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”Stop! Stop!” Steel Guardian says, their voice modulator unable to hide the fact the person behind it is crying. ”Just…finish…the fight…” they say as they labor for breath. ”Codex…i-initi-ate…’Good…” they say before falling silent. A long pause happens, then Codex says ”Initiating ‘Goodbye’ Protocol.”
”It…it hurts! The…the suit…it’s being crushed!” Steel Guardian says. Codex can be heard commenting ”Suit integrity, breached. Cockpit compromised. Initiating ‘Goodbye’ Protocols.” Steel Guardian replies ”No! Not…unnngggh…not yet!”
The rubble shifts just a bit, and over comms, everyone hears Steel Guardian’s modulated voice, full of static, say ”I…I can’t move! I can’t…I can’t breathe!”
”Whoa! Easy Piggy! Chill the Hell out!” Steel Guardian says as they reel backwards! ”Target has breached safe ranged firing solution distance. Adjusting combat calculations to melee,” Codex says to their pilot. They then begin trying to grab and shove Warthog away!
Steel Guardian rumbles down through the tunnel Diva dug, blasting through bits that weren’t wide enough for them. ”Alright, you punks! Who wants some?” they say as they touch down.
”Coming! Regular suit or Wrecker!?!?” SG asks.
”Been off comms for a while. What happened at the warehouse?” Steel Guardians robotic voice comes across comms.
Steel Guardian replies with a synthesized ”I’m in.”
Steel Guardian watches Horizon fly away before turning towards Diva and shrugging. ”I suppose…I’ll take the other side of the campus?” before lifting off as well. They pass by Indarius briefly before saying ”Thanks for the assist.”
Tentacles swarm towards Steel Guardian! A couple manage to take hold, which they manage to slash free of thanks to some sort of energy blade that appears on their forearm! Then the cannon on their shoulder begins targeting approaching tentacles as fast as it can, keeping it wholly occupied as Steel Guardian does their best to defend themself from the ones that slip by! ”A little busy, over here!” they call out!
The speaker systems kick on, and a guitar and tambourine can be heard. Then the lyrics… ” Whoa, thought it was a nightmare
Then the glass breaks to the outside window, and Steel Guardian appears, floats upright as it targets some of the demon things, and begins blasting lasers! ”Better run through the jungle
They swoop down and grab a lump and heave it into the wall as it spins back up into the air. ” Thought I heard a rumblin'
Again, another volley of lasers picks away at the various demons as the song continues: ” Better run through the jungle
Over on the mountain, thunder magic spoke
They then land beside Diva in a traditional hero landing before standing and asking ”Friends of yours?” as the cannon on their shoulder continues targeting and firing.
Despite Caio’s best efforts, Steel Guardian seems to be a no show at the dinner.
”Tell them whatever you want!” Steel Guardian’s synthesized voice calls back through the wall.
Steel Guardian makes no further comment. They just turn and head for the door.
”See!?!?” SG fumes, ”How am I supposed to feel comfortable and a part of this team with comments like that!?!?”
Steel Guardian seems to be watching most of everyone’s reactions as the discussion progresses. Eventually, after Femtite speaks, they stop leaning on the wall and speak up. ”So, since we are on the topic and everyone here is likely thinking about me as the elephant in the room since it’s being discussed, I do have a question.” They look at Imagerie and ask ”What’s the stance on playing guessing games with team members secret identities? Because I find the concept to be a bit low brow.” as they fold their arms across their chest.
Steel Guardian lands hard outside the room before walking in. They give everyone a solemn nod before leaning against a wall near the door.
”I guess,” they reply as the turn away from the city and lean back on their elbows against the wall edge. ”Thanks. I think I’ gonna go fly a lap and take your advice. Little me time. You’ll let me know if the others start digging again, right?”
Max’s expression sours as she follows Steel Guardian’s gaze. ”Oh. It’s...nice. Very expensive. Pretty much exactly like you’d expect. But...there’s also a sadness about the place. Despite all the fancy furniture and electronics and indoor swimming pools, it feels kind of empty. All that space, and barely anybody living in it. It just strikes me as...lonely.” ”Well, so the princess isn’t perfect, huh?” SG muses. ”Shoulda figured. Nothing matters but PR and maintaining their fortune, I guess.”
Steel Guardian nods their head. ”You bet it is. There’s just…too much risk. I can’t. But…I do need a breather. Someone to just…talk to.” They look off in the distance and ask, ”So…you’ve been up there, right? What’s it like?” they ask. When Max turns her eyes towards the city to see what the armored hero is looking at, it soon becomes clear. Praetor Tower.
SG doesn’t look away from the city skyline. ”I dunno. Just the stress of it all. It’s hard, keeping everything straight and separate and secret. I’m on edge all the time, and I want to just, give something up. But I can’t. Right?” they ask.
Steel Guardian walks over to the edge and looks out over the city. ”I’ve just been on edge lately. Worried. And since we had talked about it before, I was wondering if the others were still playing ‘Guess WHO’ with my identity.”
Max receives some coordinates that lead her to a rooftop of a skyrise in downtown Halcyon. From there, Max can see most of the major buildings in the city. After waiting a few minutes, she hears the sound of SG's repulsors approaching and a moment later the armored hero arrives. "Hey. Thanks for coming," they say. They walk a bit closer and ask "I didn't see anybody with you. You came alone, right? No shrunken Femtite or magicked up Indarius or anything?"
”Uh…how about somewhere off the grid? Because I’m not really subtle…” Steel Guardian counters.
The synthesized voice of Steel Guardian comes over the earbud. "Hey. It's Guardian. There a time at some point we could meet and talk?"
Midweek, Max at some point sees her communicator lighting up with someone trying to reach her.
Steel Guardian chimes in, ”Well, from what I gather from the reports, a few of their staff, the demons in question, were trying to seduce minors. Pretty sure that is a crime, right?”
SG shrugs. ”It’s a bold look. I give you that,” they reply to Max. ”I’m sure our fearless leader here could pencil in some one-on-one time with you if you need to work through some things,” SG adds before walking up to Indarius. ”So. Plan is to go in. Get answers. Get out. Hopefully not end up a slug?”
Steel Guardian lands, their suit much sleeker than usual. They land lightly on the ground and walk over to the gathering team. ”Well. I see I’m not alone running a new look…”
Steel Guardian had remained quiet as usual, but seemed to have a solid grasp on the task at hand. They had waited for Max to engage one and prime it’s defenses while they had gotten their own adjusted to the barrage of firepower before wheeling around past Diva and saying ”Switch!” As the pair traded off, the drones quickly became dispatched. Steel Guardian turns and gives Diva a nod of approval.
When Max’s dress shifts, SG asks ”Having fun?” As the plan…progresses? SG adds ”I am not entirely sold on the Costume Party plan. If it’s a nightclub, you realize most of the costumes will be favoring minimal fabric, right? Like, I doubt my armor will make it through the door,” they then pause and add ”And do any of you even have ‘sexy’ versions of your suits?” with air quotes around “sexy.”
”So…sneaking into a nightclub? And all of you are underage? Yeah. Good luck with that. Especially the guys. The girls MIGHT have a better shot. Because, well, obvious reasons,” Steel Guardian says. ”And I don’t think I’ll be blending in at all. So looks like I’m out aside from being nearby for backup.”
A streak ripped across the sky outside and attempts to tackle Whiporwill, but misses and slams into the wall of the dorm instead!
They pry themselves free and orient themselves just in time to see Horizon plummeting to the ground! They launch through the air and swoops down, catching Horizon in their arms and soaring back up into the air with the “leader” cradled. ”So…this has been such a waste of a weekend.”
The golem buries the axe in the ceiling well out of reach of the dwarf before reaching down and snatching the hammer from him next. ”Seriously?” they ask. ”Knock it off!”
”Ow! That hurt a%*+$%@!” Steel Guardian shouts in pain at the dwarf. They reach over and grabs their weapon in a large metal hand and wrenches it away. ”That’s enough out of you! Give me that!”
The iron golem seemed to glare at Caio before giving Shin a look. Expressionless as it is, the impression of a knowing look is definitely palpable.
SG chortles at Caio’s whisper. ”Or what?” they reply mockingly. ”Feeling a bit insecure for some reason there, buddy?” they add as they set another iron suit down.
The iron golem grumbles ”I hate magic,” before setting to working on the ruse it has been assigned and taking their position.
The apparent iron golem looks around, confused. ”What the actual f%&!!?!?” they exclaim anxiously, giving both Max and Caio double takes as they get their bearings.
Seeing the space shroom fly off, Steel Guardian does the same, repulsors lifting them off into the air and away from Halcyon Prep.
Steel Guardian notes the struggles Devil Diva and Caio are having with the gas. They adjust their flight path and fly in loops around them, starting close and working their way out to cause their thrusters to disperse the gas away! Once clear, they fly back near and hover while their cannons continue to blast at spores. ”You all good now?” they ask.
”Calm down, oh fearless leader,” Steel Guardian’s robotic voice comes over comms. ”Not everyone just gets to go to school at the All Mighty Halcyon Prep!” they say as they come flying in, their blasters firing off wildly into the air at the spores.
Steel Guardian returns the nod to Horizon, even though everyone else is quite upset with him. As the others disperse, SG also fires up their thrusters and heads off.
”Don’t blame me just because you have no situational awareness and bungled your magic yet again!” Steel Guardian counters. They continue to pepper the robot with blasts before lifting off into the air to continue to do so from an elevated position. Though, the force of their repulsors thrust sends one of the “civilian” robots hurtling directly into one of Indarius’ stone spears…
Steel Guardian looks up at the big robot, and suddenly wished they’d brought their Wrecker suit! But they’d have to make due with what they had. Hearing what Horizon was wanting them to do, they said ”Sure. Send the mech suit up toe to toe with the giant robot. Sounds about right!” before darting in front of it. As they moved, a futuristic weapon emerged from their shoulder and as they held their hands out, blasts erupted from them at the same time as the shoulder cannon! But as they ran, their focus was entirely on the big robot. Without really seeming to realize it, they ran directly into/overtop of Indarius!
Steel Guardian turns their attention away from the talk at Diva’s comments. With the metal helm, it’s impossible to get a read on their expression. They don’t nod or shrug, but after an awkward pause, they answer ”Woof.” ”Good to know. But to be honest: I don’t like the idea of you all doing guessing games as to my identity. Because what if someone gets a bright idea to go after people that you have guessed. Putting people in danger is the very reason I’m NOT openly sharing who I am.”
Steel Guardian makes their way in and takes up a spot near Devil Diva, despite the demon looking bruiser trying to avoid the others. If she looks up, it seems Steel is not phased. They stand there against the wall, arms crossed, and offers little more than a head nod towards the girl if they look directly at the armored hero. Steel Guardian’s main focus is on the lecture. However, as they passed by Caio, they do toss them a very cold, obviously old sub on the desk in front of them.
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