Re: World-Valencia

[Sydney Underhill]

((Okay ))

Sydney had practically fallen into the chair, her legs shaking from the unusually high amount of effort that it had taken her to walk the distance. She leaned back, looking over the room in its entirety. The table, the food - which seemed to awaken her long - suppressed appetite just by the sight of it - and the clockworks. Quintus, her loyal musketeer, who had followed her inside and was now standing almost directly behind her, and her 'new edition'.

"Servus Decimus...you'll be of excellent use..." She whispered, her voice low, almost grating. "I won't let anything...anything...happen to you."

[Ulysses Septimus]

((Hello again, I'm back!  ))

Decimus was standing in the usual pencil straight posture of the musketeers. "I will serve you with utmost loyalty, commander."He replied in the same smooth monotone so associated with the clockworks

However, compared to his 'brothers' of the White Cadre, he stood out like a sore thumb: 

Instead of their usual white uniform, he wore a black one with gold trim. His mask was more elaborate as well, with a red gem set between the empty eye sockets and gold plating the entire upper half. His rifle, much like those of Optimus Caerulus', had gold designs on it, the only differences being the bayonet attached to the end of the barrel, and the targeting scope...

Ulysses entered, "I hope you are comfortable here, Ms. Underhill, and I just contacted Bishop: he agreed to help." Of course, he had to threaten the old maniac before he finally agreed, though he chose to left that little detail out. "Lord Kane also agreed to grant you a new ship as well as the rank of 'Commodore', and your own squadron of troopers."

[Sydney Underhill]

Sydney bowed her head, rendered almost speechless with shock and disbelief to a point where any and all emotion had been smacked from her and she simply sat there, a numb, buzzing feeling taking over her entire body. "I...this is an honor. I will not disappoint Lord Kane."

Her grey-eyed gaze remained locked on Servus Decimus, and she stared at him with an almost sorrowful expression.
Yes, he's almost just like Optimus Caerulus was.
She had been so, so close, so close, with Caerulus.

[Ulysses Septimus]

"I am glad to hear that... I shall be on the deck, feel free to tell me when you are ready."Ulysses had his metal mask back on, so now only his blood red eyes may be seen. "Serve him well and you will be rewarded with even more."

He turned, and walked back out, not forgetting to leave behind a "Do not disappoint me, or her, Decimus, prove that you deserve this rank of 'elite sniper'."

Decimus gave a mechanical nod, otherwise he said nothing more.

He just stood there, like the loyal puppet he was made to be, even under her gaze: inside, he promised himself he would not fail like his 'cousin' Caerulus did.

[Sydney Underhill]

((I guess we should timeskip ten minutes or so?))

Sydney had been absolutely starving, but when she had started eating - for the last time, she told herself - she had found that her stomach seemed to have shrunk to the size of a coin and she could barely eat anything at all.

Now somewhat re-energized, Sydney decisively stood and headed out of the cabin and onto the deck of the Armada frigate, walking up to where Ulysses was standing at the railing.

"I am prepared to depart, Admiral, I shall not hold you or your crew back from fulfilling your duties to Lord Kane."

[Ulysses Septimus]

((sure  ))

"Good,"He turned to Sentus Optimus, "raise anchor! Set coordinates to Cadiz!"

Sentus obeyed.

The frigate eased itself out of the windlane, sailing toward the massive mechanical fortress with a good speed, though not enough to send anyone tumbling.


They reached the fortress within no more than ten minutes.

With a low whirr and a creak of metal, the gates opened, letting them inside the docking bay.

Inside, Armada Marines and Musketeers patrolled the bay, though they quickly formed an aisle for them to walk through when they sensed Ulysses approaching.

"Welcome back, Admiral."The one clockwork that greeted them was none other than Deacon, "Bishop is waiting for your presence in his lab, Ms. Underhill, the admiral will take you there. Once you are done, Lord Kane will be waiting in the throne room."

[Sydney Underhill]

Sydney nodded, looking to the Admiral before lowering her head slightly to try and hide her staring at the interior of the fortress, Deacon, the clockwork musketeers and marines, everything.

Just a few hours ago, she was just like any other pirate, flawed, filthy, and a stain to the perfect spiral that the Armada was trying so hard to enforce.

And now, she thought, here I am.
Here I am, rising up and above.

[Ulysses Septimus]

Decimus trailing closely behind them, Ulysses lead her through the twisting hallways to Bishop's lab, where the clockwork mage was waiting.

"Welcome back, Admiral Septimus."Bishop's voice betrayed his distaste for the human Armada officer, "I have the potion right here." He gave him a bottle of clear liquid, which he offered to Sydney.

"Here, drink this,"Ulysses' eyes were deadly serious, "once you do, Ms. Underhill, it will be like you gained a battery that would never run out: you will have no need for physical sustenance anymore, not even water... And don't worry, if old Bird Beak dares to temper with it in any way that is of harm to you, I shall dismantle him myself."

[Sydney Underhill]

"All right then." Sydney took the bottle from Bishop gingerly, as if it was explosive, terrified of breaking it. She looked back once at Quintus, who had followed her but remained by the door of the lab, before downing the liquid in seconds.

Almost immediately, she felt some sort or burning sensation tear through her abdomen. Hunger, burning hunger, it seemed like, but worse, much worse, a hundred times worse.

This, she thought, must be what it feels like to die of starvation.

But as quickly as the horrible sensation had came, it was gone.

[Ulysses Septimus]

"Now, follow me, Lord Kane awaits your presence."Ulysses nodded in approval, "after this, we shall be going to claim your new ship, and squadron."

They walked for what felt like hours, until they stopped before a pair of metal doors, with a Dragoon on each side of the door.

Those hulking warriors threw the doors open as they approached, revealing a luxurious room at least ten times the size of Puerto Mico, with a raised dias at the end, supporting a golden throne.

And seated on the throne, was none other than Supreme Commander Kane himself, his court of elite clockworks all standing in their respective places.

"I welcome you, Ms. Underhill."Kane spoke with a smooth, superior voice, "you have chosen wisely, and for that, you will be made perfect, and powerful."

[Sydney Underhill]

Sydney bowed her head, mentally floored by being in the presence of the Supreme Commander himself, and repeated the promise that she had been drilling into her head from the moment that she had stepped aboard the Armada frigate. "It is a privilege to be granted such an honor, Supreme Commander Kane. I will not disappoint you."

[Ulysses Septimus]

"Excellent," Kane turned his head, now looking upon his most loyal servant Ulysses, "Admiral Septimus, lead her to the docks... Oh and Miss Underhill? From now on, you will be known as "Commodore Underhill", you will have freedom, as long as you do not betray me."


Ulysses showed her the large frigate which she would now take control: a fine vessel that was almost completely like Ulysses' own, it had 48 guns and blood red sails instead of black ones...

And standing on the deck was none other than a team of at least 50 musketeers and 70 Marines...

[Sydney Underhill]

Upon seeing the ship that was to be hers and the troops awaiting her command on deck, Sydney felt a powerful surge of euphoria rush through her, and she fought hard to keep her smile down. No emotion here, not now, when you must be perfect. This was what she had dreamed of, this was the ultimate.

"And what, may I ask, is the name of this magnificent ship?" She asked, her voice slightly higher than usual in awe.

[Ulysses Septimus]

"The Destroyer"Ulysses replied courtly, "use them well and they shall become your greatest weapon." 

He offered her a bundle of clothes, "Here is your new uniform, if you wish to change into it... And now you are free to do what you choose, I shall come back tomorrow to start purging your other weaknesses, such as that petty emotion known as fear."

[Sydney Underhill]

"Excellent." Sydney replied, taking the Armada uniform - red like the sails of her ship - into her arms, which were, miraculously, no longer shaking.
Ah yes, she thought, that's right. I don't depend on an external intake anymore.

She then followed Quintus, who, strangely enough, seemed to know where he was going, back into the fortress and through one of the winding hallways until they came to what seemed like a small sitting room. She walked inside and nudged the door closed with her leg, placing the uniform on the single chair in the room before removing her clothing entirely, except for the bandages that were wrapped tightly around her entire abdomen.

Sydney smiled softly, staring at her reflection in the mirror on the wall across from her. She had put those there a while ago, she remembered, to force herself to stand up straight. It had made her look more intimidating.

Deciding to keep them, she carefully put on the Armada uniform - the white buttoned shirt, the fitted black pants (they made her short legs look longer, she found), the cravat, the deep red coat of an Armada musketeer officer, the knee hight black boots and the feathered hat, which she carefully placed on top of her head.

Wow, she thought, why am I acting so careful? I'm basically going to wear this for the rest of my life. She pushed her black hair away from her face, standing up as straight as she could in the mirror. The uniform was fitted closely to her body, which Sydney liked. She felt much more organized without folds of loose clothing everywhere. She seemed taller, too.

Walking back out of the room, Sydney trailed Quintus back out of the hallway. Her boots made a strange amount of noise, she noticed as she walked, and a quick glance confirmed that yes, her boots had somewhat of heels.

That makes sense, she thought, can't have 5'8 me commanding my entirely - 6'0 - squadron. It would look uneven when we must be uniform. This led her to think about everything else that was still different about her: her pale - yellowish skin, her grey eyes, her obvious black hair.

How, she wondered, in the spiral are they going to fix that?

[Ulysses Septimus]

Decimus was waiting for them at the end of the hall. "Commander,"He said, stepping toward them, "Admiral Septimus would like to see you, if you have a few minutes to spare right now."

[Sydney Underhill]

"Of course," Sydney replied, standing up even straighter, as if she felt rivaled by the perfect posture of the two clockworks.

[Ulysses Septimus]

Ulysses was waiting in the Throne Room, which for now is empty.

"Greetings, Commodore."He carried this time one of those metal chestplates the Musketeers wore, and a gold decorated mask like the ones worn by the officers, "I apologize for not being able to bring those to you sooner."

[Sydney Underhill]

"Admiral," Sydney acknowledged, bowing her head, slapping herself mentally for forgetting to salute. "I suppose these are part of my uniform?"

[Ulysses Septimus]

"Yes, here."He handed them over to her.

The chestplate was made of something that was definitely not Valencian steel, as it was much lighter and much more durable, melded to fit her frame and to protect her entire abdomen, even her back. And over the heart was proudly the cogwheel symbol of the Armada.

The mask was also different, with a dark red gem between the eyes like Decimus, and designs that were made of real gold and silver plating the upper half...

[Ulysses Septimus]

((brb dinner time))

[Sydney Underhill]

Sydney put on the chestplate and delicately plucked up the mask with two fingers, setting it so that it sat perfectly on her face. It was perfectly made for her, Sydney had noticed, and she wondered how they had managed to do that without taking any of her measurements.

[Ulysses Septimus]

"And here."Ulysses gave her another bottle, "this is the final step to removing your physical imperfection: this will destroy the melanin in your hair, thus giving you the white color of Armada troopers."

[Sydney Underhill]

Taking the bottle, Sydney drank the liquid without hesitation, bracing herself for a similar sensation as the last time. However, instead, she felt a rush of vertigo go through her and she fought it, trying not to stumble as her already pale skin slowly drained of all color and white seemed to bloom out of her head until it reached the ends of her hair, and only then did the dizziness lift.

With a quick glance at the hair lying over her shoulder, Sydney stood straight again, absolutely relieved to be rid of her last physical imperfection.

[Ulysses Septimus]

"I am also here with an offer,"Ulysses smiled underneath his mask, rather murderously, "there's a pirate ship that's been destroying some of our best squadrons, Lord Kane requests me to take care of it, so I am wondering if you are interested in joining me."

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