Without having any snowfall yet this year, the plains are shades of brown and grey, brown grass, brown dirt, dirty greyish stone showing through in places. The cloudless sky is a midnight vault, with countless sparkling pricks of white. There is no nearby light pollution to dull its splendor.
We observe the fence from close up. Even though there are signs every fifty or so feet, saying “Restricted No Trespassing,” there are no signs of any sensors or cameras. Drawing one of my swords, I fill it with ki and slash open the fence. Before we can go through, I hear an odd sound over the soughing of the wind.
Pt-tat. Pt-tat. Pt-tat. The rhythmic drumming noises seem to be coming closer. It sounds like it is coming from several sources, but they are concealed by the rolling landscape.
I pull my second blade and glance at Urehara-sensei. He nods silently and draws his katana, moving to stand at my back, so we have eyes in all directions.
After a few moments, three figures become visible inside the fence, rising out of a slight depression in the ground. Four more appear, two to either side, running along the outside the fence. Made of black metal, with glowing read eyes, they have the form of wolves and look to be about three feet at the shoulder. Their oversize jaws have teeth that would make a bear trap green with envy.
“Three in front. Two to either side.”
“None behind us. I see the four on the sides. I have never seen drones built like that before. I did not the US government was working on something like that.” Urehara-sensei sounds more than a little surprised.
“Those aren't drones. They're constructs, magical artifacts, golems of a sort. They're called iron wolves. I've faced them in the Battleground of the Damned.”
“How strong are they?”
“I don't know. Their strength can vary quite a bit, but considering their speed, they should be fairly strong. It'll be a tough fight. The only certain way to stop them is to destroy the mana crystal, which is most most likely in the middle of the chest.”
The constructs stop at a distance of about twenty yards, but they can cross that short a distance in only a couple of seconds. For a short dash, I am faster. I can cover that much ground in just over a second.
“Sensei, we need to cut down the odds as quickly as possible. I'm going to go for the group on my left. Follow me as fast as you can move, and do a passing strike so that the other iron wolves can't attack your back.”
“Okay.”
“NOW!”
I focus my ki into my legs and push off with my right foot as hard as I can. My body launches forward like a bolt from a crossbow, and with two steps I have covered half the distance. The iron wolves and Urehara-sensei start moving at the same time, as I pass the halfway mark. One wolf targets me, and the other targets Urehara-sensei.
One second.
Iron wolves are not sentient; they are only constructs. Following its limited programming, the iron wolf attacking me opens its jaws wide, in preparation to bite me. Both of my swords slip between the jaws. The iron wolf has no throat, but the points of swords pierce the thinner metal in the back of the mouth, as easily as a steel punch goes through aluminum foil. As the cruciform hilts of my swords slam into the hinges of the jaws, my left foot slams into the iron wolf's leg, shattering the knee joint. The wolf begins to fall, and I wrench my blades apart, as I spin. The wolf's head and neck explode into mangled wreckage, and my right kick accelerates its forward velocity.
Even though I told Urehara-sensei the only certain way to stop the wolves is to destroy the magic crystals, this way is just as effective, but it take overwhelming brute force.
Two seconds.
Urehara-sensei drops to one knee, sliding along the ground at a slight angle away from the charging iron wolf. As the wolf skitters, changing its direction of travel, Urehara-sensei's katana shears through both of its front legs a the knee. The wolf pitches downward, tumbling across the ground.
“Mark.”
Three seconds.
The two iron wolves from my right are within ten yards, one targeting each of us. The tumbling wreckage of the first wolf I engaged, causes my wolf to veer to the side. I push off the ground, charging back toward the new wolf. My swords force its mouth away, with a cross block on its neck, and my right kick dents its chest, knocking it to the ground.
“What?”
Four seconds.
I close with the tumbling wolf, and drive my right sword through its chest, with an overhand thrust. The iron wolf shudders and does not move anymore. Turning, I see Urehara-sensei remove the legs from a wolf already missing its head.
Five seconds.
“I have chosen my name.”
The three iron wolves inside the chain link burst through it. Two charging towards me, and the third toward Urehara-sensei.
Six seconds.
Turning the head of the left wolf with a cross block, I use its mass to push myself into the second wolf. I drive a flying knee into second wolfs head. The wolf tries to bite my knee, but its teeth screech off of my poleyn. The force of my second knee strike knocks the wolf tumbling to the ground.
The sound of Urehara-sensei's katana sheering through metal reaches my ears.
“What is it?”
Seven seconds.
Spinning toward the wolf whose head I deflected, I focus my ki into my blades. My swords lash out in a double strike, with one blade half a beat behind the other. Blue sparks fountain out the impact, and I rapidly follow up with more strikes, in a figure eight pattern. Three four, five six, seven eight, and the wolf collapses to the ground.
Eight seconds.
“Jinmu.”
Turning to the last wolf, I see its inanimate husk pinned to the ground by Urehara-sensei's flame covered katana. He has developed a strong affinity for using to manipulate fire, in the past month.
This fight was far too easy. The iron wolves were much weaker than I expected, despite their speed. Were they inferior products or do they not function as effectively on Earth?
“That's one hell of an ambitious name. Do you plan to create an empire?”
“My little girl will need a safe place to live. It is my responsibility as her father to create one. I should have twenty to thirty good years left, that might be enough time.”
I turn away, so Urehara-sensei does not see the hate in my eyes. With Urehara-sensei in Taereun, I probably will not kill Mei, as long she is not stupid enough to provoke me. Her friends are another story. I am going to crucify every single one of them.
Slicing open the chest of each iron wolf, I rip out the blood red magic crystals, that were powering the automatons. The exposed chest cavities are covered with extremely intricate spell sigils, but I do not know how to read them.
There are two types of magical spell constructs that I know of. The first are magic formations, which are a tool for maintaining a long term spell effect. Formations require constant monitoring and the input of mana from a caster, but also allow a caster to cast spell that are beyond his or her ability to cast.
The second are sigils, which are used to create more or less permanent spells. I do not know the mechanics of how they gather mana, but they do not require monitoring or mana input from a caster. In theory, the effects of a sigil can be maintained for hundreds or thousands of years.
“Let's get moving.”
I walk through the huge hole in the chain link. Urehara-sensei stands up from inspecting one of the iron wolves and follows me.
“That construct is very interesting. I never encountered anything like it, when I played the game.”
I glance over my shoulder at the metal wreckage. “They're pretty rare, but there are a few places in the Battleground of the Damned you can learn make them. Just to reach the Gate to Haven, this probably won't be a short journey. If you want we can spend some time at a place where you can study construct crafting.”
Urehara-sensei seems to think for a few moments. “Maybe. We can make the decision if the opportunity presents itself.”
&
nbsp; RRRoooooaaaaaaarrrrrr! A dark object riding on streaks of blue fire streaks over our heads and turns to hover on four jets of flame. Its long cylindrical body has two long wings, two stubby wings and a triangular tail rising from the back. Under its nose are two six-barreled guns with rectangular ammunition feed tubes connected their sides.
“What the fuck?”
“That's a Predator Mk. 15, Mark. Those are 12.5mm chain-guns; it is outfitted for antipersonnel work.”
“Fucking punk, stay right where you are. Move and your dead.” The amplified voice is one I never expected to hear again.
“Fuck you, Clarence.” My shout should be audible over the drones engines.
“You little bitch! I'm going to keep you in a black detention center for a month! By the time I'm done with you, you'll never have a problem taking a shit again!”
“He really does hate being called, Clarence.”
Urehara-sensei chuckles, even if it does sound a bit grim. “You really do not know the meaning of fear or caution, do you?”
“I want him pissed, so he won't think straight. I want Wendell pissed even more, but I don't how to break though the liquid nitrogen that passes for blood in him.”
Six or seven minutes later, three all-terrain vehicles, with methane engines, pull up outside the broken fence. The two Jones dickheads get out, with eight others agents. The Jones' are still wearing their expensive suits. While Wendell is not obviously armed, Clarence is carrying some kind of boxy gun, with a bore the size of an old currency quarter and a huge drum on it. The other eight agents are wearing modern body armor and carrying assault rifles. The Jones' vehicle has a silhouette of a man hunched over a console, probably the drone operator.
The FBI agents spread out in a semicircle, facing us. Clarence and Wendell are to my right, at one end of the semicircle.
“The police aren't allowed to use firearms any longer. How the fuck do they have guns?”
Urehara-sensei laughs, but there is no amusement in the sound. “Governments make laws to suppress their populations, not to limit themselves. The FBI has special dispensations allowing them to use otherwise restricted weapons. It is pretty much the same in all first world countries.”
“That is very accurate, Ryouske. Thank you so much. Trespassing on restricted Federal land, and destruction or Federal military assets, there is no possible way for you to elude prosecution this time. Now that you are a criminal, I can dispense with politely addressing a piece of foreign trash like yourself. Control over Delphi will finally be where it should be, in the hands of the FBI.” Wendell's smile does not match the naked malice in his eyes.
“You are a fool. I have already completely divested myself of all connections to the Urehara Conglomerate. If you try to take Delphi under this flimsy pretext, my family will destroy it.”
Wendell laughs. “Actually, you are the fool. As soon as you stepped down, Nobuhiko and the board entered negotiations with the DOJ for the sale of Delphi. Their asking price was astronomical, but with your actions, we should have no trouble getting it for virtually nothing.”
Hearing what Wendell said, Urehara-sensei seems to lose something. For the first time ever, he has the air of a man who has lost. Closing his eyes, he draws in huge breath and holds it for several moments, before releasing it slowly. When he opens his eyes, they are harder and colder than Wendell's.
“I would not have been able to protect my descendants from their own stupidity after death, and since I am leaving this world, I will not be able to protect them now. They can live with the consequences of their idiocy.”
Wendell's smile disappears, but the malice remains in his eyes. “Considering that neither of you are known to be insane, I really am curious, what are you doing on government land, dressed in medieval armor and weapons?”
My smile is as malicious as Wendell's eyes. “Considering you aren't known to be a retard, how can you see those iron wolves and not question what the really are? Have you ever seen a drone built like that?”
A shadow of something flickers in Wendell's eyes, and he looks over his shoulder. “Special Agent Jones, examines those drones, please.”
Clarence's eyes widen. “What the fuck are you listening to that punk for? Give him to me for a few days, and he'll stop with this bullshit and tell you everything.”
“Just do it.”
Clarence glares at me, before moving to investigate the constructs. As he passes through the line of fire of two of the other agents, they point their guns at the sky and return their am to us, after Clarence passes.
Clarence squats next to one of the drones for a minute, scratching his head. His face has a lost and confused expression, when he walks over to Wendell and whispers in his ears. Wendell's eyes narrow, as he turns and rapidly stalks over to investigate the constructs. Going from one to the next, he looks inside their torn open chests, before returning to glare at me.
“What are those things?”
I shrug. “You sure you're not retarded? I already told you they're iron wolves.”
Wendell's face starts to darken. He has run into something that is outside of his realm of understanding, and it seems to have shaken his self-control. “I do not care what name you call them. I want to know what they are.”
I put on my best mocking grin. “Haven't you ever seen a construct before? They're all over the place in Taereun: Battleground of the Damned. You want to know what happened two years ago, then come with us. The answers are in The Nameless, Inc.'s facility in this complex.”
Wendell flicks his hand in our direction. “Cuff them. You two drop all those knives.”
“Go fuck yourself.”
The semicircle of FBI agent is barely more than eight yards from me. Before the Jones dickheads can react, I am already in the middle of them. Two agents go flying in different directions from their guns, by the time Clarence has his monster gun pointed in my direction.
Boom! Boom! Boom!
Boom! Boom! Boom!
I use an arm lock to force one of the FBI agents into Clarence's line of fire. He takes the shots meant for me, with blood spraying from his chest and face. After I release his arm, his body falls to the ground.
“CLARENCE!” Wendell is standing on his toes, with the point of Urehara-sensei's katana under his chin.
Clarence violent spins in Wendell's direction. “DON'T FUCKING CALL ME CLARENCE! Well, fuck me.”
Clarence's gun barrel drops slightly, so it points more at the ground than Urehara-sensei.
One of the FBI agents holds his hands up slightly, looking at me. “I'm going to try to stabilize Agent Parker. Alright, sir?”
I wave my hand in the directions of the fallen agent, while moving back a few steps.
“You can't stop us, Wendell. We're going into that facility, with your help or over your dead bodies. I don't give a fuck, which it is.”
Both of the Jones assholes glare at me silently. Clarence looks like he wants to kill me, but Wendell seems to be weighing the situation.
Urehara-sensei's voice is calm. “Wendell, this is probably a military black operation, most likely with congressional level backing or oversight.”
Wendell's eyes narrow. “Special Agent Jones, we are going to enter this complex, with the assistance of Mr. Urehara and Mr. McGuinness. Anyone who resists will be terminated with extreme prejudice, and anyone who surrenders will taken for questioning.”
“Does this mean I'm going to get to kill some politicians, Special Agent Jones?” Clarence has a light in his eyes, that reminds me of a mad dog.
“This will probably result in the sanctioning of politicians.”
Clarence glares at us. “You two amateurs had better stay out of my way, if you know what's good for you.”
Wendell looks in my direction and shrugs slightly. I cannot keep the shock off my face and almost burst out laughing.
“Agent Carstein, what is Agent Parker's condition?”
The agent tending Agent Parker drops a wind breaker over his f
ace, before standing up, while shaking his head.
“I hate filling out accidental death paperwork.”
Wendell sticks his head in the open window of his all-terrain vehicle and says something to the drone operator that I cannot understand. If I still had my Half-Dvergar body, it would be easy to hear him.
“Are you ready?”
“Lead on, Mr. McGuinness.”
As I start walking, I catch Urehara-sensei's eye, and he nods slightly, letting the FBI agents move out in front of him. Advancing at a steady jog, the wintry plains roll out behind us. The FBI agents are all in good condition and make no complaints over the pace I set.
Constructs, like the iron wolves, are not constantly controlled by their creator, and the creator or master should be totally unaware of their condition. If we reach the facility before the wolves loss can be noticed, we should have a chance to surprise them.
Tragedy?
*** North Dakota - Earth ***
December 27, 2077
After nearly two hours, I crest a ridge and see the facility below me. Motioning at the the people behind me, I crouch down, to avoid being silhouetted against the skyline.
There are only five buildings, the largest being a square concrete building, that might be a total of 20,000 square feet. Three of the other building are small apartment buildings, that appear to have ten units each. The last one is a rather lavish house, that has to be over 10,000 square feet. A parking lot is next to the concrete building, that is large enough to hold 400 or more cars. It only has twenty-seven cars parked in it.
Three packs of nine iron wolves each are patrolling the area surrounding the facility. These iron wolves have a different appearance from the ones we destroyed. They are more heavily constructed, with thick armor plating and spikes around their shoulders and chests.
Path of Transcendence 1: Ultimatum of the Nameless God Page 12