"Ruby" repeated Fiora "I like your name ... so-so, you are a mechon ? You-you do ot look like one though- I-I mean you look like a machine but you look way more "hom" than what the adults used to describe"

She was scared, any sudden move could make her run away, Shulk had to be VERY careful, at this point their meeting was going too badly ... he was just trying to find another way to not call his failure a disaster.

"I- ... am a different kind of mechon, we are more diversified than you homs are, I am a-" no he couldn't tell he was a face unit, then she would ask question and this would lead to a total ruin "Scout unit"

"Scout unite ? Then you are spying on us ?" Shulk hit his head against the cockpit as a punishment, however Fiora heard the BUNK inside the machine "What was that ?"

"I-...I-" what would a machine say ? Machines aren't supposed to talk in the first place ! ... well Egil and Vanea do but that's different "I am not allowed to talk about my directives" Shulk had to admit he was very proud of this answer.

"Haha, sure ... you-... you aren't here to kill anyone right ?" Why did she have to smile at the same time she asked this kind of question ? ...

Shulk made a promise to Egil, he would do anything to protect their world from Zanza, and if it meant killin her ... but Fiora, she looks so innocent.

"No, I am not here to kill anyone" his voice was cold and emotionless ... just like a machine, but Shulk had no idea of how he should answer otherwise.

"... what are you watching then ?" She wasn't going to let him out obviously, was Fiora actually having fun ?

"I can't tell you"

And again she waited, standing in front of the tall mechon and smiling as if she wasn't near a potential threat of death in the form of a deadly war machine.

"What if I give you a tour of the Colony ? Would you tell me what you are looking for ?" Shulk actually considered her offer, Fiora had been living here for years and- ... well, she could perhaps give him acces to more parts of the Colony.

"... A tour ? Fine, I might tell you why I am here ... give me a second" Shulk put the face unit on lockdown mode and activated his helmet, and finally his camouflage. Then he opened the cockpit of the face.

"W-what-" Fioara didn't understand what she just witnessed, what she would call the "torso" of the mechon opened to reveal nothing, absolutely nothing, just an empty space.

"Do not worry, I will be using my- ... inner unit to move around the Colony, most people would not appreciate my presence" at first the girl was slightly startled by the voice who suddenly seemed very closer from her but also less metalic "Did you tell anyone about-?"

"Of course I didn't ! It's already hard enough to have my big brother on my back all the time, I do not want to get involved into a story about mechons ... no-no offence"

"None taken ... you have an older brother ?"

"I do ... he is- ... well he is very proud of himself at the moment, but let's not talk about him, first I want to show you the best place in all the Colony" Fiora headed out of the cave but right at the entrance she stopped "Uh, are you still following me ? I-I mean you are invisible ... how is that even possible ?"

"I'm still following you, and that's a secret" the girl chuckled and kept walking, she brought Shulk right above the cave, there was a small park, and indeed this was the most beautiful place of all the Colony, the view was amazing. "You were right ... do you come hero often ?"

Fiora sat on a bench and looked at the Colony "More often than anyone should, it may sound weird but from this place I can really notice that I am leaving on a giant, from the Colony you can't really see that ... Hey, since you are a mechon you live on Mechonis, how does it looks like ?"

"Mechonis ? Well, most people would imagine it's only made of machines, that's its lifeless but- ... that's not true, on Mechonis there are lifeforms no one would be able to imagine unless they see it, shapes that would blow your mind"

"... But- ... how does it "looks" like ?"

"Oh, you want a visual description ..." Shulk doubted that Fioranwould found a gigantic usine interesting. "Mechonis is mostly composed of metal, there are no trees, no mountains, no water. The environment is perpetually changing, the roads are as large as the Colony is, the ground itself isn't fixed, it can bring you from the leg to the head in a matter of minutes"

"Like ... floating isles ?"

"Floating isles, no ... more like giant elevators, but their extent is ridiculously enormous for hom's standards" after a few seconds this sounded slightly offensive.

"... what about the other mechons ? Everyone says they are killing machine ... but you are different-"

"I cannot talk about this subject, my mission is different therefore I have no reason to attack you, unless my mission is compromised" Shulk meant warn her but when he saw the fearful expression of Fiora he knew he messed up.

"... Mechons are built to protect Mechonis, living beings of Bionis are seen as a threat to the Mechonis, this is only a defence protocol. As you are not a direct threat I have no reason or need to attack you ... I only wanted to warn you, the other mechons aren't like me, I am an- ... advanced version"

"... Why do you see the people of Bionis as a threat ? We never tried to harm you-"

"No ... no the homs didn't, it's- ... I am not allowed to talk about this"

"There are a lot of things you can't talk about"

"I am protecting the Mechonis with my silence ... imagine, I suppose those big towers are some sort of anti air artillery, what if you told me exactly how they worked, who is in charge of their maintenance and when ... how could I use this information ? Fiora, I can see what you are trying- what you want to do, but this is an advice, do not get close from the mechons."

"You are spying on us ... does it mean the mechons are-"

"If my mission is successful there won't be any war between the Bionis and the Mechonis, not anymore, never"

At this very moment Shukl had the equivalent of a flashback ... Fiora, she had a brother, and her brother was the man named Dunban, the one who managed to use the Monado ! Then ... if he could "befriend" this girl, Shulk might have a chance to get his hands on the Monado and-

But no ... Shulk clearly remembers what happened in the mountains, the sword had it's own volunty, it could actually hurt him again.

"... It's fine, I won't ask any more questions, I-... I suppose you care as much about me as the people on Mechonis" People on Mechonis ? Did he say too much ? No perhaps Fiora just guessed "It's kind of hard to talk to someone else when they can't say much in return"

...

"Let's make another deal, a serious one this time" Fiora turned her head on her right, somehow she could tell Ruby or rather Shulk was sitting right next to her "If you prove to me that I can trust you I'll she everything I know about the Mechonis with you"

"How can I do that ?" Fiora beamed, she looked more than determined to achieve that.

"... Your brother is Dunban right ? The person who managed to use the Monado"

Her smile faded away "Y-yes ... why ?"

"I- ... I need to know where the sword is" Fiora looked hesitant, Shulk feared that he went too far but to his surprise her smile came back, yet it was now a grin that clearly showed that the girl was up to no good.

"You want the Monado ?"

...

"Perhaps ?"

Fiora suddenly grabbed Shulk's shoulder, he was surprised by this sudden movement, but he was even more surprised that she managed to find his shoulders on her first try, did she even assume that Shulk had the shape of a hom in the first place ? Anyway, Fiora was as surprised as Shulk was when she discovered that her new "friend" had a very smile body to hers.

"P-Please ... take it away, since Dickson came back with it everyone has been ... obsessed, people kept trying to "master" it even to the point where they would get hurt. When my brother showed signs that he could hold on longer than anyone he became some sort of hero and- ... I do not hate my brother but, I really want things to go back the way they used to be"

Shulk looked down, then he deactivated his camouflage, they were alone and now he felt like he could truly trust Fiora. The girl gasped, it was like standing in front of an hom but, made out of metal, and from her point of view Ruby was roughly the same size as her.

"You-You are- YOU ARE A KID ?" He wasn't expecting this kind of reaction but at least it meant that she still believed he was a machine. Shulk mostly did this to "increase" their trust.

"Technically I was- ... "built" very recently, so you could say I am indeed a "kid" ... I just thought you would rather speak to something tou can see instead of the air"

"You- ... you look great, I really like the color red" Shulk blushed hard under his helmet "Now let go get that sword !"

"W-wait it's not- ... I can't-"

"Why ? Isn't it why you are here ? The Monado is the only weapon that can hurt the mechons right ?"

"Fiora you- ... The Monado can manipulate the ether, that's how it's effective against our armor however-" Shulk wanted to talk about it's weakness, why it couldn't hurt beings from the Bionis but he wasn't sure he could go that far "The Monado isn't only dangerous for me, it's dangerous for anyone near it ... can you show me where it is ? I will- ... I will see what I can do and also-" Shulk went to check their surroundings to see if anyone happened to be listening "Do not trust-" but then Shulk reconsidered again his advice, if he told Fiora about Dickson, a being who lived far longer than any of them, she might have a different behavior near him, and then he would notice.

"Do not trust ? ... who ? What ?"

"... Some people are obsessed with the Monado and the mechons, if we attack the Bionis it is by choice, but by necessity, those people are fanatics who think they serve a higher power, it's a lie ... I was about to days you can trust anyone, but that was stupid, i would like to protect everyone and I would do anything to reach this goal but that's why I might end up becoming the bad guy in this story"

"You sound like you know a lot of things ... yet you keep trying to avoid speaking, the mechons the Monado, "not attacking by choice". I if everyone is concerned I want to help !"

"Once the Monado is secured I swear I will tell you everything, this is a promise ... and perhaps after that we could really have a tour of the Colony ... right ?"

The girl smiled "Yes we will ! ... can we go now ? Or do you have something else to say ? Hahaha"

"Hehe, really funny, I'm trying to be serious" Shulk noticed he completely broke his character.

"A machine who can laugh, who could believe it was possible"

Shulk looked away "Where is it ?" Fiora chuckled and move closer toward Shulk to try to get a reaction out of him but the mechon in front of her stood still, for a moment she thought there was more.

"Well that's the best part" Shulk reactivated his camouflage and Fiora led him to a small house at the entrance of the Colony, the way it was isolated from the rest of the Colony felt odd.

"This is-"

"My house ... well our house, technically it belongs to my brother but you know how it works, under his roof it's his rules" Fiora was about to get inside when she noticed thought the window that apparently her brother wasn't alone at this time, she gestured for Shulk to wait and to follow her around the house.

For some reason they could hear most of what was going on inside "Your brother invited some friends ?"

"Yes ... he isn't done celebrating, I saw Disckson throught the window and I suppose Mumkhar is here too"

So Dickson was close from Dunban ... then perhaps it isn't simply a hazard if Dunban ended up being the only person who could wield the Monado.

"Ah comon ! Cheer up Mumkhar ! We finally found the one thing every mechon is scared of" that was Dunban's voice.

"Correction, I found it, guess I was the only one with enough guts to get lost in the mountains" a bunch of terrible lies which just hidded what kind of monster he really was.

"I'm not deaf ! ... oh well you are all so amazing, Dickson is a great adventurer, Dunban is the hero of the colony ... what about me ? I'm like the guy who carries your stuff, I didn't even get the chance to try to use it !" Mumkhar went from an ironical tone to a serious one.

"Well ... give it a shot ... just don't break anything, please" Shulk was curious, he wanted so much to be able to see what was going on.

"Dunban, what if Mumkhar gets hurt ?" As if he actually cared.

"That will be my problem, hand me the damn sword already ! ... " There was a silence, for a couple of seconds, perhaps a minute nothing happened "Uh ... is it broken or what ? How do I- ... how do I turn it on ?"

People gasped in surprise "What do you mean by turning it on ? You just have to handle it ... perhaps you are doing it wrong ? Try with your other hand ?"

"I'm doing it right ! It's this sword that's broken !" There was a tud inside the house.

"DON'T THROW IT ON THE FLOOR !" Yelled Dunban and Dickson at the same time.

"Chill would you ? This thing is a legendary artefact, it's not going to break like that ... wait can we actually break it ?"

"DON'T YOU DARE TRY THIS !"

Shulk and Fiora had to wait for about ten minutes until the gang decided to go get decent drinks, that meant the house would be empty for the next few hours, Fiora grabbed Shulk's arm, she didn't pay attention to the fact that she managed to do so without even seeing him."Now ! Dunban never leaves the house with a weapon unless he wants to train"

Shulk was curious about the place where Fiora lives but he didn't get the time to have a look as the girl showed the sword in his face "Now take it away ... please !"

She expected that Shulk would immediately take it and thank her or something similar but instead the mechon wasn't in front of her anymore. Shulk took a few steps back ... he remembered what happened in the mountains ... but it was different now, the Monado had no ether to draw out of his body.

"Fiora ... thank you ... but-" Shulk stared at the sword for a moment, he just had an idea, a very good idea "That's- that's it ! Fiora, o have to go back to my fa- my main unit, I will come back in a few hours, I have a plan, please wait for me"

"Brother, I picked up Ruby's- I mean Shulk signals" Vanea sighed "Why did I even used his face unit's name ... anyway, as I was saying he is coming back"

Egil had been working on his current apocrypha prototype since Shulk left the Mechonis for his reconnaissance mission "Already ? Is something wrong ? His signal-"

"His signal is perfect, and so are his vital signs according to the information his unit is spending ... perhaps he just came back earlier and-" A propulsor sound could be heard approaching, Shulk's face unit landed right next to Vanea and Egil.

"Shulk ! We didn't expect you until-" Egil sounded happy when he saw Shulk coming back, however when the pilot frame opened he froze.

"We do not have much time !" Shulk jumped out from his face unit and threw the Monado on the ground out of fear it would suddenly decide to pump their souls or anything else. "Vanea, can you make a replica of the Monado ? I need a fake one !"

But Vanea was just as chocked as Egil, the leader of Mechonis took a few steps toward the sword and hesitantly picked it up "It's- ... It's the Monado, but Shulk how did you-?"

"Please Egil, Vanea ! I will answer all your question later, I just want to know if it is possible to make a replica of the Monado" Egil looked at Vanea speechless.

His sister thought about this for a moment "Y-Yes ... Yes I can do that, let's go to my lab, now !"

On the way Shulk explained how he met Fiora and how he ended up retrieving the Monado. Vanea wasn't really listening as she worked as quickly as possible, Egil had been listening very carefully, he even asked for more details.

"It's- ... I can't believe it was that easy ... and Dickson ?"

"He didn't even noticed me ... I was about to leave with the Monado when I got this idea, they will notice that the Monado is gone, it's certain. But what if they can't make the difference between the true Monado and a fake one ? Apparently no one at the Colony knows how it works, not even Dickson surprisingly enough ... so if I bring back a replica-"

"Our enemy wouldn't even know we stole the key of their plan ... it's genius ... Shulk, we have won, even if your plan does work, we have the Monado, now I can do everything in my power to destroy it, and once it's destroyed Zanza will be gone forever"

"We won ... I guess we can thank Fiora then, without her I'm not sure I would have been able to pull this out"

"Fiora, she is Dunban's sister, remind me, how did she end up seeing you ?"

"I-I may have saved her from a bunch of bullies."

"... and this is what you call being invisible, I suppose she played a major part in this ... Shulk, you should watch over her, if Dunban and Dickson are close then we might be able to learn a few things with her help."

"Yes we could ... but- but I don't want to put her in danger"

"I should remind you that Zanza does not care about anything but himself, as long as he exists she is in danger"

"But we have the Monado now, we can destroy it right ? And then Zanza will be dead !" But Egil wasn't looking at Shulk, he was watching his sister as she worked in making the most identical replica of the Monado she was able to.

"... Zanza inhabits beings of Bionis in order to have a physical form, the last individual he inhabited was my friend Arglas, after the great battle the people known as the High Entia who lives on the head of the Bionis created a prison for him. Zanza still inhabits his body ... even if we destroy the Monado I am not certain it will be enough"

"You- .. you didn't mention that" the leader of Mechonis couldn't deny he felt guilt, but this lie was necessary, Shulk was mature enough to understand the situation, but too young to visualise the full extent of this war"

"We won because now Zanza has lost his most precious weapon, but the war isn't finished yet, as long as he has a body we can't rest ... once the Monado is destroyed we will make sure to deal with him."

At the same time Vanea cleaned up her work table and presented the replica "Do you like it ?"

"It's- ... I can't even make the difference with the real one !"

"It isn't as powerful but it has the same effect, also, I was listening when you said only Dunban could use the Monado so I installed a security, only the person related to his bloodline will be able to use it"

"How did you do that ?" Asked Egil curious about this design.

"Actully I have not done it yet, I need a drop of his blood, but I suppose Fiora will be more than willing to give it" Vanea gave the sword to Shulk.

"Thank you Vanea ! I have to go back to the Colony now, if I'm quick enough they went even notice it was gone !"

Fiora had been waiting for a few hours, when she heard the sound of Ruby's reactor she was so happy, they didn't lie they really came back, however when the hatch in the mechon's body opened the wasn't so happy anymore.

"Y-you brought it back ! WHY ?!"

"Fiora please let me explain ! I can't let them notice the Monado is gone, it's a fake one, a replica, it works just like the original one but it's not the original and it's the whole point of the plan !" As Shulk advanced toward Fiora the girl kept walking backwards.

"No ! You didn't listen, you understood nothing, I want my brother back ! I do not want him to be the stupid hero of the Colony !" She ran away. Shulk tried to follow her but he ended up discovering the the replica was pretty heavy, but he knew where she was going.

The outlook part, he found her sitting on a bench and crying. He really needed her help ... she was right, he completely forgot why Fiora helped him in the first place.

"Fiora ... I'm sorry, I didn't have the choice ... but I still need your he-"

"Go away ... you are not my friend"

Shulk went next to her and sat on the bench "You really hate me ?"

Fiora wiped her tears away "N-No I don't it's just- ... I'm angry, I'm really angry. I thought that if the Monado was gone then my brother would lost the interest of the other people at the Colony and we would be able to spend more time together"

"... Actually, the Monado is more important than you think, if your brother loses it, not only will he loses the interest of the people at the Colony but he will also be hated by everyone, would you like to see him suffer because he lost the thing that was his responsibility ? ... Fiora you have to make a choice, perhaps from your point of view all your options are bad choices but you still have to chose"

"... What can I do ?"

"Its a fake Monado, so anyone should be able to use it but Va- ... a security was added, only Dunban's bloodline will be able to use it but first, I need a drop of your blood" Fiora stared blankly at the mechon.

"I apologise Ruby ... can you repeat ?"

"I need a drop of blood, just-just press your finger against the handle, it will sting a little and then it will be done" Shulk handed the replica to Fiora, she examined it for a moment and then she did as she was instructed.

"I- ... I didn't feel anything, but I suppose it should work" Fiora gave back the Monado to Shulk "Let's drop it back where it was"

Fiora led the way followed by Shulk who activated his camouflage once again, they quickly dropped back the Monado at Dunban's house and then they went back to the park "You know ... it's not faire that you keep helping me without anything in return, is there anything you would like ?"

Fiora smiled "How about ... you make me visit your home ?"

...

"W-wait you want what ?"