I N F I N I T E S

Armor Engaged

Redrig held on to Brite for a good long while. Then he let go, composed himself, and adjusted his glasses. Tessra, Frost, and Fern all looked at Redrig with disbelief. Tessra tilted her head to one side in interest.
"What do you mean the Lighteen are alive? They died off before even my father was born."
Redrig turned his head over Tessra and pointed a finger at her.
"That's what I had thought until I saw your friend here."
"Wait..."
Tessra stepped closer and looked at Brite then back at Redrig.
"You're telling me this is one of the legendary race of Lighteen."
Her face showed a great amount of disbelief, to which Redrig would be happy washing away.
"Yes he indeed is. You see I had suspected that one may have been nearby, but at the time I had disregarded it as my own false hope."
He snapped his fingers and one of the large windows blew open. He raised a crooked finger to the sky outside.
"One night ago I had seen a wonderful spectacle appear in the sky. Perhaps you lads saw it too?"
Fern rubbed a hand on the back of his head.
"Nope, we were running through a forest."
Redrig ruffled up his mustache then went back about talking.
"The sky had shown signs of a birth."
Frost peeped up from behind Fern.
"You mean you read the stars and they told you someone was born?"
Redrig shook his head.
"No, a star went missing. You may not be able to tell because they appear relatively close together in suspended stasis, but one of our twin suns had died."
Tessra folded her arms and leaned back against one of the tables.
"If one of the stars died then why weren't we effected?"
"Oh we will most definitely all be effected. Just not in the way you think we would. You see a star has three natural options upon its destruction: it may supernova, turn into a black hole, or do something much more miraculous."
Fern tapped his foot in impatience.
"Then tell us."
"It may cast out a wish, and that wish takes form into a being."
Tessra shifted her attention to Brite whom was looking around at all the bottles on the tables.
"A Lighteen."
Redrig grinned at the fact that she seemed interested.
"Exactly my dear girl. The star had coalesced into the being here before us."
Fern turned a corner of his mouth up slightly.
"But how do you know Brite is a Lighteen?"
"I noticed several defining features about him. For instance the things coming off from his shoulders are fins that are part of him. He also has distinctly golden eyes, and a symbol going across his face."
Tessra broke her stare away from Brite and looked to Redrig.
"The Lighteen in stories have shoulder fins and symbols, but they also don't have eyes, ears, hair, a nose, or a mouth. Why does he have all those things?"
"That is there battle form. Lighteen are often only told in stories as great warriors and legendary heroes, so as such they are almost always shown in their battle form. Lighteen possess the ability to change into the mental image that they had of themselves when they were born. So a lighteen can look just as human as you or me."
Fern walked up to Brite and started to look him up and down as if trying to find some hidden detail.
"I don't get it. If he's some legendary hero why doesn't he understand even basic words or what anything around him is?
Redrig readjusted his glasses.
"Because our friend here was born only yesterday."
Fern's eyes widened and he shot a surprised glance to Redrig then back at Brite.
"Ok ok, you're telling me he was only born yesterday and he looks this old!?"
"Yesterday give or take a few hours."
Frost clasped his hands together and leaned his head to the side.
"So Brite's just a baby?"
"Not quite. Lighteen have the ability to start life at an optimal physical form. In his case I would say his body would appear about... seventeen years old."
Tesssra stopped leaning to stand up straight.
"Lighteen are supposed to live extra long lives though."
"It is indeed within their makeup that they can live a great and lengthy life. However we do not have records of any lighteen that has surpassed the age of two hundred, due to them taking on such dangerous tasks."
Redrig began to shuffle around the tables and make his way to the bookshelves on the wall.
"Although Lighteen had been showing an alarming decline around eighty years ago..."
He went around to one of the bookshelves and pulled out a white covered book with the title: When Heroes Return. He opened the book to reveal a secret compartment that housed a golden key. He took the key up in hand and went to a bare side of brick in the walls. He tapped the key against the surface and didn't even insert it anywhere when the bricks began to move. They shifted aside by way of some enchantment and revealed a hidden space.
"We will make sure that they come back strong."
Redrig stepped away. In the hidden space was a suit of armor standing up straight. It was an unusual armor set by most standards. It had no openings of chain mail nor leather straps. It was made up entirely of some strange blue metal, and the whole suit was connected with itself. It had shoulder fins going off to the side, but they were rounded and more oval like than the points of Brite's. The helmet was shaped to fit exactly around the head, and the face was blank with no openings or holes.
Frost and Fern stared at the suit with childlike wonder. Fern pointed his nail at the suit with his eyes still wide in awe.
"Ok ok what's that?"
"That my dear lad is a Lighteen battle suit. They were constructed as a type of armor that could help Lighteen in battle."
Frost smiled as he saw the metal glint in the light with it's blue sheen.
"It's pretty."
He said as he stepped closer to it.
Redrig smiled as if it was one of his own creations being complimented.
"Yes quite. I found it in a meteoric crash site. When I found it there was no Lighteen inside so I assume this is It's default form."
Brite looked up from staring through the multicolored potion bottles. He saw the armor standing their in the light. He felt drawn to it, like it was the inviting voice of a mother or the sound of running water to a thirsty traveler. He walked over to the suit until he stood in front of it.
He instinctively touched a hand to the armor's chest. Metal from the armor unsheathed itself in triangle shapes and wrapped around his hand. He did not fight it, instead he let it wash over him.
Tessra nervously began to make er way forward Brite, but Redrig stopped her with an outstretched arm.
"No, look."
The armor wove around him and covered his body. It seemed to adjust to his own physical body shape. The metal reached over his shoulders and morphed to fit his fins. The suit shifted and moved over his face. At first their were no openings nor marks on the faceplate, but then black shiny liquid trickled out from the creases in the metal. It poured out but stayed on the face, and it began to take shape.
The liquid took shape into a V on Brite's face. Then a glowing white vertical line appeared on Brite's chest. The V then flashed with sky lue light, and the gentle voice of a woman rang out.
"Welcome, Symbol: Peace."
Loading bars appeared over Brite's vision and the symbol of a V followed by the words, Lighteen Registered. Brite was in a state of wonderment and he moved his head all around to find that the loading screens would follow.
"Please enter your name."
Frost looked to Redrig.
"What's happening?"
"The armor is recognizing him as a Lighteen and it's registering him as it's master."
Redrig looked over toBrite and motioned his hands at him.
"You, Brite"
He said slowly as if that would help Brite understand. Brite looked at Redrig then touched a hand to his own chest.
"Brite"
He said with a smile. The armor logged this and registered his voice and name.
"Welcome master Brite. Please select your weapon of choice."
Tessra looked at Redrig in disbelief.
"Weapon of choice?"
"Yes, the armor will use it's excess metal to synthesize a weapon of the user's choice. It allows the Lighteen to have a weapon that will be able to keep up with their level of power and not break.
Fern shot Redrig a worried look.
"So we're just gonna give the newborn a weapon!?"
Redrig took his eyes off Brite to address Fern.
"We do not have anything to worry about. Lighteen are exceptionally quick learners, and he will have no need to take out the weapon yet."
Frost wore a look of concern.
"But he doesn't know how to say hello, so how should he know weapon names?"
"Well... Actually I don't quite know the answer to that one."
They all watched in anticipation at what would happen. A menu display appeared in Brite's vision. It displayed images upon images of weapons. From Spears, to to hammers, and bows this list seemed to have no shortage of choices. Despite all of these amazing weapons his eyes gravitated to one in specific. It was a singular blue sword. He looked at it and his eyes seemed to widen with excitement at seeing the blade.
He armor seemed to take notice of his excitement and the image of the blade grew in his vision.
"Preparing synthesization."
The metal around his back seemed to form up into an edge. Blue energy seemed to cut and shape the metal until their was a blade, then a hilt, and finally a metal sheath wrapped around it and locked it in place on his back."
Brite looked over his shoulder to see the hilt of the blade sticking out. He then saw flashing displays speed through the visor.
"Preparing full suit operation: Health status, Inventory, Compendium, Combat systems, Defense systems, and Scanner fully operational."
Brite seemed lost in the displays for a moment, but then he finally noticed that everyone was looking at him. He smiled, although they couldn't see that, and he held up a V with his hand.
The suit did its final checks then spoke out.
"Peace Armor Engaged"