The Reformation

Time for a Reunion

A shattering of something made of glass roused me from my slumber. I sat up, disconnected to the rest of me, and tried to get my bearings. My eyes swam, unfocused and vacant. What's going on? I stood up, legs unwilling to support my weight, and plodded to the door. A loud thud shook me from the haze of exhaustion, and I shook off my sluggishness. What is happening on the other side of this door? With unsteady hands, I grasped the cold doorknob, unsure of whether or not the other side was safe. A force resembling a freight train slammed into me, knocking me into the closet opposite of the door. I crashed into it, bringing the entire frame down with me. Picking myself up from the pile of clothes on the floor, I raised my arm to shield my face from what was to come. After a few moments had passed in silence, I lowered my arm slightly, and what I saw flabbergasted me. 

It was a girl.

A small one, at that.

She couldn't have been taller than my waist. In one hand she held a violin-case like object, the other hand she held something that looked suspiciously like a gold-tipped  cane. The violin-case object was longer than she was tall, but she looked completely at ease holding it by its leather grip. The cane she held like a staff, and was taller than her head by quite a few inches. She wore a steampunk outfit, complete with goggles at the top, metallic gears adorning every single surface she had, and her face told me that the predominant emotion she was feeling right now was inquisition. "These Templars never had any business in this time zone, but they strut around like they own the place. At least this one's out cold." She gestured at the pile of machinery behind her, still sparking and whirring. "How it found out where I was going, however, is a question I cannot answer even given my extensive knowledge. Coincidences do happen time to time, but that's the fourth time now I've regenerated in its face. Either Abstergo is secretly spying on us, o-"

"Hold up." I held up a hand, the other one still draped across my face. "What's going on?"

"Ah. I forgot. Living this long does take a toll. On memory in particular." She tipped her cane towards me, and tilted her head to the left, a little inquisitively. "My name is Leyrador, Reveress of the Cause. You can call me Ley." 

"The Cause?" I stumbled, shaking my head in an attempt to make sense of the information that I was being assaulted with. "Reveress? Templars? What are all these?" 

"Well, Reyna, I don't really have a lot of time to talk about this, as-" She flipped open the tip of the cane, and inspected the inside of it. "-10 more Templars are headed this way in the span of 45 seconds. " Flipping the tip closed, she fished out a wrench from her masses of gears and lobbed it at me. I barely managed to catch it, and when I grasped its handle, the sheer weight of it almost made me drop it as rapidly as I had caught it. The wrench was no longer than the size of a pencil but the weight of it was equatable to a dumbbell. "What is this thing?" I asked, frowning at it, turning it over, muscles aching from its weight.

"It's a wrench. I'd had thought you would know this, given you live in a garage. 30 seconds now." She checked the time again, this time with her goggles. "I mean, I know what it is, but what is this thing even supposed to do?" I said, slightly annoyed that this young girl was lecturing me about a garage tool. 

"Out of time. Get ready. Hold the wrench with the tip facing you. And when you want it to help you, swing it in a golf motion. Now let's g-" Before she could finish, the entire house shook with a seismic force that rattled the rafters. Dust floated down onto me. "Wha-" I started, then stopped when I saw the mechanical monstrosities behind Ley. 

Each of them was ten feet tall, with a humanoid physique and face. Their features were too sharp, as though they had stepped right out of an enhanced photograph. Their skin shone with the glint of polished metal, shined to a blinding reflection. Their bodies were rigid, movements mechanical, but with the fluidity of a human trapped inside a machine. Each of them towered above the house  and peered into my room, looking down into it through the skylights. One of them raised its fist, and without hesitation Ley yelled "Duck!" And flattened herself against the floor. I followed suit, with not a second left to spare.

The thing's fist barely missed me by a few inches, smashing the wooden floor next to me into kindling. Ley rolled to the side of the door, and swung her staff at the metal thing, striking it with the golden tip of the cane. It barely made a scratch, but the arm retracted with a speed that suggested that it had just been stung. As if on cue, the rest of the mechaloids crashed into the house, striding into the walls as if they were nonexistent. The entire house groaned dangerously, as if threatening to crush us right then and there. Ley rushed towards me, lifting me to my feet. Hard to do if you're 4 feet tall, but she managed it with surprising force. "There's too many of them. Hang on to my sleeve. The first time is pretty nauseating, but you'll be fine. Fend them off, will you? Just activate the wrench." She calmly dropped her staff, and, clattering onto the floor, and opened the violin-case looking thing. I looked around, bewildered, as my house was slowly being ripped apart by mechanical giants. "Wha-" I started again, but before I could finish that thought, a giant foot crashed through the roof, its metallic sole headed straight for us. Instinctively, I swung the wrench upside with as much force as I could muster, with the tip ending in the arc against the giant's massive, glistening foot. 

A dome spread from the tip, encasing the both of us in a golden light. When the foot connected with the shield, the thing was pushed back with such force that it toppled over, landing on its back with a deafening crash. "Could you please stop screaming, my eardrums are about to implode. There we go, into the year 789 BC. Hang tight. And please stop screaming." She closed my mouth with her hand, and I didn't realize I was screaming until my mouth was closed. "What was that?" I half screamed, and she winced. "I thought it was Templars they were sending, but apparently Ringos had to do the job. You are very important, you know." She hefted the case and slammed it shut. For the first time, I had a clear view on the flat side of the case. There were numbers on the side, with those padlock-style engraved numbers onto a scroll wheel. As I looked, the numbers spun, finally landing on the numbers 789, and the two big scroll wheels on the side whirred to display the words BC. I felt a pulling sensation from my gut, like a rope was lassoed around it and reeling me in. Ley snatched up her staff. Reality collapsed like pixels into itself, and before I blacked out, I remember asking her one question. "Who are you?" My voice sounded like it originated from inside my head, echoic and distant. 

"My name is Leyrador Grastuw, and I am your great-grandmother, Reyna Grastuw."