"Curses! How do I even find this cursed weasel?" I said as I slammed my hand against the street sign beside me so hard, my hand went numb from shock for a moment.

"Punching public property like a kid won't solve anything." Rin said, followed with a sigh.

"Shut the hell up, it's not like you have an idea where the thing is or something..." I said my lips folding into thin line.

"No, no, no~" she cut me off as she wagged her hologram finger at me.

"You see, I have a built in self-global positioning satellite system also linked together with a satellite targeting system. Anything the satellite sees, I see. So if you want help from me, you should consider changing your attitude ..." she said, yawning.

Curses.

She had me there. But honestly I didn't see any chance of me completing the mission without her help. And for that past week, my pride had taken a big dive, not that's it was much to begin with...

But lowering my pride to an AI, that's living off my arm like a parasite? I have definitely hit a new level of low...

"Fine. Can you please help me with this mission?" I said, though I couldn't help but roll my eyes over at the same time.

"Where's the spirit? I can't hear you~"

Curses! I swear once I get cross dimensional powers...

"Hurry up! I am getting tired..." she continued.

"My lady Rin, would you please lend me a hand in this situation?"

"En, en!" She nodded with satisfaction, then continued: "I am now linking my sensors to the satellite now, the map should display anytime now."

She finished her sentence then her hologram image was replaced with a blue on black wire frame globe. The globe began to gradually zoom in on one point. A few moment later, a tag of my whereabouts popped up on the map.

"Now for the real show..." as Rin spoke, the map began to flatten itself into a standard two dimensional map, with cluster of blue dots overlapping one another, with an exception of a white circle in the very center.

"I am guessing that's white circle is me." I blurted out.

"Correct, those blue circles here are..." Before Rin could finish I cut her off once again:

"The blue dots are humans right?"

"Aghhh!!! Can't you just let me finish explaining?" Rin yelled, followed by angry Kaomoji right in my face:

(╬ Ò﹏Ó)

"Fine, my bad. But all I see is humans, I don't see any elementals at all..."

"Simple, just stay still. I am going to run an area scan." The Kaomoji said, revealing the map once again. Though before I could ask what area scan even meant, an unfamiliar voice came out of my arm:

"All System online. System synchronizing. Satellite link enabled. Search keyword: Flaming weasel. Running area scan, objective view point from host. Dimensions: 10x10x10km. Confirmed volume 1000km3. Running diagnostics..."

Even though I knew it had to be Rin. But her that time was so much more robotic and deep, though it still sounded female. It was far from her usual annoying childish voice, but to be honest, I much preferred the latter. The former just didn't really fit her.

"Diagnostics complete. Target is 2.3 km away, 67o to your left." Rin said in her deep robotic voice, a moment later a red dot appeared on the map.

​"That's the target right?" I asked, just to be sure.

"What do you think it is? A Wi-Fi hot spot? Think with your head you Baka!" she said with her old Rin's voice.

Just as I was thinking about how I was going remove her with an antivirus program, an unfamiliar voice called out to me:

"Solider boy over there!" I turned and looked. It was one of those stereotypical grandmas, hunched backed, cane in hand, with white hair, and small spectacles.

"Yes you, solider boy!" she signaled me to come closer, curious I did as instructed. When I got close I could see she was holding a cardboard box as big as herself. Without hesitating, I quickly got up to her and took hold of it for her.

"Thank you solider boy." She said with a raspy cheery voice, then pointed with her cane. "My house is right there, do you mind helping me brining it in?"
​Honestly I didn't think it would take long, so I decided to just go with it. Plus leaving in the middle of help, seemed pretty rude anyways.

"No problem." I said with box in hand, as I began making my way through her porch to the door steps of the house. At the doorstep, I waited for the old lady to catch up, and open the door. Instead, when the old lady got to the door, she just simply opened door, no keys, no nothing.

"Oh, don't worry. I always leave the door unlocked." She smiled, like it was no big deal.

"Eee...That doesn't sound safe to me..." I said as I followed her through the door.

"Don't you worry a thing. Ah, take your shoes off here please, slippers right there." She said, as we both took a moment to take of our shoes and put on a pair of slippers. Seeing she was going further into the house, I followed with box in hand as she continued:

"Not a single burglary happened in the Vino neighborhood in the past 35 or was it 37 years?"

"I was wondering madam..."

"Yes, solider boy?" she said, as she continued to lead me down the hallway.

"Do you live in this house all by yourself?"

"Oh Yes. My good solider left me 15 years ago, Charlie left me about 2...no wait 3 years ago."

"Your husband was a solider?"

"Yes. Best of the best. He was part of the Iron Justice in his younger days, or as he liked to call it the 'glory days'."

"Wait, your husband was actually part of like, the Iron Justice?"

Iron Justice is a global elite organization of MS pilots. The Iron Justice was established around half a century ago, during the midst of the Shadows Wars, when tensions between human and elementals were at their height. The first generation of MS were invented, and the first Gen of MS pilots came too. Despite their diversity of nationality and religion the first Gen MS pilots managed to come together and form a coalition known as the Iron Justice and it was the first time in history that human had a chance to stand on equal footing in battle against the elementals.

"Oh yes! He was a comrade and close friend of Rhir..."

"YOU MEAN RHIR BLOODRAZOR!?"

I asked, my jaw could just simply not hold in place.

Rhir Bloodrazor was a legend among legends. He was the founder and leader of the Iron Justice. As one of the best pilots at the time, Rhir led humanity through countless battles and held on despite the impossible odds stacked against him and his team. Once (I knew this, because as humans we all had to learn this in our textbook) the elementals lead an army of ten thousand strong to lay siege upon Roma. Rhir and his team of less than a hundred men, managed to hold the city for 3 months, before backup finally arrived and the elementals were forced to retreat. Seeing I had fully come to absorb the information the old grandma continued:

"Oh yes! He was so close to him, that on our honeymoon, all my good solider would talk about was about this mission he went on with his team and Rhir. I told him, if he can't shut his yapper, he might as well be marrying Rhir instead!"

We both laughed, which almost made me drop the box, but luckily I managed to hold onto it at the last second.

"Ah, you can't just put it there. It's good now."

"But..." I began to mutter.

"I know. How about you sit on the couch and I will tell you the story over a beer?"

"I am good, I am still on duty." I said. Though in truth, I was never really into drinking.

"Alright solider boy. Make yourself at home." She said as she walked over to her fridge and took out a 6 pack, twisted off one of them, popped the cap open, then proceeded to chugging it. After she seemed to down and entire can in a matter of seconds, she grabbed another one, then putted the rest in the fridge.

"Before my good solider was a solider, he was a good man. Fought his battle with cancer all the way till the last moment." She paused. "And at his funeral, Rhir didn't show up"

"Wait what? Just...just...just why?" I stuttered, as I was unable to piece this emotional jig saw puzzle together in my mind.

There was a pause, then an even longer pause. I was almost afraid I said something wrong and she might sue me later for emotional damage. But that never happened, after what was several minutes, felt like forever. To the point I felt like it would be better if she just sued me for emotional damage rather than this awkwardness drag on. Then out of the gloom she finally decided to speak:

"Later on that day, I found Rhir in the bar, sitting at his usual spot drink in hand. I walked up to slap him and asked why he didn't come to my husband's funeral. But as soon as I met his eyes, I regretted hitting him."

Silence.

"Not long after that, Rhir retired from the Iron Justice, and I haven't heard from him since. But my good soldier's death hit him so hard, he was never really the same man again..." her voice trailed off looking out the window, as if there was something, waiting.

"I am sorry..." I said apologetically.

"Oh no! You have nothing to be sorry for solider boy! I think best thing happened today was talking about my good solider with an actual someone." She said, as she chugged down the rest of the beer then back threw it into the garbage can behind without even looking.

Dang. 2 point back hand.

"Wait, you also mentioned Charlie, is he your son?"

She began to laugh so hysterically to the point, I thought she might just die from choking. But at some point she stopped herself, followed by a serious of vigorous cough. Which she walked over to the sink, spat, then came back and said:

"Oh I got you there! Charlie is my dog and I never had a son. But I guess you could say he was the closest thing I had to a son."

I nodded silently.

"I took up Charlie several months after my good solider passed away. Charlie was a good boy, he loved to cuddle and often made a big mess. And did I ever tell you he would sometimes crawl into the furnace and I have to literally drag him out sometimes?" she chuckled, I managed a small smile. Before I could say a single word, my nose caught a scent of something burning. My first thought was the flaming weasel, and right before I was about to panic the old grandma spoke up:

"Oh no, it's just my roasted chestnuts. Must have left the fire on when I was gone." She said getting up from the couch as I watch her enter into the kitchen. A moment later she came out of the kitchen with a bowl full of roasted chestnuts, just the aroma was honestly enough to knock me over.

"Help yourself to some. It's on the house. She said as she set it on the table before me.

"Charlie loved roasted chestnuts, he wouldn't eat any of his dog food until he had at least a batch of roasted chestnuts for the day first." She chuckled again, as she sat down on the couch across from me and just stared at the bowl.

"Madam, um...I never learned your name..."

"Nuts. They called me the lady with the nuts."

I just stared at her.

"No, I am not joking. Go ahead and call me what you want, this is what I prefer."

"Um, Ms. Nuts I just wondering are you thinking about getting a new pet?"

"Oh boy, I don't know. Charlie's like a son to me, he's one of a kind."

"True. I can't promise it will be like Charlie, but what I can promise you is that it's one of a kind too. In fact it's quite a crazy pet."

"How crazy?" she said, her eyebrows knitting.

"Might potentially burn down this whole community." I said with a plain voice.

She paused, then said:

"Is it this fire rat that's been going around in town?"

"Yes."

She paused again.

"I guess he could be good for lighting up timber in the winter. Dammed winter just freezes up everything you know?"

I cracked a small smile, then for some reason I felt like telling her my story. Which I kind of summarized, staring from the attack on the city, all the way to the objectives of this mission. And by the time I was done, Ms. Nuts expression was unreadable.

"So for this mission, what do you need?"

"I just need to borrow a few things. I will give all of them back to you, as soon as I am done."

"Take what you need boy. And don't push yourself to hard." She said as she got up from the couch and began to walk away.

"Thanks." That was all I managed to say, since I honestly couldn't think of any better reply at the time. After witness old grandma disappear around the corner of the hallway. I rose from the couch and performed a big stretch.

"Rin can you hear me?"

"Yes?"

"How long till dead line again?"

"3 hours, 24 minutes and 57...no 55 now."

"Curses..." I looked around one last time. "Well, I guess it's time to get started."

Q: How would you deal with a rodent problem?