A-Robe

"We should probably head out, we have our own training to attend to," Dani said. She hugged me before leaving with the others, and I turned my head back to Umbra, ready to learn whatever I could.

"Before we begin... your outfit is a little lacking. You don't have another one, do you?" She asked, walking around me in one big circle while lifting up the sleeves of my white shirt.

"No, but I remember being told by an Old Man I saved that he worked at a tailor shop, and would be happy to make an outfit for me, we could head there," I told her.

Umbra agreed and followed me down the street while I looked for the tailor shop.

The dirt roads were filled with a ton of people once more. It's as if the attack yesterday didn't even happen... those who walked on the roads did so with smiles, while the others brought ladders or other supplies to the destroyed buildings. I said I would help, but I hadn't contributed anything yet...

After a few minutes of walking, Umbra and I met up with the gaze of a young assistant, carrying a box with the old man walking behind him.

"There you are! Jamie, this is the boy who saved me." The Old Man told his assistant, Jamie. I noticed that he also avoided using my name.

"Nice to meet you! You're the man that Manny was in debt to, right? Right, this way!" Jamie said with a smile, grabbing me by the arm and dragging me inside. He seemed very upbeat and happy, and also a little forceful.

"I must admit, it's a surprise to see you in this city, Lady Umbra. Is there a reason you're hanging around him?" the Old Man asked her.

"A little, but you would never believe me if I told you why. So... you're in debt to... him? What did he do for you?" Umbra asked the Old Man, purposefully avoiding the use of my name around Jamie.

Both Jamie and the Old Man shared the same style of flannel clothing, along with hairstyle, and looks on their faces. They were probably related in some way... they also had blue eyes like one another.

"He saved my life! You should've seen it, he stood in front of a huge ball that destroyed the wall behind me and took it like a champ, not even moving! Now, if that's not courage, I don't know what is!" the Old Man said.

"I see... well then, what did you have in mind for him? Clothing?" Umbra asked. She walked near the counter and started to pick up pieces of clothing, along with big sheets of paper.

"Woah... hey, you're not just some tailor, are you? This is advanced stuff... how do you even know to make this?" Umbra asked. Her confused gaze left me with the same feeling. I want to know what she's looking at, but I can't escape Jamie's grasp.

"Well, the Essence Strands we can all use aren't going away, so instead of neglecting their existence, why not embrace them? Most clothing here has some sort of insulation that is strengthened by the Essence Strands in our body. For example, here is the first prototype." The Old Man picked up a weird coat and threw it at Umbra.

Essence Strands...? What were those?

"I see... then, the person's Essence Strands provide warmth to the coat if it's cold and required? It regulates body temperature in the winter... impressive work." Umbra said, but the Old Man shook his head.

"Only that one does that. This jacket right here provides insulation from both the heat and the cold and uses the same Essence Strand technique to properly insulate the person wearing the jacket. That was my second prototype, and my third one, which I call the A-Robe, has armor plating around the jacket. More specifically, around the vital organs. I planned to push this prototype to production after gaining Ruby's approval." The Old Man said.

Intriguing... the jacket he was wearing looked like any other, I couldn't even tell it had armor plating in it. The vital organs were protected by a protruding top half of the jacket. To make it simple, I imagined a jacket, and another one cut in half right under the ribcage placed on top of it. It looked like two jackets, but it was only one in total. The armor plating, which was the half-cut jacket above the original, blew in the wind like any other piece of cloth.

"A-Robe, the first prototype, belongs to you now, kid. I trust that you'll do good with it." The Old Man said, handing me the new jacket.

It was pure white with black lining along it, colors I never really wore before. To me, it didn't fit my persona, but it's a gift, and I wouldn't dare complain about it. He didn't even have to get this for me, so I would wear it with a smile.

"Thanks, Manny, right?" I asked him, and Manny nodded.

"I don't mean to knock the design, but I don't have those Essence Strands you were talking about... will it still insulate without them?" I asked. Jamie looked at me with a confused look.

"You don't have Essence Strands? Don't be silly, we all do! Here, I'll show you. When you feel hot, it'll automatically cool down, it's quite amazing! If it helps, I just imagine wearing my Essence Strands... so if you try that, then it should work!" Jamie said. Again with that excited tone, he backed up with a smile and looked at me, waiting for me to try what he suggested.

Okay... just wear my strands? It doesn't sound too hard.

I imagined the strands in my body going onto the jacket and circling around my body, but it was significantly harder than I thought. Once I covered all of my body, the jacket started to change color...

"Woah, is it supposed to do that?" I asked.

"Black and blue? Hmm, well, all of our Essence Strands are good speakers of the user's personality. My coat is brown and green, and Old Man Manny's coat is completely white. What do black and blue mean again?" Jamie asked while reaching for a book on the counter.

The Old Man smiled and grabbed the book from Jamie.

"Can you go fetch a delivery down the road with my name on it? It should be ready in about five minutes." Manny said. Jamie saluted and ran out of the store.

"Black and blue... it's an interesting color combination. You see, some colors on the coat don't really mean anything. Like brown or pink. They're placeholders for qualities within a person that haven't yet been realized by the user. I know, it seems farfetched for just a simple jacket, but it's true. Jamie has some potential he hasn't realized yet... but black and blue?" Manny said, he looked at me, from my head to my toes, and smiled.

"A strong leader, impervious to all. Black is the color of solidarity, and blue is the symbol of the sky that we all look to... a leader if you will. I guess it checks out, Sky Asterio." Manny said.