Chereads / Mecha: The First Arc / Chapter 20 - Bloodline

Chapter 20 - Bloodline

"So, how can you pilot Vernier?", the RIOR asked. Yes, it was the same RIOR which lead the horde to the city and destroyed the pillar.

"Perhaps, you haven't heard my question properly.", it repeated.

Its voice was slightly feminine and crude. Its facial features were slightly similar to the demon which exists in Hiro's mind. To describe its appearance again, it had one eye on the right side of its face and on the left side of its face had another eye accompanied by smaller eyes on its forehead like a spider. Its lower face, the lips and the jaw were in correct position with its teeth being sharp. Its nose and all were like a human. The eyes were black having yellow iris and black pupil. The hair was messy and dry but it had a normal hairline.

The RIOR which was talking was enough to put the whole atmosphere around there into silence.

The people in were in shock noticing a RIOR talking for the first time.

Hiro himself, couldn't get the guts to reply back to the RIOR's question.

"Oh my, I asked you about how you could pilot Vernier?", the RIOR repeated its question.

Hiro mumbled, he turned on the external speakers which would allow the pilot to speak outside from inside of the cockpit.

"How can a RIOR talk?", Hiro's first reply was with the question of his curiosity and fear.

"That wasn't my question.", the RIOR replied and continued with another question, "Or should I be more specific, whose bloodline do you come under, the Kusur's or the Takahashi's?"

"What do you mean?", Hiro asked her.

"Quit, annoying me!", the RIOR turned furious and punched Vernier on its head, pushing it backward. The RIOR moved towards Vernier to give it a straight punch but Vernier blocked it with its arms and grabbed its arm, throwing it forward. Vernier bended its back, as it threw the RIOR. The RIOR taking advantage of its flexibility, grappled the arm. The RIOR was more flexible than the MECHA as it was organic.

It hit its palm on Vernier's face. Shrapnels flew as some parts of the armor covering its face were broken as the RIOR hit its palm. The RIOR left its grasp, doing a backflip and landing safely. The MECHA moved backwards and was about to fall but luckily it gained its balance.

"Damn, why you!", Hiro cursed as he was in the cockpit.

Vernier aimed its pistol and the RIOR and tried shooting it again. But the RIOR dodged it and moved towards Vernier and tried kicking it but Vernier blocked it with its arms. Hiro moved its control stick and gave a straight uppercut to the RIOR's abdomen but it didn't flinch at all.

"Kuh-", Hiro let out an irritated voice.

The RIOR moved back and then said to him, "Give me my answer and I'll let you go."

As it said that, limbs started to appear with Nebulous ends from the RIOR's back. It was shocking for Hiro to notice. The limbs soon turned out to be hands. The RIOR somehow conjured up other two hands. Thus, having four hands with it. It charged towards Vernier.

Vernier tried attacking it but it was futile.

Its four arms went to Vernier's neck and it was grasped tightly. The arms grasped Vernier's neck tightly and lifted it. It was much to anyone shock there.

Hiro who was inside the cockpit, could see 'error' messages coming up on the display in more and more panels continuously arriving as notifications.

The RIOR spoke, "I told you, I would let you go if answered my questions."

Hiro groaned, by the pain, by the constant shaking off his cockpit making his injuries bleed even worse. But he could see and hear something. He looked straight into the RIOR's face through the display

"You should call me 'Big brother'."

It was a voice that Hiro had never heard of. Then, a scene unfolded in front of him. It with a young woman, perhaps in her teens.

"Nah, to me Aarya is Aarya.", the girl replied and continued, "We are cousins remember, plus I've been calling you by your name since childhood."

"We are cousins and...., we both are cousins to each from the paternal side. That naturally makes you my sister. Both your father and my father are literally born from the same mother and father."

"Even so, I won't call you Big Brother."

"That so cheeky of you,....."

"Aarthi.....", Hiro spoke it as he returned to his senses. His calling was heard from the external speakers and it echoed throughout the silent space there.

The RIOR let go of Vernier as it heard the name and was surprised with an expressionless face whose corners of the mouth rose up from end to end.

"Ohh...", the RIOR grinned.

Vernier was standing on its feet.

"I realized who you might be.....", the RIOR spoke and continued, "But I wonder, how you are still alive even after all these years and still sound so young?"

"Even after all these years.." and "Still sound so young?", Hiro wondered in his mind about what the RIOR was talking about but Hiro didn't utter a word, probably it was because of the pain he was in.

The RIOR turned back and roared. Its roar intimidated all the RIORS in the district and started to gather near it. It moved towards the pillar, lifting it. It lifted the pillar and put it in an erect position on the ground.

It roared again, intimidating the surroundings there.

Seeing that many RIORS were gathered, the people who were there having weapons started to take an aiming stance towards the RIORS. They were acting hostile towards the RIORS as many of them gathered near her.

The RIOR which gathered the rest, looked at them grinning and saying, "They won't attack you all anymore."

This surprised the crowd but they were all on their guard.

"Do you really believe a RIOR's words.", a person said to another one who was taking his aim down.

"But, it told us that they will stop attacking."

"Who knows, they might attack us while our guard is down."

The RIOR roared again, this intimidated the RIORS there even further. They started to slowly move outside of Macross district through the place they entered.

This surprised the people even more.

"What's going on?"

"I've never heard of RIORS going back from the place they've attacked."

The broken pillar which the put back in its place stumbled but the RIOR caught it with its hands and spoke to the one who was piloting Vernier, "Listen, we RIORS were humans once."

Hiro looked towards the display in shock.

"We weren't any special back when we were humans.", it spoke and mumbled slowly, "I guess it's been a hundred years since then"

Then, it continued to Hiro, "We weren't Royalty back then. Neither I am one now, I just control these beings you call 'RIORS' through fear and intellect."

The people there could understand the meaning of its words. It meant that it wasn't royalty and was controlling the RIORS there which caused the stampede.

"Someday, you may know the truth. I am hoping so. I don't have that I will meet you. But you will meet me someday."

The turned its back on Vernier and started to leave saying, "I am sure of it", and it started to run from that place.

The people who say this were pleasantly relieved. They started the screams of victory. They all rounded up near Vernier as the last RIOR left. They cried in joy.

Hiro, who was inside the cockpit could hear their roars of joy. But he all bloodied, and breathed slowly with his eyes open.

He exhaled as he lost the glow in his eyes.