Chaos Theory

Nikolai was used to the peace of constant ticking. The metronome-like sounds may drive his customers mad, but he found the synchronization of every gear in the shop was marvelous. That is until one morning-

Boom 

Nikolai clenched his screwdriver with a quake to his hand. He turned abruptly to the beans on the other side of the room. "Would you kindly keep whatever it is you are doing to an orderly volume?"

"We're just here tokking." Queri poked his sister in the ribs.

"Ja," Elatri slapped his hands away. "We've been working hard. See?"

Patina took the cue and twisted the ears on one of the mechanical rabbits between them. The table was covered in little copper eggs in a variety of stages of rust and mechanical parts. Robotic limbs and the metal chassis for more rabbits lay across the wooden surface in almost a macabre scene. Oil covered most of the objects and beans.

Once wound, the bunny bounced forward several hops along the table before a compartment opened. Nikolai averted his eyes as the children giggled. When he dared to look back after a small clatter he found several metallic eggs had been deposited along its path.

"Fascinating, but that doesn't explain the-"

Ba-Boom!

Several clocks went off in opposite wings of the shop. The clashing alarms meant to go off at different hours was torture on the ears. Beans and Flowerlings scrambled to silence the walls of wailing clocks.

Nikolai turned about as Themis entered with Wendy in tow. "Whatever is going on?" His expression was an odd one as the two of them were covered in egg and flour.

"I would- Ow!" Nikolai flinched as the clock he just stopped started calling the hour again. He shoved the little beaver back into its log home in frustration. "Which child is unaccounted for?"

"Well, Tink is checking in with her brothers."

Stopping her there, he flew off to the little hatch to the roof in one of the hallways. "You know which one I am referring to. The one who keeps taking the tools I explicitly prohibit the use of without a proper lab partner."

"You mean an adult?" Themis hesitantly watched as he pried the hatch open with the screwdriver. "Knocking is required before entry, we are invading his space."

"They invaded my workshop!" He retorted before entering the attic crawl space. "Oi, boy! Turn down your radio and unplug that power laser!"

Themis stifled a giggle as she heard the telltale whoop and thud of a flowerling hitting the floor. She tapped on the roof as she poked her head inside. "Tesla? May we enter?"

"What's that? I'm in the middle of something mom." Tesla removed his goggles to reveal his big blue eyes.

Nikolai looked fit for one of his lectures but Themis held a hand to his chest. "What are you working on dear?"

"I'm trying to determine the feedback loops overall energy output when I shoot dad's laser into-"

Themis held up her finger. "But did you follow lab protocol for use of the laser?"

 As he realized he was caught, his whole being seemed to droop to the floor. 

Nikolai watched in a bitter silence before turning his back on the two of them. "What were the results?"

"Nearly tenfold, sir!" Tesla perked up with the electricity jumping between his feelers as he joyfully shared.

"Themis take the children to my brothers." Nikolai was already headed down to the workshop with his screwdriver twirling between his little hands.

"What for?" She followed looking only slightly worried at his sour mood.

"I need to reset the house to the proper time." He flew to the nearest clock and pulled out his watch. With a few twists of his tool, he set the hands back. "Afterward, I'll-" 

Themis waited but he never continued as he wordlessly drifted over the clocks. "We can't see the gears turn your head, dear. What is it you are planning?"

Before Nik could respond however another roof-shaking bang wracked the workplace. The clocks started to bang and bong for half hours, and songs for different hours of the day played over one another. Several rabbits crashed off the table with limbs popping off from the sheer force. Themis ducked as a spring flew through the air. 

"Dissection!" He pointed at the ceiling with his screwdriver. "I will cut out whatever perpetual motion machine I find in there. Permission was not granted, mister!"

----

Seto smiled from where he sat in the house's shade. Themis waved with several kids in tow. They looked like scattered brain ducklings traveling up the path. When she got close enough, "What are you doing out here? Dulcie will never believe me."

Teddy lay tired and full beside the woodpile he was working hard at. "Kiku just cleaned up lunch. She and Teddy here make sure I take my breaks." He laughed, "What brings you all here?"

"Nikolai needs some quiet and I have a request to make," Themis asked over the excited cheers of the blacksmith's daughters.

"Lore! The rest of your family is here." Seto called to the house. 

Ashildr stuck her head from the window to answer back, "She and Kiku are helping to prepare dinner!"

"Already? Well, have them make more. Is Alice around? Will you two take the beanlings out." He nudged the boy off the ground. "You want to go see if any easter eggs are still out there?"

"Will they be gross?" Queri jested as he tugged the green bean off the grass.

"Ugh, don't say that! What if they're chocolate," Teddy griped as he tried to stay limp.

"And maybe it's gold coins!" Elatri raved. "They could be melted down for circuits."

"Would that bring bad luck?" Patina asked.

"Can we test luck?" Tesla chimed in.

"Girls!" Seto called to the house for his eldest to hurry. "I can see why Nikolai would want quiet. We can stay here and talk about what was it?"

----

Alice kept her eyes to the forest as she had little interest in the beans or their hunt for whatever eggs remain. Ashildr on the other hand- "Queri, don't look in that tree hole! There could be owls. Elatri where is Tesla?"

The beanling just shrugged and went back to the clover patch. She'd put several flowers in the basket among the few eggs they'd managed to collect. "Think Lorelle will like these?"

Patina tapped her odd-colored egg in soft thought. "Hmm, maybe some yellowish. Like this," she offered the egg up.

"Alice, I don't see Teddy either-"

"Dear sister, they wandered off together if it puts your mind at ease." Alice smiled with a hand over her stomach.

"You know it doesn't." 

----

"Look, Teddy! We've found another!" Tesla rushed ahead through the tall grass.

"Slow down Tes!" The green beanling dragged a basket behind him with his training sword also tucked inside. "This thing's getting heavy."

"Come on, it's just over one point five kilograms." The striped bean turned around with another egg in hand with the grass swaying around him. The turf around the bean started to buzz violently. "What's that?"

Teddy rushed forward with his weapon in hand in time to shove the mechanist out of the way. The long black stinger was stuck in the wood splitting the sword in two. With a violent jerk, the wasp wrenched itself free from the bean taking their only means of defense. "Alice! Ashildr!"

Tesla shrank back to their basket as another wasp rose to investigate their friend. "M-maybe we shouldn't have wandered off? I'm not really a f-fighter, Teddy."

Together the bugs worked the stinger free in time to see the blacksmith's son beelining back to the basket. Grabbing it in both hands, he swung the wicker to cover his retreat. Tesla covered his eyes as the wood cracked and the bugs thudded nearby. "Hate to inform you, Teddy, but their numbers are multiplying!"

A small swarm had risen out of the tall grass attracted by the guards of the hive. "D-daddy!" Teddy threw his arms up as a large black and yellow bug flew down upon him.

"Shield!" 

A brilliantly light blue hunk of bark appeared before the beans as Alice burst through the bushes behind them. Ashildr was just off to the side ripping chunks of bark from a nearby fallen tree. Her touch caused each piece to become an enchanted shield. Much to the bean’s surprise, with a surprisingly good arm, hefted each piece around the clearing.

Alice ducked and dodged the angry hive as best she could. "The cover is much appreciated," she grabbed one of the smaller pieces to use as an actual shield. "Get the boys to safety."

"What about you?" Ash cried out even as she grabbed her new family to her.

"I'll be feasting corpse honey by the time you return!" Alice might have sounded as aloof as usual but she was struggling to keep her distance from the never-ending swarm.

"Protect." Ashildr leaned down and pressed a kiss to either of the boys' temples. "Be safe and run for the forge." 

Teddy couldn't help but stay and watch as the shield Bean flung herself toward her sister and cast a barrier around them both. "What are you doing?" The darker bean growled over the deafening sound of buzzing as the wasps settled on the blue light shield.

"We stand together." Ashildr smiled even as she had to raise both hands to hold back the stingers.

“You’re a soft-hearted fool, but I won't waste the time you've afforded me." Alice drew back her crossbow with a strangely fat bolt that took some time to lock into place. “Multishot: Multiple Targets locked.”

Teddy blinked out of his daze in time to grab both bark shield and beanling beside him. “Got to go Tesla! She isn’t aiming with all her eyes.” He shoved the bean in front of him as he turned to watch as a crack went off. The wasps surrounding his sisters fell by the droves as the mega bolt shot high above them and rained down like hell. Holding the piece of wood above them, he winced as after several impacts the blue light enchanting the hunk flicked out. The bushes were just ahead-

ROAR

“Other way, Teddy!” Tesla braked so hard the two of them collided. Feeler over wish they tumbled in front of the large black paws of a bear. It looked dumbly around the clearing for what stabbed it out of sleep. Blinded by more than anger, it stood up before the boys.

Alice could see what angered the animal. One eye was closed and she could smell the blood from here. She took aim and shot again piercing the softer flesh of the nose to draw the beast's attention. “Looking for me?”

Just barely dodging the clawed feet as the bear stepped around them, they could only watch as the two sisters were cornered in the blue dome. Teddy was forced to look away when Tesla pointed out Themis and her daughters. They just visible through the barrier on the other side of the clearing.

“Alice, other eye!” A loud crack sounded above them as the blacksmith snapped the end of a branch off a tree. The end dipped heavily in his hands, but he didn’t notice the weight. Alice hurried to take aim knowing her father would not wait. He was already advancing on the animal several timed larger than all of them. Just as the bear made ready to swipe at her father, she let fly true to her target. Before it could cry out in pain Seto threw his whole body into his swing. “Blyat! Naveshat’ pizdyley. Not my children!”

One, twice, the branch did not last a third time as he beat the bear back onto four paws. Holding the splintered piece of wood, the succulent flowerling continued to shout angrily at the animal as it fled back into the orange forest. 

Ashildr quickly let her shield drop and flew to their father's side. Alice followed, watching as her sister put a hand on his trembling shoulder. He dropped the timber and held the beanling close, one arm outstretched for the dark sharpshooter. Alice reluctantly let him pull her in, even as another part of her grumbled. “Where is Teddy?” His voice was quiet, almost fragile as the boy appeared in view. A noise came from between the girls as they were squished to accommodate their brother. “I should ground you all.”

Themis rushed to meet her boy halfway in the clearing. She held him close and examined every inch, “And I thought the chaos would be contained to the lab.  My boy, your father will ground you, but you’re getting a new room. ”