Ch. 6 The Blade of The King

Zephyr talked to the hotel clerk as Ash and Orion sat in the lounge, silent as can be.

"Are you going to explain?" Ash suddenly asked as Orion tinkered with wires and metal in his hands.

"What's there to explain? The only thing you need to know is that we're going to find Jack," He said simply, deciding against telling her everything.

Even after the conversation with his believed-to-be-dead brother, he still didn't quite believe in the nexus.

It would be amazing sure, but history had a more plausible explanation. Jack thought he found the nexus and was now trapped in a hidden prison.

Believing in magic was one thing, but believing in an object that could completely restructure the universe was insanity.

At the end of the day, Orion liked to deal in facts, until he saw proof of The Celestial Nexus he would continue to lean toward his own theory.

"But why would they assume Jack is dead? And why weren't his chips able to be tracked?" Ash asked, looking worried as Orion shrugged.

"Perhaps he's in a place that short-circuited them? But he's alive, I know that for a fact." 

"Look how she's looking at you brother, she wants to ask more but can't bring herself to try and piece together your riddles," Jack said next to Orion, appearing suddenly.

He didn't say anything, not wanting to seem crazy, but Jack understood.

"Don't worry, just listen and nod that you understand," His brother said.

Orion nodded as Jack continued.

"Since I can't tell you where the Nexus is, you'll have to follow in my steps, luckily… Zephyr brought you here to Astra Springs, this is the first place you'll need to look…"

"Look for what?" Orion asked despite being told to silently nod.

Ash looked at him weirdly but he ignored it, if he was seeing his brother there was already a good chance he was crazy.

"The nexus can't be found by normal means, it moves and changes every minute, sometimes hundreds of miles, and sometimes centimeters… So you'll need to find divine artifacts to keep it secure."

Orion nodded. The more Jack talked the more this all seemed like a quest in a children's book, but he'd oblige if there was the slightest chance it was real.

"Now, the first one is somewhere in the city, find all 7 and you'll get to me in no time. This first one is called The blade of the king... That's about all I remember, until next time."

Orion nodded, his expression changing ever so slightly. Jack noticed this and smiled softly, patting his brother on the back. "I love you, buddy."

Jack disappeared just as Zephyr walked up to Orion and Ash, standing between them.

"Welp, got us two rooms, one for me and Orion and one for you Ash," Zephyr said with a smile, handing her a keycard.

"They still use keycards?" Orion said with a chuckle. "How ancient."

Ash wanted to continue the conversation with Orion, but the idea of a shower and some rest was too alluring, so the group separated and went to their rooms.

***

Zephyr had no clue how long he'd been asleep, but when he opened his eyes he felt an unfamiliar weight on his chest.

"Oh, so you're awake sleepyhead?" Zephyr heard Ash say, smiling as he lifted his head from the pillow.

"Miss Ash? I... What happened, why are you in my bed?" He asked, his voice shaking ever so slightly as he looked at Ash in just her underwear.

"I thought we could stay here for the night," She said, smiling at him as she crawled up to his side.

He was speechless, he'd never seen her in anything but her school uniform, but she seemed comfortable enough in her own skin, and the thought of waking up with her distracted him completely.

Ash smiled as she traced circles on his chest with her finger, leaning in closer. "Wanna do something naughty?" She whispered in his ear.

It was at this moment he woke up, his eyes snapping awake as he summoned a staff, pointing it directly at Orion's face as lightning cackled along it's elegant shaft.

"Woah, nice reflexes Zephyr, but thought you'd want to hear what Jack told me."

Zephyr willed the staff to disappear, gulping as he realized it was all a dream. "Worst timing ever..." He muttered as Orion sat at the desk in their room.

It was a relatively small apartment, two beds, one bathroom and a small closet for hanging up their extra clothes, which they didn't have.

"Sure, what did your brother say?" Zephyr asked, sitting up fully, still a bit disappointed that his dream was interrupted.

Orion began tinkering with some wires and metal, his eyes glowing softly as he did so. 

"Well, Jack said it'll be pretty simple to find him, and in turn, find the nexus. We have to find seven artifacts. Apparently he found them and that was why he was able to find the nexus, only he doesn't remember what happened or where they are. Assuming they're in the same places then... Our first one is here, The blade of the king."

"The blade of the king..." Zephyr repeated, frowning at the name.

"You know of it?" Orion asked, his expression showing the slightest sign of interest.

"I'm an adventurer, we have to know about that kind of shit... And everyone knows about The Blade of The King..." Zephyr sighed, rubbing his temples before he continued. 

"Great, I assume that means you know how to find it?" Orion asked, stopping his tinkering and putting the parts back in his storage box.

"Yeah, Astra Springs has a huge tomb built into the mountain nearby, The Tomb of the Undead King. According to the story, whoever wakes him will have the chance to get the blade... But there's a good reason it's still here Orion..."

"The rumors that spread about Astra Springs ten years ago, the one where people go mad and start killing each other. They say that's the effect of the Tomb of the Undead King" Orion chimed in, already knowing the history behind this cursed place.

"Where'd you learn that?" Zephyr asked incredulously.

Orion tapped his head. "You'd be amazed at the information you can find on Wikipedia nowadays."

"Anyway, your mind searching aside, are you sure we need to get the sword?"

Orion nodded without hesitation, and without more information about the nexus, they couldn't find another way, so for now this was the mission.

"Then we'd better get going... Actually, let me finish my dream," Zephyr said with a smirk, lying down immediately and falling asleep.

Orion just looked at him, seeing his tongue hang out after he closed his eyes. Adventurers were known to be able to fall asleep anywhere, and sometimes in the deadliest situations.

It was a talent Orion always admired but could never understand, but he did appreciate being able to experience it firsthand.

"Qece," Orion called, looking at the blonde Ai as she projected in front of him.

"Yes slave master?" She asked in an annoyed voice, causing Orion to roll her eyes.

"I want you to look into a few people for me, the three in the lounge downstairs, they gave me a weird vibe..."

Qece shrugged, taking a few seconds before displaying the three people Orion had seen in the lounge.

"Juan Garcia, an illegal immigrant who made the trip to Etheridge a few months ago. He landed a job as a bellhop here at the hotel and has been working here since."

Orion nodded, eyeing over the man's information before swiping it away.

"Aria..." Qece stopped, her avatar looking sad all. of a sudden. "Aria Finn, a middle aged woman who has little impact on society. Her record is clean, she's never had a job, and she's married to the third man..."

Qece took a moment before her avatar returned to normal, surprising Orion a bit.

'Am I so good I can give AI emotion?' He thought egotistically before listening to the third one.

"Jason Finn, now this one is suspicious Orion. He's had his information wiped clean from all public interfaces."

"Then dig into the private ones, go worldwide if needed."

"All done, he is very dangerous Orion. Says here he's been to prison for domestic violence three times, all to different women he's married. He's a drunk, got kicked out of his own country, Japan... Says here he's an ability wielder?"

Orion's interest piqued at that last part. "So he's registered?" He asked obviously before continuing. "What's his ability then?"

"Uhh, says here he can control fire? Pretty lame compared to miss Aria but-"

"Is there any reason to believe he could make things troubling for me?" Orion interrupted.

"No, I assume he and his wife are here on their honeymoon... Orion, if I may make a request?" She asked suddenly, her features contorted with worry.

"If the past is any indicator, this Aria woman has found herself in quite a bad situation, please help her?"

Orion sighed, annoyed at the suggestion. "In case you haven't noticed, I have more important problems than some abuser..."

"Please? It'll be the only thing I ever ask!"

"No Qece, now go away, I need to see if there's anything on this tomb in the mountain..."

"Fooine... You'll feel nothing when she's hurt again, old emotionless techy Orion?" Qece said angrily. 

"Wow, and people wonder why they banned AIs like you. Maybe I should do some tinkering, never thought you'd gain feelings..."

Qece looked scared at Orion's joke, dissipating from his sight as he laughed. "See? Not emotionless."

Orion scouredthe internet for any information on the Tomb of the Undead King. Apparently, this undead king lived somewhere near where the town now stands.

"Hmm, but if he was a popular story on earth, why is his tomb here in new earth? That's... Odd."

As the sun set Orion went back to the lobby, finding Ash talking to a group of older women.

It looked like she was just a tourist to the passing onlookers, though her conversations seemed awfully heated.

"I'm telling you ma'am, I'm not a robot, they're just prosthetics!" Ash yelled, not noticing Orion's presence.

"Now, now missy, I know a bot when I see one, now are you going to take my order or shall I call your technician?" 

"Ash isn't a bot, and leave her alone before I disconnect your battery," Orion said with a smile, stepping toward the older woman. "It'd be a shame to die before your time, but it wouldn't make any difference to me," He said, his voice hushed as the woman widened her eyes, gulping and fanning her face.

"Well I- I never- You damn hooligans," She said, cursing as she walked away with her group, glancing back at them every few steps.

"I don't need you to win battles for me, I can take care of myself," Ash complained, looking away as she walked into the restaurant side of the hotel.

"Hey that wasn't for you, how dare someone compare my invention to something as archaic as a robot? Hell, robots were old news by 2040," Orion said, sitting in a booth and gesturing for her to join him.

"Do you even have money?" She asks, arms crossed.

"Well... As long as someone here has money..." He said, looking around as his eyes glowed, he locked into a wealthy looking man before smirking, transferring some of the man's money to his account. "Then I have money," He finished, smirking as a waiter walked up to the booth.

"How may I help you today?"

"I'll have the house's special, with an extra of everything, and she'll have some warm milk," He said, nodding as he handed the menu back to the waiter.

"Hey I wanted a burger," Ash said before the waiter nodded and walked off. 

"Relax, the house special comes with two burgers, fries, and a salad," He explained, looking around at the small dining area.

'How many floors did they build this hotel? Two? I'm curious about how many resources went into such a quaint resort in the mountains,' He thought, counting the many people present.

"You plan on telling me why we're really here? And what the hell it has to do with Jack?"

"Hmm... I don't plan on it no. Since I'm not sure how long you'll be with us. It's becoming pretty clear the mission me and Zephyr are on is going to take a while, and it is probably very dangerous..."

"I'm already here, and if it's dangerous wouldn't it be better to have more people in the know?" Ash argued, grabbing Orion's hand. "Please..."

Orion didn't react to the hand, but he reluctantly told Ash a summarized version of what was going on.

"So... That thing those religious people believe in and worship is real? And it has Jack?" She said, clearly not believing, even less than Orion did.

"Look, I'm not all that sure of what's going on myself. But if there's even the slightest chance Jack is alive and can be found... I have to take it."

Ash's expression softened. "I understand..."

They stared each other in the eyes for a second before a familiar voice interrupted them.

"Hey, kids! What's on the menu?" Zephyr said, looking refreshed and satisfied as he plopped down next to Orion.

"I need to use the ladies' room," Ash said, quickly leaving as Zephyr winked at Orion.

"So you and Ash huh?"

"You know I made a chip that can detect emotions right? Don't be so sad, it's nothing Zephyr," Orion said, wanting to laugh as Zephyr's smile brightened.

"She... She loves my brother, like really loves him, I'm just a stand-in."

Orion, for the first time since Zephyr had met him, displayed real human emotion, though not for the reasons Zephyr thought.

"I see... Well on a more exciting and life-threatening note, I have a guy who can break us into the tomb tonight, Does that work with you?"

Orion began to tinker again, his emotions neutral once again. "That works great, let's do some grave robbing."