Chapter 30 : Silence before the Storm, The King's Arrival After walking for many minutes through dark corridors lit only by strange gems hanging on the walls, I finally arrived at the place where my ship, or at least what was left of it, was laying. We were inside a wide hangar long of several hundred square kilometers, it was hard to imagine that the legions brought such a huge structure so close to the front line. It was almost the size of a Scylla's mega-structure. Everywhere I looked, I could see different types of ships and soldiers. From above, it looked like thousands of ants constantly in motion, each with a role and a task to perform as quickly as possible. When I saw my ship just near the entrance where I came from, I couldn't help but accelerate my pace, until running in the middle of all these beings, each of them stranger than the other. They were looking at me with a surprised and curious air. I arrived at the foot of my huge flagship, and a line of reapers was waiting for me, followed by a few columns of a hundred battle drones. Considering their numbers, I guessed that they were the survivors of the last battle. Even though Gladia warned me before entering the hangar, I couldn't help but feel a twinge of sadness when I saw them and the state most of the reapers were in. I was both extremely happy that not all of them were lost, and extremely sad to see that there were so few left. Gladia told me that out of the 2500 drones originally present, only 700 were still operational. 400 battle drones, 200 elite drones and only 100 support drones. As for the reapers, out of the battalion of 500 reapers, only four platoons survived, that is 200 of them. Some of the drones needed maintenance, and many of the reapers were badly wounded, yet when I approached, they all knelt before me no matter how severe were their injuries. Seeing their endless loyalty to me, the one responsible for the deaths of so many of them, made my heart ache even more. I knew that sacrifices were needed during war times, I prepared myself for this kind of situation from the first day I discovered this army inside the golden hangar... And yet, losing subordinates is not easy to handle. I have always been ready to achieve my goal and destroy the Scyllas no matter the cost, but it doesn't mean that I do not feel anything at all. Compared to my squad members, having failed the protocols made me keep my inner emotions as a human being. This is what makes me different than a mere brainwashed rifter, and yet this is also what hurts me the most now. As long as I don't forget the death of those who succumbed, I'll be able to move forward until the end. 'Master. Welcome. Back.' The voices of all the reapers kneeling in front of me sounded at once in my head. "I'm glad to see so much of you survived the last battle. Bring me inside the ship, I want to meet my squad." 'Yes. Master.' The reapers formed two columns among the battle drones platoons still kneeling and waiting for my orders. I walked between them to the teleportation platform we used to enter the ship. Once inside, I could hardly recognize my flagship. Walls were destroyed, explosion and burn marks littered the floor and the walls, diverse fluids traces could be seen everywhere... It looked like a giant storm devastated every part of the ship. Impacts made by kinetic weapons were present on every wall I could see. Those heavy gauss cannons the scyllas use on their ships and mega-structures are devastating if not stopped by shield deflectors. I wondered how the ship was able to take so much damage without being completely vaporized. I don't know what materials the Ancient Beings used to build such a ship but they were probably the strongest I've seen since I woke up. I doubt that even the Scylla mother-ship would resist for so long without its shields. I made my way and explored the entire ship, passing with difficulty through the debris and pieces of hull scattered everywhere, until I reached the room that served as our infirmary, where our healing capsules were present. Most of the pods were either destroyed or damaged, and the ship core no longer had enough power to supply the ones that were still working. Gladia had to ask Admiral Aubouros to install a new temporary healing facility for my injured squad until we could repair ours. [Your squad has been treated by the best healers from the third legion. They are now resting in the new healing capsules the legion lent us, until we could restore our own.] 'How are they ? What is their state ?' [Katarina and Jerome are lightly injured, but they suffered from serious mental trauma due to a spontaneous awakening when their cryo capsules have been damaged. They might have mental health consequences at their awakening. Alpha Zero and Douglas are both operational, but they still need some rest. Douglas wasn't too badly injured he just lost a lot of blood and lost consciousness, as for Alpha Zero his regenerative capabilities are insanely fast and he is already ready to be deployed again. Alice is in the most worrying state. To save her, the legion healers had to do intense surgery and put her in an artificial coma. We do not know when she will wake up, nor do we know if she will be able to recover her previous strength after such a trauma.] I felt bad for Alice. This situation reminded me of what happened on Kar'goth when we fought the Giant Ants ; Alice has been the most badly injured among us and she had to spend several months in a healing pod to recover. Once again, she was the one who suffered the most from all of us. While Gladia reported to me the condition of my squad, I walked with difficulty through the debris until I arrived in front of them. Five pods stood before me, inside of which I could see each member of my squad and Alpha Zero completely immersed in a mix of unknown fluid, which looked the same as those the legion injected into me with the syringes when I woke up on the white table. 'Gladia, I want you to wake up Alpha Zero.' [What about Douglas ?] 'Not yet. I want them to recover as much as possible, they already suffered a lot because of my mistakes. I don't want them to die because of my carelessness.' [Jun, you are still heavily injured and to be honest, you should be the one in a capsule right now. I understand your feelings, but you should not try to solve everything alone. You will need your squad members for the last battle, even if they are injured.] 'Enough. Obey me and do not discuss.' […Alright, this is your choice after all.] I was rude to Gladia, but I couldn't help feeling extremely bad for my squad members. I need them, but I don't want them to die in vain because I decided to rely on them while they were so badly injured. I decided to continue my plan with Alpha Zero only, from what Aubouros told me earlier we only have a few days left before the final battle. I don't want to risk my whole squad members. If I fail and die, I want them to stay alive. I will not force my will on them anymore. 'I. Am. Glad. To. See. You. Master.' While I was lost in thoughts, Gladia released Alpha Zero from his pod. He immediately came back to his sense and knelt in front of me. I would always be surprised by how far the reapers are pushing the limits of organic life forms. Human-based lifeforms like my squad members and me, even though we have been empowered so much by the Scyllas protocols, still needed at least a few minutes to wake up from a healing pod. Alpha Zero only needed a second to be fully operational again. If I had the same weird logic as the Scyllas, I would say that the reapers are without a doubt a superior species compared to us. And still, they are under my order and I did let so many of these precious subordinates die... "I am also glad to see you alive, Alpha Zero. From now on, you won't leave my side. A huge conflict is going to take place in two days, and I want you to follow me into the heart of the battle to fight the Scyllas commanders. Are you willing to fight and die alongside me ?" 'I. Have. Always. Been. Ready. To. Give. My. Life. For. You. Master.' "Good… Come and stay inside my shadow for now." Once Alpha Zero dematerialized and disappeared into my shadow, I left the flagship and teleported myself outside to meet the support drones. They were giving their best to fix the ship before the next battle. Everyone told me that the Lance of Kar'goth would be unable to fly again, Aubouros even asked me to dismantle it to scavenge the parts still usable for his legion. In return, he proposed to me the command of a much bigger ship, a Void Battleship. I refused. I knew those drones' tenacity, I trusted those robots the ancients beings designed themselves to fix the flagship. I survived a certain death on Kar'goth because of this ancient ship and its army sleeping in the golden hangar. This vessel saved my life so many times, if I have to die, it will be inside none other than my ship, the Lance of Kar'goth. After spending a few minutes in the hangar taking the reports of the remaining support drones officers, I left the ship in their care with only one order. "Make it able to fly again in two days." ___ Far from here, on Lunaris, a carriage accompanied by a contingency of masked men wearing shabby clothes and armors was rapidly advancing in direction of the Forest of Truth. While Jun and his crew fought the Scyllas, the Great River of Fate continued to flow in both dimensions and the gems given to the Founder King of Lyssandra and his Grand Dukes by the Oracle started shining more and more, until emitting a light so bright that it was visible from a kilometer away even in daylight. The actual King of Lyssandra, Charles Le Sage, accompanied by the four dukes of his kingdom, had to put the gems in a dense chest made of rare orichalcum metal to prevent the light to pass through the carriage and alert the surroundings. "Charles, do you think we would arrive in time ?" "We will, my friend. The gems started to emit more and more light, until now when they are so bright that we have to keep them in a chest to not give away our position. It is a sign, and I know deep inside my heart that the Protector Spirit is waiting for our arrival." The old man talking casually to the king as if he was from the royal family was Duke Edmond Eddington. He was the closest friend to the former king, the father of Charles le Sage, and he always considered the actual king as his own son. "My King, what if the Protector Spirit do not let us go through the for..." "Stop being a coward St Claire ! Are you maybe afraid of the seed-eaters residing inside the forest ? Even their weakest child would be able to kill you gwahahah !" A styled black-haired man in his forties, with a charming face that would make any woman fall at the first sight, gorgeous blue eyes, and dressed in a perfectly arranged noble uniform, tried to ask his king before being cut off by the muscular guy seated next to him. This loud and noisy man, resembling more a civilized gorilla than a human, was Duke Alric Beaumont. He was a bald man wearing nothing but a chest plate armor and leather pant. On his naked arm skin could be seen so many scars that one would wonder how he could still move them. He had a square face with an angular jawline, and a burnt mark was covering a third of his face from his left ear to his mouth. He was the tallest and most powerful of the four Dukes, as his duchy cultivated strength above everything else. He is leading the Vigilante Forces, a kind of shock police responsible for keeping order inside the capital and the other major cities of the Kingdom. Duke Michael St Claire was his exact opposite, his duchy was responsible for the kingdom's schools, academies and magic research. All his duchy lineage had to be the best scholars in their domain to be recognized by their Duke as truly deserving the St Claire family name. "I would rather die from a dirty elf arrow than spend another day in the same carriage as you, Beaumont. I already lost my sense of smell just by being so close to you for so long." "Gwahahah ! With the amount of woman perfume you put on you every morning, are you sure you didn't loose your smell long ago already ?" The two dukes continued arguing with each other for long minutes under the amused sight of their King and Duke Eddington, until the last and younger duke, interrupted them. "Mes-sirs, can you please stop your quarrels ? We have almost arrived to the Forest of Truth border. We are not going to vacation, but to an extremely dangerous place, so please for once be serious and show our King due respect." "Gwahahah do not worry little Pierre, uncle is here you don't have to be afraid. Be it the elves or the beasts, me and my vigilante corp will take care of it !" The Duke Pierre Baillard was the leader of the kingdom's Templar Order. He was a faithful man in his late twenties, having short blonde hair, a refined visage with no visible default and piercing golden eyes. If an angel had to take a human form, he would probably look like Duke Baillard. Being an archbishop of the Zenon church at only twenty and having slain a lesser demon at only twelve, he was considered as one of the best genius born in the Kingdom of Lyssandra during the last century. While the Dukes continued to discuss among themselves, the King was silently looking at the huge Mountain piercing the sky through the carriage window. After having decided to venture into the forest, the king decided to hide their carriage and troops as an important mercenary group traveling through the kingdom. Although they stood up among the other carriages traveling on the main road, it was still better than being recognized as the King and the four Dukes expedition. They traveled for a few days until finally reaching the edge of the Forest of Truth. "Your Highness, we arrived." A loud voice alerted the king of their arrival and the carriage suddenly stopped. It was none other than Matthias, the king's personal guard, hiding as a bulky coachman. After everyone descended, the soldiers and royal guards hiding as mercenaries formed up around their king and dukes and waited for their orders. "Edmond, send some of your men to scout the surroundings and make sure nobody is aware of our presence here. Duke Beaumont and Duke St Claire, prepare the camp for tonight and the defensive measures. Duke Baillard, you stay with me. I task you to protect the chest containing you-know-what." Although the Dukes were casually talking during the trip, once they landed out of the carriage the air around them changed and they all became serious. It was now the time to do their duty and follow their king's orders. The kingdom was at stake, they were all aware of how important this mission was. "Yes, Your Majesty." They all answered while bowing down, and then they started moving with their men. While everyone was preparing for the night, Matthias asked his King. "Your Highness, what if the elves inside the forest are hostile to us ? What should we do ?" "Hmm…if this renegade elf clan is really living inside the Protector Spirit domain under its protection, I do not think they will dare to attack us. I still ignore a lot of things Matthias, however, what I am sure of is that our presence here today has been decided by the Spirit for a long time already. Maybe the Protector Spirit knew this day would come the moment he gave the gems to our ancestors centuries ago." The king and his royal guards in their torn and shaby clothes hiding their heavy golden armors walked to the biggest tent, and prepared themselves for what would be a long night. Meanwhile, through the treetops, between the soft foliage covering the air with a sweet and soothing touch unique to the forest of truth, a pair of glowing eyes watched carefully as these humans prepared to cross the forest. 'The time is close, my children.'