CON:FID3

The pirates and their guest arrived at the near closing of the gate in Gietha adorned in hooded shawls to cover their identity. Hooded guards from the sandy peaks guarded the spiked and barricaded gates, pushing back all those that had been deemed unworthy of entry, which included the ravenous infected. As their horses clopped through and stood trial within a short line, the guards went by, checking the mangled hands and old purses of those seeking refuge in the dying planet.

Lyn, who was sandwiched in between Dorothy and Ardine, watched as the latter tossed a valuable shiny coin toward an approaching hooded guard. The guard, who glanced over at Ardine with a solid nod, accepted them for entry. They entered the deserted city and what remained of it, finding nothing but starvation and treachery among every step.

"If one were to step in Gietha and assume that the city had been stricken by a tornado or any other natural disaster, I'd say the evidence was enough to prove such a tragedy befell the once great city," Ardine mentioned as they clopped through the main entrance. He looked at Lyn with a concerned gaze. "We've seen what you could do back there. Don't cause any trouble or draw any unwarranted attention. We're already not welcome here, and I doubt you'd do any better."

Lyn watched Dorothy and Ardine strap their horses beside a run-down pen before walking ahead of her toward a row of barely rebuilt brick buildings. She passed besides a beggar and some children frolicking and playing with sticks and weeds, and nearly tripped over a set of chains and shackles near a set of steps. As she ascended through with the pirates, they found a row of hooded soldiers shoving slaves from Gietha, who carried iron tools toward a pre-built spring for water.

"Through here." Ardine said, pointing toward a dark narrow alleyway. Lyn continued to follow, encountering a small puppy barking at her. She disregarded it with a blank face, sweeping through the alley with Dorothy and Ardine to follow.

They approached an ordinary civilian sitting on a wooden chair nearly about to snap. He smoked a cigarette and allowed for the ash to fall underneath his sandals. After seeing the three approach, he stood up straight and attempted to appear presentable.

"Out for a smoke, are you?" Ardine commented to the civilian. "One of these days it won't be the monsters that kill you."

"Shoulda known you'd say something like that," The civilian said, scratching the back of his head. He dropped the cigarette against the sand and stomped on it. After unlocking the iron door behind him, he scanned the three with his energized eyes. "Welcome back, Ardine, Dorothy, and..."

"A guest," Ardine interrupted, patting his shoulder once before passing through inside. "You need not worry."

Lyn entered the unusual establishment, finding a natural cozy environment with tribal furnishings. It was a single studio room, expanded several meters for a meeting section. Although the sensation of warmness was there momentarily, there were large crates filled with heavy goods used as chairs, and a hidden plotted map against the wall out of sight. Several small bugs crawled through the old floors, skidding to hide away from the pirates as they entered.

Dorothy and Ardine removed their cloaks and tossed them against a giant wooden crate. Dorothy stretched and set her rifle against the crate before sitting down to rest her legs. Ardine moved toward the map and removed his shirt, switching it for a tribal thin vest to bring out his suave nature. Lyn stood still, watching their behavior as another individual who appeared young, approached the two wearing goggles and earrings.

"Scabs," Ardine greeted, patting the young man on the shoulder. "Scouting potential troves proving alright with you? Takes a brave soul to do it, but an even braver soul alone."

The short young man named Scabs sighed. "No luck, Ardine," His higher-pitched voice indicated a lower sense of maturity, but teetering off the brim of adulthood. "I swear, it's getting much more difficult now. You and Miss Dorothy found the easiest spots around Gietha."

"I'll take that as a compliment," Ardine said, grabbing an apple from a hanging sack of fruit. He bit into one and swallowed before looking at Scabs again. "Change of plans, though."

"Huh? What, why?" Scabs whined.

"We're the presence of someone who wishes to meet your imperial majesty," Ardine continued, pointing at Lyn subtly with his finger. "So now, I need you to scout an easy path to the iron fist. The holds will have to stay put for now."

Scabs approached Lyn as she removed her hood, revealing her attractive facial features and black hair. His eyes lit up as his cheeks rose up in swelling red. Before he could freeze any further, he turned back to Ardine, who rushed at him to pull his head down to ear level. Lyn watched as the two goofily acted around her, and Dorothy holding in her chuckles.

"Who is this beautiful goddess you've brought here...?!" Scabs whispered. "Completely uncalled for!"

"Ah, so you've taken a liking to our guest," Ardine spoke out in normal volume, turning him around to face Lyn. "This here's an interesting one. Scabs, meet Lyn, the woman who'll take back the Wastes' freedom with her charming face!"

Lyn did not react to their words.

"She's an excellent fighter, this one, and I guarantee she'll do fine here for the time being. Right, Scabs?"

"R-Right." Scabs nodded and approached Lyn with his hand out. "I'm Scabs. They call me that because-"

"You're too clumsy," Dorothy interrupted, resting her back against the wall. "And because you get hurt too often."

Scabs scratched his head in nervousness. "Yeah, well, I'm the one doing all the running and lifting anyway," He intervened. "Come on, shake my hand, why don't you?"

Lyn did not move, staring at Scabs's eyes with no reaction. Ardine folded his arms and pinned his back against a wall with his foot resting against it, while Dorothy silently watched as no movement from Lyn's system beckoned a sign of friendship.

"Well?" Scabs began to sweat. "Are you going to shake my hand?"

"I do not know how." Lyn said.

"Like..." Scabs reached in and wrapped his hand around Lyn's. He then clamped it down with enough pressure. "This!"

Lyn involuntarily clamped onto Scabs's hand even further and flipped him around her head with one hand. She slammed him down on the ground and stepped on his back to pin him down. Dorothy stormed from her seat and gently pushed Lyn away from him, tending to Scabs after his brutal undertaking.

Ardine chuckled. "And that's why we call him Scabs." He commented.

Dorothy turned toward Lyn after lifting Scabs from the ground. "You're an usual one, you know that, Lyn?" She said. "Won't even shake someone's hand, or give common courtesy to-"

"Ah..." Scabs interrupted. "I get it now. You're not a human, are you?"

Dorothy gasped at Scabs's accusation, while Ardine pushed himself off of the wall, eyebrows slanted to express disapproval. "Scabs, that's-" As he approached the three, Lyn chimed in with a simple response.

"No," Lyn said. "I am not."

Ardine rolled his eyes as Dorothy looked back at him. Scabs began to laugh before moving back toward the map hung on the wall. Ardine looked at Lyn and Dorothy. "How on SIGMA's name did you know that?" He asked.

"Well, you did hire the best scout," Scabs retorted, tapping his forehead. "Sixth sense."

Ardine scoffed. "Well, that certainly explains all the unusual things that have been going on. Escaping with a pair of iron bindings, washing away all the blood, the deadpan voice... it all makes sense now. And I thought I was crazy at first."

"Nonhuman..." Dorothy croaked.

Ardine approached Lyn with a newfound opinion. "If you're going to stick with us for the next few days to meet the iron fist, I'd prefer if you had a taste of what it means to be human," He said, before reaching into the fruit sack. He tossed Lyn an apple, to which she ignored, letting it collide with her chest. Ardine sighed and picked it up for her. "Hold this with your hand, and eat it."

"Eat it?" Lyn asked.

"Yes, put it in your mouth and chew." Ardine said.

Lyn followed his instructions as Dorothy and Scabs watched from a distance, eyes glimmering for her reaction. As she took a small bite, she chewed the apple with her mouth open to allow large amounts of saliva to pour out of the side of her mouth. Scabs's cheeks rose up in red as Dorothy chuckled in amusement, kicking back to enjoy the moment.

"Well?" Ardine asked?

Lyn swallowed. "What?" She asked.

"Do you like it?"

Lyn looked at the apple with a blank stare before eating another bite. Her eyes widened as she continued eating, including the seeds and the core along with it. Ardine dove in and snatched her arm before she could consume the core, causing Lyn to drop it and retaliate with a swift slam against the ground.

"Haha, even better the second time!" Scabs joked, laughing at Lyn's behavior.

Ardine coughed, standing up while positioning his back properly to mitigate the damage. "I guess you like it after all..." He croaked.

Dorothy stood up and approached Lyn, leaning out with her hand open. "Okay, now it's your turn. Place your hand on my hand and hold it tight." She instructed.

Lyn copied her movement and touched hands with Dorothy.

"Now, move your wrist up and down like this," Dorothy said, shaking hands with Lyn. "We call this 'shaking hands.' It's a sign that you respect the other person and it's a symbol of friendship."

"Friendship," Lyn repeated, shaking Dorothy's hand with a blank stare. "Is this correct?"

Dorothy's smile regressed into hidden pain, uneasy at Lyn's extremely bored attitude and physical appearance. "Yes, well, almost," She uttered. "Now, you just have to smile."

"Smile?" Lyn asked.

Scabs took the stage, grinning widely until his pearly white teeth revealed itself to Lyn. Ardine sighed and stood in front of him, smiling without his mouth wide open. "Like this." Ardine said.

"Smile, Lyn!" Scabs called.

Lyn copied Ardine's smile to an extreme degree, swelling her cheeks up until her eyelids closed unnaturally. The sides of her mouth rose up to unusual heights, appearing more like a malfunctional doll rather than a human's natural happiness.

Dorothy laughed at Lyn's poor attempt. "It's a start," She said. "The reason why we smile is to show happiness. Whenever someone makes you laugh, you should smile."

"As if there's anything to smile about at the moment..." Ardine commented.

Lyn's smile regressed into her normal expression. She glanced to the side, lost in thought until the memory of a joke came abruptly in her head. She wanted to put it to the test. "What did the pickle say to the cucumber?" She asked.

Dorothy, Ardine, and Scabs eyed each other, astonished at her attempt to tell a joke. "I don't know, what?" Dorothy asked.

"You mean a great dill to me!" Lyn shouted, smiling abnormally afterward.

Ardine closed his eyes and shook his head, covering his mouth with his gloved palm. Scabs laughed aloud, while Dorothy grinned in silence. Lyn's unusual smile copied Dorothy's regressing into a normal human smile without showing teeth.

"I'm surprised you know your way with a joke," Ardine said. "Who taught you that one? The flying sword?"

"Yes."

"It talks too?"

"A flying talking sword?" Scabs asked.

"I believe her." Ardine said.

"What?!" Scabs replied.

Ardine cross his arms and laid back against the wall. "The way I see it, the world's bigger than we'd thought, and Lyn just happens to be a piece of that world. If there really is a flying talking sword out there, I'd have to believe it." He said.

"Yeah, I guess. Still, though, a flying talking sword... I think that's something I'd want to see as a pirate. Oh-" Scabs covered his mouth, unveiling their identity to Lyn.

"Don't worry, she already knows." Dorothy said.

Ardine looked at Lyn. "Now, why don't we get into the real reason we're all in here?" He began. "It's not every day a wanderer like you shows up to the Wastes. What business do you have with Kaiden Gizmalek?"

Lyn approached Ardine with a fierce gaze, reminding herself of the truth. Instead, she approached him with a question. "Is Kaiden a Lord of SIGMA?" She asked, staring into Ardine's eyes.

"I've never heard of that term before," Ardine replied. "But even if that were the case, what's the purpose?"

***

Lyn had explained it all to the pirates; her rising from the ashes from the disc, finding Alfaic and partnering with him towards Stravia, including her encounter with Lordran, Cethe and Elaina's journey through Llafiella, and her loss of Alfaic after being defeated by the clones of her mortal enemy. As she spoke her truth, bitter hate, reminiscent of her encounter with the clones of Lordran, seeped into her vocabulary and vocal tone. She was beginning to understand her journey's struggles, and why she despised Lordran to a fault, as the first person to have ever betrayed her to create a sense of hurt.

"Lordran, huh," Ardine voiced out. "I don't think I've ever heard of the name before. And you said... clones of the same person?"

"I'm sorry about Cethe," Dorothy apologized. "She didn't deserve that, nor did her sister. And this whole time, she just wanted to be friends with someone who understood her, and you and your sword did exactly that."

"I think I'm starting to get it," Scabs entered. "But the chances of Kaiden being this 'Lord of SIGMA' are pretty rare. He's always ruled the Wastes with an iron fist. Literally," Before he let the others in the room speak, Scabs suddenly gasped and snapped his fingers before rummaging through his pile of maps. "Wait, wait, wait!" He shouted.

"What did you find?" Dorothy asked.

Scabs revealed a tattered map of Gietha, pointing at the main entrance through the exit of Gietha's walls. He traced his finger through, leading it to another city beyond the sandy peaks. "When I was scouting near the exit wall, I heard people talking about a person with white hair and red eyes. They were talking about how they were heading to the sandy peaks. They were in hoods... probably to hide their faces!"

"That's where Kaiden is," Dorothy mentioned, looking at Lyn. "Just maybe..."

"Would you look at that," Ardine smiled, glancing away from the map. "It's a long shot. What do you think, Lyn? Want to test your theory of your sword being there?"

Lyn glanced down at the map before looking into Ardine's eyes. "Yes," She said, thinking of Alfaic and Lordran. She clenched her fists and frowned. "Blade..." She whispered.