1:3:1 Rexel (Part 2)

“Bloody hel!” Magpie threw his medkit to Char. “Scalpel’s in the first pocket. I think Ace has the trauma kits.”
“What’s going on?” Midpoint’s helmet appeared from one of the locker rooms.
“Air’s toxic out there. Our data was out of date. We should have had at least two hours.” Char growled as she ripped the zip off of the kit. She removed the scalpel and its blade protector before making an incision into Lore’s neck. “Where’s that lung kit?” She shouted before turning the scalpel on herself. Golden energy poured from her mangled fingertip as it attempted to heal itself. Char disconnected the blade from the handle and left it in her finger. She pressed her own bloodied wound into the hole in Lore’s neck. The golden light poured from her and into Lore, healing any damage it shone on.
“Trauma kit!” Ace shouted.
“Use it then, I’m a little busy.” Char retorted, using her free hand to lift Lore’s shirt.
“Going in.” Ace politely moved Char from her position straddling Lore so that they could access the left side of Lore’s body. Ace inserted the needle and activated the kit. Blood dyed black by the carbon in the atmosphere came first followed by the small amount of vapour that was yet to react. Finally, Char’s golden glow poured into the collection vial.
“Remove the kit. I’ve got it from here.” Char smiled. Ace obliged and as they withdrew the needle, the hole glowed before sealing itself as if nothing had happened. Char waited for Lore to take a breath before she slowly removed her finger from their neck. The wound healed itself as she did. Char the removed the scalpel blade from her own finger and finally allowed herself to heal.
Lore coughed up the blood that had made it to their mouth before they had passed out before sitting themselves up to better clear the blockage. “What the hel was that?” They spluttered.
“Destiny’s data was a touch off it seems.” Char snarled. “You alright?”
Lore took a deep breath in through their nose then exhaled out their mouth. “Slight taste of blood but my nose isn’t blocked anymore. What did you give me?”
Char looked at them sheepishly before admitting. “I may have used my rejuvinative energy to heal you.”
“You shot me?” Lore seemed almost offended.
“No but that would have been a better idea.” She sighed. “Heat of the moment.” Char knelt down and picked up the tip of her finger. Without saying anything else, Lore had a good idea as to what had transpired.
“Ah… Well, thank you.” They said awkwardly. There was blood everywhere. “I suppose we best get cleaned up then back out there.”
“I’ll get us some respirators.” Char helped Lore to their feet.
“Do you even need one?” Magpie asked. “Your lungs heal quickly don’t they.”
“Quickly yes but not instantly. I probably could only be out there for an hour before I had two lungs full of blood.”
“Oh…” Magpie seemed dejected. “Ace probably could.” He nodded to his sibling.
“I’m not sure about that.” Ace checked their helmet was properly secured.
“See you in a moment.” Lore disappeared upstairs.
Char checked herself and came to the same conclusion as Lore. She too retreated up to her room. The door wasn’t locked. She opened it and walked in to a seemingly empty room. “Lore?” She got no response. Char started getting herself changed.
Lore had hidden themselves under their bed. When Char opened the door they were without their shirt. Instinctively, they vanished but the longer they hid, the more they thought about their dinner on Faresis. They took a deep breath and emerged from their hiding place. Char turned around and smiled.
“Nice to know that I can still feel when people are watching me.” She chuckled. Lore had both of their hands on their shoulders, covering their nipples with their elbows. “Have you got everything you need over there or are you just admiring the view?”
Lore hadn’t even noticed that Char was in the same situation. Lore’s whole body turned hot rod red as they stammered for any response. “I uh… I… I uhhh… No?” They wanted to duck back under the bed but they feared that would only make things worse.
“It’s alright. I’ve seen yours, now you’ve seen mine.” Char chuckled.
“I suppose.” Lore mumbled. They refused to lower their arms.
Char walked over to them and gently kissed their forehead as she passed by to use the fabricator. “You want anything making for you? I’m getting myself a new shirt. I’m not sure about wearing white on this planet, perhaps not till we leave the system.”
Lore cracked a smile. “If you could make me a clean version of the shirt you made me, that would be great.” Lore slipped their bra on.
“Have you got it down there?” Char pointed to the jacket at Lore’s feet.
“Here.” Lore threw the shirt over.
“The fabricator can clean off anything and the dirt goes into the storage tanks.”
“So our blood gets used to make our food?” Lore grimaced. Then they thought about it. “I suppose it could be beneficial. Find out if either of us have anything wrong with us I guess and it’s not like it comes out as blood.”
“That’s the spirit. Waste not want not.” Char returned the top before making her own.
“Do you have to get specialised tops because of that?” Lore pointed to the port in Char’s side.
“It’s a pain.” She removed her top from the fabricator and put her hand through a hole in the side. “Custom cuts.”
Char seemed so confident in her body. She lowered the shirt over her yellow-golden skin then attached the press studs to her port, stopping the shirt from flapping about. “You ready?”
Lore nodded.
They headed back down to the cargo bay to finish getting ready. Destiny and Curve were still mysteriously absent but the others were sat ready to head out on to Rexel.
“Do you want us to come this time?” Ace was standing by the ramp.
“Not yet. We still haven’t got a good look at the locals. We’ll call you if we need you.” Lore patted themselves down.
“Take mine.” Midpoint threw over his communicator.
“Thanks.” Lore nodded. “Where are the respirators then?” Lore fumbled through the lockers.
“Try your own locker.” Magpie shouted through.
Lore used their key to open their locker. They removed the mask and a pair of filters. It didn’t scream safety or quality. “Have we got anything else? These don’t seem like they’re going to do much.”
“That’s because they’re for pathogens only.” Char didn’t seem impressed. “You’d have thought that, knowing that we’re going to Rexel, they’d have put an actually useful mask in here. Guess we’ll have to fabricate our own.” She rolled her eyes.
Lore locked their locker before going over to the fabricator. They scrolled through the options until they saw something that resembled a respirator before they checked to see if it would actually provide the protection they needed. They continued their search until they found something that would actually protect them. They had been looking for something inconspicuous but the only suitable respirator they could find was a full face mask with a fabric hood. They fabricated it but what they received was not at all what they were expecting. On the fabrication plate, two small metal dots.
“How on Rexel are these a respirator?” Lore showed Char the output.
“I don’t know. Is there an instruction manual on the Fabricator?”
Lore looked back at the screen and scoured the page. “Attach either side of the collar then tap each pin twice. To activate mask raise hands over the back of the head as if putting a hood on. Mask should appear during action. Alternatively, tap right pin twice.”
“Why have the gesture control if there’s an easier way of activating them?” Char shook her head.
“There you go.” Lore handed the dots to Char before fabricating another set for themselves. Lore affixed the dots to their jacket. Before they touched them to activate them, they flashed twice then turned from black to Aegean to match the material underneath them. Lore activated them and performed the gesture. It was weirdly intuitive. The hood appeared around them but the mask did not materialise. “Well, that may be a problem.”
“Check the instructions?” Char shrugged, her mask already on. It too had adapted to match the colour scheme of her outfit.
“Ah… If using the gesture control, ensure that the hood is passed over the face to enable mask.” Lore lowered the hood over their face. While the fabric moved at first, it stopped as it reached their eyebrow but the mask still formed. “To deactivate the mask, tap the left pin twice. Funny that there’s no gesture for that.”
“Come on you, let’s get going.” Char lowered the ramp. “We’ll call if we need you.” She paused. “Keep the medkits ready, we might need them yet.” Char tapped her lapel to activate her mask. Lore followed suit before following her out of The Destiny. “Oh and if your sister or Destiny get their arses into gear, call us.”
“See you in a bit.” Magpie waved them off.

Back in the smog, they restarted their journey. With the masks on, and their eyes and lungs free from the stinging clouds around them, they got a much better view of their surroundings. The corrosive air had eaten away at a lot of the exposed metal work that made up the docks and settlement as a whole. The masks did more than protect their lungs and eyes, they also filtered most of the smell; it still didn’t stop the planet from smelling like a massive bonfire but it was most certainly better than dying. Despite the tight fit or perhaps because of it, the mask gave Lore a sense of security that weirdly calmed them as they moved through the clouds that nearly claimed their lives just minutes ago. They made it back to the square and had a decision to make: left or right? The decision was made for them by one of the natives. Four muscular arms and skin a near luminous red that shone like a lighthouse beckoning them over, a siren in the smog. They couldn’t understand a word he was saying but they ventured over anyway.
He spoke in the local tongue but as they approached, one word stood out. “Lore.”
“I’m sorry?” Lore came closer.
The native’s stall was bringing an end to the planet’s signature burning scent’s monopoly. Butchered meats marinated in various different sauces pierced the veil and filled their masks; Lore and Char had no idea what they were smelling, meat wise or marinade wise, but they were oddly enthralled. Lore gestured at the local, allowing Char to get closer.
Char shrugged. “I learned the trade languages from a book. Haven’t a clue what it’s supposed to sound like.”
“You… Lore?” He pointed to Char. After Char shook her head, he moved his finger to Lore. “Take.” Despite appearances and the cocktail of noxious gasses he must have constantly been breathing, his voice seemed completely unaffected and, as a result, didn’t feel as though it fit his body. It had a soft weight to it like a plasticine duvet; his body however was more akin to a mutated body builder with four perfectly muscular arms and rows upon rows of abdominal muscles. He grabbed a cube in his lower right hand and passed it over the counter. It was encased in some kind of glass. Lore reached up to take it from him but before they could, he threw it behind them. It shattered, releasing a blue light that glinted off of their and Char’s masks.
“Hi there.” Holographic Lore had returned. “Traybar here seems to have done his job given that I’ve been activated so here goes; I used to get irrationally annoyed by people who went to new planets without learning any of the native’s languages. Weirdly, the Temporal Sciences Guild turn their nose up at learning alien languages and use translation orbs but since we don’t have any of those, a cube is going to have to do. This cube is going to force a basic understanding of the trade languages used on Rexel and a few other places because you never know when they will come in handy.” They both balled up in pain as several languages were forced into their heads.
“Never gets any easier.” Lore spoke in broken Rexian between coughs.
“At least we know it worked.” Char returned.
“So… You going to pay me?” The native waggled his hands.
Lore sighed. “How much do we owe you?”
“Two -Sixty.”
“Two hundred and sixty Rel for you to toss a cube?” Char still couldn’t believe it, even coming from her mouth.
“Inner rims.” He sniffed. “Twenty Rel, Two C-Sixty.”
“Here. Keep the change…?” Lore handed over a fifty Rel piece.
“Traybar.” He took the Rel. “Anything for your travels?” He gestured to his meat.
Char inspected the cabinet. “I’ll have two Grimka steaks, the spiciest you’ve got please.”
“Five -Sixty.” He wrapped the steaks while holding out one hand for payment and punching the till with the other.
Char turned to Lore and gave her best smile.
“Guess I’m paying.” Lore rifled through their bag. “Here, Fifty Rel.”
“Pleasure doing business.” He passed over the meat.
“Before we go, are there any rules against wearing armour in these parts?” Lore hovered their hand over Midpoint’s communicator.
Traybar just laughed. “Wear whatever you want, as long as you aren’t in Ministry colours around here, you’re good.”
“Thanks.” Lore opened a channel to the clones. “We’re alright. Come meet us. Just follow the path, no turns, just head out of the docks, turn left then straight on till you see us.”
“On our way.” Ace sounded more official over the communicator than they did in person which Char didn’t think possible.
“We better wait here then.” Char looked to her wrist. “Five minutes.” She managed to wait half a minute. “I’m going to take my steaks back to the ship. I’ll pick the clones up on my way.” She took the bag from Lore and vanished.
“So who are this Ministry then?” Lore looked themselves over hoping they weren’t accidentally wearing their colours.
“They’re the closest thing we have to a government. It started off as a small offshoot of The Unionists but they grew quickly. All the other factions joined The Ministry, even The Protectorate’s weird groups have a seat on The Ministry’s board. Everyone has a representative. Well… Except The Syndicate. The factions still operate independently but don’t do anything without The Board’s go ahead so tourists only really have to worry about The Ministry.” Traybar shook his head.
“Not a fan?” Lore scanned the shelves again.
“That meat your partner bought. I’ll be lucky to see One-Sixty from that. Even though we’re supposedly being governed by one group, I still have to pay taxes to all five separately. Even the gods damned Protectorate take a cut.” He looked as though he wanted to spit at the floor but, respecting his workplace, decided to slap the carcass behind him. “At least The Syndicate actually gives us something for that money.”
“Back. They hadn’t even left yet.” Char returned, three clones in hand.
“We got the call less than a minute after you showed up…” Ace gave Char the side eye. They had their helmet in their hand but after a cough or two, they were fine.
“You ok Ace?” Lore looked to them. They seemed far too calm for someone breathing in a cocktail of chemicals that had just watched nearly kill a person.
“Fine.” They shrugged as if confused by the concern. “What are your orders?”
Lore was stunned. “Ah… Ok… You guys take the left side, we’ll search the right. Call us if you find anything.”
Ace nodded and the clones went their way. Lore took Char’s hand and they went theirs. Traybar waved them off as they headed towards the opposite wall to begin their search. Neither of them had any idea who or what they were looking for. They walked around the donut, looking aimlessly into each building and storefront hoping that they would see anything familiar. The tablet chimed. They stopped immediately, much to the disdain of the crowds around them and yet, they still had no idea why. Then it became suddenly clear. Peering through the traffic, not one but two familiar features appeared. Stopped not five metres from them, like a half reflection, tablet in hand, a face stared back at them, wide eyes piercing their very souls. Runaways.