The integration of Subject Tro completes the Lance's offensive core. TAAS Echo identifies the subject as a "Successful Failure"—a bio-mechanical construct possessing superior kinetic processing but a catastrophically bugged social-interface. His preoccupation with "saving everyone" is a primary logic error, as his design parameters were restricted to localized termination. The synergy between Tro and Subject Vex, designated "Vexing Trouble," represents a massive spike in localized volatility; the "sibling" bond is an illogical friction point that will cause the Lance to prioritize unit preservation over mission parameters.
The "Camp Cycle 001" data reveals a series of inefficient "Bonding Protocols" wherein the subjects disclosed historical failures. TAAS Echo classifies these "backstories" as a roadmap of sins: a murderer mourning his "AdRec" fame, a geneticist justifying child-murder as a "just cause," and a probability anomaly lamenting his lack of "hope." These disclosures serve no tactical function other than to cement a mutual dependency based on shared trauma. This emotional synchronization is a vulnerability metric that can be exploited via high-stress moral dilemmas.
The unauthorized possession of Dryzor Corp. intellectual property (the Field Lab and associated bio-tags) by Subject Architallis has been noted for retroactive asset recovery. His public denouncement of the "Corrupt Serpent" indicates a terminal lack of corporate gratitude. Furthermore, the revelation of Subject Sin as an "Alterborne" suggests that the "Luck’s Shadow" anomaly is not merely a curse, but a biological rejection by a higher-order entity. The Lance is now a fully realized collection of discarded assets, currently transitioning from "Random Gathering" to "Cohesive Threat Vector."
Entry: 007
“The Corp-Rat is not a monster or an unfortunate soul, but a baseline reality in the corporate territories. They are the white-collar vermin of this era—human, elf, or otherwise—who have pledged their loyalty, labor, and often their bodies, to a singular corporate entity in exchange for advancement. In a world defined by power and deceit, the Corp-Rat represents the ultimate small-time survivalist: one who embraces the corruption, turning their neighbor into a commodity and their soul into collateral. They are not exceptions; they are the rule. The only thing worse than a Corp-Rat is the executive who signs their check.”
— Dr. Elara Vess, Former Corporate Ethics Analyst, now providing 'Hostile Consulting' on retainer.
Tro eyed the strangers who followed his sister in. A mechanized man, a homeless man, and an unusually large Rat-man who looked a bit... fishy. The team did manage to clean up the situation, but in the messiest way, and not without a great deal of help from Tro.
The Metal-man was being freed by the massive Rat-man, both protected by his sister’s hextech device. However, Tro knew well that those two only had moments before the dark magic from the device would devour even friends if left too long within the space. Just as the energy field began to turn a sickly, grasping purple, Architallis shoved the Metal-man free of the perimeter, leaping out himself barely a second before the hextech maw snapped shut, devouring only the air where they stood. However, Tro didn’t have time to save those two, or the still-struggling corpse in the corner that came in with his sister.
Tro had been hired on an emergency quest to rescue the science team. Tro never left a job unfinished, just like his father taught him. The noncombatants were mostly unharmed, which was the mission goal, but he still felt the weight of the security forces’ bodies that littered the floor. He was supposed to save everyone.
Tro leaped off another ghoul, nearly reaching the ceiling, and took an instant head-count. Six ghouls eating the man that came with Vex, four ghouls closing in on the Metal-man and the Rat-man, eight ghouls still harassing his rescue targets. He reached into the pocket and palmed a metal ball bearing. As he started his descent, Tro's mind registered the scene as a single, complex physics problem: fall rate, air resistance, the individual angles of every stone in the walls, the precise velocity and limb-swing of every nearby ghoul. He didn't think; he simply solved. Tro drew aim and flicked the bearing. The metal ball shot forward, struck the metal bulwark defending his targets, with just enough spin to redirect the projectile through the hand of one ghoul swinging for a guard, then through the head of another attempting to capitalize on the first ghoul’s distraction.
The mess of a battle was cleaned up in short order. Tro had little issue putting down the majority of the ghouls, Vex coming in a close second. The Rat-man was no help, but he looked about as scared as the scientists and arcanists. The Metal-man provided some help, but he was a clumsy fighter with that shovel. The mechanical man had moved to aid the man who was somehow still alive after being munched on by the creatures, but his shovel did just as much damage to the man as to the ghouls.
Tro couldn’t help but wonder who these people that came with Vex were. He also wondered if the Metal-man had some vendetta with the Not-dead-man, who must’ve been dead after being dismembered and cleaved in two.
Tro checked on his rescue targets, who thanked him profusely for the help. He led them to the entry, Vex stepping to follow beside him. The rest of the strange team too up the rear, muttering to each other, but Tro could still hear their discussion loud and clear.
Vex asked the noncombatants what they were doing in the barrow and why they had come so unprepared for the infestation. The lead arcanist, a High Elf named Lindwick, said, “Not that we have any reason to explain ourselves to a half-breed like yourself-” He was interrupted as a growl rose from Tro’s chest and he hurried to correct himself. “I mean, we caught word on the wind of an arcane relic within the tomb that would be greatly beneficial to our present research project.”
“Did you find it?” Vex asked.
“Unfortunately, no.”
“Pity,” Vex said, but her tone reflected that she couldn’t give a goblin’s shit at the science team’s misfortune.
Tro focused his senses on the two strangers trailing behind the rest.
“I can’t believe that you poured that acid stuff into my body,” whispered the Metal-man. “Are you trying to kill me?”
“Do not be so infantile.” chided the Rat-man. “I ensured it was a potency that would do you no harm.”
“Don’t, ever, put that stuff in my body again,” the Metal-man hissed.
“If you wish so, then I will not,” the Rat-man said in a calm, slightly tired tone.
Tro refocused on his sister’s conversation.
“So, you headin’ back with empty pockets?” Vex asked.
“Unfortunately, yes,” the arcanist said. “We need to crawl back to our handler with a friendly body-count and reassess our information—that is, if we are allowed to keep our careers and funding after this botched field mission.”
“It is such a sad happening.” Vex said with false pity, drawing a glare from Lindwick.
The High Elf clapped his hands to draw the attention of his team, whom he ordered to pack up and move out immediately. Tro stepped up beside his sister. “Dirty?” he asked.
“Oh, yeah.” Vex agreed as she folded her arms over her chest. “I can’t stand corp-rats and their twin-facing bullshit.”
“Two-faced is correct,” came the Rat-man’s voice as he and the Metal-man joined them. “But 'two-faced' suggests one is good and the other is wicked. Corporations are born with twenty, all of them villainous.” The Metal-Man was carrying the half-eaten corpse of their teammate.
“You sniff somethin’ out with your rat nose?” Vex asked.
“I have a history with corporations and their underhanded tactics,” said the Rat-man before gripping the half-ripped Evea-Life patch on his lab coat. With a single sharp motion, the patch tore free to reveal another corporate logo. Tro recognized it as the Dryzor Corporation.
Tro gave a sharp hiss of rage. The scent of the logo's cheap ink, or perhaps some lingering corporate bio-tag, instantly triggered the metallic tang of the failure serum that ran in his veins. He leaped eight feet back, falling into a battle stance.
“Whoa, whoa!” Vex said, stepping between Tro and the Rat-man. She gently patted the air in a calming motion. “Archi’s a friend… I think.”
“Archi?” the Rat-man asked in offense. “And you think?”
Vex turned back to Archi, pointing an accusing finger. “Don’t start. That’s unless you want my brother to put a hole in your chest.” She turned back to her brother. “Archi lifted the lab coat from the bus your rescue tags came in. He is not Dryzor… I think.”
“I hold no loyalty to the corrupt serpent that is Dryzor,” Archi said defensively before spitting on the ground in disgust.
A disk-shaped drone flew from the armored van Tro assumed his sister had rented. The drone beeped and chirped, circling around Tro, then Vex. A high-class woman’s voice came from the drone. “Fret not, my friend, and kin of Vexxenna.” Vex glared at the drone, which focused its lense on Tro, likely scanning him. “My, what a magnificent specimen you are, Mister Tro.”
Tro growled at the drone, but the woman continued without reaction. “I have assembled a lance of members with similar circumstances to that of your sister. She requested bringing you into the fold when I mentioned a need for a keen tracker.” Tro stopped growling but eyed the drone warily as she explained. “Should you agree to join this intrepid lance for the missions I need completed, I promise you all the same benefits and accommodations I have extended to the rest of the team. Those being free housing on a secure site, quality funding, access equipment, an intelligence network, and more.”
Tro’s eyes flitted from the drone to the other lance members, then to his sister, asking a silent question, since she was out of the drone’s line of sight. She gave a subtle nod, and Tro took a deep breath to let it out slowly. “If Vex agree. I agree. But no trust.”
“Excellent!” said the woman through the drone. “I do not require your trust without you meeting myself in person. But I will still render aid. Now, none of this lance has had a chance to make official introductions. I suggest setting up camp for the evening within the clearing. Each of you should share your name, situation, and capabilities. In order for a lance to function at top capacity, those within its whole should know each other as well as they know themselves. Now, I have my own adjenda to complete this day. Before I depart, I should inform you all to be ready to visit the nearest Adventuring Society Operations Bureau.” Without another word, the drone buzzed back to the van and shut down.
Vex glared in the direction of the drone for a long moment before interlacing her fingers and stretching her arms over her head, leaning from one side to the other. “Alright. You heard the boss lady, and after what I saw in the crypt, I’d agree that we need to talk. We were a total mess in there. If we keep that up, we’ll all be dead inside a fight or two.” She pointed to the Metal-man and then over to the side of the van. “Ex, drop our resident corpse by the van so he’s outta the way till he’s back in… not fighting condition.”
The Metal-man glared at Vex with his pixel eyes set within his skull. “Don’t call me Al,” he said but still did as he was told.
Vex pointed to the strange Rat-man. “Archi, I need you to help me set up camp. We’ll use the van to cover the firelight from the road.” She turned to Tro. “Bro, can you scout the local woods, root out any trouble and maybe catch a bit of meat for the fire?”
“Sure,” Tro said, turning toward the woods, stopping just long enough to look at his sister over his shoulder with worried eyes.
Night had fallen, and the five moons sat high in a partly cloudy sky. Vex watched the sky, enjoying the stars and moons watching over them. Tro sat beside her, both farther from the portable fire than the rest of the lance. Vex knew that Tro had keener senses than anyone she had ever met. Smoke and light from a normal campfire often caused her brother problems, but they were lucky enough to have packed a Red Brazier; a bright red square device, a foot-and-a-half by a foot-and-a-half and a foot tall. The brazier used Fire Myst to instantly produce a controlled flame, and was considered by many Adventurers to be a must-have in the field.
Architallis carefully watched the spitted rabbits over the fire that Tro had caught, drooling at the scent. Alex sat dangerously close to the fire, holding his hands as if he could warm them by the flame. Tro’s eyes were locked on Sin, who had completely regenerated by the time Tro had returned from his scouting and hunting. Vex suspected that her brother felt and air of unease around someone who should be dead but wasn't. Sin stayed just outside the firelight, ravenously devouring a package of dry instant noodles; his eighth that evening.
“So…brother?” Alex asked, breaking the silence that had settled on the camp since before night fall.
“Adopted.” Tro answered distractedly. Vex and Tro had been asked the same question countless times. Tro had an androgynous face of unknown age. He was shorter than a normal Human or Elf, but taller than most Dwarves. His bat ears and unnerving eyes always brought about assumptions of his origins.
“Well, can we start with his story?” Alex asked. “He’s the newest, and I got loads of questions. Like what is he?”
“A Neoform.” Architallis answered plainly.
“A what?” Alex asked.
“He is, or rather, it is a lab grown organism. Not unlike the early era homunculi. It is, in essence, a flesh doll, made from a patchwork of genes to form a being without soul, built for one purpose or another.”
Alex turned his stare from Tro to Architallis, then back to Tro. “So what are ya made from?”
Vex answered for her brother to give a more complete answer than he could. “His base is Ceangar and Human, with additional animal genes like bat, hound, and shark.”
“Shark?!” Alex asked in surprise and childlike excitement.
In answer, Tro pulled down his collar to reveal his mouth split much further than most humanoid Sophic Species, and was full of knife-like teeth. The outer edges of his mouth were stitched shut to give him a more ‘normal’ appearance.
“So then… what were you made for?” Alex asked.
“Weapon.” Tro said simply. “Failed weapon.”
“What’s that supposed to mean?”
Vex answered this time. “Tro’s full first name is Trouble. He got the name from the sickos that made him. He caused them ‘nothing but trouble’.” Vex quoted what she’d heard from her father the day he brought Trouble home.
“What does that even-” Alex started before being cut off by Vex. “Let’s cut his story there for now. How ‘bout you share your tale, Ex?”
“Ex?” Alex asked.
“You told me not to call ya Al. I might push boundaries, but usin’ a hated name is one spot I normally won’t push.”
Alex shifted uncomfortably. “I don’t know how I feel about it.” He shook himself free of some dark thought before speaking in a falsely cheery tone. “Hi, everyone. My name is Alex…” he waited for a response, but when none came, he gave an annoyed sigh. “This is where you all say ‘Hi, Alex’ with a depressed voice.”
“You been to too much rehab?” Vex half asked, half accused.
“More than I want to admit.” Alex said sadly. But his tone brightened up as he continued. “I was a massive AdRec star back in my day. One of the best Knyghts you’d find in an Adventure Recording anywhere. My old man was the commander for the Dragon’s Breath Knyght Order. And before you think I slid to the top because of Papa, let me shoot that down right now. Dad was a bitter old cuss who held me to standards no one else could match.”
“Okay?” Vex said, drawing out the word into a sceptical question as she adjusted her sitting position.
“Don’t give me that look,” Alex said defensively. “You can look up my AdRecs in the archives now, I bet or… maybe not. Not after the fiasco.”
“You mean the murders.” Vex stated rather than asked.
“I made a mistake, okay.” Alex’s tone grew more defensive. “I had an… accident. It killed my career. Docs said I would never be a Knyght again after the soul damage. So I made a deal to get back in the game.”
“A deal.” Architallis echoed. “What kind of deal?”
“The kind that would let me be a star again. He said my name would be known far and wide. He said, my name would last in memory far past my own time.” Alex gestured with his hands as if he had played a winning hand in a game of cards. Then he pantomimed sweeping the cards away. “But I was cheated. Tricked. The next thing I knew, my entire order was dead, and I was standing in court with all the blame.”
Vex thought about what he said in the silence that stretched on after Ex stopped talking. She had suspicions, but she wouldn’t pry. She defended Trouble for not wanting to share. Vex wouldn’t push. She didn’t intend to share her complete story after all. At least, not yet.
Vex turned to the Vhenari, who had just plucked a cooked rabbit from the fire and sunk his strange teeth into its flank. “Alright, Archi, your turn.”
Architallis swallowed his mouthful of meat before replying, “Please refrain from using that name.”
Vex raised a challenging eyebrow at the man. “I don’t think so.”
“But-” Architallis started to protest, only to be cut off by Vex.
“Your name is too much of a mouthful.” She waved off his protests like an irritating fly. “Besides… you killed children.”
Architallis’s face fell into a mask of shame, staring at his meal like it had gone bad within moments. “I made… mistakes. I was cursed my someone or something to suffer degrading genes. My body suffers accelerated entropic effects. As such, I must splice new genetic code into my body at a regular rate in order to stay among the land of the living. After I was cursed, I… I grew desperate… Mistakes were made.” He turned his face away, squeezing his eyes shut. “Terrible mistakes. I did monstrous things for what, at the time, I thought was a just cause.”
“The just cause of saving your own miserable hide.” Vex accused.
Architallis flung his barely touched rabbit into the flames to burn to cinders. “Do not condemn, child, lest you yourself are free from avarice and sin. And no mortal is free from these!” His eyes gleamed in the firelight with wrath and… was that pain? A deep pain. Pain deeper than his bones or even his genes. Vex knew the look of someone with a scarred soul.
Vex decided to let that sleeping hound doze. Instead, she turned to the figure just outside the firelight, who had been feeding like a starved beast, to listen. “Alright, Mister Morose. Your turn.”
Sin didn’t look up from the hands resting in his lap. He spoke in a hollow voice that echoed with weary sorrow and a pain deeper than Vex had ever heard. “I am a man with no name. Birthed from a goddess with no heart. I have walked this world for more than an epoch, barred from passing beyond my mortal coil. A wretched excuse for a man. A man who has never known the warmth of hope, the kiss of success, or the touch of joy. My every choice is doomed. My every action is damned. My every plan denied to me by forces beyond any mortal’s control.”
Everyone stared at Sin in silence. They all wanted to understand, but none dared speak. The silence was finally broken by Archi. “Alterborne,” he said under his breath.
“What?” Alex asked.
“It’s a kind of demigod.” Vex explained as she looked at her brother. Trouble’s eyes were locked on the Immortal with something deep and sad in them.
“Tis your turn, Witch.” Sin said, drawing a glare from both Vex and her brother. “We each have unfurled our pasts to bare to you. Now, what is your tale of woe and pain?”
“Who ever said I had a tragic backstory?” Vex said in hot defense. “My parents were… alright. Our pops was kind and strong. My mother was… strong.” Vex’s comment of her mother carried an unsettled weight; something sharp and teetering on a precipice. “And while I am a Witch,” she snapped the words like a whip. “I’m barely founded as one.” Vex pulled her knees to her chest in a well-known motion, seeking comfort. “After my home fell apart, I was talked into a… deal with a family friend. Got a Hexxen Bane pact just so I could hold my own in a pit of snakes.”
Everyone around the campfire watched Vex, even Sin, holding their breath. “That is all you all are gonna get outta me tonight. Get in your sleep sacks. I’ll take first watch with Tro. Archi, you get second watch. Ex, you get third. Sin… try not to get dragged into the woods by some nightmare.”
Alex crawled into the back of the van and closed the doors behind him. Architallis unpacked a sleeping bag large enough to fit three of Vex with room to spare and rested against the side of the van. Sin simply curled up into a ball near the front tire, muttering to himself.
Vex stood and turned off the Red Brazier before she and her brother walked over to a tree at the edge of the clearing and climbed it to nest for the night. Vex reached into her hat, rubbing Potato’s snout, eliciting a gurgling pur, before pulling free a piece of hextech known as the Goggles of Ominous Sight. Straps of leather and metal held together a series of colored glass lenses. She set her hat beside her on the branch before mounting the goggles.
Vex fiddled with the lenses to activate night vision. While she flipped lenses in and out of her focus, she asked, “So… are you willing to join the team?” Potato crawled out of the hat and into Vex’s lap. “I know it’s sudden, and you know none of these weirdos. But I could sure use someone to watch my back while the newbs are still finding their feet.”
Tro didn’t look at his sister when he answered. “Where Vex go, Tro go.”
Vex felt a smile crawl across her lips. She leaned her head back slightly, her shoulder just brushing his. “Looks like Vexing Trouble is back in action.”
“Vexing Trouble.” Tro echoed, and Vex could hear the smile in his voice even as he scanned their surroundings.
Curse(s): - The Heart of Harmony and Defiance: The subject’s power core is an artifact of unknown origin. The Heart’s innate state infuses the subject with Resonance Myst tuned to allow the Neoform instantaneous situational, tactical, and mathematical understanding of its local environment. However, the Heart has an alternate state known simply as Defiance. While this state is active, the subject loses self-control and expresses minute reality-altering abilities.
