《Aegis: The Children of Eden》 Prologue: Legend ¡°Journal entry number 521. December 24th, 2098. The time is 23:15. I am Private Brian Pierce, turning age twenty tonight once the time hits 00:00. Mother said that I still have a chance to grow taller but I¡¯ve been five foot three inches since the day I turned fifteen, so that¡¯s bull.¡± He spoke into the mic that was embedded in his suit. Brian Pierce wasn¡¯t a pretty short guy standing at only five foot three inches tall but he weighed a solid 180 despite the lack of a bountiful source of protein. Although he was still technically a teenager, his face bore the signs of someone who was at least a decade older. ¡° Well, I can¡¯t complain since I am still alive, I mean -¡± ¡°Peanut.¡± The deep voice that cut him off as he was speaking belonged to his older brother and frequent guard partner, Specialist Don Pierce. Don, age twenty two was almost Brian¡¯s complete opposite in terms of stature; he typically towered over most people with his six foot and seven inch frame but, while he weighed almost as much as Brian did, he was built as thin as a rail. The only similarities between the two could be found in their faces and voices. ¡°Don¡¯t call me that.¡± Brian growled over the com. His older brother¡¯s height made him even more sensitive to his own lack of stature. If it were another senior officer other than his older brother, or had he been around other soldiers as well, he wouldn¡¯t have acted so insubordinately. ¡°Quiet.¡± Don replied as he yawned. Guard duty was a fairly mundane task given the effectiveness of the GP barriers. ¡°Why? We¡¯ve got nothing else to do except sit out here and freeze our asses off in these Sentinels on my birthday night.¡± Brian huffed as his sharp brown eyes pierced into the darkness, his vision aided by the nightvision capabilities of his Sentinel. The Sentinel was a bipedal machine that was built and developed by mankind in order to help fight against the hordes of monsters while keeping the pilot relatively safe. Each one was a thirty foot tall metal giant equipped with a pair of high caliber chain guns that would enable the user, provided they had a full box of ammo and weren¡¯t facing anything beyond the basic hordes, to wipe out at least 1000. While the earlier Sentinel models were almost completely immobile and could serve as little more than really expensive turrets, after over fifty years of improvements and modifications, the Sentinels became much more formidable tools in the hands of those who were equipped with partially formed Aegis Cores, allowing them to integrate directly with the Sentinels themselves, increasing their efficiency and movement speed and response time by as much as 200% depending upon the individual¡¯s aptitude. There was a drawback to this, of course, the linked pilot would risk suffering severe mental backlash should they be damaged enough to forcibly severe the link between them and the machine. The vast majority of these pilots, however, were more than willing to take this risk in exchange for the significant boost in combat effectiveness and ability to engage opponents in close combat should the need arise. Don and Brian fell into this category of Sentinel pilots, they each had partial Aegis Cores, only 9% formed at most, but enough to establish a strong link with their machines. ¡°Like always, there is hardly anything out there, just a single Siren. The majority of those things are far more clever than either you or me, they know that they won¡¯t be getting past the barrier any time soon, so why would they bother sitting around? We¡¯re the only idiots who do that.¡± Don and Brian weren¡¯t the only Sentinel units who were out on patrol that night, equally spread out around the perimeter of the San Francisco ¡°Holy Land¡±, otherwise known by the name of ¡°Serenity¡±, were twenty other units, each responsible for guarding several miles of the border. Outside of the translucent protective barrier of ¡°Serenity¡±, stood a little girl. She couldn¡¯t be more than four years old. Her dainty little face was smudged with dirt, tears formed small streams that streaked down the sides of her soft cheeks; clouds of dust, dyed red, puffed up with each drop as the thirsty earth swallowed the tears as soon as they hit the ground. What remained of a beautiful bright yellow sunday dress that was now closer to resembling a washing rag than anything else, hung loose upon her tiny frame; the dress rustled as her shoulders trembled, fear, loneliness and sorrow was plastered upon her face. ¡°Mommy!¡± The cry rang out sharply on the other side of the barrier but came across as a muffled screech when it reached the ears of the Sentinels who stood stoically at their posts. Even with the protection of the barrier, the call still made their souls shudder slightly, they each felt the slightest urge to go out and rescue the small child despite having complete knowledge of its true form. ¡°Ah, the little girl came today, huh? Makes sense seeing as it¡¯s Christmas Eve.¡± Brian lamented. Although holidays and celebrations like Christmas no longer had quite the same fanfare that they used to, as was seen in old recordings of life before the fall, they were still important to the human race as those events were still part of what defined humanity, a part of what separated them from those things outside. For this reason, even though they lacked various resources and could rarely afford any excess, people still celebrated such things in order to keep the human spirit alive and help foster some sense of hope. They stood still as the minutes ticked by, accompanied only by the periodic cries of the Siren. ¡°It¡¯s 00:00. Happy birthday little bro.¡± Don chuckled as he disconnected himself from his Sentinel, placing it on standby as he popped the hatch of his cockpit and scrambled down the side of his machine. ¡°Come on, I¡¯ve got a little something for you.¡± He fished a small bottle out of a bag that he carried down with him, the liquid inside had an amber glow to it. ¡°No way.¡± Brian almost shouted as he swiftly removed his own restraints and scrambled down to join his brother. His eyes were locked on the bottle as his jaws fell to the floor. ¡°How did you get that bottle of whiskey?¡± ¡°I have my secrets.¡± Don simply grinned as he saw the excitement on his younger brother¡¯s face. Reading on Amazon or a pirate site? This novel is from Royal Road. Support the author by reading it there. Since the fall of man, the production of things like alcohol became taboo, it was considered a tremendous waste of resources in a time when even the richest people struggled to get a single good meal a day. Alcohol, as a product, became non-existent out of necessity. Now over 100 years removed from the initial fall of humanity, it was almost unheard of for people to have any alcoholic beverages at all because most of the art had been lost and the majority of stores had long been raided and emptied. They took turns taking one sip of whisky, savoring the burn as it rolled around in their mouths leaving a trail of cinnamon fire in its wake before searing their throats and spreading its warmth through the pit of their stomach. ¡°Oh shit!¡± Brian coughed as his eyes teared up. He let out a laugh as he shivered. Brian had never tasted a single alcoholic beverage before and his first taste shook him to the core. ¡°Man is that stuff rough! What did you make it with? Lava?¡± He could still feel the burning in the pit of his stomach. ¡°I¡¯m not entirely sure, I just got lucky and found this in some rundown house.¡± Don shrugged, he wanted to laugh but was struggling to keep his own cough back; he, of course, was also very inexperienced with alcohol. After their first sampling, they didn¡¯t dare take another sip. While they didn¡¯t really care for it, they were still on guard duty and knew that they could get into an incredible amount of trouble if they shirked their duties. They passed another several hours in silent vigilance; the end of their shift was near as the clock read 3:00, just one more hour until they would be replaced by another pair. ¡°Don, look.¡± Brian frowned as he saw the body of the small girl begin to flicker out of existence, in its place was a grotesque fiend. Its face had no eyes, only pit sensors like those found on a snake, and a giant mouth full of razor sharp teeth that could shred straight through most man-made materials. Its body was wrinkled with four withered breasts that hung past its elbows; its body was hunched over with six deceptively thin limbs protruding from its torso. The skin of the Siren was a sickly grey hue, covered in a thin membrane that looked vaguely like mucus; it was mostly bald except for a few patches of hair that hung from its head. It stood at roughly five feet tall, perched upon a pile of rubble as its shriek filled the air. Its face was turned away from the barrier, it seemed to sense something off in the distance. ¡°Shit, something big must be coming.¡± Don muttered as he activated his com-link and set it to include all active guards. ¡°All units, on alert. This is Sgt. Pierce speaking. We are unsure yet but we may have something in sector N2. We have visual of a Siren that is reacting strangely to some outside influence. Keep your eyes open for anything. Issuing level one alert, it may be nothing, but be sure to check in on time. Over.¡± A multitude of confirmations came in over the com as everyone received the message. As soon as the last voice sounded, the Siren let out an even stranger and more piercing screech before suddenly gliding away at a speed that would shock anyone who was unfamiliar with the various monsters beyond the shield. The eyes of the Pierce brothers narrowed as they consciously diverted a bit more power to the night vision capabilities of the Sentinels and activated the thermal overlay, allowing them to get a more accurate idea of what was out there. Several more moments passed before a figure slowly appeared. The figure was that of a humanoid male that stood at just a little over six feet tall. He was cloaked in a skin-tight black material that revealed the contours of his sculpted body. Even under the cover of the blood-red night, one could tell that he was an incredibly powerful being; walking unperturbed through the land of the undead where no human dared to walk alone. His face was covered by a sleek black helm, his features hidden in a darkness that was so complete that not a single ray of light could escape it. His gait had a slight hitch to it, as if something was hindering it a bit; it wasn¡¯t until the man got closer and within the range of the spotlights that Don and Brian were able to see what it was. The sight of it made their hearts feel like they were about to burst out of their chests, made their throats run dry and their souls feel like they wanted to flee from their bodies, made every single hair on their body stand rigid in primal fear and hatred. It was the massive and vile head of an Arch Demon. ¡°Halt! Do not advance any further!¡± Both Don and Brian simultaneously yelled out as the blood pounded into their heads, it took every bit of their years of training to not pull the triggers on their guns as the armaments on the Sentinels came roaring to life, pointing at the lone figure and his grisly traveling companion. It wasn¡¯t the figure that triggered this reaction in the brothers, but rather the head of the Arch Demon; any human who came across even the smallest hint of an Arch Demon would have their most basic instinct trigger; fight or flight. The Pierce brothers were born to fight. ¡°State your purpose! If you take a single step forward I will open fire! Do you confirm!¡± Don¡¯s voice boomed out from the Sentinel, shaking some rubble loose nearby. The figure stopped where he was and brought one hand up towards the guards. The helmet on his head suddenly dissolved itself and melted into the rest of his suit, revealing a ruggedly handsome young man who was no older than the guards were. He opened his mouth and spoke. ¡°I am 2nd Lt. James T. Harding, 1st ranked of the 2nd Generation of Aegis Knights of ¡°Nirvana¡±, Holy Land 72, Los Angeles, CA. I must report that 72 has fallen. I am the only survivor. I slew this Arch Demon during the battle.¡± His voice was almost robotic, completely devoid of emotions. Deep within his blue eyes, however, there was a shadow, a storm of anger, sorrow, and pain that was buried deep within his soul. One could only guess at the nightmare that this man had to endure. Chapter 1: James T. Harding, 20 years The sun rose early in the morning as it always had, blazing in all of its glory as it peaked over the eastern horizon. However, its warm embrace was rejected by much of the Earth as it tried to make its way through the atmosphere; the vast majority of Earth was covered in a fog that warped any natural light that touched it, turning what used to be warm and welcoming daylight into a perpetual twilight of blood; it was thickest at roughly 1000 meters above sea level. However, miniscule pockets of the world still resisted the mist, allowing the rays of light to bless the earth in these select areas. These pockets of resistance were known as ¡°Holy Lands¡±, one of these holy lands was located in what used to be San Francisco, California. San Francisco was vastly different from what it looked like before the Cataclysm. Outside of the bounds of the barrier, where there used to be a thriving metropolis, had now become a landscape of partially collapsed and abandoned structures, eroded by the winds of time and tides of war. Not even the iconic Golden Gate Bridge remained, the only thing that was left was a single arch that sat in the middle of the bay, leaning heavily towards one side, ready to topple at any second as the thick cables that used to help hold the structure together dangled listlessly in the wind. Much of the area had been reclaimed by nature, not the nature that was often depicted in mankind''s documentaries, that nature had a certain tranquil beauty to it, a sense of belonging. What had once been a concrete jungle was now covered in gnarled trees and vines that glowed in faint hues of purple, black, but mostly red. They did not fill one''s heart with wonder but instead instilled it with fear and despair; a sense that if one were to ever venture into those woods, they would never return. Not even the best of mankind''s sensory technology could penetrate beyond the first several meters of the wilderness and reveal its secrets. The area about 300 meters from the barrier to the wilderness was completely devoid of signs of any of the strange new vegetation. This no-man''s land had long been cleared out, over the decades that passed, by human workers and their machines. None of the strange vegetation was able to grow within that area because of the residual energy that leaked from the barrier, it repelled the red fog from the air and cleansed the soil around as well, allowing a few more natural plants to be grown. While no trees were allowed to be planted here, any crop that would mature at under 1 meter was allowed to be planted within 100 meters of the barrier. While the safety of those who were in charge of tending to the crops could never be fully ensured outside of the barriers, it was necessary for people to take these risks as humans needed nourishment to grow and stay strong. The barrier itself was translucent and had no actual physical form; it was a pure energy that could be felt as one passed through it, like a thin curtain of water that would leave a person''s skin tingling, washing them of any impurities that they may have brought in from outside. The only way that someone could see it is if that person stood right next to it and looked up at a certain angle, they would be able to see a slight ripple in the air that let them know that something was there. The barrier of the San Francisco Holy Land was quite massive, forming a sphere that was 13 km in diameter, protecting its inhabitants from any threats, be it from the air or beneath the ground. Any monster or demon that came into contact with it would either perish immediately or be unable to advance forward regardless of how powerful they were. After another layer of more essential crops, along with the scattered dwellings of the farmers who tended them, was a massive 30 meter tall and 10 meters thick concrete wall that served as a secondary line of defense. Older and less mobile Sentinel models were entrenched at various points along the top of the wall to function as manned turrets should the need ever arise; the controls of these machines did not require an Aegis Core to operate so even the common soldier, with the proper training, could operate it. Within this wall was where the vast majority of the citizens of the Holy Land lived. A large part of the original infrastructure had been maintained and renovated in this particular area; skyscrapers that used to function as office buildings and hotels had long been converted into living quarters for the hundreds of thousands of individuals who called this place home. The grandest of these buildings, a glowing behemoth of glass, concrete, and metal that stood on a hill directly in the middle of the city; this building was popularly known as the Tower of Heroes and served as the dwelling place for the most talented and powerful individuals that lived within Serenity. On a balcony at the very top of this tower stood a lone figure. The man struck an imposing figure as he stood in silent reverie; despite the fact that he had nothing on but a loose-fitting robe, one could make out some of the powerful contours on his sculpted body. Beneath a set of heavy brows, a pair of piercing blue eyes swept out over the waking city as a fine fog rolled out with each breath. Beneath his high pronounced cheekbones, his strong jawline and chin was mostly covered by a slightly unkempt beard, his hair was of medium length and was equally as messy; the slight crinkles at the corner of his eyes betrayed his age. ¡°20 years. Exactly 7300 days since that night.¡± James sighed in a barely audible whisper. 20 years had already passed since the day that 72 had fallen. James had only been 22 years old at that point, a young man just entering his prime, when he slew the Arch Demon and escaped to Serenity using the power that had been granted to him through the Aegis System to travel the nearly 400 miles on foot from what was formerly known as Los Angeles to San Francisco in less than a day. For his deed of slaying the Arch Demon, James was automatically promoted from his original position as a 2nd lieutenant of the Aegis Knights stationed in 72 to become the youngest Colonel ever appointed in the history of the armed forces; never before had any single human ever been capable of fighting an Arch Demon and surviving, much less taking the head of one. James¡¯ accomplishment was a monumental event in the current history of Humanity¡¯s struggle against the monsters that took the world away from them; it gave everyone a symbol of hope in a time when people were filled with despair due to the fact that the Holy Lands, the last bastions of humanity, were falling one by one due to unknown reasons. Over those 20 years, James did not sit idly on his newfound fame and title and live in comfort like he could have done. He personally led more than half of the expeditions away from the safety of the Holy Lands despite the protest of several officials who wanted to keep him solely as a symbol of hope and, therefore, wanted to keep him as safe as possible. Only after he provided several batches of his DNA to fertility clinics was he allowed to act as he wished; as important as he was as a military force and symbol, because of the nature of the Aegis System being dependent upon genetic factors, his genes, in a city where the ratio of women to men was 3:1, were far more important. In the eyes of scientists, he was a significant key to producing more powerful and efficient Aegis Knights. After fighting in hundreds of battles and killing a countless number of monsters, his image of being the incarnation of Humanity¡¯s Wrath was ingrained into the hearts and minds of the populace; his accomplishments and missions were often captured on film and broadcasted, at great costs, to the remaining humans across the world. James became viewed as an existence that was superhuman, a living legend, an indomitable hero. Taken from Royal Road, this narrative should be reported if found on Amazon. ¡°Time sure does seem to pass by in the blink of an eye, doesn¡¯t it Hero?¡± A low voice came from within the shadows of his home. ¡°Yeah, it does.¡± James replied frankly, his eyes seemed to slightly fog over as he became lost in thought. ¡°I never thought --¡± A light knock on his door interrupted his train of thought. ¡°I apologize Col. Harding, sir, but you asked me to knock on your door when the clock hit 05:30 AM. It is now time.¡± A sweet but slightly muffled voice sounded from the other side of his door. James closed his eyes for a brief second before taking in a mouthful of lungfull of frigid air and returning to the confines of his penthouse. ¡°Wait a moment Jane, I¡¯ll be right out.¡± He called out as he passed through his living room and entered his master bedroom. Contrary to what others might expect from a person who enjoyed the highest status in the city and lived in the most prestigious building, James¡¯ penthouse was furnished with only the bare minimum of furniture and had absolutely no decor: his living room held a single sofa big enough to seat 3 or 4 people along with a coffee table; his kitchen had a nice stove, granite countertops, and refrigerator that came with the penthouse but no silverware to speak of; his bedroom was adorned with a single full-sized mattress and a plain 4 drawer dresser. The lack of any decor or furniture beyond the bare minimum made the large penthouse feel like an abandoned apartment, completely devoid of any warmth or sense of belonging. He entered his restroom and opened a drawer, pulling out a classic straight razor. Without applying any cream or even bothering to look in the mirror, the blade made a single pass over his face, a silver light that flashed for a split second before the blade clicked shut. Only then did he look at the mirror to see his face free of any facial hair; after removing his facial hair, he appeared to be a decade younger than he actually was but didn¡¯t lose any of his regal bearing. He turned the faucet on and quickly splashed some frigid water on his face before grabbing a nearby towel and rigorously wiping the water off. In another breath, he turned his hair from a untidy mess into a more professional slick-back look. After taking care of his head, he returned to his room and exchanged his robe for a black with gold trimmed military uniform that he had already prepared ahead of time. It had taken him less than 5 minutes to transform from a fairly disheveled mess into a respectable leader of men. Without delaying any longer, he put on a pair of military dress boots and stepped out of his front door. Waiting for him in the lobby was a pretty young woman who was roughly 20-25 years old. She had the delicate and beautiful face with a pair of luscious soft lips that men couldn¡¯t help but look at whenever they happened to cross her path. Her form-fitting blue dress accented her hourglass body, revealing gentle curves in all of the right places along with a narrow waist and flat stomach; the shortness of her dress further accented her long and slender legs. Her head only came up to James¡¯ shoulders, making her just the right size for a man of his stature to hold and gaze into her mesmerizing baby-blue eyes as he brushed his fingers through her long blonde hair. Anyone would find this woman to be virtually irresistible. ¡°I have to find a way to get rid of this one already as well.¡± James thought to himself silently as he noticed the look in her eyes; they were filled with a mixture of awe, reverie, respect, but most of all the longing that only someone who had become infatuated would have. While he was old enough to be her biological father, aside from just his naturally good looks, there was a certain mystique and strength that seemed to draw women to him regardless of the age difference; it didn¡¯t hurt matters that there was a lack of males around the world in general and he was the most prestigious one of them all. Ever since he had arrived at Serenity, the ruling body had always made it a point to assign a woman as his aid, the more attractive the better, some even actively volunteered their own daughters or granddaughters for the duty; their thinking was simple, even if the girl failed to officially bring him into their family, they at least had a chance at obtaining a valuable heir however slim it might be. At first, James embraced this arrangement just like he embraced the slaying of monsters; for him, it wasn¡¯t about the pure physical pleasure or his duty to do his best to pass on his genetics to the next generation, sex was simply became a drug for him to fight against the demons within. Over the 20 years of living with this kind of lifestyle, drowning himself in any and everything behind the scenes while doing his utmost to maintain the front of his image as a symbol of hope for humanity, he began to change a bit and see the women behind the pleasure; it took him a long time to realize that, in trying to escape from his own pain, he had been inflicting a different kind of pain upon others with each heart that he shattered. He now made it a point to always end things before they ever got close to involving any true feelings. Which was why he felt that it was likely now time to cut ties with Jane, she had only been his assistant for little more than a couple of weeks. She would be the 17th this year alone. ¡°Sir, today is December 25th. You, along with several other renowned officers and Senior Councilmen, are scheduled for breakfast with Gov. Shaw at 06:00 AM, located at the City Hall. At 07:30 AM, you are scheduled for an appearance and brief interview on the Serenity Sunrise show of station 1. At 08:30 AM, you have been invited to speak at the Aegis Heart academy. At . . .¡± Jane enthusiastically began to list all of the events and appearances that he was obligated to attend. ¡°Ugh, why does every year have to be like this?¡± He groaned inwardly as Jane¡¯s sweet voice droned on. ¡°And finally, at 09:00 PM, you have been invited to attend the Military Christmas Ball as the guest of honor.¡± Jane finally finished with a beaming and hopeful smile. It was the same thing every year on December 25th, while normally known for being Christmas day, it developed a new meaning 20 years ago when James arrived with the Arch Demon head. As the primary reason for all of the festivities, he naturally couldn¡¯t skip out on any of the more significant and prestigious events. Such was the life of the Hero of Humanity.