A Lesson In Humility
“How does this work again?” Leaf Shakes the Wind tugged at the straps that encircled his limbs, examining the harness with a dubious eye.
“It’s easy,” came the amplified voice of Rivers Between Us from across the plain. “Once you’re attuned to it, the harness should interpret your normal body movements and translate them onto the warstrider!”
The two massive battle machines faced each other in a portion of the burned-out pasturelands near the Gatehouse of the Four Winds, far away from any place where they might cause harm or be seen by prying eyes. Their newly-polished exteriors gleamed colorfully beneath the sun, weapons capable of shearing a house in two with a single stroke clutched in gauntlets like jade boulders.
The attunement finished, the first of them began to move, shifting with a serpentine grace that seemed impossible for an object of its size. A massive Serpent-Sting staff twirled about as The Bandit King adopted the form of the Celestial Snake. It began to perform a kata, arms twining about sinuously, Rivers Between Us moving the immense armor as easily as he did his own body. "This is great! Let's go, Leaf!" In response, the second warstrider took a few steps backwards, reaching for one of the throwing axes clamped to its leg.
An old man in a nearby village felt the earth shake and muttered something about bad omens. Birds for miles around took flight as the massive thud resounded through the air. Rivers Between Us laughed.
“What the hell was that?” The Bandit King’s arms waved about, trying to clear the cloud of dust from the air.
“I… I think I fell.”
The second warstrider began to right itself. Just as it was about to reach its full height again, it pitched forward and struck the ground with another massive crash, this time ending up face down, the dirt and charred grass compacted down by several feet.
“I think it’s broken.”
“It’s not broken! I did the final checks and tested them both this morning before you got here. It’s fine!” Rivers Between Us set his weapon down nearby. “Look, it’s not difficult. You must be trying too hard. Just move naturally.”
The warstrider struggled upright again, finally regaining its footing. The axe in hand, it took a few ginger steps from side to side, its pilot seeming to gain confidence as he went. It suddenly pirouetted, spinning on one foot in a graceful arc and hurling the axe a hundred feet away to cleave the trunk of a great tree.
“There you go, Leaf. That’s more like it.”
“I was trying to re-sheathe the axe.”
“Oh… well… you just… need more practice.” Even the foot-thick armor plating couldn’t conceal the amusement the Twilight's voice.
Leaf Shakes the Wind snorted in frustration. “What I need is to not be strapped inside this giant tin can when it’s obviously broken! I’m getting out.”
“Wait, wait!” By the time Rivers Between Us arrived at his friend’s side, the warstrider’s back hatch was open and Leaf Shakes the Wind was nowhere to be seen. “Feh. You could have at least helped me put it back into storage.”
When the sun had risen a day later, Rivers Between Us entered the hangar to check on the machines. When he reached the second warstrider, he laughed loudly, startling one of the nearby technicians.
“Is everything okay, sir?”
Rivers Between Us nodded, still grinning. “I guess Leaf was able to come up with a name for it after all,” he said, pointing at three characters in fresh white lacquer on the mecha’s shoulder: A Lesson In Humility.
