Sigma/Star

Chapter 110: Resurgence

"Sigma, what's the status on Jahari attacks?" Porter stood next to his brother on the beach, the two of them preparing for the upcoming departure. Sigma had been scanning the ocean and sky nearby, waiting for a large enough ship to pass by. He would then hack into its systems and create the illusion of a malfunction that would crash the ship, forcing the crew off of it. They would need a vessel of some sorts if they were going to carry the Goliaths back to the shore.

The android did not respond for a minute, gathering all of the data requested. There was a barrier put up around the island, generated by Sigma, that prevented any signals from leaving or entering the island. He had to create temporary holes in it whenever he was trying to download new information, and it slowed down his process slightly in order to maintain their safety. "There have been three major attacks on cities over the past month. One in Narrius, one in Verdad, and another in the northern mountains of the Enian Federation."

"That's less than I expected." Porter inspected the rest of the group as they got ready. They had been training for the entire month, doing their best to improve, and while they had let their bond deteriorate over that time, he was confident they were getting back on track and were ready to begin their rebellion.

"All of those areas are now under Jahari control." Sigma hid his emotions entirely as he gave the reports, leaving Porter to wonder if his brother was phased by the news at all. "Narrius as a city is lost, currently occupied by Jahari forces and being torn down, and Verdad quickly sunk into the ground after the fight. The stretch of Jahari control in the north is unknown."

"What about Syn?"

Sigma had been gazing into the sky, as if he could see into the invisible data that was always flowing around them, but he stopped as soon as Porter asked the question, his head swivelling to stare at the teen. "Syn's been seen here and there, but he's not doing much. He only appears when the Jahari do, and he usually ends the conflict."

"You didn't need to look that one up?" Porter held confidence in his question, commanding the words rather than feeling nervous about asking the robot. He had been so non-confrontational before, but there was something different now. Had it been Riya's scolding, Shotuku's apology, or perhaps just a connection with a brother he never had, someone else he could relate to and feel accepted by, even if Sigma was still largely a mystery.

"I'm always watching Syn. You never need to worry about him."

"I'll keep that in mind." Porter walked away from the cyborg to rejoin the rest of the group, interrupting their conversation with his presence alone. All of them were wearing their jumpsuits for piloting, their additional clothes that Shotuku had brought from the academy to be left behind on the island. Gretta, Shotuku, Alpha, Sigma, and Roth were all to stay there in the protection of Sigma's haven, while the rest were being shuttled to the Artisan Confederate as soon as a ship could be hijacked.

"Don't mind me," Porter said, raising his hands in defense to try and separate himself from being the reason any discussion had died. "Just here with the rest of you."

"We just want to know the plan, Porter." Ardwen smiled, revealing the innocence in his words. There was no more malice between any of them, no hostilities over secrets and guilt. They were prepared to move as one.

"Ah, the plan..." Porter glanced around a bit, as if searching out a distraction to buy himself time to think.

"You have no idea do you," Nami asked, whacking Porter across the back of the head.

"Hey, I've thought about it, I'm just putting some pieces together. There's only five of us after all. It's not like five people can fight an army."