Arsenal of Confidence

Two weeks have now passed since the physical-enhancing experiments, over which lots of training had been done.

"You all just need some refining," Minister Harrison had told the five; Jasper, Axel, Wardell, Suto, and Zika. It were these five that had been experimented on, leaving evident blue marks in the spots they'd been injected. And so over the two weeks following that day, they'd been training nonstop, polishing their newfound capabilities and tweaking things along the way. Due to Axel and Zika's slimmer build, they were both induced with improved agility and stamina. They could now move swiftly along the wind without catching a break. Suto and Wardell were given strength and durability enhancements due to their more muscular builds, especially Wardell who now pumped even larger veins.

Being the leader of the squad, Jasper was given a bit of everything, but exclusively brain enhancements. It was a risky road that Jasper was willing to take, and that he therefore consented to. But luckily the surgeries had worked out just as planned. Due to the experiments done on his brain, Jasper could now think faster, memorize more, and produce an especially efficient amount of needed information in one given take. What they'd done was they'd increased the speed and rate that nerves would relay signals to one another by a third of its original speed. This allowed Jasper to think up ideas spontaneously, guaranteeing that his mind would always move first before his body could. The scientists also took a step further into his brain, successfully initiating a state of near photographic memory for Jasper. As long as he focused properly, Jasper could memorize any number of things to the tiniest detail. And it was this skill that Jasper planned to hone over his next two weeks of training leading to their official reveal.

It was also over these two weeks that loads of technology had been developed to be used by Squad Zero.

"Made by yours truly," Jarrett handed Axel a knife and a hatchet. Both were designed intricately with navy blue handles to grip when wielding. "Your brother told me this was your favorite color."

"A knife and a hatchet…? What's this going to do against the Sins?" Axel seemed slightly unimpressed.

"I understand you're used to wielding firearms. But we can't take any risks. According to the Forbidden Document, the Sin of Pride can control the movement of atoms around any given object. I wouldn't wanna risk doubting that he couldn't do the same with bullets. What if we were to fire at him, only for those same bullets to be sent flying straight back towards us?"

Axel felt somewhat dumbfounded.

"I know, same." Jarrett sighed. "I was so keen on developing guns for everyone you know. But Hugo filled me in on the Sins' capabilities, and I had to reset my thought process."

"Don't worry. I understand," Axel clutched his new blue handles. "With my newly developed speed, I can put these handhelds to good use."

"Your brother's gonna be proud of you." Jarrett smiled. "I call those; Clad and Crux."

"Clad and Crux… Crux as in, the decisive point that resolves an outcome?"

Jarrett laughed. "I see you did really well in English class huh? To that question, yes and no."

"Yes and no?"

"One of those two weapons is the Clad, and the other is the Crux."

"So one of them will be the deciding factor in the outcome of a fight?"

Jarrett was surprised. "You catch on easily. Yes, exactly that."

"Which one? The knife or the hatchet?"

"You see, there's another more primary meaning for Crux you know… 'An unsolved question', 'impossible to solve'… It's up to you, as it's wielder, to uncover the Crux yourself."

Axel was intrigued beyond thought. "Thank you, Jarrett," he walked off.

Continuing the unforeseen trend of melee weapons, Wardell came in and was given a heavy battle axe to wield.

"What the fuck? Are we in the Medieval Times or something?"

Jarrett chuckled at him. "Didn't Jasper spread the word? We can't rely on basic firearms anymore. The Sin of Pride can too easily counter that."

"Tsk! You expect me to drive in and swing this thing at them?"

"Actually, yes. You're buff and durable, probably the most physically strong to carry the weight of that thing."

Wardell twirled the axe in his one hand. "This thing is light."

"Point proven," Jarrett laughed. "One more thing though. I've constructed that axe in a way so that it can change shape when thrown horizontally."

"And what does that do?" Wardell questioned.

"Think of it like a boomerang. You throw that thing, and it'll round right back to you. Just make sure to catch it, otherwise you might get struck with it yourself. I call it the Axe of Trajectory"

"Hmph," Wardell nodded. He walked away with frustrated intent, though he gave off a rather satisfied atmosphere.

"Suto!" Jarrett called him over.

"Hey Jarrett!" He was excited. Seeing everyone else's weapons had gotten him to anticipate.

Jarret handed him a long beam. "Hm?" Suto was confused. "Is my weapon just a stick?"

"It's way more than that," Jarrett pulled the beam back. "Look." He released a detachable latch, revealing a series of buttons. He pressed the first one, "Setting one," a sharp blade pushed forward, "Spear setting." Jarret's finger then traced down to the button right under. "Setting two," he pressed it and from the sides of the end of the beam, two more sharp blades shot outwards and forwards in line with the middle spear; "Trident setting." Lastly, Jarret hit the third button at the bottom of the latch. "Third setting." He now held the weapon over his shoulder, "Javelin setting," and he whipped the beam forward, without letting go. The blades from the end of the beam flew forward, hitting the target he'd set up in his workshop. All three points of the trident punctured bullseye across the target. "You can use this setting with both the spear and trident setting."

Suto's jaw dropped. "That was amazing…" But he held his head, "I have a question though. Do I have to retrieve and reattach the blades after I've thrown it?"

Jarrett shook his head. He pressed the spear setting button once more, and out came another blade from the tip of the beam. "This weapon is not bound to any limit. You don't need to worry about running out of blades, hence why I call it the Lance of Eternity."

Suto happily took the well-rounded beam into his hands. "This weapon is amazing! Thank you so much."

"I have to warn you about one thing though," Jarrett spoke in a serious tone. "Never use the Javelin setting in presence of the Sin of Pride."

"The Sin of Pride?"

"Yes. The one with air and object manipulation. I'm sure you understand why."

Suto nodded. "I do. But how will I know if I'm dealing with the Sin of Pride or not? We don't know any of their identities; their names, their genders, their looks, nothing."

Jarrett sighed. "I know, and that's what's going to make engaging in combat much more difficult. It's that even if we know we've come into contact with a Sin, we won't know which one. Not until at least one of us has fallen victim to their capabilities. Only then we'll be able to connect the dots."

Suto gritted his teeth. "Don't worry Jarrett. You can count on us to deal with them. We've been training a year's worth in this month alone of boot-camp. Those Sins won't see it coming."

Jarrett smiled. "You're right. I'll anticipate their downfall."

Suto now walked away, and in next was Zika.

Jarrett was immediately filled with excitement upon her entry. "Zika! Oh boy do I have something in stock for you."

She approached the enthusiastic engineer, to which he lent forward something in his hand; a small, compact, but sleek knife. It held an intricate design on the sheathes of its blade, rounding its edges and ending with a pointy tip. It's handle was crimson purple, shaped with grips that dueled between being held two different ways.

"Watch," he told Zika. He held the knife upright. This allowed his thumb to rest on a certain lump. "Wield it this way, and you can secrete a lethal acid on the length of the blade." He pressed down on the lump, which then visibly lined the blade with a dripping purple liquid. "It's pH level is on par with stomach acid. Catch your victim into contact with this poison and it'll burn right through their skin, allowing for an easier cut through flesh." Jarret now flipped the knife over, holding it facing down. "Wield it this way, and stab your victim," he jabbed a see-through dummy with the blade. Doing so, he pressed down on another lump found under his thumb. Looking at the dummy, Zika observed a purple liquid that seeped from the blade's tip. "Wielding it this way will grant you the ability to inject and secrete a lethal poison into your victim upon stabbing. The strength of the poison is on par with that of a king cobra, which is why I call this weapon the Queen Cobra."

Zika carefully took it into her hands, placing it into her holster in replacement of her old knife. Zika was just about to begin walking away, when Jarrett quickly pulled her back. "Wait!" He scrambled towards the back of his workshop. Punching in a code on a panel found on the wall, a secret latch opened, revealing a long sturdy weapon that hung over them. He reached up, grabbing the lengthy rifle.

"Here you go," he passed it to Zika. "Be careful, it's really heavy."

Zika took the rifle from Jarrett's arms. "Sin of Pride…"

"Yes, I know. The Sin of Pride can easily counter any regular firearm." Jarrett now smiled with confidence. "Which is why here I've made you a not-so-regular firearm."

Zika looked down at the burly weapon she held. It was accented with purple lines that flowed throughout its surface. A massive scope sat on-top the gun.

"This is the Eye of Minerva, a heavy duty sniper rifle; a type of weapon I know you've worked in profession with before. But this is more than just your typical sniper rifle. The ammunition it uses is what makes it special."

Zika unlatched the magazine clip from its holster. Upon doing so, she realized the rifle itself became noticeably lighter. All the weight from the rifle had been transferred into the single clip she held.

"Inside those clips are Bullets of Humility. Which is ironic because they're going to be used to counter the Sin of Pride. What I've made here is a counter to what the Sin of Pride can counter. These are bullets developed with a special material only found in Cardinal Nexus technology that is so scientifically heavy, even the Sin of Pride would not be able to maneuver its atoms."

Zika fell upon a trance, engaged with the sight of such a beautiful weapon. She understood that with it came a lot of responsibility.

"Referring to this rare material used to make those bullets, they are very limited in resource. Which is why I've only been able to make you two clip's worth of bullets, and each clip only has five bullets."

"Ten bullets…"

"Yes Zika. You've only got ten bullets, and there are Seven Sins. You can't miss more than three shots. There aren't enough bullets for that many mistakes."

She looked up at Jarrett, as if asking a question with her face. By now, Jarrett had learned how to understand her without her having to speak, as per usual.

"No. Unfortunately, and I say this with morals, that weapon won't be used to kill the Sins. It most definitely can, but following Minister Harrison's orders, we must catch them alive; at least three of them."

"Three…?"

"Yes, because that's apparently enough to draw information efficiently. Which means after we've been able to capture three Sins for ourselves, the other four… can definitely be put into the ground."

Zika nodded, understanding the situation.

"If you're going to use that when capturing the Sins, aim for the legs. Disable their mobility, nothing more. All the weapons I've developed for Squad Zero can be used lethally, but according to our rules and limits, will only be used to ensure their captivity."

Zika nodded once again. She now walked away, with her Queen Cobra holstered, and her Eye of Minerva strapped around her shoulder.

Last but definitely not least, Jasper came to meet Jarrett in his workshop. "Everyone's weapons have been looking absolutely stunning. And thank you for filling me in on their capabilities too."

"No problem leader. It's important that you know so that you can set up some strategies with Hugo on team formations using those weapons."

Jasper nodded. "So the final weapon; mine."

Jarrett turned around. "Right here for you, sir." He handed Jasper a long beam. It looked similar to Suto's weapon in a neutral state, though it bore a different color; a sleek teal with a holographic tint to it.

"This looks similar to Suto's," he told Jarrett.

"I know, but you're dealing with something completely different here." He took the beam back to show. "This here, is Duality." Jarrett pulled the beam from both ends, splitting it into two. From its inner ends, each half of the beam revealed long katana-like blades. "Primary form: Akimbo." Jarrett pressed down on blue buttons found on each handle. This engaged a lighted look on each blade. "Secondary form: Akimbo Amplified. This will trace each of your blades with a strong plasma fringe. You can count on this form to be able to cut through anything. But its energy source is limited, and requires cooldown after excessive use."

"Understood," Jasper nodded.

"We're not done yet though." Jarrett now pressed red buttons found on each handle. From right under each handle, out flew equal lengths of serrated blade, also induced with the same glowing blue plasma. "Tertiary form: Razor Revolution." The weapon now became a dual wield of two double-sided swords. Each having a sharp, and a serrated end. Both equipped with plasmic amplification. He passed the two to Jasper, who immediately took them into his own and spun them around with incredible precision.

"This feels so natural… I don't think I would've been able to have used something like this before the experiments."

Jarrett agreed. "I heard from the scientists that you'd developed a sense of ambiguity. So I thought, with now ambiguous hands, wielding one in each hand would prove dangerous."

"Dangerous?"

"To the Sins."

Jasper let out a laugh. "You got that right." He struck a dummy laid out in front of him, completely decapitating each of its limbs, leaving only its head, in just a matter of spinning seconds. "You've done us an outstanding job Jarrett. I can't be ever more thankful for the weapons you've produced us front-liners, and I look forward to what more you develop in counter to the Sins. Keep it up!"

And that counted the end of weapon distribution for those who would engage upfront with the Sins themselves. "Phew," Jarrett wiped his sweat. "This better be worth-it in the end. Because right now, it's looking better than ever for Squad Zero."

Smiles spread throughout each member in anticipation for their upcoming reveal to the public, and now with each of their exclusive weapons.

They were ready to bring down the Sins.

Or were they?