Legends of the Halcyon Era

Episode 38 - Flashback: When Nyte Met Feeny

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Outside of an unlicensed ruin gate, a Digger arrived, following his fates and fortunes.

His face was wrapped in stained and tattered bandages, with only his red cybernetic eyes peeking through the cloth. In the place of his left arm was a mechanical arm with a circle of gun barrels replaced his normal limb.

His name? Fenix.

"Hmm," he said to himself. "This place looks like it might have a few decent refractors. Or at least a Reaverbot I can punch out."

He entered the ruin, prowled around, and was met with little resistance. As he moved further in, he heard faint noises – fighting? – and decided to head in that direction.

"Hmm, a door," he said, as he stood before the portal. "I think I shall open it, for there is probably stuff on the other side." He paused. "And reconsider narrating my actions to myself out loud, lest anyone think I might be crazy." Then he opened the door.

Inside, Fenix saw someone: a blonde-haired young man in some tattered clothing, fending off several Reaverbots – Horokko – bare-handed. "What in God's name...?!"

The young man, Nytetrayn, delivered a jump kick to one of the Horokko, and sent it skidding back into the others. Fenix raised his Gatling Arm, and shouted, "Yo newbie! GET DOWN!"

"...the hell?" Nytetrayn said, as he turned his attention to the intruder.

"Duck before I shoot, ya idjit!"

Nytetrayn did as he was told, and the masked Digger followed through on his promise, opening fire on the Reaverbots. Nyte let out a yelp as the bullets flew past him, and looked back at the hole-filled Reaverbots just before they fell over and exploded. Fenix grunted, and lowered his gun.

"I suppose that's one way of doing things," Nyte said.

"What in the hell are you doing here, boy? A ruin's no place to screw around!"

"What's it look like? I'm 'digging'!"

After a brief pause, Fenix yelled, "IN YOUR UNDERWEAR?!"

"And who are you supposed to be? The Mummy?"

"This is what happens to your face if you dig without the proper equipment. Tell me, are you suicidal, or just stupid?"

Nyte scratched his head on that one. "How about 'broke'?"

"There are far less lethal ways to make a buck, ya know..."

"Well, this one seemed to be the most profitable. Besides, I can handle myself just fine, thanks."

"Mmm-hmm, that's what they all say. Then they meet the fifty-foot mechanical dinosaur..."

Nyte raised an eyebrow at that, and said, "...right. Anyways, I appreciate the assist, but I've got refractors to find." He picked up a bag from the floor and headed for the next door.

Fenix shrugged, as he rooted around in the Reaverbot wreckage in the hopes of finding any refractor shards they might have left behind. "Suit yourself. God knows I got my own problems, without looking out for every crazy I run into."

Nytetrayn muttered something under his breath about how mirrors must be among them, then triggered the door to the next chamber and entered.

Fenix grumbled as he stuffed what shards he was able to find into his backpack, then decided to take a peek into that next room. He figured he'd watch and wait until the kid was about to die before coming in for the save.

There, Nytetrayn stepped towards the center, and a few more Horokko revealed themselves. "And here, the fun begins," he said, as he kicked one right in its red eye, crushing it and impairing its sight. Nyte remained in front of the Reaverbot as its two comrades lined up and opened fire, then jumped out of the way, letting them fry their mate as he rolled between the pair. They both turned towards each other, and right when they were about to fire, Nyte leaped out of the way, letting them slag each other. "Stupid robots," he said as he scooped up whatever refractors he could find among the wreckage.

After a stunned silence, Fenix said, "Impressive... though I didn't think most people were capable of splintering a Reaverbot eye with their bare hands."

Nytetrayn looked at Fenix. "Wasn't hard, why? Can't you?"

Fenix hesitated to answer that for a second. "I can, but it hurts like a sumbitch afterwards."

"You know, speaking of which, do those fetch anything?" Nyte asked.

"What? The eyes?"

"Yeah."

"Sure, you can sell 'em to a junk shop, or a museum, sometimes."

"Works for me," Nytetrayn said as he stuffed the intact ones into his bag. Fenix shrugged, and went back into the outer hallway, searching for things to shoot. Nyte swung the bag over his shoulder and moved on, following the masked Digger. "So what brings you here, anyway?"

Fenix gunned down a Reaverbot that looked like a mechanical rabbit, and ripped out its still-pulsing refractor heart, then said, "Same reason anyone enters a ruin. I need the money, and this is pretty much all I can do."

"Ah," Nyte said, understanding. "Been at this long?"

"Not so much... I'm really only here so I can buy a flight to another island, so I can continue my preferred occupation."

"What's that?" Nyte asked, as he checked a hole in the wall and found some more refractors.

"Killing pirates," Fenix said, as he stomped on another Reaverbunny.

"Killing pirates?"

"Killing pirates."

"A little extreme, isn't it?"

"Have you ever met a pirate?"

"Can't say as I have."

"You wouldn't have said that if you had."

"I see," Nytetrayn said, figuring there was no way they could ever be that bad.

Fenix moved along, as his glowing eyes illuminated the tunnel.

"So, what's with the eyes?"

"What about them?"

"Well, I don't know too many people... anyone, really – but the ones I've seen don't have glowing red eyes."

"Probably because they were born with theirs," Fenix said. "Mine are more recent acquisitions."

"Oh. I see," Nyte said. Before he could continue the line of questioning, he spotted something leaning against the wall up ahead, and ran over to check it out. It was a long, metal pole. "This could be handy," Nyte said, as he picked it up and twirled it around a bit to get a feel for it.

"Hm. You're not from around here, are you?" Fenix asked.

Nyte paused his twirling. "Uh, sort of. Why?"

Fenix counted off on his fingers, "You venture into a ruin without armor, without weapons, you ask if Reaverbot eyes are worth anything, you've never met a pirate, and you're not an insufferable jerk like everyone else on this god-forsaken island..." Nyte looked at Fenix expectantly. "...and I'm all out of fingers."

"So... that's a compliment, then, right?"

"Sort of."

"I'll take it!" Nyte said, before examining his loot. "Hope there are some bigger refractors in here than this..."

"Hmmm, probably. We haven't run into any really big Reaverbots, yet."

Nyte twirled his makeshift staff again. "Maybe this thing will be handier than I thought."

"Probably," Fenix said, before he paused. "Uh-oh..."

"'Uh-oh'?"

"I just realized something."

"What's that?"

"This ruin has a reputation for containing a certain... kind of Reaverbot..."

"I'm not following."

"Let me put it this way: there's a dog-shaped Reaverbot running at us at top speed, and we'd better shoot it before it reaches either of your legs."

Nytetrayn looked, and saw the Karumuna Bash as it approached. Fortunately, it wasn't as large as this type tended to be, but was closer in size to a German shepherd. "Oh boy," Nyte said.

As the Reaverdog drew near, it pounced towards Nytetrayn, who used his newfound metal pole to smash the thing directly over its head down to the ground. That did little to slow it down, however, as it growled and grabbed Nyte by the shoe. "ACK!" he yelled as he swung his leg around, before smashing it into the nearest wall. Fenix took the opportunity to put a few rounds into it, causing it to yelp and run off.

"Thanks," Nyte said, as he checked to see if there was any damage. Fortunately, it seemed the dog didn't really have any time to inflict any.

"No problem," Fenix replied. "It didn't get anything on you, did it?"

"No, I don't think so. What the hell was with that thing?"

"A Reaverbot dog that would gladly hump your leg."

"Okay, sorry I asked."

"You should be, that was a stupid question."

As they moved onward, Nyte spotted a door up ahead. "Maybe there's something worthwhile in there."

"Possibly. Let's check it out."

"Right," Nyte said, as he readied his pole, went up to the door, and opened it. While he did that, Fenix prepared his Gatling Arm.

As the door opened, Fenix yelped as a horde of mechanical lemmings knocked him to the floor and poured over him like a metal wave. Nytetrayn leaped aside, taken totally off-guard and unsure of what to do.

"Aaaaiiieeee! It tickles!"

"Um... hang on! I'll try and get them off!" Nyte said, as he raised his pole over his head, hoping he can time it just so he can knock them away. Before he could swing down, the wave passed, leaving Fenix a bit disheveled, but otherwise unharmed.

"What the blue hell was that?! shouted the masked Digger.

"I don't know," Nyte said, as he looked through the doorway and back to Fenix. "Need a hand?" he asked, reaching out to help his companion up.

"Thanks," Fenix said, as he accepted the gesture and returned to his feet. "Wanna bet there's something bizarre in there?"

"Well, there was something bizarre in there," Nyte said. "Don't know about now."

As he peered through the doorway again, he saw mounds and mounds of erotic books, dirty magazines, and the like. "What the hell is all that?!"

Fenix's eyes widened. "The Mother Lode."

Nyte paused. "You mean those magazines are what every Digger has been searching for, the key to energizing civilization indefinitely?"

"Well, okay, no. But it is the next best thing!"

"It is?"

Fenix browsed the pile. "Dear God... some of these are thousands of years old!"

Nyte paused again to consider the implications. "Are they worth anything?"

"Oh, goodness yes. There are some fanboys in town who'll pay through the nose for priceless gems like these."

As Nyte thought about this, Fenix added, "We could get... ooh, enough to get you some clothes, and a ticket or two off-island, at least."

"That works," Nyte said, as he started scooping the wares into his bag. Fenix did the same. "So, would these bring in more than refractors?" Nyte asked.

"You'll get more per magazine than for a refractor of a comparable size, yeah, but you have to know who to sell 'em to. Hmmm... I think I know the perfect guy."

"Alright, mind if I come along?"

"Sure thing. You helped, I'll split the money with ya'."

"That works. Thanks," Nyte said, as he packed all his bag could hold. But that raised another question: "I wonder if I should still hold onto the Reaverbot eyes?"

"Probably. Those things are pretty valuable, too."

"Alright," Nyte said, as he looked around. "I wonder if there's anything else of note around here."

"Let's look around a bit more. Just.... watch out for dogs."

"Right."

Fenix tapped the walls as they went, glancing from right to left, while Nyte followed along, examining one of his acquisitions more closely – and turned some strange shades of red in the process. "This... this isn't right... is it?" he asked, as he put it back. "I thought people were supposed to be... you know, clothed? At least somewhat."

"Not all the time – oh my god, you've never had 'the talk'."

"Okay... huh? Talk?"

Fenix smacked himself in the face with his hand, then winced.

"Well," Nyte continued, "no, I guess I haven't, really. You're the first person I've ever really talked to, actually."

"Um... just, let me get this straight: You have no idea what the people in those magazines are doing, right?" After taking a moment to process what Nyte said, Fenix added, "Wait, what?"

"Well, it looked like someone was doing something with the other's mouth. I was pretty sure that wasn't right. And others were... I dunno, looked like they were eating off the others. I guess the only logical explanation is that they don't have dishes, huh? But that doesn't explain why someone would make magazines of them and others buying them... except that for them to make it, there MUST be a market... and they're selling them so they can get dishes!"

An awkward pause followed between both Diggers, until Nytetrayn broke the silence. "This is all just so damn weird."

"O-kay... lessee.... how did my mom put it...? 'Son, when two people feel a mutual urge to procreate, they strip naked and hump like rabbits. That's all you need to know.'"

Another awkward pause followed, until Fenix said, "Okay, that won't work..."

Nytetrayn said, "Okay, I get it now. Except for all that other stuff."

"It's called 'sex,'" Fenix said. "All the other 'stuff' is variations upon a basic theme that people implement when they're bored."

"That bad, is it?"

"No, no... but if you do it a lot, you will eventually get tired of the same position over and over again. It's really lots of fun, if you can find the right person... or so I'm told."

"I see..." Nyte said, thinking. "So sex is this thing where you get together with someone, and try to increase your numbers, then? And the other stuff is to make it less boring?"

"Ummm... yeah..." Fenix said, never once imagining he'd ever be having this talk. "But it's not strictly for procreation. More often, it's just for the fun of it. The other stuff is even more just for fun, I guess."

"Er, okay. So, does it matter who you do it with? I'm noticing a lot of variations here: men with women, men with men, women with women... sometimes with more than one."

"Everyone has their own preferences."

"Based on?"

"Nobody really knows. People just up and decide one day, hey, I wanna have sex with men! The most common pairing is one on one with a member of the opposite sex, though."

"Ah, okay. So what do you prefer?"

"I stick to women, and generally one at a time, but I have been known to experiment with quantity..."

"Right. So, should I be interested in women, then?"

"Maybe. Depends, which pictures got you the most flustered?"

"Flustered?"

"Which ones did you react to?"

"Oh. I don't know. They were all sort of... strange."

"Ah, well, you just need more experience then. Give it time, you'll figure it out sooner or later."

"Some of the women were sort of... attractive, though, I guess. The ones without their legs around their head, anyway."

Fenix shuddered. "Let's get rid of these as soon as possible."

Nyte was a little confused by the reaction, but agreed. "Should we head out? I don't want to face another dog like that until I have better armor... or any armor, for that matter."

"Probably a good idea. Lessee... what was the way out?"

"Back that way, I think," Nyte said, as he pointed in the direction they'd come from.

"Then let's go. By the way, I didn't catch your name...?"

"Oh... My name is Nytetrayn. And you?"

"My name is... Fenix. Call me Fenix."

"So, where do you come from?"

"An island a few hundred miles from here... why?"

"Just wondering. So you aren't local, then."

"Nope. Are you?"

"Well... not exactly. I mean, sort of... I guess."

Fenix looked at Nytetrayn quizzically. "Can't remember? Or are you lost?"

"Er..." Nyte thought for a minute of how to explain this without lying, and without sounding like a freak. "I... woke up in the forest... with no memories of who I am," he said. "Close enough," he thought to himself.

"That's... unusual."

"Um, yeah... I guess it is, a little bit."

"No memories of your past? What about basic knowledge?"

"Er, basic knowledge?"

"How to eat, what money is, rivers always flow towards the ocean, etcetera."

"Oh, yeah, pretty much."

"I see... oop, here we are, elevator. After you."

"Ah, thank you," Nyte said, as he stepped on. Fenix stepped on the elevator after him, and it took them to the surface.

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Before too long, the duo arrived at a large, richly-ornamented mansion.

"Wow," Nytetrayn said, as he tried to take in all the opulence. "Who lives here?"

"The biggest pervert on the planet," Fenix said, as he rang the intercom.

This gave Nytetrayn pause. "How do you know him?"

"We had an awkward encounter in a local... establishment..."

"I see."

A voice rang through the intercom. "What? Who's there? We don't want any! Go away! It's nap time! Does your mother know you're doing this?!"

"Yo, Rufus! Got a delivery here for ya'! It's the good stuff!"

"Really? Well, that's a horse of a different color! Come in! Come in!" With that, the gate opened before the pair.

"Stay behind me. If he sees you in that getup, he'll offer you money for... never mind. The mere suggestion of such an idea will make you vomit on the floor. And me."

As they entered the estate, Rufus greeted them inside. He turned out to be an enormous, pimply man with greasy hair and thick glasses. He was also wearing a t-shirt and shorts that were a size or two too small.

Nyte stared wide-eyed, and whispered to Fenix, "What... is he?"

"Nobody really knows," Fenix whispered back.

Fortunately for them, their host was too preoccupied to take notice of the conversation happening behind his back. "Amazing! Some of these magazines are over five-hundred years old! I'll take them all! Zenny! Take it! As much as you want! Now, if you'll excuse me, I have to catch up on my reading!" With that, he disappeared into one of the many rooms, and slammed the door shut behind him.

After a few moments of awkward silence, Nytetrayn said, "So, he said we can take as much as we want?"

"Yeah... he's the heir of the guy who invented the underground radio. We could pick this house clean, and he wouldn't miss it."

Nyte raised an eyebrow. "Er, so, do we? I thought people named their prices, and stuff like that. I never imagined we'd be given free reign over his property."

"Nah, we're better than that. You just grab what you can of that pile over there, and I'll get what I can of this one."

Nyte emptied his bag of its contents, but before he began to fill it with Zenny, he asked, "Hey, Fenix?"

"Yeah?" Fenix asked, as he busily stuffed his bag.

"Think we should dump these refractors and eyes and whatever here, and use the space for Zenny instead? I mean, I doubt they take up that much space, but would it be worthwhile to do so?"

"Hmm," Fenix said, as she stroked his chin. "The refractor shards are as good as Zenny, so go ahead and keep them. The eyes... heheheheh... heheheheheheh... I just remembered, Rufus is terrified of Reaverbots. Leave those things in plain sight. He'll crap his pants."

"Um, okay," said Nyte, as he left the eyes out, and started to gather up as much Zenny as his bag could carry. "So, what's this 'underground radio' you speak of? I think I must've missed that in my studying."

"It's a radio that can penetrate ruins. Diggers use them to communicate with their Spotters. It allows them to dig a lot deeper than they could a hundred years ago, when they had to go in without support."

"Oh, right," Nyte said. "Yeah, I do remember glancing over that section. I guess since there was no one to spot for me, I didn't pay it much mind." Once Nyte finished filling his bag, he asked, "So, where to now?"

"Now, we get you some clothes, and some armor. C'mon."

With that, Fenix and Nytetrayn departed. After they passed through the gate, the pair heard a blood-curdling scream echo out from the mansion behind them, sending nearby birds flying from the trees for their own safety.

"Heheheh... got 'im," Fenix said, before they continued on their way.

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