You just need some fighting spirit! [open]

[dist_the_reaper]

WHO: Dist the Reaper (dist_the_reaper), and Kikuchiyo (machinesamurai)
WHAT: Two lone puppieswolves decide to form a pack.
WHERE: The old carriage factory where Dist unwillingly resides (a few blocks away from The Crimson Dragon)
WHEN: Afternoon, the day before Claire's kidnapping

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[dist_the_reaper]

Dist's eyes widened, the dusty atmosphere immediately drying them out from behind his glasses and causing them to water. "......" He sputtered incoherently for a moment, dropping his journal on the floor, his bony fingers wriggling a mile a minute as if he were desperately trying to formulate a sentence.

"B....BUILD something..." He finally managed after a moment. "YES..."

As he stared at the machine. The walking, talking, taller-than-two-of-him, fully-functioning-without-fonons, sword-carrying machine. Presenting itself in front of him. The worst (and possibly the best for Dist) had just dawned upon him.

"I was..." Dist continued slowly, crawling over towards the tall machine samurai. "But, I can't channel enough fonons to get my AI to work." A pout formed on his narrow face.

He hesitated.

"You're not busy? Why aren't you on a rescue mission like the others?" The last part left his tongue bitterly. Kikuchiyo was a machine. Dist could UNDERSTAND machines. Possibly better than anything, even himself. For one to show up at his brink of despair was almost too good to be true.

He was afraid being let down again, like he had been with Asch and the Commandant. And with the Emperor...and most of all, once again, with Jade.

He narrows his eyes in an attempt to betray his desperation, but instead they only watered more out of irritation, and the scientist stared up at Kikuchiyo with large, glassy eyes, faintly hopeful.

[machinesamurai]

God damned rescue mission. He's signed up to go along with it - he'd wanted to prove his manliness and worth to the people of this... Rivelata. But instead, he'd been unable to locate the team... and been left behind. His lack of direction was most embarassing - that bastard Kambei would have found it.

"I'm not busy. It's better to be in the city!" he proclaimed, leaning heavily on his sword, its tip still buried deeply into the ground. "You know - in case anything happens. And people need saving. Or something."

Well, it was sort of true. He'd be the first on the scene if he stuck around, if anything happened. The keyword being 'if' - otherwise, he'd look like any other civilian... too... ugh, scared to help the captives. He wanted to avoid that humiliation if at all possible.

"Why?" he added gruffly, his helmet tilting slightly as it let out another annoyed puff of steam. "You need somthing?"

[dist_the_reaper]

Dist nodded long before he could muster the words to respond. "W-well..." He glanced up at the machine samurai warily. Could he trust him not to...laugh?

"I was SUPPOSED to be on a mission. But I was abandoned, BETRAYED," his voice raised into a tragic shrill as he conveyed the pain of betrayal through interpretive hand-motions. "They won't acknowledge me as anything but a burden, despite my skill with machinery...." he added quietly, unsure if he had really wanted to say that.

He paused, and then continued slowly. "...if you're not busy, we could..." Am I really suggesting this? But he IS a machine...with my military genius and his POWER, we could accomplish so much...

"Work together." The words were clipped and foreign to the God-General's mouth. "In the city. I happen to be a genius, you see. But as I said, my machines don't work here."

[machinesamurai]

Betrayal?

Kambei had never gone so far as to betray Kikuchiyo - but he definitely knew the feeling, having someone not acknowledge you. Not matter what he did, they would not consider him to be a samurai like the others - it had taken everything he had just for them to allow him to fight by their side. Perhaps it was the striking similaries between them that struck a soft spot in the samurai.

"Of course, brother! Let's work together!" he yelled, leaping to Dist's side with astonishing speed, clapping a large hand on his back. He probably should have held back, considering the smaller man's frame, but it would be a lie to claim he wasn't excited for finally having any kind of teammate in this forsaken world.

"With me by your side, you'll be unstoppable! I can take on anyone!"

[dist_the_reaper]

Dist's squinty silver eyes widened like dinner plates as he was thrust forward by Kikuchiyo's hand on his back. "Uaaaaaaah!" he wailed as he collapsed a few feet away from the machine samurai. Dust rose and circulated his heap of a body and he sputtered and coughed for a full near minute, gingerly picking himself up. The scientist's hair hung loosely around his face, and he failed to tuck it behind his ear as his mind raced furiously, lending an even more maniacal look to his narrow, pale face.

He's...strong, Dist realized. If I were to calculate his root force, it would likely be twice that of my Kaiser Dist XX. The only drawback is the lack of artes. But that can easily be added at an incremental value.

He turned back to Kikuchiyo, eyes narrowed again in scrutiny. "I'm quite sure you're as capable as you say, hmhmhm," Dist stated, a grin creeping up his lips. "I can make you even stronger as time goes by." His mind wandered again, gazing up at the machine's strong shoulder armor. He could infuse what few fonons he could gather in a barrier into those shoulder joints- Dist could gather from his vantage point that they connected firmly with the wiring to not only the processing unit in his chest, but to his hands and fingers as well.

"If you'll let me on your shoulders I can lend you what little power I can muster in his decrepit city..." shooting Kikuchiyo an inquisitive look, as he expected nothing but a favorable response, thoughts of chasing Jade down the narrow streets, seated on this miraculous beast of a machine, allowed his mind to relax pleasantly.

[machinesamurai]

Kikuchiyo didn't seem to be the least bit deterred by the strength he had, nor the way Dist was sent sprawling by the force of his hand. He was too happy to have a new companion - this place had seemed very lonely, after having had Katsunoji and... Kambei... around, not that he'd ever admit it. Samurai don't get lonely.

"You can make me stronger?"

Typically, he would argue that he was already strong enough - but if this man had the ability to increase his strength, he would not dispute it. After all - he could be an even better samurai if this person could help. Kambei would eat his words then!

"You want on my shoulders?"

Komachi used to ride that way - it didn't take any effort on his part, though he'd never heard a grown man ask to do so. Whatever.

"Yeah, I can carry you," he said, bending his knees so that he was closer to Dist's level.

[dist_the_reaper]

"Good." Dist's grin grew into a frightening, clown-like expression. With feather-like feet he diligently attempted to scale his robot- which only went so well because the machine samurai was a bit slippery. He finally clambered his way onto Kikuchiyo's shoulders. Dist was tall, but he was lanky and rather light, fitting well on top of the robot's broad shoulder armor.

"Hmmmmmmm," He murmured in glee. I could get used to this.

"Of course I can make you stronger," Dist stated, patting the armor lightly. "It would be easy, really."

He began to examine the wiring of Kikuchiyo's arms, making small mental notes as he continued to converse with the samurai. It wasn't as comfortable as his chair, on top of the samurai's shoulders, but it was far more gratifying than he had ever thought possible. Together, Dist decided, we'll gather more power than that bastard Jade has in his little finger! He'll be SORRY.

Revenge may be a dish best served cold, but it is even more fufilling when there are chefs to help you cook it up.