27 Gunpoin (1/2)

Ed watched as an army of 100 men headed towards the base. He rose an arm in the air, ”Open the gates!” A creaking sound rang out as the two large steel gates were opened by the guards. Gunther stood nearby while watching.

The Sinless HQ army marched past the gates and traveled down the street towards the central plaza. Ed and Gunther quickly followed behind them. They stopped in front of the large stage that was used for speeches previously.

Captain Fang took off his helmet and smiled. His black eyes looked around the base with an inquisitive gaze. His black hair was buzzed short and his thin mustache was barely visible.

Ed walked towards the man and reached out his hand. ”You must be the one in charge of these men? I'm the Reef Sinless leader. You can call me Ed.”

The captain rose an eyebrow while shaking his hand. ”I'm Captain Fang. You're so young? What happened to Tom? He should have been in charge here.”

”It's a long story… Let's get your men situated first and then discuss it?” He questioned.

”No need.” Fang shook his head. ”These are only part of my forces. The rest are still on the boat. Normally, we drop in first and provide emergency relief, but this base doesn't seem to need it? I'll go ahead and start the next phase. We'll be clearing a path from here to our ship so we can bring in our non-combat personnel. Do you have any forces you can provide?”

”Sure.” He nodded. ”Gunther! Send out 100 guards and 10 mechs.”

”Yes!” Gunther replied. He began yelling orders to gather the guards. Soon, 10 squads were gathered. Each squad had 10 guards. An additional 10 mechs were behind them. One traveled with each squad of guards.

”This is quite impressive!” Fang whistled. ”I've never seen such a well-organized base in the west. People are usually too busy trying to ward off starvation and mutants after the nightmare attack. Are those mechs what made the big difference?”

”They were part of it.” Ed nodded. ”I also trained a team on how to make steam rifles, which allowed us to expand the guards tremendously. Every member of the base has an assigned role they must complete. Without the mechs securing a steady food supply, it would have been impossible.”

”I see.” He nodded. ”Well, let's get going then. You're coming along, right?”

”Yes.” Ed followed behind the captain. He left his personal mech behind for Dupe to defend the base with. The Reef guards and mechs took the rear, while the HQ soldiers led in the front.

”What's that armor your men are wearing?” Ed questioned. ”I've never seen anything like it before. It doesn't seem to be mech armor, but it definitely isn't ordinary armor either.”

Fang grinned. ”These are exo suits. Invented by our top scientists at Sinless HQ. Unlike the west, the east is still ruled by ordinary humans. Espers live in fear and hiding from us. Those that are captured are either executed, imprisoned, or enslaved.”

”What?!” He replied in shock. ”How? Espers are too powerful. Would the international community even accept that? Wouldn't OP Baldy put a stop to it?”

”He won't.” Fang shook his head. ”We have different cultures. The EU is extremely stable and united. He'd practically be starting a world war if he interfered too heavily. He can't be everywhere at once.”

”Oh… but I heard that the 1st princess of England was an esper and next in line for the throne?” He responded.

”Eh? I'm surprised word spread that fast to the west. What you've heard is true. Things have gotten a bit complicated ever since an esper awoke in the royal family. They actually sent her overseas to keep her safe until things calm down.”

”I see.” Ed nodded. 'So, Relm joined the academy for her own protection? That's surprising. How did I never know about the EU being a paradise for ordinary humans? It isn't taught in schools at all. Is it a government coverup? That must be it… They must want to prevent the idea that espers can be dominated from sprouting within the people. Who knows how much chaos it would cause. Interesting…' He grinned while continuing to walk next to the captain.

They marched through the streets. Once every mile or so, the captain would stop and throw a glass of pink liquid. The mutants would come charging and his men easily took care of it. Ed's men barely provided support. Only the mechs were somewhat useful in providing some crowd control on the hordes.

Several hours later. They reached the harbor. A large steamboat looked to be made of some type of steel alloy. It was a bit far from shore due to its massive size. It looked to be over 100 meters long.

”Wanna take a look?” Fang questioned.

”Yes!” Ed's eyes sparkled with joy. He hadn't felt this excited since he had seen the steam-core powered mech at the academy. A 3-meter-long steamboat traveled from the ship towards them. A single man was driving it. They both got on board.

Captain Fang put his hand on the driver's shoulder. ”Wait here on shore.”

”Eh? Why?” The man questioned.

”It's an order. Just do it.” He commanded.

”Okay…” The man got off the boat confused.

Fang grabbed the wheel and took the boat out of the harbor. A tall pipe released steam as the boat traveled. A large wheel near the rear spun as the boat traveled. They traveled halfway towards the large boat when he pulled a lever to cut the steam engine. He turned around and aimed his rifle at Ed's head. ”I've got some questions for you.”

”Oh?” Ed smiled while rising an eyebrow. 'Is he suspicious because I brought up the princess earlier? Or because Tom is gone? Maybe because our base has mechs, which can also be considered unusual? Plenty of suspicious things to question me about... I expected this though. I was originally hoping to speak with him in the base to provide my explanations. If I refused to follow him here, it'd be even more suspicious. What a pain…'

”What happened to Tom?” Fang questioned.