.
The brothers walked forward and took a turn, expecting nothing — but were shocked to see the event occurring in front of them.
In the middle of the giant room there was an arena where two man was having a spar with one another. On the side there sat multiple people observing the battle going on. Crowe glanced around and were caught staring into the distance where a particular lady sat on top of a floating book.
The woman have sharp features, small slit eyes, black fluffy hair and plump lips. She did a wave motion at the both of them urging them to come over.
Crowe nudged Archie to get his attention and grabbed him, pulling him as he walked to the woman.
Crowe greeted the woman by introducing himself, but was promptly interrupted by her finger silencing him.
"Ahh, the Mesmer brothers, we were expecting your company. Come.. sit!"
The woman said as she moved to the side, giving space for the two of them to sit.
Crowe sat on the empty side of the book as he reached out to grab Archie and put him on his lap. The mysterious woman was one step ahead, quickly grabbing Archie, lifting him up, and placing him on her lap. She glanced at Crowe, gave him a soft smile, then proceeded to pinch Archie's face.
"Aren't you the cutest fledgling I've ever seen? By the way, the name's Fable," Fable exclaimed in a higher-pitched voice than before.
The three of them chatted, exchanging information about themselves and the group, as Crowe inquired more about G8.
The conversation began to die down after a while, when suddenly a loud thud could be heard from the glass barrier as a man of decent stature was flung toward it by another with a staff.
The man with the staff exclaimed loudly,
"You there, the new guy — come up here and have a spar with me!"
Crowe's eye twitched as he pointed toward himself and shouted back,
"Me?"
Crowe hesitated as he glanced at Archie, then at Fable. Fable simply shrugged, and Archie mimicked her action.
"What do I do?"
Crowe exclaimed in a panicked tone.
"Just go up there and see what's going to happen,"
Fable smirked.
Crowe sighed, wondering what was about to unfold. He slowly stood and began walking.
"You got this, Crowe!"
Archie whispered softly, wearing a wide grin. Crowe glanced back at him and smiled as he approached the arena. As he walked toward it, two people passed by him — a man of giant stature with tanned skin and a pale-skinned woman supporting him as he limped past. Crowe gulped, his mind rapidly conjuring images of what might happen to him if he stepped into the arena. But he shook off the thought and pressed forward.
He soon reached the platform and stepped onto it. He was greeted with a firm shoulder grab by the man already waiting on the stage.
"My name is Sylvester Maine, but you can just call me Sly."
"Hi sir, my name is Crowe Mesmer. Nice to meet you,"
Crowe replied, offering a polite greeting.
"No need to be so formal here. Anyways, let's get back on track. Are you able to manifest any tools using your grimoire yet?"
Sly asked, a look of excitement flashing across his face.
"No, sir… To be honest, I don't even know how to handle my grimoire properly,"
Crowe replied, Sly replied wearing a slight frown .
"In that case, we'll spar with normal weapons then,"
Pointing toward the racks of weapons beside them.
Crowe walked over and selected a wooden sword from the rack.
"Ah, a sword, huh? You must have had some sword training as the heir of the Mesmer household. Alright then — come at me,"
Sly said, lowering into a battle stance and pointing his staff at Crowe, his body arched slightly as he focused his gaze. Crowe frowned slightly as he nervously raised his sword and said,
"I'm ready."
The moment the words left his mouth, Sly lunged forward with surprising speed, barely giving Crowe a moment to react. The staff came swinging upward from below, aiming for Crowe's head. He quickly adjusted his sword downward, just barely blocking the blow.
*'What in human strength…?'* Crowe thought, as a relentless wave of staff strikes followed, one after another.
Each impact sent a jolt through his arms. He could feel his grip weakening with every hit, his hands threatening to give out.
'I can't let this continue. I need an opening to strike…' he thought.
Crowe braced himself, enduring the barrage until he saw an opening. He lunged forward, thrusting his wooden sword at Sly.
But Sly grinned and exclaimed,
"Gotcha."
With expert precision, he positioned his staff parallel to his body, guiding Crowe's sword harmlessly past him. Then, he brought the staff down hard.
Crowe's vision blurred as he collapsed to the ground.
"Well played, Crowe Mesmer… well played."
Sly's voice echoed faintly in his ears as darkness closed in and Everything went black.