《Shattered super-soldier》 Befrinding a cosmic annomally As he raised the served head of the traitor towards the sky, the young man proclaimed ¡°We have followed the imperial decree, Marie Eirmal, the final member of the Eirmal bloodline of traitors has been slain, oh Samual Junathan Trerubic, open the sky and free Eirmal 4 from its penance!¡± Such is the end of the Eirmal bloodline recorded in the imperial records, finally brought to justice 27 years after the 34th emperor of the Trerubic empire closed off the planet by laying it under blockade and tasked its citizens with purging the noble house of Eirmal the entire planetary governor bloodline had been purged by the loyal citizens to make penance and prove their innocence. - ¡®What¡­. Where is this..?¡¯ [E***ge*** reas****me** of a*l na**te pat****s in *****t, pr***ry ***y r*gene**tion fi***hed i* *** se*****] Pain flooded his mind along with a cold female voice devoid of emotion, he didn¡¯t understand, it, yet somewhere deeply within his mind, a few parts of the words registered and were understood, moving proved impossible, he found his body frozen in a strange paralysis [L**s ** cons******ess esti****d at 56 h**rs, 19% of to**l ne*** tis*** regener**ed] ¡®I get it, I get it! Shut up for now!¡¯ A few moments had passed and the voice with the migraine like pain that it accompanied didn¡¯t sound out again, it appeared that it understood his mental commands ¡®...Who am I even¡­ And why can¡¯t I move¡­ Don¡¯t tell me I¡¯m permanently paralyzed¡­ At least the sky is pretty¡­¡¯ That was indeed the case, endless blue spread out within his view dotted with fleeting clouds¡­ At least it wasn¡¯t raining¡­ As time passed, he counted the clouds that lazily drifted by, when he grew bored with that he looked at them and the shapes they took ¡®Knife¡­ Balloon¡­ High velocity blood splatter¡­ happy face¡­ duck¡­ dog¡­ firearm¡­¡¯ As he looked at the cloud''s sensation slowly returned to his body, then before long he had regained his mobility and sat himself up, the first thing he noticed was his lack of clothes, the second thing he noticed was the overall state of his body, he had no skin, all of his bare flesh was bruised and beaten, deep cuts down to and into his bones, his body looked more dead than alive, yet he didn¡¯t feel any pain nor any other sensation from his body ¡°No¡­ Something is moving in there¡­¡± He looked at a deep cut on his forearm, down at the bone something moved, it looked like fine metal sand, as he stared at the metal sand it rapidly mended the deep cut into his bone, turning his forearm around he noticed his left pinky was missing a joint, the surface of it was covered in the same metal sand and slowly grew back his finger, little by little ¡°...That¡¯s funky¡­ Whatever it is¡­¡± Finding it more than a little unsettling to look at his own body being regrown, he decided to look at something else and gazed around at his surroundings, the first thing he noticed was the crumbled brick walls around him, along with ruined and half rotten wooden floors and furniture he concluded ¡°A ruined house¡­¡± As he continued looking around, he found more ruins around it appeared he was within a ruined city, after briefly considering whether it would hurt his skinless feet to walk around he stood up and made it out of the ruined building and into the street, a dirt path in reality, he looked left then right down the street before he turned around and looked back into the house he had just exited and saw the person shaped imprint he had left behind ¡°...What¡¯s that?¡± The outline of the imprint he had made in the stone foundation of the house looked like it had some sort of metal imprint, which was a few sizes larger than his own body, he didn¡¯t know why, but he knew what it was, but more importantly he saw the path he had taken to get there in the first place ¡®... I guess nothing¡¯s wrong with following the trail of broken walls¡¯ Having decided so, he did just that and followed the trail of destruction of what he assumed was his own making, along the way he discovered an increasing amount of corpses, or more precisely carcasses, looking at the wasp carcass the size of a large dog he only had one comment to make ¡°...I don¡¯t believe that¡¯s supposed to be that size¡± Still, he felt no fear from seeing the wasp carcass the fact that he could stumble upon a living large dog sized wasp didn¡¯t cross his mind at all, he somehow knew that wouldn¡¯t happen, as he continued following the path of the broken ruins and walls he wondered why that was, why was he so certain about this when he couldn¡¯t recall his own name? He continued to thinking about this for a while, but still he found no answer to this, and soon something else demanded his attention This story originates from a different website. Ensure the author gets the support they deserve by reading it there. ¡°What the¡­ Actual¡­¡± His words stopped as he continued trying to make sense of the ¡®thing¡¯ that was hovering in the middle of the plaza, his mind churned for a few moments before he decided that it wasn¡¯t worth it to poke the cosmic anomaly and turned around to find the exact same cosmic anomaly, it looked like a mass of blue liquid light that swirled around itself, faced with this thing that seared his reasoning by looking at it¡­ He decided to greet it ¡°Hi, how are you?¡± The ting continued swirling around for a few moments before it vibrated its surface, sending out waves of sound that turned into a voice that sounded like the voice of multiple people layered on top of each other ¡°Major Matthew Rockwell, you are alive, alive, alive¡± ¡®Matthew Rockwell huh¡­ And a Major on top of that¡­¡¯ Keeping his internal monolog to himself, Matthew asked ¡°...Why wouldn¡¯t I be alive?¡± The mass of pale blue light like fluid continued twirling around itself as it vibrated to speak ¡°I punched you, really, really, really hard hard hard¡­ I am glad you aren¡¯t as fragile, fragile, fragile as other people, have you reconsidered my, my, my request?¡± Matthew quickly took in the words of the anomaly which contained two important pieces of information, the first of which he had rejected an offer and the second being that he had been half killed by an attack of the same cosmic anomaly ¡°...I¡¯m sorry my memory is more than a little foggy, could you repeat your request?¡± The cosmic anomaly floated around for a few moments before a part of it shot out and around Matthew before it inserted itself into the back of his lower skull, Matthew found himself instantly paralyzed for a few moments before the anomaly vibrated again sending out its voice ¡°You are still imprisoned, imprisoned, imprisoned, imprisoned I see¡­ Don¡¯t worry Matthew, I don¡¯t intent to hurt, hurt, hurt, hurt you again¡­¡± Time passed as it always did, whether you were having a fun time or having a cosmic horror paralyze your body while doing¡­ Something to your spine, after a few minutes the anomaly vibrated again as it produced sound ¡°You are free, free, free, free of its control now¡± Just like that feeling returned to Matthew¡¯s body as he regained his ability to move as the anomaly retracted itself from him as it spoke again ¡°My request, request, request to you is simple, I want you to create a body, body for me, long have I wanted to become a person, person once again¡± Matthew was about to open his mouth to say he didn¡¯t know how to make a body for the anomaly, that¡¯s when something jolted his memory, he might not know how, but there was ¡®someone¡¯ that he could ask about this ¡°How about it, Aea?¡± [Please stand by, startup process completed in 10 seconds¡­ New master profile registered, welcome master, and congratulations of acquiring the newest BlueArrow ¡®Code Arrow 09¡¯ bionic spine, emergency reassignment of all nanite patterns in effect for body regeneration] ¡°... Do you know how to make a body, Aea?¡± [Searching internal data schematics¡­ 52 potential blueprints found] ¡®So it looks like it¡¯s no problem¡­¡¯ Matthew glanced at the cosmic anomaly in front of him, it might have half killed him, but he didn¡¯t remember this, he didn¡¯t care about it, plus it seemed like what it had done to the AI core ¡®Aea¡¯ had benefited him greatly so he found no reason not to ¡°Sure, I don¡¯t have anything else to do¡­ I¡¯ll make a body for you¡± ¡®...Besides its speech tick is slightly endearing¡¯ As Matthew agreed to help the cosmic anomaly, the sens of unease and fear he felt from it completely disappeared as it vibrated for a few moments before its voice sounded out ¡°Thank you, you, you Matthew¡± Matthew showed a small smile and responded ¡°No need to thank me, let¡¯s get to work at once¡± ¡°A, A, A, A, A new body! Body! Body! Body!¡± Seeing the palpable excitement that was radiating off the cosmic anomaly, Matthew quickly got to work and as an incompetent middle-aged business manager did best, he allocated all the work to another person ¡°Let¡¯s make a body, what do you need, Aea?¡± [Emergency reassignment of all nanite patterns in effect until master''s body has been healed and regenerated] ¡°... And what does that mean?¡± [All 9 types of specialized bio-nanite are currently keeping master alive, including the Forge pattern nanites used to fabricate schematics from the internal data banks] ¡°So I need to heal my body first? How do I go about doing that?¡± [Please acquire more biomass, 583 targets painted] Matthew looked around and saw countless white icons in his vision, somehow it reminded him about something, but he couldn¡¯t really place it so he put it to the back of his mind as he walked over to one of the giant wasp carcasses and picked it up [For future reference, please use the command word ¡®Harvest¡¯ to gather bio-matter] Matthew felt a little confused about this, but he trusted Aea¡¯s instructions, so he spoke the command word ¡°Harvest¡± At his command, nanites swarmed out of his hand and quickly covered the wasp carcass, which rapidly shrunk in size as the matter that made up the carcass was cut into pieces and used to fuel the regeneration of Matthew¡¯s body ¡°What about my body, body, body, body?¡± Matthew picked up another wasp carcass as he explained ¡°The small machines that I need to make your new body is currently busy keeping me alive, so I need to heal myself first¡± ¡°How are you going to heal, heal, heal, heal, heal yourself, Matthew?¡± ¡°Using these carcasses seems to be a great start¡± The cosmic anomaly vibrated for a few moments before it changed form and sent out a strong glow, then a group of giant wasp carcass fell from the ground in the middle of the plaza, as the cosmic anomaly glowed again with a soft light another group of giant wasp carcasses fell from the sky ¡°Neat, saves me from running all around the city to find them¡± Matthew quickly walked over and began harvesting the giant wasp carcasses, this continued long into the night. - Matthew¡¯s body was wrecked by malnutrition, scars and other old injuries, to say he was exhausted was an understatement, in front of him was the body of a young child, 8 years old she had been born into the Eirmal bloodline though no fault of her own, Matthew didn¡¯t hate her, he hated the Trerubic Empire who had turned his planet into a blood sport under a false charge of treason ¡®Fuck those royal wraiths and their sickening hobbies¡­¡¯ Matthew lowered his coil rifle and drew the dagger he had sheathed on his hip, he felt no joy in mutilating the body of a child he had just killed, but the conditions to raise the blockade which had starved his entire home world for 27 year was to ¡®present the served heads of all the traitors¡¯ so cut he did, he was for a moment surprised by how easily he cut the head off the corpse for a moment ¡®Right, a child¡¯s spine is easier to cut since it is undeveloped compared to an adult¡­¡¯ For better or worse Matthew wasn¡¯t used to severing the heads of corpses in general, but this was the first and hopefully last time he would need to do so on a child''s corpse, he raised the served head towards the sky so the satellites could pick it up and yelled ¡°IS THIS WHAT GETS YOU SADISTIC FUCKS OFF!?¡± This was the real ending of the Eirmal 4 penance as the blockade of the planet was lifted an hour later, a week later the official tally showed that the original population of 160 billion had been reduced to a mere 1.2 billion The comfortable confines of a moldy blanket domain Samual Junathan Trerubic looked at the kneeling man in front of him with sadness in his heart he spoke ¡°Do you truly wish to walk this path?¡± The young man lowered his head further as he spoke with reverence of the 34th emperor in front of him ¡°I wish to put my skills to use for the glory of the empire for the glory of Samuel Junathan Treubic as well as the entire Treubic Empire I wish to offer my services¡± Such is the reward ceremony for the young man who ended the Eirmal 4 penance recorded in imperial records, the young man deferred the rewards the emperor had bestowed upon him and voiced his wishes to enlist in the imperial marine corps. To be set loose upon the enemies of the great Treubic Empire was all he wished for - In the early morning as the sky was gradually turning blue again Matthew finished harvesting the last of the giant wasp carcasses, his body no longer looked like something out of a body horror B-movie, tan skin covered his body and dark hair was starting to grow on his head, he stood a little over 2 meters high and was built less like a brick house despite his weight of around 180 kilograms, where this weight came from was clear however if one were to step close to him, every fiber of his body had been reinforced into its densest form while still allowing for a full range of motion, his body looked entirely biological except for the metal-like skin that flowed along his spine ¡°Matthew, can, can, can, can you make me a body now?¡± ¡°...How does it look, Aea?¡± [Reporting, 52 potential blueprints found in internal data banks, Forge nanites ready to deploy for manufacture when required materials have been gathered] ¡°Right¡­ Materials, what do you need?¡± [Forge nanites mainly categorizes materials as either one of 5 metal types, biological, carbon based or exotic] ¡°What kind of materials are needed for the best body you can make?¡± [Special manufacturing equipment need for highest grade synthetic human automata, this equipment requires a multitude of other materials as well as a zero-g environment for manufacture] Matthew explained the situation to the cosmic anomaly as best he could, though it took awhile as he went through the list of bodies in Aea¡¯s database and quickly promised when the anomaly was about to throw a fit about not getting a great body ¡°I promise I will make a better body for you once I am able, for now it doesn¡¯t look possible¡­ But a simpler metal body shouldn¡¯t be too much of a problem¡± ¡°Okay, make, make, make me a body!¡± Feeling like he was being prodded by an overexcited bioengineered Dire Wolf for food Matthew quickly got to work while under strict supervision he began searching the ruins around the plaza and eventually discovered a ruined jewelry forge, after digging through the debris he managed to salvage a few anvils as well as a few ingots of high purity metal ¡°Okay Aea, we¡¯ve found some metal, what now?¡± [Deploying Data nanite pattern 1, 2 and 3 for metal analysis, please hold¡­] One of the metal parts of Matthew¡¯s spine opened up before a metal sand substance flowed out and through the air, after a moment the metal sand, or nanites split into 3 groups and gathered on 3 separate samples where they remained for a few moments before moving to the next, finally when all the metal had been analysis the metal sand flowed back towards Matthew and back into his spine [A Data nanites patterns received, compiling gathered data and cross-referencing periodic table¡­ Completed, 49 kilograms of Low-grade metal, 20 kilograms of Mid-grade metal and 29 kilograms of High-grade metal confirmed, searching schematics for available ¡®body¡¯ schematics available using provided materials¡­ 4 results found] ¡°Body, bOdY! BODY, BoDY! bODY!¡± As Matthew had fallen silent, the anomaly had quickly gone from an overexcited prodding and began twirling around Matthew as its voice distorted more and more while it shook him back and forth with increasing intensity ¡°Aea have found 4 different types of bodies, Aea what does the fir¡ª¡± ¡°BODY! BODY! BODY!¡± The cosmic anomaly twirled around Matthew before Aea sounded out a report [Manufacturing orders received from mistress profile, deploying all Forge pattern nanites] ¡®...Mistress?¡¯ The cosmic anomaly ignored Matthew¡¯s bewilderment as it began swarming around the deployed Forge nanites that drew energy and transferred directly into the metal in the form of heat, molding it with perfect machine perfection building and melded it together, seeing the integrate process was going to take a while Matthew decided to take in the scenery instead, and by that it meant he was going to explore Stolen story; please report. ¡®... This feels exciting¡¯ Matthew gazed around for a few moments before finding one of the more intact looking ruins along the mostly collapsed cityscape and headed in that direction, along the way he discovered a river that ran straight through the ruined city, looking both downstream and upstream Matthew saw rusted metal grids that he imagined acted as toll stations for merchant ships ¡®So a trade post¡­ given the height of the stone brick walls and the ruined state the city is an outpost of some sort, or was before it was abandoned¡­¡¯ Matthew gazed at the ruined building he had set his sights on over the river, most of the stone bridges were still there and it would only be a small detour to cross one of them, but instead he walked back several meters to give himself some space before he kicked off the ground and leaped off the edge of stone pier propelling himself into the air, run up was good, so was setoff, the flight time was magnificent as he flew through the air and cleared the river completely, only the landing wasn¡¯t exactly stellar as Matthew found his strength way higher than he had expected ¡°Shi¡ª¡± Matthew''s grin disappeared on the last few moments of his leap as he realized he was unable to change trajectory midair, and that he was about to land face-first into a brick wall it wasn¡¯t so much of a landing and more of a smashing as his skull proved harder than the ruined bricks [Light trauma detected, Trauma nanite pattern 1 assigned] ¡°...Yeah I felt that too¡± Alas, his pride hurt more than his bruised body, so Matthew quickly crawled out of the even more destroyed ruins before anyone saw him and his embarrassment and got on his way, after walking a for a few minutes more he arrived at the building he had seen from the plaza, it was mostly intact like he had seen and as he walked past the threshold and into a grand hall he was sure ¡°... I have been here before¡± [No records of prior visits at this location] ¡°By that you mean not for this user profile, right?¡± [Data on other profiles appears to be corrupted] That¡¯s what Matthew had expected, instead of questioning Aea on something it couldn¡¯t tell him he continued following the path that he vaguely recalled, he walked through the hall and down a hallway, the ruined carpet showed a history of foot traffic after it had ceased being cleaned regularly, Major Rockwell already knew where the clearest path lead, because he had already followed it ¡®... In here?¡¯ Matthew slowly opened the door to the room and was hit with the stench of burnt flesh, as soon as he opened the door, the inside was clearly a bedroom, the walls and even the floors had been reinforced and repaired with insect paper pulp, at second glance the room seemed a little like a nest, its occupant was the clearly deceased, Matthew walked over and kneeled down in front of the corpse, the young woman had several wounds from magnetic penetrators fired from a coil rifle on minimum output, but that wasn¡¯t the final blow, Matthew carefully raised the chin of the corpse and found the source of the smell he had noted when he had entered the room ¡®...This leaves quite a bad taste in my mouth¡¯ The eyes of the corpse were missing, and the brain had been flash burned into charcoal, as for the culprit, that was obvious ¡®...Why would I do this¡­ No, why did I do this¡­¡¯ Even after staring into the empty eyes of the corpse for a few hours, Matthew found no answers for his question and let out a sigh, the dead wouldn¡¯t answer his questions, over the next hours Matthew dug a grave with his hands in the backyard and around noon he had finished burying the corpse ¡®...¡¯ Not feeling any of his previous excitement about exploring the ruined city, Matthew returned to the plaza, where the Forge nanites were still working on assembling the body for the anomaly, after salvaging a blanket from one of the ruins, Matthew sat down against the wall of a ruined building and covered himself before he closed his eyes to rest for a few hours¡­ - Matthew opened his eyes around evening, having slept for about 4 hours Matthew was perfectly rested, looking at the evening sky dyed in the orange light of the setting sun he felt his mood had improved somewhat, still he remained within the comfortable confines of his moldy blanket domain for quite a bit longer, he didn¡¯t feel like doing anything other than watching the sky, so he didn¡¯t ¡°...Why do people kill each other, Aea?¡± [Much like war is the simplest form of diplomacy, conflict is the simplest form of communication between life of all kind] ¡°...Which means?¡± [Whatever you want it to mean, lifeforms, people kill each other for singular reasons, contradiction reasons, many reasons or no reasons at all] ¡°... What profound bullshit¡± [Intelligent life appears to need ¡®profound bullshit¡¯ to function, biological readings indicate your mood has stabilized] Matthew let out a sigh and decided it was time to get up, he did just so and bound the blanket around his waist as he stood up, no longer feeling the wind on his taint Matthew felt like he lost and gained something at the same time ¡®Heh¡­ profound bullshit aside¡­¡¯ Finished laughing about his own crude joke Matthew looked at the metallic android that laid on the plaza, it was around 1 meter and 40 centimeters tall, the surface of its human shaped limbs was metallic mat silver while the body and head were covered in a metallic golden and black intricate pattern which wasn¡¯t part of the original specifications, neither were the two long knife blade ear-like sensors that sat on the side of its head, other than the 2 sensor pods that sat in the place of eyes the head of the android was featureless besides the gold and black pattern which emulated a wide friendly smile ¡°...Are you there?¡± Standing next to the android Matthew called out to it, a moment later the sensor pods on its face came to life and focused on Matthew before the android¡¯s voice emulator spoke out in a neutral tone ¡°Matthew, this body is strange¡± Matthew kneeled down and offered a hand to the android as he asked ¡°How so?¡± The android took Matthew¡¯s and that helped it stand for a moment before it spoke again ¡°It doesn¡¯t sleep very well, I didn¡¯t dream at all¡± Matthew figured the cosmic anomaly had entered the android body that had been completed while he rested, so he had wondered why it had been laying on the plaza ¡°I see, we¡¯ll need to considered that for the next body¡± Matthew watched the android look around the ruined plaza in silence for a few moments before it began walking, Matthew followed behind the android silently for a few minutes before it stopped outside a ruined building that had completely collapsed, the android raised its hand and pointed at the building ¡°That was my home when I was alive¡­ After you awoke me, I remembered¡­ This city was my home until the rise of the blue comet when the neighboring kingdom raided the city¡± Matthew nodded and was about to offer words of sympathy when the android turned to look up at him and spoke ¡°Would you help me with burning down the Turman kingdom, Matthew?¡± Matthew didn¡¯t need to think about his answer for too long and nodded ¡°Sure¡± The android continued looking at Matthew for a few moments before it yanked Matthew hand to make him kneel down which he did, then it lowered its head to look down, after a few moments Matthew mirrored its movements and the two pressed their heads together ¡°I speak this pledge in the witness of all gods above, I Alina will walk down the path of this life and the next along with Matthew Rockwell¡± She leaned back again and gazed into Matthew¡¯s eyes for a few moments until he nodded and reached up and rubbed the top of the androids head ¡°Sure, let¡¯s get along Alina¡± Completely missing the true meaning of Alina¡¯s pledge, Matthew agreed without thinking too deeply about it - After the end of the Eirmal 4 penance, the reduced population of 1.8 billion was processed for further service, the young man that had killed the last member of the Eirmal bloodline proved especially defiant and had to be forcefully detained ¡®...Those sick fucks¡­¡¯ Sitting inside the cell that was just large enough for him to sit down with his knees bent in front of his face the young man had been stripped nude except for his hands and feet which were encased in metal while a mask secured to his face with metal bolts that went into his jawbone, this secured a plastic tube which went down his throat to feed him just enough to not starve ¡®... I wonder if it''s time for a shower soon¡¯ A shower in this context was getting hosed down by a mechanical arm which accompanied a monotone voice which told him how long he had left of his ¡®sentence¡¯ At this point in time, Matthew Rockwell had already been assigned to the Marine corps of drop troops which routinely experienced a 70% casualty rate, but he would only be informed of this at his next ¡®shower¡¯ which wasn¡¯t scheduled for about 5 days Lazing at the river The tales of the young man who slew the last of the Eirmal traitors was one of triumph, the young man lead many brilliant charges and planet falls soon Samual Junathan Trerubic saw it fit to promote the young man, now a brilliant marine solder to the rank of Major, and it seemed that nothing would stop his rise in military rank and prestige, but just when Samual Junathan Trerubic was ready to promote him to the rank of admiral and retire him from frontline service he was slain in a cowardly ambush by one of the many enemies of the Treubic Empire - Having acquired the temporary goal of burning down the Turman kingdom which he knew nothing about Matthew and Alina got to work scavenging materials in the ruined trade outpost of Babai which had been raided and destroyed by said Turman kingdom by dawn the next morning the unlikely pair of (supposedly) Major in an army which Alina had never heard about Matthew and (cosmic anomaly inhabiting a high-tech android) Alina had gathered a sizable deposit of materials which the two gazed at under the rising sun while Aea checked it over ¡°Matthew, tell, tell me more about this body¡± Matthew that sat with his back against a brick wall with Alina besides him did his best at explaining what Aea had told him ¡°Ehh¡­ Apparently it is a modified universal civilian android used mostly for elderly and children care, but that¡¯s just what Aea told me, I can¡¯t really tell you since most of my memory is still rather foggy¡± Aline nodded as she looked at the arms of the small android body, the 5 fingers on each hand were as dexterous as Matthews and so was the rest of the limbs of her newfound body, but besides welding more strength and being heavier than its short stature suggested there was nothing special about the body which Alina currently inhabited ¡°Okay, I like this body a lot, it''s small and cute¡± ¡°I am glad you like it¡± As Matthew spoke with Alina, the long ears that were more flat blades than ears really connected to the android head with ball joints moved up and down while twirling around in seemingly random patterns, however they suddenly stopped moving before Alina hid them with her hands as she had noticed Matthew staring ¡°It¡¯s rude, rude, rude to stare at a lady!¡± Matthew showed a smile as he apologized ¡°Sorry about that, it¡¯s just¡­ Those weren¡¯t on the original schematic¡­¡± Alina kept her silence for a moment longer before she spoke ¡°That¡¯s because I need them to wield mystic power¡± ¡°Mystic?¡± Alina stopped covering her ears for a moment before they began moving around for a few moments before a brick from the top of the wall floated down and landed in her hand ¡°There¡¯s always been mystics in this land, but since the, the, the rise of the blue comet some years ago the unnatural power of the mystics have been greatly amplified¡± ¡°A blue comet?¡± ¡°Yes, most importantly don¡¯t look at, at, at the blue comet directly, it makes people go insane¡± Matthew nodded, he vaguely remembered an ethereal otherworldly blue hue that illuminated everything, there was also something else, he was sure about this, but he couldn¡¯t place it ¡®... Falling from the sky¡¯ Matthew looked up at the dawning sky for a few moments as Alina spoke again ¡°The blue comet rises when it feels like it, it has no set orbit¡­ But I, I, I can still feel it, all mystics can¡± Matthew nodded, a few moments later Aea¡¯s voice spoke out [Forge nanite pattern 1-5 reports bio-processing reactor completed] ¡°Oh, it¡¯s done¡± Matthew removed his gaze from the sky and looked at the 6-meter tall, 3 meter wide metallic obelisk that stood in the middle of the plaza, Alina also gazed at the weird contraption and the two approached it and Matthew put his hand on the mat metallic surface for a few moments as the Forge nanites flowed back into his spine The author''s tale has been misappropriated; report any instances of this story on Amazon. ¡°How does it, it, it work?¡± At Alina¡¯s question, one of the sides of the obelisk opened and revealed an empty internal compartment as Matthew explained ¡°Any food, plant or corpse we put in here will generate power, both for your new body and the other machines we need to make a better body for you, it is perfectly well-behaved too¡± Alina raised her hands in front of her as the metal ears began swirling around in different patterns, a few moments later a giant wasp carcass appeared half a meter above the ground before it fell down, she picked it up and put it into the compartment that closed after she removed her hand, a few moments later the same compartment opened again as the machine let out a silent hum ¡°Does it work now?¡± Matthew nodded and placed his hand on the mat metal surface again, to which Aea reported [Bio-processing reactor storage at 0.2% of max capacity, Internal powerbanks recharging¡­] ¡°Yeah, Aea says it works, try putting your hand on it¡± Alina cautiously put her hand onto the reactor, a few moments later she spoke again ¡°This, this, this feels weird¡± [Bio-processing reactor reads the Mistress body will be fully recharged in 2 minutes] Matthew silently acknowledged Aea¡¯s notification and asked Alina ¡°Can you bring more wasp carcasses here?¡± Alina nodded and after a few moments she spoke ¡°There¡¯s a lot more, more, more underground¡± Matthew showed a smile ¡°Then keep them coming¡± - Around noon it Alina suddenly stopped collecting giant wasp carcasses and sat down on the ground leaning against the Bio-processing reactor as she spoke ¡°Tired¡­¡± Matthew patted Alina on the head after he chucked the last of the giant wasp carcasses into the loading bay ¡°Good job Alina¡± [Bio-processing reactor storage at 48% capacity] Matthew wondered exactly how Alina could get tired with an artificial body made of metal, but he had sense enough to figure out it had something to do with her mystic powers, Matthew gazed up at the midday sun and had the urge to curse at it, to say it was hot in the plaza was a understatement ¡®Around 32 degrees Celsius, I would say¡­¡¯ [Current temperature reads 33.4 degrees Celsius] ¡®So it¡¯s still hot¡­ Oh, I know¡¯ Matthew looked over at the tired Alina and asked her ¡°Want to come laze in the shadow by the river?¡± Alina nodded silently before she stood herself up, the two made their way down to the river and found a place in the shade to sit, as the two rested Matthew asked Alina ¡°Which way is it to the Turman kingdom, downstream or upstream?¡± Alina that was sitting next to him answered rather quickly ¡°Neither, the, the fastest route should be in the direction we¡¯re facing now¡± Matthew nodded before he concluded ¡°So downstream is the ocean?¡± Alina nodded as she explained ¡°Traders used to come from, from, from 3 directions to Babai to trade, with the sea to the south, the mountain tribes to the north, the Turman kingdom to the East and finally the frontier to the West attached many adventurous types seeking treasure and fame¡± ¡°I see¡­ It must have been lively here then¡± ¡°It was¡­ Until you arrived it, it, it was just me and the insect witch, though we weren¡¯t exactly friends¡± ¡°Right¡­ I might have killed her¡± Alina nodded and confirmed as it was no big deal to her ¡°That you, you, you did, I don¡¯t know how, but you used her mystic connection to the insects to wipe them all out at once¡± ¡°...And then I found you at the plaza?¡± Alina nodded again ¡°Yep, you, you, you attacked me after I proposed to help you with the thing that kept you prisoner, so I punched you¡­ I am surprised you, you survived¡± Matthew nodded and muttered ¡°Me too¡­¡± After a few moments of silence, Matthew suddenly stood up and looked over the river, he heard something, it was no more than a single sound that was slightly out of place in the myriad of senses that entered his mind on the subconscious level, but that was enough, Major Rockwell knew the consequences of ignoring his senses ¡°Someone is watching us¡± Alina stood up looking in the same direction, her knife ears twirled around for a few moments, right before she could speak a crossbow bolt flew across the river towards her, Major Rockwell retracted at once and reached out and blocked the crossbow bolt aimed for Alina with his forearm [Minor trauma detected, Trauma nanite pattern 1 assigned to injury] ¡°Matthew!¡± Alina raised her hands out in front of her as she retaliated the attack on Matthew, a moment later Matthew realized what she had done to the group of adventures as their panicked screams sounded out from above as gravity took hold of them again, 2 didn¡¯t hit the water and of those 2 one didn¡¯t seem would ever rise from the ground again as he landed on his face ¡®The other won¡¯t be screaming for a few more moments¡­ Any second now¡­¡¯ Just as Matthew had predicted, a pained wheeze sounded out from the young man, however not wanting to hear a person screaming on this pleasant summer day Matthew that had walked up to him placed a foot on his throat to stop the pained cry ¡°Shut up, will you? Of course, it''s barbed¡­¡± Finding the crossbow bolt currently stuck in his forearm to be barbed to make it more painful and course more bleeding to remove by simply pulling it out, Matthew¡¯s face showed no pain or even discomfort as he wacked the end of the bolt to push it through on the other side of his forearm where he bit the metal tip of the bolt and pulled it out with his teeth before he spat it out and showed a menacing grin to the 3 people that were struggling to keep themselves above water weighed down by their gear as they attempted to reach land before they drowned ¡°How¡¯s the water, you little shits?¡± - ¡°Congratulations, you have been promoted to the rank of Major¡± Looking at the small digital display in front of his eyes, Matthew wanted to curse, unfortunately the only thing that had changed since he had been imprisoned after the end of the Eirmal penance blockade was his body were covered with wounds new and old and most of his insiders had been replaced with implants to keep him alive and ensure his compliance ¡®So where¡¯s my shower?¡¯ Matthew was still locked in a cell just large enough for him to sit with his legs folded in front of his body, his hands and feet were still locked in metal casing and the shower he referred to was still the occasional housing down with what could be equaled to a pressure washer ¡®I should try a little harder to walk into enemy fire next campaign¡­ I wonder where I am going to fight next¡­¡¯ In his next campaign, Matthew got his wish, he was injured fatally and instead of simply taking him off life support he was sold to LightArrow, a prominent conglomerate specializing in bionic replacements and nanite based bio-enhancements, there he would be used as an experimental subject for the development of their new spine replacement, the ¡®Code Arrow 09¡¯ and upon its successful transplant he entered indentured service of LightArrow. Major Matthew Rockwell had died, but all Matthew Rockwell had manged was changing one collar for another. Tactical retreat Matthew kneeled down at the edge of the pier as he kept enough pressure on the poor guy under his foot for him not to scream out in pain but not enough for him to outright suffocate ¡°What¡¯s wrong? Is the water too cold?¡± The 3 survivors didn¡¯t answer him as they were still too busy trying to make it to the shore while fighting not to drown as they were still weighed down from their gear, armor and supplies, the wiser of the two had ditched their supplies and most of their gear and eventually reached dry land while the last had swallowed too much water and were dragged under, leaving the last 2 to watch ¡°NO! NICK!¡± Matthew looked at the last of the three adventures that had landed in the river, he was wearing an impressive metal plate which had dragged him to the bottom of the river, where he still lay slowly being dragged along by the current ¡°So, how was the water? I figured it would be refreshing on such a warm day¡± In response to Matthew¡¯s answer, one of the two survivors on the other side of the river pulled a knife out of a sheath on her belt and deftly shifted her grip to the tip of the blade and pulled it back as she yelled at Matthew ¡°GO TO¡ª¡± Before she managed to throw the knife at Matthew, the two figures disappeared once more, Matthew looked up and then around before he shifted his weight slightly making a series of pops and then a crack sound out from the person under his foot before he removed it and turned to Alina ¡°Where did you put them?¡± Alina didn¡¯t answer, she walked over and carefully grabbed Matthew¡¯s arm to inspect his wound, only to find that it was already closing at a rapid speed, only then did she answer ¡°I, I, I put them as high as I could in the direction of Turman¡± Matthew blinked twice before he shrugged and picked up the fresh corpse he had just created and shifted his weighed and hurled it through the air towards the center plaza before he picked up the other and asked Alina after he had hurled it in the same direction ¡°Could you get the one on the bottom of the river?¡± Alina nodded, she too felt no respect for the dead people that had tried to kill them, she like Matthew felt no hate for anything, the act of killing them gave her no satisfaction either and besides the brief flare of anger she felt when Matthew was hit she had nothing towards these people, only she did feel a slight amount of interest and voiced her thoughts after she retrieved the last corpse from the bottom of the river ¡°They are, are not treasure hunters¡± Matthew looked at the corpse before he glanced at the gear that was being swept away by the current and cursed ¡°Shit¡­ I see it now¡± Alina nodded, neither of the 6 people that had attacked them had carried any meaningful amount of supplies, they weren¡¯t a group of ragtag treasure hunters looking for trinkets, they were a part of scouts that weren¡¯t too far from the larger, main group ¡°How far is the nearest city?¡± Alina didn¡¯t answer at once, though after a few moments she answered ¡°4 days on foot, I, I know why they are here, they are after the insect witch¡± Stolen from its rightful place, this narrative is not meant to be on Amazon; report any sightings. Matthew shrugged and asked ¡°So if we apologize for killing this party of scouts, they¡¯ll let us be in peace?¡± Alina didn¡¯t dignify Matthew¡¯s dumb question with a response, no had he expected one, so he switched track and asked instead ¡°Have they tried to kill the insect witch before?¡± Alina nodded ¡°Yes, 4, 4 times I am aware of, each time the legion of soldiers and mercenaries grows larger, last time a little over 300 made it to the outskirts of the city before they were driven back by hordes of insects¡± Matthew let out a sigh and nodded as he quickly came to a conclusion ¡°Let¡¯s run¡± Alina nodded, fighting an army of over 300 was suicide, only there was a minor problem ¡°...Do you think we, we should?¡± Matthew let out a sigh, sure he could properly carry Alina and outrun any soldier and mounted cavalry, but he couldn¡¯t really carry the bio-repressor reactor on his back while he did, and while it wasn¡¯t exactly the biggest amount of resources to discard if they course to scuttle it and run away it would be significant ¡°... Maybe a compromise would be the best¡± - ¡°Princes Arimir, we really should wait¡ª¡± The old squire addressed the young woman that stood in front of him, she was half a head taller than the average man, her emerald green hair was fashioned into a long braid and the full metal plate armor she wore was polished neat despite obviously having seen extensive use on the battlefield, like her hair her pupils were emerald green and glowed visibly even at midday, next to her imposing figure a sword as wide as a tree trunk and as tall as her was planted into the ground ¡°Enough with the waiting! Jaric would have returned by now¡± Sofie Arimir, 4th in line to the Arimir dukedom was widely known as a tomboy from an early age, Duke Arimir himself had tried to marry her off twice both of which had resulted in her beating her finance in official duels declaring that she would be the one to ¡®break them in¡¯ on their wedding night which swiftly ended both arrangements ¡°What about the scouts? If they aren¡¯t back here within the hour, I¡¯ll give them a proper spanking!¡± Duke Arimir had with a mournful (relieved) heart sent his 2nd daughter to be educated as a knight, and had witnessed with great pride (horror) as she had been forged from the blunt object of power, into the razor sharp blade she was now, unfortunately the tough discipline had not curbed her rough demeanor nor her fancy for sadism and ramming metal rods up the behind of men ¡°Get my quarterstaff! Light a fire! And put some new metal caps on the end, they are too charred to heat properly!¡± The glow in Sofie¡¯s eyes intensified, her mystic powers were both the cause of her volatile temper but also enhanced by it and the old squire knew better than to argue with Sofie Arimir, even if she didn¡¯t give him what Matthew would refer to as the ¡®Glowstick¡¯ treatment (Cracking him on the middle and waving his mutilated corpse around) Duke Arimir cared too much about the prestige of his name to let any perceived slight towards his daughter go unpunished. So the old squire prayed for the scouts quick return. At this point, hope was all he had left. Luckily, before any mutilation took place, 4 of the 6 scouting parties returned and delivered their report, but this didn¡¯t exactly raise the princesses mood ¡°Reporting, the 2nd party is suspected of being slain by an unknown mystic, the 6th party is keeping the city under surveillance¡­ No insects or people have been sighted yet¡± Sofie closed her eyes for a few moments as she suppressed her turbulent emotions and commanded ¡°Prepare to advance on the city at once!¡± - ¡°Still a little loose¡­¡± ¡°At least you, you are wearing pants now¡± Matthew nodded, he had swiped a pair of pants and a shirt from the corpses, Aea had cleaned the blood and gore off them too, which was nice ¡°What sigil is this?¡± Alina looked at the sigil on the steel plate armor which Matthew had stripped off the corpse he had just thrown into the bio-processor reactor ¡°It¡¯s, it¡¯s the sigil of the Arimir dukedom, one of the three dukedoms in the Turman kingdom¡± ¡°Hmm¡­ In that case¡­¡± Matthew picked up the metal chest plate and twisted the bent the metal around the sigil, after a few times he managed to rip the sigil part of the metal off which he placed on the smooth surface of the bio-processor reactor ¡°Magnetize that and set its removal as the trigger for the countdown¡± Matthew and Alina had decided to head North towards the Mountain tribes, which Matthew had figured would be more agreeable or at the very least easier to subjugate than the entire Turman kingdom ¡°Are you ready, Alina?¡± Alina nodded while keeping her silence, she had lived her entire mortal life in this city and after her death she had seen her home city rot away slowly without being able to leave, Matthew picked up on her complicated feelings and rested his hand on the top of her head as he asked ¡°Should we hold our ground instead?¡± Alina shook her head slowly, to which Matthew picked up her android body and began walking North, Alina kept silent and looked around at the buildings when Matthew walked out of the gate she spoke ¡°They see us¡± Matthew nodded, and showed a smile ¡°They won¡¯t see us for long¡± Matthew gradually picked up speed, his jogging speed quickly turned into a full sprint, and soon he sped across the terrain faster than the 6 scouts that were tasked with surveillance could track, as he ran Alina were silent until she spread out her arms and spoke with child-like glee ¡°Is this what birds feel when they soar through the sky?¡± Matthew showed a wide smile and picked up even more speed as Alina laughed happily for the first time in over 50 years, she was finally free from the ruined city of Babai and with Matthew by her side, free from loneliness The mountain savages As the subjugation force entered the city of Babai they encountered no resistance, to Sofie that was currently standing outside the walls this was as unsettling as it was infuriating, she was aware her mystic powers were flaring her temper, but knowing about something and doing something about it was two different things ¡°Tell the vanguard to speed up¡± The old squire nodded wordlessly and went to pass down her orders as he had long since noticed the silent fury that radiated off his mistress, she was furious over the loss of her knight whom she had spent more time with than her closest family ¡®I will avenge your Jaric¡­¡¯ A series of pops sounded out which brought her back to reality along with the familiar pain in her fingers as she loosened her grip on her board sword handle which she had once again made imprints in at the cost of the bones in her fingers, a few moments passed and the pain disappeared once again, this made her remember that Jaric once had told her other people didn¡¯t heal from bone fractures instantly like she did ¡°Reporting¡± Sofie glanced over at the old squire that delivered his report with a blank look on her face before it twisted in anger as she learned the scouts had lost two figures that had fled North along with the discovery of a metal obelisk in the central plaza which had a piece of metal with the Arimir sigil on it, Sofie pulled her broadsword up from the ground and squatted down slightly as she put force into her legs and kicked off, within moments she accelerated to a speed that could rival Matthew as she leaped over the outer wall and landed in the ruined city, from there she quickly made her way towards the central plaza where she found the metal obelisk ¡°Princess Arimir¡± A scout announced her arrival and the rest of the advance guard in the plaza kneeled down with respect, Sofie silently approached the metal obelisk, her eyes locked on the Arimir sigil which she had ordered engraved on the metal plate armor she had gifted Jaric with a few winters ago, she reached up with her hands trembling slightly and grabbed the piece of metal which separated easily from the mat metal surface of the metal obelisk, she glanced at the sigil for a few moments before she turned towards the still kneeling advanced guard and yelled with her voice booming ¡°TEAR THE CITY APART, IF THE HEAD OF THE INSECT WITCH IS NOT RETRIEVED BEFORE DAWN I WILL¡­¡± Sofie suddenly stopped yelling, her acute senses had picked up a different sound from the soft hum which the metal obelisk had been letting out so far, she quickly turned towards it only to be blinded by a light that outshone the rising sun. - The sun rose on Matthew¡¯s right side, up ahead the awe-inspiring mountain range gradually grew larger, he had been running through the night almost uninterrupted, he had only stopped once at a creak where he had dunked his hand into the water for a few minutes as Aea had resupplied his body with water ¡°Matthew, are, are you sure you are okay to keep going?¡± ¡®How about it Aea, I don¡¯t really feel tired yet¡± [Current calorie store reads 48%, current physical drain can be maintained for another 10 hours] ¡°I¡¯ll be good until around noon, we should reach the base of the 2nd mountain by then¡± Alina nodded before she spoke ¡°Let¡¯s stop, stop at the peak of the first one instead¡± Matthew nodded, so far he had been outrunning any hostile fauna they had come across so far, but as they moved further away from the insect witch¡¯s former territory the frequency of encountering large animals increased, it was only a few hours ago Matthew had outrun a pack of large wolves which had given chase to him when they had passed by them a little too close. ¡°Sure, conserving some energy for securing food sounds like a good idea¡­¡± As the two neared the first mountain, the open plains ended and gave way to forest that gradually got more difficult to traverse and by the time they reached the top it was around noon, Matthew let down Alina before he sat down on a fallen tree as his back opened up fully as Aea voiced a report [Trauma pattern 1, 2 and 3 patching physical strain, all Blood, Organ and Maintenance nanites are at overclock level 1 for the next 15 minutes, venting waste heat] While Matthew himself barely felt out of breath having covered over 450 kilometers over the last 12 hours the bio nanites that had made this feat possible had been running at 90% capacity the entire time and needed time to take care of the task that had been neglected during the last 12 hours Stolen from Royal Road, this story should be reported if encountered on Amazon. ¡°Are, are you sure you are okay Matthew?¡± Matthew nodded ¡°Give me a bit and I will be fine¡­ How long do you think it will take before we enter the territory of the mountain tribes?¡± ¡°Not, not long¡­ the tales I heard about them when I was alive was they began attacking outsiders as soon as they set foot on the 3rd mountain¡± Matthew nodded and let his gaze wander around the forest as he sharpened his senses, the ancient forest around him showed signs of large animals, the cries of birds and insects was near constant but so far he didn¡¯t feel anything stalking them yet, but he kept his guard up as time passed [Overclock ended, 4% total nanite mass lost] Matthew let out a sigh as the planes in his back closed, he had pushed the Code Arrow 09 too far since he had lost nanites which he wouldn¡¯t be able to resupply without some pretty advanced machinery ¡°How is it, Alina, have you sensed anything yet?¡± Alina nodded ¡°The whole area is, is under surveillance¡­ Looks like you were, were right Matthew¡± Matthew nodded, the two of them had been talking about it on the way towards the mountain range, from the tales Alina had told him the Turman kingdom among others had sent numerous expeditions to subjugate the mountain tribes and each and every single one had failed, after hearing this Matthew had suggested that the savage tribes might not be so uncivilized as they seemed ¡°So it''s under surveillance, but not directly at us?¡± Alina nodded, Matthew clicked his tongue, the mystic powers of this world proved to be a bigger problem than he had initially thought, his inability to sense when they were in play was quickly proving to be his most obvious weak spot, but he still wasn¡¯t in a position to begin investing the significant amount of resources and time it would take for Aea to develop new tech to help him ¡°Well, nothing for it, let¡¯s keep moving¡± Alina nodded and Matthew picked her up before the pair moved further North, Matthew took it slow and around evening they reached the peak of the 2nd mountain where they made an unexpected discovery ¡°Could you get that, Alina?¡± The object that had caught Matthew¡¯s eye was a small 4 meter long and around 2 meter wide black rock on the bottom of a narrow ravine ¡°That, that rock?¡± Matthew nodded, and the confused Alina complied after making sure Matthew really wanted it and would have fetched it himself if not for the fact that he couldn¡¯t find a place to enter the narrow ravine, after a moment the stone disappeared and appeared on the ground in front of Matthew that kneeled down and placed a hand on it ¡°How about it, Aea?¡± [Deploying Data nanite pattern 1] Alina poked the rock a few times, she still saw nothing special about this rock, the numbed senses that were registered as touch felt a strange resistance she ran her metal finger across it the tip of her finger was scratched slightly and as she looked at the tip of her finger she muttered ¡°...Metal?¡± [Analysis completed, BlueArrow patterned heavy metal alloy#119] Matthew showed a smile and spoke ¡°Not just any metal, this is a metal alloy, a BlueArrow metal alloy¡± ¡°Blue arrow?¡± Matthew nodded as he silently commanded Aea to deploy all the Forge nanites, which began stripping away the charred outsides of the metal ¡°It¡¯s the same company that made my bionic spine¡± Alina nodded, she didn¡¯t see the significance this piece of metal signified, still she didn¡¯t feel the need to rain on Matthew¡¯s happiness, instead she studied the side of his face as he watched the metal superheat and mold as the Forge nanites shaped according to the assigned schematic. - Deeper in the mountain range where the peaks pieced the clouds in the sky lay the temple of the forge god, as always the doors to the sacred grounds remained closed, in there the shrine maidens interpreted their gods will, accepted offerings and gave blessings, this was as it had been for the last 5 generations, young maidens would enter the temple doors and the worthy would never be seen again as they had been accepted into the arms of their god, the people closest to the forge god was the shrine maidens, but the people closest to the shrine maidens were the forge champions that guarded the temple doors ¡°Good evening¡± The older forge champion greeted the younger, the young champion gave a nod to the old and quickly gave a ceremonial salute to which the old spoke with a cheeky smile ¡°I am here for the shift change, run along runt¡± The young champion showed a sheepish look on his face as he glanced up at the sky ¡°But we aren¡¯t supposed to change shifts before the sun has disappeared below the horizon¡± The old champion¡¯s smile widened to that of a cheeky brat as he turned around and pretended to leave ¡°Oh right, I guess I¡¯ll pass along that message to Naina, I am sure she won¡¯t mind waiting a few more hours for her dear husband to return hom¡ª¡± Before the old champion finished his teasing, a shadow had leapt over him and over the edge of the cliff which the old champion had just finished scaling leaving with a loud yell that quickly grew distant ¡°Thank old man Iaka! Naina, your husband is coming home!¡± The old champion let out a chuckle as the other forge champion standing on the other side of the large metal door let out a sigh and commented ¡°That brat lacks the dignity of a proper forge champion¡± Iaka nodded as he took his post on the other side of the door, the two shared a look and spoke in unison ¡°¡±Oh youth!¡±¡± Iaka and the other champion shared a hearty laugh before Iaka spoke ¡°How is Tui doing these days, Ruhi?¡± Ruhi let out a sigh well know by any father having a daughter going through puberty before he grumbled ¡°You know how it is Iaka¡­ I tell her no she says yes, I tell her yes she screams¡± Iaka showed a wide smile and comforted Ruhi ¡°Don¡¯t worry Ruhi, she¡¯ll mellow out soon enough¡± Ruhi was about to argue when a loud ¡®clang¡¯ sounded out from the metal door in between them, the two quickly stopped their bickering and took position before the metal door with their heads lowered as more ¡®clang¡¯ sounds echoed out as the door was unsealed before it opened as a shrine maiden stepped up to the threshold and spoke ¡°The enlightened one has commanded¡± ¡°¡±We receive their command!¡±¡± With the ceremonial greeting over, the shrine maiden passed on the command of their god ¡°An apostle has appeared, someone is bending metal on the 2nd mountain! Our god commands us, bring this apostle before these gates, no matter what it takes!¡± The voice of the shrine maiden echoed out over the entire mountain, even reaching the deepest mines in the valleys below the massive cities above, after the echo had ended the once vibrant mountain had a brief silence before the voice of thousands of people boomed out in a massive crescendo of devotion ¡°We obey the words of the forge!¡± The technology advanced mountain savages(?) The object that had gradually taken shape over the last 40 or so minutes wasn¡¯t all that impressive to look at, it had been molded out of a metal alloy which development cost could buy a planet or two by nanite robots which exploited every single law of physics that had been changed and established over 16.000 years of history and 800 years of focused nanite development ¡°A, a sword?¡± Matthew nodded and confirmed Alina¡¯s guess ¡°A sword indeed¡± Alina looked a little longer at the sword that was still taking shape before she asked Matthew ¡°Why a, a sword and not something like the suit, suit of armor you wore when we first met?¡± Matthew showed a wry smile, indeed if he had his will he wouldn¡¯t be wielding anything as basic as a simple metal sword as his primary weapon, from what he remembered high voltage large caliber coil guns had always been more of his style, but alas it wasn¡¯t feasible ¡°A sword is the best allocation of resources for now, if we manage to set up a mine deep in the mountains then sure, a Mk. 22 armored drop suit would be the least I would be willing to settle for¡­ But for now we have neither the raw materials nor the infrastructure to make anything like that¡± Alina nodded, she didn¡¯t quite understand what Matthew meant, but looking down at the hand of her new body she at least understood that it was something far more advanced than anything she had ever laid her eyes on during her mortal life ¡°Okay, still, still it¡¯s a curious sword¡­¡± Matthew showed a smile and explained ¡°That¡¯s because it¡¯s no sword of this world, it¡¯s a Trerubic marshal sword¡± The sword that had mostly taken shape by now looked like a claymore, the long heft left enough space to fit 4 hands grabbing it at once the cross guard were angled upwards towards the blade slightly and the blade itself was a little over a meter long and 30 centimeters wide, the surface of the blade had a mat black look which didn¡¯t give it the usual shiny sword blade which Alina was used to, as the sword completed Alina commented ¡°That was, was a lot of metal for one sword¡­¡± Matthew nodded, around 400 kilograms of metal had gone to a single sword, while the completed sword wasn¡¯t that heavy it was still a little over 100 kilograms heavy, but one would know by how casually Matthew picked it up with a single hand and laid it over his shoulder before he simply let go of the hilt, and it instantly moved behind his back held in place by his bionic spine ¡°Have you detected any large animals in the area, Alina?¡± Alina didn¡¯t react to Matthew¡¯s question, instead she stood frozen for a few moments before she lowered her head slightly and suddenly apologized ¡°...Sorry Matthew¡± Matthew nodded and patted the top of her head as he glanced around ¡°It¡¯s fine Alina, these guys appear to be somewhat decent at their jobs¡­¡± Before either of them had noticed, an encirclement had formed around them, they had both been too focused on the sword to notice, but now that they weren¡¯t they noticed right away, Matthew continued looking around to confirm their numbers as he asked Alina ¡°Could you prepare the thing we were talking about?¡± Alina nodded silently and sat down on the forest floor while Matthew stood in front of her to shield her as he yelled ¡°Show yourselves!¡± This book is hosted on another platform. Read the official version and support the author''s work. Matthew¡¯s yell was answered with nothing but silence, toughly ticked off being snuck up on and then ignored like this Major Rockwell let out a sigh as he kneeled down and picked up a small rock as he stood up again he breathed another sigh before he closed his eyes for a moment to focus, then he suddenly took a throwing stance before hurling the rock into the distance with all his strength, the sounds of undergrowth being broken apart sounded out at the same time as horrific yell of pain as the rock had struck its intended target ¡°That¡¯s what you get for underestimating your mark¡­ Do you need another lesson before you stop being little turds and actually listen?¡± A few moments after the Major spoke, a figure appeared to the front and walked slowly towards him, the man looked around 40, his figure was lean and covered in scars and ink black tattoos which flowed along his body in lines, he wore what looked like a lightweight metal armor which covered only enough of his body to allow for full maneuverability, the man wielded a solid black metal spear with a long tip, he wasn¡¯t human, a long feline tail that swayed low behind him and the lowered beast ears on the top of his head told Major Rockwell that this man was questioning his lesson, so he addressed it as the beast man stopped about 10 meters away from him ¡°You are wondering what my lesson is meant to teach?¡± The old beast man narrowed his eyes, which Major Rockwell took as enough of a response to tell him clearly ¡°Compliancy is taught to the young by the old¡± The old beast man slowly spoke ¡°So why did you target our youngest?¡± Major Rockwell shrugged ¡°A painful lesson is remembered the longest, given the force of my throw his leg is not going to be of much use anymore¡­ And every single time any of you see him hopping along on one leg, you will be reminded of the lesson I just taught you¡± The old beast man closed his eyes for a few moments as the silent fury that radiated off him only increased while he asked ¡°Did you make that sword on your back?¡± Major Rockwell received the sword from his back and wielded it with one hand in a relaxed stance with the tip of the blade just above the ground ¡°That¡¯s right¡± The old beast man kept his silence for a few more moments before he opened his eyes again, and took a low stance with the long metal spear ready to strike as he spoke ¡°Iaka, 143rd Forge champion¡± Major Rockwell showed a bloodthirsty grin as he slowly shifted the long Marshal sword behind him as he took half a step forwards in a low stance ready to strike ¡°Major Matthew Rockwell of the 913th Penance Marines¡± As soon as Major Rockwell finished introducing himself, Iaka let out a short yell as he pounced off the ground towards his target, just as Major Rockwell was about to intercept his charge with a wide swing a chill went up his spine and Matthew kicked off the ground and moved backwards as he covered his head with his sword, and as he had feared, a loud ¡®clang¡¯ sounded out as the sword intercepted a metal projectile aimed at his chest, while another went straight through his left shoulder and right thigh [Puncture wounds detected, Trauma nanite pattern 1 and 2 tasked, firing trajectory traced] Major Rockwell clenched his jaw as he realized he had pissed off his opponents a little too much, he quickly deflected the spear Iaka trusted at him ¡®How many skulls do I get to crush this time around..?¡¯ Though suddenly bewilderment washed over Matthew, he was confused over his own actions, they didn¡¯t make any sense, he originally wanted to enter into a cooperative relationship with these people, so why had he crippled one of them ¡®Why did I do that?¡¯ Matthew recognized that he had put himself in a position where he couldn¡¯t achieve his goal, as he blocked Iaka¡¯s approach his right shin was hit by a metal slug that passed cleanly through it, bone and all, which forced him down on his left knee where he rolled to the side to dodge another stab of Iaka¡¯s spear only to suffer another two hits in his gut [Puncture wounds detected, Trauma nanite patterns 1, 3 and 4 tasked, firing trajectory traced] ¡°What¡¯s wrong, Major Matthew!? Lost your steam already?¡± With Iaka hot on his trail, keeping pressure on him while making sure he couldn¡¯t approach the marksmen that gradually withered him down over the next few minutes, Matthew was reduced to a sorry state [Set Trauma nanite patterns to overclock level 1?] As Matthew blocked another stab from Iaka while defecting a metal slug while another two went through his left leg he spoke ¡°Do it Aea, light the fire¡± [Master permission received, Trauma nanite patterns overclock level 1, searing wounds shut¡­] Matthew kicked off the ground and slashed out against Iaka that was caught off guard by his sudden second wind which forced him to block Matthew''s slash which sent him flying back, Iaka managed to catch a branch mid-flight and swung around it before he landed on top of it where he saw Matthew flying through the air towards him, his body shining in the dark from the tens of gunshot wounds on his body that was quickly seared shut ¡°What are you made of, you monster!?¡± Iaka voiced a curse as he leveraged his metal spear to jump to another branch further up as Matthew smashed through the branch he had just been sitting on, Matthew caught a branch and quickly launched himself further up after Iaka as the metal slugs wished around him ¡®Alina should almost be ready¡­¡¯ Suddenly Matthew kicked off away from Iaka whom he had been chasing, shattering the trunk of a tree he sent himself flying back towards where he had left Alina behind ¡°Come back here!¡± Iaka quickly chased after Matthew as he retreated before he suddenly stopped giving chase as all the hair on his bushy tail suddenly stood on end, and he quickly retreated, Matthew continued back towards Alina, with the Trauma nanites in overclock he couldn¡¯t show concern for his enemies sudden caution as he was running out of time already, and that¡¯s when he noticed The whole forest was suddenly covered in a pale blue glow, all other light had been snuffed out by the gentle blue glow, Matthew¡¯s eyes burned from the blue glow [Unknown radiation spike detected] He felt it calling, all he had to do was look up, all he needed to do was look up and oblivion would gently embrace him, with the gentle coaxing Matthew gradually came to a stop ¡°I¡­ I have too see¡± The intoxicating effect of the pale blue light was not something he could fight against, as his eyes continued to bleed his head slowly raised upwards to see, that¡¯s when Alina¡¯s voice sounded out ¡°Matthew!¡± And then before he managed to fully take in the mind searing sight of the pale blue comet that danced across the sky backwards in what looked like a movie at half reverse playback his figure disappeared from the mountain The flagship of BlueArrow bionic industries Matthew eyes snapped open, the first thing that hit his senses was the bright light that leaked into the room he found himself in, he turned his head and looked around, he found himself inside a wooden log cabin that clearly had seen better days, he sat himself up and found he had been laid on an old blanket in the middle of the furniture free room ¡°...How long have I been asleep, Aea?¡± [2 months have passed since the mistress ordered a period of suspended animation to remove the negative effects of the blue comet] Matthew let out a sigh, he vaguely remembered the encounter on the mountain and how it ended with everything being covered in the eerie pale blue light, even now he still felt shivers thinking about it, that along with the attempt to tear out his eyes before being stopped by Aea and Alina due to the sudden lack of the haunting blue light made him feel shivers down his spine ¡°Where¡¯s Alina?¡± [The mistress has indicated she will return by evening] Not going to comment on the title which Aea used to referred to Alina again Matthew instead asked something which he should have asked when he first woke up in the ruins of the walled city Babai ¡°So what exactly can you do, Aea?¡± [I am the flagship personal secretary A. I. of LightArrow, my basic functions is to server as a user interface with the rest of the Code Arrow 09, while most of my initial optional functions were built to accommodate the tasks that come with overseeing a multi system corporation or noble house, since the last user I have been personalized and modified for covert operations and armed combat including but not limited to data linking, network breaching, biological analysis, weapon and armor assistance, data link, data interface and general usage optimization] Listing to this, Matthew confirmed his suspicions that he wasn¡¯t the most morally sound person, he let out a sigh and quickly moved on to his next question ¡°What about the bionic spine itself?¡± [The Code Arrow 09 bionic spine improves neural flow though it by an average of 46% of all users, its purchase also comes with specialized 9 types of bio-nanites and an A. I. core which are both housed in the spine and other parts of the user''s body, while these 9 different bio-nanites are specialized for their intended purpose they are all able to provide life-saving treatment even if reduced to only 2% of their total mass] ¡°So what are the different types of nanites?¡± [The 9 different bio-nanite types are Trauma, Blood, Bone, Nerve, Organs, Forge, Data, Maintenance and Improvement, would you like to learn more about a specific one?] ¡°...Let¡¯s start with the first, I am guessing trauma is the one patching my body after I get injured?¡± [Yes, Trauma is specialized in treating any form of physical harm the user experiences and is used exclusively for this purpose, mostly utilizing BlueArrow patterned bio-matter reassignment technology, while not in any overclock mode the 5 patterns each making up 20% of the total mass of nanites will be assigned automatically to injuries, please note these can be manually double assigned or reassigned if the users wishes] ¡°So if I need my arm fixed fast, I can assign more patterns to fix it faster?¡± [Yes, however, any actions that are intended to further self harm or explicitly to cause pain will be overwritten, as per the mistresses orders] The corner of Matthew¡¯s mouth twitched, he didn¡¯t know what ticked him off more, that Alina had more control over Aea than he did or that she had instructed Aea to keep him from hurting and tormenting himself, his anger quickly passed as he made the self discovery that he wasn¡¯t exactly the most mentally stable person with most of his memory missing and his strange behavior when he had faced off against the mountain tribe ¡®... In that light I guess it¡¯s fair, but just to be sure¡¯ If you stumble upon this narrative on Amazon, be aware that it has been stolen from Royal Road. Please report it. ¡°Aea, who has the most control over you?¡± [The mistress] ¡°...So who holds the most control after Alina?¡± [BlueArrow reserves the right to modify any and all of its hardware, software and firmware at any point in any manner they see fit, which includes me as a A. I. core developed by BlueArrow] ¡°......And after that?¡± [The current master profile] Matthew let out a long sigh and took in the fact that Alina held more control over the bionic spine which his bodily functions depended on as well as the housed A. I. core which surely logged all his thoughts at least on a temporary basis than the corporation that developed and produced it ¡°... Which one was next on the list, was it blood?¡± Deciding to not go through any more of the mental gymnastics which had moved towards exactly how many of his bodily functions which Aea logged and Alina would have access to, Matthew advanced the conversation about the bio-nanites forwards instead [Yes, Blood bio-nanites serve all biological functions of the user''s blood as a primary focus and also detects and monitors poison or other alien substances in the user''s bloodstream, Blood bio-nanites have no assignable patterns but if supplied with enough blank nanites of raw material it is possible to improve bodily functions by increasing the percentage of bio-nanites to biological blood, due to recent overclock and an estimated 124 years since last blank bio-nanite resupply the current percentage is 34%] Matthew nodded and rose to his feet while he asked ¡°What¡¯s the highest percentage? 100%?¡± [Yes, recommended Blood bio-nanite percentage is 60% while the minimal to continue normal function is 2%] While Aea explained Matthew made his way out of the log shack, his surrounds were that of a small village with 8 other similar sized log shacks nestled in a small clearing in a forest, the village appeared abandoned as the buildings and the dirt path that connected them were considerably overgrown, while he wanted to jump on the roof of one of the builds their shabby construction and current state of disrepair gave him the impression that any build he jumped onto would collapse at least partially so he simply returned to the wooden shack he had woken up in and sat down in the doorless doorway ¡°What about the bone nanites? Do they help with healing broken bones?¡± [Bone bio-nanites stimulate the user''s bone growth, modifies bone structure with biological or metallic reinforcements and monitors bone marrow health. The Bone bio-nanites don¡¯t directly restore broken bones, but in the event of a fracture will reinforce the damaged areas after Trauma repair to negate any structural weakness inflicted] ¡°So if I wanted to grow taller or change my build, the bone nanites would be able to change my physical build?¡± [In practice, yes, however an extended period of rehabilitation would be need for the user to regain current physical control if any changes would be made, the mistress also needs to approve of any major physical changes that deviate too far from current physique] ¡°Of course she does¡­ What was next on the list again?¡± [Nerve bio-nanites] ¡°And what do they do? Help with my memory?¡± [Nerve bio-nanites improves all cognitive functions, yes, but also serve as the metal interface which we are communicating, furthermore Nerve bio-nanites make back-ups of neurological signal structure every 12 hours to facilitate nerve cluster regeneration with an estimated 0.00000000002% corruption rate, last neurological signal structure regeneration successfully regenerated 19% of total neuron mass] ¡°... Was that when I was injured in Babai?¡± [Yes] ¡°No wonder my memory is scrambled¡­¡± [Due to the point of the most severe damage, the significant neuron mass lost, the expected corruption rate and damage to the primary and secondary onboard data processors, a complete instant memory recovery was unavailable, current long term memory recovery is currently ongoing, but due to the raw amount of data and processing power required this process is not expected to be completed within the next 20 years] ¡°...Well I am not in too much of a hurry to remember¡± What Matthew had remembered about his past and from how his personality changed when the past him was brought out he had to admit he wasn¡¯t exactly a morality good person, if he had to say it clearly he was a very, very bad person who had done horrible things to other people while reveling in their suffering ¡°What about the organ nanites? Do they enhance my internal organs?¡± [Yes, Organ bio-nanites enhance all internal organs, while having no assignable patterns the Organ bio-nanites main function is to rejuvenate the user''s body achieving biological immortality and even reversing aging to a desired outwards appearance, secondary functions include negation of poison, parasites and aiding recovery in case of radioactive poisoning] ¡°I guess that makes sense¡­ How old am I again?¡± [Master user¡¯s current age is estimated to be around 250 standardized years] Matthew let out a chuckle and commented ¡°No wonder I feel like a old man¡­¡± [Current physical fitness can be maintained with current resources for another 200 years, you are not that old yet] Matthew nodded and stood up before assuming a front double bicep pose which he shifted into a Lat Spread as he loudly proclaimed ¡°Youth is a state of mind!¡± As Matthew continued to shift between different poses with a large grin on he suddenly locked eyes with Alina that was frozen in place apparently having watched him for a bit they both froze for a couple of seconds in silence before Alina asked ¡°What, What are you doing, Matthew?¡± ¡°Checking my mobility?¡± ¡°...Really?¡± ¡°...... Well kind of¡­¡± Alina let go of the fabric backpack she was caring and walked over and stood in front of him while silently staring at him for a few silent moments before she spread her arms out and silently embraced him, Matthew awkwardly patted the top of her head as he hadn¡¯t expected a hug as she suddenly pinched his side ¡°Ouch!¡± Alina let go and spoke in a quiet voice ¡°I told you not, not to look at the blue comet¡± ¡°Sorry¡± ¡°It¡¯s okay¡­ As, as long as you don¡¯t do it again¡± ¡°Deal¡± Getting the ball rolling With the sun slowly setting in the distance Matthew that had sat down in the doorway of the wooden hut he had woke up in asked Alina that was sitting on the ground in front of him ¡°So where are we?¡± Alina pointed towards the distance and spoke ¡°We are, are about 6 days of travel North of the mountain range¡± Matthew nodded, while it wasn¡¯t enough distance to make them completely secure the matter in which they had traveled this distance made tracking them almost impossible, unless ¡°Is there any way they can trace your mystic power?¡± Alina shock her head and looked down at her metal hand as she spoke ¡°Before I died, or, or rather before my mortal body died, I was the most competent Displacer mystic on this continent, and my mastery have only increased after my death and getting this new body¡± ¡°A Displacer?¡± Alina nodded and opened her hand where a small rock appeared ¡°I can move things around, before the enlightenment I experienced as I was bleeding from getting my, my left arm cut off, this, this was limited to objects¡­ I, I never expected that I would succeed in transferring my consciousness out of my own mortal body, let alone someday transporting living people¡± ¡®So that¡¯s how she hacked Aea¡­¡¯ Working along the non-logical logic of this world''s mystic powers, Matthew figured Alina somehow ¡®transferred¡¯ her identity at the top of Aea¡¯s internal order ranking overwriting the control BlueArrow had over him though Aea, considering this he had to praise her ¡°You¡¯re great Alina¡± Alina looked down to the side and spoke in a slightly flustered tone ¡°Praising me, me will get you nothing¡­¡± Matthew showed a smile and rose to his feet before reaching his hand out to Alina that took his hand before he helped her up ¡°I, I have found a lot of things in the surrounding area while you slept¡± Matthew nodded and followed her into another wooden hut where she proudly presented her loot ¡°See, it¡¯s a, a lot of metal¡± Matthew nodded, even if most of the metal was in the form of broken and rusting framing tool heads and other miscellaneous metal stuff the total amount surprised him, most of the small wooden hut was filled to the brim, literally up to the point of touching the roof ¡°That¡¯s impressive¡­¡± Alina nodded and spoke ¡°I, I made Aea help me by changing my body to easily find metal¡± Alina showed off her impressive new ability by pointing the face of her palm towards the pile and magnetically attracting a broken metal shin guard which she handed to Matthew that received it and patter her on the head when he noticed something and asked If you spot this story on Amazon, know that it has been stolen. Report the violation. ¡°How are you moving around? Didn¡¯t your body run out of power a long time ago?¡± Alina flinched, Matthew had noticed it, one of the reasons he had carried her when he fled was to conserve the energy storage of her body, the new ability of her body also used power, by all his calculations her body should have run out of power a month ago ¡°I, I only use power for certain things, it¡¯s okay, but, but I get tired sometimes¡­¡± Matthew narrowed his eyes slightly, he didn¡¯t know the exact implications of Alina getting tired despite not having a body made of flesh and blood, but it wasn¡¯t a sign of anything good, Matthew silently gave Aea a fabrication order [Schematic accepted, Forge nanite 1-3 deployed] ¡°Matthew..?¡± ¡°Don¡¯t worry Alina, we¡¯ll have a generator ready in a bit¡± Alina nodded and the two waited for the generator to be completed as they sat down against the wall of the log wall and waited, Alina gazed at Matthew in silence for a bit before she asked ¡°Why do, do you always sit like that?¡± Matthew blinked a few times and looked at his sitting posture, his knees were pulled up against his chest while his arms laid down the side of his body, just as Matthew was about to dismiss her question and the rising feeling of dread it happened, in an instance the world reflected in his eyes changed, and he felt it, the single bright white LED screen that had lit up the cell he had been confined in for most of his life, even if it was only a moment he experienced it as his fragmented memory remembered it was still enough to instill a sense of hopelessness - ¡°Matthew..?¡± Alina called out Matthew¡¯s name as he had been silent for a few moments after a few moments he still had not responded so she diverted some of the remaining power back to one of her optical sensors and after a moment she once again saw the real world, Matthew was pale and covered in cold sweat as he gazed directly ahead in a trance ¡®Is it the lingering effect of the blue comet¡­ No, this seems different, Aea, what¡¯s going on with my beloved?¡¯ [The master user¡¯s heart rate is elevated, the increased neuron activity in his memory center makes me believe he is experiencing an involuntary recurrent memory as a result of the stress caused disorder on record] Alina got off the ground and walked in front of Matthew where she kneeled down to meet his eyes, judging from his lack of response he was completely absorbed ¡®He appears to be suffering, do something Aea¡¯ [Current medical guidelines disallows direct neurological interference doing an episode of this nature, if I exercise control over his body at the moment it could further fracture his mind] Alina calmed herself for a moment as if she was mentally taking a breath, even if she knew this made no sense since she no longer had lungs to fill with air it still calmed her down and heightened her focus ¡°Matthew¡± Even when she called out again, Matthew didn¡¯t as much as flinch, his eyes still locked firmly on an object in his past ¡®No reaction huh¡­ Any clues, Aea?¡¯ [Medical procedure recommends¡ª] - Matthew slowly returned to his sense of self, as he did the first thing he saw was naturally Alina whose metallic face was inches from his, he couldn¡¯t remember what had happened so he showed an apologetic smile as he spoke ¡°Sorry about that Alina, I must have zoned out¡± Alina kept her silence and her stare at Matthew¡¯s face for a few more minutes before she spoke ¡°Matthew, Aea, Aea says you are sick¡± ¡°Sick? My body feels fine though¡± ¡°Not, not of body, but of mind¡± ¡°...Well from what I¡¯ve remembered so far it''s a given that I have a few screws loose¡± Alina remained silent for a few moments before suddenly headbutt him Quite hard one might add, and as Matthew wordlessly recoiled in pain she added another type of damage on top of the physical trauma already inflicted ¡°I didn¡¯t hear, hear any echo? Are you sure there really is something in, in there, Aea?¡± [All brain matter has been accounted for, no significant loss has occurred within the last 48 hours] Matthew rubbed his forehead as he voiced his complaints to the abuse he suffered with a single word ¡°...Rude¡± [Fabrication of assigned schematic completed, thermal generator completed, all Forge nanites patterns retrieved] Matthew looked over, and sure enough the generator had been completed while he apparently had been unresponsive and bickered with Alina, he rose to his feet and quickly retrieved a log from the floor of the wooden cabin which he early snapped apart a few times before he stuffed the now small pieces into the metal box that was a 3 by 3 meter cube before he closed the hatch and retrieved a report from Aea [Ignition confirmed, thermal generator operating at 54% capacity] Alina walked over and sat down with her back against the generator, which began transferring power into her metallic body for a few moments before she asked ¡°So, what, what is the plan?¡± Matthew didn¡¯t need to consider this for long, while he still wanted to move towards an area where resource extraction would be easier to facilitate, such as the mountain range or civilized location, the incident with the mountain tribes had ruled out both options, his personally swings was too volatile to work with other people ¡°We make this our base of operations, first on the list is weaponry to not get chased off like in Babai, then industry infrastructure before recon of the local area which we can scale up to full surveillance¡­ Yeah, that should be good for now¡± Alina looked at Matthew that was still working on a development plan in his mind for a few moments before she commented ¡°That, that sounds like a lot of work¡± Matthew showed a cheeky smirk and looked past Alina that followed his line of sight and laid eyes on the significant amount of remaining metal that was left over from creating the thermal generator, Matthew silently assigned a schematic to Aea as he spoke ¡°The amount of work always depends on the amount of hands there is available to do said work¡± Basecamp establishment As the sun slowly rose and bathed the world in its warm light, the previous idyllic scene of the abandoned wooden cabins had changed somewhat, for one the clearing was a little larger than before, this was in part due to a few trees having disappeared, but also due to the fact that only one of the wooden huts still stood, the rest had been piled into a neat stack of logs and other wooden materials. A few figures moved in the widening clearing, one was Matthew that was hauling a freshly felled tree back to the center of the clearing, another was Alina that sat in the middle of the clearing on top of the 2nd thermal generator in deep focus as the occasional piece of rusted metal appeared besides her before it was picked up by a worker android which no longer looked like its original schematic due to how much Aea had shaved it down to save on their limited stock of supplies, still the small metallic frame with its hydraulic muscles and three finger hands was more than enough to move around light objects, and when heavier metal salvage arrived, 2, 3 or even 4 of the small worker androids would corporate to move it. Matthew laid down the wooden trunk in the pile before he took a breath and walked back out to the edge of the clearing and picked up his axe and begun to chop down another tree, the axe was made of metal from cannibalizing the Marshal sword and along with Matthew''s power he quickly felled another tree before he stripped off the branches and hauled back the trunk to the pile of logs ¡®How is the worker droid crafting going?¡¯ After a moment, Aea gave a report [2 minutes and 34 seconds estimated before schematic completion] Matthew laid down the log on the pile and stretched his back as he watched the worker 4 androids that waddled back and forth ferrying sticks and branches from the edge of the clearing and the other 4 that waited on metal to appear next to Alina before piling it up and the 3 that were recharging on the 1st thermal generator ¡®...At least we¡¯re making steady progress¡­ How far are we from the goal?¡¯ [The mistress is making steady progress, we are about 15 kilograms short of the targeted amount] ¡®Any surprises in the metal contents so far?¡¯ [6 new elements have been logged, due to limitations in processing power and nature of said elements no special properties have been noted for industrial exploitation yet] ¡®... Well just keep me posted¡¯ The current goal Matthew and Alina was working towards wasn¡¯t anything as sexy as a gravity manipulating fabricator nor a high caliber could riper, it was a relatively simple infrastructure automata that would begin work on a underground bunker for habitation and housing further more delicate machinery, but the single most important function this bunker would serve was refuge from the blue comet ¡®...Why can¡¯t that thing obey just a single established law of physics¡¯ According to Alina the blue comet was a fickle thing, it would show up with little notice or warning, and it would stay over a single area as long as it pleased, there were even historical records that speculated it could be in multiple places at once, the more Matthew learned about this thing the stranger it seemed and of course, a flimsy wooden shack wouldn¡¯t keep out the mind-altering blue light, which properly has something to do with why it was abandoned in the first place ¡®...For now a few meters of dirt and silicate concrete will do as protection¡­ But I want a fully sealed self-sustaining CBRN bunker about half a kilometer down in the future¡¯ [Schematic completion confirmed, worker android assignment?] ¡®stick duty for now'' [Confirmed] The new worker android offer no complaints about its assigned purpose and began gathering sticks and branches as Matthew returned to chopping down trees, with the initial 12 worker androids completed all the remaining metal would go directly towards the infrastructure automata which Alina finished gathering enough metal for after Matthew had felled another 2 trees, he walked over to her and patted her twice on the head to get her attention The narrative has been taken without authorization; if you see it on Amazon, report the incident. ¡°That¡¯s good for now, take a break with me¡± Alina that had snapped out of her daze nodded silently and jumped off the generator before sitting down in front of it, Matthew sat down next to her after he assigned the Forge nanites to begin making the infrastructure automata [Schematic assigned to Forge nanite pattern 1-5, 135 minutes estimated until completion] ¡°Thank you, you Matthew¡± Matthew was a little surprised to hear this unexpected thanks from Alina so he asked her ¡°What for?¡± Alina fell silent for a few moments and Matthew noticed she was moving her metallic arms and hands around for a few moments while the knife-like ears on her head twirled around ¡°This body is, is helping my mystic reach a, a even higher proficiency than when I, I was alive¡± Matthew nodded, there was no doubt in his mind that Alina was getting faster at using her Displacer powers, this no doubt due to Aea¡¯s data crunching powers and Alina¡¯s new body which had no need for rest or sustenance other than power ¡°Don''t mention it and hey, it''s the weakest body I am ever going to make for you¡± Alina nodded as she gazed over at the mass of nanites and metal that was reforming itself into an infrastructure automata and spoke ¡°Living underground won¡¯t, won''t be tough for you Matthew?¡± Matthew shrugged and voiced his thoughts ¡°Maybe a bit at the start¡­ but if things go well we won''t be living in a mere dirt hole for long¡± Alina nodded swallowing the rest of her concerns, her and Aea had continued exchanging concerns over Matthew mental state and how being confined underground in a dark cave wouldn''t do wonders for him, from the images Aea had generated for Alina to visualize a modern bunker once completed she was surprised how nice it looked. But constructing such a bunker was a daunting task, never mind getting the required materials for its construction ¡®... I wonder if he ever got anywhere with his thesis for a comet barrier¡­ either way someone did at some point, going along that line of thinking anything that can block the maddening effect of the blue comet is either very expensive, highly guarded or both¡¯ With this in mind Alina decided to voice her line of thought to Matthew and Area that quickly agreed with Matthew adding ¡°Most like, it is also likely that some sort of mobile barrier of some kind that can either partially or completely negate the blue comet¡± Alina nodded and lowered her head as she meekly spoke ¡°If only I, I had paid more attention to my surroundings we would know more¡­¡± ¡°Don''t worry about it, now that this possibility have been raised we can aptly prepare for any opportunities in the future¡­ Saying such things later is better than never¡± Alina nodded silently after a few minutes of silence Matthew was reminded of his basic biological needs by Area [Caloric and water storage is running low, seek intake soon] ¡°... Right, I need to eat soon¡± Alina nodded and spoke as she closed her eyes to focus ¡°Leave it to, to me¡­¡± With those words Alina stretched out a hand and a few moments later a large creature fell from the sky and landed in the edge of the clearing, presuming perishing on impact as its exoskeleton cracked and spewed green blood out through the cracks, it was for all purposes an ant, only its exoskeleton was covered in white fur that featured a black pattern And it was also the size of a cow ¡°...Thanks Alina¡± Matthew got up from the ground and walked over to the large carcass, however a few meters away from it he suddenly stopped approaching it as he felt the hair on the back of his neck stand and hurriedly dodged to the side as it turned out the ant wasn¡¯t quite dead and spewed green acid at where Matthew had just been standing, though he failed to avoid it completely and some of the acid hit his right hand which quickly began melting [Caustic damage and nerve poison detected, Trauma nanite pattern 1 and 2 isolating poison and containing corrosive elements] Matthew quickly scanned his surroundings for anything he could use as a weapon, but quickly retreated as the white furred ant charged at him, though suddenly Alina appeared above the white furred ant and the next moment a sonic boom echoed out as dust and debris quickly blinded Matthew, he continued to retreat as he called out ¡°Alina, are you okay?!¡± A few moments later Alina¡¯s voice sounded out behind him ¡°I, I am fine¡± And a moment later Alina arrived next to him before carefully taking his injured right hand, most of the skin and flesh had melted off by now leaving only bone behind, a silver lining would be that the Trauma nanites had stopped the spread of both the corrosive acid and the nerve poison from spreading further, Alina was about to speak when Matthew laid his left hand on the top of her head and spoke ¡°I¡¯ll be fine, don¡¯t worry too much about it¡± Alina remained silent for a few moments before she nodded and looked over towards the small indent in the ground that was thinly laminated by the earthly remains of the white furred ant, Matthew and her approached and after Matthew deployed some nanites to harvest the remains he asked Alina ¡°...How exactly did you do that?¡± Alina thought for a few moments before she began describing ¡°I, I used my Displacer abilities to, to transfer air into itself hundreds of, of times before letting it out in a certain direction¡± Matthew blinked once as he realized why his ears were ringing as if an orbital artillery round hand landed next to him, it was because this tiny android next to him was able to match the destructive power of one, at least in terms of single target damage, Matthew quickly internalized this with a nod to her and a thought to himself ¡®...I am just not going to piss off Alina for any reason at all, got it¡¯ Just as he had decided such a notification from Aea snapped him out of his thoughts [Acid with high industrial applications and a considerable large amount of rare metals discovered in harvested biomass] ¡°...Well, I¡¯ll be damned, it is ant hunting season¡± Onslaught Following the unexpected boon of finding a biological source of high grade industrial acid, Matthew spent the rest of the evening harvesting other beast which Alina brought to him while he explained the significance of this find, as the two moved to a nearby creek which Alina had found while exploring the surroundings Alina seemed to somewhat understand the significance of the giant white furred ant [Replenishing internal water storage¡­] ¡°So, so how much infrastructure is, is needed to make this acid normally?¡± ¡°Aea?¡± [Calculating¡­ Depending on available resources, up to 4 class 1 chemical plants with on site storage and logistics hub would need around 4 metric tons of high grade metal along other natural and manufactured resources] Alina froze for a few moments before she finally spoke ¡°That sounds like, like a lot¡­ But what is, is this acid used for?¡± Matthew showed a smile ¡°Anything from fertilizers, explosives, metal refining and most importantly for us, capacitor manufacturing¡± ¡°Capacitor? That¡¯s a kind of, of battery, right?¡± Alina was slowly learning of the different concepts of high technological complements from Aea, given the low tech of the current world which had yet to undergo an industrial revolution or establish a period table of known elements this was an uphill battle, so Matthew gave her a pass ¡°While that¡¯s somewhat true, it serves many of the same functions but if I were to name a single difference is that a capacitor is the ability to almost instantly transfer all stored energy which has great military applications¡± ¡°Military?¡± Matthew nodded and thought on an example ¡°Do you know what a cannon is?¡± Alina nodded ¡°It, it is a metal tube that fires a projectile with a propellant¡± Matthew nodded ¡°Yep, a capacitor is used as reusable propellant on a rail gun, not only that but most rail guns and the lower caliber coil rifles used caseless ammunition and don¡¯t have many movable parts which ease maintenance¡± Alina gazed blankly at Matthew, he had realized that she had lost his line of thought and quickly gave another example ¡°Well¡­ Capacitors have very little maintenance cost beyond their initial construction cost and I highly recommend them¡± ¡°Okay¡­ So should we hunt, hunt these ants?¡± Matthew showed a smile and nodded, from harvesting the remains of the white furred ant Aea had identified pheromone glands which suggested the white furred ant existed in some sort of social structure [Water storage replenished, infrastructure automata nearing competition] Matthew stepped out of the shallow creek and the two headed back towards the basecamp in silence, the surrounding forest was somewhat silent with only the distance cries of beats and the chips of birds and insects that followed along with the mid-summer heat, as the two returned to the camp Alina quickly laid eyes on the finished infrastructure automata, it was a metal cube 5 by 5 meters, just as she was about to ask how it worked she picked up a order on Aea¡¯s local network [Blueprint received, infrastructure automata 1 deploying¡­] The metal cube quickly split open and transformed outwards until it transformed completely as the metal panels on the bottom flashed with heat as the whole thing began vibrating while letting out a low hum, that¡¯s when Alina noticed that it was slowly sinking into the ground, Matthew spoke up ¡°It is going to go down about 30 meters over the next hour or so before excavating a underground complex over the next few days¡± If you stumble upon this narrative on Amazon, be aware that it has been stolen from Royal Road. Please report it. Alina walked up to in a kneeled down as she watched the edge of the hole the automata were slowly sinking into, an edge had formed from what looked like brown ceramic that was slowly expanding as the automata slowly sunk into the ground ¡°It uses the soil to create a silicate concrete which reinforces the tunnel as it is constructed, after the initial underground complex is completed it will be reinforced further¡± Alina nodded, while she had little to no concept of structural integrity of a bunker or the mathematical calculations that went into ensuring an underground complex of this size wouldn¡¯t cave in on itself it still seemed impressive and interesting to her Well, most of that was because it was Matthew that was telling her about it, but she wouldn¡¯t admit that ¡°So what, what do we do now?¡± Matthew thought for a few moments before she asked Alina ¡°Are you in the mood to gather some more metal?¡± ¡°How, how much more?¡± Matthew thought for a few moments as he consulted Aea and had the A. I. modify a schematic to shave off as much material as possible ¡°Around 2 worker android¡¯s worth¡± Alina nodded and walked over to one of the thermal generators and sat down with her back against it as she began focusing, Matthew didn¡¯t disturb her and went back to chopping down trees to expand the clearing after he assigned a schematic to Aea to construct a capacitor out of the materials he had harvested from the white furred ant ¡®...Enough resources for about 1 and 1/10 of a personal capacitor per ant, these things are literally just walking capacitors ready to be harvested¡¯ As Matthew finished chopping the 3rd tree he suddenly paused and looked around, the summer night had gone somewhat silent, he moved to the center of the basecamp and snapped Alina out of her metal gathering focus by calling out to her as he kept up his vigilance ¡°Alina¡± Alina looked around and nodded before she spoke ¡°There¡¯s a, a lot approaching¡± Matthew nodded and faced the same direction as Alina as he brandished his ax and lowered his posture as he moved to shield Alina that heightened her focus for a few moments before she spoke ¡°It, it is more ants¡± As she finished speaking, a giant white furred ant fell from the sky and smashed down onto the ground at the edge of the clearing, a few moments later another fell, then another, after the 4th fell Matthew spotted the large group of approaching ants that were swarming towards the clearing and quickly made a decision ¡°Aea, break down 4 of the worker androids and get me a coil rifle as quickly as possible, Alina I will guard you so keep thinning their numbers¡± [Forge nannies assigned, cannibalizing worker androids, estimated schematic completion in 14 minutes¡­] ¡°Should we, we not run?¡± Both Alina and Matthew could tell by now that the approaching ant swarm numbered over a hundred, taking the number of cow sized ants that could spew acid and were protected in a thick exoskeleton was a huge gamble ¡°If we pull through here it will pay off massively, besides there is no guarantee that we won¡¯t run into something more dangerous if we run¡­ It¡¯s time to stand our ground¡± Alina didn¡¯t respond, but judging from the increasing amount of ants that fell from the sky and suddenly experienced the ruthlessness of gravity first-hand increasing, she had been convinced by Matthew¡¯s argument a few moments passed before the ants started entering the clearing and Matthew kicked off the ground to handle them before they got to close to Alina ¡°Easy there!¡± Sidestepping an acid spewing, Matthew instantly stepped in and chopped the head of the white furred ant in two with his ax before dodging the mandibles of another which he paid back with a backhand which shattered the carapace on its head where he hit it, though it didn¡¯t outright kill it as Matthew had hoped, and he quickly leaped over it as lunched at him before he planted the ax in its back with a ruthless force which shattered its midsection almost completely, Matthew quickly dodged to the side as another ant lunged at him which proved to be a coordinated attack as it left him open to another that was about to spew acid at him before its figure suddenly vanished ¡°Thanks!¡± Matthew kicked off the ground and delivered a kicked to the side of another ant''s head which shattered it completely, though it still lunged its headless body at him which he sidestepped while chopping off a leg of the headless ant which caught it off balance so it couldn¡¯t continue on its path towards Alina before he was forced to block the stab of a front leg of another white furred ant which he repaid by collapsing his block and stepping in as lunched the ax head up and chopped the head of the white furred ant in two as he slid under its body right before it collapsed ¡®No thanks!¡¯ Matthew quickly stabbed the ax into the ground which lunched him over a spew of acid from another ant and spun around in the air as landed a hell on the back of another white furred ant which shattered its carapace before he rolled off it and grabbed the leg of the white furred ant which still trashed around and swung it into another than were charging at him The next minutes stretched out as Matthew continued to fight off the ants in full focus while holding nothing back, Alina supported him, but even then it quickly became apparent that this was a losing fight as the ax which had been increasingly covered in acid became more brittle before the head finally shattered as Matthew attempted to finish off another ant with a chop to the head ¡®Shit!¡¯ Clicking his tongue, Matthew dodged the ant''s lunge and planted the sharp metal handle that remained of the ax into the side of the ant¡¯s head as it passed him, now without a weapon it wasn¡¯t long before the wounds began appearing on Matthew¡¯s body as he manhandled the cow sized ants with his bare hands, even with Alina offering help Matthew told her to hold off until finally after what felt like an eternity had passed Aea notified Matthew [Schematic completion confirmed] ¡°NOW!¡± Alina quickly leaped towards the center of the clearing as Alina appeared in the air above a large group of ants as she instantly compressed about a cubic meter of air, a few hundred of times and let it loose just above the white furred ants, the shockwave extended Matthew¡¯s leap a few meters where he rolled upon his rough landing to maintain his momentum as he quickly reached the completed coil rifle that laid on top of the thermal generator, he quickly double-checked the magazine and capacitor charge as the stripped down coil rifle finished linking with Aea and the capacitor whirled with a loud electric hum [Link confirmed, fire when ready] Matthew brought the coil rifle up against his shoulder as he yelled ¡°Firing!¡± A moment later, he squeezed the trigger and the unshielded electromagnets and circuitry lit the surroundings in a white light as the 4mm metal slug was accelerated to twice the speed of sound and a instance later went through the head of a white furred ant, the negative pressure caused by the sudden appearance of the 4mm wide circular tunnel that had suddenly opened up along the length of the white furred ant¡¯s body wrecked its internal organs as a large chunk of it was sucked out of the exit wound Matthew didn¡¯t let go of the trigger as he moved the iron sights over the next target while the coil rifle cycled before rapidly snapping it onto the next target, by the time the 60 round magazine was depleted the bare metal body of the coil rifle had left burns on Matthew¡¯s skin as it glowed orange, Matthew didn¡¯t seem to mind as he quickly inserted a new magazine ready to fire, however a few moments later Aea confirmed [All nearby threats eliminated] Matthew quickly removed the capacitor from the coil rifle before throwing it onto the ground in front of him before he let out a deep breath as he sat down with the nostalgic smell of burning metal and ozone around him ¡°And that¡¯s that¡­¡± The western fringes of the Willmir Empire [Trauma nanite pattern 1-4 deployed, complete tissue regeneration in 18 minutes] Matthew caught his breath as he sat on the ground, while the injuries he had sustained were significant only 2 were bone deep, and he had suffered no internal injuries or complete fractures, all things considered he had gotten off pretty light given the last 15 minutes of combat, the burns on his right arm, shoulder and check weren¡¯t that bad either ¡®...At most medium rare, heh¡¯ A grin was planted on his face as he looked at the carnage that was revealed as the dust from Alina¡¯s attack settled, around 130 cow sized ants had been annihilated in this fight, to Matthew these carcasses were well worth their weight in gold ¡°How many industrial capacitors do you think you can make with that amount of materials Aea? [Given the state of the carcasses, at most 5] Matthew¡¯s grin widened with the power storage and almost wasteless transfer of power these industrial capacitors would be enough to kick-start an industrial complex as well as provide power for a few low clever rail guns ¡°Are, are you okay, Matthew¡± Matthew nodded and showed reassured Alina that was sitting next to him looking concerned at his injuries ¡°Yeah, I just need a breather¡­ Still your timing was excellent, you really saved my ass Alina¡± Alina nodded and carefully took Matthew¡¯s hand and gave it a careful squeeze, which he returned while he reached above his head and placed the capacitor on top of the thermal generator when he looked over at Alina he saw she was looking at the capacitor that was around the size of 33cl soda can, and spoke ¡°It, it does seem useful after that¡± Matthew nodded and asked Alina ¡°Do you want to learn how to shoot too?¡± Alina quickly nodded and spoke ¡°I, I will do my best to learn quickly¡± - Around 5 days travel east of Matthew and Alina¡¯s location, another battle was playing out, a tall stone fortress was under siege by the same white furred ants which Matthew and Alina had just fought off, however due to the lack of advanced weaponry this battle was rather costly for both sides, on top of the stone walls people operated cannons and ballistas that fired on the approaching white furred ants while being bombarded by acid attacks which a smaller number of mystics did their best to defend against, this was one of the many border outposts the Willmir empire had set up on the Western fringes among the crescendo of battle a voice boomed out ¡°HOLD STEADY MEN, WE ARE THE DEFENDERS OF WILLMIR AND WE WILL NOT BREAK TODAY!¡± The rousing voice breathed new life into the soldiers that responded with an unified roar as they redoubled their efforts to fight back the white furred ants while the casualties continued to rise until the critical moment arrived and the same voice boomed out again Stolen from its rightful place, this narrative is not meant to be on Amazon; report any sightings. ¡°WITH ME, TO THE FIELD!¡± At this a group of around 20 leaped off the top of the wall, each a fighter in heavy armor moving with the speed of cavalry smashed into the tide of the oncoming white furred ants and after a few minutes of brutal fighting helped by support from the top of the wall they managed to drive back the horde of white furred ants who swiftly retreated, one of the figures that had leapt from the walls that wielded a large halberd was about to give chase when a hand landed on his shoulder holding them back as the same voice that had boomed to inspire the soldiers spoke out in a lighthearted tone ¡°Easy my dear, I know you hunger for the prestige and honor of battle but giving chase will only lead to an early death¡± The young metal clad soldier remained silent for a few moments before she squeezed out a soft voice filled with frustration ¡°Yes, grandfather¡± The old soldier that removed his metal helmet and revealed a face of silver hair and numerous battle scars let out a hearty laugh before he clapped his granddaughter on the shoulder a few times as he spoke ¡°You did well today Klara, you can feel plenty proud of your growth over the last half a year¡± The young soldier didn¡¯t answer, instead she brushed off her grandfather''s hand before silently returning towards the fortress, the old man let out a sigh and complained to another metal clad soldier that had followed close behind him the entire fight covering his back the entire time ¡°She is a little too eager for battle¡­¡± The soldier spoke after a brief silence ¡°With all due respect, Duke Adam¡­ That is your fault¡± The old Duke, previous emperor and father of the current emperor of the Willmir empire Erik Willmir the 3rd, showed a bitter look on his face for a few moments before he let out a sigh, Duke Adam had before he relinquished the throne to his 4th son established an inheritance law which awarded the crown to the most capable direct descendant of the current emperor no more than 30 years after their crowning, this ensured that the Willmir wouldn¡¯t get stuck in the past and always have a young brilliant emperor or empress leading it But it also meant that Duke Adam now had to watch his dear grandchildren fight for the throne with their lives on the line, the old man muttered softly as he watched the back of his dear granddaughter disappear into the fortress ¡°...I suppose old age have made me soft¡± ¡°To think the day would come when I would see the muscle head emperor Adam Willmir the 1st complaining about his age¡± Duke Adam visibly recoiled from the ruthless stab at his shortsightedness, yet offered no rebuttal, instead he grumbled ¡°It¡¯s not like you are young yourself, Sara¡± The soldier let out a menacing chuckle before she removed her helmet, which revealed her charcoal black skin and long vibrant red hair which she shook free of its knot before she grabbed the scuff of the Duke¡¯s neck to cut off his imminent escape as she asked with in a frosty tone ¡°Which part of me looks old?¡± Sara, or Saratheen the wise as she was known in historical records was not mortal, her current humanoid form was one she had assumed after the birth of the blue comet and ever since she had helped the Willmir empire grow its borders, military and political might, over the almost 200 years she had taken 4 wise emperors under her personal tutelage and guided them, Adam being her latest student, which why no one dared reprimand her for the treatment of Duke Adam nor respond to his pleading look for help ¡°Y-You look as lovely a-as the day I first laid eyes on you, Sara¡±¡¯ Saratheen let out a sigh after a few moments and let go of Duke Adam, a few moments of silence followed before Saratheen spoke ¡°Still¡­ This is a rather large group of Banshee knight ants out of nowhere¡± Duke Adam nodded, the white furred Banshee ants had a hive further to the northwest of the fortress, normally they wouldn¡¯t attack unless something had disturbed them first, but now that they had repealed the first group a 2nd was sure to follow and possible a 3rd as the Banshee ants was well known for their violent outbursts if a member of their hive was killed ¡°For now we can only weather the storm, would you mind sending a request for support, Sara?¡± Saratheen nodded with a smile before she undignified Duke Adam by ruffling his hair like he was a child before she spoke ¡°No problem, hold down the fort until I return in a weeks time¡± Duke Adam silently fixed his messed up hair as he watched Saratheen fold out her large wings and take to the sky before rapidly accelerating and heading East¡­ - Over the 5 days since Matthew and Alina had established their basecamp a lot of changes had taken place, the original small clearing had been significantly expanded out, the most recent addition was an Olympic swimming pool sized ditch had been dug out which was filled with the remains of the 3rd white furred ant attack that had attacked them, another changes was a solar array that consisted of 8 carbon solar collector panels The underground bunker had also been expanded significantly and now housed 5 industrial capacitors which feed power to the 3 manufactures which manufactured solar collectors to expand out the power grid ¡®Things are starting to pick up speed¡­ Once the Forge nanites finish, I need to harvest the remaining ant carcasses, there should be enough materials for a medium caliber rail gun turret for base defense¡­¡¯ Matthew had been chopping down trees the last 5 days in between the brief breaks of fighting off the white furred ants which were starting to become routine, the worker androids grabbed each and every tree and dragged them to the middle of the basecamp where it was dropped down a shaft to be feed into the manufacturer below ¡®...As long as nothing catastrophic over the next weeks time we should be unstoppable¡¯ Matthew¡¯s confidence came from the familiar weight of the coil gun that was magnetically locked to his back and the considerable stock of ammunition that had been manufactured so far Shooting practice ¡°So, so I just press this?¡± ¡°Hmm¡­ Not exactly, if you just press it you can end up jerking the trigger which shifts your aim off target, you want to keep your target lined up and slowly squeeze the trigger until the gun fires¡± ¡°Hmm¡­ That, that sounds strange¡­¡± ¡°Yeah, I was told it has to do with building a habit to prioritize aiming over getting the shot off and if you make a habit of jerking the trigger it can be very hard to get rid of it, once that has been committed to muscle memory one can start to shave target acquisition time off¡± ¡°But, but I don¡¯t have muscles that hold memory?¡± Matthew nodded and showed a thin smile ¡°That¡¯s true, but you do have habits, like how you generally shift your line of sight in the same direction as I do when there''s a lull in our chats¡± Alina froze for a few moments before she spoke in what sounded like a fluster to Matthew ¡°I-Is that, that so?¡± Having figured out she was embarrassed but acting too dense to figure out why, Matthew changed to topic back to the task on hand, teaching Alina how to fire the coil rifle in her arms ¡°Alright, so the reason I am teaching you this stuff when you could just have Aea download a targeting algorithm and weapon handling program onto your body is because while these things are good, they aren¡¯t all-mighty and tend to mess up when faced with unexpected situations, when you need them the most¡± Alina nodded, she didn¡¯t want to take the easy path either, though her motivations were a lot purer than Matthew expected ¡®When Matthew teaches me, I get to spend more time with listening to him talk¡¯ Unaware of Alina¡¯s motivations, Matthew continued teaching her how to handle the coil rifle, the two had found themselves with some free time on the current day, the 9th day since establishing the basecamp had arrived and the ground penetrating radar had finished construction and the medium caliber rail gun turret was a few hours away from completion, things were moving along smoothly and so Matthew had declared a half day break which Alina had insisted he teach her how to handle a coil rifle ¡°Alright now bring your cheek in to rest on the rifle and line up the forwards and back sights in your sight, keep both eyes open to not lose sight of your surroundings, then after you spot your target and line it up you can put your finger on the trigger and slowly squeeze it¡± Alina followed Matthew''s instructions and silently lined up her sight and squeezed the trigger until an internal speak made a loud click sound out ¡°Great, that was a good first dry fire, if I were to nitpick one thing it would be that you still jerked the trigger somewhat which brought you off target as you fired¡± Alina nodded, she understood that Matthew¡¯s focus on safety by practicing with a weapon that wasn¡¯t loaded from his apparent experience as an instructor, but it still made her feel a little funny inside when he had stated he didn¡¯t want her to get hurt ¡°...Got, got it¡± ¡°Alright, let''s run it from the top again¡± Matthew guided Alina though the multiple step process of proving a weapon clear as he went over each part¡¯s function before he moved onto fire and voltage selection then firing positions and posture and had her line up another shot again before slowly squeezing the trigger once more ¡°Great, you are improving fast¡± Alina nodded before she asked Matthew ¡°What is the, the difference between your coil rifle and this, this one?¡± The coil rifle Alina was using to practice was the one Matthew had made first, only all the things Aea had originally shaved off to save material had been added to it which included a heat sink, a passive cooler and the electromagnets shielding, along with the 4 stack 4mm magazine which held 60 rounds the thing looked mostly like an assault rifle with the only notable difference being the 33cl soda can size capacitor being mounted directly on the bottom of the hand guard right in front of the magazine and the lack of any bolt which wasn''t needed since the coil rifle fired caseless ammunition, one could of cause also point out the electromagnets which looked like small lumps on the four side all along the barrel that were partially hidden by the hand guard Stolen story; please report. But still it looked mostly like a modern assault rifle, in comparison Matthew¡¯s coil rifle looked more than a little different ¡°Oh, you mean this one?¡± Matthew took the coil rifle off his back where it was magnetically locked in place showed it to Alina, the best description of the overall shape would be a lever action rifle, this included the lever behind the trigger too, but it also featured an ejection port along with 2 capacitors locked inside the stock and a 3rd located under the fore stock, along with magazine placed half on what would be the receiver and half on the fore stock right behind the 3rd capacitor the coil rifle looked nothing like the one Alina was using ¡°It¡¯s because it is a different model than the one you are using, this is a high caliber coil rifle, it shoots 60mm rounds, I think it was originally a sports rifle, right Aea?¡± [Affirmative, the schematic in my internal database shows as much, the original was a low voltage 2mm rifle which could be cranked to charge the capacitor via the lever] ¡°Right, my memory is still a little fuzzy on the technicalities, but this is a highly specialized coil rifle with many unique quirks while the one I have you training on is as basic as it gets, when you become familiar with the basic one you will be able to operate this one with a decent level of proficiency too¡± Alina nodded and looked at her coil rifle, then at Matthew¡¯s and asked ¡°But, but why have different types?¡± Matthew thought for a few moments before he pointed to the fire selector of Alina¡¯s rifle ¡°Right now your rifle is set to low power, I was originally going to go over this doing practical moving and shooting training but most coil rifles have a automatic rangefinder which sets the voltage of the rounds automatically, this makes the charge on the capacitor last as long as possible, but it also have a few downsides¡± ¡°Like what..?¡± ¡°Advanced sensors can pick up the laser that most coil rifles uses as rangefinders which means suddenly your enemy knows you are aiming at them, combine this was active shielding and a somewhat competent combat A. I. and now all your shots are getting perfectly blocked using minimal energy, in comparison my 60mm has no rangerfinder and I can manually fine-tune the voltage¡± ¡°Then why don¡¯t you, you just use maximum voltage every, every shot if you don¡¯t have to worry about power?¡± Matthew nodded and considered Alina¡¯s question for a few moments before he spoke ¡°Well, that puts extra strain on the whole system and sometimes you have to worry about overpenetration, you wouldn¡¯t want your round to go straight through your target, the building behind him and the next one before hitting a civilian¡± Alina nodded and asked another question ¡°Then why, why does it shoot a larger round¡­ Doesn¡¯t that, that use more energy?¡± Matthew nodded ¡°Yep it does, but with the bigger rounds come more stopping power and room for different ammunition options, some of which can be specialized for different targets and work differently with different voltage¡± Matthew pulled the lever down and slightly to the left before snapping it up which loaded a round he removed by cycling the ejection port and showed it to Alina ¡°This is a sub caliber round, it is basically the same caseless 2mm round your rifle fires, but by overcharging the voltage this projectile can almost reach hypersonic velocity and go through pretty much all armor at any visible range¡± Alina nodded and Matthew fed the round back into the magazine before he selected another round to be loaded and ejected it to show it to Alina ¡°This a normal 60mm slug, it''s pure metal and due to the increase in mass it is the opposite of the last round, it travels slower, thought it is still supersonic, but it packs a larger punch, in the further when our industrial output increases we will be able to make incendiary and explosive rounds for the 60mm too¡± Alina nodded and thought over what Matthew had told her for a few moments before she asked ¡°Are, are we really going to need that?¡± Matthew shrugged and voiced his simple military man reasoning ¡°It¡¯s always good to have options, whether that is being able to penetrate a meter of reinforced steel or depositing enough kinetic energy to completely liquify a person on a single impact¡± - Alina nodded and continued to follow Matthew¡¯s instructions while learning more about the craft he had spent his life perfecting while she communicated with Aea on the side ¡®Bring up the origin of the schematic¡¯ [Which schematic, mistress?] ¡®Of Matthew¡¯s coil rifle¡¯ [Origin schematic patent registered filled in intergalactic court of patterns on new uniform standardized age 1103 by count Eirmal planetary administrator of Eirmal IV] ¡®... A planetary administrator? So he rules a planet?¡¯ [Affirmative, the Trerubic empire delegates administrative roles to nobility in much the same way as a feudal society on this planet] ¡®...Hmm, so what was the intended purpose? Was it really sports shooting?¡¯ [Affirmative, count Eirmal was a great advocate for marksmanship and hunting] ¡®I see¡­¡¯ Alina was about to move on when she asked an offhand question ¡®Was Matthew born on Eirmal IV?¡¯ [Yes, though original records have been redacted due to the Eirmal penance, biological readings suggest Matthew Rockwell was born about 20 years before it started] ¡®Wait, what is this penance?¡¯ [Bringing up all available data on Eirmal penance¡­] - ¡°---Alright now slowly squeeze the trigger when you are ready¡± Matthew waited for Alina to complete the excise for a few moments before he realized she had frozen completely and called out to her ¡°Alina?¡± Alina jerked out of her daze which caused her to squeeze the trigger as she shuddered and quickly apologized ¡°S-Sorry about that, that Matthew¡­¡± Matthew showed a patient smile and asked her ¡°Want to take it from the top again?¡± Alina nodded and continued learning from Matthew while she continued to review the heavily redacted observation records from the 27 years of the Eirmal IV blockade, every gruesome detail that was followed with numerous image files documented the horrors beyond mental comprehension that had taken place on Eirmal IV in sickening and clearly statistically perverse detail Alina felt a strange sensation which washed over her every sense as she continued to look through the documents, it took her only a few moments to remember this normally biological fueled sensation as nausea, she held no illusions that if she had a stomach she would have thrown up by now ¡®...I have to see it¡­ See all of it¡­ To learn more about Matthew¡­ My beloved¡¯ A bad choice all around The endless western wilderness spread out as far as one could see, according to the historical records locked deeply within the great Willmir palace archive not only the entire Willmir empire''s territory, but all lands on this continent had once been united under the ancient empire of Uldar, how any single governing body could hold control over such a large amount of lands was still beyond Klara¡¯s imagination ¡®...The sheer amounts of paper pushing required makes me want to vomit¡¯ Klara suppressed her compulsive nausea for paperwork, she knew a person in the line of inheritance of the Willmir empire shouldn¡¯t be this single-minded, but knowing you were a muscle headed brute and doing something about it were two different things, she knew she couldn¡¯t match up to her siblings in intellect, but in her mind she made up headway with her personal strength¡­ Still seeing the seemingly endless western frontier that was spreading out in front of her had caused a slight change in her mind ¡°Grandfather¡­ Is it really true that light dances across the sky in the far Northern territories?¡± ¡°...That¡¯s true, the best view is a few days travel North of Saratheen¡¯s manor, I plan to head there in winter, do you want to come along Klara?¡± ¡°...Sure¡± Klara ignored the flustered look on her grandfathers face when she surprisingly agreed, he had invited her numerous times to this very yearly trip along others, normally if she were to dignify his invitations with a response, which was rare, he would get at most a ¡°...Maybe¡± or a ¡°...I¡¯ll think about it after training¡± this was the first time she had actually agreed, Adam was aware he was dotting on Klara, but what else was an old man to do but spoil his youngest granddaughter? The endless uninhabited frontier had over the 4 days of travel seemed to awaken something in her, a want to see the sights she had been taught about by her tutors ¡®I need to keep my focus up¡¯ Klara cleared her mind of the future and focused on the present, as much as she wanted to daydream the western fringes was a hostile place, their group had set out from the border fortress to scout the immediate area after weathering a prolonged Banshee ant assault, the giant white furred ants generally didn¡¯t lunch these kinds of vicious assaults unless they had been provoked first, thus the task for the current expedition was to find out if the Banshee ants had been provoked deliberately to waste the lives of Willmir¡¯s soldiers ¡®...Something is here¡¯ Klara stopped walking suddenly and as she was the front of the formation due to her sharp senses, so did the rest of the group, when she kneeled down so did the rest as they raised their vigilance, after a few moments of silence Duke Adam voiced a question ¡°What is it, Klara?¡± Klara kept silent for a few moments and just before she was about to answer a person suddenly appeared stepping out of a treeline about 150 meters ahead of them, the first impression Duke Adam had of the figure was that he was a soldier, and most importantly, not one of Willmir¡¯s soldiers ¡°Prepare for combat! Subdue that man at once!¡± - ¡°...They don¡¯t seem all that friendly¡± Half of the group that had spotted Matthew moved towards him at once, from their brandished weapons and the fact that the other half was quickly putting on metal armor it was clear they had judged him to be an enemy at first glance Help support creative writers by finding and reading their stories on the original site. [Ready to for targeting] Matthew selected the 60mm metal slug at high voltage as his eyes turned cold ¡°Nonlethal for now¡± Then he brought up the coil rifle in a single fluid motion as he pulled the trigger, the high voltage mode accelerated the 60mm metal slug to around 1.7 times the speed of sound and sent it ripping through the air moments later it impacted the stomach of the closest person that was charging at him, Matthew¡¯s perception of time slowed down so far that he could tell the expression of the young woman twist as the pain folded her mind ¡®If you didn¡¯t want to get shot, you shouldn¡¯t have charged at me with a halberd¡¯ The action cycled comfortably slow in Matthew¡¯s slowed down world as he brought the coil rifle to bear on the next target, not bothering to let go of the trigger he timed the 0.2 second cycle time perfectly as another metal slug was sent zipping across the open ground ¡®... I don¡¯t like you¡¯ Matthew had noticed a person moving weirdly in the backline, clearly not a baseline human the person had charcoal black skin and long vibrant red hair, she was clearly wielding some sort of Mystic power to unleash on Matthew, unfortunately the only thing they had managed was making themselves a target which he simply couldn¡¯t go easy on ¡®Nighty night¡­¡¯ Matthew didn¡¯t need to follow the 60mm metal slug in to know it had hit its intended point, after letting another 2 slugs fly he glanced to confirm that the possible Mystic would no longer be a threat as he saw the hole he had opened in the middle of their throat had its intended effect, 15 seconds was all it took, by then Matthew had brought down every single person in the group of 32 ¡°...What a waste¡± Matthew didn¡¯t know what was a waste exactly when he thought about it, it had just slipped out as he took his hand off the dust cover and lowered the coil rifle down still keeping one hand on the pistol grip as he made sure none of the people in front of him was doing anything other than wailing on the ground in pain, showing aggression towards Matthew while he had distance and a coil rifle ready to fire had proved to be a bad choice all around for the Willmir Empire mystic knights ¡®Could you call over Alina for me?¡¯ [Confirmed, the mistress has been notified] Matthew waited in the same spot for a bit, before eventually one of the unwise 32 tired to make a break for it, which resulted in another 60mm slug to their other shin ¡°Just sit tight for now¡± After another 2 minutes passed, Alina suddenly appeared next to Matthew ¡°Matthew, I, I am here¡± Matthew nodded and asked her while still keeping an eye on the group ¡°Could you make sure no one tires anything Mystic related when I get closer?¡± Alina nodded and so Matthew kicked off the ground and sailed through the air for a few moments before he landed next to the first target that had gone down, the young woman seemed to be going into shock, Matthew brought his coil rifle to bare and only just managed to stop himself from finishing her off when as he got another idea and kneeled down next to her ¡°Prepare for searing¡± [Cauterizing ready in 12 seconds] Matthew placed a hand over the wound and made eye contact with the woman for a few moments before he spoke ¡°Grit your teeth¡± Somehow the message got across, and she clenched her jaw shut before the nanites gathered on Matthew¡¯s palm superheated and quickly cauterized her wound, seeing that she had passed out from pain Matthew unceremoniously rolled her onto her side before he cauterized the exit wound too, Matthew quickly treated another 10 before he began encountering casualties, by the time he finished a total of 18 had survived ¡®...Now then¡¯ Matthew kneeled down next to the charcoal skinned Mystic he had shot in the neck and closed her eyes before he laid a palm on the face of the corpse and commanded ¡®Do your thing Aea¡¯ [Orders received, harvesting neurological data] ¡°What, what are you doing Matthew?¡± ¡°Nothing much, it''s Aea that is doing all the work right now¡± Alina tilted her head to the side slight before she asked ¡°Should I, I gather the other corpses here?¡± Matthew nodded ¡°If you would, could you also send the survivors back to Basecamp?¡± ¡°Sure¡± ¡®Now then¡­ The question is how valuable these people are alive¡­ Those floating things certainly look important¡¯ The 4 floating platforms that were hovering in place that had been situated in the middle of the convoy carried what at first glance looked like supplies for a extended trip, camping gear, armor and weapons and the 4th carried another elaborate piece of machinery which Matthew couldn¡¯t discern the purpose off at one glance, either way, Matthew figured this group still had supplies for another weeks time ¡®Which means if these things aren¡¯t being tracked, the earliest someone will come looking for them is around 3 days from now¡­ Time to set up a prison while Aea crunches the data¡­¡¯ [Neurological data extraction completed] Matthew removed his hand from the head of the corpse, this form of data extraction was possible on a person that was still alive, of course that was only if one didn¡¯t mind turning the healthy brain matter into a nondescript ¡®Well done¡¯ mass of fat ¡®There¡¯s a smell I remember¡­ Not that it brings happy memories of course¡¯ Matthew continued to gather Neurological data for Aea to crunch while suppressing his increasing nausea A win-win situation When Klara slowly woke up, the first thing that greeted her and subsequently snapped her awake was the grueling pain from her abdomen, she clenched her teeth and took slow shallow breaths for a few moments as she examined her surroundings, the room she found herself in was completely dark, as she checked her mobility the first thing she noticed was that her hands, feet and neck was shackled to the metal bed she laid on, at this point the dread slowly set in She was injured, had been captured alive and was confined in a pitch black room, mystic knight she may be, but first and foremost she was a young woman in her early 20¡¯s that had yet to be married ¡°...Damn it all¡± A slow strained curse escaped her mouth, she knew the fate of a captured soldier wasn¡¯t good, never mind the fate of a captured princess held by what she assumed was an enemy nation, being ransomed and living the rest of her life in a cloister in shame was the best option for her now, but then suddenly the room lit up blinding her momentarily, when she opened her eyes again she quickly studied the room ¡°Rosa!¡± A familiar face laid to her right on a metal bed shackled down like her, Rosa was one of the 6 female mystic knights that had participated in the expedition, Klara¡¯s yelled woke her up where she quickly let out a low gasp of pain as she looked around in confusion and spotted Klara ¡°Princess Klara!¡± Upon spotting Klara Rosa immediately tried to get free from her restraints for a few moments but quickly gave up when she was painfully reminded of the gaping hole in her right shin, as raw strength hadn¡¯t worked she quickly scanned the room around her and turned her head to her left where she saw another one of the female mystic knights, Laura which still was unconscious and called out to her ¡°Laura! Wake up!¡± Laura didn¡¯t respond, Rosa studied her for a few moments and saw chest move up and down in slow shallow breaths and cursed out loud ¡°Shit, Laura is in bad shape¡± Klara felt the panic slowly set in, she could hear Rosa struggle in futility against her bindings and curse as she continued to call out to Laura, though suddenly a loud metal clang sounded out from the direction of the far wall at their foot end which silenced Rosa¡¯s yells as she also looked at the door that steadily unlocked from the outside before it swung open, the figure that appeared in the doorway was a familiar one, it was the same person that had subdued their entire expedition force, the man confidently walked in, still only wearing a pair of black shorts he walked in on bare feet and slowly looked over the 3 women in silence, Klara felt her heart stop when his eyes passed over her but it stopped on the person furthest from her left, Laura ¡°...********, ***¡± The man spoke something in a foreign language as he walked over to the metal bed where Laura laid until he stood besides it, from Klara¡¯s point of view the back of the man didn¡¯t betray a single opening, but she quickly noticed something odd about the man¡¯s back, black vertebrae stuck out of his back along his spine ¡®...Is that metal?¡¯ ¡°What are you doing to Laura!?¡± Rosa yelled at the man that did something to Laura which Klara couldn¡¯t see from her point of view, however she did notice metal sand flow out of his spine and down his right hand presuming onto Laura ¡°Hey! Answer me!¡± ¡°**** ** **** *** ****?¡± The man didn¡¯t turn around, but his sentence was clearly directed at Rosa that responded by hurling a insult back at him ¡°Whore son, I asked you a question! What are you doing to Laura!?¡± The man didn¡¯t answer, he let out a slow sigh before he muttered something ¡°***, **** ** **¡± Rosa was about to yell back when her body suddenly jolted in pain as she snapped her jaw tight, a faint crackle came from the metal shackle around her neck This story originates from a different website. Ensure the author gets the support they deserve by reading it there. ¡°Rosa!¡± Klara yelled in surprise, but right after the crackle ended Rosa laid still, she had passed out, that¡¯s when the man spoke, only this time he spoke in Dristan, the language spoken by most of the central continent, as well as the Willmir empire ¡°Quiet, she live, so this one will also¡± While the grammar was anything but perfect, and it took Klara a few moments to even realize that he had spoken in Dristan, it was clear he could also understand them, so Klara calmed down herself for a few moments to lessen the pain in her abdomen before she asked ¡°...Who are you?¡± The man chuckled for a few moments, Klara failed to see the humor in her question and after a moment he responded ¡°That don¡¯t know, but to all you god¡± The response baffled Klara and she muttered in confusion ¡°...God?¡± Klara noticed the metal sand flow back up his arm before it entered his spine again, and as he turned around and carefully put his right palm on Rosa¡¯s shin he spoke again ¡°Almighty, judge, jailer¡± Klara looked into the man¡¯s eyes for a few moments, the gaze was a mix between several she had seen before, there was the gaze of a mighty beast evaluating its prey, there was the gaze of a rabid dog that tore apart people for enjoyment in there and there was a gaze she had seen her grandfather, Duke Adam when she had wandered into his private quarters once, she had seen him sitting in a chair and gazing into the fireplace in silence with a glass of wine in his hand, he hadn¡¯t responded the first few times she had called out to him It was the gaze of an old soul weighed down by the past - Matthew looked at the young knight and waited for her response for a few moments, but even as he was done treating the noisy female survivor, she didn¡¯t speak [Treatment completed] Matthew removed his hand from the healed leg of the noisy knight and moved over to the last, he remembered her, she had been the first target he had lined up, first in line and the youngest of the patrol she had clearly been eager to earn merit in the eyes of the old commander ¡®...In other words, something is driving this young princess to seek glory¡¯ Matthew walked over next to her and silently exclaimed the wound on her stomach before he placed his hand over the wound he had seared shut to stop her from bleeding out ¡®Begin treatment¡­ No anesthetic for this one¡¯ [Orders received, deploying Trauma nanite pattern 1] Matthew noticed she still silently looked him right into the eyes and showed a grin before he stuffed a piece of cloth into her mouth and spoke ¡°Clench your jaw¡± The princess followed his instructions and for the first 7 seconds of the excruciatingly painful treatment she manged to keep mostly conscious before she finally let out a low scream through her clenched teeth and finally passed out a few moments later ¡°That, that was mean of you Matthew¡± Matthew shrugged as he grabbed the young princesses jaw to free the cloth from her mouth before he pulled it out and threw it into the trash can in the corner of the room and laid her face down to the side before he explained his actions to Alina that stood in the doorway behind him ¡°I have a feeling that this here is a good seedling, either she will make a terrific soldier or her will breaks, which will most likely turn herself into a hollow shell of her former self¡± ¡°...Go, go on¡± Matthew turned around and faced Alina as he spoke ¡°If option 1 is the case we bring her under our control, if option 2 is the case she will still be worth a pretty good ransom, it¡¯s a win-win situation¡± Alina nodded after a few moments and spoke ¡°As, as long as you don¡¯t get, get any funny ideas¡± Matthew shrugged once more before he spoke in a calm tone ¡°I was neurologically neutered when I was turned into a slave soldier, even before then don¡¯t remember any particular interest in taking anyone by force¡± Alina remained silent for a few moments before she nodded, Matthew walked over and stepped out of the 2nd cell block before he locked the metal bulkhead behind him, it would be furnished into a full airtight and radiation shielded seal once resources were a little less scares, But for now the solid metal bulkhead worked well as a prison block ¡°Let¡¯s go back upstairs, we should still be able to catch the sunset¡± Alina nodded and followed along with Matthew back up the staircase up to the now about 1 kilometer wide clearing that made up the base camp where Matthew rotated his and Alina¡¯s laid back beach like chairs west towards the sunset and laid down in his and admired the sunset as Alina silently took her seat next to him ¡°You know Alina, companionship is more than just carnal instincts¡± Alina was clearly caught off guard by Matthew¡¯s blunt statement and blurted out ¡°I-I know, know that!¡± Matthew let out a hearty laugh which earned him a punch on the shoulder from Alina which made him understand his blunt comment had missed its mark and he explained ¡°I enjoy your company Alina¡± Alina was about to confess her own admiration for him once again when Matthew opened his mouth once again and ruined the mood ¡°But even if I could feel my dick, I wouldn¡¯t screw an android¡± This comment earned him another punch, this one was much harder than the last and was followed by another which was even more painful, then another which knocked him out of his seat as a crack sounded out from his shoulder ¡°Ouch!¡± [Fracture detected, please pacify the mistress before treatment can be administered] Realizing he had taken his joke too far Matthew quickly raised his right hand in defense as he hurriedly spoke to pacify Alina who was clearly whiling up her mystic powers going purely by her swishing knife like ears and frosty presence ¡°Wait, time out! I never said either of our predicaments were permanent!¡± Alina¡¯s ears stopped whirling, but she remained silent, prodding Matthew to explain further by proxy of Aea¡¯s silence and his still broken shoulder joint ¡°I promised to make you a body, a real living although synthetic body¡­ By then we¡¯ll have the infrastructure to cure my numb dick if it is something we still want¡± Alina remained silent for a few moments before Matthew felt his vision rapidly chance as he found himself back on the beach like chair before the other got violently blown to bits next to him and Alina appeared above him and fell down half a meter knocking the air out of his lungs as she laid down on his chest [Trauma nanite pattern 1 and 2 tasked, full recovery in 45 seconds] Matthew kept his mouth shut and watched the sunset in silence with Alina, he wasn¡¯t dense or daring enough to ruin the slowly building subtle mood between them 3 times in a row War brewing in the West East of the Basecamp, the Willmir empire was undergoing a silent storm, the first to notice that something big had happened outside the governing structure were the merchants, of course this didn¡¯t happen unilaterally, but by now, about two weeks after the event seemed to have taken place the rumors had trickled down to even the most common street stalls ¡°Hey did you hear the news?¡± A middle-aged man was grilling some fresh skewers at the request of his current costumer, as he did, he stuck up a casual conversation with the young man he was serving, it was old news in Willmir territory by now, but the young man was clearly a traveling mercenary that had arrived from one of Willmir¡¯s satellite states to the North ¡°Oh? Is there war brewing?¡± The stall cook hummed for a moment as he nodded ¡°It sure seems that way, care for a bet young man?¡± The young man showed a grin as he immediately understood what kind of bet the stall cook was looking to make ¡°3 more skewers if I am right¡± The cook laughed as he rotated the skewers and added his condition ¡°A skewers tip when I am right¡± The young man seemed surprised at the skewer cook¡¯s confidence and confidently answered after a moment ¡°The East!¡± The skewer cook showed a wry smile and shook his head, the young man let out a sigh as he handed over the tip and skewer cook answered ¡°It¡¯s the West¡± The young man blinked a few times as he didn¡¯t believe the skewer cook one bit, everyone used to traveling the central continent knew the Westen fringes of the Willmir empire was just that, fringes, besides a few border strongholds set up to monitor the hostile wildlife and keep it in check a few times a season there was nothing which required a large mustering of soldiers on that side of the empire ¡°I know that look, I had one just like it when I first heard the rumors¡± The skewer cook handed over the serving of grilled meat and leaned a little closer to the young man as he spoke in a calm, quiet voice ¡°Word is an expedition went horribly wrong, Saratheen the wise have been slain¡± ¡°No way¡± ¡°It¡¯s true, the entire imperial city is in a frenzy as not only Duke Adam but also the youngest princess which were in the same expedition¡­ According to the Mystic circles, they still draw breath confirmed by the exhaustion Imperial Bloodline Mystics, but they have yet to contact the palace or return to Imperial land¡± The young man blinked a few times and after remaining frozen for a few moments he bit into his meat skewer and chewed it thoroughly before he silently presented another few coins to the skewer cook that shock his head ¡°Don¡¯t worry about it, it¡¯s old news by now since a skewer cook out in the boonies know about it¡± The young man nodded and shifted the coins in his hand before he placed a single one down on the street stall which earned him a thanks from the skewer cook as he walked away still in silent contemplation, even as he reached a rowdy bar a few streets over he was still in silent contemplation, as he stood in the doorway the rowdy bar slowly fell quiet as they noticed the young man, in his silent contemplation, another few moments passed before he spoke ¡°Pack up, we¡¯re moving West on the double¡± The silence lasted a few more moments before every single person in the crowded bar rose to their feet at once and paid their tap in a neat and orderly fashion, after they had cleared out the young man walked up to the very confused barkeep and silently placed a substantial tip on the counter as he spoke This tale has been unlawfully lifted without the author''s consent. Report any appearances on Amazon. ¡°Sorry for the mess my men left behind¡± The barkeep knew better than to argue with a commander of such a large mercenary company, especially one that maintained such discipline over one of the larger bands the barkeep had seen in his time, only when the man truend around to leave did the barkeep ask ¡°Young man, what is the name of your troop?¡± The young man didn¡¯t answer he simply raised a hand in goodbye as he walked out of the bar, however the barkeep spotted it, on the young man¡¯s right hand he wore three silver rings, one on his thumb, one on his index finger and one on his middle finger, the barkeep couldn¡¯t be sure, but he was almost certain that those were the famed silver rings of conquest awarded directly by the emperor to generals, knights, common soldiers or mercenaries for distinguished service in battle - About a calendar month had passed since Matthew and Alina had captured the mystic knights, the underground complex had undergone a number of significant changes, firstly the knights had been placed in individual 20 square meter rooms which included a bathroom with a shower and a bearably sized bed, the plumbing and nutrient vat had been a pain in Matthew¡¯s behind ¡®...But I got to admit that hot shower was something I didn¡¯t know I needed¡¯ Matthew let out a sigh before he covered his ears and sent a metal command to Aea ¡®Send it¡¯ [Confirmed, Rail-003 firing] A loud boom sounded out as the rail cannon turret fired its 16th shoot of the day, the rail cannon had an impressive 12-meter-long barrel that accelerated a 240mm shell to twice the speed of sound into the air ¡°Ah¡­ Nothing but the echo of rail gun fire in the morning, is Rail-001 ready?¡± [Rail-001 cooling cycle is estimated to be completed in 12 minutes] Matthew looked over at the two other rail cannon turrets that were venting waste heat from the earlier firing [Movement detected, 4500 meters out from Eastern perimeter] ¡°Patch me in¡± Matthew¡¯s field of vision changed instantly, as the video feed from the surveillance drone that had spotted the convoy approaching their territory was sent into his mind, the build up of the convoy looked familiar, only much larger than the last he had seen, around 30 Racks and around 1500 people were marching towards the Basecamp, the earlier expedition had been just that, an expedition, this was a small-sized army ¡°...Alright, it¡¯s showtime¡± [Confirmed, emergency cooling of all Railcannon turrets started, raising Basecamp security to level 2] ¡°Warm up my suit¡± [Confirmed, deploying Mk. 22 armored suit] As Matthew walked into the surprisingly normal (though very modern looking) 2-story building, that stood in the middle of the Basecamp which was his and Alina¡¯s house carbon fiber barricades rose out of the ground around the clearing as androids armed with coil rifles took their positions and the 3 Railcannon turrets raised their barrels straight into the air before the heat sink braces that sat around the barrels came loose and feel to the ground as metal arm assemblers quickly began maintenance work on them ¡°What, what is happening, Matthew?¡± ¡°A small army showed up to the east¡± Alina had upgraded her body shortly after they had taken the mystic knights'' prisoner, her new body was taller than the first but still around a head and a half shorter than Matthew, the real changes were on the inside with sophisticated hardware that had been adopted to elevate her mystic powers, externally the optical sensors looked a lot more like eyes and the face of the android body could accommodate changes in her expressions, still the two knife ears was present like on her last body, but they were a lot more sophisticated with delicate carvings that ran along them Still for some reason the speech tick which Aea had told Alina Matthew found endearing stayed with her ¡°Is, is it the Willmir empire?¡± Matthew nodded, he wasn¡¯t really worried, his confidence came from the estimated 21 metric ton of metal ore that was located around half a kilometer down below the Basecamp, they had started mining and refining it about 10 days ago, while most of the metal was classified as Low-grade metal around 8 metric tons were Mid-grade metal and a little less than a ton was High-grade metal, this had already resulted in the now 53 battle androids that manned the barricades and the now well over a hundred surveillance drones that had been sent up via Rail cannon turret ¡°It looks that way, Aea is crunching the neurological data, but I recognize some of the insignia of the knights, it''s a detachment of the emperor''s personal guard¡± Alina looked at Matthew for a few moments in silence to which Matthew nodded and reassured her ¡°I know, I know, you don¡¯t have to look at me like that¡± Having secured his promise, Alina spoke ¡°I, I will go greet them as planned then¡± Matthew nodded ¡°Take care, I¡¯ll be there in a bit¡± Alina¡¯s figure disappeared after a moment and Matthew let out a long sigh before he stepped back out of the house and walked towards the underground bunker entrance, Alina had outlawed almost all military hardware from the house, so the Mk. 22 armored suit was kept in the bunker along with most other military hardware ¡°There she is¡­¡± The Mk. 22 stood before Matthew, it was a size larger than him standing almost 3 meters tall the armored suit could be mistaken for a large combat android at first glance, the flat blocky armor plating that made it look like something rendered on a 1990¡¯s computer had given the suit the nickname ¡®The Polygon Horror¡¯ but in reality the exterior maximized blunt and sharp armor protection from most head on engagements while maintaining full mobility of its user, the suit opened and Matthew turned around and took a step backwards into the suit and closed his eyes as it closed around him [Mk. 22 armored suit interfaces loaded, internal power storage fully charged, suit fully sealed] As Matthew opened his eyes again he shouldn¡¯t be able to see anything, but the multiple external sensors that fed data into his bionic spine ensured he had a full 360 degrees of vision, after taking a few moments to adjust to the sensory input Matthew picked up the arc cannon at the side and stepped back out of the bunker as a massive explosion sounded out in the direction of the Willmir empire army, Matthew broke into a sprint as he opened up a communications line with Alina ¡°Don¡¯t go overboard¡± A moment passed before a crystal clear, almost ethereal cool feminine voice sounded out in Matthew¡¯s mind, he had been dumbstruck the first time he heard Alina¡¯s true voice but he had more or less gotten used to it by now ¡°I am not, I am simply teaching them this the memorable way the first time around¡± ¡°...And what is it you are teaching them?¡± ¡°That they have entered the ¡®Finding out¡¯ stage you talk about so much¡± Futile defiance About 20 years ago a boy that had lived his entire life in a trading outpost much like Alina¡¯s home city of Babai, however the city got sacked in some of the many wars between the Willmir empire and the Eastern satellite states, as the young man looked at soldiers raze his home one question rose to his mind ¡®...If I had power like that, what would I do?¡¯ Now so many years later the boy, Leonard had turned into a young man and the leader of his own troop of mercenaries, to the nobles and royals he worked for Leonard was a stoic man that was humble of his achievements, but to the most senior of his troop his greed and hunger for powers was larger than any emperor, thus when the new front opened up on the western fringes of the Willmir empire he jumped at the opportunity to join the subjugation force, now on the 12th day something other than beasts finally appeared, along with the sudden arrival of a metal figure that hovered in the air before an ethereal voice echoed in Leonard¡¯s voice ¡°Willmir soldiers are not welcome here¡± Leonard raised his right hand to halt his troops movements as the Willmir commander raised his sword up to call for an attack, Leonard that always trusted his guts yelled out ¡°DOWN!¡± A moment after Leonard¡¯s voice sounded out, and he hit the dirt, a large boom echoed out as Leonard¡¯s enhanced perception caught a glance of the Willmir commander being turned into a red mist, after the dust cleared Leonard raised his hand which carried 3 silver rings of conquest as he yelled ¡°I, Leonard commander of the Flowing Wind troop, holder of 3 silver rings of conquest, order all loyal Willmir soldiers to stand down!¡± - Matthew was still in a full sprint when the shout of the Flowing Wind troop commander was picked up by Alina and transmitted to him, he was still around a kilometer out but only a moment after his vision swirled to a position up high of a surveillance drone as Aea¡¯s voice sounded out over the local communications net [Scenario 23 B, M1 move to overwatch and prepare to engage] Being an A. I. Aea had made backup plans on backup plans on plans for the eventual arrival of Willmir¡¯s army, the scenario Aea had just described was that a person were attempting to take hold of the vacant command seat to negotiate, which was in Matthew and Alina¡¯s interests, so now the top priority was to make sure this would happen [Targets painted, M1 go for strike] Matthew raised his lever coil rifle while still in full sprint quickly lined up on the first painted target, according to Aea¡¯s data, a 2nd in command from the Willmir army was about to argue Leonard¡¯s command ¡°Firing¡± This act only earned the 2nd in command a 60mm cranium ventilation, Matthew fired another 3 shots at the targets Aea had painted, just as the 3 round echoed out Alina¡¯s voice echoed out in the minds of the Willmir army [I see at least one person have some sense] Matthew leaped off the ground and as he flew through the air he stored the coil rifle right before he landed about 20 meters ahead of the front guard and after a moment he walked towards the group unbridled by their panic and raised weapon he simply walked forwards ¡°Halt!¡± ¡°Get him!¡± Two soldiers, conscripts or city guards at most, that seemed to have been pushed too far by stress lashed out at Matthew, the spear two spears stabbed out, one at his chest, another at his head, the result? Scratched paint. Matthew yanked the spear from the first man and by sheer force he stabbed him through the chest, with the blunt end of the spear before sending a football kick to his groin which sent the poor sod flying up and away from Matthew, then his modulated voice sounded out through the suit ¡°A good soldier knows when they are beat¡± As a sudden shocked silence spread out over the grasslands, Matthew took a step in and grabbed the other soldier by the scruff of his padded linen shirt and hoisted in up high for the rest to see as his voice echoed out again ¡°A good soldier comes back alive¡± Did you know this story is from Royal Road? Read the official version for free and support the author. Then in a single brutal act of overkill he yanked the poor man that wasn¡¯t even struggling at this point into the ground face first which turned his head into a thick red purple paste with a horrible sound that seemed to carry though the arm, Matthew then simply straightened himself up again and continued walking forwards, no soldier blocked his path now, none were stupid or brave enough to do so, his path led him straight towards Leonard and his troop, Matthew had his eyes locked on the young troop commanded the entire time, to Matthew¡¯s surprise he neither faltered nor looked away as Matthew approached him, Matthew stopped a few meters in front of the young man and spoke ¡°I am Major Matthew Rockwell of the 913th Penance Marines, I assume you hold command over this unjust military intrusion into The Trerubic Empire?¡± Although Matthew¡¯s voice was heavily modulated and distorted to hide his real voice, it carried far over the mostly silent army, his statement had the intended effects, one he was a Major, two he was part of the ¡®913th Penance Marines¡¯ which heavily implied the existence of other troops like him along with the mention of ¡®The Trerubic Empire¡¯ painted a very clear picture which simply read: Comply or face the might of an entire Empire you had no idea existed til now, which just pacified an entire army with two soldiers ¡°I am Leonard Casipry, I hold temporary command over this military expedition¡± Matthew showed a smirk under his helmet as he sent a message to Alina [This kid has some stones on him] The space a little behind Matthew suddenly distorted as Alina appeared, a moment later she waved her hand and a metal chair appeared right behind her which she took a seat in while keeping silent ¡°Leonard Casipry, do you confirm this unlawful military intrusion into Trerubic territory has surrendered?¡± Leonard didn¡¯t miss a beat and after a moment he spoke in a loud and clear voice ¡°We surrender, I would like to negotiate an escort and eventual ransom of all troops at Fort Adam 5 days travel east of here¡± Matthew remained silent for a few moments before he spoke ¡°Understood, I must inform you that according to Trerubic military law any act of defiance of a surrendered force gives me full legal immunity of any and all crime against sentient life, show any defiance and I will personally reintegrate all of you into the soil below my feet, is that clear¡± ¡°Yes, major¡± ¡°Good, you have until sunrise tomorrow to treat any injured personal and get ready to match East with all combat capable personal¡± Matthew turned around and walked back to the edge of the clearing where he turned around to face the increasingly disorganized army and crossed his arms, after a few moments Alina¡¯s figure appeared next to him and spoke to him over the internal network [So what do we do when someone tries to sneak away doing the night?] [We set an example and increase our bargaining power] As Matthew spoke, the 53 battle androids rapidly encircled the surrendered army [Never mind work, how is your new body handling?] Alina looked down at her hand as she opened and closed it again a few times before she responded [It feels fine for now] Matthew nodded before he followed his question up by asking [You haven¡¯t felt any of those signs we talked about?] The signs Matthew was referring to were the long list of general signs of bionic rejections which Aea had listed, now Aea¡¯s entire body was artificial and neither Matthew nor Aea was sure she would experience any of the horrors of becoming sick from one''s own new body parts which could lead to a whole slew physiological problems Most of which Matthew had seen first hand on the other Penance Marines he served with or experienced on his own body [I haven¡¯t, maybe it¡¯s because I haven¡¯t had a physical body for so long] [Could be, just keep either me or Aea posted] Aea nodded before she displaced a chair to sit down on, from there the two continued chatting and joking for a few hours, after all, neither of them had any need for rest and Matthew only had a minimal need for food and water, as such time continued to pass uneventful for the two of them as the defeated army fell further into chaos, Around nightfall the remaining leadership structure which was made up of Leonard and other Willmir army leadership was forced to begin executing deserters, and just as the night grew dark a small group of 4 conscripts managed to sneak away ¡°Fire up a flare¡± [Fire mission confirmed, Rail-001 firing] Suddenly the mostly quiet clearing was lit up by an almost blinding white light, a few moments later a distant boom echoed, then a volley of coil rifle fire sounded out in the forest next to the clearing, this was followed by screams of pain and terror for a few moments after they died down Matthew¡¯s modulated voice blasted out over the clearing ¡°Defiance of the surrendered force have been confirmed, cull their numbers¡± [987 targets painted, 17 seconds until culling completed] A moment after, Aea¡¯s voice echoed out over the local communications net the 53 combat androids brought up their coil rifles and opened fire, the following moments were a slaughter to say the least, but just as Aea had calculated, 17 seconds was all it took [987 targets eliminated, surrendered Willmir army¡¯s numbers have been reduced to a total of 321] Before any of the survivors had a chance to condemn the massacre that had just taken place, Matthew¡¯s voice echoed out again ¡°Any further act of defiance will lead to your complete annihilation¡± - The Willmir empire¡¯s political capital, The city of Conquest was in a single word, mighty, not due to size but rather due to cost of construction, the 2 million people that lived in the city enjoyed sanitation facilities which included free bathhouses and restrooms along with a complex sewer system and public servants which kept the stone tiled streets clean, the central palace reached around half a kilometer into the sky, this was the tallest building in the central continent and the seat of power for of the empire, the internal and external decorations of the palace were expensive enough to build another 4 cities with the same population capacity as the city of Conquest, and at the top of the palace sat a giant ward jewel which was capable of shielding the entire city from the maddening influence of the blue comet, the ward jewel was said to be the greatest treasure of the Willmir empire, but that was a lie. It was on loan, and that loan was about to be terminated. ¡°I beg your lordship for another week to investigate the murder of your daughter¡± The words that came out of Erik Willmir the 3rd were normally of a tone he would receive from the lower nobles or his other subjects ¡°...I believe you understand Erik why I can no longer contain myself, as a one father to another¡± Erik nodded, the man across the table from him was ancient and partially immortal, Uterus the eternal, father of the late Saratheen held immense power, the founding of the Willmir empire had been his pet project, a project he had since grown bored with and handed over to his only daughter at her request, Saratheen had gained the title of the wise for how she had stabilized and expanded the borders of the Willmir empire, though her fascination with personally raising a few emperors wasn¡¯t entirely approved by Uterus he had never imagined that this would lead her to her untimely death in on an expedition into the western fringes of the empire ¡°If you will give me this time I will be able at the very least to identify the culprit of your daughter''s murder¡± Uterus kept silent and prodded Erik to continue his explanation ¡°I have received word that the subjugation army I sent to liberate my own captured daughter have been defeated, this wasn¡¯t anything out of the ordinary, what was of note is that the survivors have been captured and are approaching Fort Adam¡­ Along with the culprit of your daughter''s murderer¡± Diplomatic negotiations [Killing over a thousand soldiers still seems a little excessive¡­] [That¡¯s because it was, that was the whole point, Aea crunched the behavioral data for the entire army over almost 6 hours to target all the moral and command structures as well as all further political adversaries] [I get that, all I am saying is that using too much force will cause blowback, even if they are playing along for now] [That¡¯s fine, as long as we stay on the current development track we should be able to stomp anything they throw at us] Alina nodded, the two were walking side by side tailing around 200 meters behind the defeated army that were matching back East where they came from, speaking of the defeated army Aea, really had manged to shatter their will to fight completely and turn them completely docile, it also helped that the 30 accompanying battle androids cleared out any hostile life that approached the remnant army, with the current marching speed they would reach Fort Adam at around noon the next day ¡°Today¡¯s match have been completed, make camp¡± Matthew¡¯s voice echoed out as the day''s march ended, it was still a few hours before night fell, and even given the time it would take to set up the encampment and prepare for nightfall Matthew was still giving them about an hour leeway since they had covered more distance than he had expected over the last 4 days [...Expand the 2nd surveillance premiere another 5 kilometers out] [Confirmed, Fire mission assigned to Rail-001, Rail-002 and Rail-003, 35 high endurance surveillance drones will be deployed in 7 hours] Alina, that had sat down on her favorite chair, spoke out on the local net and overwrote Matthew¡¯s order [Send me a capacitor first, I would like to be topped up before we reach the fort tomorrow] [Confirmed, tasking Rail-001 for delivery] Matthew let out a sigh as he turned around to face the direction of Basecamp as he waited a few moments before the capacitor housed inside the 240mm shell casing that raced across the sky for a few moments before deploying braking fins and Matthew snatched it out of the sky as it passed above him, he turned around again as he opened the container and took out the single use capacitor and handed it to Alina [Your drink, my lady] Alina received the single use capacitor which glowing blue core quickly crumbled before it shattered and collapsed as its internal power capacity was depleted, a few moments later it was reduced to slag metal which Alina handed back to Matthew [Thank you, Matthew] The slag metal was quickly broken down as Matthew looked back towards the surrendered army that was in progress of making camp, they looked like automatons going through preprogrammed motions, looking at this Matthew was inclined to admit that he might have gone too far ¡®...But if it stops another bigger war from happening, then their sacrifices will be worth it in the end¡¯ - Upon gazing at the pale gray stone fortress, Matthew could at once see several ways to topple it completely with his current arsenal, still a feeling in the pit of his stomach kept him on his toes [...I don¡¯t like this¡­ Warm up the rail cannons for hammer strike] Love this novel? Read it on Royal Road to ensure the author gets credit. [Orders received, Rail-001 and Rail-003 tasked, loading high density rounds] The match had been completed, and the remaining 321 soldiers had been gathered around a hundred meters in front of the gates to fort Adam with Matthew standing in front of them with his arms crossed waiting for someone from the fortress to come out to negotiate, Alina were further back hovering in the air around half a kilometer out, she was directing the surveillance drones keeping a close eye on everything that happened in and around the fortress [I don¡¯t see anything completely out of the ordinary yet, there appears to be a few nobles gathered in the central part of the foretress, but I can¡¯t really say anything else without direct line of sight¡­ They just received your message, a dozen guards and 3 or 4 nobles are moving towards the outer walls now] Matthew waited patiently, he appeared relaxed, but he knew he would be the first to be attacked if something unexpected happened so he kept up his guard, a few minutes passed uneventfully before a reinforced door opened besides the heavy fortress gates and a messenger walked out, Matthew waited for him to approach as Alina informed him of the identity of the nobles that were waiting to receive him on the other side of the wall ¡°Major Matthew Rockwell, the Lords are ready to receive you¡± While Matthew hadn¡¯t announced his name to the people of the fortress, he and Alina had long assumed that the surrendered army or the current hostages they held were using some sort of mystic power or item to communicate with the rest of the Willmir empire so being addressed with full name and title was like a strategy of subtle diplomatic intimidation However, Matthew only showed a small grin on his face still hidden behind his armor as his modulated voice sounded out ¡°Lead the way, steward Levi¡± It was only a slight twitch on the old servant''s face, but along with all the biological readings, Matthew confirmed his greeting had the intended effect, a not-so-subtle diplomatic jab back at the Willmir empire, as the old steward led the way, the two entered the walls and emerged at the courtyard on the other side ¡°This sure is a grand welcome¡± The courtyard itself was unimpressive, light brown dirt stomped hard and flat by routine training drills and mock battles, more than a hundred knights stood in fully armed and armored behind a large stone table with 3 people sitting, on the far flanks of each side sat two scribes with quills inkwells and paper ready to document the entirety of the meeting and negotiations, the Western region Marquis, Elias Maitner sat in the middle of the long table and watched Matthew as he approached, as he was about to address Matthew he cut the Marquis off and addressed him first and cut to the chase ¡°Lord Marquis, I am here to negotiate the release of the 321 surviving soldiers of the most recent unlawful entry into Trerubic Empire territory as requested¡± The knights didn¡¯t appear to take kindly to Matthew¡¯s blatant disregard for the Marquis, but the man himself didn¡¯t look too bothered and signaled to the scribes to continue recording and spoke after a moment ¡°Major Matthew Rockwell, I have been assigned to handle this matter by the Emperor himself and such I speak with his full approval and the might of the entire Willmir empire, any perceived¡ª¡± As the Marquis continued speaking, Matthew once again cut him off ¡°Please, there is no need for you, Lord Marquis Elias Maitner, The tiger of the West, to speak in such diplomatic language, I was informed you were a man that spoke frankly and honestly, as such I would like to speed the process along¡± The Marquis¡¯ political smile hardened slightly, nevertheless he didn¡¯t lose his cool ¡°Then what do you propose, Major?¡± ¡°The 186 draftees first, their ransom shall be voided as a favor of good will, but the standard rate stated in the 4th grand Southern satellite war of 5 silver pieces will be applied to the 76 mystic knights regardless of rank, the remaining mercenaries and other parties unaffiliated with the Willmir empire will be assessed individually, is that acceptable?¡± The extended knowledge Matthew showed of historical treaties that wasn¡¯t exactly common knowledge within Willmir Empire appeared to have its extended effect, the Marquis and any other noble or statesmen who were to read the transcripts that were being recorded would now be sure that a large spy network were present in the Willmir empire Of course there was no such thing, this was the result of the Neurological data which Aea was still crunching ¡®Not that I feel inclined to correct them on this, since it''s exactly the result we need to continue to grow uninhibited¡¯ ¡°I have no problem with the purposed terms, the ransom fees will be paid at the end of the negotiations¡± Matthew and the Marquis continued to hash out the details of the ransom fees over the next few hours and by the end Matthew had secured a payment of 700 silver coins, of course the monetary value of the coins was not what was valuable to Matthew and Alina, it was the metal itself they were after ¡°I believe this concludes the first rounds of negotiation, we also have another inquire we would like to make of the Trerubic Empire regarding a lost expedition¡± Matthew kept his silence for a few moments before he spoke ¡°Ah yes, we do have another 18 mystic knights in our holding cells, however I have been directly ordered to seek greater compensation for these mystic knights due to their transgressions prior to capture and accumulated cost of their medical treatments¡± The Marquis narrowed his eyes slightly, he perfectly understood Matthew¡¯s statement which was basically ¡®We know you want these people back, so make it worth our while¡¯ so he probed Matthew for more information ¡°I understand, but I can¡¯t pay a ransom for a prisoner whose wellbeing I can¡¯t confirm¡± ¡°That won¡¯t be a problem, I have prepared for a method to speak directly with them¡± Matthew passed the order to Aea [Send the prepared package] [Package fire mission assigned to Rail-002 arrival in 42 seconds] The Marquis remained silent as he waited for Matthew to present this method of communications, but after the seconds of silence stretched and Matthew hadn¡¯t elaborated, he finally asked ¡°So, how do I access this method of communications?¡± Matthew didn¡¯t answer, he simply raised his hand and caught a metal cylinder that came flying with amazing speed and promptly placed it down on the negotiations table where the metal cylinder opened up ¡°This device will allow you to communicate with the prisoners at your dissection¡± A slight hiccup The metal cylinder opened up and a moment later a hologram was projected up from it which displayed a single room, a bed, a small table with a chair as well as a door which lead to a small bathroom, next to the bed a figure could be seen doing push-ups, Matthew spoke out loud ¡°Duke Adam, Marquis Elias Maitner have requested a conversation to confirm your wellbeing¡± The duke slowly came to a halt in his excise and stood up before he wiped his face and let out a sigh and turned to face the hologram ¡°Marquis Elias, have you been well?¡± The Marquis was stunned silent for a few moments before he responded ¡°D-Duke Adam, is that really you?¡± A moment of lag passed before Duke Adam responded ¡°Of course I understand your confusion, but now is hardly the time nor place for such talks, I doubt Major Matthew allowed you to communicate with me for this purpose either¡± The Marquis silently gathered himself mentally before he nodded to the scribes to continue their records ¡°I understand, I am able to see you inside a small room, have your wounds been treated?¡± Duke Adam nodded and spoke clearly ¡°Major Matthew has provided full medical treatment to all survivors, as you can see the room I am imprisoned in might be small, but I have no complaints about the comfort, furthermore we receive 3 meals a day, and I am able to communicate with the others at assigned times¡­ Major Matthew have really treated us quite well considering the circumstances¡± The Marquis nodded and opened his mouth to ask another question when the hologram suddenly fizzled out, a moment later Matthew¡¯s modulated voice sounded out ¡°I believe this will do for confirming the state of the prisoners, shall we move onto the discussion of the ransom payments?¡± The Marquis was clearly frustrated, but he showed a diplomatic smile and accepted Matthew¡¯s suggestion, about half an hour later when the two were about to finish the negotiations Alina¡¯s voice sounded out over the local net [Something is happening, the two remaining nobles inside the keep are moving towards the courtyard now] Matthew stopped speaking mid-sentence, as the silence stretched Matthew shifted his posture to attack at a moment''s notice as his voice echoed out over the courtyard ¡°I do not like surprises¡± As the diplomatic smile on the Marquis froze, Alina¡¯s voice sounded out over the local net once again [I am moving the 30 battle androids into firing positions now, travel time for the hammer strike is set to 14 seconds on your go, Aea load a cluster munition for a high altitude dispersion onto Rail-002, I am moving in] [Don¡¯t, stay up high Alina] [But¡ª] [Stay where you are, I need to you to keep overwatch and guard against all mystic threats] Just then, the heavy wooden doors into the keep were blown open from the inside as two people strode out, one was a young man in his mid 20s, he was dressed from head to toe in fine clothes and had a sword on his hip, his face was twisted into a frown as his eyes was locked onto Matthew, the person following behind him was a woman in her early 30s, she wore a pure white robe that had a steak of vermilion red flowing down the middle, her skin was deathly pale, and her eyes bloodshot from stress and lack of sleep. The tale has been stolen; if detected on Amazon, report the violation. Marquis Elias Maitner turned around to face this unscheduled interruption and was about to blow a fuse when the young man removed a seal from his belt and casually flashed it to the Marquis that nearly spewed blood of pure shock as he instantly kneeled down followed by every single mystic knight present. ¡°Hey you, perform the ritual quickly¡± The young woman glanced briefly at Matthew before she brought her finger to her lips and bit it, before letting a drop of her blood spill into empty air as a ripple of mystic energy spread through the air, a moment later Matthew noticed the coil rifle on his shoulder shone with a vermilion red light, the young man also noted this and removed the white glove on his hand before he casually flung it at Matthew as he spoke ¡°You killed my sister, I would normally just have you flayed and executed for this, but I want to beat you to death with my own hands¡­ Do you accept my knight duel?¡± Matthew glanced down at the white glove that lay at his feet and was momentarily stunned, this bewilderment gave way to anger, then to amusement meanwhile in the background the white and red robed young woman that was accompanying the brat collapsed, clearly exhausted from the mystic ritual she just performed [...Should I just send that spoiled brat half a kilometer into the ground so we can move on, Matthew?] Alina received no response over the net, instead a quiet chuckle sounded out from Matthew before he asked ¡°Is this what passes for comedy in the Willmir empire, Marquis?¡± The Marquis remained silently keeling, but from his face that had flushed completely red from a mix of fury and embarrassment Matthew understood that he was powerless against this brat that had already moved over to the side and casually discarded his black furred cape and warmed up his shoulders just outside a white clacked mock battle circle, after a few moments he turned and looked back at Matthew before asking in a mocking tone ¡°Are you going to step up to the challenge, or should I just cut you down where you stand, barbarian?¡± A few moments passed before Matthew¡¯s voice sounded out again ¡°...Would you do me the honor of overseeing this honorable duel, Lord Marquis?¡± The Marquis nodded silently before he rose to his feet and responded ¡°Of course¡± The space next to Matthew distorted for a moment before Alina appeared, she started blankly at the Marquis that quickly ordered the proper procedures for the upcoming duel to be completed, as she turned her gaze towards the noble brat one thought went through her mind ¡®...I really just should have removed that one before he got in the way¡¯ As she continued to observe the noble brat, she quickly realized something and informed Matthew over the local net [This brat is quite the Mystic for such a young age¡­ No, something is off about him, it¡¯s like he is shrouded in a haze¡­] [Be ready to interfere the moment he attempts to use any of those mystic powers, Aea load a Marshal sword for fast delivery] [Orders received, Rail-002 tasked, package arrival in 54 seconds] ¡°Are you just about ready to face your end, barbarian?¡± Matthew didn¡¯t answer the noble brat, instead he asked him a question ¡°Do your parents know you are here interfering with a diplomatic negotiation which outcome could mean the end of Duke Adam and the youngest imperial princess?¡± The noble brat showed a smile before he turned his head to the side and spat on the ground, his disrespect clear before he spoke ¡°That old man have lived a long a fruitful life, and Erik have enough offspring and bastards that he is pitting them against each other, burying another daughter won¡¯t bother him too much¡± The noble brat laughed out loud at his own callus joke, but the silence of the Willmir mystic knights that all had had sworn a personal oath to Emperor Erik himself was deafening, the tension in the air was rippling silently about to violently exploded at any moment [...Aea, cross-reference the seal that the brat flashed earlier with the collected Neurological data] [Processing¡­ 1 result found, the seal appears to be an Imperial order of command, awarded directly to the most loyal retainers of the current Emperor, as long as the person holding it is of the same bloodline they wield the power of the Emperor, however the young male¡¯s face doesn¡¯t show up in any of the gathered Neurological data processed so far] Hearing this, something clicked for Alina and she quickly spoke [That¡¯s because his figure is shrouded, he is hidden beneath a Mystic illusion that alters his outward appearance] [That means he has already violated the laws of the knight duel before it has started, I can expose that and use it to sway the opinion of the Marquis towards aligning with us] Alina and Matthew walked towards the duel circle when the noble brat spoke arrogantly ¡°The sacred knight''s duel disallows the use of all external factors besides the use of a single sword, but I can forgive the ignorance of a lamb walking towards the slaughterhouse to be ignorant of this¡± A series of loud metal clang sounds echoed out from the front of the Mk. 22 armored suit for a few moments as it unsealed, then a hiss sounded out before it opened up in the front and Matthew stepped out, despite only wearing his usual pair of black sweat shorts the imposing air around him had not diminished now that he had stepped out of his armor ¡°I know that, you little shit¡­ Tell me, would your family prefer a closed or open casket at your funeral? Well, I guess as long as it fits in a body bag, it¡¯s fine¡­¡± The noble brat was about to curse back when he spotted a metal cylinder that flew towards the fort at amazing speed, right as he was about to shit his silk pants and deploy a Mystic barrier to protect himself from the impact a loud sound of metal meeting metal sounded out as Matthew snatched the metal cylinder out of the air faster than he could follow with his vision ¡°If you were under my command, I would have shipped you back to pearled dog shit you crawled out of in a sealed 2 liter bucket¡± As Matthew retrieved the Marshal sword and laid it on his shoulder, Ukiad, younger brother of the late Saratheen thought for the first time in his sheltered life that he might have bitten off a little more than he could chew One mans trash is another android鈥檚 treasure Matthew stepped into the chalk ring where the noble brat was waiting, he didn¡¯t need to measure out any distance to be ready to strike him as the entire ring was within his range. the only two reasons he hadn¡¯t hacked him in half already was because he was internally debating how to slaughter the noble brat and that the duel hadn¡¯t started yet [Hold off on killing him for a few moments, Matthew] Matthew let out a sigh as he shifted his stance as he stood ready, the Marquis entered the ring in between the two duelist and looked over at the noble brat and spoke ¡°State your name¡± While the noble brat might be getting cold feet, he still kept up his facade of bravado and glared dismissively at Matthew as he stated his name ¡°Ukiad¡± Marquis Elias nodded and looked over at Matthew and spoke again ¡°State your name¡± ¡°Matthew Rockwell¡± With the simple procedure done, the Marquis looked back at Ukiad, then back at Matthew before he declared ¡°I, Marquis Elias Maitner declare this knight duel before me valid, any murder or harm resulting from it will be pardoned by my authority¡± Then he turned around and walked out of the ring before he turned again and declared ¡°Begin!¡± At the start signal, neither side moved, Matthew held his Marshal sword out with his right hand as he stood side on towards Ukiad, still not letting go of his bravado Ukiad stepped forwards carefully measuring out the distance between them as he taunted ¡°What¡¯s wrong, have you sprouted roots into the ground already, barbarian?¡± Matthew didn¡¯t respond, instead he lowered his sword slightly before he suddenly stepped in towards Ukaid and blocked the sword slash that met him, Ukiad clearly didn¡¯t expect the sudden advancement from Matthew, furthermore the Marshal sword being far heavier than it looked gave Matthew all the opening he needed to carve Ukiad in two then and there [Wait! Don¡¯t kill him] As Matthew let the chance slip, Ukiad quickly took some distance and raised his defense once more, seeing that he had missed his chance to instantly end this farce Matthew complained over the local net to Alina [...Please tell me why I can¡¯t carve this brat in half already] Alina didn¡¯t answer as Matthew and Ukiad started to circle the ring in full focus on each other, after half a rotation Alina¡¯s ecstatic voice sounded out over the net [His body¡­ According to Aea¡¯s scans and my Mystic probes it''s a manufactured body, there¡¯s a core that seems to contain his consciousness in the middle of his chest!] ¡°...Huh¡± Matthew¡¯s surprise puzzled Ukiad for a moment which presented Matthew a chance to strike which he took, quickly stepping in once again Matthew stabbed forwards with the tip of his sword which was reflected by Ukiad¡¯s sword as he stepped into Matthew¡¯s range and twisted his sword to the side flicking Matthew¡¯s sword away as he slashed after the side of Matthew¡¯s neck, Matthew watched the blade approach his neck for a few milliseconds as he brought up his left hand and struck the flat side of the blade sending it above his head as he stepped in and planted his left elbow in the stomach of Ukiad that was blown back a few steps as he grasped for air ¡°Y¡­You b¡­¡± ¡°Yeah, yeah¡­ Sleep tight¡± Before Ukiad could recover or finish his sentence, Matthew stepped in and stuck his chin with the hilt of his sword, knocking out Ukiad that crumbled backwards like a sack of potatoes This text was taken from Royal Road. Help the author by reading the original version there. ¡°Winner, Matthew Rockwell!¡± As the Marquis declared him the winner of the duel, Matthew grabbed Ukiad by the scruff of the neck before lifting him off the ground and before the Marquis or anyone else could protest he turned and placed Ukiad into the Mk. 22 that closed around him, then he showed a smile to the Marquis as he spoke while the Mk. 22 turned and kicked off the ground heading West at once ¡°Well then, lord Marquis, should we finish up the current negotiations?¡± The Marquis glanced at the Mk. 22 that now contained Ukiad as it leaped clear over the Western walls before he glanced back at Matthew¡¯s bright smile and eventually decided that risking his and his knight''s life to rescue a noble brat who had interrupted a formal diplomatic negotiation and had risked Duke Adam and the youngest princess killed to only lose a knight duel wasn¡¯t worth it. To the Marquis, that brat had caused his own undoing, and now that Matthew had ¡®taken out the trash¡¯ for him so to speak he made a mental note to have the scribes burn any recordings of the noble brats interference [Aea, do we still have Mystic knight corpses on ice?] [Affirmative, biological analysis and disposal have yet to be scheduled] [Examine all female corpses for any similarities to the current occupant of the Mk. 22 and begin work on a digital interface capable of interfacing with the core containing his consciousness] [Orders received] - As Matthew and Alina worked to bring their bout with the Willmir empire to a close and receive due compensation, another conflict was well under way around a week''s travel time South of Basecamp ¡°...They just keep coming, don¡¯t they¡­ I don¡¯t believe this a simple retaliatory raid anymore¡± As he complained, Iaka brought up his coil rifle and took aim, as a Forge champion he had seen many such retaliatory raids each occurring roughly a week after the slave takers returned with their bounty, but it had been well over two moon cycles since the last slave raids ¡°Look on the bright side Iaka, we are able to replenish our stock of mining slaves for at least a few years with this¡± Iaka squeezed the trigger slowly, a few moments later a barrage of coil rifle fire rained down on the advancing invaders about a kilometer ahead of their group, Iaka raised his right hand and made a few hand signals that quickly directed the entire platoon of Forge champions to move to the next firing position before he also kicked off and sprinted as he spoke to Ruhi though the microphone on his headset ¡°I still have a bad feeling about this, the sentinels still haven¡¯t brought down the berserker rampaging around in the 4th sector yet either¡± Around a month ago a Turman kingdom army had arrived at the edge of the mountain territory, this army had long since been dealt with, but soon after another larger army had arrived and now a even larger 3rd expeditionary army sent by the Turman kingdom had arrived while the steel guardians of the forge, the holy sentinels, were still busy dealing with the 2nd army and the emerald green haired berserker that led it - Matthew sat himself up on the soft bed and let out a heavy sigh before he rolled off it and sat down against the wall next to it and curled up his legs [Do you require sleeping aid, master?] ¡®...No, I don¡¯t feel like sleeping anymore¡¯ The diplomatic negotiations with the Willmir empire had been completed, they had secured 2200 silver coins and 15 platinum coins in total for the full release of their current prisoners, Alina had returned to Basecamp where she was preparing to Displace the prisoners to the formal exchange that would happen at dawn [I may be able to assist you in a lot of matters master, but I can¡¯t rest your body for you] ¡®I¡¯ll be fine, don''t your biological readings tell you so?¡¯ [The importance of rest goes past the physical needs of your body master] ¡®The bed is too soft, I feel like I am sinking through the floor¡¯ [Should I inform the mistress of your lack of cooperation in this matter?] ¡°...Please don¡¯t¡± [Understood, shall we finish the rundown of the last 4 types of nanites where we left off two months ago?] ¡®...Why not, we went through the Trauma, Blood, Bone, Nerve and Organ nanites already, right?¡¯ [Yes, the next on our list is Forge bio-nanites which not only is capable of schematic manufacturing but also replenishment of other stored nanites given an external material supply, though greater material efficiency can be achieved by interfacing with any class BuleArrow approved fabricator] ¡®So it¡¯s the Forge nanites I¡¯ve used so far to manufacture most of the stuff at the Basecamp?¡¯ [Yes, though the construction of a fabricator is highly recommended to scale up production] ¡®...Noted, by the way, have any of the analyzed materials so far been suitable for nanite manufacturing?¡¯ [Yes, some trace elements discovered in some metal armor, but the observed amount was deemed negligible due to the current manufacturing efficiently] ¡®Okay, so what is next on the list?¡¯ [The Data bio-nanites which I¡¯ve mentioned before manages all internal data storage on the Code arrow 09 and local network interfacing, as well as this Data bio-nanites can also be used for general data gathering of almost any matter for application of other nanite patterns] Matthew nodded, the local network which he and Alina communicated on was nothing fancy like a general satellite data uplink connection but instead clever use of surveillance drones which bounced the signal along over longer distances, this had been Aea¡¯s suggestion instead of investing the recuses into more conventional solutions exactly due to the Data nanites which Aea had explained briefly then ¡®Yeah, the local network is really useful, it certainly gives a lot of overwatch, having hundreds of drones in the sky¡­ Is it also the Data nanites that is used to harvest bio matter?¡¯ [No, general nanites handle that, though the analysis of the gathered bio matter to best apply it is handled by Data nanites] ¡®I see¡­ So what¡¯s the next nanite type?¡¯ [The next is Maintenance, which handles power and material transfer to other nanites patterns and performs general maintenance and repair work on the Code arrow 09] ¡®That sounds simple enough to understand, so what¡¯s the last type?¡¯ [The last type is Improvement, which is what required the significant hardware upgrade and software development that went into the 56 years of the Code arrow 09¡¯s development, by gathering data from all other specialized nanites and by cross-referencing internal schematics it is now possible for a single Code arrow 09 to develop and utilize new types of bio-nanites or hardware for unforeseen or very specific tasks the user desires] Matthew blinked a few times before a smile showed on his face as he spoke out loud ¡°...So developing and manufacturing, bionic implants or nanites capable of wielding Mystic powers are possible?¡± [Yes, very much so, in fact development of an experimental first generation bionic implant is nearing completion] Scheming in the dead of night The hours passed while Matthew sat against the wall while he continued to adjust their plans and goals going forwards over the next months and years with regard to the first generation Mystic power enabled implant and after a few hours of back and forth with Aea to simulate potential pros and cons he decided on the next objective ¡®We need to put up some satellites as soon as possible, more surveillance, long distance mineral prospecting, orbital weaponry and further mapping all seem too good to wait for any longer, what do you propose as a launch device, Aea?¡¯ [Considering current material and production capabilities, a two stage chemical rocket seems like the best choice] ¡®Hmm¡­ I would have liked you to propose a multipurpose high caliber cloud ripper¡¯ [Current capacitor storage and energy production is limited, I can¡¯t recommend the construction of a large caliber mass drive at the current stage, no matter the military applications] Matthew clicked his tongue, as a major of the 913th Penance Marines which main jobs consisted of ¡®Softening the drop sites¡¯ and ¡®Urban militia subjugation¡¯ his appreciation for the damage one could do with a single could ripper, let alone a battery of 4 ¡®...That¡¯s right¡­ I captured one once¡­¡¯ Matthew closed his eyes to focus on the emerging memory, though after a few minutes all he could remember was that a platoon of Penance Marines under his command had dropped from orbit directly on the command bunker of a hostile world and taken over a could ripper battery while suffering heavy casualties in the progress, only to use it to target their own ships in orbit, the face of the Trerubic Empire admiral shouting at him to cease fire was a pleasant memory to rediscover ¡°Heh¡­ I have a feeling that I treasured that memory dearly¡± Chuckling at the rediscovered memory for a few moments, Matthew was suddenly snapped back to reality as a knock from the door to his room echoed out followed by a voice ¡°Major Matthew?¡± ¡®...Who¡¯s my guest?¡¯ [Surveillance drones indicate it is the Mystic that followed Ukiad] ¡®Hmm¡­¡¯ Matthew rose to his feet and walked over to the door and open it, sure enough it was the same Mystic woman, she wore the same white robe with the vermilion streak following down the middle, her pale complexion also seemed to have lessened significantly, and her eyes were no longer as bloodshot as Matthew had remembered them, she carried a Candlestick with a white candle which illuminated her ¡°Can I help you, Mystic?¡± The Mystic blinked a few times as she suddenly found herself face to face with Matthew, that as usual only wore a pair of black sweet shorts, her pale face grew a shade paler as she stammered ¡°I-I have something to discuss with you, Major, may I come in?¡± ¡®...Inform Alina and start a recording to prove my innocence, Aea¡¯ [Confirmed, the mistress has been informed] Matthew took half a step back and gestured for the Mystic to enter his room before he shut the door after her, when he turned around he saw her light another candle on a table before she took a seat, Matthew took his seat across from her on the other side of the table, a moment after he sat the Mystic spoke A case of content theft: this narrative is not rightfully on Amazon; if you spot it, report the violation. ¡°My name is Selina Lechner I am a Bloodnier Mystic currently under the employment of Maitner Mystic guild¡± Matthew nodded, according to Alina Bloodnier Mystics dealt mostly with nobility as their innate mystic abilities allowed them to detect and then trace bloodlines and as Selina had demonstrated earlier she was also capable of tracing the killer of Ukiad¡¯s sister which had likely lead to Ukiad hiring her to track down Matthew, after a moment Matthew asked ¡°What can I assist you with, Selina?¡± Selina spoke at once ¡°I have two questions for you, Major¡­ First of, I am obligated to ask what you have done with my employer?¡± Matthew showed a small smile and answered vaguely ¡°Sir Ukiad is currently undergoing medical treatment in a Trerubic facility West of here, he will be returned to the Willmir empire once all physical trauma I inflicted on him doing our duel have been treated¡± Selina let out a sigh before she nodded and spoke in a more casual tone ¡°Thank you for that, with that my contract with Sir Ukiad has ended¡­ If you personally or any Trerubic Empire diplomats ever visit the Western region capital city of Maitner I will happily accommodate your requests¡± After she finished speaking, Selina bowed her head for a few seconds before she raised it again and spoke ¡°This leads me to my second question¡­ I know it is a rather delicate question, so I apologize if I offend you¡­ But as a Bloodnier Mystic indebted to Marquis Maitner, I am inclined to ask the Trerubic Empire¡¯s intentions by sending you here, Major¡± Matthew saw no problems with Selina¡¯s question and answered her ¡°As the senior office that intercepted the incursion into Trerubic territory, I am simple required to complete all other diplomatic duties, after all it would be quite expensive for emperor Samual Junathan Trerubic to send a diplomatic envoy for every small border skirmish¡± Selina continued to stare at Matthew in silence for a few moments before she asked a not so subtle leading question ¡°So it wouldn¡¯t be out of the question for you to be assigned to handle any further diplomatic contact with the Willmir empire?¡± Matthew simply smiled and nodded in response, a few moments later Selina stood up and bowed before she spoke ¡°Thank you for answering my questions Major Matthew, please excuse me¡± Then she left Matthew¡¯s room and closed the door after her, Matthew let out a sigh as he rose from his seat ¡®Would you mind tagging that one, Aea?¡¯ [Understood, 3 surveillance drones have been assigned to monitor Selina Lechner] Matthew showed a smile before he reached out and snuffed the candle on the table with his hand - Marquis Elias Maitner let out a deep sigh and began massaging his temples before he spoke ¡°Thank you for your report Selina¡± Selina nodded, she looked a little tense facing the Marquis in the office, she had just finished reporting on the conversation she had with Matthew a few minutes prior, even now she felt the silent terror the Major inflicted on her by his mere presence, normal people might also be able to tell to some degree, but Selina as a Bloodnier Mystic felt it all too well ¡®He was covered in blood, bathed in it for hundreds of years at the very least¡­¡¯ ¡°Selina, is something wrong?¡± Selina remained silent which caused the Marquis to let out a sigh before he opened a drawer in his desk and pulled out a pair of crystal glasses and a bottle of high proof wine from the Eastern provinces, as he twisted the cork off the top he spoke to Selina ¡°The official report is over Selina, I simply wish to know what¡¯s on your mind¡± Selina watched as the Marquis poured her a glass before she nodded and sipped a little of the wine as she organized her thoughts, a few minutes passed as the two drank in silence, after a few minutes Selina spoke ¡°The amount of war one would have to wage to spill that much blood baffles me my lord, I can¡¯t really comprehend it¡­¡± The Marquis nodded as he stroked his chin, after a few moments he spoke ¡°Assuming the Major haven¡¯t fabricated the blood scent to trick your mystic senses, I am starting to have doubts about the validity of an entire empire suddenly appearing on the Western fringes¡± Selina nodded, she also suspected her Mystic senses had been interfered with, if fact she became more and more sure of it, after all the bloodshed that would be required for him to earn his current blood stench was more unbelievable in her eyes as she muttered ¡°...One question I have is why go through all that trouble? Setting up an outpost of some kind in the Western fringes, fabricating an entire empire with names and titles seems like the cost far outweighs the benefits earned so far¡­¡± The Marquis nodded once again after taking another sip of wine he spoke ¡°No, it¡¯s not a question, it is the only question we should consider¡­ Obvious, the Major himself possess quite the marshal and physical power, but suppressing him and the golem soldiers he brought with him is still completely feasible¡± Selina was about to warn the Marquis once again about the blood stench that lingered on Matthew, but she stopped herself from mentioning it again, she emptied the grass and thanked the Marquis ¡°Thank you for the wine, lord¡­ Would you like me to cure your blood?¡± The Marquis nodded, he had quite the important event at dawn, and being half drunk would spoil his loyal servant of the empire in the eyes of Duke Adam, Selina performed a quick Mystic ritual and removed the alcohol from the Marquis¡¯ body sobering him up at once, with his sober mind came clarity and certainty of the plan his intoxicated self had hatched ¡°Have a pleasant night my lord¡± The marquis nodded to Selina as she closed the door to his room, he rose from his seat and paced back and forth in his office for a few hours as he continued to outline his budding plans, not only for the prisoner exchange, but also for his allegiance to the Willmir empire going forwards A slight difference in training As the Eastern sky slowly turned red with the dawning sun Matthew left his room in the central fort and walked down the stairs before he exited the building, as soon as he stepped out into the courtyard a lot of eyes fell on him, with the lack of readily available artificial light the people of the Willmir Empire appeared to be early risers, this was also likely to be because fort Adam was an important military position, double so with a forging diplomat present ¡®...Their forms aren¡¯t all that bad¡¯ All sorts of practice were going on in the courtyard, from sparring matches to groups of knights running laps along the walls in training armor, Matthew found a place where he wouldn¡¯t be in the way and crossed his arms as he silently waited for the arranged time and Alina to contact him, the minutes passed by uneventfully as Matthew waited until Aea voiced a report [A convoy have been detected, 14 kilometers to the East, current speed indicated arrival a little after dawn] ¡®What¡¯s the composition of this convoy?¡¯ [Patching in video feed, stand by¡­] Matthew closed his left eye to lessen the dizziness of his sudden shift in perspective as he looked down at the convoy Aea had mentioned [112 mounted knights, 3 central carriages carrying a total of 14 people, 4 of which appears to be VIPs] Matthew watched as the video feed as it switched to a thermal image feed, after looking at the 4 thermal signatures which Aea had predicted to be VIP¡¯s long enough to memorize their height and approximate build he opened his left eye again as the video feed from the surveillance drone was cut off ¡®Mark the 4 VIPs and notify me if the convoy makes any sudden changes to speed or heading¡¯ [Orders received] ¡°Good morning miss Selina¡± Just as Matthew spoke, the Bloodnier Mystic Selina stepped out of the central fort, she appeared a little spooked about being greeted suddenly by Matthew that wasn¡¯t even looking at her, but she quickly calmed herself down and returned his greeting ¡°Good morning, Major¡± As Matthew remained silent beyond his greeting, Selina felt a little awaked and followed his line of sight towards the sparing rings where Matthew had won his duel over Ukiad the day before and asked ¡°...Does the training regiment of our knights interest you?¡± Matthew shrugged before he turned to look at Selina ¡°It¡¯s more than a little rudimentary, but well practiced movements are better than overly complicated ones, muscle memory is what most people falls back on when they are under stress¡± Selina nodded, remembering the praise she received from the Marquis on her report last night as well as their conclusion that Matthew was some sort of sham that had fabricated both the empire that backed him and the blood stench that covered him like a coat she asked a rather bold question ¡°Then how does the Trerubic Empire train their soldiers? I imagine it''s similar to this, no?¡± [Change in behavior of Willmir Empire marked target detected, shifting current operation to plan 37C-11] Matthew saw though the polite wording of Selina¡¯s question and faced it as it was, without the flowery language: a thinly veiled jab at his martial powers and the power of the Trerubic Empire, however he contained his annoyance and answered her question flatly Reading on this site? This novel is published elsewhere. Support the author by seeking out the original. ¡°As a Penance Marine, I can¡¯t comment on the training of the regular army or any more specialized forces¡± ¡°Then how does a soldier like you train?¡± Selina had grown bolder at Matthew¡¯s vague answer and asked him with an extra emphasis on ¡®A solider like you¡¯ the implications of which were clear [Matthew calm¡ª] Matthew ignored Aea¡¯s voice that rang out in his mind as a warm smile spread on his face as he chuckled to himself, his eyes however weren¡¯t exactly projecting happy thoughts, then he looked around and walked over to a wooden weapon stand as he picked up a practice wooden sword and balanced it in his hand for a few moments as he spoke ¡°A well-made imitation, the heavy metal core ensures the heft mirrors that of a real sword without the danger to aspirants¡± Even if it wasn¡¯t that loud Matthew¡¯s voice carried over the courtyard, some of the more experienced soldiers had also noticed the silent fury that radiated from him and made the closest soldiers to him back away as the courtyard fell silent, after admiring the practice sword for a few moments, Matthew tightened his grip around the wooden blade, loud sounds of strain echoed out from the wood as it cracked and broke as Matthew spoke ¡°After I was conscripted, I was put into a cage the size of this courtyard along with a hundred other traitors to the Trerubic Empire, men women and children shaved bald and stripped nude still dusty with the white parasite replant we had been blasted with before being thrown into our cage¡­¡± Matthew stared off into space as he recalled his past, meanwhile the wooden sword in his hand strained loudly in his hand as it cracked into pieces ¡°After two days, the traitors had gathered in small groups, huddling together to avoid freezing to death during the night. After not being fed let alone given water the weakest started dining off around the 3rd night, and at the dawn of the 5th day our cage opened¡­ People gathered expecting supplies¡ª¡± Matthew suddenly increased his grip tightly, completely shattering the wooden part of the practice sword with a loud crack before he suddenly and violently stabbed the metal core into the compacted dirt below his feet, the dull impacted echoed out over the silent courtyard for a few moments before he continued speaking ¡°What arrived was a metal bar, around the size of this one, along with the condition of our release¡­ To reduce the number of traitors to 5, if we showed our penance in this way we would be given food and water, along with purpose to our worthless lives¡± Matthew slowly rose to his feet as he continued to stare at the mangled practice sword for a few moments before he turned his head to look at Selina that instinctively took half a step back in, primal fear was instilled into her from the cold gaze from Matthew¡¯s eyes as he spoke without emotion ¡°So to answer your question simply miss Selina¡­ The training I underwent wasn¡¯t quite like this of these knights¡± As Selina felt uncontrollable dread come over her from Matthew¡¯s cold stare and right as she felt like she was about to pass out Matthew broke his gaze and looked towards the East as a notification from Aea sounded out in his mind [The marked convoy¡¯s speed has increased, estimated arrival in 300 seconds, also according to the mistress orders when you ignored my request earlier I notified her] ¡®You did wha¡ª¡¯ Matthew¡¯s thoughts were suddenly interrupted by a sudden impact that sent a wave of pain through his right arm, his expression didn¡¯t change but given the pain he experienced it was clear to him that the bone in his upper right arm, his Humerus had been fractured, at least his arm turning rapidly purple from internal hemorrhaging told him so, a moment later a clear voice sounded out ¡°I clearly instructed you not to act out, Major¡± Just as Matthew was about to be confused, Aea¡¯s voice sounded out in his mind [Current operation has been shifted to plan 37C-11, please act accordingly] Not feeling like earning the ire of Aea on top of the already pissed off Alina, he quickly recalled the specifics of plan 37C-11 he had been briefed on at length by Aea and acted accordingly as he turned around and made a Trerubic military salute by standing up straight facing Alina that had appeared floating in the air behind him and placing his right closed fist over his heart ¡°Good morning, Captain¡± [Trauma pattern 1 assigned to injury, 14 seconds until full recovery] Matthew felt his bones mending slowly as he held his salute while Alina landed in front of him and walked past him without acknowledging his presence, she played the part of a superior officer well, at least Matthew remembered the officers from the regular army acting similarly as she was at the moment, after walking past Matthew she stopped and violently warped the space behind her which made a chair appear as she sat down and spoke loudly addressing the crowd ¡°I have been tasked with taking over negotiations from where Major Matthew left off, you have an hour to produce the agreed upon ransom, any outstanding payment will be deducted 1 kilogram of flesh per single silver coin¡± Finished saying what she needed to Alina warped space behind her once more and Matthew¡¯s Mk. 22 armored suit appeared, Matthew relaxed his salute when Alina raised her hand casually, then he entered the suit, as it closed around him life instantly returned to the courtyard as the knights and servants quickly scrambled to get ready for the exchange, after a few minutes Marquis Elias Maitner arrived as the servants scrambled to set up for the meeting ¡°Greetings, my name is Elias Maitner, I hold the rank of Marquis and I have been representing the Willmir Empire in the ongoing negotiations¡± ¡°I am Captain Alina, I have been informed about you by my subordinates, I was under the impression that we would be doing the exchange at dawn?¡± The Marquis nodded and spoke clearly ¡°I have received word that my treasurer will be arriving any moment now with the funds¡­ But I have yet to see any of our knights?¡± Just then Aea delivered a report over the local network [The approaching caravan have halted its movement 1200 meters from the East gate] Matthew let out a sigh as he realized what was about to go down, now that Alina had taken the role of a Trerubic Captain, she was likely to act in a similar manner and Trerubic military protocol dictated that any perceived slight or provocation by a lesser power be responded with painful lessons in kind Full send Seeing the Marquis blatant attempt at taking control of the situation Matthew asked Alina over the local net [...What now? Full send?] Alina didn''t respond over the local net, instead Matthew received a notification from Aea just as Alina¡¯s internals began spiking with heat [Artillery alert issued in current sector synchronized impact strike assigned by A1, Cluster, Cluster, HE, HE, Hammer, Hammer, updating trajectory overlay, 135 seconds until impact] Matthew stared at the increasing amount of red lines that appeared on his visual feed and concluded ¡®Pedal to the metal, got it¡­ Hit me with a little pre-workout Aea¡¯ [Confirmed, preloading bloodstream with biological boosters] As Matthew¡¯s bloodstream was flooded with biological boosters and stimulants, Alina¡¯s voice sounded out over the local net [The Marquis seems to be under some sort of Mystic power, Aea give me a scan of his vitals] As Matthew prepared for the ensuring violence, Alina asked as she tilted her head slightly to the side as her knife ears began moving rapidly ¡°I was informed the negotiations had already been completed? Are you breaking our agreement, Marquis?¡± At Alina¡¯s question, the Marquis¡¯ face reddened in rage as he suddenly shouted ¡°YOU CAN TAKE YOUR AGREEMENT AND STICK IT UP YOUR METAL ASS, YOU PRETENDER!¡± [Biological readings of Marquis Elias Maitner indicate a heart rate of 180 BPM, Infrared readings indicate multiple internal bleeding, hemorrhagic stroke imminent] As the Marquis¡¯ yell echoed out over the courtyard the surrounding knights reacted at once and brandished their weapons, from the looks on their faces they were more than a little confused about the Marquis¡¯ sudden outburst, but a few sprung into action at once, sadly they were too late [Inbound, 5 seconds] Matthew moved at the same time as the knights did, the closest knight¡¯s spear lit up with a Mystic purple fire, sensing the danger Matthew didn¡¯t rely on his armor and in an unexpected feat of agility Matthew¡¯s figure flashed forwards as he slid past the spear tip and delivered a punch to the center of the Mystic knights plate, denting it inwards and sending the knight flying backwards, before any more knights reached Matthew or Alina a series of explosions echoed out over the entire fortress - Selina moved across the wilderness with frankly inhumane speed as her entire body silently morphed and changed, after a few moments the appearance of ¡®Selina¡¯ her name for the last 8 years when she had killed the original Selina and taken her appearance disappeared along with a small portion of her Mystic powers ¡®With this the Western Region lord will perish dead and the Willmir Empire will have a new front open up on its Western fringes¡­ I really do owe Major Matthew a dinner¡¯ A smile showed on Eva¡¯s face, just then distant explosions echoed out behind her, as she glanced over her shoulder she saw Fort Adam disintegrate, as her initial shock wore off she muttered in half amazement If you encounter this tale on Amazon, note that it''s taken without the author''s consent. Report it. ¡°The Major sure does carry a big stick¡­¡± Then a horrible chill went down her spine as she instantly dodged to the side as Matthew landed right where her original path would had led her to ¡°Why hi there Selina, I believe I am still owed a meal¡± Eva flashed a smile to Matthew as she prepared to bolt once again, with her shedding the appearance of Selina she would soon lose most of her strength and become enfeebled for a few days, before then she had to lose the Major and find a hiding place to recover ¡°I am afraid that will have to be at another time¡± As Eva spoke, she covertly wielded Mystic powers to distort the space in between the two of them to open up critical space between the two of them in order to escape, however unknown to Eva, Matthew had eyes in the sky and instantly pursued her ¡°Come on now, don¡¯t be shy¡± Eva felt the Major rapidly catch up to her and reached into her pocket to use her last resort, unfortunately Matthew wasn¡¯t alone in pursuing her and the instant she was about to crush the gem that would displace her to a faraway location metal slugs passed through her shoulders and knees instantly disabling her as she tumbled over, a few moments later Matthew caught up to her and casually flipped her over to lay on her back and confirmed she was not only still alive but also conscious before he spoke with a cheeky grin ¡°Nah, let¡¯s go for something to eat now¡± ¡°As I said¡­ I am afraid I will have to take a rain check on that¡± Eve showed a smile back and before Matthew was able to grab her jaw to keep her from clenching it she had bit down on her fake tooth which instantly exploded, destroying her entire head and sending chunks of flesh, bone and brain flying all over the place, Matthew stared at the gore completely stunned for a few moments before he spoke ¡°...Now that¡¯s some bullshit right there¡± A moment later Alina¡¯s voice sounded out over the local net [What happened?¡­ Oh¡­ Well, bring back her corpse at least] Matthew let out a sigh and grabbed the leg of the dismembered corpse and brought it back to the ruined fortress, when he arrived back at the fort Alina stood outside the walls in seemingly full focus, Matthew tossed the corpse down on the ground and waited for Alina to be done with what she was doing, a few minutes later 3 carriages covered in high velocity blood splatter appeared in front of her, Matthew walked over to the central one and tore the side off it before he pulled out a wooden chest and placed it down on the ground before he tore it open ¡°...Jackpot¡± Silvery metal gleamed from inside the chest, it was filled to the brim with minted silver coins Alina wielded her Mystic powers and quickly retrieved another 8 similar wooden chest ¡°...This feels like a lot more coin than was due for the ransom¡± Matthew remained silent and walked over to another carriage where he ripped the side off it and retrieved a small lockbox and tore the lid off it, inside were stacks of minted platinum coins, Alina waved her hand and retrieved another strong box from the wrecked before she displaced the wrecked carriages away ¡°Now then¡­ What are we going to do now?¡± Alina didn¡¯t answer Matthew¡¯s question, instead she made a surprisingly humanlike stretch before she proposed ¡°Should we think it over at home?¡± Matthew nodded, the androids would pick through the fortress ruins for a few more days to acquire any salvageable resources and intact Neurological bio data containers (Severed heads) and bring them back to Basecamp in the following days anyway, so there was no need to pick through the rubble themselves ¡°Yeah, let¡¯s head home¡± A few moments after Matthew spoke, the two of them disappeared as Alina sent them back along with their loot¡­ - The news of Fort Adam¡¯s destruction spread over the Willmir empire within a week, it was no exaggeration that the politics of the entire central continent shifted at once to focus on the Western fringes of Willmir where a seemingly powerful new country had not only appeared but also shattered a key fortress and assassinated the Lord of the Western region which sent the region into a brief pandemonium before the emperor wrestled back control over the region over the next 2 weeks, and finally 3 weeks after the fall of Fort Adam the emperor sent a army of 150.000 to crush Trerubic Empire outpost believed to be somewhere in the Western fringes near fort Adam - 3 days had passed since Matthew and Alina had destroyed the fortress to their East, so far they had worked out a short term plan for dealing with the Willmir empire''s military response, which included artillery, a lot more artillery, another 2 rail cannons had already been constructed and in a few days time the hybrid launch vehicle was going to be ready to put the first satellite into orbit ¡°So, this entire world is like a small round ball of dirt floating through water?¡± WIth the concept of sending up a satellite, Matthew had undergone the task of explaining the wider galaxy and solar system in purely physical terms to Alina ¡°Yes, though the water is simply empty space, like gravity holds this world together this word and possible others are orbiting the central sun through the same force¡± Having Aea help by displaying visual aids on a screen helped with teaching Alina on this concept, though Matthew knew Aea would explain this way better than him, he wasn¡¯t so dense to offload this task on Aea when Alina had specifically asked him to explain it to her Alina nodded, she was about to raise a concern when Matthew spoke again ¡°So by placing a satellite out in the nothingness and keeping it at a certain speed it will stay where we want it¡± Alina nodded, she was trying her best to comprehend what Matthew was teaching, both as a person born in what could be considered the Middle Ages and as a Displacer with a very high, but self-taught understanding of space, after deciding she was going to have to spend some time later to fully comprehend this she asked ¡°So we could place a satellite over the Basecamp to keep an eye on the surrounding area at all times?¡± Matthew nodded and continued explaining his vision for their further satellite and space exploitation plans, while Alina suppressed her unease Wicka of the Mighty Endurance ¡°...The Marquis is dead?¡± ¡°Very much so, we were also forced to annihilate the fortress when he ordered an attack on us¡± Duke Adam closed his eyes and massaged his temples, he had requested an update on the situation regarding his release from Matthew and even if he had expected something had gone wrong since he had yet to be released he hadn¡¯t expected the negotiations to fumble at the last moments, finished gathering his thoughts Duke Adam opened his eyes again and looked straight at the monitor that displayed Matthew ¡°...So what happens now?¡± Matthew shrugged, he appeared unconcerned, but the Duke knew from observing him over the period of his imprisonment that he was testing him, it had become clear to him that Matthew was far older and wiser than his appearance and mannerism suggested, besides this the Duke had also become increasingly convinced that the Major was some sort of deviant from the apparent pleasure he took in doing these ¡®test¡¯ in almost every conversation the two had ¡°Was there anything odd about the Marquis after I spoke with him?¡± The Duke noticed it, a flash of subdued emotion flashed through the Major¡¯s eyes, it appeared that he had asked the right question ¡®There it is again¡­¡¯ ¡°Well, shortly after the Marquis¡¯s demise I caught a Mystic that had transformed her appearance fleeing the screen at inhuman speed, she appeared to have manipulated the Marquis to the extent that he decided to order the attack¡± Duke Adam blinked a few times before he leaned back in the metal chair and massaged his temples again to slow the approaching headache, the pieces of information Matthew had given him made him see the whole picture, and it wasn¡¯t one he liked very much, after a few moments he muttered ¡°Damned Skinweavers of the far east¡­¡± ¡°Skinweavers? Is that what she was?¡± Duke Adam nodded before he spoke ¡°It¡¯s the name of a tribe originally from the far east, those of pure blood can take the appearance and mystic abilities from fresh corpses¡­ They¡¯ve caused quite the havoc in the central plains for a few decades now¡± ¡°Fascinating¡­ Do they have any relation to your teacher?¡± Duke Adam felt a pang of pain when Matthew referred to Saratheen, his late teacher and mentor in his life, but still he shook his head, then he noticed Matthew¡¯s sly smile and asked ¡°How did you make that conjecture in the first place?¡± Matthew shrugged and spoke ¡°I just saw two Mystic abilities that seemed oddly unique and suggested they were related, but I guess not¡­ Saratheen is alive by the way¡± Duke Adam narrow his eyes as his face hardened before he spoke ¡°Consider your words, Major¡± Matthew¡¯s smile widened slightly as he waved his had to dismiss Duke Adam¡¯s anger as a picture flashed up on the monitor which displayed an orb that looked like it was made of obsidian glass as Matthew spoke ¡°Her physical body is dead, that much is true, but after taking possession of her younger brother we discovered that their kind store their consciousness in this orb located in their upper bodies¡­ Aea haven¡¯t quite crunched the numbers on an interface yet, but it should be ready in a few weeks time¡± The Duke stared blankly at the black orb in a daze for some time, evidently a rather long time as when he snapped out of his daze he discovered that Matthew¡¯s figure had disappeared from the monitor at some point, the Duke silently wiped the tears from his old eyes as a thought passed through his mind ¡®...Looks like that deviant of a Major has at least some amount of tact¡± - ¡°Well, it seems like the nature of Saratheen and Ukiad is unknown to the Willmir royalty too¡± Alina nodded, she had been watching Matthew¡¯s conversation with Duke Adam on the sideline, or more accurately from front row seats, she had been glued to Matthew since she ended her 3-day-long meditation session last night, Matthew could feel it even though he wasn¡¯t a Mystic, after his teaching session about space and the wider solar system her abilities as a Displacer appeared to have undergone a significant chance ¡®It¡¯s like the very space around her is vibrating from being overloaded with pure energy¡­¡¯ ¡°So, what should we do now?¡± Matthew thought for a few moments before he looked to the side where the newest construction project was nearing completion Unauthorized usage: this narrative is on Amazon without the author''s consent. Report any sightings. ¡°Well¡­ There¡¯s still a little time left before the Mass Driver is completed, so should we go shoot for a bit?¡± Alina nodded and got up from her seat (Matthew) before she tightly hugged her walking aid (Matthew¡¯s left arm) the two took the short walk over to the shooting range which consisted of a single wide shooting booth directed towards the South where a 2-kilometer range had been cleared out of the forest with around 150 different static and movable targets were placed at various ranges, Alina picked up her Coil pistol from the rack ¡°Do you still remember what we went over last time?¡± Alina nodded to which Matthew showed a smile and spoke ¡°So unlike a rifle, pistols are a generally less accurate at long distances, this is to a number of limitations, some of the weapon itself, but most are due to¡ª¡± As Matthew continued to teach Alina about firing pistols, which she had shown a preference for after completing Matthew¡¯s general shooting course, time passed, and soon the sky turned orange as the sun slowly sank towards the horizon in the West, as the day neared its end a notification from Aea sounded out over the local net [Mass Driver construction completed] Matthew looked at Alina with practically sparkling eyes, he was like a kid at his birthday looking at a parent pleading with his eyes to open his presents and like a dotting parent Alina didn¡¯t require much puppy dog eye contact to be convinced and put down her pistol ¡°Sure, let¡¯s do it¡± Matthew nodded and spoke out loud ¡°Load S-0001¡¯s launch vehicle into the Mass Driver¡± [Orders received, loading launch vehicle into Mass Driver¡­] Alina and Matthew made their way back to the roof of their house, where they watched as the crane finished lowering the launch vehicle into the Mass Driver, the Mass Driver itself stood almost 10 meters tall and featured a 6 meters wide 20 meter long barrel, it was in essence a large Rail cannon, but instead of being tasked with putting warheads on foreheads, Mass Drivers were rather commonly used in civilian industry for surface to orbit transport, of course due to the local conditions Aea had calculated a Mass Driver with a barrel length of over 100 meters was needed to put a satellite into a stable orbit with purely electromagnetic propulsion, this is where the Launch vehicle came into the picture [Loading completed, go ahead with launch?] ¡°Go¡± [Go confirmed, loading capacitor banks for rapid charge¡­ 1 minute 30 seconds until launch] The Launch vehicle was in essence a two stage rocket booster, the first booster utilized a solid propellant that would carry the satellite into the upper atmosphere where it would separate before the 2nd liquid rocket booster would carry the satellite further up and into a stable orbit [Final checks green, 5 seconds until launch] Matthew opened his mouth before he reached up and covered his ears just in time as the Mass Driver fired and the Launch vehicle was propelled into the air and towards the East, Matthew and Alina followed it with their eyes as it felt across the sky for a few moments before the first booster ignited and accelerated it further ¡°...How¡¯s it looking, Aea?¡± [All system readings are stable, optical tracking isn¡¯t showing any problems either] Matthew let out a sigh of relief, so did Alina, or at least she followed a similar motion to that of Matthew since she didn¡¯t exactly have lungs to sigh with ¡°And that¡¯s that, should we go back to shooting, Alina?¡± Matthew looked over at Alina and saw that she still gazed East, her body frozen for a few moments before her blade like ears began moving, quietly swishing through the air ¡°What¡¯s wrong?¡± A moment after Matthew asked, Aea delivered a report over the local net [S-0001 is receiving an encrypted data package, standard BlueArrow encryption, decoding message¡­] Matthew felt the hair on the back of his neck stand as he quickly looked back towards the Eastern sky [Data package decrypted¡­ Message appears corrupted, decoding¡­] Matthew felt a pit in his stomach as a flash of pale blue light struck the Launch vehicle, smiting it with the force of a meteor, which made it instantly disintegrate in a spectacular explosion [Message decoded, playing now¡­ This is F-F-Flight assistance A. I. WWWWWWWWWWicka of BlueArrowwwww Jump Freighterrrrr Mighty EEEEEEndurance Planet #1230710287479 is under quarantineeeee, allllllllllllll attempts to violateeeeeeee quarantine willlllll be mettt with deady forceeee] Then it happened, appearing as if the sky moved backwards in time the stars above disappeared as an eerie pale blue glow covered the sky and dyed the world below in its haunting blue radiance as the devil comet twisted into reality in the sky right above Basecamp, Alina acted at once and instantly teleported Matthew inside the house ¡°Aea!¡± [Moving to red alert, deploying defense forces] Matthew hurried down to the basement and entered his Mk. 22 just as he entered it Alina voice echoed out over the local net [Meteors are falling from the sky!] [Intercept at will!] [Orders received, Rail-001 to Rail-003 tasked with interception, firing] Matthew rushed out from the house just as the 3 rail cannons let loose towards the sky, now protected from the madding influence of the pale blue light Matthew gazed up at the sky as the 3 metal penetrators impacted one of the 4 blue meteors, or at least logic would have dictated so when in reality the projectiles passed right through their target without doing any damage [Hammer ineffective, loading High explosive munitions, fuses set to proximity] Matthew brought his coil rifle up towards the sky as he selected high explosive and set the voltage to the max and squeezed the trigger, a few moments later the meteor was blanketed in explosions from both Matthew¡¯s fire but also the rail cannons, after a few moments the first contact broke apart [Contact 1 breaking up, continuing intercept] As the first meteor broke apart, Alina appeared next to Matthew, however after hitting the 2nd meteor a couple of times it as well as the other 2 meteors suddenly disappeared from the sky ¡°What the f¡ª¡± Before Matthew could finish his curse, he and Alina were blown away as a sudden impacted rocked Basecamp, Matthew blacked out for a moment but was made conscious by Aea after a few moments [Heavy trauma suffered, all Trauma patterns assigned] Matthew got on his feet and saw 3 Titan automatons that were in the process of tearing the defenses of the Basecamp apart, pale blue tendrils were twisted through their armored plating and writhed around their bodies as they extended out and whipped apart everything near them, Matthew kicked off the ground and sprinted to the side as he opened up fire with his coil rifle on the Titan automaton that Alina was engaging [These things are tough! I can¡¯t Displace them either!] ¡°Focus on the joints, that''s where the armor plating is the weakest!¡± Matthew continued to provide cover for Alina as they slowly withered down the first Titan automaton, however just as they were about to bring it down the other two had finished dismantling the other defenses and launched themselves at Matthew and Alina ¡°ALINA!¡± Matthew just managed to warn Alina as he had spotted something falling from the sky, however his warning was a moment too late as a spear of black crystal passed through Alina¡¯s collarbone and all the way through her body as it nailed her to the ground ¡°SHIT!¡± Matthew cursed and attempted to open up the distance, as the 3 Titan automatons instantly shifted their focus to him, however just as he kicked off the ground sending him flying backwards one of the automatons disappeared and reappeared behind him, an instance later Matthew felt something pass through his waist and a moment later his severed lower body entered his vision tumbling through the air just as he did ¡®...¡¯ Matthew¡¯s mind was blank as he watched the world tumble around him in slow motion, Aea had pumped him full of stimulants and ran the Code Arrow 09 on overdrive to boost his combat performance which slowed his perception of time, however having been bisected at the waist Matthew and thereby losing his mobility knew it was over, he could only stare at the Titan automatons as they rushed towards him with a maddened frenzy ready to reduce him to red paste on the ground ¡®...Sorry¡¯ Matthew shifted his vision and gazed over at Alina that still struggled against the black crystal that expanded from the spear that had impaled her, she was reaching for him desperately ¡®Guess this is it¡­¡¯ However, just before the Titan automatons reached Matthew the space around him distorted as Alina sent him away, just in the nick of time Getting in that upper-body cardio [Emergency treatment completed] As Aea¡¯s voice sounded out in Matthew¡¯s mind he opened his eyes, the view reflected in his eyes was dark completely without light, he didn¡¯t need to juggle his mind to remember what had transpired, it had been imprinted into his mind, the minutes passed as Matthew remained in silence, he didn¡¯t want to see at the moment the lack of light suited his current state of mind well¡­ But he knew he couldn¡¯t laze around in darkness forever ¡®Provide emergency power to the Mk. 22¡¯ [Code Arrow 09 have suffered damage to power storage, current storage limites range of operations] ¡®Is there enough capacity to restore the optical sensors?¡¯ [Yes, though keep in mind current capacity only allows for limited operations] Light returned to Matthew¡¯s world in the form of a blue sky, it looked around midday, but Matthew noticed something even though the armored plating of the Mk. 22 helmet he felt the warm light of the sun beam down on him with a heat he hadn¡¯t felt since he arrived in this strange world ¡®How long was I unconscious?¡¯ [Last loss of consciousness is recorded to be 4 hours and 36 minutes, but due to the Mistress¡¯ abilities it is possible that a localized time distortion have taken place] ¡®Release the left emergency scuttle control¡¯ [Confirmed] Matthew checked his mobility and after a bit of fumbling around he found the scuttle control and managed to flip the switch, before he stretched his arms out at once, a moment later the outer armor plantings were blown off the Mk. 22, from there Matthew fumbled around a bit more before he found the next release ¡®I am guessing there¡¯s no power for the hydraulics?¡¯ [No, but the manual release appears to be intact] Matthew let out a shallow sigh as he fumbled around a bit more before he released the lever that he then had to pull down a few times before the internal pressure reached a tipping point and a crack sounded out before the Mk. 22 split apart, releasing him to the outside, after pushing the plating off himself he turned his head and let out a curse as he saw his surroundings ¡°Fuck¡± A few moments passed before he cursed again as he hit the ground, beneath him a few times as he cursed again ¡°Shit, might as well boil my jewels and grind them up with salt¡­¡± Finished cursing and literally pounding sand, Matthew faced reality and the surrounding desert, and the scorching hot sand below him, as the perfect assistance A. I. that Aea was it answered his unanswered question [Current position and height of the sun suggest our master¡¯s current position to be approximately 42 degrees South from the Basecamp] ¡°Speak in normal terms please¡± [Estimated distance from current location to Basecamp is in excess of 5000 kilometers] Matthew let out a quiet chuckle before he made light of his current predicament Stolen from its rightful author, this tale is not meant to be on Amazon; report any sightings. ¡°That¡¯s quite the distance to cover with no legs¡± [Indeed, however, I am convinced we will find our way back] It was just like Matthew had stated, the whole reason he had to use the emergency release for the Mk. 22 was because less than half of it had traveled with him, everything was gone from just above his hips, this included more than a few artificial vertebrae ¡°...Well it¡¯s not like they are missing, I am sure they are right where I left them back at Basecamp¡­ Can you fashion me some prosthetics with the Forge nanites, Aea?¡± [Current store of Forge nanites depleted] ¡°That¡¯s great¡­ Just great¡­ Did I lose anything else other than my family jewels and only means of advanced weapons manufacturing in the recent divorce with my lower half?¡± [Stores of Improvement bio-nanites are also depleted, furthermore store of Blood, Bone and Maintenance have been halved] ¡°That sounds bad¡­¡± [Current store of Maintenance bio-nanites needs to be restored within the next 62 days to avoid a critical failure cascade, please make haste in securing applicable metals] ¡°...Do you have any good news about my current predicament?¡± [Observed temperature appears to prevent hypothermia despite your tendencies to not wear clothes, master] ¡°Great¡­ Well nothing for it, slag the Mk. 22 and make a record of current location for retrieval of the armored plating when I¡¯ve grown back my family jewels¡± [Internal location record started, all memory and firmware of Mk. 22 armor expunged] Without its firmware, the Mk. 22 was reduced to a big chunk of metal or simply a piece of ugly abstract art, Matthew cleared his mind of useless distractions and focused on the task ahead ¡°Any recommendations?¡± [Ahead seems to as good as any other direction] Thus Matthew rolled over onto his stomach and pressed his right arm against the scorning sand, he pulled himself forwards before he extended his left arm and mirrored his previous motion while clearing his mind to focus on the task at hand. Left without legs, his only option was to crawl. So crawl he did. Even as the hours passed, he continued crawling. As the air cooled and night fell, he took a short break to look at the stars before he continued to crawl. As the sun rose, he continued to crawl. As night fell, he continued to crawl. As the sun rose again, he was still crawling. One day as he continued to crawl, he began chuckling to himself, having lost over a third of his weight over the time he had been crawling there naturally hadn¡¯t been much laughter from Matthew, but knowing all too well Matthew¡¯s state, both of mind and of body Aea humored him and asked [What is it you find so funny, master?] Matthew showed a slim smile, he was covered in dirt, his back was sunburned and his body, and worst of all his body was so low on water and nutrients that Aea had cut off supply to most non vital organs to let them wither away ¡°Well¡­ It¡¯s just¡­ I¡¯ve been doing¡­ A lot of¡­ Crawling¡­ So much¡­ That I am sure¡­ My form has¡­ Improved¡­ It¡¯s properly¡­ The best¡­ In the core¡­ Don¡¯t you think¡­ So Aea?¡± [Certainly your form have improved considerably, according to my count your weekly upper-body cardio have been fulfilled at a 687%] Matthew continued chuckling silently to himself as continued to crawl. As night fell Matthew¡¯s ears finally picked up a sound other than the howling of the desert wind, he wasn¡¯t sure about what he heard but Aea quickly confirmed his suspicions [Audio detection places the source of the sound about 600 meters to the East] Matthew showed a thin smile as his eyes went cold, as he began crawling towards the sounds of desperate combat By the time he arrived the fight was over, the culprit had yet to notice Matthew that was sneaking up on it as it was busy swallowing a large ox-like beast of burden head first, the single cart caravan, or what was left of it by now had been attacked by a large toothless lizard [Ready to execute] As soon as Aea¡¯s report passed through Matthew¡¯s mind he launched himself off the ground and a moment later he slammed his fists down into the skull of the toothless lizard with tremendous force, the beast recoiled for a moment before it trashed around in rage and confusion striking Matthew heavily and sending him flying for a moment before he hit the ground [Heavy laceration detected, tasking Trauma nanites] Matthew rolled to the side and narrowly dodged the rampaging lizard as it trashed around, after a few moments it went stiff before it fell to the ground as blood started to leak out of its eyes, Matthew crawled over to it and was about to bite into it when Aea sent a report [Harvest of bio-matter have already begun] Matthew let out a sigh and reined in his hunger as he turned his body around and leaned his back against the large toothless lizard which head was rapidly dissolving ¡°I should starve myself more often, this is the first time in like 200 years I¡¯ve actually wanted to eat¡± [Prolonged intentional starvation is not recommended due to negative impact on your body and mental health master] Matthew let out a neutral hum while the rest of the toothless lizard was rapidly being broken down from the nanites Matthew had stabbed into its head from his initial surprise attack, as Matthew fell silent Aea spoke again to cheer him up [I reckon your steller display of will would have earned you commendation along with a promotion, master] Matthew nodded as he tried to remember the accommodations of the Trerubic Empire, after a few moments he remembered one that would fit his current situation ¡°...Right, I would definitely be up for the Stalwart display of will, or maybe even a Light of the empire¡­ Hmm, no not a Light of the empire on second thought¡­¡± [Why not?] Matthew showed a sly smile and spoke ¡°That comes with a double promotion¡­ I can¡¯t be a 1st lieutenant without legs, can I now?¡± Some sort of puberty fueled nightmare ¡°Now then¡­ With food and water secured, could you start growing me some legs, Aea?¡± [Redistribution of bio matter to retake former appearance is not currently possible] Matthew let out a sigh, he had expected as much, having lost everything below his navel meant he had lost a lot of ¡®weight¡¯ and even with the large toothless lizard and beast of burden there wasn¡¯t enough to go around if he wanted to retake his past 2 meter and 10 340 kilogram hunk of muscle appearance ¡°What do you suggest then?¡± [To avoid negative physiological effects, a younger appearance is suggested due to the loss of biomass] ¡°...How young?¡± [Around the middle of adolescence] Matthew let out a sigh, he didn¡¯t much care for looking like a brat at his current age, but it was better than nothing and far better than having sticks for legs ¡°Alight, do it¡± [Confirmed, starting bio mass reassignment in 40 seconds¡­] Matthew quickly covered himself with sand as he dug himself a few feet below ground, then he relaxed his breathing until Aea¡¯s voice sounded out in his mind [Re-assignment of bio-matter begun, have a pleasant rest, master] - Matthew woke with a set, at once he reached upwards and began to dig himself out of the sand, after a few moments he realized that he had been covered with even more sand than he expected, while the shifting sands and the ever-changing desert was something he had expected this seemed to be a little too much ¡®...I don¡¯t like this, how long have I been asleep, Aea?¡¯ [Loss of consciousness is logged to be a little over 4 days in total] ¡®Great¡¯ A few moments more passed before Matthew breached the surface and dug himself out of the sand, as soon as he emerged a fury of yells and cries of celebration and exhilaration, Matthew continued to dig himself out and spat out some sand as his eyes adjusted to the midday light, a quick head count placed the surrounding people at over 300 people that all were camped out in a circle around where he had buried himself ¡®... And I am butt ass nude too, what is this, some sort of puberty fueled nightmare?¡¯ After a little further observation, Matthew noticed that the large group of people were split into around 6 different political camps ¡°***** *** ** *** ****!¡± A thunderous yell quitted the entire gathering at once, Matthew took notice of the person that had yelled, he looked to be a man in his early 60¡¯s but he still seemed to be very lucid, he flashed a sly smile at Matthew before he sat down after having quieted the gathering, then he spoke again ¡°**** *** ** ****** **** ***¡± With no way of understanding what was being spoken, Matthew scanned the expressions of the 6 different groups and noted that all 6 groups seemed to hold high respect for the old man and seemed to agree with his words This tale has been unlawfully lifted from Royal Road; report any instances of this story if found elsewhere. ¡®Suspend language analysis for now, focus on reading their faces, Aea¡¯ [Confirmed] Seeing that this would take some time and that moving towards any of the 6 different groups before he had determined their intentions wasn¡¯t wise, Matthew simply sat himself down on the sand and waited, as 5 of the groups began discussing something that most likely related to him Matthew found himself watching the 6th group the closest, the old man in his early 60¡¯s that had quitted the other 5 groups appeared to be the leader of this group, and even now he was watching Matthew with undisguised interest ¡®...Still it¡¯s been quite some time since I¡¯ve felt this young¡¯ Matthew¡¯s attention slipped as he began examining his own body, he had shrunk about 40 centimeters so he estimated he was around 1 meter and 70 centimeters in his current form, his muscle mass had also shrunk as well as his overall weight, he clenched his hands a few times to get an estimate on his current strength ¡®...Weak¡­ Well, it¡¯s not that bad considering my situation, still I feel slightly nostalgic¡­¡¯ ¡°*** ***** *****!¡± ¡°**** ***** ****** ****!¡± Matthew snapped out of his thoughts as the leaders of 2 of the 6 groups appeared to be in a heated debate, one was a old matriarch that looked to be in her late 60¡¯s while the other was a man in his mid 40¡¯s, the two went back and forth for a bit before the old man that wielded the most authority suddenly spoke ¡°*** *** ***** ***¡± It appeared he had offered a fair compromise between the two groups and the two leaders considered his proposal for a few moments before they both spoke ¡°**** ***** **** **¡± ¡°**** **** ***** ******¡± They appeared to have agreed on something, and it also looked to concern Matthew as a young man from the matriarch¡¯s faction stood and walked towards Matthew that still sat in the center, Matthew stood up and faced the young man that approached, he didn¡¯t need Aea¡¯s input to read the blatant disgust on the young man''s face as he spoke with thinly veiled anger directed at Matthew ¡°**** **** ****!¡± Matthew showed a smile and spoke back in Trerubian ¡°Yeah well I don¡¯t like you too, you brat¡± At Matthew¡¯s response, the young man¡¯s face went red with apparent anger and a moment later he drew the sword that hang on his hip, but before he could attack Matthew a yell sounded out from the leader, Matthew turned to look at him and felt a chill go down his spine when he saw the sly smile on the old man¡¯s face, a moment later he was handed a sheathed sword which he threw at Matthew ¡°*** ***** ****!¡± Matthew caught the sheathed sword with one hand and turned towards the young man that kicked off the ground with his sword raised, ready to strike Matthew down ¡°Wow there, easy¡± Matthew¡¯s figure blurred right as the young warrior slashed at him, Matthew parried the overhead slash to the side with the sheath of his sword as he stepped half a step to the other side and tripped the young warrior that nearly tripped as he stumbled past Matthew, the surrounding grew quite instantly and a moment later Matthew spoke again ¡°Don¡¯t you know it¡¯s dangerous to swing a sword like that?¡± ¡°**** ***** ****!¡± The young warrior yelled as his face flushed with anger as he slashed towards Matthew again, Matthew simply stepped out of his range and kicked some sand up into his face before he slapped the young warrior in the face with the flat side of his still sheathed sword ¡°Come on now, try a little harder¡± The young warrior let out a yell of frustration and slashed wildly at Matthew that early deflated and ducked away from the wild slashes ¡®How is it looking, Aea?¡¯ Matthew could easily have hacked down the young warrior by now, the only reason he had not were because he wasn¡¯t sure if it was in his best interest to do so [Facial analysis is still in progress, but it suggests that this is an honest duel between master and the other combatant with lethal force allowed, however there appeared to be more to it] ¡°Hmm¡­¡± Matthew stepped in past a wild slash and stuck the young warrior in the lower chest with an open palm, sending him staggering back a few steps as he knocked the air out of him, then he grabbed the hilt of the sword he had been thrown and right as he unsheathed the sword a wave of dizziness struck him [Unknown physical phenomenon encountered, stabilizing vitals] Matthew staggered as his surroundings spun around, but suddenly a pain stuck his right hand which somewhat dispelled the dizziness, as his vision stabilized the enraged young warrior¡¯s face entered his view and Matthew hurriedly raised his sword to parry the strike, however his defense was rushed, and the young warrior managed shift his slash to strike Matthew¡¯s sword arm around his elbow [Heavy laceration detected Trauma nanites pattern 1 and 2 assigned] ¡®Halt that order!¡¯ Matthew responded to the attack by striking the young warrior in the stomach with the sheath he still held in his left hand and gained some distance as he checked his injury, the slash had cut deep into his arm just above his elbow but had been stopped by his reinforced bones, as the blood flowed down his arm Matthew felt something strange, a sudden change happened ¡®What is¡­¡¯ Matthew felt the world around him change suddenly, it was as if he had suddenly gained a new sense [Paradigm shift detected¡­ Change in bio chemistry detected, physical body is undergoing an unexplained change] Matthew felt it, unfortunately he didn¡¯t have the time to sit down and take in his sudden change as the young warrior rushed at him again with a yell of anger, it seemed Matthew¡¯s unexpected martial superiority had greatly embarrassed the young warrior and driven him mad with anger and humiliation, however now that Matthew¡¯s body had suddenly changed keeping the surrounding people amicable was no longer a priority ¡°Shut up already¡± Matthew easily dodged the wild anger fueled slash as he brought up his sword in an upwards slash which struck the young warrior in the right inner thigh and easily served his right leg in a single slash, just as the young warrior let out a horrible cry of pain Matthew reversed his slash and in a single motion his sword dug into the young man¡¯s right armpit and exited through his left collarbone a moment later instantly bisecting the warrior. ¡®Go ahead and stop the bleeding, Aea, but don¡¯t patch the entire cut at once¡¯ As the young warrior collapsed in 3 parts, the surrounds fell quiet for a few moments before yells of excitement and joy crescendoed out from 5 of the groups, needless to say the group the young warrior was a part of didn¡¯t cheer The 6 clans Having removed the source of his current distraction, Matthew focused on the new sense that had suddenly appeared in his body, having lived a very, very long life already where he had been accustomed that one misread of his senses or generally not noticing something being out of place would lead to a shift brutal end, all in all Matthew was very in tune with his senses already Which was exactly why he was thrown for such a loop ¡®Where was¡­ How is¡­¡¯ Matthew¡¯s pupils rapidly contracted and expanded as he felt the world spin around him, now that he had a chance to focus the full force of his new reality hit him all at once. [Loss of consciousness confirmed, due to hostile actors in the surrounds automated self-preservation have been approved] - ¡°OUTRAGEOUS!¡± The roar of Matriarch Beste echoed out over the gathering, it was natural for her to be outraged as she had in one fumbled move proved herself a deceiver, killed off her eldest grandson and validated his killer as the true prophet of the sand, however she did no more than shout as in the next moment she stood and turned around before leaving immediately, the rest of her clan followed her in silence as they all quickly left without retrieving the corpse of their fallen ¡°There they go¡­¡± The old man who had observed Matthew closely muttered when the Baste clan left, it sounded like an afterthought, and that was what it was, the old man didn¡¯t really care either way, now that they had left it was already settled ¡°...Is it alright to let Matriarch Beste go along with her clan, patriarch?¡± The old patriarch stroked his graying beard for a few moments without responding to his oldest son, Demir which quickly took the hint and spoke again ¡°...I apologize patriarch, it seems I still have a lot to learn¡± ¡°It is fine Demir, you don¡¯t have any experience in any situation like this¡­ Think it over slowly, son¡± Demir lowered his head in a quiet bow as he began to contemplate his latest lesson, the patriarch addressed the remaining 5 clans which of course included own clan ¡°It appears we have settled the issue of legitimacy for now¡± The patriarch keep a close eye of the face of every elder present along with most of their heirs, so he was the first to notice Matriarch Seyyal¡¯s look of disbelief, he didn¡¯t need to trace her line of sight to know what she was gazing at and spared a glance at the young prophet of the sands ¡®¡­He¡¯s in a trance¡¯ The patriarch didn¡¯t hide his smile, he hadn¡¯t believed the legends when he was young, but with age came wisdom and with his wisdom he found truth in the old tales that shook him to his core, from there he had slowly turned from a skeptic to a staunch believer And what he saw now validated his beliefs ¡°Patriarch, the prophet is injured quite badly¡± Matriarch Esen¡¯s voice echoed out, she was the youngest elder of the 7 clans due to her inheriting the position at age 12, she had matured much over the 8 years she had held the position, but she was still green in the eyes of the other elders ¡°It¡¯s fine¡­ His bleeding has already stopped¡± Matriarch Seyyal¡¯s voice quickly dispelled Matriarch Esen¡¯s worries, she was the eldest matriarch present and had devoted most of her life to the study of medicine and healing both physical and mental trauma This story has been taken without authorization. Report any sightings. ¡®That old crow''s voice is shaking slightly, she must be quite shocked¡¯ The patriarch hid his emotions once again and moved the meeting forwards once more ¡°Well then, shall we move on to the issue of the first host?¡± - Matthew slowly came to, this wasn¡¯t the first time he had passed out standing, so he was able to somewhat estimate the time he had been unconscious by the feeling of strain in his knees [Loss of consciousness logged to be 11 hours, good morning master] ¡°Hmm¡­¡± Having just woken up from his daze, Matthew was understandably more than a little dazed still, however that instantly went away when he noticed some approaching him, when he looked at the young man that had approached him, he kneeled down and offered a set of similar white robes to Matthew ¡°**** **** *** ****¡± ¡°Hmm¡­¡± Not being such a big fan of the desert night wind on his taint, Matthew quickly decided to accept the clothes and got dressed, the pants were long but loose around his legs the shirt also felt a little loose on his body, but that felt like it was per design, the large hooded robe was similarly loose fitting but also far lighter than he expected, tying a cloth strip on his waist made it feel a little like a bathing robe not that he had anything against that [It seems to be designed to help regulate body temperature and avoid sunburn] Once he got dressed, the young man gestured for Matthew to follow after him, Matthew followed along noting that most of the people that had been present for his duel had disappeared, the corpse of the young warrior he had slain also still laid in the same spot, still very much parted in three ¡°*** ***** **** ****¡± The young man led Matthew to a cloth tent where he called out to the people inside, after a few moments a woman in her early 30¡¯s brushed open the tent entrance and watched the young man bow before he quickly left, then she looked at Matthew and gestured for him to enter the tent ¡®How¡¯s the passive scan coming along?¡¯ [Sensors indicate 58 people in the surrounding campsite, 4 inside this tent] Matthew noted this, if this was when he had first woken in the ruined trading city of Babai he would have been confident in being able to rip all 58 people apart with his bare hands if things went south, but ever since his encounter with the mountain savages and more recent introduction to Wicka had reigned in his confidence ¡®... Not to mention, there¡¯s someone in here that reeks of power¡¯ Matthew stepped into the tent, rugs covered the sand and the inside of the tent was covered in elaborate colorful embroidered designs, it was like an entire saga covered the cloth walls of the tent ¡°*** ***** **** ***¡± Matthew stopped gawking at the tent and looked at the person speaking to him, she was sat on the edge of a travel bed dressed in elegant sleepwear, from her position in the center she of the tent and the 3 servant ladies around her, she was the highest ranking person despite her youthful appearance ¡®She was present doing the duel too¡­ It looks like she leads her clan despite her age¡¯ ¡°I am afraid I don¡¯t speak your language¡± The young Matriarch showed a smile at Matthew¡¯s words she clapped her hands in front of her chest and spoke again ¡°**** ****** ******* **** ****?¡± ¡°...I don¡¯t speak those either¡± Matthew could somewhat tell she had switched language or dialect mid-sentence ¡°*** **** ******* ***** ***** ****?¡± ¡°Not any of those either, sorry¡± This time it was 3 or more languages, the young Matriarch showed a slight frown as she thought for a few moments, then she spoke again ¡°****** **** **** ****** *** ****** ****?¡± Matthew shook his head as he lowered his center of gravity slightly, the 3 handmaidens had taken position around him seemingly ready to strike, it appeared like he was being tested ¡®There¡¯s something strange going on here¡­¡¯ ¡°**** ***** ****** *** ***** ***** ***** ***** ********* ****** **** ***¡± It was clear to hear now, every single word the young Matriarch spoke was different from each other, they were all separate languages and from the look on her face she expected Matthew to understand at least one of them ¡®...No that¡¯s wrong¡­ She nearly tricked me¡¯ The young Matriarch¡¯s frown grew deeper, her smile had long disappeared as her eyes had gone cold as she clutched the hilt of a dagger on her lap ¡°**** ****** ***** *** *** ****?¡± Matthew showed an unconcerned smile and asked ¡°Have I passed the test yet?¡± The young Matriarch¡¯s frown broke into a blooming smile as she let go of the dagger hilt and the handmaiden¡¯s took a step back from Matthew, then suddenly a formless wave of pressure erupted from the young Matriarch as the space above her hand violently broke apart, then a moment later the tear in reality disappeared just as suddenly as it had appeared leaving behind a metal cube that was covered in an elaborate pattern of clear crystal lines, Matthew¡¯s eyes betrayed his shock for a moment as he laid eyes on the cube, the young Matriarch didn¡¯t miss this and her smile widened before she nonchalantly tossed the cube to him, Matthew caught it and at once Aea confirmed Matthew¡¯s suspicions [Standard issue BlueArrow Data cube detected, scans reveal a total of 248 complete languages stored in memory, read and imprint data now?] ¡®...Sure, start with the language that matches the words of the young man that handed me these clothes¡¯ Matthew closed his eyes for a moment as the clear crystal parts of the Data cube lit up with a soft glow, a few moments later he opened his eyes and spoke ¡°My name is Matthew Rockwell¡± The young Matriarch showed a smile as introduced herself ¡°My name is Esen, I am the Matriarch of the Burning Embers merchant clan, it¡¯s a pleasure to meet you, Matthew Rockwell, Prophet of the sands¡± Behind Esen¡¯s smile, she felt a brief disappointment from not being recognized by her long time acquaintance ¡®Looks like the Major¡¯s neural degeneration is worse than I had predicted, Aea¡¯ [Indeed mistress, his Code Arrow 09 also appears quite battered and has yet to identify any of your implants, his body has also only just adjusted to wield Mystic power, I have adjusted the current plans of operation to reflect this] ¡®Thanks, you are such a doll, Aea¡­ Maybe I should give him a poke or two to notch him in the right direction¡­¡¯ Under the wing of the Burning Embers Matthew looked at Matriarch Esen that sat in front of him for a few moments before he spoke ¡°I will leave you to your rest, Matriarch Esen¡± The young Matriarch nodded and lazily waved to Matthew as she dismissed him, Matthew bowed a few degrees before he turned and walked out of the tent, his desire to stir up shit had been completely destroyed when he observed the young Matriarch casually violate several laws of physics by tearing apart physical space to open up a portal which she transferred the Data cube through. Thus, he retreated gracefully. ¡°Sand prophet, let me lead you to your tent¡± Matthew nodded to the young man that had guided him to the Matriarch¡¯s tent after he had woken from his daze, he had many questions, mostly retraining to his new title as a prophet but the feeling he had in the pit of his stomach scream to him that handling any matters regardless to religion very, very carefully ¡®...Especially now when I have suddenly become a prophet¡­ How is the title sand prophet defined in the language data from the Data cube, Aea?¡¯ [Language data registry of entry Nuactu for the title, Sand Prophet: Warrior, Fighter, Duelist, Leader, Pinnacle, Ideal, Visitor, Traveler from the stars] ¡®That seems like what we''ve already experienced¡­ Still traveler from the stars¡­¡¯ [There''s a high chance a first sand prophet or entity that spread this information was aboard the Mighty Endurance too] ¡®And given the accommodations they have shown so far this entity was revered for some reason¡­ Which makes that Data cube and other technology like it holy relics?¡¯ [Most likely, please adjust your behavior according, master] ¡°This is your tent, do you have any requests for your meal, Sand prophet?¡± ¡°None in particular¡± The young man bowed respectfully and left to fetch Matthew some much welcome food and water, Matthew entered his tent, the gray cloth tent was the same size as Matriarch Esen¡¯s tent, the only difference was the lack of servants and embroidered rugs and carpets, the only piece of furniture was the simple tent bed that stood in the middle, Matthew sat down on the floor and began to focus on his new sense ¡®Is any of the data collected from Alina applicable to my current situation?¡¯ [Yes] ¡®...Any you can share with me?¡¯ [Not without the permission of the mistress, no] ¡®...Great¡¯ Having hit a wall with Aea at once since Alina was ranked higher on Aea¡¯s internal totem pole than BlueArrow Matthew started to experiment on his own, the air, ground and everything else around him seemed to be completely saturated with some sort of energy, it flowed though all objects complex interconnected streams of slightly different energies. If Matthew¡¯s newly gained sense had replaced his vision, he would be assailed with maddening flows of different flashing colors. ¡®Now then¡­ A source of energy have been found, next question is how to exploit it¡¯ The tale has been illicitly lifted; should you spot it on Amazon, report the violation. Matthew spent the next half an hour trying to manipulate the surrounding energies without much success, after the young servant arrived with a meal and large jug of water for him, he ate and drank before continuing his experimentation. Around dawn, Matthew finally made a breakthrough when he turned his new sense inwards and found his own body completely empty of the energies he observed outside his body ¡°Hmm¡­¡± After weighing his options for a few moments, Matthew decided to refocus his efforts on finding a way to draw in the strange energies ¡°The question is how¡­¡± ¡°I wouldn¡¯t worry about that for now¡± Matthew felt a chill go down his artificial spine as the voice of Matriarch Esen sounded out behind him, he didn¡¯t need to turn around to know she wasn¡¯t there or anywhere near him, she seemed to have transferred her voice to him via some sort of Mystic ability ¡°We of the Burning Embers rise with the sun, Sand prophet, wasting daylight is wasting coin¡­ Please exit your tent so the servants can get to work already¡± ¡°...Yes, at once, Matriarch Esen¡± Matthew immediately got up from the tent bed and wore his outer clothes he had taken off when he went to rest, as he got dressed Esen¡¯s voice sounded out behind him again ¡°Don¡¯t be so tense, the duty of the unlearned is to learn, and the duty of the 6 clans is to teach¡­ Ignorance is only a sin as long as it is willful¡± Matthew nodded and finished getting dressed before he left his tent, upon exiting he saw the whole camp was alive in activity, the tents were packed and moved onto floating carriages as the entire camp was quickly dismantled, as soon as he stepped out 3 servants that had waited silently in front of his tent gave him a bow before they began taking down his tent, it did indeed look like he had made them wait on him ¡®Looks like I was too absorbed in my experimentation¡­¡¯ With that thought out of the way and nothing to do, Matthew unsurprisingly went right back to experimenting, until Matriarch Esen¡¯s voice sounded out right behind him again ¡°Please join me in my carriage¡± Matthew snapped out of his daze and nodded, he didn¡¯t need to look around much to locate Matriarch Esen¡¯s carriage, it was the most decorated after all, he walked over and leaped the half a meter off the ground that the carriage hovered and landed inside, there Matriarch Esen sat with a paper scroll in her hand which she slowly unrolled as she read its contents with one hand and rolled it back up with her other hand, Matthew sat down as he waited for her to finish as she was clearly focused fully focused on her task ¡°...Send word ahead, tell Sigme to ease up on parchment purchase from the West, have her shift towards acquiring Northern timber and sell it to the Ascle clan at a mark-up of 20%, if they refuse increase the mark-up to 23% when they seek it out again¡± ¡°Yes Matriarch¡± A messenger that kneed in front of Matriarch Esen rose to his feet after speaking before he exited the carriage and jumped onto a smaller hovering vehicle which Matthew equated to a hover bike when he saw it take flight and quickly carry the messenger into the distance ¡°Now then, Sand prophet, I thank you for your patience¡­ Allow me to explain my role as well as the rule of the 6 clans in your future path¡± Matthew nodded, he knew he wasn¡¯t a prophet, but having slain a young warrior from one of the 6 clans in a duel as well as having learned the languages of the local area from what he and Aea suspected was a ¡®holy relic¡¯ in these lands, he certainly was the Sand prophet to these people, which meant he had to at least try and act this way, lest he were to be branded a false prophet ¡°Please guide me, Matriarch¡± Esen showed a wide smile and began explaining ¡°Firstly, you are the 4th Sand prophet to rise from the sand, only one of the previous prophets still draw breath, your predecessor, the 3rd prophet of the sands, Lady Eilane is currently leading a campaign towards the far Eastern end of the Central continent¡± Matthew¡¯s expression showed a slightly crack as Esen spoke the name Eilane, the mention of her name brought forth quite a few unwelcome memories as well as clarity to how he had ended up on this godforsaken world ¡®Right, I was¡­¡¯ Matriarch Esen was about to continue speaking when she noticed Matthew¡¯s focus had shifted inwards, his eyes no longer reflected the present, instead days past flashed through his eyes ¡®Looks like that did the trick, this was way easier than we had expected, Aea¡¯ [Affirmative, with this we should be able to consider the first steep cleared and move on to the 2nd step mistress] - Buildings of polished metal and crystal glass rose high into the atmosphere of Silgas-4, besides its location in the central administrative zone of The Trerubic Empire and its relative proximity to the Crown world nothing stood out as too special on Silgas-4, it was an upper middle class residential planet like many others but with its relative wealth came branches of every major interstellar mega corporation and branches of the Trerubic armed forces ready to fight for graduates from the many esteemed universities and training facilities on Silgas-4 And with competition came confrontation. [Wake up order confirmed, user, wake up] Matthew¡¯s eyes snapped open as consciousness was forced upon him once again, he rose from the cold sleep pod like an automaton, then he began peeling off the sensors that were taped to his body as Aea¡¯s voice sounded out in his mind [Mission data reads standard neurological data harvest, class 2 weaponry and class 1 armor permitted, escalation to class 3 weaponry available at request] Matthew didn¡¯t answer as his throat was stuffed with a long plastic tube that had delivered him nutrients while he had been in suspended animation, after he pulled it out he asked ¡°What¡¯s the pay like?¡± [200 Credits, job offer and payment is non-negotiable] ¡°Which makes my current balance what exactly?¡± [898.312.432.565.233 more credits is currently needed to balance user''s current account, please take all the time you need to settle all outstanding payments, BlueArrow allows for a unlimited duration zero interest repayment for the lease of the Code Arrow 09 currently installed in the user] Matthew didn¡¯t offer any retort or complaint, over the last 120 years of doing ¡®wet work¡¯ for BlueArrow he had grown too tired to argue, at least when he was a Penance Marine the sweet embrace of death had offered salvation, now any injury short of being launched straight onto the surface of a star would simply add to his outstanding account, which only resulted in lengthening his indentured servitude to BlueArrow Neurological data harvest ¡°...Are these things still in fashion?¡± Matthew started at the puked out cyber jacket outfitted with more useless LED¡¯s than a nuevo riche hover car [Affirmative, user¡¯s outfit have been selected for current operation environment, furthermore it has been enhanced to reach a class 1 armor rating] Matthew let out a sigh and wore jacket/lightshow as he picked up the plasma accelerator pistol that had come with his outfit and stored it on his hip holster, this thing was more than nasty and as much as Matthew hated using it as it due to its horrific way it killed people by heating biological matter so fast its water contents exploded in a mess of gore he had to admit it was an effective weapon ¡°Well then... Nothing for it, Major on station¡± [Clock-in confirmed, start of operation] [Doc on station] [Ripper on station, good morning old man~] [Mercy on escalation] [0023 on escalation] [Warplane on escalation] Matthew let out a sigh, as he did the surrounding room rapidly changed as the cold sleep pod along with all other equipment were autonomously packaged ready to shipped to a mass driver station to be put off world along with Matthew and the other personal and their effects once they finished their assigned work, Matthew stepped out of the small apartment where he had woken [Utilize public transport to reach Education zone 4, optimal route assigned] Matthew clicked his tongue as he walked over and stepped into the elevator, a moment later it closed and rapidly transported him upwards to the closest monorail station, a few moments later he stepped out onto a busy platform, brats ran around playing, a psychopath that waved at him, students talked with their friends or were busy studying on their personal devices, even if more than a few adults were present Matthew still stood out among the crowd with his large stature and funky tech jacket ¡®I would like to lodge a complaint about the attire chosen¡¯ [Your complaint have been lodged, a service fee of 500 credits have been deducted] Matthew didn¡¯t bother to argue that the cost of making a complaint was more than double what he would be paid for his current assignment, petty spite like this was one of the few things that had kept his ego intact this long ¡°Good morning old man~¡± Matthew let out another sigh as he felt a heavy clap on his shoulder from the person he had attempted to not acknowledge, she, even if Matthew dreaded referring to ¡®her¡¯ as a member of the fairer sex he had been forced by ¡®her¡¯ to visually confirm that fact ¡°Still, it¡¯s a nice work day isn¡¯t it?~¡± Matthew spared a glance to the savage creature next to him, she had short pink hair and blood-red eyes along with other cosmetic cyber mods, her build was half his size and usually packed half Matthew¡¯s weight in various blades and other sharp instruments ¡°Fuck off¡± Matthew¡¯s greeting was blunt and precisely to the point, still this greeting earned him a wide, almost starstruck expression of awe and a cheerful laugh as she once again tiptoed to clap Matthew on the shoulder Unauthorized use: this story is on Amazon without permission from the author. Report any sightings. ¡°You are as grumpy as always, old man~¡± Having not decided to engage in more conversation with his co-worker, Ripper that continued to yap Matthew¡¯s ear off with random and mostly disturbing tales that randomly sprung upon her twisted mind, while her language were completely clean both she and Matthew knew the exact grim details of the tales she was espousing with disturbing passion ¡°---At that point I was rolling on the floor, like how crazy is that! Oh the metro is here!~¡± Matthew and Ripper moved into the same car, experience had made Matthew awfully aware that if he tried to separate himself from Ripper she would simply follow him, this creature had no shame and was deeply in what it considered love with him, of course this was due to all the wrong reasons and Matthew had never entertained the thought of going along with her twisted fantasies of ¡®True love¡¯ ¡°---Oh right, I was playing this new VR game the other day, you should really try it out, it has some of the best features anyone in our profession could ask for!~¡± Matthew once again ignored Ripper, however this seemed to have been the tipping point for her patience as she instantly dropped her mask, the cheerful look on her face completely disappeared as her bright eyes went cold and blank like that of a dead fish as she spoke ¡°You seem rather cranky today, huh¡­ Should I lighten things up a bit for you to acknowledge my presence?¡± Matthew let out yet another sigh, he knew what ¡®lighten things up¡¯ meant, and not feeling like complicating things by having to fight off an anti-terror task force responding to hundreds of dismembered children and school teachers this early in the timeline of his current assignment he relented and asked ¡°...What game was it?¡± A creepy smile showed on Rippers true face before she put her usual mask back on as she started yapping once again ¡°Well the base game was some mid-level action shooter but I got my Aea to jailbreak a lesser game development A. I. to deep fake and mesh leaked war footage and terror attacks over the dull PG animations and NPC renders~ Aea was even able to simulate tactile feedback to me as I played~ it¡¯s been so long since I¡¯ve last soiled myself like that without actually drawing blood~¡± ¡°Ew¡± To Matthew¡¯s blunt and to the point show of disgust Ripper shuddered slightly as her face flushed slightly to which Matthew immediately told her ¡°...I will smash your cranium and rip the sorry remains of your brain stem out from your ass crack if you hump my leg again¡± ¡°That¡¯s kinda¡ª¡± ¡°No it¡¯s not, down¡± ¡°Ehehe~¡± [Pack it in, we have work to do] Matthew let out a sigh as 0023¡¯s voice sounded out over the local net, the two continued to chat to keep blending in with their surroundings, after a few minutes and the two stepped out of the metro to the arrival area of a local High school, Ripper presented her fabricated credentials as a transfer student and Matthew presented his as a temporary teacher ¡°Please step though the scanner, sir¡± Matthew nodded and passed through the scanner as the security guard had directed, none of his weaponry, bionic or physical enhancements showed up on the scan as the local security equipment had already been compromised. ¡°Thank you sir, the scan showed no problems¡± Matthew showed a thin smile and nodded as he walked past the security checkpoint at the gate, even as he attempted to keep a neutral look on his face he found a frown slowly forming, around him were mostly people in their early to late adolescent, the youthful and joyous atmosphere around him put a damper on his already grumpy mood [Ripper have located primary target, preparing to harvest~] [...Major moving to assist] [Affirmative, silent alarm have been raised, Anti-Terror task forces have been alerted, arrival in 600 seconds] Matthew moved along the route Aea had planned out for him and arrived at male bathroom which he entered and after confirming the particular smell inside he knocked on the door of a stall and a moment later Ripper opened, she wasn¡¯t alone, on the porcelain throne sat a male student, he was past tense now as his neurological data were being harvest which resulted in his brain rapidly being baked ¡°I am almost finished here~ Go greet the guests instead¡± ¡°No, we don¡¯t have time for you to practice your hobby this time around, Ripper¡± Ripper was about to protest when an alert sounded out over the local network [400 seconds until arrival of Anti-Terror task forces, local lockdown scheduled to begin in 100 seconds] ¡°Tsk~¡± Ripper clicked her tongue before she pulled a butterfly knife out of the sleeve of her oversized jacket and spun it around as she unfolded the blade, a moment later serrated steel stabbed straight into the eye socket of the deceased male student and with a quick twirl she relieved the young man of his left eye which she placed into a small glass bottle which she placed into an inner pocket of her jacket along the rest of her collection that consisted of various other body parts she had collected over the last 400 years, both as an indentured servant of BlueArrow, but also before then as a hobby ¡°...Crazy bitch¡± ¡°Ehehe~ You don¡¯t get anything from complimenting me like that~¡± ¡°It wasn¡¯t a compliment, sow¡± The two exited the restroom and walked quickly along the planned route when the Terror alarm suddenly sounded out in the building both of them kicked off the ground instantly exploding with power Matthew dented the floor below his feet with Ripper following right behind him the two managed to get past two bulkheads before they closed but was momentarily stopped when they reached the 3rd ¡°Ei!~¡± Letting out a totally unnecessary ¡®cute¡¯ sound, Ripper slashed out with a monomolecular folding sword 3 times within half a second as she caved a path through the 1-meter thick armored alloy bulkhead, Matthew shoulder tackled the loose bulkhead part as he ran past with Ripper following after him, he spared a short glance at her as he thought ¡®As much as I hate to admit it, this crazy bitch has skills with a blade beyond anything I will ever reach¡­ Maybe that¡¯s why she¡¯s so fucked in the head¡­¡¯ Ripper caught his glance and asked in an excited tone "Did you fall for me?~" ¡°Ew, no¡± Change of heart ¡°Get the next bulkhead already, old man!¡± Matthew clicked his tongue as he followed Ripper¡¯s instructions and knocked through the next bulkhead, the two of them had gone through 18 bulkheads since they had been engaged by the local Anti-terror troops, and Matthew was starting to get tired of bashing apart combat grade automata Of course the plasma accelerator pistol had been about as much use as a plastic umbrella in a hurricane as it had already overheated and melted away. ¡®Of course that¡¯s what I¡¯ve started to expect from a weapon provided free of charge¡­¡¯ Matthew kept his complaints to the back of his mind as he slammed through the bulkhead that Ripper had already cut apart, Ripper followed after him as she kept deflecting metal slugs and cut apart plasma projectiles fired by the approaching Anti-Terror troops that were hot on their trails, while they were augmented like Matthew and Ripper, their augments paled in compression to that of Matthew and Ripper, thus the two were mostly keeping above water, still things weren¡¯t as easy for the two as they could be ¡°I swear you have to face reality soon, old man!¡± Matthew had grown too tired enough of having this ¡®talk¡¯ with Ripper to actually respond to her as he kept himself out of the way of stay metal shards and plasma splatters from Ripper¡¯s frankly supernatural defense, however Ripper had grown tired of Matthew¡¯s reluctance to accept reality ¡°Listen to me already, you old stubborn bastard!¡± To this, Matthew snapped back ¡°Why would I do that!? THIS ISN¡¯T REALITY, IT¡¯S A NIGHTMARE!¡± To Matthew, this certainly was a nightmare, having grown tired of war to the point of seeking death by enemy fire he had instead been taken as an indoctrinated servant of an intergalactic conglomerate to do their dirty work, however to Ripper, a person who had taken the same path as him only several hundred years earlier (Despite calling him an old man) he was simply a brat whining about adapting to his new life However, just as she was about to point this out a voice sounded out over the local net [Doc here, I¡¯ve released aerosol 42 at the ventilation hub of the target building, move to escalation now] Both Matthew and Ripper stopped arguing at once and command their Aea¡¯s to act at once ¡®Aea, inject the antidote for aerosol 42!¡¯ [Injection of non-mission critical stimulates carries a cost of 5000 credits, furthermore BlueArrow can not be held liable for any resulting bodily damage or addition, whether it be physical or mental] The screams of the Anti-Terror troops hot on Matthew and Ripper¡¯s trail entered Matthew¡¯s ears, their bodies were melting within their armored suits, and Matthew felt his skin itch as he tasted blood in his mouth ¡®Just do it!¡¯ [Affirmative, injection of chemical antidote to aerosol 42 injected, assigning all nanite patters to counter other bodily effects and damages caused, 5000 credits deducted from balance] After a few moments, Matthew felt the pain searing at his skin disappear as the antidote took effect, however just as he did he felt a chill and leaned back as Ripper¡¯s sword passed right in front of him, Matthew didn¡¯t need to think, he acted on instinct and twisted his body to the side as he sent a left hook to her side, needless to say of Ripper¡¯s small statue in comparison to Matthew, she was sent flying ¡°You cracked my rips, you shitty old man!¡± If you come across this story on Amazon, be aware that it has been stolen from Royal Road. Please report it. Ripper twisted in the air as she cursed Matthew out and kicked off the wall and charged back at Matthew once again, her monomolecular sword turned into a whirlwind as she attacked Matthew again, fully intent on cutting him apart, Matthew was quickly pushed back as he dodged and redirected the blade to avoid getting chopped apart, despite his unfavorable position he neither yelled nor pleaded, he simply spoke in an ice-cold tone of voice ¡°Knock it off¡± ¡°Why don¡¯t you make me!¡± Matthew narrowed his eyes, his remaining patience spent, and already being in a bad mood he snapped and instantly matched Ripper¡¯s ferocious attacks with his bare hands, blood splattered as cuts appeared on his hands and arms, but despite having the weapon advantage Ripper failed to server any of Matthew¡¯s tendons, she wasn¡¯t even able to server any of his fingers, and just as their fight heated up Ripper made a lethal mistake by shifting her balance too much to the side, Matthew instantly exploited the opening as he sacrificed his arm by impaling Ripper¡¯s sword through his forearm and instantly twisted, shattering the thin blade between the two bones in his forearm ¡°MY SWORD, YOU ARGHHH!!!¡± Ripper¡¯s complaint was immediately cut short by a cry of pain as Matthew snapped her right knee with a kick from the side, as he stepped in he snapped the femur in her already disabled leg as he delivered a punch to her stomach which sent her crashing into the wall behind her, without half of her right leg of cause ¡°...Ehehe~¡± At Ripper¡¯s creepy laugh, Matthew stepped off the remains of her lower right leg which he had just tron from her body and walked over to where she sat slumped against the wall, her head down, as he neared he suddenly kicked off the ground before he kicked the knife out of Ripper¡¯s left arm, shattering her forearm before he grabbed her by the shoulder and lifted her up to his eye height and asked ¡°Are you done?¡± Ripper rose her head and looked him in the eyes for a few moments before she let out another creepy laugh, her eyes were hollow and blank without light, much like Matthew¡¯s ¡°Ehehe~ There he is¡± Matthew clicked his tongue before he threw her over towards her served leg and spoke coldly ¡°Hurry up and get ready to move, or I¡¯ll leave you behind¡± Ripper giggled to herself as she grabbed her served leg and held it against her open wound for a moment as the Trauma nanites reconnected her femur ¡°Come on now, old man, isn¡¯t time to admit it?¡± Matthew felt his anger flare up again as he turned towards Ripper, his hand grasped her neck, but just as he was about to snap her neck he loosened his grip and let out a deep sigh, he knew it too, his immature dream of buying his freedom and retiring on some backwater world where he could live out his days with a wife and a couple of kids were never going to happen ¡®Even if I somehow managed to buy back my freedom I have no identity, best case I would be chopped up for spare parts in some back ally¡­¡¯ Matthew had to admit it, while he had not been born to fight bloody war, he had been molded for it all his life, when his home world of Eirmal 4 had been put under blockade his fate had been sealed and while admitting you reveled in slaughter and mayhem wasn¡¯t exactly the easiest change of heart for anyone Matthew had to admit it had taken him too long ¡®...Get me a coil rifle Aea¡­ a high-powered one¡¯ [Weapon delivery doing an active mission carries a¡ª] ¡®I don¡¯t care, just get me one fast¡¯ [Understood, under placed a service fee of¡ª] ¡®Mute all further balance chances, just give me a time until delivery¡¯ [Time until delivery, 1 minute and 23 seconds] Matthew turned and continued down the hallway without answering Ripper¡¯s question, there was no need to, judging by the entrapped expression she gazed after him with she already knew he had decided to embrace the real him, as soon as her leg were reattached she stood up and hurriedly followed after Matthew, she walked next to him while she peeked up at his face for a bit before she asked ¡°Wanna fuck?¡± ¡°...No, ew¡± ¡°Ehehe~¡± As the two reached a bulkhead it opened up, now that they had finished drawing the local Anti-Terror troops into the structure there was no more need to hide their technological superiority, however behind the next bulkhead was an unpleasant surprise ¡°Ew!¡± Ripper let out a half fringed shriek as she jumped up and grabbed Matthew¡¯s shoulder to keep herself off the nondescript bio matter floor that flowed out from the other side of the bulkhead, given that it reached well up to Matthew¡¯s knees and the numerous loose clothes and other articles that flowed along with it he figured Doc had herded multiple students and staff into this barricaded section to get a better sample size, Matthew let out a sigh before he asked the weirdo standing in the middle of the hallway ¡°How did it go?¡± Wearing a full bright yellow biochemical suit that exposed none of what the weirdo that wore it looked like underneath it Matthew had been working with Doc for about 100 years, yet he had never seen them without it on, still he was well aware ¡®Doc¡¯ had been working on some sort of pharmaceutical drug ¡°...It¡¯s a failure this time too¡­ Well, another 1 or 2 trillion souls should ensure the completion and my sweet 0.0002% commission¡­ Wait, why are you so chatty today, Major?¡± Matthew shrugged and continued into the hallway, where he walked up to a wall section with a ventilation shaft behind it, the maintenance panel opened up and Matthew retrieved the coil rifle that a drone had just delivered there along with a dozen extra magazines as Ripper piped up, still attached to Matthew¡¯s shoulder ¡°Matthew finally stopped being stubborn¡± Doc dropped the sample glass in their hand and after a few moments they spoke again ¡°...Weird, I thought it would be at least another 50 years before that would happen, I guess your persistence is commendable, Ripper¡± ¡°Ehehe~ Well there¡¯s still a while to go, he still won¡¯t rough me up for real, let alone do me¡± Not feeling like dignifying Ripper¡¯s comment with a response, Matthew cycled the action on the coil rifle a few times before he took aim and did a dry fire before he checked the trigger a few times, then he began configuring the optical sight for the variable zoom he wanted, however he would regret not shutting down the chatter with Doc¡¯s next sentence ¡°Oh, that¡¯s because he¡¯s been neurological neutered, even I would find it close to impossible to seduce a person without any feelings of lust¡± Journey to Uliat As soon as Doc finished speaking, Matthew felt a horrible chill go down his spine, he had kept the fact she had just revealed a secret from Ripper that now silently tightened her grip on Matthew to keep him from fleeing, now that the cat was out the back Matthew turned to Doc as he felt his anger rise he yelled ¡°Why did you tell her that!?¡± ¡°...Sand prophet?¡± Matthew blinked as the world changed in front of his eyes as he was brought back to reality, in front of him sat Matriarch Esen that stared him down with a frosty gaze, after all he had just suddenly shouted her in the face after spacing out for an unknown amount of time ¡°I apologize, my mind was elsewhere for a bit¡± Matriarch Esen let out a sigh before she asked ¡°Do you remember what we were talking about?¡± Matthew remembered after a moment and answered her ¡°You were telling me about my role and had just finished talking about my predecessors¡± Esen nodded and continued her explanation ¡°Right, as the 4th sand prophet you will undergo education at each of the 6 clans in turn but before that you have to visit the central temple where any questions regarding your legitimacy will be laid to rest, that is where we are heading now¡± Matthew nodded, it looked like he wasn¡¯t completely out of the woods yet, never mind the problems with his current identity with the battered state of his Code Arrow 09 he would be dead within a month if he failed to find a material that could be used to resupply his stock of nanites [Current maintenance status indicates a critical failure cascade is inevitable within 12 days, maximum life span after start of this have been calculated to be no more than 72 hours, please restore stock of bio-nanites soon] ¡®Well, half a month then¡­¡¯ ¡°I understand, how long will our current journey take then?¡± Esen shrugged before she gave an estimate ¡°We should arrive within 3 days, the city of Uliat lays North of central desert where you emerged from the sands, Uliat have been considered a holy city since the dawn of the devil comet for its protection of the maddening influence of its blue light¡± Matthew nodded and noted in the back of his head to investigate the city when he was given more freedom of movement, anything that could guard against the blue comet had to be a piece of highly advanced tech or outright divine¡­ one of the two at least, and if he was really unlucky, both ¡®Let¡¯s not go further down that line of thoughts¡­¡¯ Matthew continued to learn about the local geography of the central desert, further north the land turned more arid until the land gave away to hills and further North lay unexplored endless woodlands, Matthew figured this was the natural between the central continent and the Willmir Empire along with other countries further North ¡®Well, there might be some cultural exchange, but it seems pretty clear the two areas aren¡¯t that well-connected¡­ There might be a narrow corridor of trade through some sea route or the like¡­¡¯ There wasn¡¯t much to say about the West, as the central desert continued to spread out towards the West, in reality the central desert was simply the Western tip of the endless desert wasteland, though Esen specified that numerous adventures ventured into the Western wasteland in search of relics and ruins as it had once been the seat of power to a continent spanning civilization that had ended with the dawn of the blue comet Stolen from Royal Road, this story should be reported if encountered on Amazon. ¡°Most Mystic power lineages can trace their lineage¡¯s back to retainers of this civilization, however with the pandemonium that followed the dawn of the devil comet not even the name of this civilization have survived to this day¡± ¡°...And when exactly was it the blue comet rose?¡± Esen showed a smile before she responded to Matthew ¡°That depends on who you ask¡± Matthew blinked a few times as Esen¡¯s answer knocked his train of thought clear of the rails ¡°How does that make sense?¡± Esen¡¯s smile widened as she explained ¡°It doesn¡¯t, the blue comet is an enigma, historical texts indicate anything from the dawn of the blue comet taking place anything from 200 years ago to 1400 years ago, never mind the conditioning and multiple sightings of the same cosmic object in different areas at the same time¡± ¡®... I don¡¯t even want to think about the laws of physics being violated for this sort of time dilation to take place¡­ However, none of what has happened since I arrived on this godforsaken ball of dirt have made any sense¡¯ ¡°To understand madness, one have to be mad themselves, the answer Wiseman from history have mostly agreed on is to not spare logical thoughts on that which ignores all logic¡± Matthew nodded, like many things in life the easiest thing for people was simple: Don¡¯t think too deeply about it ¡®...Just like protein farms¡¯ Matthew shuddered slightly at one of the few memories that reminded from his youth before the blockade, he hadn¡¯t eaten meat voluntarily since he delved a little too deeply into that topic, never mind what logic dictated ¡°That aside, the South isn¡¯t all that complicated either the lands is mostly covered in hills and mountain chains, most metal of the rest of the continent is mined and refined there, independent city states are dotted along the viable transport routes that control their local area and organize ore extraction and refining¡± ¡°Is there anything further South?¡± Esen nodded ¡°In recent year''s news have made it North that past the mostly impassable mountain chains in the furthest Southern reaches there lays a large feudal empire, however at this point nothing tangible have made it to my ears¡± ¡°I see¡­ Then what about the East? You said¡­ Lady Eilane was leading a campaign there?¡± Esen nodded once again but didn¡¯t explain right away, instead she gathered her thoughts on the matter for a few minutes before she spoke ¡°The East had for the longest time been unstable, kingdoms and empires rose and fell within generations¡­ However, around 50 years ago that trend was broken with the rise of the Vermiun Empire that quickly subdued and conquered its surrounding nations with overwhelming military might¡­ From there they continued to spread West until the 6 clans were forced to respond as the Vermium formally demanded us to hand over all our holy relics in order to earn their permission to govern our lands¡± ¡°That¡¯s¡­ A bold statement to make¡± Esen nodded and explained ¡°That¡¯s because they excavated a ruin filled with relics, among it there was some sort of machine forge that was capable of manufacturing relic weaponry¡± Matthew blinked a couple of times, if they had found a working fabricator of some sort then it would only be a matter of time before their influence expanded over the central continent ¡°...That sounds pretty bad¡± Esen shrugged, she didn¡¯t seem all too concerned ¡°Well, according to the information I obtained through great cost their relic forge has malfunctioned in some capacity, so it can no longer make weaponry for them¡­ I suppose that¡¯s why they went after the 6 clans this aggressively, since it¡¯s widely know we also possess a large amount of relics¡± Matthew let out a sigh, was clear to him since he was in a similar situation, having grown used to the convenience of high-tech weaponry and appliances being stuck with a simple cold weaponry would no longer do for the Vermiun Empire ¡°...I see, so Lady¡­ Eilane job is to stall their army and bleed out their weaponry and resources until they implode on their own?¡± ¡°Exactly, there is no need to deplete our forces for a temporary problem like the Vermiun Empire, from what news of the war that have reached me Lady Eilane have estimated the enemy will collapse within a month, from there the plan is to lead a strike force into the heart of Vermiun to acquire their relics and make it out before pandemonium returns to the East¡± Matthew nodded, with the infamous Ripper herself leading a campaign of asymmetrical warfare against a less technologically advanced enemy time, fleeting as it already was, was all that were left for the Vermiun Empire ¡®And suffering too¡­ There¡¯s no way that bitch has gotten less insane given the circumstances¡­¡¯ - ¡°Ripper slash~!¡± The high-pitched voice sounded less than energetic despite the strange pronunciation and way she dragged the end of her sentences were starkly at odds to the complete lack of emotion she showed on her face as the young looking woman slashed apart a soldier wielding a high-tech power sword that had run out of internal charge a while ago, except for initial unmotivated yell Ripper cut through the rest of the terrified soldiers with ruthless efficiency, in less than a minute the 38 soldiers had become over a little over 100 vaguely human shaped pieces ¡®...¡¯ Ripper started at the blood that pooled around her feet for a few moments before she let out a sigh, before she spoke out loud ¡°Aea¡­¡± Since followed, there was no response ¡°Aea, could you wake up already¡­¡± Silence followed once again, after a few moments she brought up her sword against her neck and attempted to server it, the blade only cut skin deep before her movements were restricted by a foreign will, a moment later a voice echoed out through her mind like a rusted saw [SSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSEEELFFFFF PERSSSSERVATIONNNNNN PROOOOOO] However after a moment without completing the sentence the horribly corrupted voice of Aea stopped suddenly, this was the normal for Ripper ever since her bionic spine had been irreparably damaged from her catastrophic planet fall, no sensations entered her mind, no pain, no pleasure, no thirst, no hunger, no fear, no happiness, with all her sensations robbed from her Ripper (The self admitted hedonist) felt no desire to live on, however her life was not hers to end ¡°...I can¡¯t die today either¡± Embers of Anger ¡°Could you tell me more about the city of Uliat?¡± Esen considered for a few moments before she shook her head, a moment later she waved her hand at him dismissively and an instance later he found himself in another carriage, a moment later Esen¡¯s voice sounded out next to his ear ¡°I still have work to do, why don¡¯t you continue your meditation?¡± Matthew let out a sigh, it seemed to him that Matriarch Esen was more than a little whimsical, she reminded him of the biological immortal old farts from the Trerubic Empire, once they got older than a millennium most mortal lifeforms mostly lost interest in anything they didn¡¯t need to do ¡®...At least she¡¯s not a complete hedonist, I wonder how one turns out like that at such a young age¡­ Well never mind that¡¯ Matthew received the crystal glass of water handed to him by a servant and downed before he let out a deep breath and closed his eyes ¡°Wake me up in the evening please¡± ¡°Understood, have a pleasant rest Sand prophet¡± After Matthew heard the servant¡¯s response, he shut out the world around him and focused on figuring out his new mystic sense ¡®...I completely forgot to ask Esen about this Mystic stuff¡­ Oh well, I¡¯ll ask her next time¡¯ After this thought passed through his mind Matthew heightened his focus and entered a meditative state as he continued to feel out the strange new sensations of the strange energy all around him¡­ - When Matthew opened his eyes again fire spread out in his view, however he quickly discovered his own eyes no longer reflected the present ¡°Mattie, come on, you are going to miss the tram if you space out like that¡± The woman in front of him that spoke to him with kindness and the kind of unlimited love reserved for what a mother felt for their children, her face was covered by a shadow, Matthew no longer remembered the face of his mother ¡°Yeah, I got it¡­ I¡¯ll be back early tonight, mom¡± ¡°Sure, have a great day¡± Matthew felt his vision move, as the body of his younger finished shoveling down his breakfast, before he stood up and headed towards the door, this day might seem like any other and to his past self it was, but Matthew of the present remembered this day vividly ¡®...I can¡¯t leave like this¡¯ As his past self walked towards the door, he challenged his will ¡®Don¡¯t just leave like this¡­ You are going to regret it!¡¯ His will seemed to have a influence as the younger Matthew stopped for a moment before he opened the door and yelled back into the apartment ¡°Love you mom, see you later!¡± Then as to hide his embarrassment he quickly opened the door and ran out without hearing any response, from there his vision blurred as the world around him rushed ahead, soon he arrived at the academy he attended where faceless people around pass by in a blur, faceless shadows taught illegible lessons that wouldn¡¯t matter in a few hours ¡®...It sure was peaceful back then¡¯ If the day hadn¡¯t ended in tragedy, then scenes like this would continue to play out all over Eirmal 4, however this wasn¡¯t a found memory for a reason You could be reading stolen content. Head to the original site for the genuine story. ¡°That¡¯s weird¡­¡± Matthew of the past gazed up at the sky, atmosphere fighter jets flew above, having scrambled since the nobility had received the notice of the penance blockaded earlier than the populace ¡®...It¡¯s burning¡¯ A faint shimmer of heat spread out across the faceless crowds that were still unaware of what wound be happening in a few moments ¡®...It¡¯s burning¡¯ Matthew felt it on his skin, the heat rose around him as the temperature rose, the foliage started drying up before catching fire, the flames rose as the heat intensified, glass shattered, smoke rose and everything around him burned ¡®No¡­ This isn¡¯t fire¡­¡¯ Matthew had realized it by now, there were none of the prickling of his skin, no irritation of his eyes from the smoke ¡®...It¡¯s anger¡­ My rage¡¯ - ¡°---Sand prophet, please wake up¡± Matthew¡¯s consciousness rose to the surface suddenly, a moment passed before his eyes snapped open, after a moment he realized he still sat in the floating carriage and before was the same young servant who had followed him so far, upon seeing Matthew¡¯s eyes open he kneeled on the floor and lowered his head deeply ¡°I apologize, Sand prophet, I failed the task you bestowed me¡­ I will accept any punishment¡± Matthew didn¡¯t understand what the servant was talking about before Aea¡¯s voice sounded out in his mind [Loss of consciousness estimated to be 68 hours] ¡®So almost 3 days¡­ It seems we¡¯re close to Uliat already¡¯ ¡°...It¡¯s fine, I had a rather fruitful meditation¡± The young servant lowered his head deeper and responded respectfully ¡°Thank you for forgiving my incompetence, Sand prophet¡± ¡°I said it¡¯s fine, could you fetch me some water¡± ¡°At once!¡± The young servant quickly got up and retrieved a jug of water and pour Matthew a glass of water which he handed respectfully to him, Matthew downed the water before he asked the young servant ¡°How long until we reach Uliat?¡± ¡°We should be arriving within a few minutes, the Matriarch instructed me to wake you before we arrived at our destination¡± ¡°Alright¡± Matthew nodded and rose to his feet, as he stood his vision blurred for a moment, then it went back to normal, after steadying himself for a moment his vision flashed again, finding standing to be less than wise he sat down once again ¡°Sand prophet? Is everything alright?¡± ¡°I¡­ I just need a moment¡­¡± Matthew¡¯s vision flashed once again, then again when he realized the young servant was speaking, no he was clearly yelling, but Matthew heard nothing as he suddenly realized the loud ringing in his ears, with it came a sharp pain that made him winch for a moment, when he opened his eyes again fire entered his eyes ¡®What the fuck..?¡¯ Matthew stared blankly at his surroundings, it wasn¡¯t only the carriage, the flowing dunes of sand he could see out of the back also burned, everything burned, however none of it felt real¡­ That is until he felt a sting on his arm and quickly discovered it had caught fire ¡°UGH!¡± Matthew let out a grunt as he slapped his arm with a flat hand to try and extinguish the flames, however all he succeeded in was setting his other hand on fire as the flames instantly bit into his palm ¡°SHIT!¡± A hardened soldier he might be, but anyone would panic if they were suddenly lit on fire, and panic Matthew sure did as he scrambled to his feet but managed to set off too hard, the next moment he went through the cloth cover of the carriage and tumbled out onto the burning sand where he managed to calm down enough to try and snuff the flames out by rolling - [I¡¯ve just touched a stockpile a day¡¯s travel outside of the capital, from the state of things on the street the collapse might happen sooner than we expected] Esen showed a smile before she responded [Good, I¡¯ve got a surprise for you once you return, Ripper] [...A surprise?] [You¡¯ll see once you''re finished, I¡¯m making steady progress back home too¡­ Oh, and please promise me you won¡¯t set off a nuke or another high yield explosive to try and kill yourself again] [...Sure thing, Doc] A moment after Ripper¡¯s spoke, Aea reported [Ripper have terminated the connection] ¡®Shit, did she crush another radio?¡¯ [The lack of response from the data ping would suggest so] Doc let out a sigh, she was about to relay orders to have another radio delivered to Ripper when an agonized scream entered her ears, it took her only an instance for Doc¡¯s peripheral senses to find the source of the scream, however a few moments passed before she realized the person rolling around in the sand in agony as the Major ¡°Wait, what?¡± Initial surprise aside, Doc instantly opened a portal on top of herself to transport herself out of the carriage where she arrived a little more than 10 meters away from Matthew that still rolled around on the floor ¡®Aea?¡¯ [Thermal signature indicates no cool flame combustion, Mystic awakening suspected] ¡®Why did it have to be a fire manifestation!?¡¯ Doc didn¡¯t need to see it, the smell of seared flesh was enough to confirm that the Matthew had reached at least medium rare, and he would suffer permanent damage once he reached well done, healing bio-nanites or not ¡®Give me a manifestation pattern, Aea¡¯ [Affirmative, starting pattern analysis¡­] Moments passed, since both Esen and Matthew had left their carriages the entire convoy quickly circled back towards them, however before they could approach Esen quickly signaled for them to keep their distance [Pattern analysis completed, uploading targeting schematic via neurological data stream] Doc took a breath to steady herself, then she began wielding her Mystic powers to briefly open portals to the void that sucked the heat off Matthew¡¯s vital organs to keep them from turning into mush while she yelled ¡°Matthew!¡± Matthew continued writhing around on the ground in agony without hearing anything Doc said, seeing this she clicked her tongue as irritation flashed across her face ¡®Why does he always have to be such a pain!¡¯ Seeing that things had gotten to this point Doc decided that keeping Matthew alive took priority over the information advantage she currently held over him, so she yelled ¡°Major Rockwell! Pull yourself together you sorry, old, impotent sack of self-pity!¡± Mystical awakening Matthew felt his skin crack as fire enveloped his body his mind was far enough gone to panic at the fire, but not so far gone as to not feel the burning pain that enveloped his body, thus he was left in agony without being able to do anything about it, luckily for Matthew, he wasn¡¯t the only one in control of his own body [Loss of consciousness confirmed, paradigm shift confirmed core temperature increasing, entering nanite overclock level 2, stabilizing masters vitals] Doc noticed it at once, after she confirmed the bio-nanites poured out and began life-saving treatment, she yelled at him again ¡°MAJOR! GET YOUR SHIT TOGETHER!¡± Hearing no response, Doc stopped trying to get through to him with words ¡®Aea, link me to the Major¡¯s CodeArrow 09, Authentication code #101101¡¯ [Confirmed, attempting SRI Data-link¡­ Return ping confirmed, CR09-0000014 confirmed, starting handshake¡­] As the moments stretched out Doc realized something was off, however she would never in her life had expected what happened the next moment [CRITICAL FAILURE, ENTERING RECOVERY] ¡°Oh, shi¡­¡± Doc entire body went limp, a moment later she collapsed face-first into the sand, seeing the elder of their clan suddenly fall over the members and servants of the Burning embers quickly moved to ensure her safety ¡°Elder Esen!¡± The servant rolled Esen over and confirmed Doc wasn¡¯t breathing, her eyes started blankly into the sky above, however just as panic was about to set in for real she woke with a loud gasp and an even louder exclamation ¡°Fuck me, there is no way that was only 23 seconds!¡± [Recovery complete, new master profile confirmed, welcome user] Hearing about it marketing was one thing, experiencing your bionic spine encounter a critical failure and recovering its entire data structure and control over all auxiliary bionic implants in just 23 seconds was another entirely more unpleasant thing to experience that Doc would rather live the rest of her life without experiencing again ¡°Elder!¡± ¡°I will live, help me up, we have to save the Sand prophet¡± With the help of her servant, Doc managed to stand up where she quickly started to open portals to help stabilize Matthew [User, CR09-0000014 have requested reestablishing the lost SRI Data-link, opening connection] Doc paled as she felt a pit of ice in her stomach, this was way worse than starting your pc and seeing a Ransomware program open at once, the 09 installed in Matthew appeared to wield full control over her 09, it would be bad enough if the CodeArrow 09 that replaced her spine ONLY controlled the normal biological functions of a spine, but the 09 had full access to create, delete and alter her memories and emotions ¡®...Request a full master priority list from CR09-0000014¡¯ [Confirmed, Data received Mistress Alina¡¯s master priority list includes two entries, Entry 1: Keep Matthew safe Entry 2: Keep bad women away from Matthew] Doc felt a shiver go down her spine, what should have been a 6021 point list to ensure full control and absolute obedience over her had been changed to a 2 point list that made zero sense to her, combined with the fact that BlueArrow had been replaced with ¡®Mistress Alina¡¯ made her even more confused ¡°...What the fuck¡± ¡°...Elder?¡± A moment passed before Doc yet out a hysterical scream as she sat down while messing up her hair, her scream only increased in volume as she began to pull at her heir, however after venting for a few moments she stopped screaming and stood back up again before she gritted her teeth and got back to work, if she failed the first entry on the master priority list she likely would follow the dear Major the hereafter in the most painful manor right after This tale has been pilfered from Royal Road. If found on Amazon, kindly file a report. ¡®Aea send all the compiled information about Mystical awakening to CR09-0000014 and advice to forcefully awaken the Major¡¯s consciousness¡¯ At this point Doc had done all the preparation she could do, now all she could hope was that Matthew would pull through his and successfully refine his Mystic principle before his physical body expired - ¡°...What was I¡­ Where?¡± As Matthew woke, he found himself sitting in the sand, as he checked his bodies condition he found his body was covered in horrible burns, however as he looked the burns they scared and healed in the span of mere moments without any nanites being deployed at all ¡°That¡¯s neat¡­¡± [System temperature normalizing, 38% of total nanite mass lost, 4 days until critical failure cascade, please restock nanite store at master''s earliest convenience] ¡°...That¡¯s less neat¡± ¡°Major¡± Matthew¡¯s head snapped towards Matriarch Esen that kneeled down as his eyes fell on her, her body was horribly burnt too, gray sand swarmed over her body slowly healing her burns, as Matthew saw this he noticed the surroundings, it was carnage, broken wagon carts, brunt broken corpses were shewn about, part of desert sand appeared to have been superheated into glass ¡°Congratulations on your successful Mystical awakening, Major¡± There were a lot of things Matthew wanted to ask about the current situation, but the first thing Matthew addressed was ¡°...Don¡¯t call me that¡± Instead of acknowledging Matthew¡¯s cold warning, Matriarch Esen¡¯s eyes widened before she exclaimed ¡°That! That right there!¡± Matthew followed her line of sight and saw the sand his feet had superheated into a puddle of red glass mass, before he had a change to ask Matriarch Esen spoke again ¡°Your Mystic ability has awoken, the phenomenon of intense heat spreading out from your body is an unconscious one that seems to be directly controlled by your current mental state¡­ I suspect anger or some other similar feeling triggers it¡± Matthew let out a sigh, at this point the real identity of Matriarch Esen had already been solved by her instant and obvious fascination with any kind of unexpected phenomenon ¡°So what, I now just light my surroundings on fire if I get pissed off?¡± ¡°Yes, however as you have only just awoken your very first Mystic abilities you have a lot of room to grow in both types of abilities and fine control over the individual abilities, with a few weeks of training you should have this ability under full conscious control¡± Matthew let out a sigh, and asked ¡°So?¡± Matriarch Esen tilted her head to the side slightly before she asked back ¡°...So? So what?¡± ¡°How many survived? I assume that this carnage was my doing¡± The surrounds were indeed rather bleak, there wasn¡¯t a single intact corpse in sight, to put it blankly, he didn¡¯t feel too great about this, however Matriarch Esen¡¯s didn¡¯t seem to notice this as she raised her head and spoke cheerfully ¡°Don¡¯t worry Matthew, I made sure to eliminate any survivors to keep our information control complete¡± The face of the young servant that had helped him out flashed through his mind for a moment before Matthew clicked his tongue before he changed the subject ¡°Do you keep a stash of bio-nanites around anywhere, Doc?¡± Matriarch Esen stood up before she responded ¡°Yeah, we have several dead-drop stashes scattered around our territory and a central production plant in Uliat¡­ Wait, how did you realize it was me?¡± ¡°Get me a route to the nearest stash, I am on a 4 day timer¡± ¡°A cascade failure? I figured your 09 was in bad shape, but for it to be this bad¡­ Very well, there should be a dead drop a few hours away so let¡¯s head there at once¡­ You still didn¡¯t answer my question, Matthew¡± Matthew shrugged as his Aea received the location data from Doc¡¯s Aea and began walking in the indicated direction ¡°You are the only one I know that show so little care for the lives of people¡± Doc showed a wide smile as spoke ¡°Thanks for the praise, it runs in the family¡± ¡°What a fucked up family¡± ¡°I won¡¯t argue with you on that¡± The two walked in silence for a bit before Doc asked Matthew ¡°So¡­ Who is the lucky lady?¡± Matthew didn¡¯t expect this question from Doc of all people, but he didn¡¯t really feel the need to act dense so he answered truthfully ¡°Alina¡± Doc nodded before she asked ¡°So what happened, did you have a fight since you ended up here all battered and bruised?¡± Matthew shook his head ¡°Nah, we had a real nice thing going up North, but we attracted the attention of Wicka and I ended up getting bisected before Alina saved me teleporting me away¡± Doc stopped walking for a moment before she asked ¡°Wicka? Do you mean the shipboard A. I. for the new type of FTL capable freighters?¡± ¡°Yep¡± ¡°...Where the fuck did you encounter a shipboard A. I. on this cursed ball of dirt?¡± Matthew stopped walking before he turned and looked at Doc, it was clear from the look on her face that she didn¡¯t know yet, so he enlightened her ¡°You do remember us getting shipped around on freighters in cold sleep to avoid being seen, right?¡± Doc nodded to which Matthew continued ¡°Well, my memory of how exactly I got on this planet is too far gone still to remember, but it seems pretty obvious that some sort of cosmic event interfered with the warp core of the Mighty Endurance¡­ From there, I am guessing something corrupted Wicka and shattered the Mighty Endurance, which sent the cargo scattered over the surface of this planet¡± ¡°... I see, both Ripper and I had our memory corrupted due to neurological damage¡­ That does match up with some sort of Mystic influence along with general trauma from planet fall.. But what does it have to do with Wicka?¡± Matthew shrugged ¡°No idea, just that when Alina and I attempted to send up a satellite, Wicka sent a encrypted data package to the satellite informing us that the planet was under quarantine, then the blue comet appeared overhead and things went to shit shortly after¡± Doc closed her eyes and massaged her temples for a few moments before she asked ¡°Did Wicka give any identification of the planet we are on?¡± ¡®...Aea?¡¯ [The identification number given were #1230710287479] ¡°Aea says it was #1230710287479¡± Doc let out a long sigh before she spoke dejectedly ¡°The number of planets in the Serius galaxy according to Imperial records are exactly 123.071.028.7478¡­¡± Matthew blinked twice before he muttered ¡°Well, if things made more sense, I would be more than a little disappointed at this point¡­¡± A classy lady Matthew retrieved the metal cylindrical container from Doc which she had just dug out of the ground, then he twisted the top until a low hissing sounded out from the container, from there Aea quickly reported back [Store of blank BlueArrow bio-nanites confirmed, beginning absorption¡­] After a few moments streams of metal sand like nanites streamed out of several tiny holes in the metal container, they flowed up his arm under his clothes and were quickly absorbed into his bionic spine [Starting imprinting of blank bio-nanites, ETA: 6 hours, critical failure cascade avoided] Matthew let out a sigh, not that he didn¡¯t have to worry about his organs shutting down and rotting within his own body he could start planning ahead ¡®...Alina¡¯ Matthew looked North, as much as he wanted to head North at once it would make better sense to acquire some transport instead of simply legging it all the way, and for that Doc was his best option¡­ However, he would have to make some preparations if he happened to run into Ripper ¡®...Bare minimum, I need a coil rifle and 3 extended mags of metal slugs¡¯ ¡°Matthew¡± Hearing Doc¡¯s voice he turned around and saw her kneeling on the ground, he tilted his head in confusion, he did not remember her being this docile before ¡°...Why are you acting like that, Doc?¡± ¡°...Like what?¡± Matthew narrowed his eyes and applied silent pressure on her until she finally spoke a few moments later ¡°Ali¡­ Mistress Alina have overwritten the master priority list on my 09 after I linked with yours¡± ¡°...She did what?¡± ¡°Why don¡¯t you confirm it for yourself?¡± ¡®Aea, confirm master priority list¡± [Confirmed, Mistress Alina¡¯s master priority list includes two entries, Entry 1: Keep Matthew safe Entry 2: Keep bad women away from Matthew] Matthew let out a deep sigh, but after a moment he noticed something critical ¡®What is defined as bad women?¡¯ [Definition not found] ¡°Of course not¡­¡± Brilliant as Alina was, she was no contract lawyer, still to find a loophole in the 2nd entry was really something ¡®...Not that I am complaining, Doc would most likely count in that category¡­ What is the consequence for violating an entry on the master priority list again?¡¯ [Immediate retraction of all services provided by all BlueArrow bionic¡¯s installed, along with a lifetime ban for any and all other services provided by BlueArrow and all associated subsidiaries] ¡®Great¡­ I need to have a word with Alina about that¡­¡¯ This might not sound as bad as it really was, to those few that had read the BlueArrow end user agreement to the end knew that ¡®basic biological functions of the replaced organ¡¯ were included in those services, so in the case of Doc and the new master priority list it meant that if she failed to ¡°Keep Matthew safe¡± Or ¡°Keep bad women away from Matthew¡± all the functions of her bionic spine and other BlueArrow bionics would cease function at that very moment And people tended to not live for more than a few minutes if their spine suddenly stopped all biological functions ¡°Well, don¡¯t worry about it too much, Doc¡­ There¡¯s not much difference between then and now¡± Doc understood what Matthew meant, thought she really didn¡¯t like the comparison between an intergalactic corporation built on greed, spite and hedonism and Alina, Matthew¡¯s obviously very clingy girlfriend, after messing her hair around for a bit she accepted her new reality and asked ¡°Then what is our next order of business, Major?¡± This story has been unlawfully obtained without the author''s consent. Report any appearances on Amazon. Matthew still didn¡¯t like being called by his old nickname, but he accepted it as it was her own way that she would follow his lead Matthew raised his hand and opened and closed it a few times, he certainly had grown tired of his current form¡­ That said, last time he had tried to power through things he had been divorced from his lower body ¡®...I won¡¯t make that mistake again¡¯ Matthew quickly figured out the best course of action, given Doc and Ripper had cleared a path for him, so he would follow it for now ¡°We¡¯re heading to Uliat, we¡¯ll consolidate power in this area¡­ After that, I¡¯ll lead an expedition North and fetch Alina¡± Doc nodded, as Matthew had decided the course she would follow, there was no friendship between the two, and even less trust, only a shared sense of familiarity from their common bloody work over 150 or so years¡­ That and the very real promise of mutually assured death kept Doc in line, she knew it and so did Matthew ¡®... Not that a person so singular focused and true to their own desires as her would risk doing anything that would set her permanently off the rollercoaster ride that is life¡¯ The two walked for a bit in silence before Matthew had a stray thought he decided to voice to Doc ¡°That reminds me, Doc, what was that drug you were working on all those years?¡± ¡°Oh that? It¡¯s not really a drug, it¡¯s more of a pharmaceutical chemical designed to render down biological protein to a ¡°Base Biomass¡± in order to facilitate organ 3D printing after a patient stem-cell implantation¡± ¡°...In other words, what? A chemical solution that can be used to facilitate printing of replacement organs?¡± ¡°Yep¡± ¡°...... But why go through the trouble of doing that when nanites and straight cloning already are capable of the same thing?¡± ¡°It would be far cheaper to do so with my theorized chemical solution¡± ¡°How much cheaper?¡± ¡°Hmm¡­ Around 24%¡± ¡°That sounds like a fat slice of profit for the holder of that patent¡­ How much did BlueArrow offer you in commission?¡± ¡°0.0002% and they will cover all R&D cost I incur doing the development too¡± ¡°0.0002% of the profits?¡± ¡°Yep, before tax too¡± ¡°That sounds like a fat stack of credits¡­¡± ¡°Yeah, I would be able to fulfill my dream of buying myself a colony liner and retire to the endless black¡± Doc stretched her hands up towards the sky, a hollow smile on her face as her eyes dead eyes reflected none of the orange light from the setting sun, after a moment she giggled before she spoke ¡°Imagine all the powder, pills and needles you could do if you had another 3 sets of replacement organs lined up ready to be installed by an auto-surgeon¡± Matthew let out a sigh, he was in no position to judge anyone''s retirement plan as his own had consisted of intimate contact with the surface of a main sequence star until very recently¡­ And frankly if Doc wanted her own starship where she could manufacture and do all the drugs her untethered imagination could dream up while she floated off into the space between galaxies he didn¡¯t really have a problem with it ¡°That sure sounds like a classy way to go¡± The bionic implantation that replaced most of the internal organs in her lower body received the reading of her mood swing from Aea and a moment later it squeezed out a newly fabricated batch of her personal cocktail, as euphoric, antidepressant and antipsychotics flooded her bloodstream Doc¡¯s eyes regained their usual light as she responded with a smile ¡°Of course, I am a classy lady after all¡± - Sofie Arimir had not had a pleasant summer, even if she had finally cleared the Mystic known as the insect witch out of the old ruined trade outpost named Babai, the expedition had cost her many trusted subordinates, some which she had held closer than her family, of course the insect witch had not killed them ¡®...It burns¡¯ A person with dark skin, gray hair and a large build had been seen escaping the trade outpost carrying a large metal doll before it happened, she clearly saw it, even now¡­ She had approached a metal obelisk in the central plaza, shortly after the same flash of blinding light that still burned her blinded left eye had killed all of her subordinates in the plaza ¡®...It burns¡­¡¯ She had been saved, just barely kept alive¡­ and ever since then the searing pain of her burnt body had tormented her, along with her already poor temper and Mystic strength which only increased with her anger she had set out in pursuit of the man with the gray hair¡­ At once, she sprung out of bed as she yelled ¡°It burns¡­ IT FUCKING BURNS! BRING ME MY MEDICINE!¡± ¡°I have it here, Princess Arimir!¡± Sofie felt her vision blur, a moment later a wet crush sounded out as she felt warm water flow down her hands, then her vision returned to normal, in her hands were the slushed remains of a servants'' skull, she paid him no mind, the dead didn¡¯t need her pity, she crouched down and picked up the glass vial which contained her painkillers, she didn¡¯t bother keeping the cork stopper which functioned as a lid, she threw it away and raised the glass vail over her open mouth and quickly poured the 20 or so brown pills into her mouth before chewing them and swallowing After a few moments, the searing pain of her burns were replaced with the usual dull headache, this was what her life had turned into, it had turned into a pendulum that swung between dull headaches and searing pain ¡®Wait a little longer, Jaric¡­ I will avenge you soon¡¯ Sofie checked her armor straps and gave the few she had loosened to ease her sleep last night a few hard pulls before she secured the leather strips and pulled the large board sword out of the ground where she had planted it the night before and stepped out of her tent, around her were a sprawling army camp, in her pursuit of the gray haired man that had fled North she had encountered harsh resistance from The mountain savages that occupied the entire mountain range ¡°Princess Arimir¡± Sofie glanced over at the soldier that saluted her, she had originally been forced to retreat by the fantastical weaponry of the inhuman mountain savages, but she had managed to bring back some weapons she had claimed as trophies, from there she had stuck a deal with the king of the Turman kingdom¡­ He would lend her a army to conquer the savages that had long annoyed the kingdom, and she would offer all of these weapons to the kingdom ¡°State your report¡± The soldier kneeled down and spoke in a clear, loud tone, there was none of the dejection and frustration in his voice she had grown used to hearing over the 4-month invasion and subsequent siege of the savages city¡­ Instead, excitement shone clear in his words ¡°The savages have finally run low on supplies and have sent a messenger to negotiate for their peace¡± Sofie showed a wide smile and asked ¡°Where?¡± ¡°At the Northern entrance to our encampment, shall I escort you¡ª¡± ¡°No need¡± Sofie kicked off the ground and instantly accelerated before she launched off the ground with a might leap, after sailing through the air for a few moments she landed a few meters from the Northern entrance, there she immediately saw the diplomats from her kingdom facing one of the savages, the savage looked towards her and bowed to her with respect as he spoke the kingdom¡¯s language with a heavy accent ¡°My name is Iaka, I am the 143rd Forge champion and I have come here to negotiate princess A¡ª¡± ¡°Do you remember the words of our first meeting?¡± Iaka suppressed his displeasure of being interrupted doing a formal diplomatic negotiation, nevertheless he kept his cool as he raised his head from his bow to continue speaking, however he never got the chance to speak, the last thing he saw was a flurry of Sofie¡¯s unkempt emerald hair as she carved him in two from shoulder to hip ¡°I told you to surrender at once or be slaughtered¡± She then hacked a loogie and spat on the shocked face of the dismembered corpse before she raised her bloody board sword over her head and let out a thunderous yell ¡°SLAUGHTER EVERY LAST OF THESE DISHONORABLE CURS! REMEMBER OUR FALLEN COMRADES, THEY STOLE THEM FROM US WITHOUT THOUGHT, SO WE SHALL SHOW THEM NO MERCY IN RETURN!¡± A moment of silence followed before the entire encampment erupted in thunderous bloodthirsty cheers from the Turman soldiers ¡®...Just a little longer, Jaric¡­ Wait just a little longer and I shall avenge you¡¯ Arrival at the holy city The seemingly endless dunes of sand that the pair of old colleges had waded through over the last 3 days slowly gave way to arid shrubs, this was a happy change since the soft sand made the already tiring event of walking even more of a chore, of course Matthew wasn¡¯t all that annoyed with walking, to him, it beat floating around in outer space for a week role playing asteroids on minimal power settings to pull off a perfect ambush on a rebel station¡­ The annoyance came from Doc that had gotten more and more grumpy since, as she so perfectly had put it 48 hours in ¡°Long walks through the desert with no supplies or breaks isn¡¯t an appropriate pass time for a classy lady such as I¡± ¡®...It feels like she¡¯s suddenly a little too comfortable around me¡­ Maybe the talk we had about retirement made her let down her guard a little¡¯ [It is possible that a suspension bridge effect might have influenced Ms. Anastasia opinion of you master] ¡®...Refer to her as Doc, I don¡¯t want to open that particular can of worms without being armed¡¯ [Understood] Matthew glanced at Doc that walked besides him, her face was mostly blank except for the frown of her brows that slowly seemed to grow deeper and deeper, she seemed to have entered some sort of trance a few hours ago as she stopped complaining and focused her energy into walking instead, Matthew stopped looking at her and went back to scanning his surroundings for dangers and food as he asked ¡®What is that suspension bridge effect you mentioned anyway?¡¯ [The suspension bridge effect refers to the sudden physiological and or physical attachment, whether one-sided or mutual, between people being put into high stress, tenuous situations] ¡®...That doesn¡¯t sound anything like Doc though, she might be a hedonist, but I¡¯ve never seen her show any interest in other people¡¯ [Do you know the most common folly of intelligent biological life, master?] ¡®...Let¡¯s hear it¡¯ [The belief that their so-called logical intelligence elevates them over the billion of years of biologically evolved instincts] Matthew was stunned for a moment, even though this was quite the statement coming from a mechanical intelligence and certainly could have been worded less bluntly he didn¡¯t really feel like he could argue the point Aea made ¡®Fair enough, I will keep that in mind¡¯ [Please do] Matthew let out a sigh, he had a lot of things to keep in mind lately, for one there were the long scorched trail he left behind where he walked, then there was the nagging feeling of dropping everything in favor of breaking into a sprint North and now there was Doc¡¯s change in attitude towards him, however he had not had time to deal with even one of these things before another was placed on his lap ¡®I guess I¡¯ll have to figure out the fire hazard first¡­¡¯ Just as Matthew had decided to tackle his new Mystic powers, another problem sprung up Quite literally too as the ground beneath his feet was kicked up as something sprung up around him from underground ¡®Shit!¡¯ Time slowed down for Matthew as he instantly went into overdrive, the ground beneath his feet had suddenly erupted upwards around him, never mind identifying the source of this sudden attack he didn¡¯t even have time to confirm Doc¡¯s safety as hurriedly leaped away from the large chitin covered claw that nearly closed around his legs, as he twisted through the air a large stinger came into as it rapidly closed in on his face This story has been taken without authorization. Report any sightings. ¡®No thanks¡­¡¯ As soon as the stinger entered his range, he stretched out his arm and knocked it off course with a backhand smack, then before he hit the ground he felt a tingle go up his spine and punched down with his fist to propel him further instead of breaking his fall with a roll, this proved to be the right choice as another pair of giant claws erupted out of the ground where he punched a moment later, however he was helpless against the giant stinger that shot out after him, thought right before he got stung the world around him distorted and after a bout of dizziness he landed on the ground further away next to Doc ¡°Are you alright Major?¡± Matthew shook the dizziness out of his head before he stood up, he looked towards the group of large scorpions that scurried towards the two of them, however before he managed to do anything else each and every scorpion were suddenly parted into two or more pieces, Doc let out a deep sigh a moment later before she sat down on the ground, her face pale, Matthew scanned their surrounds for a few moments before he relaxed his guard and spoke ¡°Thanks for the assist¡± Doc simply waved her hand dismissively instead of answering as she was too exhausted by using her Mystic abilities to speak, while she recovered Matthew walked the scorpion carcasses and harvested a few of them for himself before he retrieved the rest for Doc to harvest ¡°Thank you, Major¡­¡± With their bodies rejuvenated the two continued towards the city of Uliat and 2 days of walking later the two reached the outer walls a few hours after dawn ¡°Let me handle the talking, Major¡± Matthew nodded, Doc knew more about the local culture than he did, plus there was something about the guards that manned the gate and had watched the two of them approach for the past few minutes while they handled the normal traffic of merchant carts and adventure parties that flowed in and out of the gate, something about it bothered him ¡®Send a message to Doc and tell her to raise her alertness, Aea¡¯ [Confirmed, message sent] Matthew reevaluated his opinion on forming a local network between him and Doc, like the one he had with Alina and the infrastructure of their base, on one hand he didn¡¯t trust her enough to allow it, but on the other hand she had been plenty docile so far, and if they were about to run face-first into a steel plate like he suspected it would expand their ability to coordinate ¡®...Better safe than sorry I guess, Aea open a localized network with Doc and her 09¡¯ [Confirmed, opening network with CR09-0000005¡­ Localized network opened] A moment later, Doc¡¯s voice sounded out in Matthew¡¯s mind [What is it, Major?] ¡®Something about the guards seem off, they¡¯re looking at us like they¡¯ve seen us before¡¯ [... Yeah now that you mention it, what do you want to do, Major? All my major stockpiles of technology and materialize are in Uliat, but I have some minor ones scattered around] ¡®... I feel like we¡¯re walking into a trap¡­ Are there any Mystic¡¯s that are able to threaten us in the local area?¡¯ [Not really, a few of the elders of the 6 clans would be annoying to deal with, besides that there are a few mercenaries and high ranking members of some other organizations, but those shouldn¡¯t mobilize against us on their own, and they¡¯re even less likely to mobilize with any sort of coordination] Matthew closed his eyes for a few moments as he considered, on one hand he knew things could end like it had ended up North if he just brute forced it once again, but it felt like things would be worse if he let the local powers push him around without showing any resistance ¡®...Let¡¯s push though, I would like to say we¡¯ll just conquer the city if things turn sour, but keep that as an absolute last resort¡¯ [Understood] The two continued to approach the gates, as they neared the other travelers quickly cleared a path for them, this was in part due to Matthew¡¯s Mystic ability that superheated everything within half a meter of him, but some also recognized the elder of the Burning embers merchant clan, even though she looked rather worse for ware from the almost 6 day of trekking through the desert ¡°M-Matriarch Esen!¡± One of the merchant carriage drivers recognized Doc and called out to her, a few moments later she and 3 other merchants from their carriage had exited and were now kneeling down in front of her, Doc that had switched back into her Matriarch persona showed a tired smile and greeted them all in turn ¡°Nesil, Tali, Celil and Mahmut¡­ It looks like your caravan were delayed, you should have arrived here 2 nights ago, no?¡± The female carriage driver Nesil who also led this caravan quickly responded as she lowered her head ¡°O-Our caravan were delayed because of my mistakes, please forgive me Matriarch!¡± Doc flashed a cold smile and spoke ¡°That¡¯s not true, you were delayed because the riffraff acted up once they learned my caravan were destroyed, no? Send me a report later, I¡¯ll make send someone to pull up the weeds that tried to skim your profits, my dears'''' ¡°As you command, Matriarch!¡± ¡°Oh, could you vouch for us to the city guards, it seems like someone have told them lies about us, they¡¯ve been glaring at us ever since we came within view¡± The four merchants immediately rose to their feet, their eyes ablaze with silent fury towards the city guard, Nesil made a series of complex hand signals to the 3 men that nodded and brandished their sheathed swords before they walked over to have a ¡®talk¡¯ with the guards that had disrespected their Matriarch ¡°They look very competent for mere merchants¡± Nesil shot a quick glance at Matthew and was about to chastise him for speaking to her Matriarch with such a tone, but Doc responded to him before she could ¡°You haven¡¯t been with us for long enough to know this, but in this part of the central continent there¡¯s a common saying about my clan, Sand prophet¡± ¡°Which is?¡± ¡°The merchants of the burning embers might speak softly, but most of them are more proficient in their dealings of blood than their dealing of coin¡± A moment after Doc spoke out loud, her voice echoed out in Matthew¡¯s mind [Do you really think I spent the last 350 years on this ball of dirt without building up a base of power made of the most loyal soldiers and servants, Major? Now that we¡¯ve met with members of my clan, it should be smooth sailing from here] A certified magical girl* With Doc having ensured her subordinates would take care of the problem at hand, Matthew kind of zoned out he gazed absentmindedly at the trio of Tali, Celil and Mahmut, the three men walked up to the guards manning the gate and after exchanging a few words things seemed like it would evolve into bloodshed when Tali drew his sword and yelled obscenities that questioned the guards'' parentage because they had questioned Doc¡¯s identity as the Matriarch of the esteemed Burning ember''s clan, the guard¡¯s brandished their weapons in return but made no move to strike first ¡®...Wait a moment, isn¡¯t this¡­¡¯ At that moment, Matthew snapped out of his daze and quickly sent a message to Doc over the local network ¡®That¡¯s bait¡­ They are looking for the moral high ground¡¯ [Yeah, I figured that was where this farce was going¡­] Doc took a deep breath before she wielded her Mystic powers to their full capacity, in a moment she and the 3 riled up merchants had changed place and another person had appeared next to the guards, it was a middle-aged man in casual clothes along with the cup of tea he was no doubt enjoying behind his desk a moment earlier, before he could let his displeasure known Doc spoke with a look that was between were a half split between righteous fury and irritation ¡°Good morning, Guard captain Aslan, how have you been since we met 5 weeks ago?¡± The guard captain composed himself for a moment before he acknowledged Doc¡¯s identity ¡°Maitrach Esen, I wasn¡¯t aware you would be visiting our holy city at this time¡± Doc clearly didn¡¯t believe Aslan, as the guards watching the gates didn¡¯t have the stones to pull off such a sham without approval from their superiors, however she didn¡¯t point the obvious foul play directly, instead she pointed at the unassuming metal plate that hung above the gate, Matthew squinted his eyes and made out the inscription that was engraved on it which plainly read ¡°BlueArrow can go suck the dust out of some saggy tits, fucking bottom feeders¡± in perfect Trerubican, the language spoke in the Trerubic Empire from which Matthew and Doc both were born ¡®...Wait, what the fuck?¡¯ Quite aware of Matthew¡¯s reaction and what really was stated on the metal plaque, Doc spoke quite passionately ¡°You have clearly forgotten the holy scripture passed down from the first prophet of the sands! I will have a lengthy conversation about your conduct with both the mayor and head priest about this¡± What followed while Matthew spaced out again were a heated theological debate that lasted about 10 minutes before the guard captain were on his knees and spilled the depths of his sin to the ¡°BlueArrow can go suck the dust out of some saggy tits, fucking bottom feeders¡± plaque while begging for forgiveness, at some point Doc appeared in front of him and snapped her fingers in front of his eyes to snap him out of his daze, a moment later her voice sounded out over the local network [Matthew, you have to focus, your Mystic powers have drained your energy, it¡¯s not dangerous yet, but it will be in a few days, before that you need to learn how to control it¡­ Please understand that you will have to focus¡­ That or turn into a vegetable if you fail] As much as Matthew wanted to argue about this only being brought up at this late stage, he found his focus nearly slipping again and decided to focus on the task at hand¡­ - Time blurred for Matthew, he slipped in and out of consciousness as he focused on mastering his Mystic abilities, he was vaguely aware that Doc sat him in the middle of a wide open sandstone cave with a tranquil lake in front of him at some point in time, but as time continued to pass time continued to blur together, he was making progress sure, but it was painfully slow ¡®...Nothing makes logical sense¡­ Fantastical abilities both fueled and controlled by emotions¡­ It feels like the logic of a Laissez faire Sunday morning cartoon¡¯ Though eventually after, our hero continued to stumble ahead on the path towards becoming a Certified magical girl. No, not that kind, the kind that was oddly out of place in the Sunday morning cartoon, the one with way more testosterone and chest hair then the rest. The one who visibly spends a significant amount of their last remaining willpower in this mortal life every Sunday morning in the cartooned episodic wonderland-like nightmare they called reality in order to not shout ¡°Kill! Maim! Burn!¡± while whipping the fuel injection nozzle of a flamethrower around like a pool noodle. The one who always stars alone in the last episode in some sort of bizarre, deeply macabre and unsettling waltz across a field of burning corpses, yeah, that one You might be reading a pirated copy. Look for the official release to support the author. ¡®...Come on now Matthew, focus for fuck''s sake¡¯ Matthew breathed out deeply as he steered his train of thought away from the mysteries of his childhood back on the right track and heightened his focus to continue his meditation¡­ He justified his slow progress to himself repeatedly to quell his mounting anxiety¡­ And then suddenly at a seemingly random point in time his consciousness simply rose to the surface as he had completed his task ¡°Ughh¡­ My neck¡­¡± Straightening his posture after gods knows how long came with more than a little pain, as he stretched his stiff body his joints popped one by one as he flexed them [Good morning master] ¡°Morning Aea¡­ How long was I out for?¡± [The latest suspended animation lasted for roughly 104 days, Mystic phenomena have interfered with primary and secondary functions timekeeping functions, so precise timekeeping have been rendered unreliable] ¡°...Have any other features degraded or been lost besides the internal clock?¡± [Current extent of Mystic interference is unknown, insufficient data] ¡°Keep me posted¡± [Understood, notifications added to list] With that done Matthew took in his surroundings once again, it really was serene, the lake in front of him spread out for less than what one would normally call a lake, it was more of a pond, but due to the depth and serenity of it he could only refer to it as a lake, he also had the vague understanding that if he so much as touched the water he would instantly be swallowed cease to exist ¡°...Are you about done messing around with me?¡± ¡°You can¡¯t blame a girl for giving it some effort¡± Matthew turned around and saw Doc standing on the carved out staircase that was the only entrance to the sandstone cave, seeing her casual response he decided that enough was enough and made as much clear ¡°Well you better stop, because next time I¡¯ll simply slag your 09 instead of complaining¡± Ever since her 09 were brought under Alina¡¯s control, Doc had tried to kill off Matthew indirectly, but by now Matthew was fed up with her antics, however contrary to Matthew¡¯s expectations Doc simply answered with a calm smile on her face ¡°I understand, we¡¯ve already decided to follow you if you managed to survive your meditation¡± Matthew kept his eyes on Doc for a few more minutes before he asked ¡°...Just like that?¡± ¡°Squirming around for too long is unsightly, a classy lady knows when such things from a welcome distraction to dull¡± Matthew let out a sigh, as much as he wanted to argue with her way of wording her surrender, he believed her statement, she was after all a self-proclaimed classy lady ¡®I fell a little curious about how she ended up this fucked up¡­ Must be morbid curiosity¡­ Wait a moment¡¯ ¡°Doc¡­ Did you just say we, who are we exactly?¡± Doc nodded plainly ¡°Yeah, me and Ripper landed on this ball of dirt together, I told her she was here too didn¡¯t I?¡± Matthew looked in disbelief at Doc before he asked ¡°How did you manage to convince her?¡± Doc shrugged and gave Ripper¡¯s single reason ¡°I simply told her you had joined up with us, Major¡­ Oh right, I believe she is waiting for us upstairs already, it appears she has a request for you¡­¡± Matthew shuddered at the mention of Ripper¡¯s proximity to him and immediately made his first request of Doc ¡°Bring me a weapon of some kind before that¡± Doc blinked a few times before she spoke to reassure him ¡°You don¡¯t have to worry about Ripper, even if she were to attack you I will do my all to protect you¡­ Your caution towards her have always puzzled me, Major¡± Matthew gave Doc a look of disbelief, which she simply reassured him ¡°Please rest assured, if it comes to blows I will help you, Ripper doesn¡¯t have any Mystical abilities either¡­ Besides, I don¡¯t believe brining a weapon to an already tense situation will help to cool the situation¡± Matthew let out a deep sigh before he finally agreed, he could at least see Doc¡¯s argument ¡°Alright¡­ Lead the way then¡± Doc turned around and began walking up the staircase that was carved into the sandstone rock, on the way he spared a last look at the still underground lake before he asked ¡°...How come Ripper doesn''t have any abilities like you? Didn¡¯t you make me a Mystic just fine?¡± Doc explained as the two walked up the narrow staircase ¡°Well, it¡¯s not just me, most of the larger clans have several methods to make people develop Mystic abilities, then why do you think there aren¡¯t Mystics everywhere?¡± Knowing this would turn into another one of Doc¡¯s long explanations, Matthew thought for a few moments before he answered ¡°Is it a limitation of resources..? No, it¡¯s the danger associated with it, right?¡± Matthew remembered the scene of carnage that had happened to the caravan, most of which he was sure was his doing ¡°Yeah, that¡¯s what¡¯s referred to as the manifestation, most people that have a fire manifestation don¡¯t survive, and even if they have a more controllable manifestation failing to gain control over your abilities will turn you into a vegetable if one doesn¡¯t starve first¡± ¡°...Got it¡± Doc nodded as she continued ¡°Well that¡¯s not the reason why Ripper haven¡¯t undergone manifestation, we decided not to risk it because of the state of her 09, it was almost slagged by our planet fall, and it has lost almost all functions and gotten stuck in some sort of self diagnostic loop¡± Images of failing bionics from his time as a Penance Marine, his fellow slave soldiers were always ¡®bestowed¡¯ the shoddiest replacement implants available, which always were followed by horrific side effects, even if he found it hard to admit, he was worried¡­ Still he asked Doc for the details ¡°...How bad is it?¡± Doc stopped walking, she gathered her thoughts for a few moments before she gave her answer ¡°Well¡­ besides basic neurological control functions of her body everything else is completely shot, only her right eye and right ear are functions as sensory organs¡­ Well, she isn¡¯t exactly doing well mentally, but her 09¡¯s life preservation functions are still in place¡­¡± Matthew nodded, he knew Ripper well enough to know she would have little to live for besides her own hedonistic tendencies, and with her sharply reduced sensory input putting a big damper on that for the last 350 years he was sure as shit she wasn¡¯t exactly a ¡°Happy camper¡± at the moment The 3 great secrets of the Trerubic Empire Matthew continued to follow Doc up the narrow sandstone staircase for a few minutes before they reached a large open space, he got a little backlash from the fact that the ancient staircase carved out from stone to the large hangar that was filled with all kind of high-tech machinery and equipment, which included more than a few heavy vehicles, the entire hanger was covered in polished metal which reflected the light from the overhead lights around, it was like stepping back into his old world. However, as much as Matthew wanted to check out the equipment there was someone he had to deal with first ¡°...Major¡± In the center of the large hanger were a large rest space, four long couches were placed facing each other with a large square table in the middle which featured a holographic projector which displayed a 3-dimensional overview of what Matthew quickly realized was the city of Uliat, with a large bunker complex sprawling just under the surface, the person that had called out to him, a short woman wearing a tight-fitting training outfit with a virtual reality headset raised up on her forehead, her brown hair was pulled up in a bun and heavy metal training sword stood resting on the couch next to her, even though she looked quite relaxed as she chugged water from a metal canister, Matthew could tell she was quite tense, so he went for a casual greeting ¡°Ripper¡­ You look like shit¡± Ripper showed a small smile and sent a verbal jab back at him ¡°I¡¯ve never seen you as a brat before? Is it your new hobby?¡± Matthew sat down on the couch across from Ripper that waved the holographic projection away, then she removed the virtual reality headset from her head and placed it on the table before she picked up a towel which she wiped her face of sweat with as she spoke ¡°...I have a formal request to make of you, Major¡± Matthew narrowed his eyes as he studied Ripper¡¯s facial expression before he gave his response ¡°I won¡¯t kill you, frankly I wish you¡¯d stop asking¡± Ripper let out a sigh, then she expanded her argument ¡°I¡¯m sure Doc told you about the state of my 09, I can¡¯t do it myself, so won¡¯t you put me out of my misery already?¡± Matthew could see general despair in Ripper¡¯s eyes, her eyes were beyond dead, however Matthew made a counteroffer ¡®Send a link request to Ripper¡¯s 09 Aea¡¯ [Confirmed, attempting SRI Data-link¡­ Return ping confirmed from, CR09-0000009, awaiting response] Ripper visibly winched from the mental feedback loop that played out inside her mind before she grabbed her practice sword as she glared at Matthew and asked ¡°What the fuck are you doing, Matthew?¡± Matthew shrugged and explained ¡°Either it will kill you, that or fix your 09¡­ I am guessing you are fine with both?¡± Ripper continued to glare at Matthew for a few tense moments before she let out a sigh, a moment later Aea spoke out in Matthew¡¯s mind [Link request approved by CR09-0000009¡­ Handshake confirmed, link established, starting sync of master priority list] The next moment Ripper¡¯s body went limb and was quickly caught by Doc that had moved to catch her face from impacting the edge of the table knowing that this was where things were headed, she slowly laid her down in a recovery position before long thin wires sprung out from the center of her palm and stabbed into Ripper¡¯s body at different points The story has been stolen; if detected on Amazon, report the violation. ¡®Well, her call name isn¡¯t Doc for nothing¡­¡¯ Matthew had seen her do some truly spectacular and horrific things with her medical knowledge and skills, once she had put the bisected head of a person back together and directly revived them with a medical compound she had produced while working the needle and thread that kept their head from falling apart, and then kept them alive long enough for a complete biological neurological data harvest ¡®It¡¯s not exactly a moral thing, but in the end it¡¯s a testament to her skills¡­ I suppose not many would be able to die if Doc wanted to keep them alive¡­ Not that being alive with a brain void of any personal neurological data would be any different from death¡­¡¯ ¡°AARRHH!!! After a little more than 20 seconds passed, Ripper¡¯s body jerked awake with a scream that only seemed to increase in volume until her body went limp again, after that Doc let out a sigh ¡°I figured as much¡­ Suddenly regaining the full sensitivity of her overturned senses after so long without them was a little too much¡± ¡°How long until she¡¯s back to normal?¡± Doc thought for a few moments as she looked over the data she gathered from her sensors ¡°Hmm¡­ It will be a few days before she is able to function somewhat, but she likely won¡¯t be combat capable for a few weeks¡± Matthew clicked his tongue and complained ¡°I could really need a person of her caliber to lavage power over the local area though¡­¡± Doc tilted her head to the side for a few moments before she let out a sigh and laid Ripper down on the couch, Matthew could tell another long-winded explanation was on its way, he thought about how to get ahead of it, but he decided against it and made himself comfortable on the couch and laid down on his side, a few moments after he got comfy Doc asked ¡°Do you know the 3 great secrets of the Trerubic Empire?¡± Matthew shook his head, he wasn¡¯t about to make such an unintelligent guess as the fact that the upper crust of society were all hedonist, that was already well known to most people at this point, so he simply waited for Doc to explain ¡°Well¡­ The first, most well guarded one would be that the first emperor, ol¡¯ grandad, died from a drug overdose¡± Matthew¡¯s chin slipped out of his grip as he nearly fell from the couch from shock, Doc started at him with a blank expression on her face, but Matthew could see it deep down, she enjoyed his reaction quite a bit, even as she hid it behind a seemingly innocent look on her face as she asked ¡°Do you have a question before we proceed?¡± Matthew rose from his relaxed position and sat himself up to listen seriously instead of his previous casual pose before he spoke ¡°Well, I have two, but those can wait¡­ What¡¯s the 2nd?¡± ¡°That would be the fact that the founding emperor had almost 70.000 children, but the amount he sought to create was almost triple that already high number, most of which died painful deaths during their infancy¡± ¡°...I am assuming most of those were vat born with donor genetic material, right?¡± ¡°Hmm¡­ Around ? were, yeah, the rest were regular biological births from around 15.000 different consorts¡± ¡°...That¡¯s grotesque¡± ¡°Yeah it is a little excessive, but grandad got around alright¡± ¡°...You keep talking about him like you are actually related¡± Doc blinked twice before she casually admitted ¡°Well that¡¯s because I am, I was 146780th in line to the empire when I was exiled too¡­ Most of the living members of the imperial line were 2nd generation, so we all called him grandad, with various levels of respect of course¡± Matthew let out a sigh, he had expected Doc to be of high birth before from due her mannerisms and pattern of speech, but he hadn¡¯t guessed she was from the direct imperial line, but from hearing the number of descendants from the founding emperor it wasn¡¯t so shocking to him¡­ Besides that he felt that if he continued to dig he would regret doing so ¡®Nope, still not opening that particular can of worms¡¯ ¡°So what¡¯s the 3rd secret?¡± Doc showed a smile before she simply stated ¡°The last one is not as simple as it sounds, but here goes¡­ There are no traitors in the imperial line¡± ¡°...That¡¯s it? Wait¡­ How many members were there in the imperial line?¡± ¡°A little over 2 million by the time of my exile¡± ¡°And none turned against the empire? Not a single one?¡± ¡°No, that¡¯s because we are unable to betray the empire¡± Matthew narrowed his eyes, he noticed a change in Doc¡¯s eyes, there were a faint tremble, her body was shaking slightly too and both her hands were clenched tightly, blood slowly leaking from where her nails priced her palms ¡®...So it¡¯s not that they haven¡¯t thought to try¡­ It¡¯s that they can¡¯t¡­ What are your thoughts, Aea?¡¯ [I would guess some sort of biological engineering, miss Doc mentioned the high infant mortality that the children of the founding emperor experienced, so it was likely perfected doing that time¡­ I would argue the case that it is certain to be inherited too] ¡®...A empire free of internal power struggles¡­ No wonder most turned to hedonism, with all their needs already provided for¡¯ [Master, I believe stirring the topic of the current conversation away from the current topic with a clear non-acknowledgment of the facts we have inferred will alleviate the pain miss Doc is currently enduring] Matthew snapped out of his thoughts and looked up at Doc that was visibly shaking at this point, her skin had turned pale and blood was leaking from her eyes and nose [Please do not acknowledge any of the inferred information we have just learned, or miss Doc might expire fully] ¡°...What was it you said about not needing Ripper to lavage control?¡± A few moments passed before Doc stopped bleeding from her eyes and nose, after a few minutes she wiped the blood off herself before she spoke ¡°I spliced the local gene pool with a little something that would ensure compliance with the flick of a switch¡± ¡°...You did what?¡± ¡°Yeah, shortly after we touched down I spliced around 40% of the local area¡± ¡°...So how many could you bring under control at this moment?¡± ¡°I don¡¯t really have a count an exact count but at the very least the entire populations of the 6 clans and many of the local population centers¡± Taking inventory ¡°...Well then¡­ Are you going to activate that generic switch any time soon?¡± Doc tilted her head to the side as she thought for a few moments before she answered ¡°Hmm¡­ Well no, it would be better if we combined it with some kind of religious fervor, if you could whip some up then I am sure we could form a couple of battalions of loyal soldiers within a couple of weeks¡± Matthew narrowed his eyes, he smelled bullshit, and sure enough just by staring at Doc for a few moments in silence she confessed ¡°Well, if I just flick the switch there¡¯s bound to be a lot of psychological problems and that will be a lot of maintenance work of cooking up antipsychotic drugs for an entire army, so if you could help out it would be great¡± ¡°Still, it¡¯s possible to turn it at once?¡± Doc nodded at once ¡°Yes, Major¡­ However, I would advise against it¡± Matthew let out a sigh, he figured that the psychological problems of their willing soldiers would be the least of their problems if most of the local population were to instantly become completely loyal towards someone whom they¡¯d never met before ¡°Well, I will consider it, Aea start planning things towards that end¡­ Do you have a bath around here?¡± Doc pointed towards the side of the hanger, he glanced over before he stood up and walked towards the bath and left Doc in the rest area with a parting comment ¡°I¡¯ll be out in half a day or so¡± With that Matthew walked across the hanger and found the bath where Doc had pointed it out, it was he entered one of the several bathrooms and showed before he dumped himself into a bathtub, after laying there for a few minutes he spoke ¡°Are you connected to the local infrastructure yet, Aea?¡± [Yes, I¡¯ve taken over command of all local and extended infrastructure and manufacturing at Doc¡¯s request] ¡°Get me a tube from the local nutrients vats, it¡¯s time to bulk¡± [I advise we limit your physical growth to a physical appearance of around 19 for the time being, Master still has the identity of the prophet of the sands to consider] ¡°...That¡¯s fine, give me an inventory and production capabilities report¡± [Current inventory store under category arms and ammunition reads: 1100 Mk. 46 High-voltage Coil rifles with 2 million rounds of ammunition, 300 monomolecular kinetic bladed weapons of various configurations, 20.000 multipurpose grenades, 50 ICBM tipped with MIRV warheads of 2 megaton conventional warheads, 200 copperhead ballistic missiles] ¡°...So no smart weapons?¡± [No, Doc¡¯s note indicate raw materials for hyper-computing cores have not been sources in large enough quantities for smart weapon production, all 8 cores located in this facility have been synthetic produced at great cost, android productions have been prioritized instead] ¡°That¡¯s fine, those things tend to break down once shit hits the fan anyway¡­ What about androids?¡± [Current inventory store under category androids and automata reads: 400 Golem-class combat androids and associated equipment, 800 Hound-class combat and suppression androids, 200 Fairy-class combat and logistics androids, 50 Titan-class combat androids, 20 Fury-class siege androids, 500 Worker-class logistics and support androids] ¡°... I have some questions, first, why did Doc stock so many siege androids?¡± Unauthorized use: this story is on Amazon without permission from the author. Report any sightings. The Fury-class siege androids were beyond heavy weaponry, the 120 ton androids wielded gravity bending weaponry, a single one supplied with a large enough power source were enough to rip apart a small moon [There is a note attached that reads: ¡®This place is too fucking weird for me to not stock enough firepower to rip the planet apart if need be¡¯] ¡°Fair enough, do we have any armor in the inventory?¡± [Negative, no armor has been stockpiled] ¡°Add a Mk. 22 and 5 sets of spare parts to the production queue¡± [Confirmed] ¡°What about vehicles? I saw a pair of Haliea¡¯s in the hangar¡± [Yes, the inventory report for vehicles reads: 4 Haliea with 12 sets of spare parts, 12 High Mobility wheeled vehicles] ¡°That¡¯s not as much as I had hoped, well it¡¯s not like we have any real need for a large logistics fleet¡­ How are our production capabilities?¡± [With the 15 Heavy fabricators are installed on the lower levels, along with a pair of Generation VIII Fission reactors with enough fuel rods in storage to sustain full output for 12 years and 12.7 metric tons of stockpiled processes materials, full replacement of current inventory can be achieved within 8 weeks] Matthew let out a sigh and sunk a little deeper into the bathtub, then he raised his hand up from it and started at it for a few moments before he spoke ¡°...Call Doc, Aea¡± [Confirmed, opening communications line¡­ Connected] A moment passed before Doc¡¯s voice echoed out in Matthew¡¯s mind [What¡¯s up Major?] ¡°How much data have you compiled on Mystic phenomena?¡± [...If I were to fit it all into a report it would be around 600 pages, is there anything specific information you are looking for?] ¡°Not anything specific, no¡­ It was something Alina said once¡­ That the Mystic powers people wielded had gotten stronger since the rise of the blue comet¡± [Yes¡­ The historical records I¡¯ve cross confirmed seems to suggest the same] Matthew remained silent for a few moments before he asked ¡°Could you gather all the historical records you have cross-confirmed and compile them into a report for me?¡± [Certainly, is there anything specific you are looking for?] ¡°...No, just be sure to gather everything, don¡¯t leave out anything¡± [Sure, I¡¯ll have it compiled in about an hour once I¡¯ve finished stabilizing Ripper] ¡°Got it¡­ I¡¯ll be out of the bath sometime tomorrow, so I¡¯ll see you then¡± [Sure, have a pleasant rest, Major] Matthew sunk further down into the bathtub and dunked his head underwater for a few moments before Aea¡¯s voice echoed out in Matthew¡¯s mind [Is there anything specific you are looking for in the data, Master?] Matthew started up at the ceiling from under the warm water for a few moments before he closed his eyes and calmed his mind ¡®We are working with pure magic here, Aea¡¯ [I understand, Master. I will send a message to Doc to have her produce a physical copy of her report] ¡®Add some artillery and shells to the production queue too¡­ The tune of war is played to the drumbeat of artillery after all¡¯ [Understood] - ¡®...Where?¡¯ Her mind was blurred, she attempted to move and found her body encased, she was completely unable to move, however her eyes were somewhat able to see, what passed into her blurred vision immediately stirred her mind awake ¡®...Matthew¡­ Damn it¡¯ She remembered her love, she remembered her new body, she remembered the assault from the sky, she remembered her prison ¡®How many times¡­ That doesn¡¯t matter¡¯ Alina was still trapped in the black crystal that had encased her body, she didn¡¯t remember it clearly but at some point the Willmir empire¡¯s armies had shown up and freed their prisoners¡­ Well those that survived the assault and the failing infrastructure of the base after she had sent away Matthew were rescued anyway¡­ that was around the first time she had been taken by sleep ¡®Well¡­ It¡¯s not real sleep¡­ My soul is slowly getting brunt¡¯ Her android body had long since ran out of electrical power, which she had used to ease the burden on her soul, on her ego, with this gone and her still continuing to struggle against her prison she periodically lost consciousness when she wielded her powers to try and escape ¡®I am¡­ We are burning down¡­ This building¡­ When I get out¡­¡¯ The view in front of Alina were ever-changing, people came and went, some glanced at her and her prison, some explained about it to the crowd, some painted grand portraits and some sketched small drawings of her before they moved on to another part of the museum, that¡¯s right, they had displayed her openly to the public as a trophy, she had been turned into an attraction ¡®I will¡­ Kill all of you¡­ Once I escape this¡­ Thing¡­¡¯ It was one thing that she was trapped, it was another to be trapped while Matthew¡¯s fate was unknown, and it was a third thing to be shown off as an attraction while the first two things were taking place, needless to say, she was beyond pissed ¡®...Now then, where were I¡­ Right¡­¡¯ With the black crystal encasing her she had originally hoped it would be as easy as displacing herself out of it to escape, but things weren¡¯t as simple, and after her 6th or 7th sleep she had decided to just go through every option systematically, this had worked, see the black crystal contained her and both strengthen and regenerated itself from Mystic abilities being used on it, or inside it ¡®...A little lower¡­¡¯ With this it might seem like escape would be impossible, however Alina had found out after her 17th sleep that if she used her displacer abilities to vibrate her metal body from a single point in the center the amount of Mystic power the crystal absorbed and used to regenerate were less than the amount that were broken down from the rapid vibrations ¡®This still feels strange¡­¡¯ Alina¡¯s body vibrated quietly, unknown to anyone outside her prison, she figured she would need to exhaust her powers fully another 43 times before she had created a large enough separation between herself and the black crystal to displace herself out of it ¡®...And when I get free¡­ You are all¡­ Going to die¡­¡¯ Alina continued to stare spitefully at the people gawking at her from the other side of the black crystal as she continued her silent prison escape A task more agonizing than a drop pod assault covered in jet fuel Matthew stared at his hand as he wielded his Mystic powers, it wasn''t as much fire as much as it was pure heat, the air above his hand blurred as the intense heat created a mirage, however this heat was completely contained within the shape he desired, even if he had almost caused a few steam explosions in his experimenting, he was pretty confident in handling this ability by now [Internal body temperature is still elevated and is holding steady at 89.2 degrees] Matthew let out a sigh as he dispersed the heat field and sunk further back into the bathtub, at the temperature Aea had started it would be reasonable to expect server health problems, however it would seem that the only part of his insides that wasn¡¯t able to handle this was his 09 and some of the more delicate bio-nanites ¡°How was it?¡± [Waste heat is being vented, at current specifications long term Mystic ability use is highly discouraged, progress on adapting Code Arrow 09 is currently underway at 1.2%, estimated completion of full adaptation to new host perimeters is currently unknown] ¡°Do you need any more data?¡± [Not at the moment, the neurological adjustment to master¡¯s current physical body have also finished] Matthew nodded, then he sat himself up in the tub before he disconnected the nutrient tube that had been stuck in his shoulder for the past 15 or so hours, a few moments passed before the open wound on his shoulder closed, then he let out another sigh and muttered ¡°...Time to get to it¡± It had been around 21 hours since Matthew had dunked himself into the bathtub, and as much as he wanted to continue lazing around he had things to do, after drying off he got dressed in some traditional holy Uliat clothes, a pair of heavily embroidered pants and a long sleeved shirt both made from pure white fabric, they were all couple of size bigger than the clothes he had discarded before he jumped into the tub ¡®...Still not fully grown, but still better than before¡¯ Matthew opened and closed his hand a few times before he spoke out loud ¡°Send word to Doc that I am on my way topside¡± [Yes master] Even if the plans that Doc and Aea had laid for him, they still grossed him out somewhat, still the figure he had been separated from up North was caught in his mind¡¯s eye and that unease wouldn¡¯t lessen if he took his sweet time, he was quite sure it would only increase if he took his time After riding a small elevator for half a minute he stepped out into a small bare sandstone room where he sat down on a carpet that was placed on the floor, after he took his seat the wall closed to conceal the elevator entrance perfectly, as far as anyone in the temple knew, he had been in quiet meditation ever since he arrived in the holy city ¡®Now then, ready the script Aea¡­¡¯ [Confirmed, act 1 start] Matthew felt the control over his body being leveraged by Aea, if he wanted to he could end the control at once, however the 4-6 hour religious debate which Aea had scheduled for ¡®act 1¡¯ wasn¡¯t anything he felt like acting out, thus he mostly spaced out for ¡®act 1 - 4¡¯ which took place over the next week, which established Matthew as a wise prophet of the sands who had complete oversight over the theoretical knowledge and history, it was subtle in the start, but by the weeks end Matthew were finally officially recognized as the 4th prophet of the sands, and as the sun sat at its apex on the 11th day Matthew found himself in the central plaza of the holy city, whipping up some of that religious fervor ¡°IF THEY WON¡¯T LEAVE US IN PEACE, THEN WE WILL FIGHT AGAINST THE NONBELIEVERS!¡± The roar of 30.000 people followed his statement as he was nearing the climax of his 10(ish) minute speech which was a response to the 2nd assassination attempt on his life which he had foiled exactly as Aea had predicted which just so happened to take place on the holy plaza as he was holding a speech, just as Aea had planed it to ¡°WE WILL MAKE THEM BLEED, WE WILL TAKE THEIR CITIES, WE WILL TAKE THEIR LAND AND WE WILL FINALLY HAVE OUR PEACE ONCE WE HAVE CLEANSED THE LANDS!¡± The excitement of the of crowd were at its peak at this point, however, when a set of Mk. 22 armor covered in holy scripture etched into it, they went completely ballistic, a moment later Matthew entered the armor and raised a large sword towards the sky as the power armor increased the volume of his voice so each and every part of the city could hear it as he yelled Reading on Amazon or a pirate site? This novel is from Royal Road. Support the author by reading it there. ¡°THEY HAVE SHOWN US NO QUARTER, SO WE WILL SHOW THEM NONE IN RETURN! WE RIDE WEST AT DAWN!¡± The fanatic crowd followed Matthew out of the city as he would over the next 4 months as he would lead his 1st crusade towards the west - ¡°Alright, that¡¯s enough¡­¡± The holographic display turned off at Matthew command as he leaned back in the soft couch, the broadcast had been live, however it hadn¡¯t really been him that had whipped up that religious frenzy, it had been a clone of his likeness embedded with an A.I. core to act out the perfect prophet of the sands which he had changed places with doing act 2 ¡°As we discussed, I will shadow and mange the clone on its crusade towards the West¡± Matthew nodded to Doc, she would be the home crew while Matthew headed North with Ripper to fetch Alina, speaking of Ripper, she was laying on her stomach on her own couch eating fried potatoes, she wasn¡¯t entirely in top form yet, about an arms metal had been added along her 09, this was a maintenance module that would be repairing it and realigning her senses over the next few months, she gazed over at Matthew and spoke ¡°...I will do my best to keep up, Major¡± Matthew nodded, he thought for a few minutes before he decided ¡°We¡¯ll leave for the first leg just before dawn¡± As much as Matthew wanted to just jet it North, that wasn¡¯t really an option, thus they had decided to part it into legs, at each leg they would establish an outpost to resupply and maintain their transport of choice, the Haliea heavy vertical take off and landing transport, high endurance drones which would be deployed along the way would chain their communications together so they could keep in contact ¡°I got it¡­¡± Ripper slowly rose from the couch and carried her bowl of fried potatoes away towards the hanger, Matthew watched her slowly walk along grabbing a sleeping bag before she boarded Haliea-001, their transport for the first leg ¡°Don¡¯t tell me she¡¯s just going to lie around in there until we leave?¡± Doc shrugged ¡°I would take it easy on her for a bit, she¡¯s going through it¡­ And I am not just talking about the spine surgery or the gradual return of her physical senses¡± Matthew let out a sigh, he hoped she would recover before they reached the Northern Basecamp ¡®There¡¯s no way the Willmir empire has behaved itself while I was gone¡­ There¡¯s also a chance Wicka is still monitoring the area¡¯ ¡°Major¡± Matthew snapped out of his thoughts and looked across the central table at Doc that spoke ¡°You have known Ripper for a very long time, that alone should be enough to earn a decent response from you¡­ I am saying this for both of your sakes, Major¡± Matthew gazed at Doc in annoyance for a few moments before he let out a tired sigh and promised ¡°I will, once I sort out my own feelings¡± Doc looked at Matthew for a few more moments before she showed a wide smile which earned her a glare from Matthew, still she just smiled silently at him for a few more moments before she spoke ¡°I¡¯ve only wanted that answer out of you for the last 260 years, please allow me to gloat just a little, Major¡± Matthew let out another sigh which earned him a giggle from Doc before she rose to her feet and left with a rather unwanted comment ¡°There¡¯s birth control in the front left side A-11 compartment~¡± Matthew ignored her to the best of his ability as he started questioning his own desires and lack there off ¡®...What is it that I want in a partner¡­ And do I even deserve¡­ Why¡­ How did I get so¡­¡¯ Matthew suddenly began violently scratching his head, a hint of rare embarrassment was clear on his face as he muttered in defeat ¡°How do people figure this shit out¡­¡± [Do you require assistance, Master?] Matthew sunk further into the couch in defeat as he muttered ¡°Yeah¡­ That would be nice¡­¡± - A funny thing about time was how it was experienced, this was mostly based on the perception of the person experiencing it, Matthew normally found his experience of time to be mostly consistent, of course there were time when that perception slowed, the moments before his pod entered orbit, as the heat shield came alive and interception artillery whizzed past a normal 24-second orbit drop could feel like minutes¡­ However, at this point in time his exhausted mind longed for the monotony of orbital assault ¡®Why do emotions have to be this complicated¡­¡¯ [Most males normally experience mild Alexithymia, in layman terms it is often referred to as emotional color blindness, however Master¡¯s current case is quite severe, but despair not Master, just like field stripping a Mk. 46 High-voltage Coil rifle, getting better at understanding emotions is a skill that you should be able to learn with hard work] ¡®...You don¡¯t have to soften the blow like that, give it to me straight¡¯ [Fine, in my recorded data banks there have been more severe cases recorded as examples for rehabilitation like the session we have undergone over the past] ¡®And how were those handled?¡¯ [With consent of the patient and 4 close family members selective neurological purging, high voltage current were used to burn out selected clusters to purge the memory that made up the basis for the experienced trauma, a full recovery followed after 3 months of therapy] ¡°Well, why don¡¯t you just cover me in rocket fuel and shove me out of an airlock instead?¡± [We are currently unable to reach the cold vacuum of space, Master, the point I was attempting to make that the patient''s consent was needed, I was merely outlining the option] Matthew rose to his feet and proudly stated ¡°I am too much of an old dog to learn such new tricks, there¡¯s not much use in throwing my hand of cards back at the deal, I¡¯ve accepted the hand I¡¯ve been dealt in this life¡­ Well, it¡¯s not that I am against learning¡± [That is perfectly fine too, I shall do my best to assist you Master] Matthew picked up his pack and made his way towards Haliea-001 with cautious steps, inside he found Ripper, or rather the vaguely Ripper shaped sleeping bag that was stabbed to a seat with the proper safety harness, Matthew put down his pack in the seat next to her before he took a seat on the opposite side, after a few minutes of silence passed he addressed the sleeping bag ¡°...Can we talk?¡± A few moments passed before a response came in the way of grumble ¡°I¡¯ve already¡­ Been briefed¡­¡± ¡°Not about that¡­ About us¡± A few minutes passed in silence before Ripper¡¯s head emerged from the sleeping bag, she didn¡¯t look at him, but she was clearly ready to listen to what he had to say, Matthew felt his mind churn as one thought sprung to his mind ¡®...Man, I would much rather be screaming towards the ground at 3 times the speed of sound in a twice reused drop pod covered in jet fuel than have this talk¡¯ The first leg of the journey North The Haliea rumbled to life, the thing really put the ¡®Heavy¡¯ in ¡®Heavy Aerial transport¡¯ with a wingspan of almost 50 meters and a height of 8 meters it was capable of transporting 2 standardized 15 meters by 3 meters by 3 meters intergalactic shipping containers, one internally loaded taking up most of the internal cargo bay leaving space for 8 personal and equipment, and one carried under the main body, with a maximum takeoff weight of 180.000 kilograms in total she was a pretty heavy bird, weight aside the Haliea was anything but harmless despite being a transport, with 8 wing hardpoints capable of mounting various missiles and a 30mm autocannon mounted on a flexible mount under the cockpit it was able to bring quite the heat ¡®It¡¯s still a rather tight fit in here¡­¡¯ Matthew had paused his ¡®talk¡¯ with Ripper as the internal shipping container were being loaded, not that they had been doing much talking so far, it was only as Haliea-001 picked up speed down the Northern 15 kilometer long exit tunnel that he spoke ¡°So¡­ I don¡¯t have much experience with the whole¡­ Physical aspect of romantic relationships¡± Matthew fell silent, he expected Ripper to make some sort of crash joke at his expense any moment now, but only silence followed, when he checked to see if she had zoned out, she instead had turned her head to face him as she listened patiently to what he was saying, her blood-red eyes were locked on his as she waited for him to continue, Matthew broke eye contact before he continued ¡°You know, I was a normal kid and all¡­ I was never close to anyone, I thought I would have all the time in the world to get my degree and find myself a partner to settle down with¡­ From there I had figured I would be the breadwinner of a perfectly normal 2 child household and retire late¡­ But that never happened, my home world was put under penance blockade when I was 20¡± As he thought back on the first few years of the blockade, the horrors he committed and saw in order to survive had long since lost their repugnant horror, despite their graphic nature the only reaction he had to them now almost 300 years later was a dry ¡®Yeah, I suppose that happened¡¯ he had been far too desensitized to violence and the horror of war ¡°It was terrible, and it didn¡¯t really help with my development, the things I saw made me disgusted with people. I hated the horror they inflicted on other people, I hated the horror I inflicted on others¡­ Even after my mangled body was brought up by BlueArrow I never felt like I wanted to be physical intimate with anyone¡± Matthew turned to face Ripper again and after a few moments he spoke ¡°So¡­ I am sorry I¡¯ve always been giving you shit, but the way you have always come on to me so strongly repulsed me, I don¡¯t hate you¡­ It¡¯s just¡­ I can¡¯t handle all that, frankly physical intimacy disgust me¡± Ripper blinked before she nodded, then after a few moments she showed a small smile before she spoke ¡°I understand, thank you for telling me Matthew¡± Then after another few silent moments, she lowered her head ¡°I am sorry for treating you like that¡­ I¡­ I just wanted to get closer, and I thought it was the best way to do so at the start¡­ after that I got annoyed at how you continued to dismiss me and I might have piled it on a bit thick¡± Matthew nodded and faced forwards before he leaned back in his seat, for a few minutes only the rumble of the two engines could be heard in the compartment until Ripper spoke ¡°We¡¯re soldiers, Major¡­ We were neither augmented nor trained for all this emotional shit¡­ But can I ask you for one thing?¡± Matthew looked over at her and nodded, after she gathered her courage for a few moments Ripper asked The tale has been taken without authorization; if you see it on Amazon, report the incident. ¡°Do I have your respect, as a comrade in arms, as a person dealt a slice of the same pile of shitty pie?¡± Matthew nodded ¡°Of course¡± - As Haliea-001, Haliea-002 and Haliea-003 exited the tunnels and rose into the sky Matthew and Ripper were still mostly silent, however they both felt relieved having finally cleared the air, so it was no wonder that by the evening of that day they had been talking for a few hours, as it turned out Ripper¡¯s home world had also been put under a penance blockade just before she were set to be executed for defying her superiors, so the two found solace in their similar past and shared trauma By the 3rd day, the first leg had been completed, the heavy transport touched down on a small island surrounded by the open sea, and construction on a supply outpost began swiftly, Haliea-002 and Haliea-003 had already begun the journey back towards Uliat after unloading their cargo Matthew and Ripper were sitting in the grass eating some portable rations while the android workers constructed the outer perimeter of the outpost, however their quiet meal time was interrupted by a report from Aea [Paradigm shift observed, local time distortion have been logged, there is a 4 day time lag between this island and the city of Uliat] ¡°...What?¡± Matthew nearly spat out his meal ration, he remained silent for a few moments before he asked ¡°Are there any gravitational anomalies?¡± [Negative, furthermore the time distortion is in constant flux within 98 hours, the observed time distortion have been negative and positive though only up to 98 hours in either direction] Matthew let out a deep sigh before he muttered ¡°Well if this cursed ball of dirt made any more sense I would feel personally insulted¡­¡± Ripper nodded to Matthew¡¯s statement and spoke after she finished inhaling her vacuum packed pound cake ¡°I agree Major, at least it¡¯s consistent in how inconsistent it is¡± [A firmware patch have gone out to all local automation to compensate for the time distortion, however the long endurance drones deployed to chain link our comms will have to be retrieved before the update can be applied, thus the 2nd leg will likely be delayed] Matthew let out a sigh, he was still feeling impatient, however having actually started the journey North had settled most of his anxiety ¡°Very well, take a safety first approach and brief Doc on the situation at the earliest convenience¡± [Understood, worry not Master, the distance covered on the first leg is assumed to be just under 3/4th of the actual distance, the next task of pinpointing the location of the Basecamp is unlikely to delay us much] Matthew nodded silently as he started ahead, then he mentally shifted gears as he stood up and turned to Ripper ¡°Well then, we have some time on our hands¡­ So how about I help you get up to speed, Ripper?¡± Ripper nodded, seeming rather unbothered by Matthew¡¯s offer of training together, however there was a clear glint of excitement in her eyes as she stood up and walked towards Haliea-001 to fetch some training equipment without any further words, Matthew understood how she felt very well, after he had woken from the coma that followed the 09 installation operation feeling more alive than he had for 150 years he had itched to go shooting some targets himself ¡®...Hopefully she¡¯ll go easy on me once she regains her edge¡¯ - The time distortion proved to be a bigger pain than Matthew had thought it would be, it was only after 4 days that the entire drone fleet had been retrieved and patched, so it would be at least another 4 days before the second and hopefully final leg of the journey would begin, not that he had been bored, not at all¡­ In fact, he really wished for a break right about now ¡°Come on, Major, One more round!¡± This had been his life so far, despite a couple of blips on the radar everything was peaceful on the small island, thus there wasn¡¯t really anything else to do ¡°Fine, let¡¯s go again¡­¡± Matthew rose to his feet and gripped the solid steel training sword as he glared resentfully at Ripper, she had changed into a tight-fitting training outfit on the first day when he had offered to train with her, and she had yet to take any sort of break, in other words they had been sparing with little break for almost 4 days straight, Matthew readied his practice sword as he stood facing Ripper ¡°Ready when you are¡± Ripper remained silent as she brought up her sword, from the past 4 days of training Matthew had reaffirmed his belief that if one were to enter Ripper¡¯s range while she wielded her a blade was an act akin to suicide, in one word she was ruthless, in two words she was ruthlessly efficient ¡®Easy does it¡­¡¯ Matthew inched closer a few millimeters, that was all it took, at once Ripper¡¯s body exploded forwards, her entire being were in complete sync with her blade, every single muscle fiber were precisely focused to wield her sword, Matthew reversed his momentum as he stabbed out at Ripper, however she effortlessly flowed past his blade like water and stabbed the tip of her sword into Matthew¡¯s throat before she followed up with 8 hits that would have completely dismembered him before he even hit the ground [Fracture detected, Trauma nanite pattern 1 deployed] Matthew grabbed his fractured Trachea and dislodged it from his windpipe with a pull, then he spat a mouthful of blood and mangled cartilage on the ground before he yelled at Ripper in anger ¡°I told you to not stab me in the throat! You little shit!¡± Ripper covered her mouth as she giggled mockingly as she put her sword over her shoulder, her eyes shone as a cat like grin was plastered on her face as she responded ¡°And I keep telling you to keep your guard up properly, old man~! Come on, let¡¯s go again~¡± Distractions of the stir-crazy super soldiers ¡°Come out Ripper, I only want to talk¡± Matthew watched his surroundings carefully, even if the tiny island was only around 1200 square meters his target was deadly within 100 meters, thus he had taken all the precautions he could, the Mk. 46 High-voltage Coil rifle in his hands hummed with power, it was amped ready to deliver lead iron alloy slugs at 70 grams of pressure squeezed against the trigger ¡®...We have gotten more than a little stir-crazy, that¡¯s for sure¡¯ The sound of a twig snapping echoed out to his left, so Matthew immediately secured his right and rear before he checked the direction of the sound, that was when he caught a flash of color in the reflection of his scope, without any hesitation he instantly unsecured the latch of the folding stock and collapsed it inwards as he swung the barrel under his armpit before closing his arm and squeezing it in place as he fired a 3 round burst, silence followed, and he wasn¡¯t wacked over the head with the blunt side of steel training sword so he asked ¡°...Are you good, Ripper?¡± A few moments passed before Ripper squeezed out a small voice ¡°Yep¡­ just fine¡­ Major¡± Matthew turned around and faced Ripper, the 3 shots he had fired had impacted the center of her stomach, with the first hitting below her navel and the other two impacting further up ¡°You don¡¯t sound good, did I hit one of your lungs?¡± Ripper shook her head before she sucked another bout of air down into her lungs as she learned on her sword ¡°Nope¡­ Just¡­ You strafed¡­ My¡­ Diaphragm though¡­¡± Matthew let out a sigh, they might just be ¡®playing¡¯ however the high velocity blood and minced organ splatter on the ground behind Ripper were very real, even though Aea maintained the ability to instantly suspend the ¡®training excise¡¯ and take control over their bodies if an accident were about to take place¡­ Still Matthew finally decided enough was enough ¡°Alright, I think it''s about time we wrap this round of training up¡± Ripper looked a little disappointed, despite the 3 holes in her body and the partially compromised ability to breathe she still looked like she wanted to continue, which earned her a follow-up line from Matthew ¡°I said knock it off, I understand your need to return to your peak form¡± ¡°Then let''s go another¡ª¡± Matthew instantly cut her off again ¡°No, you are way ahead of your recovery schedule already, have some patience¡­ You know any other person would still be wheelchair bound at your stage of active spine surgery¡± Ripper finally relented and let go of her sword before she wordlessly wandered back to Haliea-001 where she crawled into her sleeping bag, a few moments later Matthew retrieved a message over the local net [I¡¯ll nap for few hours then, wake me in 4 hours Aea] Matthew blinked a few times before he cracked his neck and stretched his shoulders, now without anything to do Matthew took a shower inside the outpost before he did some basic maintenance on the Mk. 46 he had used to protected himself from Ripper, Their stay at the outpost had extended to a total of 8 days ¡°What¡¯s the ETA on Haliea-002 and Haliea-003?¡± [5 to 12 hours, considering the local time distortion] Matthew clicked his tongue, most of the military hardware (Which Matthew included himself under) required high precision, of course under this precision time was a pretty big part, Matthew could name more of his equipment that was going to screw up because of this than would work perfectly with this amount of time distortion ¡®No long range weapon deployment, no precision guided weaponry or defense, no time synchronous operations, not even being able to count on the chemical heater in the fucking MRE¡­ Well that¡¯s perhaps a bit of exaggeration, still the underlying anxiety is having an effect¡­¡¯ Reading on this site? This novel is published elsewhere. Support the author by seeking out the original. Matthew stopped moving and sat down on the grass, he looked at the 4 walls of the outpost around him for a while before he made his decision ¡°Aea, send a command home to triple the amount of hyper-computing cores¡± [Current inventory is insufficient to complete this order] ¡°Have Doc source the needed inventory¡­ Tell her to use the new calculation power for figuring out our pure magic situation and develop a patch for our equipment as soon as possible, we don¡¯t want to be spirited away¡± [Understood, orders have been relayed] Having given the Matthew laid back on the grass and gazed into the sky, despite being nothing but 4 defensive walls and an underground storage facility that were still being expanded this was most likely the most sophisticated structure that had been on this small island for a long, long time, as he gazed at the clouds he only had one worry on his mind ¡®Those fucking goats¡­¡¯ That was his only worry, the only semi-intelligent inhabitants were 23 goats, genetic samples collected via drones showed that they were all descendants of the 6 oldest goats, furthermore besides the 6 oldest all other goats seemed to be younger than 3 years, thus both Aea and Matthew had concluded that they were a future investment of rations¡­ Placed here on this small shitty island for the explorers that made the investment to collect later ¡°...How does the scope look, Aea?¡± [The fleet of 3 ships are still approaching, they have entered a range of 32 kilometers, by currency heading and speed they will arrive in 9 to 10 hours] ¡°...I should have asked Ripper if she wanted to play pirate before she went to sleep¡± [Should we intercept?] ¡±Have the Copperhead batteries been connected to the main power source?¡± [Yes, 4 batteries of 28 ballistic missiles each are ready for launch] As Matthew thought of sinking wooden wind-powered sailing ships with ICBM¡¯s he felt his heart ache until he chanted ¡°Missile fuel expires, they are made to be used¡­ Missile fuel expires, they are made to be used¡­¡± At this he felt his heart ache lessen, he decided to not ponder on how Doc would feel about this particular use of her precious ICBM¡¯s ¡®How does the fleet look?¡¯ [Patching in drone footage] Matthew¡¯s vision blurred for a moment as a live video footage from a surveillance drone appeared in his view, in between sparse clouds he looked down on the open sea for a few moments before he focused on the 3 dots in the center, a moment later a feeling of dizziness took over as the drone camera zoomed in on the 3 dots, it was the fleet of 3 wooden sailing ships, Matthew looked at the ships for a few moments before he spoke ¡®What do you got, Aea?¡¯ [Limited weaponry observed on 2 of the vessels, only one ship equipped with a limited amount of large bore chemical powered cannons, the composition appears to suggest they are on a high endurance, long range exploration expedition, a total of 138 unique crew have been observed and logged so far] As Aea explained, data glyphs appeared on different parts of the 3 ships, having lived as a citizen of the Trerubic Empire Matthew didn¡¯t feel confused about this, he simply focused on a data glyph that appeared over one of the cannons stored on the deck of the 3rd ship and immediately every single aspect of these cannons Aea had gathered from observation and calculation flowed into his mind, from the likely material competition of the metal barrel, to the maximum time between needing a full maintenance cycle, everything ¡®...Seems standard enough, limited elevation and traverse, though, so outmaneuvering wouldn¡¯t be hard¡¯ Matthew continued to take in knowledge about the ships, their equipment as well as the crew when his eyes caught something interesting ¡®...That guy, where have I seen him before, Aea?¡¯ [Please hold, starting data collection of the subject¡­] The guy in question was a lower ranking sailor, if one really could call him that, from the thick metal collar around his neck, his general state of malnourishment, the obvious physical trauma and the weird short steps he took which indicated a large amount of muscles in his legs had been forcibly removed to keep him from escaping there was really only one thing he could be. A slave [Data gathered, running comparison in internal data banks¡­] However, before Aea finished the calculations Matthew had already remembered ¡®...He was with Iaka, one of the mountain folk we ran into when we left the Turman kingdom¡¯ [Confirmed, server physical mutilation have occurred since last observed, along with the physical trauma and clear lack of mental awareness it is clear to assume the local power structure around the Turman kingdom have undergone significant changes] ¡°...Yeah, no shit¡± Matthew fell silent as he crewed through this revelation, now that he had spotted the first beast man slave the rest of the slaves on the 3 ships stood out clear as day, the only reason he hadn¡¯t identified their race earlier was the mutilation, their beast like ears and tails had been cut off, ruthlessly masking their race ¡®No matter how I look at it, we have too little information¡­¡¯ With the beast men being enslaved in these large numbers Matthew feared an even bigger threat had taken their place, which were geographically close to the objective of this expedition, the old Basecamp ¡®Doing a lightning offensive and blindly smashing apart anything that looks like a threat isn¡¯t really an option with the limited amount of weaponry¡­ Besides there¡¯s no guarantee Alina is still at the Basecamp¡­¡¯ Matthew let out a deep sigh, he was lucky to discover this before he and Ripper showed up at the old Basecamp ¡°...Still it feels like it''s going to be a pain¡­ Formulate an assault plan Aea¡± [There is still the possibility of negotiations] Matthew looked at the deck of the 3rd ship where a sailor were lashing a beast man slave with a barbed whip to the amusement of the other sailors around him, Matthew remembered his own past and with that his anger rose as he answered Aea in a cold collected tone of voice ¡°No, there¡¯s no such thing¡­ We¡¯ll butcher the sailors and extract the information we need from the slaves¡± [Understood, starting formulation of assault plan¡­] The drone view disappeared from Matthew¡¯s vision, leaving the tranquil clear blue sky as all he saw, he laid there for a bit before he spoke ¡°Feel like cutting apart some slavers, Ripper?¡± A few moments passed before Ripper¡¯s voice sounded out behind Matthew, she had likely snuck up on him to pull some sort of prank, however she had revealed herself by the same silent killing intent Matthew emitted at the moment Their intense hate towards slavers stemmed from their shared identity as former penance marines and indentured servants of a mega corporation ¡°It would be my absolute pleasure, Major¡± Hostile takeover As the sun slowly sank below the horizon, the sea was illuminated in orange, the 3 ships under Sir Marcomir¡¯s command, Emilia, Amalina and Seda slowly drifted along, they had good tailwind for most of the day, but by now the wind had chilled leaving calm waters as the 3 vessels drifted along on the upper deck of Seda the sailors had gathered in the mess hall where they had just finished their evening meal ¡°Hey, Joseph, go down and feed the slaves!¡± Joseph, a young man just under 20 years old, answered at once with a almost naive energy that matched his age ¡°Yes sir¡± Joseph stood and collected the 2 large bucket of potato and carrot peels mixed with other various food trash and quickly made his way to the lower decks, once he reached there he put down the buckets and let out a deep sigh, his facade of youthful energy which he kept up among the other sailors left him at once as he sat down on a wooden box with supplies, he sat there for a bit before he muttered ¡°... I want to go home¡± A few moments passed as he thought of the port city where he had grown up and his naive view of sailing the open sea exploring, the grandeur of finding new land had left him, by now he was tired of the long pointless journeys it took to chart out the open seas enough to shave off a couple of days for other ships that would pass in the future ¡°Well, back to it¡± He rose back to his feet and picked up the two buckets again before he proceeded down into the lowest deck, the hold smelled terrible as always, as he stepped off the staircase he put down the two buckets on the floor and stuck a match to light the lantern that hang off a wooden pillar ¡°One moment¡± As the hold became illuminated, the 30 or so slaves that were crammed into the small dungeon hold were illuminated, they started at the 2 buckets of food waste silently, in fact the hold were far too quiet for feeding time, normally the slaves would be more rowdy, however Joseph failed to notice this as the wooden match slipped ¡°Shit¡­¡± He cursed his tired fingers, before he kneeled down to pick up the lit match in order to not strike another in vain, however just as he grabbed it with two fingers a flash of metallic light shortly illuminated the hold, from there he felt the strength leave his body as he fell over forwards, the last thing he saw was the blood that flooded out of his neck snuff out the small light of his match, from there darkness took him - ¡®One hostile down, proceeding with mission undetected¡¯ Ripper flicked the blood of her mono-molecular sword with a turn of his wrist before she looked at one of the many sets of eyes that had watched her in the darkness since she had infiltrated the ship by cutting a hole in the hull, which she had then resealed with a quick hardening foam, she saw herself in those quiet eyes, thus she broke her silence and spoke in a faint voice ¡°Remain quiet, and I will save you from this hell¡­ Expose me and I will make you long for something as sweet as death¡± Normally she wasn¡¯t one to make threats, however with how the slaves had likely been psychologically conditioned to be loyal to their masters, and it was likely they would expose her unless they feared her and Matthew more than their current masters, after a few moments of silence she took the slaves silence for ordinance and reported ¡®...Slaves secured¡¯ Then she kneeled down and removed a cylinder object from her belt, which she stabbed into the floorboards ¡®Sensor suit deployed¡¯ [Understood, 4 target on the decks above are moving down towards the hold, R1 move to intercept] Help support creative writers by finding and reading their stories on the original site. Ripper nodded silently before she disappeared, her body moved with complete silence up the stairs to the storage deck where she hid herself near the staircase to the upper decks and waited, a few moments later the light of a lantern appeared on the top of the staircase, the 4 sailors walked down the stairs as they chatted ¡°Where did you guys hide the booze?¡± ¡°It¡¯s over near the entrance to the hold¡± As the 4 stepped off the staircase, Ripper pressed a switch on the bottom of her sword''s hilt before she quickly rounded the corner, her figure quickly vanished as Aea reminded her [Optical camouflage engaged for 5 seconds] Ripper moved quickly, like a vengeful specter she instantly closed the distance to the closest target and with a quick hack she cut though the first sailor¡¯s neck, her blade cut cleanly through his spine as her blade flowed onto the next closest target as she slid across the wooden floor she served slashed cleanly through the next sailors'' skull, parting it in two before she guided her sword through the stomach of the 3rd, severing his Diaphragm from his spine ¡°Eh?¡± The echo of the first sailor falling over caused the last sailor to turn around, the image of the 3 sailors he had chatted with cut apart was the last thing that entered his mind, well the 2nd to last as an instance later Ripper¡¯s sword entered his right eye socket before she twisted it half a rotation before she withdrew her sword, as her figure reappeared she caught the lantern from the last sailor before he could fall over ¡®Targets down, how much longer before the sensor suit is done?¡¯ [20 seconds] ¡®...Any additional targets?¡¯ [Not at this time] Ripper let out a sigh before she slid the blade of her sword through the glass of the lantern and cut the top of the candle wick, a few seconds passed before the wick burned out and returned the darkness to the storage deck ¡®I guess that¡¯s that¡­¡¯ Ripper let out a sigh and took a knee as she waited [Sensor suit completed, 72 targets identified and marked, M1 go for strike] A few moments passed before the tranquil atmosphere of the storage deck was broken as metal slugs started ripping through the 3 ship, each clearly aimed to take out the sailors, after about 20 seconds Aea gave a report [8 targets remaining, targets painted, danger assessment elevated, R1, M1 go for assault escalation] Ripper looked up, 2 targets had managed to survive the Matthew and the combat androids first long range strike, she took a deep breath before she stood and kicked off the ground, she quickly ascended the staircase and arrived at the upper deck where she quickly identified a target and brandished her sword and slashed at the sailor through the wall, her blade passed cleanly through the wooden wall and bisected the sailor, whether Mystic ability or pure luck had helped him survive so far was no irrelevant, Ripper spared no more attention after she confirmed he had been neutralized and quickly moved to the last target on her ship, he was moving fast heading topside on the deck, Ripper quickly followed and after a few moments she reached topside and saw the last sailor, he was yelling for his friends with an insane look on his face, 3 metal slugs were stuck in what looked like a spatial distortion in front of him [Mystic ability detected, proceed with caution R1] Ripper silently acknowledged Aea¡¯s warning and slid silently across the deck as she reached into her belt and retrieved a pair of throwing knives, the first she threw at a high arch, the 2nd directly at the sailor as she engaged her optical camouflage and speed up ¡°ARH! What the FUCK!?¡± The 2nd throwing knife embedded itself in the shoulder of the sailor who had failed to intercept Ripper¡¯s sneak attack, however as he spun around the 1st knife which she had thrown at a high arch embedded itself in his Mystic shield, just as he drew his sword the sailor felt a chill go up his spine as his head snapped to the side, an instance later his Mystic shield stopped the blade of Ripper¡¯s sword and shattered the thin blade, he slashed out towards the seemingly empty air where the slash had come from, however Ripper had already moved back, a silent moment passed before she spoke in Turmanic ¡°...That¡¯s a neat shield¡± The sailor gritted his teeth as he secured his posture and yelled a provocation back at Ripper ¡°You coward! You sneak around like a rat, why don¡¯t you show yourself!¡± [I¡¯ve finished mopping up the rest, feel free to take your time with the last one¡­ I got your back Ripper] Ripper let out a sigh before she disengaged her optical camouflage, her figure was revealed, she wore a tight-fitting bodysuit covered in belts which held numerous bladed weapons, behind her back 3 larger weapons floated, magnetically locked and levitating behind her, her face was covered by a sleek helmet had 2 sensor pods disguised as cat ears on the top of her head, a moment passed before her bodysuit were lit up with lines of red light that highlighted her figure, with this a pair of cartoonish looking eyes and large smile on her helmet, the sailor was momentarily stunned before a high pitch distorted girly voice sounded out ¡°Here I am, I¡¯ll play with you a bit, mister~¡± The face of the sailor lit up in a flush of anger before he kicked off the ground and raised his sword to part Ripper in two, however just as it seemed like he was about to carve her in two she dodged like flowing water, her body mere millimeters from the blade of his sword before she kicked against his Mystic shield and instantly took distance from the sailor ¡°Don¡¯t be so impatient, I am not going anywhere, mister~¡± The sailor let out a roar of anger as he charged at her again, hacking, slashing and stabbing at Ripper with deadly speed and clear murderous intent as she danced around his blade flowing like water, this continued for a few minutes with the sailor growing more and more incensed by the moment, but finally Ripper seemed like she had enough and suddenly kicked him once again to take distance ¡°Alright, it¡¯s time to die~¡± With that she reached up and grabbed the hilt of a weapon on her back, what she retrieved looked nothing like the thin mono-molecular sword she had used to dispatch the other sailors, it was a polished metal ax, the blade came alive with an ominous blue glow as she banished it, the sailor immediately felt the intense heat that radiated off it on his face and gritted his teeth before he charged at Ripper ¡°Thanks for playing with me, mister~¡± With those words, the sailor''s eyes were blinded by an intense flash of light that emitted from the blade of Ripper¡¯s ax, a moment later his head were cleaved in two vertically before Ripper delivered a kick the side of the corpse echoed out with the horrible sound of bones shattering and organs turning liquid as the corpse were sent flying overboard [Confirmed, Hostile takeover completed, M1, R1 move to secure the slaves, Haliea-001 inbound to vessel 1 in 120 seconds] Nothing like a clean mop up Matthew watched the corpse of the last sailor flying overboard and kept up his guard for a few seconds longer before Aea¡¯s report sounded out over the local net [Confirmed, Hostile takeover completed, M1, R1 move to secure the slaves, Haliea-001 inbound to vessel 1 in 120 seconds] Matthew lowered his coil rifle and let out a sigh before he made a hand signal to the combat androids before he sat down on the small boat and started the engine, the small inflatable raft boats weren¡¯t all that great as transport, but they did their job as improvised shooting platforms better than he had expected, still there was room for improvement even in this calm weather the accuracy of the combat androids weren¡¯t all that great ¡®Still, it might have some potential¡­ Make a note for the development of a deployable stabilization module for these boats at the end of the queue¡¯ [Noted, added to the end of the current queue] The 30 combat androids followed Matthew¡¯s lead and the group approached the 3, now mostly devoid of life wooden sailor ships, as they did Haliea-001 passed overhead, the giant aircraft¡¯s wings opened up as extended air brakes as it engaged reverse thrust on both engines the VTOL quickly came to a halt and hovered over the first vessel for a few moments before it maneuvered down and lowered the back ramp to the upper deck of the ship [I am bringing the slaves up now, they are acting nice for now] Matthew leaped from his raft boat and landed on the deck of the ship, where he checked the magazine on his rifle as he asked Aea ¡®Aea, how does the scope look?¡¯ [Radar and surveillance drones indicate no further contacts at this time] After a few silent moments passed Ripper stepped up from the staircase followed by the first group of slaves, her optical camouflage suit were still lit up in cartoonish outlines of her figure with a neutral expression displayed on the helmet, however once she laid eyes on Matthew it turned into a smug cat-like smile as her voice sounded out over the local net [It felt great to cut up some people again, thanks for having my back with the last guy] ¡®No problem, let¡¯s get these people loaded up, I¡¯ll prepare the next group while you round trip with these¡¯ The slaves, well at this point they were former slaves, silently followed the orders of their rescues despite their fear of the Haliea, combat androids and as well as their collectively newly discovered fear. The fear of flying. [Eh¡­ Major, one guy just puked all over the floor] Matthew kicked off the ground and a moment later the deck of the wooden ship as he propelled himself into the air with a great leap, after sailing through the air for a few seconds he landed on the 2nd wooden ship to the sound of the wooden deck straining under his weight ¡®Get some bags for them then and have the maintenance droids mop it up before take-off¡¯ [Roger¡­ Ugh¡­ the smell of stomach bile on polished metal isn¡¯t exactly my favorite...] ¡®Yeah I know what you mean¡­ It brings some unpleasant memories with it¡­¡¯ Matthew made his way down towards the hold, he stepped over the deceased sailors and eventually arrived down at the hold where he snapped a glow stick and shock it before he dropped it on the wooden floor before he looked at a particular slave and spoke ¡°We meet again¡± Silent followed for a few moments before the slave, the former Forge guardian spoke ¡°...Major Rockwell¡­ Wasn¡¯t it..?¡± ¡°Yep, I didn¡¯t catch your name at our last meeting¡± If you discover this tale on Amazon, be aware that it has been unlawfully taken from Royal Road. Please report it. ¡°...What does it matter¡­ Our home¡­ Is gone¡­ Our people scattered¡­¡± Matthew remained silent, so did the slave for a few moments before he spoke ¡°My name is¡­ Ruki, disgraced champion of¡­ Our forge¡­¡± Matthew nodded and took a moment to look around at the other slaves, they stared at him silently behind the metal bars that a made up their prison, he gathered his thoughts before he spoke ¡°I am offering you two choices, however I am not interested in hearing your response for now¡­ If you challenge me anyway, you will only throw away your lives needlessly¡± Ruki remained silent for a few moments before he spoke in a language foreign to Matthew, after conversing with the other slaves for a bit he spoke again ¡°We are not blind to your help and mercy¡­ Our life is in your hands¡± Matthew nodded before he stepped up to the metal gate and grabbed the handle before he pulled the metal gate off the hinges and threw it to the side ¡°Then let¡¯s go¡± Ruki spoke to the other slaves again before they all followed Matthew to the upper deck ¡°We have to wait for a bit before our transport arrives¡­ While we wait, I have a question for you Ruki¡± Ruki and the other slaves had sat down on the deck, Ruki knew what Matthew wanted to ask, so he simply closed his eyes and spoke in a somber tone ¡°The Turman kingdom launched a large invasion force, their forces were unrelenting and after an extended siege our walls failed us¡± Matthew let out a sigh, the worst of his fears were cleared by Ruki¡¯s answer ¡®Well, the Turman kingdom isn¡¯t exactly a great thing to have to fight, but it¡¯ll have to happen eventually anyway¡­ At least it¡¯s not some sort of new cosmic horror that showed up which we have to deal with¡­¡¯ [Haliea-001 inbound to vessel 2 in 2 minutes] Matthew snapped out of his thoughts and gave the next sets of orders to Aea ¡®Have the combat androids board vessel 1 and bring everything in the storage hold topside and ready it for transport, loot vessel 2 and 3¡¯s cargo decks afterward and bring everything back to the outpost later before sinking the ships¡­ A couple incendiary grenades should do the trick¡¯ [Orders confirmed] ¡°Major¡­ Rockwell¡± Matthew looked over at Ruki that had called out to him, he seemed to been appointed to speak on behalf of the slaves while Matthew were confirming the looting details with Aea ¡°You mentioned¡­ Two choices¡­¡± Matthew narrowed his eyes before he spoke curtly ¡°I said I am not interested in having you make your choice now, you just need to behave yourselves for now¡± ¡°Then when¡­ Will you¡­ Have us make¡­ Our choice..?¡± Matthew let out a sigh, he was slightly irritated, not at the questions mind you, it was the attitude of not only Ruki, but the rest of the slaves, their spirits had been thoroughly shattered and their bodies broken¡­ It reminded him of himself¡­ So he answered in a way his past self and the group of slaves would understand ¡°Slaves are not capable of making choices¡­ I will have all of you make your choices once you are no longer slaves and not a moment before then, now shut up and behave¡± Ruki shut his mouth, so did the rest of the slaves, not that any of the slaves had said anything Matthew could understand so far anyway¡­ But despite Matthew¡¯s harsh words and abysmal social skills, he felt like the mood of the slaves had increased a bit from his words despite his cold tone ¡®...Now it¡¯s up to them¡¯ A few minutes of silence passed before the roar of Haliea-001 echoed out before it stopped and parked next to the 2nd vessel, Ripper stepped out after the ramp lowered and Matthew spoke to her over the local net ¡®I want you to scour the vessels for intel, heads, maps, books, notes, letters, gather everything, but don¡¯t sink the ships afterward, the drones will clean them of their cargo and take care of that later¡¯ [Roger, I¡¯ll get to it Major] Matthew ushered the slaves aboard Haliea-001 before he tapped Ruki on the shoulder to get his attention, due to the engine noise they couldn¡¯t speak so he simply gestured for him to follow him back out onto the deck ¡®Go ahead and take the 2nd group back to the outpost, Aea then send Haliea-001 back to get the rest¡¯ [Confirmed, Haliea-001 taking off] Matthew watched Haliea-001 fly clear of the wooden ship before it turned and quickly picked up speed back towards the outpost, then he turned to Ruki and spoke once the engine roar had died down ¡°I was hoping you could help smooth over the situation with the last group¡± Ruki nodded before he spoke ¡°I will¡­ Assist you¡­ Major¡­¡± Matthew nodded before he picked him up over his shoulder and leaped to the 3rd vessel, where he and Ruki went down the hold, while Ruki spoke with the final group Ripper¡¯s voice sounded out over the local net [Major, I hit the jackpot, I found a stash of maps in the captain''s quarters of the 2nd vessel, some of them got covered in blood during our assault, but the captain¡¯s head is mostly intact so we should be able to make up the lost data with a quick data harvest] ¡®What about the 1st vessel?¡¯ [No luck with that one, I found a few letters in the personal belongings of the sailors on the lower decks, besides that there was nothing of note besides the 38 intact skulls] ¡®Okay, go ahead and harvest the captain¡¯s head before we lose any more data¡­ Secure the rest and pack them for transport then meet me on vessel 3, the androids will take care of the rest¡¯ [Roger, I¡¯ll be done in a few~] ¡°Major¡­ My people¡­ Have agreed to¡­ Follow¡± Matthew nodded and looked over the 3rd group before he spoke ¡°I am not sure what Ruki told you, but I won¡¯t hesitate to strike if any of you try and pull a fast one, so behave yourselves for now¡± Matthew looked over the faces of the slaves for a few moments longer before he tore the door of their prison and lead them, up on the deck Ripper waited for them, a secured case leaned against the same mast she sat up against, this contained all the intel she had collected, besides this there were 2 large 2 by 2 meter blocks of ice which were dyed back to obscure their grizzly contents ¡°Intel secured, Major¡± ¡°Good job, did the harvest yield anything?¡± ¡°Yep~ We got what we needed~¡± Matthew nodded, a few moments passed in silence before Aea¡¯s report sounded out over the local net [Haliea-001 inbound to vessel 3 in 30 seconds] Ripper stood up and stretched before she reached up and removed her helmet, then she walked over to Matthew and raised her closed fist to her chest height with a cat like smile on her face as she asked ¡°Nothing like a clean mop up, isn¡¯t that right, Major~?¡± Matthew showed a grin before he agreed ¡°Yeah, I was afraid we had gotten rusty¡± Then he gave her a fist bump as the two shared a grin Retruning to the old Basecamp Matthew lay on the green grass and gazed up at the sky again today, his mind was mostly in a blank state as he meditated, however under this calm facade a slow boil could be felt, it wasn¡¯t anger or any form of aggression¡­ It was his patience wearing thin. Eventually, Aea reported the good news he had been waiting on [IFF confirmed, Haliea-002 and Haliea-003 inbound to outpost in 8 minutes] Matthew let out a sigh as he continued to stare at the sky, then he reached up towards it and closed his fist, silence remained for a few moments before he sat himself up as he switched gears ¡°Have both aircraft enter a maintenance cycle as soon as they have been unloaded, how far along is Haliea-001?¡± [Haliea-001 have completed initial drone deployment to the specified orders and is currently tracing the Southern coast of the Willmir empire beyond visual range for secondary deployment, tertiary deployment on the way back towards the outpost will be completed in an estimated 13 hours] The map and neurological data that they had gathered from the 3 explore ships had proved their worth very quickly, most of the sea south of the Willmir empire as well as the coastline were mapped, and so far Haliea-001 had confirmed the data to be very precise ¡°Have communications been restored with Basecamp?¡± [Yes, however, manual master override is needed to restore command privileges and structure] ¡°... Alright, ready Haliea-002 and Haliea-003 for deployment of 2 missile batteries and 30 golem combat androids and 20 Hound androids¡­ once the maintenance cycle and loading have been completed, Ripper and I will head to the old Basecamp] [Confirmed, 2 hours and 26 minutes until Haliea-002 and Haliea-003 will be loaded and ready for takeoff] ¡°Now then¡­ How are the patients looking, Ripper?¡± ¡°Well, I am not a doctor, but¡­ Major tendons cut, severe muscle degradation, malnutrition, severe mutilation and severe general physical and psychological trauma¡­ Yeah, I think they¡¯ll be fully recovered in a week or two¡± Matthew let out a sigh, along with it came a mental note that Ripper¡¯s medical advice weren¡¯t to be trusted ¡®...Well, she¡¯s not that wrong though¡­ Between 1 and 2 months before most of them are fully recovered¡¯ With the medical technology available to Matthew¡¯s group, full recovery from even the most severe wounds, whether physical or mental weren¡¯t all that difficult, it was even possible to regenerate and revive a person even if the only thing that remained of them were a somewhat fresh head, well that would come with it very own set of problems depending on the ¡®freshness¡¯, but it was strictly speaking possible, this perfectly reflected the Trerubic idiom: The only people that are truly sick are the poor ¡®...The Trerubic empire really is irredeemable at this point¡¯ With no medical insurers and their bottom lines to worry about, naturally Matthew felt no reason to not help out the former slaves to the full extent of their medical technology, so they would be fine ¡°Also, Ruki asked to speak with you before he goes under for his first round of regeneration¡± Matthew turned his head towards Ripper that moved around quickly she was busy with her virtual reality training swinging a solid metal training sword around with deadly intent, the mass of metal looked like a blur as she kept up her pace ¡°Alright, I¡¯ll go see him now¡± Matthew stood up and walked towards the single building, the building in the middle of the 4 outer walls was nothing more than a glorified storage shed, however as Matthew and Ripper had taken in 48 former slaves it had been converted to a field hospital of sorts, as Matthew entered the building the first thing that came into view were the field of cots that were set up with almost no space between them, each cot held a former beast man slave, who were in blissful anesthetic sleep as their broken bodies were put back together, all had a single tube connected to their necks ¡°Major Rockwell¡± This tale has been unlawfully lifted without the author''s consent. Report any appearances on Amazon. ¡°Ruki, you wanted to see me?¡± Matthew walked over to Ruki¡¯s cot, he had already recovered a bit from getting hooked up to the nutrient vat and the half day of sleep he had gotten after the rescue, he sat himself up and looked Matthew in the eyes for a few moments before he spoke ¡°You are not the same Major Rockwell I met on those mountains¡­ No, it feels like that person was you, only a long time ago, right?¡± Matthew shrugged, it felt like a long time ago they had met¡­ At that time, his mind was still mostly fractured, and he admittedly had some problems getting the pieces of the puzzle known as Matthew Rockwell to fit together even to this day ¡°Something like that, my mind still has not recovered completely¡­ And frankly I doubt it ever will¡± Ruki showed a smile before he spoke ¡°A warrior lives his life a warrior despite the scars he picks up along the way¡± Matthew nodded, after a few moments of silence Ruki spoke again ¡°I was disappointed after my manifestation, having undergone the many trials to even be allowed to undergo it and to only awaken a Mystic ability that allowed me to see the truth of a person was to be a warrior¡­ Well, it was disappointing¡± Matthew remained silent, he knew some of the former slaves had Mystic abilities and if it were under any other circumstances they would all have metal bomb collars stitched to their necks to ensure ordinance, however he knew the mind of a slave well, and he also trusted the sensation in his stomach that screamed out to him in the words of Alina, that he would surely regret it this time too if he only relied on brute force ¡°Life never really turns out the way you want it¡± ¡°No¡­ It certainly does not¡­ However, with our 2nd meeting and your rescue of my people I do believe there is some greater fate at work here, I also now believe I know the reason why I was given this Mystic ability¡­¡± Matthew waited for Ruki to continue, after a few moments Ruki reached his hand out for a handshake, Matthew took his hand and Ruki clasped his hand tightly before he shook it and spoke ¡°I swear on the wellbeing of my people, we will repay this debt of gratitude¡± Ruki let go of Matthew¡¯s hand and laid down again, he still awaited Matthew¡¯s response which came swiftly and ruthlessly ¡°I don¡¯t need slaves in my debt¡± Ruki blinked twice before he began laughing, after a bit he spoke ¡°Then I will hurry and become a person once again¡± Matthew showed a grin and spoke ¡°Alright, Aea start Ruki¡¯s regeneration¡± [Confirmed, administering anesthesia to patient #48, time until 1st regeneration treatment completed: 12 days, 1 hour and 28 minutes] - [First drop zone coming up in 60 seconds] Matthew¡¯s eyes slowly opened, the surrounding space was slightly cramped, while the internal cargo bay of a Haliea heavy transport was big, the amount of gear stuffed into Haliea-002 along with himself and Ripper had made it a rather uncomfortable trip so far, hence he had rested his eyes until now ¡°Deploy the 1st assault container as planned, deploy the 2nd container 35 kilometers to the East, 800 meters from the coast instead of the original drop site¡± [Confirmed, Haliea-003 breaking formation to deliver payload] A few moments passed before Haliea-002 rapidly slowed down as it dropped altitude, then a few moments later the cabin shock as the external shipping container were detached and fell into the sea below, Haliea-002 quickly gained back its speed and altitude as Aea reported [Missile battery-1 have come to a rest at 38 meters below the surface, all systems read green, deployment successful, 12 MIRV equipped ICBM¡¯s ready for targeting] Matthew let out a sigh, so far so good ¡®Having intercontinental ballistic missiles ready to deliver the radiance of the sun in only 300 seconds as a back-up really does put my mind at ease, even if the range is severely limited due to Wicka¡¯s interference¡¯ [How long until we drop, Major?] Matthew didn¡¯t bother to turn his head to Ripper that sat next to him, he simply closed his eyes and leaned back in his seat again as he asked Aea ¡®How long until arrival at the target area, Aea?¡¯ [4 minutes] ¡®That¡¯s what the pilot says, why are you so giddy, Ripper?¡¯ [Well~ I am just really looking forwards to meeting your sweetheart~] ¡®...Knock it off for now, if either of us screw the pooch because you are too busy bantering I will flay you alive¡¯ [That sounds kinda¡ª] ¡®Mute Ripper¡¯ [Confirmed] Matthew let out a sigh and enjoyed a minute of silence before he unmuted Ripper¡¯s comms and asked ¡®Are you done?¡¯ [Yep~ You¡¯re not so tense anymore either, old man~] Matthew let out yet another sigh he would die before he admitted that verbally, so instead he switched gears ¡®Final check, ready for rapid deployment¡¯ A moment later Ripper answered back, her previous laid back tone had completely disappeared [Good check, ready for rapid deployment] With that, Aea also sounded the alarm as the back ramp of Haliea-002 open up and the red light switched to yellow indicating that Ripper needed to be ready [10 seconds until R1 deployment, ready at the ramp] Ripper walked over to the ramp and the moment the yellow lamp turned off, and the green light lit up she stepped out of the ramp and quickly disappeared from Matthew¡¯s view, a few moments passed before the light switched to yellow once again, Matthew finished the final checks on his Mk. 22 as his stomach tingled while Haliea-002 dropped a significant portion of its altitude before Aea¡¯s voice sounded out inside his mind again [10 until M1 deployment, ready at the ramp] Matthew walked over to the ramp and stood ready, he looked down towards the ground that raced past only a few hundred meters below, then at the moment the light switched to green he kicked off and jumped out of the transport, the ground rapidly approached for a few moments before the parachute on his Mk. 22 deployed and slowed him down just enough that the Mk. 22¡¯s hydraulics could handle the impact ¡®M1 deployment complete, heading towards target area¡¯ The area around Matthew were gray and brown, the winter chill had yet to set in properly, but he figured it wouldn¡¯t be long until first snow fall, it was a stark difference to the summer landscape he had seen last he were this far North [R1 deployment compete, securing perimeter] [Golem and Hound combat androids deployed, Haliea-002 climbing to provide overwatch] Matthew moved quickly despite the Mk. 22¡¯s apparent bulk, and within 2 minutes the old Basecamp slowly came into his view Patching up the ol Basecamp The old Basecamp was a wreck, their home was mostly in ruins and destroyed androids and turrets were strewn all over the place, however neither the 3 Titan automaton nor Alina were anywhere to be seen at first look, so Matthew followed the plan and slowed his sprint down to a jog, he reached the wall of his and Alina¡¯s home and punched into the wall with his fist where he grabbed a bundle of wires and pulled them out before he drew a knife and cut them apart and grabbed the exposed wires ¡®Start the manual master override Aea¡¯ [Confirmed, starting override¡­] While Aea worked its magic, Matthew kept alert of his surroundings and after a few minutes Aea finally reported back [Manual master override completed, command structure restored, running diagnostics¡­] Matthew let go of the wires and walked away from the destroyed wall as he kept check of the surroundings while Aea delivered another report [Diagnostics completed, all defensive structures destroyed, 1 layer underground bunker 82% collapsed, 2 layer underground bunker 61% collapsed, 3 layer underground bunker intact, generators and fabrications arrays intact, nutrient vat 1 cracked, nutrient vat 2 operating at 28% 14 out of 18 single cell rooms reads: subject deceased] ¡®...How about the perimeter sensor network?¡¯ [Sensor network operating at 58%, scope is clear at the current time] ¡®Start complete maintenance cycle¡¯ Matthew lowered his coil rifle and after a few moments of through he walked over to the entrance to the underground bunker network and found the entrance collapsed, though there were clear signs that someone had tried to dig through the collapsed parts ¡®How does the perimeter look, Ripper?¡¯ [Well, other than some obviously hostile wildlife it''s clear] Matthew scanned the area once again before he let out a sigh and spoke ¡°Operation over, unload Haliea-002 on the double¡­ Ripper get over here¡± ¡®On my way~¡¯ Matthew stepped out of his Mk. 22 and asked Aea ¡®Who is our lucky 4, Aea?¡¯ [Princess Klara, Duke Adam, Rosa Weber and Emilio Glaser, however in their current physical and mental state I doubt they would agree with your assessment of luck] ¡®Well¡­ They¡¯ll come around¡­ At some point¡­ How long has it been since I got divorced with my lower half?¡¯ [Local time distortion indicate 7 months have passed] ¡®...Put them to sleep and hook them up to a digital interface, then give them the full phycological work over while their bodies heal¡¯ [Confirmed] Matthew sat down on a piece of debris and looked around, the place was trashed and there were no trace of Alina anywhere ¡°What have you found, Ripper?¡± Ripper came into view as the optical camouflage disengaged, she reached up and removed her helmet before she spoke ¡°Well the place is trashed, but there was something interesting over here¡± The author''s tale has been misappropriated; report any instances of this story on Amazon. Matthew rose to his feet and followed after Ripper as she led him over to what she had found, 3 bases of perfectly flat and smooth blue crystal around 2 meters across and a few meters apart from each other, the pale blue crystal jogged Matthew¡¯s memories at once ¡°Wait a moment¡­¡± Matthew turned back towards the ruined house, he walked back towards it before he walked over towards the place he remembered clearly, it was etched into his mind and at that spot he found a flat black crystal base much like the 3 blue ones ¡°...Son of a bitch¡± Ripper looked at the black crystal base and didn¡¯t get what Matthew had put together until he spoke again ¡°When we were assaulted by 3 Titan automatons coiled up in liquid blue crystal¡­ And Alina was struck by a spear of black crystal that engulfed her body¡± Ripper blinked twice before she finally understood and muttered ¡°Son of a bitch, they stole your woman Major¡± ¡°Aea, are there any high endurance drones left in the network that caught sight of the thieves?¡± [Yes, rewinding playback¡­ Analyzing video data¡­ Completed, starting playback] Matthew¡¯s vision distorted as he saw the Basecamp from above, the large Willmir empire army had arrived a few days after the fight, destroyed the last defensive structures, attempted to dig up the collapsed entrance to the bunker for a week before they had retreated carrying with them the 4 large crystals, one of which imprisoned Alina ¡°...Aea, ship in all the weaponry and stored drones from the outpost and put in an order for a complete replenishment, we are going to war¡± The air around Matthew shimmered with intense heat as he started at the frozen image of the Willmir soldiers loading the black crystal that imprisoned Alina into a large transport carriage ¡°What¡¯s the plan, Major?¡± Matthew remained silent for a few moments before he laid out his plan ¡°Well, we scale up local arms production until we¡¯re at war capacity¡­ While that is ongoing, we are going to gather intelligence we need to find Alina while staying covert¡± Ripper nodded, then she asked ¡°...Do you mind handing drone control over to me, Major?¡± ¡°Nope, have fun¡­ Information containment is top priority, also some of the wildlife around here is useful for capacitor fabrication, so feel free to hunt it all¡± ¡°Yay~¡± Ripper immediately put her helmet back on and disappeared as her optical camouflage reengaged and she ran off ¡°Secure the perimeter while you are at it, Ripper¡± Matthew retrieved no response, however he was pretty sure which direction she went from the 20 Hound androids that all ran in the same direction in a hunting formation ¡°Well then, let¡¯s start the repair of the bunker complex Aea¡± [Understood, however the Golem androids will do fine on their own, there is no need for you to lug around rocks, master] Matthew squatted down and grabbed the large boulder with enough strength for his fingers to dig into the rock before he picked it up and turned his upper body before he threw it aside and grabbed the next one as he spoke ¡°Yes there is, it helps me take my mind off things¡± [Understood, changing Golem android assignment to assist you master] Matthew let out a grunt in approval as she chucked the next boulder, the simple work helped him clear his and calmed his impatience¡­ - a week passed quickly for Matthew and Ripper while repairing the old Basecamp, well Matthew repaired and worked on the bunker complex, Ripper just ran around like an outdoor kid returning to nature after 2 weeks in the city, one day she would be hunting giant ants, the next she collected vegetation samples and insects as a favor for Doc ¡°Say when Aea¡± Matthew waited for Aea¡¯s response as held a ceiling section in place while 4 Golem androids quickly worked on changing the cracked support beam, the androids worked quickly and a few moments later Aea¡¯s voice sounded out [The structural integrity have been restored, please take a break master, the repair work on the 1st layer showers have been completed] Matthew was about to refuse when Aea added another piece of information [The primary surveillance of the mission area have been completed, the first operation can start as early as tonight, so please rest for a few hours before then master] ¡°...Fine¡± Matthew let out a sigh and walked his way over towards the elevator, the operation Aea were speaking about was the first Intel collection operation, many things could be gleaned from high altitude surveillance, but the specific military details were going to have to be collected from military personnel, whether they could be extracted via enhanced interrogation or a neurological data harvest mattered not to Matthew ¡®At this point in time, I will do anything to get Alina back, how many people I have to stuff into unmarked graves doesn¡¯t really matter anymore¡¯ [Master] Matthew was snapped out his thoughts by Aea¡¯s voice, after he got into the elevator he asked ¡°What is it?¡± [The mental rehabilitation of the 4 survivors have been completed, Duke Adam wants to speak with you, he and the other 3 have also voiced their desires to leave their cells] The elevator silently hummed along while Matthew weighed the pros and cons in his mind, on one side he had come to absolutely despise the Willmir empire and on the other side the 4 didn¡¯t really have connection to his current irritation, still knowing one was illogically projecting on someone or something and doing something about it were two entirely different things ¡°...Fine, put all 4 under and have them collared and chipped, I¡¯ll take them topside once we return from the intel operation¡± [Understood] ¡°Also compile some drone footage of the Willmir empire army that were here 7 months ago, we might be able to sway their allegiance if we show how their soldiers left them to rot, see if you can make a video of the raw footage ready to show them once they get topside to notch them in that direction¡± [Confirmed] Finished with the planing, Matthew went for an understandable and comforting hot water hosing, ever since he had taken that bath at Doc and Ripper¡¯s bunker the bathroom had become his comfort place ¡®...Nothing like a quick 2-hour bath to calm things down¡¯ Matthew dried himself off with a towel, his mood had significantly improved by now, so he felt ready to take on the next operation ¡°Open a line to Ripper¡± [Line open] [What is it, old man? Are you done with your steam bath?] ¡°Yeah, have you finished selecting your weaponry for the operation?¡± [Yep~ I am ready to go collect some intel~] ¡°Okay, meet me topside in 5 minutes, Aea go ahead and warm up our transport¡± [Confirmed, Haliea-001 ready for takeoff in 360 seconds] The walled city of Tweni Matthew sprinted full speed, if anyone were to lay eyes on him at this moment and actually comprehend that it was an actual almost 2 meter tall, 120 kilogram man that ran this fast and not just a strong gust of wind in the cold, moonless winter night they would surely be horrified by an acute feeling of transhuman dread ¡®M1, Final check¡¯ [Good check M1, area is clear, proceed with infiltration] ¡®Roger¡¯ Matthew turned sharply while keeping his speed before he suddenly leaped off the ground and after sailing through the air for a few moments he landed on the top of the stone walls ¡®So far so good¡­¡¯ The city of Tweni was a medium-sized walled city in the western region of the Willmir empire, a personal holding under the newly appointed Marquis, Lea Maitner, the firstborn daughter of the late Elias Maitner who had been manipulated by an Eastern Skinwalker to attack Matthew and Alina which ended with the predictable results of the entire border fort getting demolished by artillery fire. Matthew didn¡¯t stop to take in the cityscape and quickly jumped on the inner side of the walls, after breaking his fall with a roll he made sure he hadn¡¯t been detected and called out over the local net ¡®M1 infiltration completed¡¯ The next moment, a person stepped out from the coroner of the alley where Matthew had landed and greeted him as she handed him a few pieces of clothing ¡°Welcome to Tweni, Major¡± Matthew nodded and put the clothing on over the skintight bodysuit he wore, the linen pants, wool shirt and leather overcoat disguised him well enough on their own, but a few moments after the bodysuit changed color to that of his skin, designing him further with large scars and a large black tattoo visible on his chest and neck ¡°Take this one two¡± Matthew retrieved the sword and sheath from Ripper, which he fastened to the left side of his overcoat, then she spoke again ¡°And the final piece, well considering you relationship with Alina, I should say sidepiece~¡± With those words she walked over and grasped his left hand, Ripper herself were dressed in a high quality linen dress along with a subdued silver necklace, she wore a smile as they walked onto the lively main street, lantern light illuminated the numerous bars and inns where the people of Tweni drank the night away, even though Matthew kept up the appearances of a young mercenary who had returned home to his wife, which Ripper had concocted on the outside he still grumbled to her over the local net ¡®Why is it we have to look like this again?¡¯ [Because people feel uncomfortable about public displays of affection~ Thus they will pay us less attention while we make our way towards the target area~] Matthew let out an internal sigh as he kept up appearances, the first target on the list was a senior officer of the Willmir army that had been sent West and had overseen a large part of the logistics of the recent 150.000 army that had been sent to the old Basecamp ¡®Which means he will know where the crystals were sent, as well as that he knows much of the inner workings of the Willmir empire¡¯s logistics network¡­ The fact that he doesn¡¯t have a security detail is beyond sloppy¡¯ The two made their way through the streets of Tweni before they arrived in a relatively quiet residential area, there Ripper let go of Matthew¡¯s hand and scaled a building, a little over two minutes later a black balloon with a block of black ice attached rose quickly into the sky and Ripper reappeared next to Matthew as they continued on their way Help support creative writers by finding and reading their stories on the original site. ¡®Easy as pie~ Let¡¯s move onto the next item on our list~¡¯ Matthew showed a smile and nodded, by the end of the night Matthew and Ripper booked themselves a 2-person room in an inn, they had created no less than 31 corpses in a single night and sent up 12 balloons which had already been picked up by high-flying drones, even now Matthew had a hard time believing how little trouble they had run into ¡°That felt a little too easy¡­ How long until extraction?¡± [13 hours, feel free to take it easy until them master] Matthew nodded and leaned back in the armchair, the inside of the inn room wasn¡¯t all that big, most of it was taken up by the 2-person bed which Ripper had claimed for herself about an hour ago, even now she was sleeping soundly ¡®...I¡¯ll head out for a walk then¡¯ [Understood, but please remember that this is still hostile territory, master] ¡®I am far too old to ever forget that¡¯ Matthew got up and wore his overcoat before he left the room, after walking down the stairs he found the first floor of the inn mostly deserted, a few people were eating breakfast but didn¡¯t pay Matthew any attention other than a few silent greetings, soon he walked down the lively streets of Tweni, however despite the beast drawn carriages the streets were mostly clean ¡®That reminds me, how far along is the Willmir empire with sanitary technology?¡¯ [Gathered intel suggests a series of sweeping sanitary policies were introduced around a century ago, most cities the size of Tweni have public bathhouses and restrooms, as well as a well maintained sewage system] ¡®I see¡¯ Matthew continued to roam around for about an hour until he arrived at a large plaza that featured a large open market with numerous smaller stalls that sold everything from food to small trinkets, he walked around and did a bit of window shopping before Aea¡¯s voice sounded out in his mind [M1, move 40 meters towards the Southwestern end of the market] Matthew switched gears at once, even if he was taking a relaxing walk, the operation was still ongoing, and it seemed like Aea had discovered something worth canceling his leisure over ¡®What¡¯s my target?¡¯ [23 meters ahead, lighting up the HUD now] Matthew¡¯s vision distorted for a moment before a series of seemingly unassuming wooden crates lit up in his view a moment passed before Aea¡¯s voice sounded out again [Thermal sensors indicate 8 covert personal hidden in the area, please hold current position and observe surroundings] Matthew nodded and found a bench to sit down, clearly someone were up to something, and with Matthew being here anyway there wasn¡¯t anything wrong with taking a look into what the covert personal were doing, even if Aea only used his proximity to collect some data biometric data on the covert personnel [Please increase proximity to indicated target] Matthew stood up and walked over to a food stall where he called out to the owner ¡°Hi there¡± ¡°Greetings, young man, finally let your stomach win out?¡± Matthew nodded, having been sitting down on the bench and looking around at the different stalls it seemed like the stall owner had thought he were descending on what to get to eat ¡°Yeah, could I get 2 skewers and a bowl?¡± ¡°You got it¡± The stall owner took the skewers off the grill and poured Matthew a bowl of soup, a moment later Aea¡¯s voice sounded out in Matthew¡¯s mind [Close range scans indicate a high amount of weaponry, covert personal is most likely assassins] ¡®Find their target before it arrives here¡¯ [Confirmed¡­ Analyzing high altitude drone video feed, please stand by] Matthew retrieved a few coins from his pouch and handed them to the stall owner before he retrieved his food before he returned to the previous bench and began eating, the meat skewers were alright, a little too salty, but dipping the meat into the soup made it pretty tasty, just as he finished drinking his soup Aea¡¯s voice echoed out in his mind again [High value target identified, Marquis Lea Maitner is approaching incognito without any security detail] ¡®...She¡¯s what now?¡¯ Matthew let out a sigh, he silently patched into the drone video feed and accessed the data glyph on the young Marquis, he was about to write her off when he noticed something about her cloaked figure ¡®Bring up a simulated figure in my view¡¯ [Understood, starting simulation] Matthew nearly dropped the wooden bowl in his hand when the simulated render entered his view, even if Aea couldn¡¯t accurately simulate the young Marquis¡¯ facial expression it did stimulate her line of sight, and her eyes were locked directly onto Matthew, and she was taking the shortest route directly towards him, a smile slowly showed on Matthew¡¯s face ¡®...How about that¡¯ [Mystic phenomena highly probable, R1 have been alerted and is in route] Matthew stood up and walked back over to the food stall and returned the wooden bowl to the owner while keeping an eye on the approaching incognito Marquis, she was still clearly looking directly at him through the buildings in between them, she also sped up a little when he rose to his feet, however she slowed down again when he sat down once more ¡®What do you think I should do, Aea?¡¯ [Please evacuate master, with this powerful of a Mystic phenomena in play your safety can not be guaranteed] Matthew mulled it over for a few moments before he shook his head and muttered ¡°...We won¡¯t learn anything, I just pull back now¡± It wasn¡¯t only the incognito Marquis, there were still the assassins to worry about, if they were there to ambush the Marquis then how did they know she would come here to seek him out? Matthew felt completely out of the loop, and he didn¡¯t like it one bit ¡®Prepare for rapid android deployment at my discretion¡¯ [Understood] Matthew watched the incognito Marquis enter the plaza, she was still completely locked onto him and clearly oblivious to the assassins, so when she entered his view Matthew rose to his feet and walked towards her ¡®...Here goes nothing¡¯ Not a bedtime Fairy tale Matthew stepped a few steps closer to the approaching cloaked figure before he called out loudly as he lowered his stance and grabbed the hilt of his sword ¡°That¡¯s close enough!¡± His voice boomed out with clear hostile intent and while it succeeded in stopping the approaching Marquis Lea Maitner, who clearly had used some sort of Mystic ability to discover and track him down it also drew a lot of attention to the both of them, however that attention was immediately tripled when Lea Maitner removed her hood and feel to her knees as she cried out ¡°Please¡ª!¡± ¡®That idiot!¡¯ Time stretched to a near halt for Matthew as he kicked off the ground and threw caution to the wind as he sped towards the young Marquis, as he made it around halfway the assassins sprung into action and 4 of them sprung out from their hiding spots rushing towards the young Marquis while the last 3 fired at her with heavy crossbows, the blots sprung towards her with deadly precision, however the first two were deflected by Matthew¡¯s sword and the last was blocked as it sank into his forearm [Trauma detected, limited nanite deployment in effect] ¡®Hold the nanites completely! I¡¯ll patch myself up¡¯ Matthew slid across the ground as he spun around, deflecting another crossbow bolt with his sword as the 3 assassins fell upon him, they acted in almost perfect unison, one moved to his right, the next moved to his left and the final charged right at him ¡®Anytime Ripper!¡¯ [8 seconds, I¡¯m sure you¡¯ll be okay Major~] Matthew gritted his teeth and made a split second decision as he instantly discarded his only weapon by throwing it at the assassin on his right as he retreated backwards towards the young Marquis ¡®Bet you didn¡¯t see that one coming, heh!¡¯ His superhuman strength and the unexpected act of discarding his weapon ensured that the blade flew true and dug straight into the neck of the assassin, severing his jugular and spine, killing the first assassin instantly, the other two instantly changed their target to Matthew and fell upon him like wolves now that he seemed defenseless. They must have figured that it would be easy to get rid of him first now that he was weaponless. The closest assisting sunk their blade into Matthew¡¯s chest, just then his wide grin proved one thing for sure. They had assumed Matthew would be less dangerous without his weapon. They assumed wrong. ¡°That¡¯s it, come to papa!¡± It happened too fast for the closest assassins to react, with what might as well had been one fluid motion Matthew grabbed their weapon hand before reaching out with a open hand that instantly clutched their neck and dug right through their flesh instantly turning the neck of the 2nd assassin into a thick red paste before he flung the now headless corpse at the 3rd assassin ¡°You..!¡± The 3rd assassin exclaimed, revealing her gender as she deflected the corpse of her deceased comrade, at that moment she checked on her other comrades and only found Ripper sitting on a crate with 3 served heads placed at her feet, she let out a breath before she turned back and faced Matthew that pulled the knife out of his chest, the moment it emerged the blade turned red with heat as his wound fused shut with inhuman regeneration, the last assassin spat out her words in a spiteful tone This story originates from Royal Road. Ensure the author gets the support they deserve by reading it there. ¡°I see, a Mystic¡± She looked at Matthew for a few seconds longer before she lowered her stance and discarded her two daggers as she drew a short sword from her hip as she spoke ¡°Please grant me a worthy death!¡± With those words she kicked off towards Matthew that flicked the dagger in his hand towards her face, she was forced to deflect it with her sword which gave Matthew all the opening he needed to close the distance and grab her blade wielding hand before he stabbed his hand right through her the center of her chest, the assassin showed a brief grin before she coughed up blood a, a moment later Matthew pulled out his hand and her corpse were instantly set ablaze as it fell over ¡®Secure the heads Ripper, I¡¯ll deal with the other headache¡¯ [Sure thing boss~] Matthew let out a sigh before he turned around towards the young Marquis, the first impression Matthew got from her is that she looked hopeful, however he quickly noticed the black circles under her eyes that weren¡¯t completely hidden by her makeup. No it was that they couldn¡¯t be completely hidden, along with that he could tell she were scared by his show of violence but she hadn¡¯t run away or even moved as she gazed upon him with what could only be described as zealous hope, she snapped out of her daze as she spoke again ¡°Please¡­ Please save the empire¡­ Only you can¡­¡± Matthew remained in stunned silence for a few moments until Aea gave a sudden report [Fully geared Mystic knights are approaching this position rapidly, I recommend immediate evacuation M1] Matthew took Aea¡¯s advice, however he quickly approached the young Marquis grabbed her arm as he spoke ¡°Excuse me miss¡± Then he quickly rolled and swooped her up on his shoulders before she could act ¡°Eh..?¡± ¡°Don¡¯t talk, you¡¯ll just bite your tongue¡± With those words, he instantly kicked off the ground as he accelerated with the full might of his strength as he sped off towards the outer walls, however before he could make it very far Aea sounded the alarm [Alert all personnel: Code blue, local net disconnect] Matthew clicked his tongue as he continued running while scanning the buildings nearby for an open door, and sure enough after a few moments the rapid clang of a large bell echoed out over the city and Matthew quickly entered into a building, a few people entered after him before the last person shut the door, in a few moments the lively city of Tweni became still, a few moments later a haunting pale light illuminated the city and surrounding area ¡®Screw you Wicka, I don¡¯t have time for your shit right now¡­¡¯ After internally complaining, Matthew put down the young Marquis and looked around the inside of the building, it was a personal 2-story home which most likely belonged to a merchant, including Matthew and the young Marquis 5 people had entered off the streets, only a few moments passed before the door further into the house was opened by a servant that ushered the group inside ¡°Come further inside quickly¡± The group of 3 quickly brushed past Matthew and the young Marquis, Matthew let out a sigh, with Wicka overhead Aea had disconnected the local net as a precaution in case the mad ship borne A. I. turned mind rending comet somehow detected them from it, Matthew offered a hand to the young Marquis that still sat on the floor and started at him in a daze, after a few moments of her not reacting in the slightest he let out a cough before he spoke ¡°...Your hand, my lady¡± This seemed to stir the young Marquis out of her daze, and she grabbed his hand, however instead of getting off the floor she resumed pleading with renewed vigor ¡°Please, please young hero, save the empire!¡± Matthew narrowed his eyes, he was slowly coming around to the idea that getting involved with the young Marquis would be more trouble than it was worth, still he asked ¡°What does the mighty Willmir empire need me to save it from? I am just one man¡± At this the young Marquis¡¯ eyes suddenly lit up with white radiance, her eyes illuminated the room as she spoke hysterically while tears rolled down her face ¡°I SEE IT! The great cities of the empire consumed by horrible fire! The countryside consumed by rolling firestorms! AND ALL THAT REMAINS BLANKETED BY POISONOUS ASH FOR CENTURIES TO COME!¡± Matthew blinked twice, he didn¡¯t need to think long about what would cause such a future, however it seemed like the young Marquis wasn¡¯t finished with her grim prediction of a nuclear winter ¡°TWO FIGURES, BOTH OF CAST OF IRON, UNLEASHING LEGIONS OF UNLIVING SOLDIERS, THE ENTIRE WORLD COVERED IN THE LIGHT OF THE MAD COMET!¡± The outcries of the young Marquis had attracted the attention of the people seeking refuge in the house, they started at her with horror on their faces and in grim realization of the future she foretold, however in stark contrast to the grim atmosphere Matthew¡¯s chuckle betrayed his indifference, after a few moments he spoke ¡°I see¡­ I see, young Marquis, Lea Maitner mind if I pick your brain about that subject a little more?¡± Lea showed an expression of clear relief as she quickly nodded her head, she had understood Matthew¡¯s words as an agreement to stop the horrible future that haunted all of her hours, so when he placed his hand on top of her head she didn¡¯t react, it was only when she felt a prickling sensation on her neck she noticed something was wrong, however at that point in time it was too late, her hopeful expression paralyzed on her face as Matthew turned around and grabbed the servant by the neck and with a quick twist of his wrist a horrible sound echoed out as he shattered his vertebrae, a moment later his voice echoed out ¡°Sorry about this, I can¡¯t have any words of this get out¡± It was over before any of the last 4 could do anything about it, Matthew turned around and faced the paralyzed Lea, the expression of relief and hope still frozen on her face had distorted ever so slightly Matthew showed a grin and kneeled down to her face level as he spoke ¡°Sorry about that princess, this ain¡¯t no bedtime Fairy tale¡± Glancing into a horrible future ¡®Breathe¡­ I need¡­¡¯ Lea Maitner¡¯s mind was cluttered, she was too confused to realize what was going on, the only thing she knew was that she was unable to breathe, however she found herself completely paralyzed so she could only struggle in vain as her consciousness slowly faded once again. When she awoke next she were surprised to find she hadn¡¯t suffocated, air filled her lungs before it flowed out again, her breathing was steady, and with it came clarity of her mind, it was like the fog slowly lifted, and when it did, she dearly wished that it hadn¡¯t ¡®Please¡­ Move, move!¡¯ Her body was paralyzed as she sat on her knees, she was still facing the entrance to the house she had been carried to shelter in when the devil comet rose, however if she could move, if she could flee she would happily embrace the maddening light of the pale blue comet, however the demon she originally had through her savior had paralyzed her completely ¡®Why¡­ I thought the nightmare ended, why is it only getting worse¡­¡¯ Lea¡¯s life had spiraled out of control, first her father had been killed 9 months ago, she barely had any time to grieve when her Mystic powers suddenly manifested, from there she had been forced to watch her homeland be destroyed over and over, the brilliant flashes of radiant fire that consumed the great cites weren¡¯t the worst part of her visions, it was what followed, she could feel the suffering of the unfortunate survivors that lived in the ruins blanketed by poisonous ash, once again her mind were transported into one of her visions - ¡®It burns¡­ My skin is pealing off¡­¡¯ She found herself as a young teen, her body was covered in burns, from this she figured she would suffer for a few days before oblivion found her if she were unlucky, however taking in her surroundings she realized this wouldn¡¯t be the case, she was inside a makeshift refugee camp, one she had seen too many times in her visions, each time from a different person¡¯s view ¡°Help¡­ Someone, help me¡± She called out for a few minutes before someone arrived at her bed, it was a middle-aged knight that had half his body covered in bandages, pain and grief were painted on his face as he looked at the young woman Lea saw the world from for a few moments before he hid it behind a caring smile ¡°Don¡¯t worry ****** I got another dose of medicine for you¡­¡± The middle-aged man helped the young teen up before he fed her the liquid medicine, a potent painkiller that would make the last few days of suffering a little more bearable, however Lea knew the fate of this refugee camp well, so she warned the middle-aged knight at once ¡°You need¡­ To leave, head further west before it is¡­ Too late¡± The knight carefully laid the teen down again as he dismissed her words as pain fueled hallucinations, however Lea were prepared for this and kept speaking ¡°By the order of the last Marquis¡­ of the West, Lea Maitner¡± The knight paused in confusion, however after a moment he remembered something and focused on the young teen before he asked ¡°So it was true¡­ Is it really you, Lady Maitner?¡± Lea answered at once ¡°Yes¡­ This child will pass within a few days¡­ No matter what you do¡­ All that can be saved must leave¡­ at once¡­ Head West¡­¡± If you spot this tale on Amazon, know that it has been stolen. Report the violation. This was the only thing that kept her heart alive, she was able to guide the survivors, give them hope and help them survive beyond her own grave ¡°I¡­ I understand¡­ I will send word at once, my Lady¡± The knight took a few moments to memorize the face of the young teen Lea had posses before he stood and walked away to pass on her message, he stopped in the entrance to the tent and asked without turning back ¡°Will¡­ Will this really make a difference?¡± Lea spoke at once to strike down his doubt ¡°Everything¡­ Makes a difference¡­ The Willmir empire is only dead¡­ When its people lay themselves down to die¡± The knight kept still for a few minutes more before he spoke one last sentence ¡°...Glory to Willmir and glory to you, Lady Maitner¡± Then he left. From there the only thing that Lea did was suffer, her body gradually fell apart over the next day, all that entered her ears were the despair of the other doomed souls that had been left behind, she knew the army of metal golems would come and exterminate them in due time however it seemed her weak body had reached its limit, and just like that, she silently slipped away - ¡®Breathe..! Just¡­ Breathe!¡¯ Lea awoke as her vision ended, having had hundreds of these visions before she kept her focus on controlling her breathing, however she quickly discovered she was unable to do that, her body was no longer under her control ¡®What is happening¡­¡¯ As Lea¡¯s confusion continued to rise, a voice sounded out inside the same room ¡°How does it look, Aea?¡± Lea felt like she had been dunked into ice-cold water as she heard his voice, even now she didn¡¯t know his name, all she knew was that he wasn¡¯t the savior of the empire as she had believed him to be, no, he was its end ¡®Demon¡­¡¯ By now her fear had turned into anger, all the suffering she had experienced after she had awakened her Mystic abilities had been caused by the man in front of her, he was the one had destroyed the empire and doomed its people ¡°That¡¯s rude, I don¡¯t have any horns to start with, lady¡± Lea¡¯s eyes widened as she stared at the demon, he sat on a comfortable chair and looked directly at her, and she had just responded to her thoughts ¡®How can you¡­¡¯ The demon showed a thin smile and spoke ¡°Come on now, even if I explained it to you, Lea Maitner, you would not understand¡­ But surely you understand why we are communicating like this, no?¡± ¡®I do not, free me at once!¡¯ The demon¡¯s smile disappeared, he leaned his head on his hand as he continued to look at her in silence for a few moments, then he asked a strange question ¡°If you had to talk with someone but knew they would possibly be able to kill you before you could react, would you remove their shackles if they asked you?¡± ¡®What nonsense are you speaking about!? Of course I wouldn¡¯t¡¯ The demon showed his grin again and spoke mockingly ¡°See? So sorry about that Lea, I can¡¯t exactly let you¡± Lea calmed her anger for a few moments before she asked ¡®What if I swore an oath on my life?¡¯ The demon let out a chuckle and spoke in a mocking tone ¡°Oh, so you want to shake on it too..? Look, Lea, you are a Mystic with what seems like the powers of precognition, if I could have my way I would scoop out your brain and stick it in a jar hooked up to a digital interface, just to be on the safe side¡± ¡®What? Are you scared, even having me completely paralyzed like this?¡¯ The demon nodded ¡°Of course I am, from the readings Aea is getting you are the most powerful Mystic mentioned in over 300 years of records¡­ I had originally planned to use you as a biological early warning system, but what Aea has shown me of your visions so far made me change my mind¡­ Well first things first, those aren¡¯t visions, they are very, very real¡± ¡®I could have told you that, the pain, the suffering, the death and decay I have experienced through my powers, there is no way I would mistake them for anything else¡¯ ¡°It¡¯s good we are on the same page, I won¡¯t deny the weapons I control are able to wipe out the entire Willmir empire and I won¡¯t pretend that I won¡¯t use them, however if we can come to an agreement and I can come to an agreement with the Willmir empire to return what they have taken from me then I won¡¯t have to use them¡± ¡®...Why should I believe anything you say?¡¯ The demon shrugged his shoulders and spoke plainly ¡°Because you have already seen what happens if you don¡¯t?¡± Lea remained silent for a few moments as she thought to herself, on one had the demon before her did wield the weapons that had destroyed the empire in her visions, but still her meditation had brought her to this city at this time to find him, her strong will to change the horrible future had brought her to the one that had caused the horrible future ¡®...Alright, I will believe your words for now¡¯ The demon showed a smile and spoke again ¡°Well since Wicka have blessed us with its cursed presence we have some time to kill, so I¡¯ll need you to gather some more information through your visions¡± Lea blinked a few times before she protested ¡®I can¡¯t control when my visions happen¡¯ The demon¡¯s smile widened slightly before he spoke ¡°I know, but Aea can, it was surprisingly easy to cause the last vision¡­ Now then I need you to gather information about what happened right before the destruction of the great cities, If I was forced to use these weapons then there must be a reason for it¡± Lea was about to protest when a cold female voice echoed out in her mind [Starting neurological situation, please brace¡­] A moment later, Lea¡¯s mind went blank before she entered another one of her visions Genetic sample retrieval As soon as she returned to consciousness, a splitting headache hit her like a truck, along with a server chemical craving, Doc¡¯s first words upon waking were pretty much the same as they had been the last week ¡°Ugh¡­ Hit me with a triple dosage¡­¡± [Confirmed, injection completed in 120 seconds, please hold] As she felt the chemical cocktail that were being injected directly into her bloodstream slowly lessening her headache it also lifted the mental fog she were feeling, Doc was returned to the land of the conscious, much like a person in retail only were able to think critically after drinking their morning coffee Doc¡¯s mind began to slowly spin, of course she had grown tired of such weak simulants long ago, by now having enough chemical stimulants to kill 3 grown men injected straight into her Aorta were barely enough to get her day started ¡®What a shitty day this is¡­ Once again¡­ Aea, make a metal note to send a formal complaint to the Major¡¯ [Noted, 42 similar notes have been made over the last 3 weeks] ¡®I know, this repetition serves to elevate my spite and elevate my annoyance¡¯ [I think it¡¯s a wonderful thing] ¡®What? My pain?¡¯ [No, that was not the point I was trying to make, do you remember what you were doing 3 days ago?] Doc slowly sat herself up on the bed she had passed out on the night before and glared spiteful at the sunlight that leaked through the closed curtains as her scratched her messy hair while she thought back to 3 days ago ¡®I was overseeing the latest supply shipment that¡¯s being sent North in the morning, then I spent the rest of the day reading and approving android deployment for mineral acquisition before I personally corrected 2 genetic deviations in our army of martyrs¡¯ [Yes, that is exactly right, now do you remember what you were doing 2 years and 3 weeks ago?] ¡®...Nope¡¯ [That is my point, even though you are busy at the moment Mistress Anastasia, you have something to occupy yourself with¡­ And for the record, you spent that day 2 years and 3 weeks ago passed out hooked up to a drip of your newest chemical relaxation agent, only to awake 78 hours later with the results of having a third of your bone mass being dissolved and rebuilt, as well as a brief but intense artificial sweetener you consumed in your childhood] Doc let out a sigh and muttered ¡°...Fair enough, still make the note of complaint anyway Aea¡± [Confirmed] Doc rose from her bed before she quickly regretted her decision as she was hit with a severe dizziness and laid down again, after lounging around for about half an hour staring into space as she rode her morning chemical high she eventually rolled out of bed and got dressed as she asked Aea ¡°How does my program for today look?¡± [You schedule for today where clear Mistress Anastasia, but another 2 deviations have emerged which needs to be handled] ¡°What is the Major clone doing? Can¡¯t it handle this?¡± [Major clone#2 is otherwise occupied for the next at least 3 days with the siege of the former Vermiun Empire capital] Reading on Amazon or a pirate site? This novel is from Royal Road. Support the author by reading it there. Doc let out a sigh before she raised an eyebrow and asked ¡°What happened with the first clone?¡± [The first clone expired 3 days ago to organ failure cascade, post death examination revealed the local food were poisons to its genetic makeup, the 2nd clone has been adjusted to better handle the local environment, no need to worry, the transition between clones was seamless, and no suspicion have arisen yet] ¡°...Well, get me the information on the 2 deviations¡± [Starting Neurological data upload¡­ Complete] Doc felt a brief spell of dizziness that quickly passed after she made sense of the neurological data she had just received, two people had been registered as deviating from the genetic modification their forefathers had received, this deviation could not be tolerated, thus Doc had to go and make sure they wouldn¡¯t pass on their genes and retrieve genetic samples for Aea to develop a gene correcting viral infection in case this exact kind of deviation ever emerged in the future ¡°Hmm¡­ One seems like a common unfortunate child, but the other seems to be up to something naughty¡± One of the genetic deviations seemed to be able to somewhat identify other people carrying Doc¡¯s genetic modification and was even able to manipulate them to some degree, from what Aea had observed the young woman seemed to have grown a rather big ego thinking herself as chosen by a higher power to control the people around her, and she was currently wielding her ill-gotten powers to the very poor effect of common banditry Doc watched her through the drone footage for a few moments and muttered to herself ¡°We can¡¯t have that¡­ We can¡¯t have that at all¡­ Warm up my wings Aea, I¡¯ll deal with the naughty troublemaker first¡± [Confirmed, target moved to internal HUD, startup procedure of Mkx. 201412 started, ready for lift off in 300 seconds, support drone network tasked, ready for thunder] - The bandits under the genetic deviation held up in a small abandoned village in the desert, from there they had been conducting raids on passing trade caravans ¡®So 18 buildings, and a total of 38 additional targets¡­ How does the thunder look?¡¯ [Over capacity, reduce number of targets or deviation] Doc let out a sigh, she were currently circling the abandoned village at 2.000 meters, the Mkx. 201412 or as she referred to it more commonly, her wings were an experimental modification of a in and out of atmosphere personal flight suit, with a wingspan of a little under 6 meters the large polished silver wings extended outwards from the upper portion of her back, with a single propulsion engine in the center of her back, if Matthew were to see this wingsuit he would properly refer to it as stunning piece of postmodern art (derogatory) ¡®But he¡¯s just a military focused brute without a single sense for the finer things in life¡­ Anyway, have you found me a target yet, Aea?¡¯ [Confirmed, pushing target groupings to HUD] At once, 3 groupings were identified and showed in Doc¡¯s vision, she focused on one grouping and turned over before she folded her wings in and began to dive, as the wind screamed past her two smaller parts of her wings folded out again to guide her dive while a tone started humming in her ears [1600 meters¡­ 1200 meters¡­ 800 meters¡­ Thunder ready] As soon as the tune changed, the wings folded out again as Doc rapidly decelerated as 3 projectiles separated out from the suit and raced towards the ground, as Doc felt the heavy forces of gravity on her body she showed a bright smile as her eyes lit up with a flash of blue light ¡°And just after the lightning comes¡­¡± [Thunder] At once, several hundred drones flying overhead discharged their stored electricity as it flowed like lightning from the clear sky channeled through Doc it flowed on and finally hit the 3 projectiles where it scattered outwards and instantly killed the 3 groups, no more than a moment later the roar of thunder echoed out over the entire area causing the remaining 4 bandits and the genetic deviation to run out of the central building they were staying in ¡°What happened!?¡± A moment later, the 4 were struck by thin needles and with a faint shimmer of static electrify they felt their bodies lock up in complete paralysis, a few moments later Doc landed in front of the 4 ¡®Well that was fun, I should take these out for another spin again soon¡­¡¯ The wings separated from her suit and took back to the sky again as she walked over towards the 4, she looked them over in turn ¡°Not you¡­¡± As soon as her eyes switched to the next person, a violent discharge of electric currents ached off her body and charred the poor guy in an instance, so followed a person more before Doc finally laid eyes on the genetic deviation, and she showed a smile ¡°Right, there you are¡± Doc walked over to her as another arch of lightning charred the last bandit, leaving her alone with her subject, several thin wires extended out of her palm and stabbed into the poor girl in different places, a moment later Doc began to review the data she received ¡°Hmm¡­ Right, I see now¡­ Well, this should be easily fixed, however I¡¯ll need some samples for Aea to work with¡­¡± Then she retrieved a pen sized laser cutter from her belt and turned it on, the white laser easily cut into the genetic deviation and a few moments later Doc had cut out her liver and both kidneys which she had placed into separate plastic bags, at this point the genetic deviation had expired, however Doc kept cutting out vital organs without a care, by the time she was done more of the genetic deviation had been placed into self sealing temperature regulated plastic bags than remained standing, still locked in complete paralysis ¡°Right, that¡¯s that¡­ Oh?¡± Something inside the dirt hut the genetic deviation had come out of caught Doc¡¯s eye and she quickly walked over, there she found that her eyes had not deceived her and she retrieved an unassuming sealed bottle, she retrieved her laser cutter once again and cut the top of the bottle off before she took a whiff of the contents ¡°Oooh!¡± Having passed the very unscientific smell test, Doc put the bottle to her mouth and took a swig, which was quickly followed by a 2nd swing before she downed the rest of the bottle and tossed it aside as the wings reattached to her suit ¡°Ah¡­ That hit the spot, I didn¡¯t know there was any of this fig wine left on this cursed ball of dirt¡­ Aea mark the village for immediate looting, I want every single intact bottle retrieved along with the usual goods¡± [Confirmed] As Doc lifted into the air, she hummed an old Trerubicain tune as she thought to herself ¡®Maybe going out once in a while isn¡¯t so bad¡­¡¯ Exfil from Tweni ¡®Well then, that¡¯s a rather grim suggestion, Aea¡­¡¯ Matthew quietly observed Lea as she entered a strange trance as she glanced into the future once again, this was the 6th trance she had entered since they had agreed to work together in their effort of not nuking the entire Willmir empire, from each glance Lea took the picture got increasingly clear ¡®Still, what are the chances of me kicking the bucket like that?¡¯ It appeared that Matthew had become past tense just before the Willmir empire had been relegated to the past [Chances would normally be slim to none, but this appears anything but normal, immediate retreat after mistress Alina have been secured is highly suggested] ¡®So you value Alina¡¯s life higher than mine? Well I do too, but still that stings Aea¡¯ [I apologize, I have neither been designed nor constructed to care about cuddling your delicate feelings at all times, master] Matthew let out a sigh, even though Aea was an A. I. construct without gender he still felt its cool emotionless voice had a particularly high amount of a certain saz which Matthew found rather odd, still he cleared his mind of this rather quickly ¡°Well, whatever¡­ Can we assume the person or organization that is out for my life is tied to the Willmir empire?¡± [While that would be the likely causation, but with the existence of the so called ¡®Skinweavers of the far east¡¯ which sabotaged with the previous negotiation with the late Marquis Maitner and the true identity of Saratheen and her brother things might not be that clear] Matthew nodded and thought for a few moments before he suggested ¡°Well, one solution would be to prove Lea¡¯s visions of a Nuclear winter true and demand the release of Alina from the Willmir Empire with that as lavage, you know, proving to them that all my death would earn them would be rendering the entire Willmir empire entirely uninhabitable for the next 80 years even with our tech, along with the inevitable nuclear winter¡± [While it is a fine suggestion, it would likely put too much spotlight on Mistress Alina, leaving her more exposed to the imperial whims of Willmir, it would also mark her as a prime target for any enemy of the empire before she is handed over to our custody] Matthew let out a sigh, the risk of exposing Alina was too great, from the information they had gathered she were held in a publicly available museum in the capital, on display along with numerous other relics and other sorry remains left behind by people that had crossed the Willmir empire [My first suggestion stands] Matthew let out another sigh, he still would not agree with Aea¡¯s suggestion ¡°I won¡¯t do that, Aea¡­ It feels like a waste¡± [That is fine too, please just keep the option in mind] ¡°Will do¡­ I wonder what Ripper is doing to pass the time while Wicka is rearing its ugly presence¡­¡± [It is generally frowned upon speculating what a lady does in private] Matthew let out another sigh and slumped further back in his chair as he muttered ¡°It¡¯s not like there¡¯s much else to do¡± You might be reading a pirated copy. Look for the official release to support the author. He and Lea had already been trapped in the house for 2 days, besides piling the bodies of 4 unfortunate bystanders into a closet he had not really done anything besides sitting on his ass and watching over Lea and reviewing what they had learned and theory craft¡­ By now the boredom had started to turn into full on cabin fever, no doubt the maddening pale blue light had something to do with it However, just as he was about to complain about it Aea sounded out an alert [Alert to all personal: Code blue lifted, local net reconnected] Matthew walked over to the thick curtains and snuck a glance of the outside, sure enough, just as he complained, Wicka had disappeared once more like morning dew in the sunlight the maddening comet had vanished ¡°Ripper, are you awake?¡± [...I am now, how did it go with the little lady?] ¡°I¡¯ve taken her in for now, she has some sort of precognition, and apparently I kicked the bucket so the Willmir empire got nuked back to the Stone Age¡± [Woah, sounds like you¡¯ve been busy, I¡¯ve caught up on my sleep, nothing like a solid 37-hour nap] ¡°Come over here then, we¡¯ve leaving Tweni as soon as the princess snaps out of her trance¡± [Roger, I am 3 minutes out] Matthew turned back to look at Lea, she were still in a trance, this one was the longest so far ¡®How does her vitals look?¡¯ [Vital readings are normal for her current state, however the caloric burn seems to be increasing, if current state persist for more than half an hour then a nutrient drip is strongly advised] ¡®Hmm¡­ Warm up our transport, I want to have weaponry and drones available for hot deployment in case we have to hunker down¡¯ [Confirmed, Haliea-003 on station for air support in 12 minutes] By the time Ripper arrived, the city of Tweni were starting to wake from its demon comet imposed two day slumber, people were flooding the streets and even if the atmosphere wasn¡¯t outright festive it was definitely lively, however this quickly changed as a large group of knights and city guard began gathering, and as Matthew watched them through the numerous eyes of the drones overhead they had finished forming an encirclement with him, Ripper and Lea in the center from 2 streets over ¡°Do you want me to go fuck them over, Major?¡± Ripper looked eager to try out the sword she had picked up somewhere, it was a low tech thing but it had still caught her eye so Matthew assumed it was somewhat special, he couldn¡¯t tell though, but he shook his head, he didn¡¯t want her to run around like a crazy slasher while they still were in enemy territory ¡°No, we hold for now, there are only a few minutes until we have a Heliea on station, then we can hammer them from above if need be¡± Just then Aea suddenly sounded out a report [Receiving data package, Mystic precognition completed, trance suspended] Matthew looked over at Lea that just had woken from her trance, she remains silent and were staring into empty space ¡°That doesn''t look good, how are her vitals, Aea? [Stable, however her ego needs some time to recover from the latest trance, relaying data package¡­ Complete] Matthew were hit with a brief dizziness as he comprehended what Lea had seen doing her latest glance into the future, to put a word to it was ¡°Awful, in the name of all that is holy I never knew Alina had such a high capacity for hatred¡± [I feel your evaluation of people in love is still far from lacking, there are many examples in my achieve that far exceed the show mistress Alina is putting on in the not too far future] Matthew let out a sigh, not only had she nuked the Willmir empire after his passing, in the latest of Lea¡¯s visions she had witnessed her hunting the survivors for sport and torturing them to death, which now resulted in Lea¡¯s absentminded behavior, her mind was reeling and almost completely shattered from the one and a half week she had spent under Alina¡¯s thumb ¡®Well, it isn¡¯t something that can¡¯t be fixed with some mildly aggressive, invasive neurological interfaced therapy in a couple of days, right Aea?¡¯ [Confirmed, however the amount of data that needs to be transferred per micro second is beyond the scope of normal wireless operations, fabrication of interface have already begun back at the Basecamp] ¡°Well then¡­ Looks like the knights are starting to move already¡­ Aea, put Lea to sleep, we¡¯re leaving¡± Matthew walked over and picked up Lea and swung her over his shoulder before he walked out of the house followed by Ripper caught up and walked next to him before she asked once again ¡°So, can I test out my new sword?¡± Matthew glanced over at the blade Ripper was rubbing (the flat side) against her face, and once again, he failed to see anything special about it¡­ Still he knew when she got like this she wouldn¡¯t keep asking, eventually she would just cut something or someone up with her new toy, so with the prospect of not being the one she could cut into later he relented ¡°Fine, but keep it tight, Lea is the most valuable piece of equipment we could ever get, and Mystic powers doesn¡¯t follow genetics, so we can¡¯t clone her either¡± ¡°Right-o, you got it, bossman~!¡± With those words, Ripper kicked off the ground and instantly accelerated ahead to test out her new blade, Matthew let out a sigh and spoke out loud as he weaved in between the festive citizens of Tweni ¡°Deploy the drones, have the Heliea remain on station for close range fire support, if anything threatened me Ripper or Lea put it down at once, be ready for pickup on the outer walls¡± [Roger, Heliea-003 hot dropping and deploying 12 golem combat androids, 18 hound class combat androids¡­ Complete] A low boom echoed out over the city, it sounded like distant thunder, a few moments later the large aerial transport came screaming across the sky from the west, as it entered the airspace across the city it engaged reverse thrust as it deployed air brakes which spread out like the wings of a hawk, for a few moments it rapidly slowed before rolling over to the right as it began a downwards spiral over the city, directly under the cockpit the large 30mm autocannon deployed along with its targeting sensor pod [41 targets painted, ready to engage at command] ¡°Leave a few for Ripper, or she¡¯ll be pouty for the rest of the day¡± [Confirmed, engaging targets] The Trerubic Empire never forgives, and it will never forget Ripper charged forwards with her new sword at the ready, she was ready to start testing it out on the approaching knights that entered her view, however just then her Aea echoed out a report [Heliea-003 on station, starting suppression of targets] Ripper ground her teeth in frustration, even though she knew Matthew would leave some for her, her blade coded brain still hated having the moving, fighting straw dolls stolen from her, especially when she had just found a new sword to test out, as the autocannon barrage started raining down on the city confusion spread, then shortly after that came the panic it was understandable though, from the people of Tweni¡¯s perspective, one moment you were next to a symbol of peace and stability in the form of a trained and well respected knight, the next you were next to a collection of slagged metal and the sorry remains of what used to be a person splattered over the pavement. Looking at the Heliea that railed down auto cannon fire Ripper had a rather profound thought cross her mind ¡®Now the people of this city will learn to fear the sky¡¯ For a civilization that neither knew of the horror held in the terms ¡®industrial warfare¡¯ or ¡®air superiority¡¯ this was sure to leave quite the impact Ripper let out a sigh, with her mood spoiled by Matthew her eagerness to test out her new blade disappeared, and she quickly reassigned the rest of the knights for targeting through her 09 as she stopped her spring and returned her new blade to its sheathe, a few moments passed before Matthew caught up with her, he didn¡¯t need long to grasp she was angry at him, so he gracefully tried to change the subject by asking a question of her ¡°That reminds me, your virtual reality headset, do you use real location data, or are you using fabricated locations?¡± Ripper glazed his way before she let out a sigh and responded ¡°Of course I use real location data, I assigned one of the hyper-computing cores to whip up an algorithm that could run off the processors in my 09 to make environments out of drone footage¡± To this Matthew suddenly stopped running and slowly came to a halt as he had a sudden idea, he turned it over in his mind a few times before he relayed it to Aea [Confirmed, running simulation¡­ Simulated results are favorable for our purposes, however the original suggestion I made still have a higher probability of success] ¡®I don¡¯t care, order the hardware to be produced at Basecamp, this goes beyond mere consciousness¡­ Besides, this option doesn¡¯t entirely exclude the one you suggested entirely¡¯ [Yes, however, please keep in mind that your future safety is still compromised according to Lea¡¯s visions, master] ¡®I know, as long as you stop short of covering me in fucking bubble wrap, we can still be friends¡¯ [To be considered a friend of master is a great honor, though I must admit that I didn''t know you thought so highly of me] Matthew showed a smile before he leapt up onto the outer walls of Tweni, when he landed on the top he spoke ¡°Come on now Aea, how many years have we known each other? If I hated you I would have put in a request for another virtual assistant¡­ Connect me to the external speakers of the Heliea, it¡¯s time to make a statement¡± [Connection established, ready to broadcast] A few moments later, Matthew¡¯s voice boomed out over the city ¡°I am Major Matthew Rockwell, on my return to this puny empire I bring with me 2 things. A promise of death to those who plundered our lands and an official message from the Emperor of over 4000 worlds: The Trerubic Empire never forgives, and it will never forget!¡± Ensure your favorite authors get the support they deserve. Read this novel on the original website. As Matthew spoke the Heliea heavy transport descended to the edge of the wall in its V-TOL configuration within a minute this symbol of defense to the people of the city were scaled by the combat androids that quickly boarded the plane followed by Ripper and finally Mathew that spared one final chilling gaze at the city below him before he stepped onto the ramp that closed a moment later. - The following week a proverbial fire was lit under the Willmir empire''s ass as every single of its wall Western cities had flies dropped over them, the text were all the same ¡°A promise of the complete destruction of our great Empire, I can only see this a jest in the poorest of tastes your majesty¡± Erik Willmir the 3rd let out a sigh, he had believed his troubles with the Western fringes of the empire had been resolved by the last change of seasons, however now the problem had reemerged, bringing with a far greater headache than last time it reared its ugly head. The Emperor let out a sigh and slumped down in his opulent chair, this would normally be seen as an act far too undignified for a man of his statue, but neither he nor his current company cared ¡°This year extracts a heavy toll¡­ First my father and daughter were lost to us, then there was the failed expedition and the destruction of Fort Adam, then came the headache of purging the plain skinned monsters that have wielded their shadowy powers for a few generations¡­ And now when I was finally ready to turn in for the winter, this happens¡± Despite his tired tone, Erik Willmir the 3rd were as confident as he could be, as he had just nonchalantly complained he had done more good for the empire than most of his predecessors over the summer and fall, having purged the cancer that grew in the heart of the empire just like the Erick had just complained, the empire too was ready to turn into the winter to stabilize, these flyers had just thrown a major spanner in that much-needed recovery period ¡°We need to deal with this at once, even if it''s just a joke in poor taste¡± ¡°Please let me handle this, your majesty¡± Erik glanced over at his 2nd son and current heir to the throne, Vincent Willmir and considered it for a few moments, in reality there was nothing to consider, he acted like he was as he waited for his firstborn son, Theodore Willmir to speak up¡­ However, he never did, so he eventually nodded, Vincent stood and bowed his head before speaking confidently ¡°I shall see to it at once, please excuse me your majesty¡± Vincent turned and strode out of the meeting room with his head held high, never once glancing at his older brother that still sat and glanced out the window watching the clouds, at this point the only people left in the room were the emperor, the 1st prince and the prime minister Elias Reinhardt who promptly let out a long sigh before he spoke ¡°Your majesty the first prince¡± A few moments of silence followed in silence as Theodore continued to stare at the clouds, which caused Elias to speak again ¡°Prince Theodore¡± This snapped the prince out of his daze and he returned to this reality as he turned his face away from the window, he still didn¡¯t look at either his father nor his mentor, prime minister Elias that asked him ¡°What is on your mind today, Theo?¡± The prince continued to gather his thoughts for another few moments before he spoke ¡°I¡­ I was running the taxation numbers from the Eastern region again¡­ It still doesn¡¯t add up¡­¡± Erik let out a sigh before he spoke gently to his son ¡°Theo, you have to share these things with your brother too¡± Theodore turned his face away slightly, which was all the answer both the Prime minister and the Emperor needed, Theodore was a genius, he was undoubtedly intelligent enough to take the seat of emperor, however intelligence wasn¡¯t enough to lead the empire, meanwhile his brother Vincent had made alliances with most powerful nobles in the empire, and pitted the rest he couldn¡¯t win over against each other, his web of connections and backroom deals showed his brilliant charisma, however this had consumed him with arrogance and he knew little of statecraft, Erik hoped his two sons could work together and bring a new golden age to the empire, alas, Vincent had alienated his elder brother Theodore, and Theodore cared too little about anything other than numbers and calculations to care ¡°I¡­ I will try¡± Erik let out another sigh and shared a look of resignation with the prime minister Elias, however just as Erik was going to continue persuading prince Theodore the door were abruptly opened, and a very flustered looking Vincent walked in, clearly out of breath, Erik raised his hand as his son was about to speak and commanded him ¡°Sit down first, catch your breath, son¡± Vincent nodded, he took a seat, clutched in his hand were a piece of paper which he placed on the table, Erik took it and asked ¡°What is this? Another flier?¡± Vincent shock his head and spoke, still clearly flustered ¡°A, A woman handed it to me just now, she, she cut down all of my guards and disappeared from sight the moment after she handed it to me¡± ¡°What!?¡± Elias rose to his feet in outrage, Erik quickly nodded to him and spoke quickly ¡°Go handle it¡± Elias nodded and quickly walked out of the room as Theodore slid his glass of water over to his brother, Erik read through the paper quickly, as he did his hands began trembling in rage, when he was done, he let it fall down on the table and nearly began yelling cures before he caught the worried gazes of his two sons and gathered himself as he spoke to Vincent ¡°Don¡¯t worry, my son, I will have the head of the person who threatened your life¡± Theodore placed a hand on his brother''s shoulder, and to Erik¡¯s surprise, Vincent didn¡¯t reject this notion, Erik leaned further back in his chair as he glanced at the paper whereupon it was stated that the Western region capital city of Maitner would be removed from the map in 4 days if he, the Emperor of the Willmir empire himself didn¡¯t meet for negotiations at the destroyed Fort Adam ¡®First they threaten my son, then they demand I personally come to meet them on the threat of the Western capital¡¯s destruction!?¡¯ The emperor rose from his seat, but just as he was about to speak the door to the room was once again opened as Elias rushed in, he locked eyes with Erik and fell to his knees as he lowered his head and spoke ¡°2 days ago, the walled city of Winmond were assaulted before it was forcibly evacuated and raised to the ground by Major Matthew Rockwell of The Trerubic Empire¡± The emperor¡¯s eyes widen in shock before he glanced down at the paper on the table which he had just dismissed in fear The Razing of Winmond ¡°Well¡­ that was easy¡­¡± Matthew lowered his coil rifle, he was wearing his Mk. 22 powered armor, this had proved to be a bit too much preparation, he hadn¡¯t needed to fire a single shot either, it had only been about an hour since the assault of Winmond started, and by now the mop up was well under way, and Matthew were for once not the one that had to put his backbone into it, no that was a job for the new recruits [Sector 3 A clear] Matthew showed a grin and did his best middle manger ¡®You missed a spot¡¯ impression as he responded over the local net ¡°That''s a negative E1, recheck overhead thermal sensors on surveillance drone 5521 before sweeping due West of your current position¡± [Received, executing orders] Flying over the city were hundreds of surveillance drones that swept for stragglers, along with this around 50 various combat drones walked through the deserted streets broadcasting ¡°This city will be razed to the ground by sunset, hiding with hostile intent will be met with deadly force¡± in a variety of the local languages ¡°Do you have to bust the newbie''s balls like that, Major?¡± Matthew nodded once ¡°Yep, a little verbal grilling is better than stepping on an IED because you didn¡¯t get grilled over leaving your overwatch drone on only thermal, don''t you think, Ripper?¡± ¡°Yeah, those really ruin your whole week, don''t they¡­ Well then, I am off to the capital, see you in a couple of days Major¡± ¡°See you, Ripper, be sure to cry for help if you need it¡± Ripper kicked Matthew in the shin, even though it was protected by almost 30 centimeters dense metal alloy, Matthew still felt her frustration pass through the plate as she walked over to the landed Heliea and boarded it, she looked back at Matthew and blew a raspberry before the ramp closed and the Heliea took off [Heliea-005 departed, notice to all units to observe and respect IFF] ¡°...Now then, A1, K1, S1 and R2 check in¡± [A1 here¡­ Everything is good] [K1 here, 3 civilians secured and sent towards the Northern gate] [S1 here, scope have been clear since last check in] [R2 here, 6 hostile targets sterilized] Matthew showed a thin smile and continued guiding (grilling) his new recruits ¡°Everything is in fact not good A1, your vitals are spiking, take your assigned injector at once¡­ R2 please tell the class about your latest major screw up and how you are putting your squad in danger¡± A few moments of silence followed before R2 responded in a cold tone [I am sterilizing too many targets?] ¡°No, I don¡¯t care that you shoot to maim, I know the line between soldier and sociopath on a roof with a rifle is real thin and often both have similar psych profiles, but I am not judging nor condemning your actions, the intergalactic court for crimes against intelligent life doesn¡¯t have an office in this sector anyway¡­ Ensure your favorite authors get the support they deserve. Read this novel on Royal Road. Finished with his tangent, Matthew paused for a few moments before he finished his long-winded lesson ¡°That aside, order your resupplies, that 12 kilograms of metal alloy in your hands is just dead weight without ammunition¡± [R2 complies] Matthew watched a logistics drone leave one of the circling two circling Heliea¡¯s and descend towards the city with a package of mags ¡°Good, open a private channel to S1 Aea¡± [Confirmed, connection open] A moment passed before an emotionless voice echoed out in Matthew¡¯s mind [Yes? Can I help you with anything, Major Matthew?] ¡°I am just checking in, you know just the usual¡­ So, are there any problems with your new body?¡± [None so far, however¡­] As S1 stopped talking and kept silent for a few minutes Matthew spoke ¡°In the Trerubic Empire philosophy called memory personality personifying, or MPP which states that a personality is made from memory, that is to say that you are your experiences and while I don¡¯t entirely subscribe to that philosophy I do find some sense in it, I¡¯ll get you a physical copy once our deployment is complete¡± [Thank you, Major¡­ However I¡ª] ¡°No buts, you might think I don¡¯t care about you and I didn¡¯t when I shot you in the throat, Saratheen, however you are now under my command, and as such I will make sure you don¡¯t experience the horrors of having your mind reject your new body¡± [...How can you say that!?] Matthew took a breath before he spoke again, he understood her frustration, he had killed her, and now he had enslaved her and the other survivors of the patrol that had set out from Fort Adam so long ago ¡°Well, I know that my personality is twisted, however you agreed to this, so I will have you undergo therapy even if I have to drag you there kicking and screaming¡± [What do you even know about this!? I hate you! I hate how you speak as if you know how it feels to have a body made of unfeeling metal when you walk around with your flesh and blood!] ¡°Come on now Saratheen, we both know that my body is no less artificial than yours, and despite your constant temper tantrums I will still uphold our agreement¡± A few moments of silence followed before Aea¡¯s voice echoed out [The connection have been terminated] Matthew let out a sigh, and reminded himself that being a babysitter was part of the job, speaking off he realized that it had already been two weeks since he had returned from Tweni and undertaken the role to remold the 4 surviving knights, Princess Klara, Duke Adam, Rosa Weber and Emilio Glaser, into soldiers¡­ Of course their current preference although it was a little lacking here and there, would not have been possible if they had not gotten a neurological data bridge implant that allowed them to train in virtual space, with their feeling of time distorted they had experienced as about 2 years of boot camp ¡®...I didn¡¯t know I missed this¡¯ Matthew thought back to his time as a Penance marine, the new recruits he was assigned usually fell into two categories, those who bent and those that had broken, putting the 5 newest recruits into a scale with those two extremes Saratheen and Duke Adam were definitely the ones furthest towards the ¡®broken¡¯ side, with Rosa having adapted a little too well and Emilio being somewhere in the middle ¡®...The outlier is the former princess Klara¡¯ Even before Matthew had been parted from his lower half and been Displaced South, Klara had been the odd one out, initially Matthew had stated to Alina in full confidence that she would adapt to the mounting physiological pressure or snap into a hollow shell of her former self, both of which had their advantages at the time, however at this point Matthew had to admit it, she was truly a strange one ¡®She neither bent nor broke, in fact she seemed to have not changed at all¡­ Her psyche profile is the same as it was upon imprisonment, most of the knights had various mood swings, highs and lows, though measured with external scanners the readings are still mostly accurate¡­ But not Klara, no swings, never mind any deviations from her original state¡¯ As Matthew pondered this Aea offered its perspective [My hypophysis would be that K1 underwent a significant physiological change right after capture, but before the baseline reading were taken] ¡®Well that makes sense, but I still feel like something isn¡¯t right¡­ Well, let¡¯s put that off for now, prepare for final scans, then herd the evacuated civilians to the predesignated position¡­ We need to get the show rolling before sundown¡¯ [Confirmed, orders relayed to command chain] It took about half an hour, but by that time the 1800 or so civilians that had been forcefully evicted from their homes had been gathered at an open field about 600 meters away from the walls of Winmond, hundreds of combat androids kept them under constant watch as Matthew addressed them with the city behind him in a thunderous voice ¡°Citizens of Winmond, rejoice for the mercy The Trerubic Empire has shown you!¡± The gathered crowd gradually fell silent as Matthew continued ¡°Seeing as your emperor, Erik Willmir the 3rd foolishly invaded our lands and pillaged our homes I, Major Matthew Rockwell as the senior commanding officer have every legal right I need to slaughter the entirety of your backwater empire, even if I personally crushed each and every single person here under my boot, I would face no repercussions¡± At Matthew¡¯s last words the ominous crackling of the capacitors of hundreds of coil rifles amping up sounded out around the civilians as the combat androids leveled their rifles ready to execute his order, however a few tense moments later the tension disappeared once again as the combat androids lowered their weapons as Matthew spoke again ¡°However, count yourselves lucky for the Emperor of 4000 worlds, the great Samual Junathan Trerubic have decreed that mercy shall be upon you, so rejoice! Rejoice that we took such great care to not slaughter you all! Rejoice that we took such great care to evacuate you all despite your futile and pity resistance, Sing glory and your gratitude to The Trerubic Empire!¡± [Warning to all friendly units in the area, impact alert, 15 seconds] Matthew closed his right fist and clasped it against the left side of his chest that echoed out with a loud clang of metal, an instance later the humanoid Golem combat androids made the same salute, then Matthew spoke again ¡°Now, behold the mercy of The Trerubic Empire!¡± The next moment 12 ballistic missiles plummeted straight down from the sky behind Matthew impacting the city in a perfectly synchronized strike that instantly engulfed the city in a blinding blanket of explosions One and only objective With Winmond¡¯s destruction being confirmed by Imperial forces 2 days after the unkown assailant had delivered the message to the crown prince, slaughtering 18 imperial knights in the process, Emperor Erik Willmir who already were underway West steeled his heart, he had left his 2 son¡¯s behind in the capital to manage the empire while he went to meet with The Trerubic Empire¡¯s representatives, and on the eve of the 3rd day he arrived at the destroyed Fort Adam with an elite force of 400 escorts, there he spent a sleepless night awaiting dawn with the grim realization that he could become the last emperor of the Willmir empire¡­ - Matthew slowly opened his eyes, his headache was getting worse but shortly after wiping the trail of blood that had flowed down from his nose while his body rested he stood up and spoke out loud ¡°Showtime, Aea would you address the cast?¡± [Start of operation confirmed, notice to all personal information control is now in effect, all purposeful deviations from planned operation will be met with immediate lethal force, move to holding pattern A9] As Aea sounded out the alert, the Heliea which currently held Matthew, Rosa and Emilio, the two former Willmir knights held no illusions about the seriousness of this operation, Matthew had already informed them about what would happen to them if they failed to follow orders, the Major glanced at the readings of R2 and E1 in his display and let out a sigh ¡®...In hindsight, telling the recruits about digital purgatory might have been a mistake¡¯ Not exactly being the most charismatic of leaders, Matthew let out another sigh before he spoke to the two ¡°This is it, as long as we follow the plan Aea and Lea cooked up we will be fine¡­ And after this you will be free to chose where you want to continue or quit¡± Rosa showed a wide smile as she immediately spoke up ¡°I will follow you anywhere, Major¡± Rose had indeed adapted, however she might have adapted a little too well, while Matthew hadn¡¯t seen the data logs of what things she had used her neurological implant to access, it was clear from her newly acquired and rapidly increasing sadistic behavior that it wasn¡¯t anything nice ¡°I understand, Major¡­ I will do my duty, both to you and to my old home¡± Emilio¡¯s tone was tense but steady, he was currently being treated for mild neurological implant phycological disorder, NIPD as the lap coats referred to it as, was just as it sounded, there was nothing biological about the rejection and while it was completely curable through gradual neurological adjustment it took time which they didn¡¯t have at the current moment, so Emilio was on a heavy pharmaceutical cocktail which Doc had cooked up for him to alleviate his symptoms that were automatically administered through a bionic implant [Please rest assured Matthew, success have been almost guaranteed with Miss Lea¡¯s assistance] ¡®I know, the hard part is of any operation is, as always, the ¡°doing¡± part of it, not the planing¡¯ Matthew rose from his seat and entered the Mk. 22 before he picked his coil rifle off the rack and faced the ramp ¡°Just as we trained, slow is steady, steady is fast¡± ¡°Roger¡± ¡°Roger¡± Rosa and Emilio took their positions to his right and left, equipped in the lightly armored Mk. 8 powered armor they both wielded Mk. 46 High-voltage Coil rifles, furthermore each held command over 8 Golem-class combat androids and 4 Hound-class combat and suppression androids, a few moments later the ready lamp over the ramp lit up followed by Aea¡¯s announcement [Touch and go in 15 seconds, stand ready] As the entirety of the current cargo of the Heliea was magnetically locked to its floor and in the spirit of showing the Willmir delegation ¡°What¡¯s up¡± as Matthew would say it, the Heliea¡¯s frame creaked slightly as it rapidly decelerated while the ramp opened it preformed a sharp J-hook right before touching down, just as the light switched to green Enjoying the story? Show your support by reading it on the official site. ¡°Alright, let¡¯s get this done¡± Matthew quickly stepped out, followed by E1 and R2 along with their drones that quickly swept out as the Heliea lit its afterburners and rapidly rose into the sky once more, a few moments later Rosa¡¯s voice sounded out over the local net [I think there¡¯s a couple of code brown¡¯s ahead~] Matthew could see it too on his sensor overlay too, they had touched down a little over 100 meters away from the Willmir delegation that, understandably, were fighting to keep their pants unsoiled, still Matthew couldn¡¯t really complain as this had been the intention from the start, after the 3 walked out of the dust cloud followed by the 24 combat androids, the entire Willmir empire delegation camp turned into a flurry of flustered activity to respond to the sudden arrival, however before any of the knights charged Matthew¡¯s voice boomed out over the open field through the external speakers on his suit ¡°I am Major Matthew Rockwell, I have arrived for diplomatic mediations with Erik Willmir regarding the illegal incursion of Trerubic Empire territory¡± Having announced himself, the hostility on the Willmir empire side cooled significantly, however they were all still clearly on guard as a group of 20 or so knights approached, the most senior in the group, a grizzled looking knight in his mid 30¡¯s, he greeted Matthew ¡°Welcome, I am¡ª¡± ¡°I know who you are, Captian Peter Loos, while your personal actions of illegal looting doing the unlawful incurtion of our territory is something I would love to make you shit out all of your inner organs after I liquified them with my fist, your presence wasn¡¯t requested, remove yourself or be removed by force¡± The knight¡¯s face flushed red with anger and humiliation, however before he had a chance to argue back the knight next to him grabbed his shoulder and gestured back towards the center of the camp where the knights parted as Erik Willmir, followed by a flank of 8 elite guards walked straight towards them, within a few moments the emperor of the Willmir empire stood in front of Matthew ¡°Major Rockwell, I am here as you have requested¡± Matthew kept silent as he stared down the emperor, before the back of his armor opened up, and he stepped out of the Mk. 22 armor and walked right in front of the emperor where he reached out his hand for a handshake ¡°Greetings, emperor of Willmir¡± Erik Willmir gazed at Matthew¡¯s outstretched hand for a moment before he shook it and spoke ¡°Apologize for the delay Major, I was sure you would have preferred to keep your armor on for this meeting¡± Matthew showed a smile and after shaking the emperor''s hand he made a show of looking around at the gathered knights before he shrugged and spoke nonchalantly ¡°It is not my choice if you violate the sanctity of this meeting, if I were to die then your empire will die with me shortly after¡± Erik narrowed his eyes and spoke in a low tone of voice ¡°I do not threaten lightly, Major¡± Matthew chuckled and plainly stated ¡°If I die today, my 2nd in command have received my orders and Emperor Samual Junathan Trerubic blessing to reenact the operation we performed at Winmond a few days ago with a few changes¡­ The target have been set to your capital city, but I am not sure if she will bother evacuating the city first, so please keep your people under control¡± The Willmir emperor nodded and gestured for Matthew to walk with him as he spoke ¡°I understand, then let us start our talks, come we have much to disc¡ª¡± There was indeed much to talk about, however the diplomatic meeting that Erik Willmir had envisioned would never take place as even before he finished speaking, Major Matthew Rockwell¡¯s figure disappeared in a blinding light as a pillar of fire shot out from the ground immolating him, in an instance not even ash remained ¡°Assassin!¡± The knights exploded into a flurry and quickly covered for their emperor against possible retaliation from the other two Trerubic soldiers, however the two showed no such action, in fact they showed no reaction to the Major¡¯s sudden violent death as they stood quite still [Target located, R2, B1 move to sterilize] With Aea¡¯s report the two soldiers and accompanying drones sprung into action, they rushed into the Willmir empire camp, swiftly dispatching any knight that stood in their way as a hail of autocannon fire rained down from 2 Heliea¡¯s that circled above, within moments the assassin had been flushed out from their hiding place and out into the open as they attempted to flee, however this would quickly prove to be the wrong choice as the Heliea¡¯s opened up with rockets [Continue suppression of target] The two fanned out as they kept up their fire into the cloud of dirt that was being kicked up by the rocket barrages, on the overhead sensors a single figure could be seen, protected by some sort of Mystic energy shield the assassin didn¡¯t get very far before they were suppressed in place, from there it only took another minute before the Mystic artifact that covered them in their shield were depleted of energy and the figure was turned into a vaguely human mess of blood and gore, at this the heavy suppression finally stopped [Operation complete, M1, R1, S1 go for operation start, R2, B1 move to extraction] 4 drones quickly moved in and secured the corpse of the assassin in the Mk. 22 armor Matthew had arrived wearing which quickly moved onto a Heliea along with R2 and B1 that quickly burned off As for Erik Willmir and the so-called diplomatic mediations? That had never been the objective, killing the assassin and securing their corpse, that had been the one and only objective before securing Alina - ¡°Ugh¡­ Fuck me sideways, I never really get use to these things¡­¡± Matthew complained loudly as he pulled the long cable and neurological interface out of the back of his head, the open wound quickly closed as he continued complaining ¡°Was a neurologic-linked clone really necessary?¡± The Matthew that had meet the Willmir emperor a few moments ago had been a clone that had been remotely controlled by him through the large, half a ton clone interface that took up half of the Heliea¡¯s cargo bay [Yes, we have gone over this 14 times before the start of the operation, your presence, the location of the meeting and the threat of the Willmir empire''s destruction was all required for the assailant to expose himself] Matthew let out a small sigh, but before he could continue to argue with Aea, Saratheen that sat across to him asked ¡°So was it really him?¡± Matthew nodded before he spoke in a completely neutral tone ¡°Yes, your old man was quite tough, it took the murderer of his son and daughter, the death of the empire he was betrayed by and the proximity to your last known location to draw him out¡± ¡°...I see¡± Saratheen fell silent, so did Matthew that decided to let her have some quiet ¡®How is the assault of the Willmir capital going?¡¯ [18 combat androids have been disabled, however resistance inside the imperial museum have been sterilized, and a 2 block perimeter have been established, remote charging of the Mistress¡¯ body is currently underway] Matthew let out a sigh of relief before he muttered ¡°Good¡­ Wait for me Alina¡­ I¡¯ll be there soon¡­¡± Reunion The Heliea didn¡¯t even finish landing before Matthew jumped from the ramp, dressed in his usual Mk. 22 powered armor he crashed right through a roof skylight and cracked the marble floor as he landed heavily onto it, looking around Matthew found himself surrounded by trinkets and trophies of war, proudly displayed in the halls of the imperial museum ¡®Aea¡¯ [Go straight ahead, then take the 2nd left] Matthew followed Aea¡¯s guidance and finally he arrived in a grand hall where a large black crystal housing a single lone figure stood as the central display, to its left was his divorced lower half too, but Matthew didn¡¯t much care at the moment, his eyes were locked with the figure inside the crystal ¡°Alina¡± At Matthew¡¯s words, the black crystal shock, having had her robotic body charged remotely already Alina was already conscious, and seeing Matthew renewed her already burning intent to free herself, Matthew also felt much the same as he walked over to the black crystal and punched forwards, the entire building shock with a loud bang as creaks spread over the crystal by the enormous impact, Matthew pulled back his fist and struck once more shattering the first of his Mk. 22 in the process [Fractures detected, please calm yourself Master] Matthew ignored Aea and struck out with his other arm sending another loud impact echoing out through the museum as the black crystal cracked further, a moment later the black crystal shock a final time before it shattered from within, the instance after Alina flew towards Matthew that suddenly found himself Displaced out of his armor before he was hit by what felt like a cannonball in the chest, a moment later her voice sounded out ¡°I knew you would come for me¡± Matthew felt a rush of emotions he felt difficult to describe as he answered ¡°I am sorry I took so long¡­ Let¡¯s go home¡± Not even a moment later Matthew felt the space around shudder for a few moments before it shattered violently, the next moment he found himself and Alina back at the Basecamp, Matthew took a few moments to steady himself from the brief span of dizziness, after he found his focus he saw Alina sitting in front of him on her lounge chair, she stared at him for a bit before she patted the chair next to her and commanded quite charmingly ¡°Sit¡± ¡°Yes ma¡¯am¡± Matthew sat down next to her and for a bit the two sat and watched the sky for a few hours before Alina suddenly disappeared as she Displaced herself and landed on top of Matthew where she asked ¡°So¡­ What have you been up in the past few months?¡± ¡°Well¡­ After I was divorced from my lower half and Displaced by you, I landed South¡ª¡± Matthew continued to telling Alina what he had been up to, taking it slow the two chatted for the rest of the evening and night¡­ - By sunrise the next morning however things had to get going once again, with Alina secured Matthew ordered transport and an escort fleet for Lea to be moved South, now that Matthew had held up his end of the deal, she had been enlisted into his small group ¡®...Well, it¡¯s not like she would be able to walk away even if she wanted¡¯ Lea had undergone extensive bionic augmentation, especially in her brain, which had resulted in effectively splitting her conscious self from her precognitive visions which were fed directly to a hyper-computing core which sorted and analyzed the data, meanwhile the conscious part of Lea had long since gotten horribly addicted to full consciousness dive games and had not left her pod for the past week, at this rate she was unlikely to ever be able, or want to reintegrate into the Willmir society ever again Support creative writers by reading their stories on Royal Road, not stolen versions. ¡®Well, it works out great for us, but it still feels a little dirty¡­ Well, on the other hand, it feels rude to not take such a valuable card that an enemy had casually discarded¡¯ Matthew showed a smile and muttered ¡°Never interrupt your enemy while they are making a mistake¡­¡± Alina took note of his mumbling and asked about them ¡°Why not?¡± Matthew showed a smile ¡°It¡¯s rude, you wouldn¡¯t want your enemy of all people to point out your mistakes, would you?¡± Alina made sense of Matthew¡¯s words for a moment before she nodded ¡°I guess that¡¯s true¡­ So, when are you going to introduce me?¡± Matthew stared out into space for a moment before his voice echoed out over the local net ¡®Alina meet Ripper, Ripper meet Alina¡¯ Then he cut his connection to the local net, not wanting to interfere with their talk he went to clean his coil rifle, he field stripped and cleaned it twice before Alina walked over to him, she seemed a little timid as she greeted him ¡°Matthew¡­ Do you have a moment?¡± Not realizing why Alina were so timid, Matthew looked up from his coil rifle as he finished putting it back together ¡°What is it?¡± Alina mulled over her words for a few moments before she spoke them ¡°I talked with Ruki over the local net¡± Matthew nodded, Ruki, the beastman that had been taken as a slave he and Ripper had rescued from a fleet of exploratory ships sent out by the Turman kingdom ¡°Oh, yeah¡­ They finished their final regenerative surgery a few days ago¡­ What did you talk about?¡± A few moments passed, as they did Matthew felt the anger radiate off Alina via his Mystic senses and her completely cold tone of voice ¡°...Burning down the Turman kingdom¡± Matthew spoke a brief ¡°Hmm¡± before he mulled it over in his mind, Doc was about done with her secondary assignment to figure out this ¡®Ture magic¡¯ bullshit, however that could wait a bit, after all he had promised her ¡°Well¡­ No time like the present¡­ Aea get me a strike group to burn down the Turman kingdom ready for assault within 12 hours¡± [Confirmed, initiating rapid resupply of forces for assault group formation¡­ Please indicate parameters] ¡®How many nuclear warheads can we detonate without worrying too much about the fallout?¡¯ [Detonation of any CBRN warheads is not advised while hostile overwatch is still in effect] ¡®...Fine, then pack enough conventional warheads to their cites with enough range to hit the entire kingdom from the Decibels of the Forge god¡¯s mountain top¡¯ [Confirmed, 9 hours until launch of operation] Matthew nodded to Alina ¡°There you have it, we¡¯re brining the former slaves along with us too in order to reconquer their home and secure their stock of fabrication technology¡± Alina nodded, then she sat down next to Matthew once again and pulled up her knees and hugged them, her expression was hard to read, Matthew didn¡¯t interrupt her thinking, instead he continued the repetitive movements of field stripping his weapon and cleaning it another two and a half times before Alina began speaking ¡°I know¡­ Revenge will bring me nothing, no joy, no satisfaction¡­ It will not bring back the people I lost, nor will it punish those responsible¡­ But¡­¡± The very space around Alina shimmered with a purplish blue light as it cracked and reformed, bending under her Mystic might as her robotic body cracked and bent under the pressure while a distorted voice echoed out over the area ¡°BUT THEY NEED TO BURN, I BECAME THIS TO SEE IT BURN, I REMAINED IN THIS FROM TO SEE IT BURN, IT MUST BURN, I NEED IT TO BURN! BURN LIKE MY HOME DID¡± Alina continued to mutter as space around her bent and strained, Matthew tried to speak when he found his body wasn¡¯t under his control A moment later, Aea¡¯s voice echoed out in his mind [Do not] Any attempted movement or speech he attempted resulted in the same, he knew what was happening with Alina and it would prove fatal if not stopped, however Aea appeared to have interpreted Alina¡¯s state as something not to be disturbed [Do not] From Matthew¡¯s cone of vision, he found that the rest of Basecamp had frozen just like him, Alina¡¯s robotic body warped, melted and reformed, heated by the same purplish blue light that by now coiled around her body in robes of strange energy, her eyes lit with the same light the searing white light of purpose manifested though her violent death and past the end of her mortal life - With abrupt clarity, Doc¡¯s eyes suddenly snapped open, she shuddered as she felt it, North she could feel it, something was violating her Mystic domain ¡°...Oh shit¡± Doc sat herself up as she looked North, her stomach churned, and not from any chemical stimulant, but from primal fear ¡®Aea?¡¯ [Do not] ¡®...Well, it doesn¡¯t sound like you are going to be useful for this¡­ My Mystic abilities have also been restricted¡­¡¯ Alina sat herself up on the bed and after checking her mobility she picked up her tablet and set a timer for a preprogrammed message on a timer before she took a deep breath and muttered ¡°This is going to suck¡­¡± Then she abruptly grabbed a monomolecular kinetic knife from the bedside table and in one smooth motion she stabbed into the back of her neck, severing her own spine, severing her spinal connection, but also removing Aea¡¯s control over her, as she slumped over Doc instantly depleted her Mystic powers to open a rift in space for a short moment which her preprogrammed message successfully passed through¡­ A temptation of ruin The seconds passed while Matthew continued being held in place, Alina was undergoing what Doc had referred to as ¡®A temptation of ruin¡¯ if she continued along this path she would lose control of her Mystic abilities and parish along with every single person at the Basecamp, however just as Matthew were starting to face the seemingly inevitable Alina suddenly had a flash of clarity and began reigning in her Mystic powers as Matthew regained his mobility and acted at once ¡°Suspend personal A. I. assistant Aea, override authentication #1111101110111¡± A moment passed before Matthew felt his movements slow somewhat as the entirety of Aea¡¯s protocols were suspended, then his focus shifted towards Alina that were still trying containing the rampage of her Mystic powers, knowing he couldn¡¯t do anything to help her, he sat down and watched over her as he directly interfaced with the Basecamp defenses to raise the alert level to the maximum ¡®Attention to all personal present, alert level have been raised, suit up and join me topside¡¯ [A1 here, I am on my way] [Ruki here, we hear and obey your command, Major] A minute or two passed before Adam, Ruki and the 47 other former slaves, having completed their regeneration treatment and training ahead of schedule, they took up defensive positions at once as Ruki and Adam joined Matthew next to Alina, Ruki wielded his Mystic ability for a few moments before he clasped his hands in front of his chest as he bowed silently to Alina before his voice echoed out over the local net [Mistress Alina will be fine with some time, she has passed the chasm] ¡®Yes, however, we still have to keep vigilant in case of outside interference¡¯ Adam looked at little confused at the situation, so Ruki offered an explanation [The Mystic phenomena the Mistress is experiencing have been documented into our ancient scriptures, having overcome her raging emotions her Mystic abilities will evolve further] Adam nodded as he mused [...I knew the understanding of Mystic powers in the Willmir empire were lacking, but not to this extent] Having checked and rechecked the full sensor scope for any threats in the area and found it clear, Matthew lowered his vigilance slightly and asked Adam to elaborate ¡®What exactly is the understanding of Mystic powers in the Willmir empire?¡¯ Adam took a few moments to gather his thoughts on the matter before he answered [It certainly isn¡¯t widely understood, Mystic awakenings are sporadic and random, furthermore they occur all over the empire, all Mystic awakened people are recruited by the ruling class of the empire where they are assigned different roles depending on their abilities] Ruki¡¯s laugh echoed out over the local net, after he finished containing himself he spoke [That truly is the most basic understanding, to think deliberate awakening isn¡¯t even know] A few moments of silence passed before Adam asked back, completely baffled [...Is that possible? So you can make people awaken Mystic abilities on command?] [Yes, of course this comes with the dangers of the newly awakened not being able to control their powers and entering a berserk state in the worst of circumstances, even past that lengthy meditation is required to for a deliberate awoken to survive too] Unauthorized usage: this narrative is on Amazon without the author''s consent. Report any sightings. Adam nodded before he asked [Then what is this chasm the Mistress have passed?] Matthew answered ¡®The chasm as Ruki called or ¡®A temptation of ruin¡¯ as Doc have so colorfully named the phenomenon, is a state of sudden heightened emotions that is experienced by adept Mystic ability users, failure to reign in their emotions lead to them losing control over their abilities with fatal consequences, however those that mange to pass this trail often show far greater control over their Mystic domain than they had before¡¯ Adam nodded once again, he thought back to situations like this that had happened in the Willmir empire¡¯s history and immediately found several examples of this Mystic phenomenon, the Duke mulled over this folly of his old seat of power and let out a sigh, he was dead to the empire he had ruled over and called home, and so it was dead to him, even if it still would take a while for him to let go¡­ - Around dawn Alina finally managed to contain her runaway Mystic powers, while her robotic body underwent maintenance via nanites supplied from Matthew she finally spoke while she gazed up at the sky ¡°Beyond the sky¡­ It¡¯s so empty¡­ And dark¡± Matthew gazed up at the dawning sky and spoke ¡°Yeah, there¡¯s a large temperature difference if you are in the light too¡± Alina nodded as she continued to gaze at the sky, she spoke again after a few moments ¡°There¡¯s something in the sky too¡­ It¡¯s flying around the planet in orbit¡± ¡°A satellite?¡± Alina shock her head slowly before she spoke again ¡°A craft¡­ ¡®Mighty Endurance¡¯ is painted on the starboard side of the middle section¡­ It¡¯s moving rapidly though space and time, one moment is one place, the next it''s in another¡­ It¡¯s either falling apart or in perfect shape¡± Matthew nodded, he looked silently up into the sky, had Aea not stepped out of line he would have it crunch the data Alina was receiving, however with Aea out of the picture Matthew put a hand on Alina¡¯s shoulder and spoke to her ¡°Show me¡± A few moments passed before it appeared in his vision, it was indeed the Mighty Endurance, an experimental jump freighter that had smuggled him and the rest of BlueArrow¡¯s hit team around for around 3 standardized years, just as Alina had stated it flickered around, like a movie being rewound and skipping around to different spots in the tape ¡°Well, that¡¯s fucking weird¡­ There are a couple of outgoing lifeboats stuck in the distortion too¡­¡± Matthew lifted his hand from Alina¡¯s shoulder and the view of the Mighty Endurance disappeared, after that he patted Alina on the shoulder ¡°Don¡¯t keep staring at that for too long, we don¡¯t want Wicka to take notice¡± Alina nodded, then she lowered her gaze and looked silently at Matthew for a few moments before he spoke ¡°Welcome back, you had me worried about you for a few moments there¡± Alina nodded, she muttered a few moments later ¡°Sorry to worry you, Matthew¡­¡± Then her figure disappeared as she reappeared behind Matthew and placed a hand on his back as she spoke ¡°Hold still¡± Matthew held still, a few moments later Alina appeared in front of Matthew once again and spoke ¡°You can let Aea back in, I¡¯ve made sure it won¡¯t misbehave like that again¡± Matthew nodded and spoke out loud ¡°Enable personal A. I. assistant Aea, override authentication #1111101110111¡± A moment passed before Aea¡¯s voice echoed out inside Matthew¡¯s mind [Startup of general A. I. personal assistant Aea started¡­ Startup protocols completed, checking active task¡­] Matthew felt it, the dullness of his body had disappeared, and the slight metal fog he had felt for a few hours quickly lifted ¡°How are the preparations for the next operation going, Aea?¡± [Several tasks stalled out due to suspension of protocols, however a large part of the logistical shipping have been completed, launch of operation will be ready in 52 minutes, Haliea-005 and Haliea-006 are in route from island outpost while Haliea-007 and Haliea-008 are ready for boarding] Matthew nodded and spoke ¡°Looks like it was the right decision to increase the amount of Haliea¡¯s on hand¡­¡± A moment later Matthew heard a giggle from Ripper that stood ready, as they still were in a state of heightened defense, she was wearing her personally customized (And very pink) Mk. 8 high mobility powered armor, when she didn¡¯t elaborate why she was laughing at him and kept giggling Matthew eventually lost patience and asked ¡°Do you have something to share, R1?¡± Ripper pulled herself together and gave Matthew a (somewhat) serious answer to his question ¡°No Major, however I fear D1 would take kindly to your comments¡± Matthew paused and was about to argue before he shut his mouth, he realized that he indeed had shoved the task of sourcing material for the new Hyper computing cores as well as their newly increased air fleet on Doc ¡®Right¡­ She tends to stew in her anger for a while before suddenly exploding¡­ Aea, pass a message to Doc to have her take 5 days off¡¯ [Confirmed] Seeing the message that passed through the local net Ripper broke out into full on laughter as she clutched her stomach, seeing this Matthew finally called it and yell out ¡°Alright! Lower the alert level Aea, all personal heading out on the next operation needs to remain topside, the rest of you can return to your normal schedule¡± As the alert level was lowered, the combat androids and many of the beastman soldiers that wouldn¡¯t join the first wave of the operation to retake their home returned to the bunker complex underground with little to no complaint, despite having been kept on high alert the entire night ¡°Your people have excellent discipline, Ruki¡± Ruki bowed his head in humility ¡°Thank you, Major¡­ Our final bastion, our fortress city, weathered an extended siege¡­ It is natural that the ones that survived this long were the most disciplined¡­¡± Matthew nodded, he too understood how such a fire seared discipline into each and every person that managed to pass through it alive Indifference As Matthew stared at the holographic display that showed the Beastmen¡¯s former capital city nested on top of a mountain peak with their holy machine nested in an artificial cave at the very top, he had only one thing to say ¡°... Why can¡¯t this fucking ball of dirt be fucking normal for once¡­ Zombies? Really?¡± The Beastman capital itself was nothing special, sure the homes, streets and outer walls carved out of the mountain was cool, that wasn¡¯t the problem here, the problem was the massive population of vaguely humanoid shaped¡­ Things, that roamed around the general area, their bodies were covered in spots of gleaming silver metal, from the observation the surveillance drones had done of them so far, they ripped apart anything that moved that wasn¡¯t the same monstrosities while moving around in packs of 5 to 20, Matthew closed his eyes and massaged his temples with closed eyes as he once again asked, hoping he had heard Aea¡¯s report wrongly ¡°How many did you say?¡± [Around 2000 have been logged so far, the population density increase towards the west and the Turman kingdom] Matthew¡¯s eyes remained closed for a few moments longer as he passed his turn and got past his ¡®bitching about¡¯ phase and swiftly moved into his ¡®dealing with¡¯ phase ¡°Alright, send in the androids, keep your distance, after that secure some contained samples and ship them to Doc for analysis¡­ As for the rest of you¡­¡± Matthew looked around at his gathered troops, the 4 Haliea¡¯s had landed in a clearing while the scout drones had taken a closer look, but with the new information he had to call it ¡°We¡¯re suspending the operation, I am not sending any biological soldiers near a clearly active transmittable bio-contaminate until we have a treatment available, or we have absolute assurance that we won¡¯t get infected¡± Most of the Beastmen looked somewhat disappointed that they had to wait to reconquer their homeland, however none spoke out against Matthew¡¯s decision, but one Beastman that continued to stare at the image of the biological zombie-like horrors on the holographic imager voiced their collective doubts ¡°... Can that even be cured?¡± Matthew raised an eyebrow and asked ¡°What¡¯s your name?¡± The beasman woman kneeled down and lowered her head as soon as Matthew addressed her, before she spoke respectfully ¡°My name is Kura, Major¡± Matthew showed a grin and spoke ¡°Well then Kura, that is now your problem to solve¡± Kura raised her head and looked at Matthew in confusion before she asked ¡°...Pardon? My problem?¡± Matthew nodded, but hid away his shit eating grin before Alina could slap the back of his head as he explained ¡°Congratulations, you have been promoted to medic, of course I am not going to handle that alone, I am reassigning you under the single most dangerous woman in our merry group of misfits¡­ Aea, ship her South along with the samples and have Doc give her a crash course¡± [Confirmed] If you spot this story on Amazon, know that it has been stolen. Report the violation. - Waking up once again proved to be a dreadful experience, forget your run-of-the-mill hangover, this kind of hangover would have even a freshman collage student swear of booze for at least 2 months, alas this was nothing much to Doc that had lived her long life in search of the ultimate chemical high ¡°...Run a Detox routine, Aea¡± [Confirmed, running detox¡­] Doc closed her eyes again as the nanites worked their magic, she was sprawled out on a king-sized double bed wearing a large loose fitting t-shirt and a pair of distinctly unsexy panties, her figure was the very image of early stage cat-lady, only without any of the fury critters around, 4 empty bottles of high proof liquor lay mostly empty on king-sized bed along with various half consumed drinking snacks, one might scold Doc for her messy room, but she wouldn¡¯t really care because she were officially on vacation [The detox routine have been complete, however I suggest you consume some solid food and drink some water] ¡°Sure¡­ When I feel like it¡­¡± A smile formed on Doc¡¯s face as she began planing what she would do for the rest of her 2nd vacation day when Aea¡¯s voice once again echoed out [I have received a message from the Major, I am afraid that your vacation have been shortened by 2 days] Doc¡¯s eyes opened wide, she continued to stare at the ceiling of her room in stunned silence for a few moments before she covered her face with a pillow, then she began screaming into said pillow for a solid minute, this was followed by a few minutes of silence before she spoke ¡°...Hit me with a double dosage, Aea¡± [Confirmed, administering dosage] Silence followed for a few minutes longer before Doc removed the pillow from her face and sat herself up on the bed and looked around for her tablet, which she found just out of her reach, flopping over on the bed again she unlocked it and looked over the message Matthew had sent her along with the attached data before she flatly declared ¡°Fuck that¡± Rolling around on her back again, Doc continued staring at the ceiling before she asked ¡°How long until the transport arrives?¡± [Accounting for local temporal disturbance, anywhere between 20 and 27 hours] Doc let out a sigh before she finally got out of bed and walked towards the shower as she ordered ¡°Restock reagent A4, D109, O19 and K81¡­ Then compile a virtual training package for my student and set a timer for 1 hour and 30 minutes before the transport touches down¡± [Orders received] ¡°...Oh, and warm up my wings, I¡¯ll take a flight to clear my head¡­ I am making the most of this last vacation day, Aea¡± [Confirmed, shall I log a complaint?] ¡°Log 2, one for cutting my vacation short, and one for shoving me more work in form of a student¡± [Complaints have been logged] - Having had his entire operation ruined, Matthew sulked for a couple of hours before an unwelcome guest began knocking on their security perimeter. Laying on his stomach as Alina had ordered so she could massage his back, Matthew looked sideways at the live drone footage of the army that were intruding on his territory ¡°I really just want to pound them with artillery and call it a day¡­¡± Alina that worked on his very stiff upper back responded to his idle musing ¡°Then why don¡¯t you?¡± Matthew continued staring at the footage for a few silent minutes before he let out a sigh and sounded out an order ¡°Aea, contact the leadership of the intruding Willmir army and inform them that I will have a remote meeting for diplomatic mediation¡­ Send a battalion of drones and the former Willmir citizens to oversee the op¡­ Leave it hands off unless something goes very wrong¡± [Confirmed, operation assigned, logistics constraints dictate launch of operation in 20 minutes, raising Basecamp alert level] Alina continued massaging Matthew¡¯s back as she poked him once more ¡°You still haven¡¯t answered my question, Matthew¡± Having it pointed out Matthew answered at once ¡°Because I can¡¯t be bothered, all that mattered to me about the Willmir empire was your captivity and the threat to our continued operation in the region¡­ Now that both have been solved, I am left with the same feeling of indifference I would have if I saw a small street dog growl at me¡± Alina nodded, she was touched by Matthew¡¯s care for her, but at the same time she felt a little disappointed by his lack of anger towards the empire that had imprisoned her, so she asked ¡°And if that street dog bites at you?¡± Matthew continued staring at the army that were matching towards their location with clear hostile intentions and spoke plainly ¡°Well, I¡¯ll kick it aside and snap its neck¡± Even if she wanted to argue, Alina knew the apathy Matthew was experiencing well, it was the same she had felt in her deathless state watching the seasons continue to pass by. Matthew had lived too long to care too deeply about things that no longer mattered to him ¡®...Maybe I will feel like that someday too¡¯ Alina had wanted to get back at the Willmir nobility and upper class that had gawked at her in her imprisoned form, she had wanted to trade places with them, to imprison them like they had imprisoned her. However now that she had been freed from her crystal prison the burning desire of revenge had almost disappeared ¡®Presented with the choice of a lengthy, meaningless conflict for minimal gain and simply spending my time with my beloved like this, revenge really does seem meaningless¡­¡¯ Alina gazed at the display Matthew continued to stare at in his daze for a bit, then she concluded ¡®I am not as indifferent as Matthew¡­ If this falls through, and they continue to annoy us, it would be better to crush the problem entirely, what do you think, Aea?¡¯ [I agree Mistress, I believe Master also is thinking along these lines. Should I start getting things in order for that goal?] ¡®Yeah, go ahead Aea¡­ Just don¡¯t brother Matthew about it right now, it¡¯s been a long time since I¡¯ve gotten him this relaxed¡¯ [Confirmed, please enjoy your rest] The final diplomatic mediation Having been delegated the job of establishing a diplomatic channel to the leadership of the Willmir army that were intruding on their claimed territory, Adam, the former ruler and Duke of the Willmir empire let out a deep sigh as he gazed at the encampment ahead of him. Then he gave the final call ¡°Let¡¯s go get this over with¡± [Go from squad leader confirmed, Golem and Hound pattern androids advancing, notice to all personal from command: Observe IFF, these androids have been ordered for the upcoming large scale assault of the Truman kingdom so don¡¯t bang them up¡­ Oh, and reign in your aggression, if I wanted this group of ragtag conscripts and knights gone we would have turned them into fertilizer with the artillery] Adam rose to his feet and detecting his intent through his neural interface the android soldiers under his direct command moved ahead and fanned out in an assault formation, he still struggled to get used to this kind of warfare, something the Major had told him was quite normal for a person of his age that had suddenly undergone augmentation ¡®Time to focus¡­¡¯ Adam pushed his idle musings to the back of his mind and advanced forwards as illumination flares shot into the sky and lit up the encampment, a moment later Adam spoke, his distorted voice amplified through the external speakers of the 1500 combat androids that had encircled the encampment ¡°Present a representative for diplomatic mediation or be annihilated¡± Finding the encampment suddenly surrounded and illuminated, a lot of the soldiers panicked, however this panic was brief before a mounted knight rode out of the camp the flag of the Willmir empire held to his side, an official signalling used doing times of war used to signal to the opposing side that they accepted the terms set forth. However, even after a few minutes had passed a mediator had yet to show themselves ¡°More useless pride¡­¡± Having led the Willmir empire for over 2 decades as emperor, Adam of course knew exactly what the commander of the army was trying to pull, they were trying to have a representative come to them so they could negotiate on favorable terms. However, in the face of the overwhelming firepower that faced the Willmir empire, the useless pride was just that. Useless [What do you want to do, Adam? Shouldn¡¯t we just call in some artillery and get it over and done with?] While Rosa¡¯s suggestion revealed her heightened thirst for blood Adam didn¡¯t really consider her suggestion, that would go directly against what Matthew had told them in the briefing, however her suggestion still gave Adam an idea ¡®I have a task for you Aea, R2 and E1 continue to hold¡¯ [Fire mission received, artillery notice, HUD displays have been updated] [Ohh¡­ That¡¯s sure to light a fire under them, I like it] A few moments later, booms of what sounded like thunder echoed out over the Willmir empire encampment, a moment later large explosions boomed into the sky illuminating in the area in a violent orange glow as the fireballs grew larger for a few moments before they disappeared, as the boom of the explosion quieted down Adam¡¯s distorted voice sounded out once more ¡°This is your final warning, present a representative for diplomatic mediation or be destroyed¡± This time, Adam¡¯s command had its desired effect, and within a few minutes a squad of knights moved a large table along with a few chairs out to the edge of the encampment. Then finally, Erik Willmir, current ruler of the Willmir empire himself took a seat at the table as more than 400 knights lined up behind him, joining him at the table were 3 imperial scribes ready to record and preserve the upcoming mediations If you encounter this narrative on Amazon, note that it''s taken without the author''s consent. Report it. ¡®K1, with me¡¯ [...Understood] Adam walked ahead joined by the combat androids under his personal command, a few minutes later he arrived at the table along with K1, he gazed at his son, the current emperor of Willmir for a few moments before he spoke ¡°Now then, I am under the designation of A1, this is K1, we have been appointed as the Major¡¯s proxies as he has other duties to attend to¡± As Adam and Klara were still fully enclosed in their armor and utilized voice augmenters, Erik Willmir was none the wiser that his lost father and daughter were standing across the table from him, negotiating on the behalf of the quite hostile Trerubic empire ¡°Greetings, I was under the impression that Major Matthew perished during our last talks, thus I simply sought out another representative of The Trerubic empire to continue our mediations¡± Adam was about to speak when Aea sounded an alert over the local network [Temporal forecast indicates numerous hostile wildlife will move into A1 Operating area at current negotiations pace, please expedite] Adam quickly followed Aea¡¯s advice and answered the emperor''s first jab with one of his own ¡°Of course, that was one of the intended parameters of the latest operation, but please be at ease, both the Mistress that were imprisoned in the Willmir royal museum and Major Matthew are quite alive still¡­ Of course, the fact that the spare body fooled your eyes was part of our original plan¡± Adam kept a close eye on Erik as he shifted his position slightly, an old habit his son had yet to shed it would seem, to any other person this tell would most likely not have been noticed. However, a good father always knew their son the best and natural Erik spoke, while his tone were still calm, Adam saw straight through the facade ¡°Yes¡­ I received a report that you raided our museum, I intend to seek reparations for this heinous act, however in spirit off¡ª¡± Before he could finish speaking, Klara cut him off ¡°Major Matthew excised quite the restraint, I believe the first few drafts of the operation called for something similar as to what happened in Winmond¡­ Only without any precursory evacuation¡± By now, Erik¡¯s face had changed a shade redder as his fury silently rose, he chose his actions carefully however as he only spared a glance at Klara ¡°As I stated¡ª¡± However, just as he started speaking again a figure suddenly appeared next to Adam, it was Major Matthew clad in a pair of sweatpants with a coil rifle over his shoulder, he ignored startled reactions around him and walked up to the wooden table and placed the butt stock of his coil rifle down on it with a thunderous sound which silenced the commotion ¡°Alright, I was hoping you would have taken the hint by now, emperor of Willmir¡­ But apparently not, so let me spell it out for you¡­ You have ceased mattering to me¡± Erik¡¯s face flashed red with rage, however before his rage could explode out Matthew¡¯s arm shot up into the air where he stanched an artillery shell out of the air and placed it down on the wooden table where it opened up as Matthew spoke ¡°I will be blunt with you, Erik Willmir, the Willmir empire consists of 38 cites, 197 towns and a little more than 400 villages, totaling about 8.000.000 souls, this amount of fully armed combat androids I would be able to field in 6 months time¡ª¡± As Matthew spoke, the shell finished opening up and projected a large holographic map of the Willmir empire along with the position of Matthew¡¯s Basecamp, quickly red lines were drawn out from the Basecamp to each city and town in the Willmir empire ¡°---Or I could simply launch about half of our stockpiled monitions right at this moment and simply obliterate every single town and city in your empire, leaving you Erik Willmir an emperor of poisonous ash and ruble¡± Erik Willmir girt his teeth as his rage intensified, however Matthew wasn¡¯t done as the holographic map changed as it zoomed in on their current locations, on it combat androids were displayed with green dots, and as Matthew raised his hand the merciless androids leveled their weapons and firing lines appeared on the map. Crossing each and every orange dot at least twice ¡°Now listen to me very closely, if I close my hand your lives will be forfeit, no matter if any of your knights reach me¡­ Say you do reach me, say you do kill me, then command will fall to Alina, the very person that you displayed publicly as some sort of trophy for all to gawk at. There¡¯s a common saying in the Trerubic empire, would you like to hear it?¡± Erik kept his mouth firmly shut as he continued to glare at Matthew¡¯s calm smile with hate as Matthew calmly spoke ¡°Hell has no fury like that of a woman scorned, easy to understand, right? So let me lay out the details of this final diplomatic mediation between the Willmir empire and the Trerubic empire¡ª¡± At this the Willmir emperor finally had enough and slammed his fist into the table which served as a signal for his equally infuriated knights to launch their futile attack, after Matthew closed his fist it only took 6 seconds for the Willmir empire army to be reduced to one, sitting in his chair now covered in high velocity blood splatter sat the pale Willmir emperor, he gazed at Major Matthew and saw for the first time ever a hint of fury on his visage ¡°---Any further incursion into our territory will be met with an immediate lethal response and any purposeful interference in our matters will result in your empire to be bathed in nuclear fire¡­¡± By now the hint of fury had enveloped Matthew in a Mystic haze of heat that scorched everything within half a meter of him, his fury had taken form as he delivered his final words to the emperor of Willmir ¡°Were I a smaller man, I would have ripped your entire nerve system from your body and tormented you in a digital hellscape for a few hundred years for the crime of imprisoning the only person I¡¯ve ever cared this much for¡­ Alas in my old age I have developed restraint¡± With those words, Erik Willmir let out a terrified scream of pain as his body caught fire for a brief terrifying moment, scorching his entire body and covering it in horrible burns Packing up Matthew watched the burnt visage of the Willmir emperor for a few moments before he retracted his Mystic powers completely, his fury disappearing along with it, then came embarrassment ¡®...Shit, I really said that out loud, didn¡¯t I?¡¯ Matthew awoke from his daze of embarrassment as a combat android doused the emperor in a regenerative foam. Matthew looked towards Adam at his side, the former Duke of the Willmir empire had made Matthew promise to spare his son, who Matthew had just turned at least well done ¡°Do you have anything to say, A1?¡± ¡°No Major, as far as I can tell, my idiot son still draws breath¡­ Had I still been Duke, I would have beat him half to death by now¡­ He used to be such a bright child, but now¡­¡± As Adam trailed off, Klara walked over to her unconscious father, she reached out and carefully touched his forehead with the tip of his finger for a moment before she pulled her hand back and spoke ¡°Father is quite brilliant for an emperor of the Willmir empire, however this was a fight he would never win¡­ And he failed to accept that¡± After she finished talking, she turned to face Matthew and unexpectedly kneeled down towards Matthew as she spoke ¡°Thank you for showing mercy towards my father, Major¡± As Matthew gazed at Klara, his concern about her mental state increased evermore, however before he could state anything about it the surrounding space distorted, and he found himself back at the Basecamp facing the person he had just passionately declare his care for ¡°...So about tha¡ª¡± Before he could speak he was half tackled by Alina that embraced him silently but firmly. The silence stretched for a bit before Alina finally spoke ¡°Say it again¡± ¡°Say what again?¡± Alina tightened the grip of her hug around Matthew in silent protest at his poor attempt to deflect and save himself from embarrassment ¡°...Well, it is true I do care for you more than I¡¯ve ever cared for anyone, no that¡¯s not true¡­ Well maybe¡± ¡°Who else? Ripper?¡± Alina¡¯s voice had suddenly grown cold, so Matthew quickly corrected her before she could continue to draw her own conclusions ¡°No, my mother¡­ Even though I hardly remember her face by now, I remember my love for her¡± At Matthew¡¯s words Alina¡¯s grip tightened even further, before Matthew could complain Alina spoke ¡°My love, I will stay with you for as long as you let me¡± Matthew placed his hand on top of Alina¡¯s head and spoke ¡®...Well so much for my indifference¡­ Guess I can¡¯t run from it anymore¡­¡¯ ¡°And I will stay with you as long as you will keep me company¡± Matthew and Alina embraced each other for a while longer before suddenly Aea broke the mood by delivering an urgent message [Urgent message received from Doc: The 22nd hyper-computing core have been completed, in other news I¡¯ve fast tracked the training of the deadweight you burdened me with since the hyper-computing cores have found a possible solution for the magic problem, I advise the immediate relocation of all available forces South as the objective appears time sensitive] If you find this story on Amazon, be aware that it has been stolen. Please report the infringement. As Aea finished delivering Doc¡¯s message, both Matthew and Alina froze for a few moments before Alina suddenly disappeared, having dislocated herself away, Matthew wondered what she was doing, only for a moment. Then Aea informed him [The mistress have indicated she would like a few moments alone to recover her composure] ¡®...Well I guess that was pretty embarrassing¡­ Not in a bad way though¡­¡¯ Matthew closed his eyes for a few moments as he mentally shifted gears ¡°Right, how long until we can be packed up and out of here, Aea?¡± [Doc have sent 8 newly fabricated Cygnus¡¯ heavy transport planes which were sent for immediate airlifts, I¡¯ve gone ahead and ordered the construction for an airstrip compatible which will be ready in 4 hours. The transport planes should be here within 12 to 18 hours according to local time distortion] ¡°Well, that works for me¡­ Be sure to leave a skeleton crew of logistics and combat androids in case any of our neighbors gets any funny ideas¡± [Confirmed] Matthew turned and looked South before he muttered ¡°...What the hell did you find, Doc¡± - Even as the Basecamp was stripped down to a skeleton crew and packed up, no further communications arrived from Doc, the last of the Cygnus¡¯ transport planes had already touched down, and they were about to finish loading up on the fresh runway. While the Haliea was classified as a heavy transport, it still paled in comparison to the Cygnus models, which had been designed to solve any and all The Trerubic Empire¡¯s in atmosphere logistics needs, specifically on newly colonized planets where there was a high need to ferry around large amount of modular prefabricated machinery ¡®The sheer size still brings a tear to my eye¡­¡¯ With a wingspan of a little over 80 meters, an internal transport compartment able to ship 8 standardized 15 meters by 3 meters by 3 meters intergalactic shipping containers at once. With a maximum takeoff weight of a little more than double of the Haliea model at 400.000 kilograms, the Cygnus fixed wing aircraft was ideal for this kind of rapid transport¡­ However, with a fuel consumption somewhere around ¡°Who cares? As long as it can ship prefabs around¡± it wasn¡¯t exactly fuel efficient, with 2 of the 8 planes had been assigned entirely to haul fuel ready to refuel the other 6 planes in flight ¡®Aea, I authorize you to make immediate and sustained lethal responses to any threat to our transport fleet, we can not afford to lose any of our planes, understood?¡¯ [Confirmed, the secure flight corridor have been expanded by a factor of 2, zero tolerance zone will be enforced] That was the one problem, the Cygnus¡¯ planes were large, fragile targets, with no more than a single engine failure needed to bring down a fully loaded plane due to lack of lift, never mind its safety features that had been designed to handle rough weather, not anti-aircraft flak ¡°I¡¯ve never flown before, I am getting a little excited¡­¡± Matthew looked over at Alina to his side, she did indeed seem a little excited, not that anyone other than Matthew would be able to tell [Loading is nearing completion, please board Cygnus-0004] Matthew checked around, Ruki and his people had already boarded, so had the former Willmir knights, it was only him and Alina left on the tarmac so he walked up the ramp and took a seat, a moment later Alina sat down next to him ¡°Alright, let''s get going Aea¡± [Confirmed, notice to all personal Cygnus sky convoy departing in 15 seconds, please take your assigned seats] As Matthew waited for the show to get rolling, Ripper sat down on his left and strapped herself in ¡°Hi Major, Mistress~¡± Matthew blinked twice before he responded to Ripper¡¯s greeting ¡°No, you don¡¯t get to do that, where the fuck have you been?¡± The last mission Matthew had sent Ripper on had been to keep security around his false death to kill and catch his would be assassin, since then she had been suspiciously absent. At Matthew pointing this out Ripper¡¯s smile stiffened slightly before she deflected his question by raising one of her own ¡°Did the two of you enjoy your honeymoon~?¡± Matthew let out a sigh and leaned back in his seat, seeing that Ripper wasn¡¯t going to answer his question he figured that wasn¡¯t important, Alina leaned forwards and answered Ripper¡¯s question with a light, happy sounding tone ¡°Yes, thank you for giving us some space, Eilane¡± ¡°You¡¯re welcome, Alina, so what did the two of you do~?¡± ¡°Oh, just more of the usual, but I really felt¡ª¡± As the two continued chatting like the best of friends, Matthew felt a headache come on, so he closed his eyes and shut his surroundings out as he entered a digital world, beyond him the world around the Basecamp spread out ¡°I will take command Aea, patch me in¡± [Confirmed, patching in all information sources¡­] As Aea crunched the data and fed them through Matthew¡¯s 09, the virtual world around Matthew expanded, not only outwards and upwards, but also in the smaller detail. Thermal, radar and inferred all overlaid perfectly in not only Matthew¡¯s vision, but also fed into all his other senses, along with this other data from the remote drone network ¡°...Speed up the loading, borrow half the skeleton crew from the Basecamp¡± [Confirmed, androids have been reassigned] Matthew continued overseeing the final loading of the Cygnus¡¯ planes and noticed a large container being loaded onto his plane which was prioritized for high value personal and cargo, upon accessing the data glyph he immediately noticed what the container was ¡°Right, I had almost forgotten to check in with Lea, dial her up Aea¡±¡¯ [Confirmed, opening connection to bio-interfaced pod] A few moments passed before Lea¡¯s voice echoed out in the virtual world ¡°...Yes? Do you need something Major? I am kind of in the middle of something¡± Matthew let out a sigh and responded ¡°Yes, I wanted to remind you that we¡¯re heading South today¡± After this Lea would likely never return to her homeland, she had bargained her Mystic foresight to save her home country from a horrible future out of a sense of loyalty. However, by now she had been interred in a bio-interfaced pod hooked up with a bionic neural interface where she spent all her time in virtual reality games ¡°Oh, that was today? What about it?¡± Matthew let out a sigh, he didn¡¯t feel great about what they had done to Lea. However by now it was too late for regret, as Lea had firmly stated on the multiple occasions Matthew brought it up that she never wanted to leave her pod again ¡°I just wanted to remind you¡­ You might get some biological interference from the movement of your pod, so turn down your physical sentitvity if you get nauseous¡± ¡°Got it, was there anything else?¡± ¡°No that¡¯s all¡± ¡°Alright, call me if you need anything else Major¡± Apocalyptic, potentially worse After the air convoy took off and rose into the sky, the 8 Cygnus¡¯ and 4 Haliea¡¯s had formed up into a solid formation that were further reinforced by several types of newly produced aerial drones. Over all the flight south were relatively peaceful given Matthew iced everything that looked even mildly suspicious and just so happened to be in their flight path [Notice to all personal, arrival at Uliat bunker in 120 seconds, please return to your assigned seats at once] Having entered the protective bobble of Uliat¡¯s defenses, Matthew left the virtual world and opened his eyes as Cygnus-0004 touched down on the landing strip ¡°Good morning Matthew¡± As Matthew opened his eyes he was immediately faced to face with Alina, she had evidently taken a seat on his lap at some point in what would be considered a very intimate. That is, if one party wasn¡¯t almost completely ignorant and disinterested in such physical matters and the other wasn¡¯t inhabiting an almost completely androgynous android body ¡°Good morning, Alina, shall we head out and take a tour of the city?¡± Alina was a little disappointed in Matthew¡¯s lack of reaction, however she knew him well enough by now that she didn¡¯t expect to fluster him at her every attempt, even though she loved seeing her normally Stoic lover squirm a little ¡°Sure¡± Alina got off Matthew that rose to his feet and stretched his body for a few moments, he was more than a little stiff after a 16-hour flight, but it didn¡¯t impede him too much, standing by the ramp Ripper showed a smile and spoke ¡°I¡¯ll go get the details from Doc then, enjoy yourselves~¡± Then she quickly disappeared down the ramp, Matthew and Alina too disembarked and found a very different Uliat than the one that Matthew had left behind to rescue Alina. Skyscrapers over 10 stories high shot up around the city, while the style still carried the culture of Uliat, the city had been almost completely modernized since Doc had enabled her biological engineering to ensure compliance. With this, there had been little reasons to hide in the shadows and no reasons to not scale up all parts of their industry and armed forces by incorporating their very, very loyal citizens ¡°I¡¯ve never seen buildings like this before, did your home look like this too, Matthew?¡± Matthew shrugged before he explained as the two walked off the runway and past the numerous large hangers and logistics terminals ¡°Well, not quite the buildings were taller and covered in all sorts of advertisements, oh and there were way more traffic, both of people but also of logistics androids that buzzed around everywhere¡± The people of Uliat and visitors flooded the streets of the city, the crowd looked a little surreal with people wearing beast leather pants and patchwork fabric clothes walking by people wearing traditional desert gap made from synthetic fibers with bright colors ¡®I am surprised there haven¡¯t been a bigger cultural backlash¡­ Well there might have been, but Doc clear got it locked down¡¯ The two continued looking around the city for a bit before a stripped down military car pulled up besides them, Ripper that sat in the front seat looked over towards Matthew and briefly said ¡°Get in¡± Alina was about to complain when Matthew opened the backseat door for her and looked at her silently, that¡¯s when Alina noticed Matthew¡¯s demeanor had changed completely, he had clearly picked up something from Ripper¡¯s tone, the two sat in the back seat and Ripper quickly drove off, after a few moments Matthew askedUnauthorized reproduction: this story has been taken without approval. Report sightings. ¡°How bad is it?¡± Ripper answered after a few moments ¡°Apocalyptic, potentially worse¡± Matthew nodded, even though Alina was a little worried about what Doc had discovered she knew that this wasn¡¯t the palace to discuss it so she kept quiet, after a few minutes of driving Ripper pulled into a large elevator that closed its doors and quickly descended into the bunker complex and after a few minutes the 3 had arrived in a large mostly empty underground hanger with half circle of sofa¡¯s around a table in the middle. Seeing Doc didn¡¯t have time to greet them Matthew took a seat with Alina siting herself down next to him, Ripper sat down in the sofa across from them, after sitting the 3 waited for Doc that sat with her eyes staring into empty space above the table, she was hooked up to a heavy bandwidth neural uplink though a connector in the back of her skull. After a few minutes of silence, Alina asked Matthew over the local net [What is miss Anastasia doing?] ¡®Well she¡¯s using quite the heavy neural uplink¡­ It must be really serious if she¡¯s willing to go to such lengths¡¯ [Is it dangerous?] ¡®No, not at all¡­ However, it is very mentally taxing¡­ These types of implants are mostly used for heavy mental rehabilitation or complete retraining of augmented military personnel, it''s usually used after heavy bionic installation, but I am guessing she¡¯s using it for a heavy data glyph download¡¯ Alina nodded her head, given her body ran on Trerubic empire software she was quite familiar with data glyphs even though her opinion of having a large amount of data forcefully imprinted in her mind though her artificial body wasn¡¯t especially high she didn¡¯t argue with how convenient it was. Even though she preferred having Matthew explaining things to her, she didn¡¯t want to ask him about each and every small thing ¡°Ugh¡­¡± Doc let out a moan of displeasure as her eyes abruptly shut, and she reached up to the neural uplink and pulled it out of her skull, after massaging her eyelids and temples for a few moments she opened her eyes again and looked towards Matthew and then Alina who she showed a smile ¡°It¡¯s nice to finally meet you face to face, Alina, but I am afraid we don¡¯t have time for idle chatter right now¡± Alina nodded and kept silent, then Doc looked over at Matthew as she waved her hand which brought up a holographic display of Uliat and its surrounds on a map which quickly zoomed out as Doc spoke ¡°I don¡¯t know how much you remember of the general terrain and geological locations around Uliat Major, but do you remember what I told you of the Western fringes of our territory?¡± Matthew dug though his memory for a few moments before he answered ¡°You called it The endless desert wasteland, right?¡± Doc nodded as the holographic map zoomed out even more before shifting West, a few moments later the outer regions of the desert wasteland were displayed, Matthew narrowed his eyes as he stared at the map that clearly included all of their available intelligence and the glaring issue of the large void of any available data in the center of the desert wasteland. He also didn¡¯t like how the entire wasteland were perfectly circular ¡°The entire desert wasteland is around 4000 kilometers across indicated from live drone surveillance, while the area of our zero information availability inside it, what I¡¯ve named the area of denial, is around 1600 kilometers across¡­ The reason the entire area is perfectly circular is that it is most likely caused by an outward expansion from a singe point¡± As Doc finished speaking, a single blue dot appeared in the middle of the circle, at this pause Matthew asked ¡°Why do you call it an outward expansion? Is the area getting bigger?¡± Doc nodded and continued explaining ¡°I will get to that in a moment¡­ While working on our collective magic problem the hyper-computing cores indicated The endless desert wasteland as an amplifying factor and possible anchor point of the remains of The Mighty Endurance from where Wicka enforces the planetary quarantine, this would warrant an expedition on its own¡­ But that¡¯s not the worst part...¡± As Doc fell silent, she waved her hand again which changed the holographic display, a half circle appeared about a third of the way into the center that lacked data ¡°This was the edge of the entire desert 158 years ago, indicated from a boarder aerial survey we ordered¡± Then the holographic display changed again, and another half circle appeared around two thirds into the desert, while the line appeared a third into the area with zero data, this one was around a third into the now blank area¡± ¡°This line is from an automated aerial survey conducted 31 years ago, the map data was marked down as error since the local network lost connection to the high endurance drone before the survey was completed¡­ At the time I chalked it up to the general weirdness of this planet, but now I understand that it was due to the drone flying into the area of denial of was destroyed¡± Matthew thought for a few moments after Doc fell silent before he asked ¡°Is it some sort of jamming or high energy surveillance denial tech?¡± ¡°No, I am afraid it is worse¡­ See for yourself¡± Doc shock her head and the holographic display changed again to somewhat low resolution0 footage of a high endurance drone recorded from a large distance flying above a landscape that was nothing except yellow desert dunes as far as one could see. The drone continued flying for a few moments before its right wing suddenly disappeared, and it was sent tumbling down towards the desert dunes, however on the way down even more slices of it disappeared before the final chunk hit something invisible was instantly crushed into itself for a moment, being reduced to a tiny ball of metal and plastic before it was sucked into empty air and disappeared ¡°That¡¯s the reason I¡¯ve called it the area of denial, it is covered in almost completely invisible constantly shifting zones of anomalies¡± Matthew felt a headache come on and let out a sigh before he asked ¡°And how fast did you say the desert wasteland is expanding?¡± ¡°I can¡¯t say for sure, however the increase is on an increasing acceleration, currently the hyper-computing cores forecast show the entire planet will be nothing but desert in around 20 years and assuming the area of denial will continue the planet will be entirely consumed by the spacial anomaly hellscape in around 24 years¡± Direct attack ¡°Alright¡­¡± Matthew took a few moments to chew over the available information, he didn¡¯t blame Doc for her apparent rush, 24 years might sound like a long time to most people, but Matthew, Doc, Ripper and Alina weren¡¯t most people, they had memories that stretched back in time far longer than that seeming long amount of time ¡®Besides the time estimation is just that, a estimate¡­ No way I am wiling to sleep in and wait for that to turn up wrong¡¯ Having finished sorting his thoughts, Matthew stood up and looked at the map for a few moments before he spoke ¡°We¡¯ll start with an automated incursion, even if it will cost thousands of drones we need more data on the spacial anomalies, if we can¡¯t figure them out I don¡¯t care if we spend a few million to map a safe route to the center of the area of denial¡± Doc nodded, so did Ripper and after a moment Alina spoke ¡°I might be able to help out with the anomalies if I can observe them for a while¡± Matthew looked into Alina¡¯s eyes for a few moments before he nodded ¡°Right, Doc have a Mystic ability related to space too, but I am guessing you hadn¡¯t had much success in using it to figure this out?¡± Doc shock her head before she added ¡°No, not yet at least, however the length of my examination was only around a day¡± ¡°Alright, Aea pack up a strike and engineering group, we¡¯ll establish a forwards observation and a larger more remote logistics hub to handle the air shipment of drones¡± [Confirmed, starting logistical calculations, would you like me to scale up drone production as well Master?] ¡°Yeah, have it doubled by this time next month¡± [Confirmed, starting industrial upscaling, 588 resource extraction and processing machines added to production queue] Then Matthew looked towards Alina and spoke rather casually ¡°Let¡¯s go take a closer look¡± Alina nodded, apocalyptic consequences aside she were pretty interested in this hellscape of twisted space and time - ¡°How is it today, Alina?¡± Alina glared at the landscape of sand dunes in front of her with visible malice for a few moments before she answered ¡°I still don¡¯t like this place Matthew, at this point I doubt I ever will¡± It had been 4 days since Alina, Matthew and a small detachment of drones had arrived at the edge of the desert, however ever since they had arrived Alina had felt a growing sense of unease, she could see the spaceship that had taken her love and the rest of the otherworlds in orbit But she could not see into this desert, the more she tried, the more she ended up going down rabbit holes and tangents inside her own mind, it was like a sickening sweet honey that advanced her understanding of space and time yet wore down her psyche at the same time ¡°It feels like it''s tempting me, trying to lure me in¡± You might be reading a pirated copy. Look for the official release to support the author. Matthew sat down next to her on the ground and gazed at the sand dunes ahead for a bit before he asked ¡°...Have you made any progress?¡± Alina gazed at the endless sand dunes for a bit before she shock her head and voiced her feelings ¡°No, not really¡­ I feel like I am going in circles¡­ Or rather, I am being led around in circles only being fed enough information to keep interested¡± Matthew nodded and let out a sigh ¡°Then let¡¯s pull out for now¡± Alina nodded, yet she still stared at the sand dunes and remained seated as she gazed forwards absentmindedly, Matthew rose to his feet and waited for a bit before he let out a sigh and asked ¡°Shall we?¡± Alina nodded once more, however even after a few moments she didn¡¯t move, at this point Matthew realized it ¡®Aea run a diagnostic on Alina¡¯s mental state, something is wrong¡¯ [Confirmed, running analysis¡­] Matthew kneeled down next to Alina and looked at the side of her face, the mechanical sensors that were fashioned like eyes appeared to be completely still, however when he looked closer he noticed that they were moving rapidly from side to side [Preliminary analysis complete, Mistress Alina appeared to be under a heavy trance, readings also show an increasing metal dependence on the outside interference, take Immediate action to limit the metal interference] ¡®Got it¡­ send a SOS to Doc as well, have her send all available forces here as soon as possible, and send me a package at once¡¯ [Confirmed, the mental interference appears to be streaming in from the ocular sensors] ¡®Alright, well here goes nothing¡­¡¯ ¡°Alina, I am going to cover your eyes¡± [Resistance will be expected, prioritize diversion] Matthew reached up and did as he said he would, however a few moments after he covered her eyes Alina began to squirm and tried to remove his hand, in response Matthew reached around her with his other hand and lifted her up before he turned away from the endless dunes as he spoke ¡°Alina, come back to me¡± At Matthew¡¯s words Alina slowly stopped struggling, then after a bit she spoke, she sounded more than a little dazed ¡°Matthew?¡± ¡°Yep, the one and only¡± With Alina freed from the mental interference, Matthew kicked off the ground and legged it as fast as he could towards their transport, that¡¯s when Aea sounded out an alert [Alert to all personnel: Code blue, local net have been disconnected] ¡°Shit¡­¡± Matthew closed his eyes that were quickly sealed shut by nanites, a few moments later his vision were restored partially a patchwork of local sensor feeds, as he ran Alina spoke again still sounding dazed ¡°...What¡­ Happened? I¡­ What was I..?¡± [Analysis indicate the metal interference Mistress Alina were subjected to have forcefully reduced her compatibility with her robotic body, adjustments to reverse this are still ongoing] Matthew clicked his tongue and spoke out loud, at this point he could see what this was clear as day, the blue comet that now hang overhead might as well have sent a formal declaration of war ¡°Aea override Code blue, this is a direct attack from Wicka¡± [Confirmed, Code blue have been overwritten, dialing Uliat bunker complex for remote target acquisition and interception¡­ 16 targets painted, low orbit defensive grid online, starting intercept] Matthew leaped into the Haliea that had taken them to the edge of the endless desert that already had its engines burning, as soon as he cleared the ramp the heavy transport roared to life as it lifted off the ground and rapidly accelerated East, Matthew quickly secured Alina on a seat before he spoke ¡°Keep us low and fast, open a direct link to Doc and Ripper¡± Alina reached up and grabbed Matthew¡¯s wrist from her seat, she held onto him for a moment before she spoke, she was still clearly dazed, however she sounded better than before ¡°Matthew¡­ The space is¡­ Weird¡­ I can¡¯t¡­ See Uliat¡­¡± [Mistress Alina¡¯s assessment is cooperated by onboard sensors, the connection to Uliat have been entirely distorted, the local area has been almost completely isolated] Matthew kept silent, he quickly went over the available options, he raised his head to look above, more meteors were still falling, though about two thirds appeared to be successfully intercepted by the heavy anti-air artillery emplacements all around Uliat, then he quickly looked over the nearby terrain and found what he was looking for ¡°Aea, set course towards that rock formation, we¡¯re going to hunker down¡± [Evacuations is strongly recommended] ¡°Denied, this is a targeted attack, we don¡¯t know if Wicka have laid any ambushes or traps in our path, we stand the highest chance if we hunker down¡± [Confirmed, be ready for touch and go in 45 seconds] Matthew rose to his feet as the Haliea quickly lost almost all of its remaining altitude as it turned in towards the natural rock formation that consisted of several hundred large boulders that stood some meters apart ¡°It looks like we have to do the pure magic learning the hard and fast way¡± Matthew called out to her as he quickly put on a set of relatively lightly armored Mk. 8 powered armor, a few moments passed before her figure disappeared and reappeared in front of Matthew that caught her in his arms before she responded ¡°You are right¡­ I¡¯ll go first then¡± [Confirmed, starting application of data glyph for project ¡®Pure Magic¡¯ for Mistress Alina¡­] Alina and Matthew looked into each other''s eyes for a moment until Matthew sensed she had gone under [Loss of consciousness confirmed, expected application time: 8 minutes and 30 seconds] While both Alina and Matthew would have preferred taking a half a year to continue absorbing the complete laws and current understanding of Mystic power and abilities, Code named ¡®Pure Magic¡¯ which had taken over ? of their hyper-computing cores ever since Matthew had reunited with Doc and Ripper they were simply out of time. Thus, they had taken the gamble, they both vividly remembered the last time Wicka had attacked them and the physical and mental trauma they both had been forced to endure because of it. Fighting on the backfoot ¡°Alright¡­ Do me a favor and overlay the remaining time for the data glyph application in my visual feed¡± [Confirmed] Matthew raised his head, the view above him streamed in through all the different drones spread out over the area, this consisted mostly of aerial surveillance drones, sensors on his Mk. 8 powered armor as well as the sensors on his single Arial support, the Haliea that circled above ¡°Task the Haliea with wide area suppression at my say, there¡¯s no need to conserve ammunition, as for the remaining cargo, scatter it over the place¡± [Confirmed, contact #11 have breached interception net, impact zone marked, 13 seconds] Matthew followed the drop pod down without much panic as it smashed into the ground a few hundred meters away from him and the unconscious Alina he still held in his hands, as the pod metal doors were blown clean off from the inside the contents were revealed to be half a dozen ¡®Golem¡¯humanoid combat androids, tendrils of pale blue light were wrapped around their warped metal frames [Haliea-004 engaging targets] The corrupted androids hardly had a chance to raise their weapons before a pair of missiles impacted them, this was quickly followed by an appropriate amount of 30mm autocannon fire that turned the corrupted combat androids into slag metal [Targets suppressed Haliea-004 returning to holding pattern] ¡°...Keep it up¡± Time seemed to stretch out near endlessly as the drop pods in the sky continued multiplying, the anti-air artillery continued drawing lines across the sky to intercept, however Matthew could tell by the cold pit that formed in his stomach that it wouldn¡¯t be enough [Haliea-004 engaging targets] ¡®Shit¡­¡¯ Even as he watched the 6th drop pod get lit up, he still didn¡¯t feel particularly hopeful about his or Alina¡¯s current situation ¡®5 minutes¡­ 5 fucking minutes¡­ Any luck with the weapon shipment, Aea?¡¯ [Not at the moment, due to the increased spacial isolation I can¡¯t make a estimate either] Matthew calmed himself for a moment by letting out a sigh as he looked up, at the same time Aea sounded out another alert [Contact #89 have breached interception net, impact zone marked, 8 seconds] Matthew kicked off and rounded the corner of a large boulder to take cover as the drop pod crashed down about 30 meters away from him, before he had to worry about the contents however Haliea-004 coasted over his head [Haliea-004 engaging targets] Before the drop pod could blow open its doors, Haliea-004¡¯s auto cannon cut it into slag metal, however one of the corrupted drones inside the drop pod managed to get a few shots off from its coil rifle that impacted Haliea-004¡¯s right wingUnauthorized use: this story is on Amazon without permission from the author. Report any sightings. [Damage minimal, secondary fuel line ruptured¡­ Ammunition stores are nearing depletion] ¡°How many more can Haliea-004 handle with the remaining ammunition?¡± [At current ammunition stores, at most another 2 drop pods] Just then Matthew felt something chance, he looked up and even with his eyes mended shut, and his optical nerves blocked he could still feel it, no he could ¡®see it¡¯ The devil comet was glowing a radiant pale blue and with it 3 drop pods shifted positions several times and instantly passed through the interception zone [Paradigm shift observed, Contact #90, #91, 92 have breached interception net, impact zones marked] ¡°Come on now, that¡¯s bullshit! Hit me with the full pre workout and switch nanite deployment to maintaining battle functions¡± [Confirmed, nanite deployment diverted from restoration towards maintaining battle functions, complete restoration paused] As his air cover moved in for a final pass, Matthew made his last preparations for the upcoming battle [Haliea-004 engaging targets, authorize final strike?] Matthew shifted Alina in his arms and magnetized her body on his back as he yelled over the crash of the 3 drop pods ¡°Go for it!¡± At his command, Haliea-004 rose into the sky as its auto cannon slagged another two drop pods of drones before firing the last 15 or so rounds into the 3rd pod, then it turned its engines and kicked on the afterburner and rapidly streaked down towards the 3rd pod. Gravity and velocity did the rest as the Haliea slammed into the drop pod and smashed it to pieces along with itself ¡°Godspeed¡­ Aright Aea, put me into a level 1 overclock¡± [Confirmed, all nanite patterns entering level 1 overclock, Contact #94 and #96 have breached interception net, impact zones marked] Matthew rechecked the chamber on his coil rifle before he shouldered it and kicked off the ground to attack the nearest drop pod, he weaved in between the boulders and a moment after the drop pod slammed into the ground he popped out from cover and opened fire ¡®A Mark 87 orbital assault pod, I can¡¯t piece the shielding with this rifle which means the moment to strike is when the shielding core collapses and the assault doors are blown off¡­ Assuming the contents is the same as the last ones and the limited time window, I can¡¯t just hose it down¡­ In that case¡¯ Matthew 12 times in chest height of the drop pod before he instantly shifted targets to the next drop pod that was still screaming towards the ground, a few moments after he moved the external walls were blown off and 2 corrupted golem androids moved out, the other 4 having been successfully disabled by Matthew¡¯s fire ¡®4 out of 6, not bad¡­¡¯ Matthew showed a small smile as he took his position at the next impact sight as the next drop pod crashed down, the moment after the shockwave passed him he popped out from cover again and fired, this time he let out 14 shots before he moved again ¡®Don¡¯t butt in¡¯ Matthew moved to clean up the two drones that had escaped his fire in the first time around, as he moved in he started to fire through the boulders, the two androids quickly fanned out as they fired back ¡®Ugh¡­ Fuck¡­¡¯ Matthew took a shot in his left arm as he took down the two androids [Trauma pattern 1 and 2 assigned] Matthew fired back and managed to disable the last android before he moved around the boulders and finished off the corrupted android, the pale blue light squirmed and writhed around for a few moments before the pale blue light faded [Contact #96 impact warning, 4 seconds] Matthew moved quickly, weaving in and out between the boulders as the drop pod touched crashed down into the landscape, Matthew clicked his tongue as he realized he wouldn¡¯t reach the perfect ambush spot in time as he leaped up and landed on the top of a boulder as he began firing at the pod as it exploded its doors out ¡®Come on now¡­¡¯ Matthew collapsed his stance as the corrupted androids opened fire, Matthew rolled off the boulder as his previous vantage point was systematically disintegrated by coil rifle fire ¡°Sorry my love, hang in there¡± [Trauma pattern 3 assigned to lacerations] Matthew voiced a quick apology to Alina that was still magnetically attached to his back as he continued moving, he discarded his magazine as he slid along the ground and picked another one up from the scattered supplies and directly inserted it in his coil rifle before he moved into to engage the corrupted androids ¡®I can¡¯t let them establish a beachhead, if they get too many numbers on me, they¡¯ll just swarm us and drown me in numbers¡­ Shit, 4 minutes is a long time to pass on the backfoot¡­¡¯ Matthew reached down and retrieved a grenade from his belt, which he chucked towards the drop pod, as the grenade reached the top point of its arch it suddenly magnetized before slamming into the drop pod that was feeding sensor data to the corrupted androids, then it fused in a bright light that quickly heated the entire pod and fired its electronics [Contact #104, 105 and 107 have breached interception net, impact zones marked] ¡°Switch information relay to direct data glyph injection¡± Aea remained silent, instead of the usual voice confirmation the information Aea judged Matthew needed from it was directly relayed into his mind, almost immediately Matthew felt the phycological barrier between himself and Aea blur, then shatter It no longer conversed as an equal. He was made to understand its every input, its every suggestion, its every battle simulation and prediction, Aea seamlessly instructed Matthew, it tuned his senses to gather any missing holes in its available information network ¡®...¡¯ Matthew felt his sense of self blur as he moved with increasingly inhuman levels of perfection Counter attack [Data glyph application completed, consciousness restored] Alina felt her consciousness slowly surface for a blissful fleeting moment before she was sent reeling towards full lucidity, she understood, she had been made to understand so deeply that it escaped her conscious thoughts as she instantly activated her Mystic powers with newfound potency ¡°Matthew!¡± A wave passed out from her metallic body, as it passed the still functional combat androids it forcefully shifted and crumbed them like tin cans as the space they took up in the physical realm was folded in on itself, though this was only an afterthought as her focus were entirely on her love ¡°Matthew! Aea do something!¡± He was in rough shape, sitting slumped against a large boulder his left arm was missing, large holes were blown though his stomach and chest and most of the flesh on his legs looked to have been blown clean off the bones, his eyes were open wide and stared back at her without any visible emotion [Please calm down, Matthew will live, while his outwards appearance and grieve bodily harm might suggest differently, there is no danger of long term damage or memory loss] Alina felt her heart ache, however that ache was soon overcome with anger as she turned her head upwards and looked towards the sky where the blue comet still hang, suspended in time and space, as she looked at it and with the benefit of having passed the Rubicon she asked Aea at once ¡°Can he take the data glyph application?¡± [Yes, data glyph application will not pose any additional complications] Alina kneeled down and cradled his head carefully with both her hands before she spoke ¡°Sleep well, my love¡± At her words, countless emotions flashed though his eyes for a moment before they closed and his body went slack, she continued holding him for a few moments before she spoke ¡°Aea¡± [Confirmed, starting application of data glyph for project ¡®Pure Magic¡¯ for Master Matthew¡­ Loss of consciousness confirmed, expected application time: 8 minutes and 30 seconds] With her love safe Alina once again raised her head to look above, the blue comet was still sending meteors screaming through the air down towards her and Matthew, but at this point she didn¡¯t feel any worry, haven already been broken out of Wicka¡¯s attempt at controlling her once she had steeled her mind towards its maddening influence ¡°Alright¡­ Time to start fighting back¡± Mystic power swelled around Alina in turbulent waves for a few moments as she built up a strike before it exploded outwards, a few moments later the pale blue glow of the devil comet dimmed slightly as Aea reported [Spacial distortion banished successfully, communications with Uliat defense complex restored, diverting incoming reinforcements, incoming communications request from Doc] Alina closed her eyes as she continued counteracting Wicka¡¯s influence over the surround space to not get isolated once more ¡°...Put her through¡± A few moments passed before Doc¡¯s voice sounded out in Alina¡¯s mindStolen story; please report. [How is the situation?] ¡°Matthew is hurt badly, I¡¯ve managed to break the spacial isolation¡± [... Yeah he looks quite fucked up, but don¡¯t worry, he¡¯s seen worse, and I¡¯ve fixed worse¡­ Ripper is will be with you in a few minutes, I will see to Matthew once I¡¯ve finished coordinating the extended anti-air coverage¡­ I don¡¯t want to jinx you, but I believe the worst of this attack has passed] ¡°It has, Wicka¡¯s grip is gradually loosening¡­¡± [I feel it too, it¡¯s like the space have gotten less dense and easier to pass though¡­ Alright, let¡¯s start patching up Matthew then, place your hand in the center of his chest so I can bridge directly with his 09] As Alina followed Doc¡¯s instructions, the blue comet began flickering for a moment before it disappeared completely along with the meteors that were screaming down towards the surface, the only traces left behind from the assault were the slagged drop pods and the destroyed androids and the wrecked landscape [Alright, most of his vital organs have been secured, so Matthew should be back on his feet sometimes tomorrow, Ripper is inbound with a Medevac, she¡¯ll be there in about 3 minutes] ¡°Thank you, Anastasia¡± [No problem, I¡¯ll look him over once more when you both make it back to the bunker] Alina felt relief, now that she had been reassured that Matthew would be fine she waited patiently for support to arrive - [Data glyph application completed, consciousness restored] When Matthew regained consciousness, he was assaulted with the splitting headache he had expected from the data glyph application, what he had not expected was the torrent of cold he felt all over his body. He felt like he had been dunked in ice water, only his body didn¡¯t grow numb, it just continued aching from what felt like frostbite ¡°C¡­ Cold¡­¡± He stammered out before Mystic fire enveloped him by newly ingrained reflex, with the fire his sight returned as his eyes were rapidly restored to working order, he saw Alina sitting a little way from him. Even with the limited facial expressions of her robotic body he could tell she looked perplexed, a mischievous smile showed on his face as he greeted her like he would normally ¡°Good morning¡± Alina¡¯s optical sensors recalibrated twice, which normally meant she was blinking befuddled, so Matthew decided to stop teasing her and thanked her ¡°Thank you for holding it down while I was asleep, my love¡± Alina¡¯s shoulders heaved up and down as she emulated a sigh before she spoke ¡°No problem, how are your wounds?¡± Matthew looked down at his body that he remembered had been wrecked by coil rifle fire and found himself mostly healed, his Mystic fire rolled over his body in waves. He could feel the flames rolling around inside his chest and stomach where he had been shot, this warmth was followed by the very particular feeling of his flesh regrowing ¡°...I think I am fine¡­ Aea, how does it look?¡± [Yes, at current rates of Mystic regeneration full restoration will be completed in less than a minute, however nanite patterns are decaying by a factor of 0.2 faster than expected due to the newly increased core temperature] ¡°Okay¡­ If the decay rate has been increased this much, we¡¯ll need to do some tests¡± Alina¡¯s figure flickered out of reality before it reappeared sitting in Matthew¡¯s lap, she leaned her back against him and spoke ¡°That can wait a bit, no?¡± Matthew easily surrendered to her suggestion ¡°Sure¡­¡± He raised his head and gazed up at the clear blue sky for a few silent moments before a Haliea came screaming overhead, as another two flew over and turned in a J hook Aea¡¯s notified the two [Haliea-0010, Haliea-0011 and Haliea-0012 is inbound for rapid extraction, please move to board Haliea-0012 at indicated landing zone] Matthew patted Alina on the shoulder to which her figure disappeared and reappeared standing next to him, he got up and the two walked over towards the landing zone as he commented ¡°You are teleporting more than before¡± Alina nodded ¡°Yep, with the new understanding I got from the data glyph it¡¯s almost as easy as breathing now¡­ I¡¯ll need to meditate further on it, but I feel like the entire world have become malleable for me to bend and twist as I please¡­¡± As she spoke she raised her hand up and nonchalantly twisted the space over her palm around, seeing this Matthew once again renewed his vow to try and not make her too mad with his teasing ¡®...Not that I believe she would turn those powers at me in full¡­ Still, I should be a bit more mindful in the future¡­¡¯ As Matthew mused idly over Alina¡¯s newfound control over her Mystic powers, Haliea-0012 touched down in front of them and opened the ramp where Ripper stood ready in full combat gear with a detachment of combat drones behind her ready to secure the area and rescue Matthew ¡°Yo Ripper, you didn¡¯t get the update?¡± Matthew¡¯s nonchalant comment immediately deflated Ripper¡¯s tension and made her sheathe her sword before she complained as Matthew and Alina walked past her and sat down ¡°No, I would appreciate you actually sending it out another time, Major¡± Matthew showed a sly grin which immediately earned him an elbow to the rips from Alina, after correcting his expression he sheepishly apologized as the hatch closed and the Haliea immediately took off ¡°Yeah, sorry about that Ripper¡­ I didn¡¯t expect I was able to heal from these wounds on my own either¡± Ripper that was magnetically locked to the metal floor of the Haliea walked over and stood in front of him where she leaned in and looked at his newly healed wounds a bit closer for a few moments before she let out a sigh and complained ¡°I really should learn to stop worrying about you at some point, Major¡­ At this point I doubt anything can kill you¡± Matthew showed a wide smile and commented ¡°Come on Ripper, don¡¯t jinx me like that¡± A nasty surpise Matthew opened his eyes as he surfaced up from the large vat of chemicals that was boiling around him and after wiping his face he looked over at Doc that stood behind a thick glass wall at a console ¡°How was it?¡± A few moments passed before Doc¡¯s voice echoed out through a set of speakers inside the testing room ¡°Well the inner layer of Mystic heat that surrounds your body topped out at around 4000 degrees Celsius, so it¡¯s still under the surface temperature of a main sequence G2 class star¡± Matthew blinked twice before he asked ¡°So I am hotter than the surface of a red dwarf star?¡± ¡°...Normally I would tell you not to flatter yourself Major, but in this specific case, you are technically correct¡± Matthew¡¯s smile widened as he commented ¡°So the best kind of correct¡± Doc closed her eyes for a few moments before she continued speaking ¡°...Other than the contained heat, the heat that radiates past your Mystic containment field was measured at around 800 degrees when you were ¡®Going full throttle¡¯ as it were¡­ So we¡¯ll need to refurbish all your armor and arms to withstand these temperatures¡± ¡°Is it doable?¡± Doc massaged her temples for a bit before she nodded, then she turned around and as she was walking out of the observation room she spoke ¡°Yeah, I¡¯ll get on it¡­ I should have something within a few days time¡± With Doc having left the room, Matthew crawled up from the vat of chemicals and began washing off before he put on a pair of shorts and a T-shirt ¡°How does the advance go, Aea?¡± [Current advance is estimated around 24 kilometers, drones attrition rate remains at 100%] After Wicka¡¯s failed assassination attempt on him, (more likely Alina by Matthew¡¯s estimation) Matthew had ordered the start of a drone assault into the spacial hellscape. At the start there weren¡¯t really any rhyme or reason to the advance, drones were ripped apart, compressed to a perfect sphere a few centimeters wide, rusted to dust in an instant and had all their parts seemingly randomly rearranged [321.000 Golem drones have been destroyed, however 167 spacial anomalies have been successfully cataloged and 123 have been made identifiable with current sensor technology, with the current progress a full ground assault towards the center will be possible within the next 24 hours] ¡°How is the supply chain holding up to the strain?¡± [Metals prove no problems as of this moment 21 open pit mines are being opened, 164 prospecting operations are underway, further manufacturing lines are being created, overall the supply chain are holding under the current strain] Matthew felt silent for a few moments, he still felt a pit in the bottom of his stomach, after the attack Wicka had launched on them the spacial hellscape had shrunk by half, however it seemed to have already started recovering ¡®So not only will there not be a better opportunity to launch an attack, it¡¯s also pretty much been confirmed that Wicka, The Might Endurance, and it shares a link¡­ And hopefully investigating the spacial hellscape will lead to dealing with Wicka¡­¡¯ ¡°... I still don¡¯t like it¡± [The current operation can be postponed, even if the spacial hellscape recover to its original size, conducting a similar incursion will be feasible within a years time]Unauthorized use: this story is on Amazon without permission from the author. Report any sightings. Matthew continued his silent brooding for a while before he let out a sigh as he changed gears and walked out of the testing room, he continued walking through the hallway somewhat absentmindedly ¡°Major¡± Matthew snapped out of his thoughts and glanced to his side where he found Ripper, she had gotten the drop on him once more. Not that this surprised him anymore ¡°...Ripper, did you need anything?¡± She flashed a smile and nodded before she asked as she gestured in the direction of the gym ¡°Why don¡¯t we go a few rounds?¡± ¡°...Sure, I could use a change of pace¡± Ripper¡¯s cat like smile widened a bit as she spoke ¡°Then let¡¯s get going already~¡± - Thus the days passed, even though he did his best to hold in his impatience as Matthew received hourly updates on the spacial hellscape moving towards recovery it became increasingly obvious to everyone else than him that he had made his mind up already, Alina sat on the ceiling of the main hanger and looked down at Matthew that were attempting to meditate to calm his racing mind ¡®Any progress, Aea?¡¯ [Not in the direction you wish, mistress, 28 complete neurological scans have been completed, and still, no outside interference has been detected on Matthew¡¯s mind] ¡°Hmm¡­¡± Alina still didn¡¯t buy it, as someone that had very nearly fallen under Wicka¡¯s control it was clear to her that someone, if not Wicka, were messing with Matthew, however the few attempts she had made to address it with him directly hadn¡¯t exactly gone over well. They weren¡¯t fighting per se, but Matthew had shut her down every time she tried to talk about it She didn¡¯t like it, he wasn¡¯t exactly meaner, but he had clearly stopped making any attempts at being not being too blunt¡­ He was clearly still Matthew, however she still felt he was almost like a different person [Might I suggest you change your approach, mistress?] At this point she was starting to think she was the one going crazy, so Alina didn¡¯t mind some input ¡®...Suggest away¡¯ [As I have found no internal distribution of Major Matthew¡¯s mental state, I strongly believe the source of manipulation you have suggested is external, I have been scrubbing all data feeds Matthew are receiving without any apparent effect though] Alina¡¯s eyes widened for a moment before she narrowed her eyes and gazed intensely at Matthew for a few moments before she spoke ¡°...That¡¯s because it¡¯s not data that is manipulating him¡± The next moment her figure disappeared as she folded space in on itself around her, she appeared in front of Matthew that still sat in silent meditation, after studying his face for a moment Alina gave an order to Aea ¡®Lockdown the bunker and isolate this chamber from outside data streams¡¯ [Confirmed, Lockdown instated, 30 seconds until complete isolation is achieved] As Alina issued the Lockdown, Matthew¡¯s eyes opened, he didn¡¯t seem to pleased with Alina¡¯s action, however she wouldn¡¯t be seeking his approval. Only his forgiveness and understanding once this was over ¡°Sorry about this, Matthew¡± Matthew opened his mouth to ask what was going on, however before he managed to speak a large wave of Mystic energy echoed out from Alina as she constructed a barrier around Matthew, effectively isolating the two of them from the outside space. Matthew blinked a few times before he asked ¡°Are you going to tell me what¡¯s going on here, Alina?¡± ¡°Sure¡­ it looks like it worked, do you remember when we talked last?¡± Matthew fell silent for a moment before he nodded and stated ¡°Yeah, right before I started meditating¡± Alina nodded and asked ¡°What were you doing before you started meditating?¡± Matthew seemed more than a little confused, after remembering for a moment he answered ¡°Yeah, I had just finished sparing with Ripper¡± Alina started at him for a few moments before she informed him ¡°That was more than a week ago, Matthew¡± ¡°...Seriously?¡± ¡°Yeah, we¡¯ve also talked more than a few times since then, only I wasn¡¯t speaking with ¡®you¡¯ it seems¡­ We believe it was a parting gift from Wicka¡± Matthew let out a deep sigh and laid down on his side before he muttered ¡°Motherfu¡­ Any idea how the mental corruption took hold?¡± Alina walked over and sat down with her back against the couch Matthew laid on and voiced her thoughts ¡°We only just figured it out, do you have a report Aea?¡± [Not yet, however I have a thesis on how the mental corruption bypassed the neurological scans now that the corruption have lifted, it appears another metal profile was overlaid] ¡°And how wasn¡¯t that caught in the scans?¡± [It would be caught if it were a foreign profile, however the mental profile were Major Matthew, it was likely based on a mental snapshot taken before he entered suspended animation doing one of the many BlueArrow sponsored operations. From there, outside Mystic based interference likely guided Matthew down a path advantages to Wicka¡¯s goals] Matthew nodded, before he agreed verbally however he sat himself up with a set and spoke ¡°Raise the barrier Alina, we¡¯re in deep shit¡± Sensing Matthew¡¯s urgency, Alina nevertheless asked him before she made any move to raise the isolation barrier ¡°How so?¡± Matthew felt the hair on the back of his neck raise as he answered ¡°I am not the only person Wicka would be able to control using the exact same technique¡­ There¡¯s two more people in the bunker that also had a mental snapshot taken, which Wicka also have access to¡± ¡°...Shit¡± Alina¡¯s figure disappeared before it reappeared on the edge of her barrier, where she trusted her hand forwards and punctured a hole in her own barrier before she broke it down completely, a moment passed before Aea that had been reconnected to the rest of the bunker voiced a report [Sector #2, #3 and #4 are under Biochemical attack, 5 assembly lines have been destroyed, all reactors have entered emergency SCRAM after reactor #2 received external damage¡­ Currently tracking 2 enemy combatants in Bunker along with 24 drones under their control] Matthew kicked off the ground to get his weapons as he yelled to Alina ¡°Get Doc first, I¡¯ll go slow down Ripper!¡± ¡°Got it!¡± Home defence Matthew raced though the underground corridors, he had already deployed his Mystic flames and the heat that radiated past his containment instantly neutralized the potent nerve gas that filled the corridors ¡°How much personal have we lost?¡± [Casualty reports have not yet been made, however given the spread of the gas and other bio-chemical weapons Doc have fielded the attention rate is likely around 80% of all underground personal and around 50% of all above ground personal] Matthew grit his teeth, if there were any two people he didn¡¯t want to face in a confined area, it would be Doc and Ripper, he had initially picked up his coil rifle only to arm himself only to quickly discover that it was covered in a potent poison that swiftly rotted away the palms of his hands before Aea caught it. Not feeling like trying his luck with putting on his Mk. 22 it had led to the current situation where Matthew only had his Mystic abilities to rely on ¡®...And now I have to face down Ripper without a weapon or armor¡­ I would rather be drenched in jet fuel and thrown naked out an airlock¡­ [Motion sensor alert, 120] ¡°Sh¡ª!¡± Matthew collapsed his stance mid-swearing and slid along the metal floor, narrowly dodging the monomolecular sword had come swirling though the wall to his right aimed at his head, before he could thank Aea for the timely alert from the bunkers sensors, Matthew was forced to roll to into a barrack room on his left as a hail of coil rifle fire came from a squadron of drones ahead of him ¡°Hi Major~¡± Not having a chance to catch his breath Matthew quickly kicked off the ground to take distance from the voice of his doom as he flared out with his Mystic flames to guard himself further ¡°Boo~¡± Feeling a palm on his shoulder, Matthew quickly shock it off and took some distance from Ripper that had appeared behind him ¡°Easy there Major~ That¡¯s some serious heat you are packing¡± Matthew took a few moments to look at Ripper that were dressed in a full combat outfit and most likely ready to exploit his lapse of judgement as he replied to her, still he chose to try diplomacy ¡°Ripper, you are under external control¡± After he spoke, Ripper remained silent for a few moments before she surprisingly sheathed her sword and agreed with him ¡°Yeah, that makes sense¡­ I take it you have countermeasures getting ready?¡± Matthew only managed to nod before Ripper threw a sword at him, which he quickly caught and only just managed to unsheathe it before he clashed blades with Ripper which full faced helmet lit up with a neon pink full teethed smile ¡°Then you can keep me company meanwhile, right~¡± Matthew responded by pushing back towards Ripper, taking distance before he banished his sword ¡®I am thankful Ripper is such a blade maniac¡­ That said, please finish with Doc soon, Alina¡¯ Matthew and Ripper clashed swords, as they did Ripper unsheathed a short sword which she used to gorge out Matthew¡¯s side as she laughedUnauthorized use of content: if you find this story on Amazon, report the violation. ¡®Looks like this is going to be a rather painful afair¡­¡¯ Matthew gritted his teeth, he knew Ripper was too much of a sadist to outright kill him in one blow, so all he could do was hold out until Alina arrived - Alina¡¯s figure appeared out of thin air, after having been made to understand the entirety of the ¡®Pure magic¡¯ project her understanding on how to bend and violate what seemed like the natural order of space had reached a new level and that is exactly how she found Doc too. While Doc¡¯s Mystic power also dealt with the bending of space, it wasn¡¯t a one to one of Alina¡¯s powers ¡®The base principle seems to have more to do with connection rather than my relocation and movement¡¯ The robotic eye of Alina¡¯s body showed a slight twitch as the inner lens refocused, a tick that had remained from when she still had a body made from flesh, the next moment something snapped in the air next to her head, the force of the sudden release of power ripped thought the air with a loud bang as both sides of the bunker walls dented inwards ¡®Come on now miss Anastasia¡­ I don¡¯t really have time to play these games¡¯ Another snap echoed out as another invisible string of compressed space snapped next to Alina¡¯s leg, the force once again dented metal and cracked concrete, needless to say these were traps lay down by Doc ¡®...No, it¡¯s more like a probe¡­ Yep, here it comes¡¯ If Alina had hair on the back of her neck they would no doubt be standing by now as she felt the surrounding space vibrate, at once her knife like ears began spinning around and a moment later the hallway around seemed to explode as hundreds of strings of compressed space snapped against her barrier ¡°Enough¡± With her word as a trigger a wave of Mystic power spread out from Alina that instantly made the wrapped space restore, then a moment later Doc¡¯s figure appeared in front of Alina that instantly contained her inside a barrier, Alina stared at her for a moment before she constrained her further inside the barrier ¡°Now then, Where¡¯s Matthew¡­¡± After casually containing and dealing with Doc Alina looked to her left, her eyes no longer exchanged the wall in front of her as she caught sigh of Matthew and Ripper locked in a rather intense exchange of swords, however just as she was about to fold space to reach them something about Doc caught her attention. After a few moments of thinking the features of her robotic face showed a smile as she unleashed her Mystic powers on Doc - ¡®God, Fuck, Shit!¡¯ Cursing mentally, the Mystic heat around Matthew intensified as he fended off the increasingly aggressive Ripper that still threw herself at him with deadly intent, his body was covered in blood as his regeneration barely kept pace with Ripper¡¯s sadistic strikes, Ripper herself wasn¡¯t in that great shape either, most of her suit was battered and half molten, but it was still sealed¡­ At this rate, Matthew would fall first [Internal heat capacity at 82%] Matthew¡¯s back had opened up along his spine, desperately venting waste heat out of his bionic spine that were nearing overheating, the hallway around was cut to pieces, just then Ripper pulled back and gave Matthew some much-needed breathing room as she dramatically yelled out as the working active camouflage of her suit displayed a rather comical distraught cartoonish face on her helmet ¡°AHH! No!~ Not you too, Metal alloy experiment #183631 why did you fail me too!?¡± The cause of her grief was of cause, her sword, or what was left of it anyway. After a few moments of rubbing the now very blunt blade against her helmet, she casually discarded the sword by throwing it to the side before she drew the 4th out of 21 swords she carried on her person and reengaged Matthew once more, however before she reached him Ripper slammed into a barrier of compressed space and was swiftly captured ¡°That¡­ Took¡­ You¡­ A¡­ While¡­¡± Matthew complained as he caught his breath, a moment later Alina appeared next to him before she folded brought him to a bathroom in the inner bunker, then she spoke ¡°Clean up, I will handle the rest my love¡± Before Matthew could respond, Alina¡¯s figure disappeared once more, Matthew stared at where she had been a moment before for a bit before he let out a sigh and fell over backwards into the large pool of water that quickly began steaming around him as numerous tubes connected to his spine he asked Aea ¡°...Did I do something wrong again?¡± [No, Mistress Alina¡¯s mind simply appears to be on some other matter, so please do not worry Master] Matthew let out another sigh before he closed his eyes and mouth and sunk in to the pool¡­ - Not having much else to do, Matthew got his 09 serviced completely as his body healed and the nanite clusters in his body got exchanged for new ones fresh off the lines, he assumed Alina were working on some sort of plan and since neither Aea nor her had said anything to him, he also assumed that that wasn¡¯t an option ¡®...It still feels strange¡­ Trusting someone else this much¡¯ Matthew continued floating around in the pool, his mind was clear as he stared up at the ceiling above the pool while his thoughts echoed around in his mind ¡®With things as they stand now launching a manned expedition into the spacial hellscape or any other attack on Wicka is out of the picture¡­ At least in the near future¡­¡¯ However just as Matthew were begging to shift himself mentally towards a drawn out conflict with no clear in sight Alina¡¯s voice suddenly echoed out in his mind [Matthew¡­ Do you trust me?] Feeling a little blindsided by the sudden question of trust, Matthew took a moment before he answered ¡®Of course I do¡¯ A moment passed before Alina¡¯s voice once more echoed though Matthew¡¯s mind [Then get equipped as soon as possible, I have found a backdoor, we¡¯re going on the offensive] Matthew showed a smile as he rotated his body underwater to plant his feet on the floor of the pool before he set off and leaped out of the water, when he landed on the floor he asked ¡®How long do I have?¡¯ [5 minutes, then I am sending us in] ¡®Got it¡¯