"Say, are you people loyal to Cafka, or this Legion?" I asked without looking over. Their voices would betray them now that I had some help.
"I’m loyal only to myself," the doc said. "I’m in it to save people and to study Armaments. And in this case, a mutated one."
Brown burst out in laughter, patting the doc on her shoulder.
"This is my kind of woman!" he teased. "But jokes aside, I’m loyal to the Legion, not Cafka or the organization at home. Or to be more precise, to the people who I respect and serve with."
"Same here," Heather said before Gene could say anything stupid. I knew the man wasn’t bad; he was just looking out for his family. The rookies murmured something along the line of having no idea. It was good enough, I guessed.
"And what about these two? How long will it take for them to recover?"
The doc first walked up to Samson, touched some buttons on the vat console, and then proceeded to do the same with Levi.
"A couple of hours to a day."
I nodded thoughtfully. There was no other way but to do this myself. The two of them would only be a hindrance without transforming.
"Stay here. I’ll need a battle suit and a rifle, some grenades, and a map. Gremory is facing off against a General and Captain duo in the training bay. What’s the quickest route there?"
"Here," Gene said, handing me a device from his pocket. "Have a look at this tapper."
I slid it on my hand and tapped at it lightly. Tiny needles sank into my skin before a three-dimensional hologram of the ship appeared above my wrist.
Our current location was marked with a blue dot from what I understood. Gene went ahead and tapped it a couple of times before a red marker appeared showing me the destination. What was more, the tapper’s hologram changed in real-time, so when I turned to the door, the direction arrow switched with it and changed where to go.
"Thanks," I nodded looking back again at my friends. "Block the door and stay safe. Don’t open the doors for anyone but me. The medical facilities can take on the wounded, this here is for our personal use only, and those who follow the Steel Legion rules."
"What if Cafka gets to us before you do?" doc asked. I shrugged.
"Then let them in without resisting. I first need my team on their feet again before I can make a move on Cafka," I replied and put on the battle armor. "Well then, I’m off," I added, swinging the rifle over my shoulder. The door hissed closed behind me and beeped three times before it went silent.
The arrow pointed right to a direction I hadn’t visited yet, and according to the tapper, there was a lot of commotion that way. I put up my rifle and looked through the scope. It was as red as the light overhead and wouldn’t be of much use like this, but whatever.
Then an idea struck me. It was both smart and dumb at the same time since I’d lose precious time, but if Gremory had held out for so long, she’d hold out a bit longer, or at least I hoped.
"Well then, how about we first restore some light?" I mused and tried to open the map. "Where the hell could it be located?"
"What is located where?" a voice asked from behind. It was Brown, the idiot.
"What the hell are you doing here?" I asked.
"Helping you, duh. You seem like a man to follow, and someone who can handle himself, but you’re new here. I know the ship inside and out after being stuck here for four years now."
"Right. How do we restore power and light? Engine room?"
He nodded.
"Here, let me adjust the tapper for a sec," he said and tapped around on the thing. A yellow marker appeared along our route. We’d have to make a slight detour but nothing too problematic."
"You coming with me?"
Brown grinned and nodded.
"You lead the way since you’re immortal or something, no? Oh, and take this. Put it in your ear," he said, handing me an ear bud. It adjusted in my ear and started ticking and humming.
"Is this thing broken?" I asked, but then I noticed him ticking at his own as he hummed something.
"Huh? Oh, this? I was testing it out," he laughed, winking at me. Why the hell would he wink? This wasn’t the time or place to be thinking about such things.
"Yeah. So they have a built-in mic as well?"
"Sure do. So, how about we get moving? I want to get some spoils."
Fourteen corridors, hallways, and an elevator ride separated us from the engine bay. On my tapper, I noticed a couple of dozen stationary green dots, which I was afraid were dead Legionaries. Surely, as we walked up on the first dots, they were already dead or dying. Each one of them had been beyond saving. Brown decided for me when he took out a small energy pistol and shot them in the head, one after another. We didn’t speak for a while as we proceeded further in, though I knew it weighed heavy on him.
Occasionally, one or two Gebradim lay among the dead, but far less than what I liked to see. Brown’s murmuring wasn’t helping, and he was proving to be a pain in the ass with his constant commenting and questioning, but it was good to have someone else around during such moments.
"Enemy ahead," I whispered. The tapper showed us a blotch of red dots near the elevator.
"Thirteen Gebradim. What do you think they’re doing?" he asked.
"Why think when we can find out," I replied and looked around the corner. The enemy had erected a barricade that looked out on both approaches. At the center, hidden away by more plasti-steel, a sort of machine-gun nest was set up. The weapon looked dangerous, and the soldiers were on edge. I had some grenades, sure, but using them up here wouldn’t be a smart move.
"Heads up," Brown said through our comms. "Green dots are approaching on our ten. I’m in contact with them, and boy, are they excited to attack. They have a grenade launcher and two napalm grenades. But the launcher needs four seconds to fire a round, it’s broken or something. Can we give them an opening?"
I nodded as my heart started racing like mad at the prospect of a joint op. Maybe I was overthinking it, but I had already started seeing the soldiers as my people. Just what would it take for them to start seeing me as one of their own, or someone who could keep them safe? The captain with his sons, the officers and ass kissers, those groups were the first on my killing list when the chance arose.
"Tell them to get ready in thirty seconds. Ten, nine—"
I darted around the corner, releasing a salvo of energy projectiles at the enemy position. The barricades held and mostly ricocheted the bullets back at me. I ducked back behind the wall as a mechanical whirring started up at the enemy position. I had to give my soldiers another chance, even if it cost me a limb. It would just grow back on again, I hoped.
I dropped to my stomach, rolled out again, and shot at the defenders. Two bullets struck an enemy in the head. He dropped like a sack of meat as the whining turned into a whirring and a hail of bullets struck just above my head. Metal and concrete showered me as I tried to pull back.
"Grenade away!" a voice shouted from the opposite side.
The enemy quickly targeted the other flank, cutting the poor soul in pieces before the napalm grenade even exploded against their nest. A loud boom was followed by a flaming inferno that bathed the enemy in napalm.
The defenders hadn’t thought as much ahead, or they didn’t have any shield units. Instead, flames caught on their exposed limbs and heads, spreading in between them. The only thing that didn’t catch fire or explode was the machinegun nest.
"Call them back! They’ll get mowed down!" I ordered. "I’ll try and—"
Unfortunately, I was too late for two of the rookies. The machine gun released a deadly torrent of lead cutting them down right the middle before I could even get up.
"No!" I hissed, enraged by the constant death and destruction these aliens brought with them. My arm changed on impulse and shot out a spear, followed by two more from my palm. It shredded right through the barricade and struck the nest. The two remaining projectiles hit the two troopers operating the nest, killing them outright.
Brown ran up to us once everything was over and patted me on the shoulder.
"Think you can do that whenever you want? That sure was one hell of an attack."
"I-I don’t know. It happened only because I was enraged. Speaking of which, I’m sorry for your loss, guys," I said, turning to the four regulars. They murmured something in return before one of them approached.
"Thank you for the assistance, sir," the regular saluted. "You’re an Armament user, no? That means you outrank anyone on board but the Captain by default, sir. And Lady Death. She’s more or less second in command, sir!"
I nodded, knowing as much already. There was so much to this that I had no idea how everything would fall in place, though, even if I managed to dethrone Cafka and his evil offspring. Would the soldiers follow me? Who would we piss off, and how would we finance ourselves? Where would we set up the base? So many questions and no answers.
"Will you join me down there in the engine bay, or will you hold up here?"
"We’ll join you, sir. I doubt there will be any more ants around here. This area was systematically cleaned before they bunkered up, which means that there are most likely more of them in the lower levels."
"Very well then, regular. Let’s give everyone back their light!"
Chapter Twelve
The elevator threatened to fall apart as we rode it down to the engine bay. A peculiar stench of machine oil combined with a burnt—something hung heavy in the air. Was it burnt flesh? I had no idea, but it might as well be for how it stank.
Brown tuned our comms to a single squad frequency so it would be easier to give orders once we got there. I was happy not to be alone down here, not that I was afraid, but there was something comforting to a group effort.
"Eleven green dots. All near each other and unmoving. Another execution?" I asked. No one replied. For all I knew, someone’s father, mother, or brother could be down there.
"Most likely. The ants usually operate like that. Secure targets and exterminate everything. They’re brutally efficient."
"Have they boarded this ship before?"
"No, but we’ve fought against them many times. We as in Humanity."
"I see. Anyway, we're coming up to the entrance. Take the corners or hide behind the crate. I’ll draw fire if someone’s there to welcome us, so don’t hesitate. Shoot anything that even remotely looks like a Gebradim."
"Yes, sir!" five voices rang out in my ear. I winced from the high volume but grinned. Sir. It sure had a good ring to it if I was to be honest.
The elevator finally came to a halt, followed by the opening of doors. To my surprise, not a single enemy awaited us. I frowned, almost insulted by the fact. Then I cursed myself inwardly for such a stupid proposition. Wasn’t it better if I didn’t lose more troops? And where was this overconfidence coming from? Was it Devil and his year-long expertise? Sure, they told me I’d inherit his expertise, bravado, and whatnot, but the feeling was overwhelming. People trained years for such knowledge and confidence, while I had gotten it for free.
I motioned for the left flank to follow me, and the right to cover us, and then jumped over the railing and landed with cat-like grace. We moved along the narrow walkway in between machines and wall cabinets, carts with machine parts and tools.
The machinery and controls looked mostly intact, not beaten or shot up, which was a good sign though everything was off, or running on backup power.
I sighed and stopped short of where the green dots were, wanting to check them out immediately, but Brown called me out on it.
"Sir, I think this area might be booby trapped. It doesn’t make sense otherwise."
"Can you check if it is? Devil?" I asked.
"Booby trapped? Sure, give me a moment," he replied with his usual, low growling voice. It was rather unnerving. Luckily, I didn’t have anything to fear from him.
"Can you check if everything’s clear up ahead and in between the battery blocks?"
"It’s clear," he replied. I nodded in thanks but remained quiet.
"Right flank, hold your position and protect Brown. Left flank, on my six," I instructed before I moved out. The stench from earlier hung even stronger in the air than it had in the elevator. It must have originated from down here somewhere.
After rounding the first corner, all of us came to an abrupt halt. Ahead of us lay a heap of burnt Human and Gebradim soldiers and civilians. The smoke wafting up from the pile was partially picked up by the ventilation system, but even a small amount of the stench was gut-wrenching. Without power, the fans didn’t run strong enough to rid us of the smell.
"They’re fucking barbaric," I hissed and turned around. "I promise they’ll pay for it dearly, but first things first. You two, take the left side. I’ll take the right. We need to get electricity back up, so there’s fresh air to breathe again."
"Sir," the two replied as they put up their rifles and scurried off. The way they held themselves and watched for threats told me I’d want them to live. Still, I couldn’t do it all by myself. There was too much ground to cover.
It took us barely five minutes to search for survivors, but we didn’t find a single one. It sent goosebumps up my skin when I had no idea about what was going on. Was this another trap? Or were we in luck? I decided on a different approach.
"Devil," I whispered. "Can you tell me if anyone tampered with the engines?"
"Yes, they have. You know, it would be far easier to talk to me directly instead of walking around like a stupid idiot. I can’t say what they did, but it has something to do with the startup. Your friend might have a better idea."
"Thanks. I’ll keep it in mind for once I’m up there again. You’ll be my eyes and ears."
"Hah! You wish. Why would I bow my head to someone weaker than myself?" he mused.
"I’m hosting two parasites, and you think I’m weak? Give me a third, and I’ll add him to my collection!"
"That’s not power, little Human. That’s arrogance."
"Whatever it is, I have it. Leave me be for now."
To his credit, Devil shut up and disappeared from my subconscious. Was he that mad? Whatever. He already served his purpose.
"Brown!" I shouted. "Get your ass down here!"
"You can just talk over the comms, you know?" he replied.
"Shut it, smartass. I feel better when I shout. Anyway, the ship told me someone tampered with the boot sequence. Does that mean anything to you?"
"Sure. We spool the engines; they go poof. It’s standard once you know what to look for. The far better trick is to let them start up and overheat. But whatever. You go ahead and help Gremory. This will take me up to half an hour."
"Right, right. Stay with him," I ordered the soldiers and turned about. The other two followed me like puppies. It was not like I cared, but the more, the merrier.
The first thing that greeted us on the upper floor was a breath of fresh air along with bright light and chatter on the comms. I looked around on the tapper, but there weren’t any enemies in the near vicinity. Still, this was vital in our effort to recapture the ship.
"You two, stay behind," I ordered the regulars who’d been with me down at the engine room. I didn’t need them, not anymore, especially now that I gained important intel on where certain people were held. Before I could move, however, Cafka started yelling around orders.
"I order you all to come and defend the command bunker! If we lose our leadership, this Legion is dead!" he cried. I stopped and played that message back in my mind. Was he really calling on everyone to come and protect his sorry ass over the ship? Was this really how everything would play out again? No, not if I could help any of it.
I opened the tapper and se
arched for any possible command staff. Inevitably, some random mid-class officers would be around somewhere. I just hoped they’d have what it took to take care of my appetite.
More orders and chatter buzzed in my ear. It only served to fuel my rage even more. However, I got lucky for the first time today, and what anger there’d been, it quickly turned to exhilaration. A single, blue dot sat motionless in a room that looked like it was sealed off. The tapper showed the opening mechanism was busted.
"Oh, Devil, yes!" I whispered excitedly. Somehow, I knew it was him as if Devil had fed me the knowledge subconsciously. What’s more, it wasn’t even a detour, but right along the route to the command bunker. Could it be Edwald? My heart started thumping from anticipation.
I readjusted the destination and let the tapper lead me. There was one uncertainty, however. A group of green dots was making its way from the command bunker in the direction of the blue dot. I couldn’t let them get there first, or I’d have to kill them as well.
Putting everything aside, I started running and followed the arrow with only seven halls and corridors to go. Before I knew it, I rounded the last bend and stood before the broken door. Multiple deep indentations and holes were punched toward the inside of the room. The only thing I could think of was that an awakened had done it. Good, even better.
I inched closer on the hole and peeked in, or at least tried to. The light inside was barely existent, but enough that it revealed a large, round form in the far corner. My eyes went wide in delight as Edwald looked up and saw my face through the opening. He scurried backward, pressing his back against the wall and shuddered. His face was a mask of fear and anguish.
"Is that blood?" I asked, just loud enough for him to hear me.
"Y-yes! Don’t come near me!"
"Hah! So it is you, Edwald!" I teased. "Oh, Edwald?"
"S-stay back! I warn you! I’m not that same man I was yesterday! I killed someone!"
I frowned. He sure liked to boast about hurting others. At least that part hadn’t changed and would make things easier for me. Fine, we would play it his way then.
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