by A. R. Crebs
“You can make all of your dreams come true. You can have a perfect life with the perfect wife. What do you say, Dovian? Will you join me?”
Dovian blinked once, replaying all of his memories and thoughts. What else could he do?
Opening his mouth, he shamelessly uttered, “Yes.”
"Gold Status"
Epilogue
A horrendous rumble shook the entire channel. Chunks of shattering rock and dirt collided atop General Yoshitaka’s helmet. He paid no mind to the miniscule impacts as he looked over the map of the tunnel system, scratching out one by one the entries and exits that had been destroyed over the past couple weeks by the nonstop battle. A flurry of heavily armored footsteps darted behind the attentive man, one man quickly scuffling to a stop beside him.
“Sir?” A lieutenant saluted quickly.
“Saito, you have good news for me?” Yoshitaka asked, his voice echoing from within his heavy armor.
It was the same question he asked daily, which was often replied with news of the complete contrary.
“Actually, I do.”
They turned away from the map on the wall and quickly began following after the rushing soldiers.
The lieutenant pulled up from his DNAIS a map of Dai-Ni-Tokyo. “It seems the frontline has finally made it through and has cracked into the enemy’s own underground channels. After a week, Hidaka and Watanabe were able to find a source of their original locations.”
The map spiraled to the side, quickly lowering beneath Dai-Ni-Tokyo’s city into the underground tunnels. Following down one path, the trail quickly dug beneath the oceanic crust, following a deep trench that led all the way to the middle of the Americas. Yoshitaka watched the image flicker in the center near the City of Fountains.
“Very interesting news,” Yoshitaka muttered. “Have we been able to make any contact, yet?”
“No, sir,” the lieutenant said, shaking his head. “Nothing past our own walls.”
“Any news of our civilian count?”
Saito twisted the map, pulling it back to the upper side of the city. He highlighted two of the few surviving prefectures. “Osaka has been wiped out. Kyoto is currently unmanned; however, 60% of all civilians and soldiers have safely made it to the underground.”
“That is good news,” Yoshitaka said, his voice lifting in spirit.
“I think we are finally gaining the upper hand, sir.”
“I hope you are correct.”
“General Yoshitaka! General! Sir!” A workforce soldier slid to a halt, saluting roughly before tugging his arm back to his side.
“Can’t you see I am very busy?” Yoshitaka asked.
“It’s very important, sir.”
Yoshitaka turned toward the excitable soldier, watching through the dark eyes of his sculptured mask.
“While burrowing, we’ve come into contact with a trans-world, fiber-optic com line,” the soldier sputtered.
“Yes, I know of this. Have you made use of it?”
“We’ve hacked it, sent out a distress signal, and have received a response.”
“What kind of response?”
“Sir, we’ve made contact with a Mr. Grayson. He says he has valuable information for your eyes only; he has also countered with a distress query of his own.”
“We send out a distress call and they ask us for help in turn? Do they not understand the losses we’ve sustained in the past two weeks?” Yoshitaka asked, turning to continue his trek down the channel. “Tell this Mr. Grayson that I am too busy saving my own people to bother helping him.”
“Yoshitaka, sir. He told me to tell you that if you said that, I was to relay to you that Mr. Clarke is calling in a favor.”
Yoshitaka froze mid-step. Slowly turning, he curiously asked, “Where did you say this call came from?”
“Sir, Bio-Tech Military Corporation.”
Saito quickly added, “That’s Fountain’s main corporation.”
Yoshitaka smiled. “Saito, gather as many troops as you can. Also, I want you to contact the Iga clan.”
“I-Iga, sir?” Saito stuttered. The thought of the unruly clan made the lieutenant shiver.
“It is time we settled our differences and realized there’s a bigger problem at hand,” Yoshitaka said. He looked back to the other man beside them. “Soldier….”
“Yes, sir?” The worker saluted.
Standing at attention, Yoshitaka continued. “I’d like you to relay a message to Mr. James Clarke of Bio-Tech Military Corporation. Tell him reinforcements are on the way.” Another explosion sounded from above ground, sending a flurry of debris over their heads. Yoshitaka slowly lifted his gaze. “And we are bringing some friends.”
"The Sorcēarian’s Home"
Biographies
Bestiary
Armor
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World Info
ABOUT THE AUTHOR
A. R. Crebs spent her youth playing video games, watching action and horror films of the 80s and 90s, and used her imagination as a form of entertainment for her family and friends. It wasn’t until she was in her early teens that a friend introduced her to the fantasy genre of gaming. Crebs was hooked. What started as fan art of her favorite characters turned into a passion for designing a world of her own. Thus, Dovian was born. The creation of Dovian’s world grew throughout the years where new characters and creatures were made. While in college, Crebs sparked the idea to write her story of Dovian and his adventures in The Esoteric Design series. After graduating from the Rocky Mountain College of Art + Design with a BFA in illustration, Crebs began to piece together the artwork and ideas from her youth. Together she formed a novel with chapter illustrations, bios, and a glossary. Dabbling in multiple art styles, A. R. Crebs felt that changing the look of the illustrations would coincide with the imaginations of others. While everyone has a different mind, hopefully, one of the images depicted in The Esoteric Design matches the reader’s imagination whether it is through style, mood, or subject matter.
You can check out A. R. Crebs’ websites for updates, full color artwork, and to participate in future contests.
www.ARCrebs.com
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