A Surprise For Burt

Inian spent the rest of the trip on the sky train lost in thought, 'why did I say that? Why did I do that?'

He knew there was indeed no reason to kill the pirate. He could've held him and the other pirates captive until they got to their destination in Preah, but he didn't.

He had cleaned himself up from the showers in the first-class train car. The attendants and other guests continued to stay wary of him for the entire trip.

Inian kept to himself for the rest of the trip so that he wouldn't make anyone else nervous. There was only one day left, so he went to his private room to get some sleep.

Dreams soon overtook his mind as he fell into a deep sleep.

He found himself sitting in open land. A massive mountain stood to his left while a field of rocks was in front of him.

The first king sat next to Inian. "Why am I here?" Inian asked.

The wolf king looked out into the open land, "you are here because you have reached the next stage of your power. As your strength grows, so does your responsibility, and your restraint. Absolute power corrupts absolutely, and your power is now a considerable force in the world."

Inian thought for a moment, "are you referring to the incident on the train?"

The wolf king shrugged, "only you know the subject of which I am talking. I cannot see through your eyes. Just remember, the power of the king will try to seep into your mind. The stronger you become, the harder it will try to corrupt you."

Inian had more questions, but the dream world collapsed as he woke up in his private room.

"Sir, we've arrived at our destination," one attendant said as she gently woke Inian up.

He stretched, "thank you; I'll be out soon."

She nodded and quickly walked away.

Inian gathered his belongings and made his way outside the train. They were at the train station in Preah and Inian sniffed the air.

The heavy scent of metal and oil wafted into his nostrils. He smiled; he loved this mechanical city.

Inian wanted to make it up to Burt when he accidentally made him feel useless, so he went to a few stores first.

Burt was an excellent mechanic, just like Janae and Queen Irigia. So, Inian went out and bought materials that Burt could use.

Inian had plenty of money to spend because when he helped defeat the Empire, he was allowed to have a small percentage of each Nation's income. He still receives that money today.

He also bought an expensive blueprint for a custom made exosuit. It was illegal for regular citizens to buy this, but he was not regular at all.

After shopping for a bit, he marked the materials to deliver to Burt's address after one day. That way, they would come as more of a surprise.

Once Inian was done, he made his way to Burt's address and knocked on the solid metal door four times.

A disgruntled Burt opened the door wearing shorts and a tank top. "I told ya I don't want any more of your miracle hair growth!" Burt yelled before he realized it was Inian.

"Inian! I'm sorry, you can forget about what I just said. Please, come in!"

Inian smiled and came inside.

Burt's home was straightforward. He had a couch and a few chairs set up in the living room with a radio on a stand. He had pictures of his family and dog. His dog was lying on the floor, fast asleep.

The rest of his home was space used for materials or used for building projects. Burt was a mechanic through and through.

Inian took off his shoes and sat down on the sofa. Burt sat next to him in the rocking chair.

"So, what brings ya here, Inian? Did ya figure out your problem?"

Inian smiled, "I didn't just figure it out, but I'm at the Titan level right now."

Burt's mouth dropped open, "I guess you really didn't need my help then." Burt trailed off and went to the kitchen to make some food.

Inian sighed, 'I guess he's still stuck on feeling useless.'

He got up to follow Burt to the kitchen.

"You know you aren't useless Burt. You are helpful!"

"Oh yeah? You don't need my help to fight, you don't need my help for figuring out your power, and you have no use for mechanical things. What could I possibly help you with?"

Inian smiled, "well, we'll start on that first one." He then took out the blueprint for the version two exosuit.

Burt gasped, "normal citizens aren't allowed to have these! How did you get it?!"

"I'm not a normal citizen, remember?"

Burt smiled, "this is a great gift Inian, how can I thank you enough?!"

Inian gently patted Burt's back, "I want you to make it. The materials for it will be over by tomorrow. I want you to make this exosuit your own."

Burt nodded, "you can count on me!" He put the blueprint aside in a safe location than began cooking some food, "by the way, any news about the descendants yet?"

Inian shook his head, "not yet, but I'm going back to the Aysel Palace in a week to see if anybody found out anything. Hopefully, someone has some news."

Burt nodded, "I agree with ya there. If the materials are coming tomorrow and I work 8 hours a day, I can have the exosuit up and running! I would just need a monster core for energy."

"I've got that taken care of."

Inian pulled out a high-tier monster core, and Burt's eyes widened.

"I guess the king really does have connections!" Burt took the monster core and laid it out for later.

"Since the materials aren't coming until tomorrow, want to grab a drink for tonight? My treat," Inian offered.

Burt chuckled, "you know I would!"

The pair laughed and went out to get a drink, happy that they were back together.