Later that evening Arc descends the stairs to the basement. He finds everyone hard at work on their assigned task. Max looks up as he approaches.
“Looks like you’re ready to go, sir.”
Xenos grins. “Yeah! Looking snazzy, sir!”
Hugh turns to his friend. “Where’d you hear that word, Xenos?”
Viktor chuckles. “He found it on the Internet.”
Xenos laughs. “I’ve been waiting for a chance to use that one!”
Ember frowns. “Well, I still don’t like the idea of you going out with Hammer alone, Arc.”
“It’s a date. I can’t exactly bring others along.”
Sereb looks to Arc. “What about me?”
“Restaurants don’t allow pets. It’s a public health code violation.”
Dinky appears confused. “Sereb’s not a pet though, dad.”
“I know sweetheart. But they still won’t let him in.”
Auriel walks over with Rose. “You do look very nice though, Arc.”
“Thanks. How did the search go?”
Auriel smiles. “Very well actually. I’ve been able to take several dozen pages of notes.”
Rose holds up an envelope. “She then allowed me to compile them into an abridged version for you to present to Hammer tonight.”
Auriel nods. “It’s far from complete, of course. But this should be enough for you to convince her that something is wrong.”
Arc smiles as he takes the papers. “Thanks.”
“I’ll keep at it, of course. But it’s going to take quite some time. My mother was very detailed in many of her reports.”
“Isn’t that good though?”
Auriel sighs. “Somewhat. I don’t understand some of the terminology.”
Max shrugs. “That’s to be expected though. We’re dealing with completely new and relatively unknown technology, after all.”
Arc nods and turns to Xenos. “Understandable. Now what about the files I scanned back at the base?”
“We’ve been going over those all day, sir.”
Hugh grimaces. “Right. That guy Rieper is one sick freak.”
“How so?”
Ember makes a face. “His experiment summaries were very… graphic, to say the least.”
Viktor nods soberly. “It appears he’s been working with General Mustang for quite some time.”
Sereb growls. “And the results of what he discovered were used to start what is referred to as the ‘Ascension Program’.”
“Where does Auriel’s mother fit into this?”
“Maria Knowles, my mother, was apparently Rieper’s assistant for quite some time before being given her own research projects on another very different path.”
Dinky looks to Auriel. “So they pulled her off the ‘Ascension’ project completely?”
“We’re not quite sure. I’m still trying to uncover what she was assigned to though.”
Arc nods. “Keep at it. Anything else?”
Max grimaces. “Doctor Rieper wasn’t too happy about Doctor Knowles being elevated to a position on par with him.”
Viktor frowns. “Right. In some of the notes from his files he refers to her as ‘the cow’.”
Xenos shrugs. “Yeah. But we’re not sure what that means.”
Arc sighs. “It’s quite an insult for a woman.”
Ember turns to him. “What’s it mean?”
“He’s saying she’s dumb and ugly.”
Auriel gasps. “Why though?! Wouldn’t it have been better try working WITH her?!”
Ember sighs. “Probably, yeah. But it sounds to me like he was jealous.”
“They could’ve shared in the credit! Like Twilight and I do!”
“Auriel, humans don’t always think like that. To some of us it’s more about keeping the credit for ourselves. Especially in the scientific fields. Or so I’ve heard.”
Rose scowls. “They could certainly accomplish more by working together, yes. As Auriel said, sharing research credit can lead to wondrous and amazing inventions and discoveries.”
Sereb puts a paw on her foot. “Such as yourself, Rose?”
“Me?”
Arc nods. “He’s right. Twilight used Auriel’s invention to extract the essence of Dragon Fruit. She then used it to form your heart.”
Auriel smiles at her. “Without it, you wouldn’t be able to function.”
Rose puts a hand to her chest. “So… would it be fair to say that you are akin to my… father, Auriel?”
“Huh?!”
“After all, you were the one who donated the technology to allow me to function while mother built my outer frame.
Dinky raises an eyebrow. “Donated?”
Rose nods as she smiles at the little girl. “Right. Like a father, Auriel donated half the idea to make me. Kinda like a male’s sperm cell, it got the process started. While mother took that sperm and combined it with the frame she was building. Like a female incubating a child in their womb.”
Arc puts a hand to his chin thoughtfully. “An interesting concept.”
Auriel smiles. “It is, yes. But not completely scientifically accurate.”
“Either way, I am very grateful that you helped create me, Auriel.”
“Yes, well… I need to get back to work. Arc needs to get going himself if he doesn’t want to be late.”
Arc looks at his pocket watch. “Right. Keep at it everyone.”
Arc heads upstairs as Dinky follows him. She hops onto the couch next to him as he puts on his shoes.
“I hope you have a nice time tonight, dad.”
“Thank you sweetheart. But this is more of a business meeting than an actual date. Especially now that Hammer is my client.”
“Dad? Can I ask you something?”
“What is it?”
“Are you in love?”
“With Hammer, or in general?”
“Both.”
Arc shakes his head. “No, I’m not in love with Hammer, sweetheart. I do like her as a person, yes. But at the moment she’s helping me accomplish our mission to bring Princess Celestia home again.”
“What about the others?”
“Others?”
“You know… Miss Rarity and her friends.”
Arc stops and turns to his daughter. “What brought this on?”
“I just… I thought you looked really happy when you came home after your last visit with them at Miss Twilight’s library.”
“Oh… that. Um…”
Dinky smiles up at him. “Dad, I want you to know that mom and I really want you to be happy. And we know you do care about Miss Rarity a lot.”
“That I do.”
“You two should go on another date sometime. Get to know each other better.”
“Yeah?”
Dinky nods fervently. “That day you took me to the park and played ball with us… she was eyeing you the whole time with a really weird look on her face.”
“I didn’t notice that.”
Dinky stands on the couch and wraps her small arms around her father’s neck. “Don’t worry, dad. I was looking out for you.”
“Thanks, sweetheart.”
“Like I said, mom and I just want you to be happy.”
A few minutes later Arc drives down the road toward the luxury apartment complex. Smiling, he sighs and mutters to himself.
“Dinky. You’re such a good daughter.”
Looking over at the envelope on the seat next to him, he frowns.
“I need to finish this matter up and get home with Dinky and Princess Celestia. None of us really belongs here anymore. That and Hammer… she deserves better than a cheating boyfriend who’s just using her for information.”
Pulling up to the gate Arc types in the guest code. Entering the garage and parking the Jeep he takes the elevator up and finds the apartment. However before he can knock the door flies open and Hammer storms out.
“Woah! Hammer?!”
She turns back and yells out.
“You can’t control me! I’ll do what I want!”
Slamming the door she turns to Arc, clearly embarrassed.
“I’m sorry you had to see that.”
“What happened?”
“I’ll tell you on the way. Come on.”
Arc and Hammer return to the Jeep and drive away. Stingray and Mio watch from a floor to ceiling window. Mio shakes her head.
“It’s hard to believe anyone would agree to a second date with Hammer.”
Stingray chuckles. “Third, actually.”
“Third?”
Stingray nods. “Yes. Hammer told me the first time Arc picked her up from her other apartment.”
Mio frowns. “We should probably do something about this.”
“Agreed. Hammer’s getting far too close to someone who isn’t worthy of her.”
“What if he was though?”
Stingray turns to Mio, confused. “Huh?”
“Arc’s certainly a very intelligent individual. Perhaps we should recommend him for ‘Ascension’.”
“It takes years of training to get to the point where one is ready, Mio.”
“I know. But it should be considered.”
Stingray frowns. “Someone also needs to be smart in order to be chosen.”
“Agreed. Intelligent, resourceful, strong. Those are the base qualifications, after all.”
“But you are correct about one thing. We should try to figure out if he’s worthy.”
Reaching out toward a table, she casts a Telekinesis Spell and pulls a cell phone to herself. Mio looks confused.
“What are you doing?”
Stingray dials. “You’ll see.”
Putting the phone to her ear she waits a few moments before someone on the other end connects.
“You and a few of your pals want to make some extra cash? Yeah. Same deal as before. I’ll text you an address in a few minutes. Take care of the guy with Hammer. Yes, I said Hammer! Break his legs so he can’t walk.”
She hangs up as Mio grimaces.
“Did you just do what I think you did?”
Stingray nods as she levitates the cell phone back to its place. “Yes. I just called in a hit on Hammer’s little date.”
Mio gasps. “But she could get hurt!”
Stingray laughs heartily. “Are you kidding? You forget Hammer’s ‘Ascended’. Those guys try and go after her and they won’t know what hit them.”
“Then why…?”
“To take care of Arc, of course. If he’s so smart, he’ll quickly realize hanging out with her comes with certain risks. And this will be their last date.”
“Or…?”
Stingray shrugs. “Or, if he’s strong, intelligent, and resourceful, he may possibly survive this trial and be worthy of ‘Ascension’ himself one day.”
Meanwhile, Arc drives down the road with Hammer in the passenger seat next to him.
“So… you okay?”
Hammer nods as she puts a hand to her forehead. “Yeah. My sisters and I do argue sometimes.”
“Well, that is normal to a degree. Was there more to it than that?”
“Stingray told me to stop seeing you.”
“What? Why?”
Hammer looks away. “She said our relationship was bad for my mental well-being, or something.”
Arc raises an eyebrow, confused. “What does that mean?”
Hammer shrugs nervously. “I dunno. Maybe she’s afraid we’ll be transferred somewhere and that I’ll miss you, or something.”
“Well, the military does have the habit of sending its forces elsewhere at a moment’s notice.”
“I guess. But let’s focus on the here and now. We still on for that pizza place?”
Arc grins. “Sure.”
Sometime later they arrive at Roberto’s Pizza, Walking up to the hostess Arc addresses her.
“Hello. I have your dining room reserved for the evening.”
“Yes. Right this way.”
She leads them to the dining room. Pizza, lasagna, breadsticks and soda are all sitting out.
“Let me know if there’s anything else you need.”
Arc grins. “Thank you. This smells great!”
She leaves the room as Arc and Hammer each grab a plate and sit down with their food. Arc is the first to speak.
“So… you doing okay?”
Hammer looks up from her pizza. “Sure. Why wouldn’t I be?”
“During that argument with your sisters, you sounded really upset.”
“Didn’t we already discuss about this on the way over here?”
“Yeah, but… you didn’t really seem to want to talk about it.”
Hammer frowns. “And I still don’t! Look, can we just drop it and concentrate on this awesome food please?”
Arc shrugs. “If you want to, sure.”
Hammer grins. “Besides, I’m guessing you didn’t call me out on a date just to eat pizza and enjoy my company.”
“Part of me did, yes.”
Hammer blushes slightly. “Really?”
Arc nods. “Sure. I like hanging out with you, Hammer. But you were right about something else. I did need to talk to you.”
“About my… request?”
“Right.”
He finishes the last bite of his slice of pizza and wipes his hands with a napkin before pulling the envelope from his pocket.
“Now then, I want you to know that this matter is not yet fully investigated. Think of this meeting more like a status update than a final debriefing.”
Hammer gasps. “So you DID discover something last night?!”
Arc nods soberly. “Yes. More so than I thought I would though. Let me explain…”
Removing copies of the notes from Doctor Rieper’s files and hands them to Hammer.
“These were taken from the office you provided a keycard for.”
Hammer frowns. “This was in General Mustang’s office?! Just lying around?!”
“Um… that was complicated.”
“He’s usually pretty good at locking things up. Unless you found a way to get past those unpickable locks, that is.”
“Truth be told, he walked in.”
Hammer gasps. “WHAT?!”
“Let’s just say it was a good thing Auriel was with me in that uniform. He honestly thought she was Diva.”
“Are you completely sure of that?!”
“Yes.”
“How sure?!”
“He gave her the files and… uh…”
Hammer frowns. “And what?!”
“Kissed her.”
A strange look crosses Hammer’s face. “He did… WHAT?!”
Arc shrugs. “That’s what she said happened.”
“And where were you when all this was happening?!”
“Cleaning the adjoining bathroom.”
Hammer narrows her eyes. “You can’t be serious.”
“The toilet to be exact.”
“Wow… way to keep your cool.”
“I took care of the windows too.”
Hammer nods approvingly. “When someone gives you a cover story, you really take it all the way.”
“Didn’t want him coming in this morning and wondering who it was whom had left his office uncleaned.”
Hammer frowns. “So Rieper’s been working on phero-whatsits now?”
“Pheromones of some kind. Close as we can tell it makes others around the target more… accepting of them.”
“What does that mean?”
“They’ll be more charismatic. Able to convince others to do exactly what they want.”
Hammer gasps. “Like Stingray and Mio!”
Arc nods. “Right. Now this is all just theory right now. Remember, as their commanding officer, your sisters would certainly do whatever General Mustang told them to even if they didn’t like him.”
“What exactly is he after then?”
“I don’t know for sure yet. But trust me when I say I’m going to find out.”
“Anything else?”
“Yes. Now again this is somewhat anecdotal, but my sources have analyzed these notes and pointed out to me that the effect should be greater the longer your sisters are close to the target.”
Hammer thinks for a few moments. “Stingray and Mio have several meetings with the general a week.”
“What about you?”
Hammer shakes her head. “I’m not usually there, no.”
“How often do you see General Mustang?”
“Couple times a month. You think that’s why I’m still thinking straight?”
Arc nods. “It’s an even money bet.”
Hammer gasps. “DIVA!!!”
“What about her?”
“She’s the general’s aide!”
“So she’s with him all the time?”
Hammer nods. “Right! That’s why she’s so dedicated to him! She’s being… pheromone controlled! Or however you say it!”
“Most likely, yes.”
“Tell me, how do we reverse this?!”
“My expert advises maintaining distance between anyone affected and the general. In time they will most likely recover on their own.”
Hammer breathes a sigh of relief. “That’s good. But how do I do that?”
Arc shrugs. “No idea. Other than going AWOL, that is.”
“They’ll never go for that.”
“What about you?”
Hammer appears confused. “Huh?”
“You should get out of there. After all, who’s to say you won’t eventually be affected.”
Hammer bows her head. “I… I can’t.”
“Can’t what? Be affected?”
“No. I mean I can’t leave them. Someone has to watch my sister’s backs.”
“I understand. Just be careful and keep your distance from Mustang if at all possible.”
Hammer clenches a fist. “Right now I just want to put a fist in his jaw!”
Arc rolls his eyes. “That’d put you WAY too close to him.”
Hammer sighs. “I know. That’s the only thing stopping me right now.”
She is silent for a time before continuing.
“Is there anything I can do to help your investigation?”
Arc nods. “I could use some information.”
“What kind?”
“For starters, what kind of research are they doing over there?”
“I’m not fully sure. Just stuff to help make the world a better place is all I always hear. Why?”
“I found some things that might be important, but didn’t make sense.”
Hammer raises an eyebrow. “In the general’s office?”
Arc shakes his head. “No. In the research lab.”
Hammer gasps. “Wha-what?! That card shouldn’t have let you in there!”
“I have my ways.”
“How’d you get in?!”
“Sorry. Professional secret.”
Hammer grins. “That’s… legitimately impressive. If you weren’t working for me I’d bust you for admitting to that.”
“Glad I know where I stand.”
Hammer lowers her voice.
“So what did you find?”
“I’m not really sure.”
“Huh?”
Arc sighs. “Let me clarify. We found some notes written by another doctor who isn’t around anymore. Apparently they were working on something vastly different from what Rieper was.”
“How much different?”
“Without getting too technical, let’s just say I’ll need to find someone to analyze them and then explain theoretical physics to me before I’ll know what I have.”
Hammer frowns. “I can’t really be of much help there. As far as I know we don’t have anyone at the base with training in that.”
“It’ll take some time to find someone. But I’ll keep at it.”
“Thanks.”
Arc grins. “No problem. This is getting rather interesting.”
“You’re going to keep it between us though, right?!”
Arc nods. “Yes. Detective/client relationship and all.”
“What about your staff?”
“They’ll do what I tell them to.”
“Good. If word of this ever got out, we’d both be in trouble.”
Sometime later the pair leave the restaurant. As they head back toward the Jeep a shabbily dressed fellow slinks up behind them and grabs Hammer’s purse.
“HEY!”
Arc turns to give chase. “I got him!”
He runs after the man as he flees behind the restaurant. As Arc rounds the corner he stops and turns as a dozen thugs step out of the shadows.
“Oh boy…”
Cherry calls out to him telepathically.
“Get out of there, Arc!”
“I can take these guys!”
“With no armor and weapons?!”
“Just an added challenge.”
The clip-clopping of Hammer’s high heel shoes running toward them can be heard as the thug dangles the purse in front of him.
“You want this?”
Arc glares at him. “Yeah. Give it back right now, or else.”
“Or else what?!”
“You’ll be picking you teeth up off the pavement.”
The gang laughs as Hammer reaches Arc. She turns and glares at them.
“What the heck are you losers doing here?!”
The thug’s leader looks her up and down. “Huh? HAMMER?!”
He turns to his gang.
“Look here, fellas! Hammer really IS a woman!”
They whistle as they check her out.
“You clean up NICE!”
Hammer clenches a fist. “I came here for a good meal with my boyfriend! Not a fight!”
“This weakling collared YOU, Hammer?! You must be getting soft!”
Hammer grabs Arc’s arm. “Come on. Let these losers have it.”
Arc shakes his head. “Oh no. We’re not leaving until he gives back what he took and apologizes to you.”
They laugh heartily as Arc approaches them.
“Come and get it then!”
Arc cracks his knuckles. “Fine. Let’s do this!”
Walking up to the first thug Arc punches him in the gut. Reeling, he knees the man in the chin to knock him into several of his friends. Two more run at him but are stopped as Arc comes between them and knocks their heads together. The rest of the gang falls fairly easily to Arc’s fists before he turns his attention back to the leader.
“I’d give up now if I were you.”
“No way! I can’t leave without putting you in the hospital for what you did!”
The man lunges at Arc who sidesteps and trips his opponent. He falls against a stack of plastic soda crates. Rolling over he gets up and again faces Arc.
“You ain’t getting away!”
Arc shrugs. “Not trying to. But you should be.”
“Not a chance!”
Rushing forward again the man grabs onto Arc’s coat. Hammer steps forward and punches him in the face.
“Get off of him, slime!”
Dazed, their assailant stumbles to his feet. However this time Arc grabs the man’s shirt and slams him against a wall.
“You going to give up that purse now?!”
The man nods slowly and hands over the prize. Arc glares at him.
“Apologize!”
“S-sorry.”
“Now get out of here!”
As he stands Hammer rushes past Arc and knocks the thug down again.
“Who put you up to this?!”
“I… I don’t know!”
Hammer glares at him. “Liar! You know EXACTLY who I’m talking about!”
“But… but they’ll kill me!”
“Or I can kill you right now!”
Arc puts a hand on her shoulder. “Easy there. Let’s not do anything rash, Hammer.”
She winds up a fist as the man cries out fearfully.
“S-Stingray! It was Stingray!”
Hammer grins wickedly. “There. Now was that so hard?”
She helps the man up as Arc takes her arm.
“We should go.”
Hammer nods. “Fine. Just one last thing.”
Turning, she punches the man in the face. He falls to the ground like a sack of potatoes as Hammer turns back to Arc.
“There. Now we can go.”
She looks around at the rest of the unconscious thugs.
“You took all of em out.”
Arc chuckles. “Well, all except the last one.”
Hammer grins at him as they head for the Jeep. “That may be. But your little display back there was quite sexy.”
“Um… glad to be of service. I just wanted to get your purse back, after all.”
She laughs as they get into the vehicle together.
“Well, the jokes on those idiots back there!”
“How so?”
Hammer opens her purse and shows it to him.
“There ain’t nothing in here!”
“Then why do you have it?”
Hammer frowns. “Stingray told me it brought the outfit together. Now I see what she was really looking to do.”
Arc nods soberly. “You’re thinking she set you up just like last time?”
“No. She was literally trying to sabotage our date.”